CNBC – ‘Maine’ Forecasters Less Than Optimistic on Economic Growth A recent gathering in Maine at the invitation of David Kotok of Cumberland Advisors, over 30 financial experts shared their views about the near term economy. The average forecast for gross domestic product growth for the next 12 months was 1.5 percent with an associated… Continue reading Pessimistic Outlook From David Kotok’s Fishing Trip
Zero Hedge (Blog) – Fed’s Fisher Reluctant To ‘Bail Out White House’ With More QE It was not enough that the Fed’s Richard Fisher was ‘allowed’ on CNBC this afternoon to expropriate himself and his merry-Fed-men from his ‘fanatical’ colleague nemesis Rosengren; but Maria B., for one glorious moment, asked a question so sensible it… Continue reading Richard Fisher Talks About The Effect Of Further QE
Bloomberg.com – Lower Temperatures and Rain Won’t Be Enough to Ease U.S. Drought Lower temperatures and rain forecast for parts of the Midwest won’t be enough to reverse the drought that has pushed crop prices up for months. In July, drought covered 57.2 percent of the contiguous 48 U.S. states, the worst since December 1956… Continue reading The Drought
FelixSalmon.com (Blog) – The secret to success in the arts Nassim Taleb has a short paper out entitled “Why It is No Longer a Good Idea to Be in The Investment Industry”. The basic idea is simple, and well understood: As a population of operators in a profession marked by a high degrees of randomness… Continue reading Is Investing A Game Of Luck Or Skill?
MarketWatch.com – When Will the Euro Collapse? It’s Already Dead In reality, whether it is a few months or a decade away does not make as much difference as you might suppose. Why not? Because in most of the ways that actually matter, the euro is already dead. The Financial Times – Greece Should Not… Continue reading The Euro
Forbes.com – Too Big To Fail Has Become a Permanent Bailout Program Congressman Paul Ryan’s selection as Mitt Romney’s running mate is being described as a “game changer” that shifts the presidential election from negative tit-for-tat swipes to a higher strategic plane. What better time than now to have the long overdue discussion about the… Continue reading Too Big To Fail
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Charts of the Week Topics Covered This Week Include: Stocks vs Bonds Looking At The Credit Markets U.S. Credit Market Breakdown Greece Sells Debt European Yields Europe Unemployment Earnings Season Update Low Stock Market Volume Deleveraging Update World Central Bank Assets A Look At Foreign Net Purchases Of U.S. Assets Looking At Inflation Expectations Measures… Continue reading Charts of the Week
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – After 30 Years: Raging Bulls to Aging Bulls It was 30 years ago this week that the greatest secular bull market in history began. But is it a happy anniversary? Given the carnage of the past 12 years—the popping of the tech bubble and… Continue reading Discussing Bull Markets
The Financial Times – Eurozone growth – go figure There is much twaddle spoken about finance and economics. Take the eurozone growth figures released on Tuesday and the reaction in stock markets. For starters, it is flat out wrong to report that the economies of Germany and France did not contract in the second quarter… Continue reading No Growth In The Eurozone
<Click on chart for larger image> Bloomberg Businessweek – Solving the Mystery of Rising Gasoline Prices Gasoline prices have now risen for seven straight weeks. At $3.78 a gallon, the national average is up 36 cents since July 2. That’s 12¢ higher than it was at this time last year, and it’s almost exactly where… Continue reading Rising Gas Prices
The Financial Times – Greece seeks two-year austerity extension Greece is seeking a two-year extension of its latest austerity programme aimed at improving the country’s debt sustainability and prospects for a return to growth, according to a document obtained by the Financial Times. Antonis Samaras, the centre-right prime minister, is expected to outline the proposal… Continue reading Greece