M.A. sent this one: Jim Grant Wonders When People Will Wake Up And Realize That Currency Is Based On Nothing? Gary Dorsch: Greenspan Signals Warnings For Bubble-Maniacs From GG: Today’s ISM Manufacturing Report Screams Inflation Items from The Economatrix: Geithner: Disparity in Recovery “Deeply Unfair” Next Meltdown Will Be Driven By “Big Collapses In Emerging Markets”
Voting with their feet: “Atlas Shrugged” taxes blow up in Maryland’s face. Thanks to Richard Z. for the link. Marc Faber and Mish Shedlock on Inflation, Deflation, Doom and the End of Civilization. (Thanks to Aaron for the link.) RBS spotted this: Sharp Increase in March in Personal Bankruptcies. (So this is the “Recovery”?) Water bills go up in down economy as usage drops. (Thanks to RBS for the link.) Items from The Economatrix: Health Plan May Hobble Economic Recovery CBO: Student Loan Takeover Adds $52 Billion to Deficit Harrisburg, Pennsylvania May Miss Debt Payment; Go Into Chapter 9 Bankruptcy …
GG liked this article in Fortune: The coming inflation wave Brett G. sent us: ECB Official: World on Edge of Double Dip Recession Patricia in S.F. suggested: 60 Minutes Exposes United States Financial Collapse Items from The Economatrix: Cowboy Economics (The Mogambo Guru) Jobs, Manufacturing Reports Boost Stock Market Rising Factory Output Points to Economic Recovery Geithner Says Unemployment is Terribly High New Credit Report Rules Kicking in on Friday Stocks: Strong Quarter Ends with Loss Biggest Job Gain in Three Years Pushes Up Interest Rates
It appears that the precious metals bull market is resuming his run. I stand by my long-term predictions. Once again, buy on the dips. Michael W. sent this: Nickel rallies to 21-month high. As I’ve written before: Save your nickels! (They now have a base metal value of just over 6 cents. But just wait until the next Era of Inflation kicks in. Mark my words: Nickels will eventually sell at 3X, or 4X their face value. ) Rob C. mentioned an interesting audio interview with Andrew Maguire and Adrian Douglas. They describe the 100:1 naked leverage being used in …
Jim Wesley: Today it is as difficult for a person to fathom gold at $5,000 per ounce as it was for a person to fathom $1,000 per ounce back in 2002. After all, hold a Krugerrand, in your hand and try to imagine it being worth the purchasing power of $5,000 – enough to buy a good running, nice looking used car. Dollar predictions of gold are naturally what a prudent investor considers — today’s Internet articles find predictions ranging from “headed back down to $500” to “heading up to $6,500 in the coming years”. I must admit, I have …
Mike M. sent this article on The Greece Crisis, American Style: State Debt Woes Grow Too Big to Camouflage Thanks to Damon for sending this: Morgan Stanley: The Rally Is Near Its End The dollar’s danger: A debt-driven collapse? (A hat tip to GG for the link.) Also from GG: Housing market’s recovery appears at risk Items from The Economatrix: Central Banks Stashing Away Gold at a Brisk Pace America: Prepare for an Avalanche of New Taxes An Economic Puzzle Bernanke Can’t Solve Oil Rises Near $84 with Weak Dollar
Four readers sent me this blog piece: The RentenDollar: A conspiracy theory OR Please tell me where I’m wrong Asian Ocean Carriers Slashed Fleets GG sent this: Sell-off in US Treasuries raises sovereign debt fears;Investors are braced for a further sell-off in US Treasuries after dramatic moves last week raised fears that the surfeit of US government debt is starting to saturate bond markets. Items from The Economatrix: Treasuries Find Greenspan’s Canary Fainting in Mine MGM Bankruptcy Likely World Stocks Up on China Earnings, Greece Plan Not Hiring (In California) Consumers Slowly Show Signs of Springing Back Benchmark Crude Holds …
Reader S.M. pointed us to this article in The Washington Times: CBO report: Debt will rise to 90% of GDP From Zero Hedge: Higher Yields, Lower Equities? Another piece from Zero Hedge that several readers recommended: It’s Official – America Now Enforces Capital Controls Damon sent this: S&P Market Indicator Downgrades US Sovereign Debt to aa+ Travis recommended this alarming piece by Dan Denninger: On Deficits And Debt-Financed Government From George Gordon (“G.G.”) British credit rating ‘could be lowered’ The Adultsitter suggested this blog piece: FDIC Playing With Fire by Soliciting State Pension Money to Buy Toxic Assets Items from …
Frequent contributor Damon S. sent this: The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis Items from The Economatrix: Rates Rise After Weak Auction Demand on Seven-Year Notes Half of US Loan Modifications Default Again Bernanke: US Economy Not Ready to Fly Solo Yet Sun Belt Loses its Shine
“H2O” in California sent this news item about Kern County, California: Kern unemployment continues to climb: 17.4% in February. H2O’s comment: “The bulk of Kern’s population is located in the Southern San Joaquin Valley, where agriculture and oil are the lynchpins of the local economy. With the legislative/judicial droughts being imposed on California, local farmers have been allocated just 15% of their annual contractual water supplies. This means that they cannot secure the crop loans necessary to grow the crops to feed the nation for the fourth year in a row. Food shortages are right around the corner, I fear.” …
From reader Michael S.: The Silent Entitlements Monster: Social Security, Medicare And Interest On The Debt Will Gobble Up Every Single Tax Dollar By 2020 Damon sent this: Time is Running Out for the US Dollar Reader S.M. kindly sent us links to five economic articles: The US Government will have to pay higher rates of interest in order to keep selling our debt in order to keep spending and going deeper into debt. Another indication of inflation A new tool to fight home foreclosures: borrowers don’t have to pay lenders! Re-writing delinquent mortgages. Not even 50% have been successful …
U.S. Is Riskier Than Euro Zone; So Says CDS Market. (A hat tip to Yishai for the link.) GG sent this: Central Banks Stashing Away Gold at Brisk Pace. Items from The Economatrix: Commentary from Dan Denninger: Housing Sales: Forget It! How the Middle Class Slowly Evaporated Over the Past 40 Years States Look Beyond Borders to Collect Taxes Owed Stocks Give Up Steep Gains on Renewed Greece Woes Bernanke: Record-Low Rates Needed to Aid Economy Watchdog Blasts Obama Loan Relief Plan Natural Gas Prices Reach Record Low
Damon sent this: Impasse Over Derivatives Slows Senate Banking Bill Also from Damon: U.S. health insurers’ Credit Default Swaps widen after reform From G.G.: Sales of New U.S. Homes Dropped in February to Lowest on Record Items from The Economatrix: Stocks Fall After Agency Cuts Portugal’s Debt Rating New Homes Sales Hit a Low; Durable Goods Orders Up Oil Settles Below $81 on Jump in US Crude Supplies US Has Lost 2.4 Million Jobs to China The Tipping Point at Zero
SurvivalBlog’s Poet Laureate, George Gordon, sent this: Underemployment Hits 20% in Mid-March H.H. spotted this: North Korean finance chief executed for botched currency reform. H.H.’s comment: “How ironic. In the United States, when a Treasury Secretary or Fed Chairman screw up the nation’s economy through back-door deals, insider trading and the manipulation of the currency, they are granted even more power. In North Korea, even if you’re just trying to do your job, you’re treated a bit differently.” Items from The Economatrix: Japan Joins China in Reducing Holdings of US Treasury Debt Bonds Reveal US Losing AAA Status IMF Warning …
GG sent this Wall Street Journal article: Public Pension Deficits Are Worse Than You Think Reader S.M. sent us some more evidence that the US is slipping towards the edge of a bond rating downgrade by Moody’s: Obama Pays More Than Buffett as U.S. Risks AAA Rating. Also, further economic difficulties with managing growing public debt: Lipsky Says ‘Acute’ Debt Challenges Face Advanced Economies. Items from The Economatrix: Agora Financial’s Five-Minute Forecast Court Says Fed Must Disclose Bank Bailout Records A Salon opinion piece by Gene Lyons: It’s Time for Wall Street to Pay Health Care Companies Pull Stock Market …