<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Donald Trump’s Cabinet Selections Signal Deregulation Moves Are Coming Business leaders predict changes may come in everything from overtime pay to power-plant emission rules Appearing in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday as part of his postelection “thank you” tour, Mr. Trump said he will push… Continue reading The Future of Regulation
<Click on chart for larger image> Comment We have highlighted the chart above all week. OPEC came to a deal to cut production (by 1.2 million barrels) for the first time in eight years on November 30. As the chart above shows, the price of WTI crude is still unable to break out of the… Continue reading Another Look At OPEC’s Deal
South China Morning Post – Beijing takes aim at Macau gaming industry to cut currency flight Move to slash in half the amount China UnionPay bank card holders can withdraw from ATMs in enclave expected to take effect Saturday Beijing is about to turn its guns back on the gaming industry in its battle against… Continue reading Capital Control In China
The Financial Times – ECB rejects Italy’s plea for more time to rescue Monte dei Paschi Decision leaves Rome with little option but to inject state funds into ailing bank The European Central Bank’s supervisory arm has rejected a request from Rome to delay a private sector-led rescue for Monte dei Paschi di Siena, leaving Italy… Continue reading A Banking Crisis In Italy
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Bond Market Sees Inflation Hitting Fed’s Target The bond market is finally starting to believe the Federal Reserve will hit its inflation target. Measures of inflation expectations derived from the difference between inflation-protected and nominal bond yields are right near 2%, the central bank’s… Continue reading Rising Inflation Expectations
The Wall Street Journal – Tweaks but No Tapering From ECB The initial reaction to the ECB’s decision to reduce its monthly purchases to €60 billion ($64.5 billion) from €80 billion starting in April 2017 was to fear that quantitative easing was on the way out: President Mario Draghi was following in the footsteps of… Continue reading Did The ECB Taper Yesterday? Draghi Says No, Many Disagree
MarketWatch.com – Brent Arends: The stock market’s oldest indicator just flashed red I hate to rain on this parade. But the latest lurch upwards in stock prices has just taken market valuations up into the skybox levels, according to the market timing measure with the longest pedigree on Wall Street. It’s just gone from flashing… Continue reading Scary Stock Market Talk
<Click on graphic for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Why Odds May Be Fading For a Near-Term U.S. Recession Many economists are reducing their warnings, seeing potential infrastructure spending, tax cuts, soaring markets and less focus on international risks As recently as this summer, the outlook for the U.S. economy was looking a little… Continue reading Falling Recession Odds
BBC News – Are Dutch voters really turning to populist Geert Wilders? Dutch voters choose a new government in March 2017 and if the polls are right, the right-wing Freedom Party (PVV) of populist leader Geert Wilders is surging ahead of his rivals and is set to win 35 seats. A quick calculation suggests almost three… Continue reading Will This Be The Next Populist Test?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – U.S. Household Net Worth Reached Record $90.2 Trillion in Third Quarter Stock wealth climbed by $494 billion and housing by $554 billion The wealth of U.S. households climbed to a record $90.2 trillion in the third quarter, driven by a powerful buildup in both real… Continue reading Household Net Worth Top $90 Trillion
<Click on graphic for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Barely Half of 30-Year-Olds Earn More Than Their Parents As wages stagnate in the middle class, it becomes hard to reverse this trend Barely half of 30-year-olds earn more than their parents did at a similar age, a research team found, an enormous decline… Continue reading Doing Better Than Your Parents
The Wall Street Journal – Greg Ip: The Economy’s Hidden Problem: We’re Out of Big Ideas Dwindling gains in science, medicine and technology hold back growth; is America too risk-averse? By all appearances, we’re in a golden age of innovation. Every month sees new advances in artificial intelligence, gene therapy, robotics and software apps. Research… Continue reading Is The Era Of Innovation Over?