<Click on chart for larger image> CNBC – Home ownership drops: Millennials aren’t moving out Home ownership is now at the lowest rate in 13 years, and it isn’t moving much, despite the recovery in home prices. More disturbing, however, is the dramatic drop in household formation. Household formation—when a person who lives with someone… Continue reading Housing: Renting vs. Owning
<Click on chart for larger image> Comment We recently highlighted the following passage from the September 18 FOMC statement, when the 10-year was at 2.69%: … but the tightening of financial conditions observed in recent months, if sustained, could slow the pace of improvement in the economy and labor market. At the October 30 FOMC… Continue reading Is The Federal Reserve Getting Caught Up In Minutia?
<Click on chart for larger image> MarketWatch.com – Shiller’s hot P/Es powering a ‘Roaring Bull’ till 2017 Today, everybody is panicking over the same thing: Yale’s Robert Shiller’s recent remarks about rising P/E ratios. Why? Go back to 2000 when Shiller became a modern day Nostradamus. Flash forward: today Shiller is not only the brilliant… Continue reading Are Stocks Too Expensive?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Financial Times – Quant funds suffer dismal ‘QE’ losing streak According to data provider Hedge Fund Research, the average managed futures fund lost about 3.7 per cent in the first three quarters of 2013. October has been a good month, say industry insiders – but not good enough… Continue reading Hedge Fund Performance
The Financial Times – Martin Wolf: Germany is a weight on the world The US has as much right to complain as others had to complain about US failures The criticisms that hurt are those one suspects might be fair. This might explain the outrage from Berlin last week over the criticism by the US… Continue reading Germany
<Click on chart for larger image> The Washington Post – Poll: Obama’s approval rating dips below 40 percent President Obama’s approval rating has dipped below 40 percent for the first time in two years, according to a new poll from Gallup. The daily tracking poll shows Obama’s approval rating at 39 percent, compared to 53… Continue reading Obama’s Approval Rating Slumps
Bloomberg.com – Of Debt, Growth, Interest Rates and History Indisputably, high real interest rates place an added burden on debtors, whether they are households, companies or governments. So it’s important to know whether very high levels of debt are associated with high real interest rates. This is one of the questions that Vincent Reinhart, Kenneth… Continue reading Carmen Reinhardt: Let’s Talk Debt
Money News – Economist Caution: Prepare For ‘Massive Wealth Destruction’ Marc Faber, the noted Swiss economist and investor, has voiced his concerns for the U.S. economy numerous times during recent media appearances, stating, “I think somewhere down the line we will have a massive wealth destruction. I would say that well-to-do people may lose up… Continue reading Bearish Talk
The Financial Times – Prompt action required on eurozone deflation Policy makers will be forced to confront reality quicker than Japan Is creeping Japanification of the eurozone inescapable? The annual eurozone inflation rate has fallen progressively from 1.6 per cent in July to 0.7 per cent in last week’s flash estimate for October. That is… Continue reading Deflation
CNBC.com – Is Black Friday dead? With more retailers shifting the start of their big holiday pushes to Thanksgiving, it prompts the question of whether Black Friday even exists in the traditional sense. Macy’s, J.C. Penney and Kohl’s are the latest retailers to hop on the Thanksgiving bandwagon to stay competitive in a increasingly promotional… Continue reading The End Of Black Friday
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