Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at a cleverly simple penny sorting device. (See the Precious Metals and Base Metals section.)
Precious Metals and Base Metals:
Reader Jeff K. sent a link to a video showing a brilliantly simple and inexpensive solution to copper penny sorting: The Home-Built Magnetic Penny Sorter.
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Weak electronic demand to push silver prices back to $18 by year end – Capital Economics.
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Gold Price Forecast – Watch Out! Gold in Bear Market.
Economy & Finance:
Zero Hedge reports on the ongoing rout in the markets: Down $29 Trillion Since November. JWR’s Comment: This shows the difference between the Fed’s jawboning about raising interest rates, and actually raising rates from their prolonged artificial low range.
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The Standard & Poors (S&P) 500 Index dropped 2.1% on Thursday (September 29, 2022) to a quite bearish new low of 3,641. So the S&P index is now down 23.6% for the year to date. Ouch. Please, dear readers, lighten up on your equities holdings. They have much further to fall.
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Cost of canceling student debt: $400 billion, agency says.
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At Wolf Street: To Compete with Spiking Treasury Yields, Banks Now Offer 4%+ on “Brokered” CDs of 6 Months to 5 Years.
Commodities:
A great piece, written by Rick Mills: Even The So-Called Experts Are Wrong About Critical Metals Supply.
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OilPrice News reports: Oil Prices Could Be Set For Another Sharp Rise.
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Hurricane Ian may spike food prices.
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U.S. LNG Can Only Solve A Part Of Europe’s Gas Problem.
Inflation Watch:
Nearly 70% of Americans are looking for extra work to combat inflation.
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Here Are Some Things The Fed Will Break If It ‘Contains Inflation’.
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Keeping Up With Inflation: FedEx Announces Biggest Ever General Rate Increase.
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Report: Inflation, Supply Chain Malaise Could Result in Beer, Candy Shortages.
Forex & Cryptos:
The surging dollar will drop next year as the US slips into recession and the Fed cuts interest rates, Wells Fargo says. JWR’s Comment: In the 21st Century world of fiat currencies struggling with dilution and inflation, it may be the Swiss Franc (CHF) that is the Last Man Standing.
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At Currency Thoughts: Sell-Off Resumes.
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Terra founder Do Kwon officially an internationally wanted man as Interpol issues ‘Red Notice’ for his arrest. Here is an excerpt:
“A South Korean court issued its own arrest warrant two weeks ago for Do Kwon, alleging that the cryptocurrency mogul was violating capital markets law. The failure of Do Kwon’s stablecoin Terra and its sister token Luna helped create the domino effect that led to this year’s major cryptocurrency crash. Crypto’s plunge further continued as major crypto lending firms became insolvent due to investment in Terra.
When the arrest warrant was issued, South Korean prosecutors believed Do Kwon was in Singapore. However, Singaporean authorities say the Terra creator is no longer in the country.
Do Kwon later announced on Twitter that he was “not on the run” and was in ‘cooperation’ with the relevant government agencies. However, prosecutors in South Korea quickly disputed the claim and said Do Kwon was ‘obviously on the run.'”
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Bitcoin Sees Massive Decline In On-Chain Activity.
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Australia’s CBDC Pilot to Be Completed in 2023.
Tangibles Investing:
Reader C.B. sent this: Mortgage rates could soon top 7% as Fed fights inflation.
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I’ve noticed that despite general consumer price inflation, the prices of most AR-15/M4 parts are dropping. One key indicator is bolt carrier groups. A year ago, they were selling for an average of $129. They’ve recently dropped to around $79. This presumably indicates that commercial AR builders have been slowing down their parts orders. Thus, the parts suppliers have caught up with demand. The law of supply and demand is inescapable. So, for any of you who are home AR builders, now is the time to stock up on parts to complete your planned builds. I recommend a couple of our affiliate advertisers, for AR parts: Palmetto State Armory and Brownells. (Note that we earn a little piece of the action, if you place an order that originates with one of our links.)
Provisos:
SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investing counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.
News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News items from local news outlets that are missed by the news wire services are especially appreciated. And it need not be only about commodities and precious metals. Thanks!