Category: Economics & Investing

Economics and Investing:

Fed May Lack Legal Authority for Negative Rates: 2010 Memo – G.P. o o o Collapsing America: America’s Infrastructure Decaying Into 3rd World Status. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News 2016’s Economy Begins with a Whimper (Mises) Excerpt: “During many Fed tightenings, the stock market and overall economy improved for years afterward because the Fed stimulus had actually brought a temporary form of economic recovery. But rarely, if ever, has the mood turned dark so fast after the Fed officially announced that the recovery is sound and the life support can be removed.” Puerto Rico Emergency Fiscal …


Letter Re: Digital Currency

Dear Readers, This Digital Currency Nanny State issue has already affected me twice in the last several years. As a business owner in my state, I’m required to pay sales tax and quarterly business taxes via the state website. A few years ago I mistakenly clicked “savings” account instead of “checking” on their site while trying to pay the amount due. Later we received a threatening letter stating they would “seize” assets, property, or funds to get the amount they said we owed. A couple of days later the funds were seized from our account, with a penalty. I didn’t …


Economics and Investing:

Feds unlikely to hike interest rates in the months ahead – P.S. o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Greek Tragedy: Pension Pandemonium Sparks Bank Crash, Stocks At 26 Year Lows – The first line sums it up. And you thought Greece was “fixed”, but now problems are manifesting themselves globally. Greek Stock Market Falls Sharply on Banking Sector Meltdown – More evidence Three Reasons To Be Worried About The Economy – Zero Hedge Items from Professor Preponomics: US News JP Morgan Strategist: Central Banks Tried to Control the World…and Failed Miserably (Business Insider) Excerpt: “In Kelly’s ideal world, the …


Economics and Investing:

22 Signs That The Global Economic Turmoil We Have Seen So Far In 2016 Is Just The Beginning – Sent in by B.B. o o o Four of the Largest Wall Street Banks Hit 12-Month Lows Last Week – D.S. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Grantham: The Stock Market Sell-Off Makes Me Nervous, But I Fear the Big Crash is Coming (Business Insider) Excerpt: “I still believe that, with the help of the Fed and its allies, the U.S. market will rally once again to become a fully-fledged bubble before it breaks.” The Opaque Process of …


Letter Re: Making a “Last Run” When the SHTF – How Do They “Ring Up” Your Purchase?

Hugh, Thank you GMJ for your great article. Having some cash at home is a great idea for when the ATM and credit/debit card readers no longer work with no power. When you make that last run to the grocery store, bring your greenbacks with you. Be prepared if their power is out. You’ve made your organized path through the store and your cart is full. You pull up to the non-functioning conveyor belt to unload your purchase to scan. Because there’s no power it means no barcode price scanner and no credit/debit. The clerk is practically paralyzed, because they …


Economics and Investing:

A SurvivalBlog reader sends this snapshot of a message on the January 2016 statements from Chase bank. o o o Walmart Sues Puerto Rico Over 91.5% Tax Rate Applicable Only To Walmart – PLC o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News CBO Warns: “Trajectory’s All Wrong” on the National Debt (Washington Examiner) Excerpt: “Congressional Budget Office Director Keith Hall warned Congress on Thursday that the national debt is on an unsustainable course, and that improved economic growth alone isn’t enough to dodge a debt crisis.” Total US Debt Breaks $19T Mark: Total Debt Rises by $8.4T in Last …


Economics and Investing:

California renter apocalypse: Why the rise in housing values is a reflection of a disappearing middle class. California rents up 5.7 percent last year. o o o Will Lehr: Jim Willie Interview o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Fed’s “Accommodation” Outrun by Tightening Credit (Reuters) Excerpt: “Judging by recent market action and what’s happening in many economies around the world, it is an appropriate time to take recession risks seriously….” The Cozy Relationship Between the Treasury and the Fed (Mises) Excerpt: “Since the Fed does not exist to generate profits, some may be confused as to how …


Economics and Investing:

Ann Barnhardt on a Personal Update and Negative Interest Rates: Highway to a Cashless, Statist Hell. o o o ‘New Money’ Powers PayPal’s Super Bowl Push – another step in herding the sheep towards a cashless society. Submitted by RBS. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News The Velocity of Money (American Thinker) An interesting conversation about the velocity of money and its implications for the economy. I would add that in addition to an unwillingness to spend through the system at the level of the individual consumer or household, there are structural constraints also in play. Excerpt: …


Economics and Investing:

World Going into Nasty Depression-Hugo Salinas Price – B.B. o o o Hard times if you’re a business owner (or an employee) and part of your business relies on the State of Illinois. State of IL is $10B past due paying vendors – P.S. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News How Free Electricity Helped Dig $9B Hole in Puerto Rico (New York Times) Excerpt: “Now, however, the island’s government is running out of cash, facing a total debt of $72 billion and already defaulting on some bonds — and an effort is underway to limit the free …


A Forecast For 2016 and Beyond: Will America’s Cascading Collapse Finally Unfold?

Through their Zero Interest Rate Policy (ZIRP) and Quantitative Easing (QE), the Federal Reserve (“The Fed’) private banking cartel and the U.S. Treasury have conspired to rig the system. They have artificially suspended the boom-bust business cycle for the past seven years, but now, with interest rates finally rising, they’ve run out of their “smoke and mirrors” tricks. We’ve just had the appearance of an economic recovery, when no genuine structural recovery has actually occurred. Just a tiny 25 Basis Points (0.25% ) rise in the Fed Funds Rate in December 2015 caused a near full-scale collapse of the stock …


Economics and Investing:

The Fed Wants to Test How Banks Would Handle Negative Rates o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Oilpocalypse Wow! Stocks, Bond Yields Plunge As Bank Risk Soars Negative Interest Rates Already In Fed’s Official Scenario – This is a little wordy…. BP to Cut 7,000 Jobs after Posting Huge Loss Items from Professor Preponomics: US News National Debt Hits $19T (Washington Examiner) Excerpt: “Under current law, the debt ceiling is suspended until March, 2017, meaning the government can borrow without limit until then. Obama is expected to leave office with a total national debt of nearly $20 trillion by …


Letter Re: China In Perspective

HJL, I heard the investment officer of a life insurance company speak this weekend. He characterized China as having accomplished what they set out to accomplish, creating infrastructure on a scale that took us 75 years, in only fifteen. We are placing our value system on their decisions and wonder how they are going to get things to pay off or out in three years. They don’t care. We of the west assumed there was a trend that was more of a trajectory. Their activity level will now travel back to the mean as will all the commodity prices of …


Economics and Investing:

Video: 2016 Market Crash Explained In One Chart – Mike Maloney o o o Retail Apocalypse: 2016 Brings Empty Shelves And Store Closings All Across America o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News So It Begins: Bloomberg Op-Ed Calls for an End of Cash (Zero Hedge) Excerpt: “For those who were amused by our warning that a cashless world may be coming, here is precisely why the warning was issued, in Bloomberg’s digital ink…” Read on. Warning: Article commentary may contain bad language or inappropriate avatar images. Barclays, Credit Suisse to Strike Record Deals with SEC, NY Over …


Letter Re: Digital Currency

Hugh, Here are a few additional comments about Bitcoin that might be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers: Bitcoin is the best bet for digital currency that’s outside the banking system; it has the largest market cap and network of developers/miners. There is no Know Your Customer or Anti-Money Laundering with Bitcoin, which means you don’t need to show any ID to get it if you buy it in person. In the U.S., the Bank Secrecy Act, Patriot Act, and other bank/money-related U.S. laws keep Bitcoin from being a legally compliant currency. As these laws are written, they also apply to …


Economics and Investing:

Venezuela is on the brink of a complete economic collapse – G.G. o o o Baltic Dry Index Falls to 325, 1,430 Vessels Need to be Laid Up to Restore Balance – B.B. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News 70% See American Dream Out of Reach (Washington Examiner) Herein lies a substantial portion of the problem. People do not see solutions coming from within themselves, and so they seek solutions through government. Excerpt: “The current political environment has voters thinking the federal government is an ineffective mess that is causing more harm than good. However, they still …