Yearly Archives: 2016

Reflections On Recession Are A Very Real Affair

By |2016-11-14T17:33:33-05:00November 14th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

Where are we in history when the avowed Socialist (capital “S”) from Vermont is the only voice of reason for the Democratic Party in the aftermath of last week’s election? I don’t intend to make this some kind of political screed against one party or the other; I am on record numerous times claiming the America we live in of [...]

Paradox of the Predictably ‘Unexpected’

By |2016-11-14T11:33:30-05:00November 14th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

These things evolve, and they take time. There are a great many similarities between what is going on now and what happened in 2007 and 2008 pertaining to money, then finance, finally economy. Starting August 2007, the eurodollar system fell apart in condensed fashion, almost a typical “run” if but one of and between only banks. Starting in August 2011, [...]

An Unwelcome Participant In The Inconsistency

By |2016-11-11T18:07:12-05:00November 11th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) reported a large drop in forex assets in October. This was unsurprising given what we already know of “dollar” conditions from the behavior of the exchange rate itself. The pattern is by now very well established and quite predictable. At -$45.73 billion for the month, it was by far the largest decline in [...]

It’s Not Actually Inconsistent

By |2016-11-11T12:51:49-05:00November 11th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

There are many facets to gold, which is as it should be. In trying to discern what ones are moving prices at any given moment, the complexities and really its duality can cloud the matter, often greatly. From the post-1971 traditional perspective, it is believed the preeminent inflation hedge. In financial terms, it is sensitive to shifts in relative interest [...]

As Usual With This ‘Dollar’, What Could Be Positive Ends Up Blowing Someone Up

By |2016-11-10T18:49:15-05:00November 10th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

There bond selloff intensified the past few days in the wake of the election. I still believe that the potential Trump represents, rather than anything that has been specifically proposed, is the likely catalyst. I am also quite certain that goes along with the change in Chinese behavior where RMB are far more plentiful now than just a few weeks [...]

Nothing Has Changed….Yet

By |2016-11-09T20:58:25-05:00November 9th, 2016|Alhambra Research, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets, Taxes/Fiscal Policy|

Back in June I mused about a Trump election: Forget for a minute that Donald Trump is the Republican nominee. Think about the policies he is likely to propose as President and how they might affect the markets. Forget the campaign rhetoric for a minute, the things he’s proposed that can’t get done because the US President isn’t a dictator [...]

No Love From JOLTS

By |2016-11-09T19:19:26-05:00November 9th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

The BLS reported that the rate of hiring in the US continues to be sluggish and sideways. Total hiring across the labor market was estimated to be 5.08 million (SA) in September, down from August and the second slowest rate this year. Since first surpassing 5 million back in September 2014, the overall pace of employer engagement has been largely [...]

Still No Growth In Wholesale Sales, Inventories May Start To Weigh

By |2016-11-09T17:42:47-05:00November 9th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

Wholesale sales were flat in September, and flat overall for the quarter. They had declined sharply in July, rebounded in August, only to go nowhere for all the trouble. It is perfectly reminiscent of this whole economy, which fell in 2015 and then despite all projections otherwise never got back up. The best that can be said of it is [...]

Anything Different

By |2016-11-09T17:04:20-05:00November 9th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

When I first started some years ago, the guy I worked for told me to prepare myself because this business is so often just stupid. It does make sense given the high stakes and pressure, where everybody is literally trying to outsmart everybody else every minute of every day. And those kinds of conditions, variable as they are, lead to [...]

The Consequences of the Election Cannot Be Superficial

By |2016-11-09T11:00:29-05:00November 9th, 2016|Currencies, Economy, Federal Reserve/Monetary Policy, Markets|

I never quite understood the “audit the Fed” trend that gained perhaps its widest acceptance as one of the final acts of Congressman Ron Paul’s career. He introduced H.R. 1207 as an amendment to Dodd-Frank, of all things, and even garnered 320 co-sponsors which aided the Congressman in getting it passed by the House. The Senate version was pared back [...]

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