Category: Economics & Investing

Bond Investors Beware: Mutual Fund Outflows Accelerating as Interest Rates Climb Higher Doug Casey: “We’re Still In The Midst Of The Biggest Bubble In World History” Indian Gold Dealer: “Gold Is Now Trading At $1800oz.—Small Factories And Workshops Are Shutting Down” Items from The Economatrix: Consumer Confidence Misses Expectations By Most On Record Housing Starts, Permits Miss; Single-Family Housing Market Weakest Since November 2012 Defunding wouldn’t kill Obamacare taxes

Stocks end higher despite Nasdaq system crash Reader Peter S. sent: Gold flows from Britain to Switzerland surge in H1. [JWR’s Comment: The Smart Money must see storm clouds approaching.] Total Public Debt Now Eclipses GDP Items from The Economatrix: What Is Going To Happen If Interest Rates Continue To Rise Rapidly? Gold Market Update Compare And Contrast: Public Versus Private Retiree Underfunding In One Chart

The Lesson Of India’s Gold Saga The epic crisis in retirement savings: Vast majority of Americans unprepared for retirement. Median retirement savings for those 25 to 34? Zero dollars. Items from The Economatrix: Walmart Earnings Disaster Exposes a Collapsing Economy U.S. jobs, inflation data support tapering of Fed bond buying Behind Wal-Mart’s Earnings Miss; Weekly Jobless Claims; What Billionaires Are Buying Poll: How Wise Is It to Be Unloading Gold?

A new CATO Institute study found that a mother in New York State with two children is eligible for $38,004 in welfare benefits–which is greater than the annual salary of a first-year New York school teacher. Note where Idaho falls in the benefits spectrum. (Idaho certainly can’t be faulted for “encouraging multi-generational dependency.” (Thanks to John in Washington for the link.) G.G. sent: $2,001,093,000,000: Fed’s Ownership of U.S. Debt Breaks $2Trillion for First Time. Items from The Economatrix: Stars Aligned For “Serious” Stock Correction Dave Hodges:  Escape From Wall Street Cramer:  Giant Reset Looming For Markets

Reader H.L. sent: China Gobbling Up Wheat, as US Exports to Nation Soar Where the Housing Recovery Is Strongest and Weakest Buy Gold Now That Soros & Paulson Are Done Liquidating, Says Analyst Bill O’Neill Items from The Economatrix: How Bad Can Things Get? Obamacare Rate Calculator The Most Important Number For The Market: 2.75%

Foreign Holders Dump A Whopping $40.8 Billion In Long-Term Treasuries Gold Trader: “Big Money Is Now Trying To Get In—On A Violent Regression To The Mean” Items from The Economatrix: Fitch Rings Warnings On Canadian Banks Uninsured next year? Here’s your Obamacare penalty. The Smart Money Is Leaving the Building

India Bans All Gold Coin Imports, Increases Capital Controls Carolina Jim recommended an essay by Paul Rosenberg: The Blow That Killed America, 100 Years Ago. Dire Consequences Await As U.S. Debt Nears A Tipping Point. Items from The Economatrix: That Which Is Incapable Of Reforming Itself Disappears How To Prepare For An Economic Depression US Consumer Bankruptcies Jump By Most In Three Years; Third-Party Collections At All Time High

Reader C.D.V. sent: New Fox, Same Henhouse: Wall Street Takes Over LIBOR. This piece includes some interesting thoughts on derivatives: “A former trader who worked in both New York and London recently told me, ‘At the end of the day, this market is running on the [Federal Reserve]. Once they pull out it’s all over. Cheap money, loads of people making loads of money, but no lessons learned.’” I noticed that Backwoods Home magazine now has a “pay for your subscription in pre-’65 silver coins” option. (We do likewise, for our voluntary Ten Cent Challenge subscriptions.) Similarly, Late’s diner offers …

G.G. flagged this item: A Blunder at the Money Factory Items from The Economatrix: Bernanke Just Felt a Chill Down His Spine Suppressing wages and increasing corporate profits: The tough math behind the current economic recovery. They Are Systematically Destroying Our Independence And Making Us All Serfs Of The State

Eight College Degrees with the Worst Return on Investment. [JWR’s Comments: One loser program that they left off the list: the Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work (BSW.) OBTW, is it just a coincidence that many of these degree programs are dominated by leftists–both students and faculty?] Reader CJA suggested: The Incredible Shrinking COMEX Gold Warehouse Inventories US debt six times greater than declared – study Items from The Economatrix: How Washington Could Push Gas Prices Higher Next Fed Chair Will Lead Us to ‘Economic Ruin,’ Says Peter Schiff Top technician: Yes, 2013 does look like 1987

Monty Pelerin: Tyranny Rules Nearly $1 Trillion in pension liabilities! The Post Office Is Broke: It’s Time To End Washington’s Postal Monopoly. (Thanks to Brian L. for the link.) The Rise Of The Bear: 18 Signs That Russia Is Rapidly Catching Up To The United States Items from The Economatrix: A Quadrillion Yen And Counting – The Japanese Debt Bomb Could Set Off Global Panic At Any Moment The accelerating race to a student debt implosion: Federal student loans rose by $266 billion since 2011. 85 percent of consumer debt growth since 2011 because of student debt. Dr. Doom Warns …

IRS Needs AR-15s for “Standoff Capabilities”? (Ay, ay, ay…) Bill Fleckenstein: Too-easy money makes market too risky; The liquidity-fueled rally of the past 9 months is easy to like. But recent history tells us higher prices based on easy money carry extreme dangers, so a violent drop could lie ahead. Items from The Economatrix: If Housing Is Booming – Why Do We Need Another Fix? Bank of England 0.5% Interest Rates for 7% Unemployment, to Result in 7% Inflation, Ongoing Savings Theft Peter Schiff On The Half-Full Economy

Ding, ding! It is noteworthy that Spot silver spiked to $21 per Troy ounce at the opening of the NY Globex market at O-dark-hundred, GMT on Monday morning. Perhaps the summer doldrums will end early, this year. G.G. suggested: Food-Stamp Use Rises; Some 15% Get Benefits Also from G.G.: Bank of Wausau, WI, Closed by Regulators – 18th Bank Failure of 2013 Peter Schiff – FED Will Continue To Ruin And Cause The US Economy To Collapse! Items from The Economatrix: Here’s The Real Unemployment Rate The American dream myth: Income mobility; 4 out of 5 Americans struggle with poverty, …

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Just set fire to Japan’s quadrillion debt Bitcoins can be used as money…and fall under the jurisdiction of securities laws, judge rules Currency Markets: The Next Crisis Has Begun Items from The Economatrix: Retail Sales: Don’t Look to July for Guidance on December Visualizing The Collapse In US Job Security During The Best Period Of Economic Growth In U.S. History There Was No Income Tax And No Federal Reserve