Archive Monthly Archives: June 2017
"You Want To Play Chicken? Let's Play Chicken" Maine Governor Threatens Shutdown Over Proposed Tax Hike
Connecticut isn’t the only state in New England that’s facing a budget showdown today. As Reuters reports, Maine is bracing for a possible partial government shutdown on Friday – what would be the first in the state since 1991 – as Republican Governor Paul LePage has warned he will reject any budget deal that does […]
Continue readingBob Rodriguez: "We Are Witnessing The Development Of A Perfect Storm"
Authored by Robert Huebscher via AdvisorPerspectives.com, Robert L. Rodriguez was the former portfolio manager of the small/mid-cap absolute-value strategy (including FPA Capital Fund, Inc.) and the absolute-fixed-income strategy (including FPA New Income, Inc.) and a former managing partner at FPA, a Los Angeles-based asset manager. He retired at the end of 2016, following more than […]
Continue readingUS Oil Rig Count Drops For First Time In 24 Weeks As Trump Unveils US-Mexico Petroleum Pipeline
Last week saw US crude production decline by the most since Aug 2016 (perhaps affected by ‘Cindy’) and given the lagged response to WTI prices, many expected the oil rig count to drop this week. As WTI heads for its 7th up-day in a row – the longest streak in 6 months – it is […]
Continue readingStockman: Debt Is the Third Benjamin Franklin 'Certainty'
Authored by David Stockman via The Daily Reckoning, Benjamin Franklin supposedly said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” If old Ben were still around he would surely add “debt” to his famous saying. Indeed, a recent Experian study of its 220 million consumer files actually proves the […]
Continue readingEric Holder Sends Ominous Late Night Tweet To "Career DOJ/FBI" Employees
Eric Holder, Obama’s former Attorney General and a man who recently hinted at an interest in pursuing a 2020 bid for the White House, issued a rather ominous warning to the “career men & women” of the DOJ/FBI last night saying that their “actions and integrity will be unfairly questioned” before calling upon them to […]
Continue readingPolice Chief (And Most Of His Department) Quit In Protest Of City Corruption
Authored by Carey Wedler via TheAntiMedia.org, The majority of the small police department in Slaughter, Louisiana – including the police chief – resigned this week after accusing the mayor of the city of attempting to impose ticket quotas on citizens to increase revenue and turn a profit. The officers’ resignations followed accusations their assistant chief made […]
Continue reading"Honey, I Shrunk The VIX"
There’s been a growing chorus lately suggesting that perhaps the record low VIX readings aren’t due to record low feelings about volatility, but instead due to the dramatic increase in VIX products and assets betting on decreases in volatility. As RCM Alternatives notes, it sure feels like that is the case, with every move higher […]
Continue readingUnderstanding The Cryptocurrency Boom (And Its Volatility)
Authored by Charles Hugh Smith via OfTwoMinds blog, Speculative booms are often poor guides to future valuations and the maturation trajectory of a new sector. I recently came across a December 1996 San Jose Mercury News article on tech pioneers’ attempts to carry the pre-browser Internet’s bulletin board community vibe over to the new-fangled World […]
Continue readingOne Trader Warns Yellen's Delusional Statement Means "We're In A Lot Of Trouble"
Former FX trader and fund manager Richard Breslow is worried. Worried about investors’ level of delusion in the markets and worried that central bankers are so convinced of their own omnipotence, that they have become blind to any potential risks just out of their immediate sight. One glimpse at the following chart is all you […]
Continue readingBullard Confirms Fed May Have Lost Control Of The Market
Three months ago, in the aftermath of the Fed’s March rate hike we reported on what we thought at the time was a shocking development: instead of tightening, financial conditions eased. Dramatically. So much so, in fact, that Goldman chief economist Jan Hatzius wrote about it, saying that the “the Fed’s 0.25% rate hike had […]
Continue reading