Category: Economics & Investing

The latest official CPI figure: 0.2%. Yeah, right… (After some masterful hedonic adjustments and excluding “volatile” food and fuel–things that matter the most to consumers.) Reader P.T.R. notes: “I noticed that I needed to re-stock some Tang [freeze-dried orange juice powder].  At the store, I noted that it’s now sold in a larger container, so I thought ‘they’re trying to sell more product — the Large Economy Size ploy’.  It wasn’t until I got home and compared it to a canister That I had purchased a couple of years back that I saw the real differences.  The old container held 12.3 …

Doug Kass: Jaw Dropping Prediction For 2011 John R. mentioned this commentary by Jim Willie: QE2 & The Great Misdiagnosis Ireland Unveils Four Year Budget Details, Riots Imminent The Guardian reports: Belgium joins financial markets’ hit list. (Thanks to Bram for the link.) B.B. sent this “desperation measures” news from Ireland: Pension reserve funds to be spent on banks Items from The Economatrix: China, Russia Quit Dollar On Bilateral Trade   Gold Is George Soros’ Biggest Holding   Silver Shortage, A Sign of Manipulation?   Nutting Professor (The Mogambo Guru) 

G.G. sent this: List of Problem Banks Grows Despite Solid Net Income Is the gold market setting up ETFs for chaos? China, Russia Quit Dollar The Fed QE2 Saga Continues Items from The Economatrix: Silver Shortages Accelerate as Wholesale Supplies Plunge   October New Home Sales Drop 8.1%, Prices Fall   Caterpillar Issues First Note in Chinese Currency   Corporations Show Largest Profits In History Amidst Jobs Crisis  

Fierce Finance reports: Private-label MBS debt looms as huge risk Ireland’s unfolding crisis may be followed soon by Portugal, and then Spain and Italy. That many sovereign debt failures would spell the end of the Euro. If the Euro collapses it might cause a temporary jump in the value of the US Dollar, and a corresponding drop in precious metals (at least in Dollar terms.) That dip may be the last chance to buy silver before it vaults into $50+ territory. Robert Rubin: “US In Terribly Dangerous Territory,” Bond Market May Be Headed For “Implosion” Meredith Whitney sees 5,000 bank …

Record-High Turkey Prices Are Just the Beginning. “Currently, wholesale prices are hovering around $1.09 per pound, the highest they’ve ever reached. This represents a 28% increase over 2009’s prices and a 37% increase over 2008’s. The BHO Administration still claims that inflation is low. Yeah, right. The 2010 list price shows that a standard blue steel Colt M1911 .45 automatic is now $919. (Or $950 for stainless steel.) I can only wonder what the 2011 prices will be. Certainly not lower. For comparison, in the early 1960s a standard blue steel Colt M1911 sold for around $60. But by the …

Countrywide’s Errors Could Cost Bank of America Billions How Bad Could Ireland Get? Iceland Offers Some Clues    Goldseek posted some commentary from Darryl Robert Schoon: Betting In The Endgame Items from The Economatrix: The Horrible Truth Starts To Dawn On Europe’s Leaders   Bullets In The Back: How Boomers & Retirees Will Become Bailout Bailout, Stimulus and Currency War Casualties   Economy Sees Growth, But Unemployment Stays High   Korean Conflict, European Worries Weigh On Stocks  

Roberta X provided a link to the USA National Gas Price Heat Map. You will note that some divisions in price ranges follow state lines. These are created by differences in state gas taxes, rather than production and transportation costs. California is mostly mapped in red and Wyoming is mostly green because of what goes on inside state capitols rather than what goes on in oil fields and refineries. And it is no coincidence that the states with the big, pretentious, and intrusive governments are in the midst of budget crises. (California, for example is nearing default.) These same states …

Deborah B. mentioned that the awesome collection of charts at the National Inflation Association site have been updated. John H. mentioned a newsletter PDF: The Rising Frustration With The Debt Crisis by the imprisoned economist Martin A. Armstrong. His newsletters are produced in his prison cell. Here is a quote from his latest newsletter: “We are rapidly crossing the point of no return….So, either we face the reality of a completely new economic model or we hang up everything now.” Items from The Economatrix: Ireland Denies “Surrendering Sovereignty” Over Bail-out   Economic Implosion Sets the Blame Game in Motion   …

Brett G. sent this: Fed Warns of 4.25 Million More Foreclosures Through 2012 From Russia Expert, a Gloomy Outlook. (Thanks to Siggy for the link.) P.D. flagged: Tent Cities, Homelessness and Soul-Crushing Despair: The Legacy of Decades of Government Debt and Mismanagement of the Economy Inyokern highlighted this one: Ireland fears civil unrest as bank crisis deepens Items from The Economatrix: Home Prices Will Keep Falling   Job Seekers Find Bias Against Unemployed   Jobless Benefits Cost So Far:  $319 Billion US Banks Insolvent If They Face Loan Losses   What’s Really Behind QE2?   ECB Tightens Screws on Ireland, …

Brace yourself for more high inflation, Mervyn King tells George Osborne. $4.00 Gasoline By The End Of 2010?   Our friend Fred C. sent this: “Riceland brand rice in 50 pound bags at my local Sam’s Club in Arkansas was $13.95 in July. Then it jumped to $14.60 in late September. Last night I noticed that the pallet with Riceland rice bags on it had 25 pound bags instead of 50 pound bags, and they were priced at $8.95 each. (The equivalent of $17.90 per 50 pounds.) Gap, Wal-Mart Clothing Costs Rise on `Terrifying’ Cotton Prices China to subsidize food …

Roubini: Debt Nightmare Unfolding in Europe The blame game is on: Bernanke Takes Aim at China Governor Warns Cities May Go Bankrupt. (Thanks to B.B. for the link.) The American Way of Life, As Things Fell Apart, Nobody Paid Much Attention. Items from The Economatrix: How Gold Performs During Periods of Deflation, Disinflation, Runaway Stagflation and Hyperinflation   Debt Collectors Stalking, Publicly Humiliating People Through Facebook   US In Terribly Dangerous Territory, Bond Market May Be Headed Toward Implosion   Gold Investing:  A Bet Against The Idiocy of Money Creation (The Mogambo Guru)   US Home Starts Drop More Than …

Voting with their feet: Low-tax states will gain seats, high-tax states will lose them. (Thanks to John M. for the link.) The Southern California residential housing crater is not improving. Commentary by Simon Black, over at the Sovereign Man blog: The First Signs of the Coming Dollar Crash are in Hong Kong. Items from The Economatrix: G20: World Gangs Up On America; The Dollar’s Days As Reserve Currency Are Numbered Three Big Banks Cutting Deals on Foreclosures   Pension Insurer Reports Wider Annual Deficit   China Assaults US Monetary Easing 

The ever-cheery Amrose Evans-Pritchard reports: The horrible truth starts to dawn on Europe’s leaders. JWR Adds: They may have to Punt on this one! (Ireland may be ejected from the Euro confab, shortly, and revert to independently issuing the Punt Éireannach. Major financial and currency chaos to follow, no doubt.) Brian B. was the first of several readers to mention this: Max Keiser tells the world to Crash JP Morgan, buy silver. Even if doesn’t squeeze the short sellers, every family should acquire some silver. $53,957 in Circulation for Every Ounce of Gold Why the Irish Crisis is Going Global. …

The Daily Reckoning warns: Prepare for Mass Inflation Think $5 Corn Is Expensive? Some Are Betting on $10 Next Year No Inflation? Grocery Stores, Gas Prices Tell Different Story In his Trader Tracks 2011 Predictions, Roger Wiegand is projecting hyperinflation within 24 months. (Thanks to Steve C. for the link.) G.G. sent this one: Hinde Capital’s Ben Davies Says UK, U.S., And Japan Are All At Risk Of Hyperinflation If You’re Looking For Inflation, Here’s Where To Find It