<Click on graphic for larger image> World Economic Forum – Anatole Kaletsky: Is capitalism entering a new era? It is obvious that new technology and the integration of billions of additional workers into global markets have created opportunities that should mean greater prosperity in the decades ahead than before the crisis. Yet “responsible” politicians everywhere… Continue reading A New Era For Capitalism?
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<Click on graphic for larger image> Bloomberg.com – Wall Street’s Oil Crash, a Story Told in Charts Big banks add $2 billion for energy loan losses in 1Q Oil woes at JPMorgan, Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo This is what it looks like on the down side of the biggest oil boom in U.S.… Continue reading Energy Loans & Debt
<Click on chart for larger image> The New York Times – Saudi Arabia Warns of Economic Fallout if Congress Passes 9/11 Bill Saudi Arabia has told the Obama administration and members of Congress that it will sell off hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of American assets held by the kingdom if Congress passes a… Continue reading Saudi Treasury Holdings
<Click on graphic for larger image> <Click on graphic for larger image> <Click on graphic for larger image> <Click on graphic for larger image> Fact Set – Q1 2016 Earnings Season: By the Numbers The blended earnings decline for the S&P 500 (ex-Energy) for Q1 2016 is -4.2%. For companies (ex- Energy) that generate more… Continue reading An Earnings Update
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – U.S. Treasury Secretary, Japan Finance Minister Clash on Yen Policy Comments come amid concerns Japan may depreciate currency Japan’s Finance Minister Taro Aso on Friday threatened “necessary” action against a rising yen despite U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew arguing there was no justification for… Continue reading Currency Wars
<Click on chart for larger image> Bloomberg.com – Funds Are Betting the Gravity-Defying Gold Rally Isn’t Over Yet When it comes to gold, hedge funds are betting that what goes up will continue to go up. Even after bullion’s best start to a year since at least 1975, investors are positioning themselves for more gains.… Continue reading Betting On Gold
<Click on graphic for larger image> MoneyBeat (WSJ Blog) – China GDP: Second Look Shows Slower Growth Here’s more data for the China-is-tinkering-with-GDP grist mill. China’s National Bureau of Statistics, which puts out gross-domestic-product numbers each quarter, delayed the release of its seasonally adjusted figures until a day after the main headline release on Friday.… Continue reading Digging Deeper Into Chinese GDP
<Click on graphic for larger image> The Financial Times – Corporate borrowers default on $50bn debt so far this year Corporate borrowers across the world have defaulted on $50bn of debt so far this year as the number of delinquent companies accelerates at its fastest pace since the US emerged from the financial crisis in… Continue reading Global Corporate Defaults On The Rise
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Why Investors Should Handle High-Yield Bonds with Care The U.S. speculative-grade corporate default rate rose to 3.8% in March, its highest since 2010, Standard & Poor’s notes. The rise in yields means investors are being paid more for taking the risk of default: the… Continue reading High Yield Bonds
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Facebook – Mike Lee Behold my display of the 2013 Federal Register. It contains over 80,000 pages of new rules, regulations, and notices all written and passed by unelected bureaucrats. The small stack of papers on top of the display are the laws passed by elected members of Congress and signed into law by the… Continue reading Government Gridlock & The Markets