Bits Bucket for May 16, 2013
Post off-topic ideas, links, and Craigslist finds here.
The Housing Bubble
Examining the home price boom and its effect on owners, lenders, regulators, realtors and the economy as a whole.
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Name:Ben Jones
Location:Northern Arizona, United States
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“Fundamentals”? Earnings and revenues are either flat or declining, unemployment is still above 7 percent, 25% of homeowners are underwater on their mortgages, 47 million people are on food stamps, and the US Congress just voted to slash public spending by nearly $100 billion dollars which will be a further drag on growth. And Bernanke’s talking about fundamentals? The markets aren’t driven by fundamentals, they’re driven by the Fed’s guarantee of zero rates, uber-leverage, and boatloads of funny money complements of Helicopter Ben. The so called “Bernanke Put” has fueled animal spirits and a buying binge that has pushed stock indices to record highs while margin debt is just a whisker below its 2008 pre-Crash level.
Bernanke realizes by now that he will not hit his targets of 2.5 percent inflation or 6.5 percent unemployment before he’s forced to reduce his monthly bond purchases. It was all a fraud anyway. QE was designed to do exactly what it does, goose stock prices so filthy-rich plutocrats can skim more cream off the top. On that score, it’s Mission Accomplished.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/05/14/the-end-of-qe/
“QE was designed to do exactly what it does, goose stock prices so filthy-rich plutocrats can skim more cream off the top. On that score, it’s Mission Accomplished.”
This policy focus on manipulating asset prices to make the groups who own them wealthier seems utterly misguided.
Middle-Class Wealth in Meltdown, NYU Economist Finds
The collapse of the stock market and home prices has taken an immense toll on the assets of the middle class and has hit minorities and young adults especially hard, according to a new study authored by New York University Economics Professor Edward Wolff.
His findings appear in a report, “The Asset Price Meltdown and the Wealth of the Middle Class,” released by the US2010 Project at Brown University.
“Most telling is that the wealth of the average person by 2010 was at its lowest level since 1969,” said Wolff. “Inequality of net worth, after almost two decades of little change, rose sharply between 2007 and 2010. Inequalities rose by income class, by race and ethnicity, and across age groups.”
The American at the midpoint in the wealth distribution had a net worth of $107,800 in 2007, falling to $57,900 in 2010 (in constant 2007 dollars) – actually less than the value in 1969 ($63,600). The middle class benefited from very rapid asset appreciation during the 2001‐2007 period (6 percent per year). But the steep drop in asset prices during the recession, particularly housing, hit the middle class harder than more affluent Americans. Blacks and Hispanics and young adults also increased their net worth earlier in the decade, because so much of their assets were tied up in home ownership. These gains were wiped out during the recession.
…
I thought wealth and liquidity were synonymous like being able to write a check for a new car, but it seems the modern version of wealth is the spread between imaginary market value and what remains of your ability to reduce your debt levels.
You are closer to the truth than you realize.
“The American at the midpoint in the wealth distribution had a net worth of $107,800 in 2007, falling to $57,900 in 2010 (in constant 2007 dollars) – actually less than the value in 1969 ($63,600). ”
OMG that is super sad. Almost painful to read.
That did not happen to people who were renting during that period.
And out of the stock market, I should add.
I wasn’t really referring to the short-term trend (2007 vs 2010) - that is just pathetic.
The sad part is the low median net worth and the longer-term trend and what they say about our society’s sickness.
Worse than that, in 1969 a lot more people were earning pensions which were not included in their net worth, so the current situation is much more dire than it even appears.
Almost painful to read.
Try living it.
“Earnings and revenues are either flat or declining”
Outright lie.
Just check the business section of any news agencies. Small fluctuations aside, record profits for most companies and industries is the order of the day.
Got deflation?
ft dot com
Last updated: May 15, 2013 2:52 pm
US wholesale prices fall most in three years
By Anjli Raval in New York
US wholesale prices posted their largest drop in three years in April, largely due to tumbling petrol costs, while separate figures showed industrial production declined in April by the most in eight months, reflecting the slowdown in US manufacturing.
The producer price index declined 0.7 per cent on a seasonally adjusted basis, the largest drop since February 2010, following a 0.6 per cent fall in March, the labour department said on Wednesday. The headline number fell roughly in line with consensus forecasts.
Core prices, which exclude the volatile food and energy segments, edged 0.1 per cent higher in April, after a 0.2 per cent uptick in March. Economists had expected a 0.2 per cent increase.
Slower global economic growth is holding back input costs at US factories. The data pointed to weak inflationary pressures that should give the Federal Reserve room to maintain its bond-buying programme.
The data measure the average change over time in the prices received by domestic producers of goods and services.
Energy costs dropped 2.5 per cent in April from March, owing mostly to a 6 per cent decline in petrol prices.
Food costs also dropped 0.8 per cent, the largest decline in almost two years, as the price of vegetables and meat fell.
“There was evidence of price declines across a range of finished goods, including passenger cars, light motor trucks and computers, although these were broadly offset by gains in prescription medication, furniture and household appliances,” said Peter Newland, economist at Barclays.
…
These price declines are going to whack our fake GDP numbers. Why isn’t more free money being given to the investment banks to create shortages of our essentials?
“…Food costs also dropped 0.8 per cent, the largest decline in almost two years, as the price of vegetables and meat fell….”
What nonsense. Where?
Anecdotal notes from my life:
Feed stock is up 50% from last year. Grade hamburger (on sale) is up 84% from last year. Propane is up 11% from last year. Health insurance premiums are up 37% over last year. Housing prices up 12% from last year (according to zillow). Pest control chemicals up 33% from last year. Weanling cattle up 47% from last year.
Citrus fruits up 33% from last year. Black beans up 22% from last year. Communications services up 17% from last year (even with numerous government subsidies.) And always the insidious shrinking packaging to confound the consumer.
As noted here on HBB, stealth inflation as corporate policy has been on the rise since 2008 at least. In reality, the frog would have leapt from the pot by now….
Bacon is expensive.
I think they have a different definition of “food” than I do. And apparently no consideration of what it costs to produce it.
U.S. NEWS
Updated May 15, 2013, 12:45 p.m. ET
Faltering Factory Data Cloud Growth Picture
By JEFFREY SPARSHOTT
U.S. manufacturing stalled in April, exposing a soft spot in the slow economic recovery.
Negative reports from U.S. industry are souring more-upbeat news in April from the more consumer-focused parts of the economy, including in the labor market, housing and retail sales. The stagnation in manufacturing could renew concerns that the U.S. is experiencing a spring slowdown that threatens the recovery from the 2008 financial crisis.
Manufacturing output dropped 0.4% in April, the biggest fall in six months, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday. A separate survey from the New York Fed indicated declining manufacturing in the state in May.
The weakness in industry comes as the economy continues to slowly expand in other sectors, notably housing. The National Association of Home Builders said Wednesday that builders’ confidence rose in May, with sales expectations hitting the highest level in more than five years. Overall job creation remains steady and consumers still appear willing to spend.
“The manufacturing sector is one part of the economy that may not be weathering the feared spring slowdown as well as other parts of the economy,” said Tom Quinlan, economist at Wells Fargo Securities, in a note.
…
“The manufacturing sector is one part of the economy that may not be weathering the feared spring slowdown as well as other parts of the economy,” said Tom Quinlan, economist at Wells Fargo Securities, in a note.
Their customers are D-E-A-D unless Wall street can write the financing, the government can guarantee it, and the fed can print the proverbial money.
Q: is there a stall warning horn on the exchange floor?
So much for economic decoupling.
At what point will the Fed finally acknowledge that pushing on a string worked no better this time than it did in the 1930s?
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Production falls in US
Global weakness impact
ECONOMIC DRIVER
By Shobhana Chandra BLOOMBERG NEWS
Industrial production declined in April by the most in eight months, indicating American manufacturers will provide little support for an economy beset by weaker global markets and federal budget cuts.
The larger-than-forecast 0.5 percent decrease in output at factories, mines and utilities followed a revised 0.3 percent gain that was weaker than first reported, Federal Reserve figures showed Wednesday in Washington.
An increase in homebuilder optimism indicated housing remains the economy’s bright spot.
A European recession that extended to a record sixth quarter and slower growth in China are curbing sales for U.S. companies such as Deere & Co. A second straight decrease in factory production combined with limited inflation show that Fed policymakers have room to maintain record monetary stimulus as they try to bolster the expansion.
“The economy is just not picking up steam,” said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James & Associates Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fla., who projected a 0.4 percent drop in industrial production. “The weakness in the rest of the world doesn’t help. The Fed will keep trying to prime the pump.”
…
crank up the austerity to 11
At what point will the Fed finally acknowledge that pushing on a string worked no better this time than it did in the 1930s?
Fiscal policy is what is needed. The FED can’t do anything but kick the can on their own. The velocity of money needs to be increased and that won’t happen as long as it is getting more and more concentrated. People who once considered themselves big fish feeding on the proles are finding out that they are next on the dinner plate.
Good post.
Interesting. The Quantity Theory of money, as explained by Milton Friedman, really makes sense here.
Eurozone recession continues
The 17-nation Eurozone economy shrinks 0.2% in the sixth straight quarter of contraction. Fiscal tightening is blamed in Southern Europe for crippling demand.
Germany, the region’s largest economy, nudged back into positive economic growth in the first quarter. (Krisztian Bocsi, Bloomberg / May 7, 2013)
By Jim Puzzanghera, Los Angeles Times
May 16, 2013
WASHINGTON — Europe’s recession stretched into the first three months of the year, making it the single-currency region’s longest downturn and raising concerns about its effect on the U.S. recovery.
The 17-nation Eurozone economy contracted 0.2% in the first quarter compared with the previous quarter, according to data released Wednesday by Eurostat, the region’s statistical office. It was the sixth straight quarter of contraction, exceeding the five-quarter recession from 2008-09.
The first-quarter performance was an improvement over the final three months last year, when the Eurozone economy shrank 0.6% compared with the previous quarter, but the latest figure came in below economists’ expectations of a 0.1% contraction.
The European recession has reduced demand there for foreign goods, which is not good for the U.S. economy.
“Europe is a major trading partner … and we are going to start feeling that slowdown,” said Alan Whitman, managing director of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management in Pasadena.
Exports to the European Union fell to a two-year low in February before rebounding in March, according to the Commerce Department.
The U.S. economy has been growing since the end of the Great Recession in mid-2009, and expanded at a 2.5% annual rate in the first quarter.
But the Eurozone has struggled as several southern European nations have enacted austerity measures in the face of soaring interest rates on their sovereign debt.
“In countries such as Spain, Italy, Portugal, Cyprus and Greece, they’re all facing extreme fiscal tightening to get their public finances in shape,” said Howard Archer, chief European and United Kingdom economist at IHS Global Insight. “This is really crippling domestic demand and causing unemployment to rise sharply.”
…
May 15, 2013, 1:53 p.m. EDT
Don’t be fooled by market euphoria
Commentary: Falling world inflation isn’t cause for celebration
By Michael Casey
Apart from a few pariah economies — Sudan, Venezuela, or Argentina — you’ll be hard pressed to find a genuine, double-digit inflation problem anywhere in the world these days.
Even Hungary, which seems to live permanently on the verge of a currency crisis, registered a mere 1.7% annual gain in its April consumer price index. Similarly low numbers are everywhere — including in the U.S., Europe and all other developed nations.
A giant wave of disinflation is hitting the world. That might sound like a good thing, but signs suggest it’s a less-than-benign phenomenon. In this case, falling prices are driven more by recessionary forces than by any improvement in output. It’s a lack-of-demand problem, not a positive supply shock. The culprits: complacent policymakers.
…
The rational person with money doesn’t want to spend it during deflation. The hand to mouth working crowd has demand, but a shrinking ability to pay. Policy makers don’t give money to workers. When speculators discover what we know about declining ability to pay for stuff, they will dump commodities. Policy makers cannot prevent it. Even Smither’s mother knows this.
Wrong policy makers can prevent it.
1. Do away with payroll taxes and no taxes on first 50k of income.
2. Single payer health care
3. Stronger trade policy ie protectionism
4. Jobs program - Rebuilding infrastructure, distributive geneneration etc.
These things would put money in the pockets of the working class and increase the velocity of money. They would reduce unemployment.
The costs could be offset by
1. Tax gas and oil
2. Tax dividend and capital gains as income.
These I disagree with.
What fiscal policy do you advocate?
I certainly agree that, to the extent we need to raise more revenue, it should be by lessening distortion. Therefore, taxing cap gains at the same rate or a very similar rate as earned income would be smart. And reasonable taxes on externalities are a no-brainer, something even conservative economists agree with.
Americans spend, on average, 15-20% of their incomes on health care.
Single payer would go a long way toward putting $$ in the pockets of working and middle class people.
For us, it would mean close to $800 month more.
Taxing oil and gas would mean less money leaving the US. Less would go to places like Iran and Saudi Arabia
Cutting payroll taxes and taxes on low to moderate income workers would stimulate demand.
The US hasn’t imported Iranian oil in years.
Embargo.
Who runs Barter Town?
All of these creative ideas are different version of “kill the rich”.
Rich people already pay almost all income taxes.
CapGains aren’t taxed as regular income because it’s not regular income. There is a risk associated with that type of gain, which is why it’s taxed less. Same with dividends.
Taxing oil only means higher gas prices. Which hurts the poor the most. Someone making $250K a year doesn’t notice a $0.25 increase in a gallon of gas. Someone making $25K gets killed by it.
And single payer? Medicare and Medicaid are trillions in the hole. Recent study came out last month that showed people on Medicaid are no healthier than people without insurance.
“Cutting payroll taxes and taxes on low to moderate income workers would stimulate demand.”
Only if they have to pay income tax in exchange.
Smithers you obviously don’t know what payroll taxes are. You’ve listened to the story that the middle class don’t pay taxes for so long you believe it.
Their total effective tax rate state federal ect is often more than the elite pay.
Romney reported 14% effective federal tax rate.
He was worth 200mil
Using financial magic he put 100 mil in a tax free retirement account.
Poof his effective tax rate is 7%.
He uses religous trusts to hide income or defer taxes
Poof his real effective tax rate is 6%
Off shore accounts and trusts
Most likely his real effective tax rate is under 5%.
How much of his pay package was given as insurance or use of property or low interest forgivable loans. The elite use these tactics all the time.
He spends a small percentage of his money on stuff so his sales tax is very low. Medicare taxes are capped so most of his income is not affected.
Now I use Romney only because he was in the lime light. Imagine how bad the guys that aren’t running for office behave.
Smithers doesn’t care about the poor. He is only interested in his marginal tax rate. He thinks he can vault himself into the ranks of the independently wealthy.
He may get lucky and make it. He has a good start.
He may get unlucky and end up at the bottom of the heap with most of us. He is one bad car accident away from disaster.
Surprise surge puts jobless claims at 6-week high
• Housing starts tumble to 6-month low | Consumer prices drop again
At least the sequester hasn’t had any bad effects on the economy (yet).
May 16, 2013, 9:07 a.m. EDT
U.S. jobless claims jump to six-week high
Sharp drop over past month erased, but no ‘sequester’ effects seen
By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The number of people who applied last week for new unemployment benefits surged to the highest level in a month and a half, indicating the U.S. labor market is still not healing fast enough to rapidly bring down the nation’s jobless rate.
…
It indicates nothing.
This is normal fluctuation.
May 16, 2013, 9:02 a.m. EDT
April home construction falls to six-month low
Permits jump in April; single-family starts down 2%
By Ruth Mantell, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Construction of new U.S. homes dropped in April as far fewer apartments were put up, according to government data released Thursday that nonetheless signal rebounding activity in the building sector.
Housing starts fell 16.5% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 853,000 — the lowest level since November — after a big drop in the volatile apartment segment, according to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
May 16, 2013, 8:51 a.m. EDT
U.S. consumer prices drop again in April
Inflationary pressure little evident as cost of energy slackens
By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Another sharp decline in the cost of gasoline pushed consumer prices lower in April for the second straight month and inflationary pressure dropped to the lowest rate since late 2010, the U.S. government reported Thursday.
The consumer price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.4%, as sharply lower energy costs offset a small increase in food prices, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a 0.3% decline in April.
The inflation rate over the past 12 months fell to 1.1% in April from 1.5% in March, marking the lowest level since November 2010.
…
May 15, 2013, 8:29 a.m. EDT
Empire State index turns negative in May
By Steve Goldstein
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The Empire State manufacturing survey fell into negative territory in May for the first time since January, the New York Fed said Wednesday. The general conditions index fell to a negative 1.4 in May from positive 3.1 in April. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a positive 3 reading for May. The index is designed so that readings below zero indicate more respondents saw conditions getting worse than better. The new-orders index also fell into negative territory, falling to negative 1.2 from positive 2.2 in April, as did the average employee workweek, which fell to negative 1.1 from 5.7 in April. The Empire State is the first of a host of regional manufacturing sentiment gauges to be released.
When there’s inflation, you complain.
When there’s deflation, you complain.
There’s just no pleasing some people.
Inflation blows.
Deflation sucks.
Deflation fattens wallets.
Nice, Bubba.
“When there’s deflation, you complain.”
I don’t.
I’ll take a house for $8k please.
“Eager Bay Area buyers propelled the region’s median home price above a half-million dollars in April - its highest point in almost five years - reflecting a market continuing to rebound, according to a real estate report released Wednesday.
The $510,000 median for the nine-county Bay Area represents a jump of 30.8 percent from a year ago and a record 17 percent above March’s median price, said DataQuick, a San Diego real estate service that produced the report.
“The Bay Area is getting back to normal fast,” said Andrew LePage, a DataQuick analyst.
http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Bay-Area-median-home-price-hits-510-000-4520145.php
How many Dollar Trees have been opened in the San Francisco metro?
Are dollar stores “normal” in San Francisco?
Bay Area represents a jump of 30.8 percent from a year ago and a record 17 percent above March’s median price
I read that yesterday. WTF?
Another friend and her family just got an owner occupied eviction notice. Flat got bought by someone who is moving in. Their apt. was rent-controlled and rents are crazy.
She called to ask me about buying a house. I told her don’t do it. Not now. 30% increase in a year?
Their only option: pull the kids from their schools, leave the city, find new jobs or both of them commute an hour in traffic every day. Sucks.
But renting is always better?
“Outside the United States, the Pentagon controls a collection of military bases unprecedented in history. With US troops gone from Iraq and the withdrawal from Afghanistan underway, it’s easy to forget that we probably still have about 1,000 military bases in other peoples’ lands. This giant collection of bases receives remarkably little media attention, costs a fortune, and even when cost cutting is the subject du jour, it still seems to get a free ride.
With so much money pouring into the Pentagon’s base world, the question is: Who’s benefiting?
Some of the money clearly pays for things like salaries, health care, and other benefits for around one million military and Defense Department personnel and their families overseas. But after an extensive examination of government spending data and contracts, I estimate that the Pentagon has dispersed around US$385 billion to private companies for work done outside the US since late 2001, mainly in that baseworld. That’s nearly double the entire State Department budget over the same period, and because Pentagon and government accounting practices are so poor, the true total may be significantly higher.
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/World/WOR-01-160513.html
“Might Washington, like Rome, fall victim to imperial overstretch? Could military force abroad eventually have to be withdrawn because of bankruptcy at home? Might the whole idea of America eventually be challenged and destroyed by some charismatic new faith: some fundamentalist variant on Christianity? Or will nature disrupt America’s new world order?” —Robert Harris
“If you’re not a terrorist, if you’re not a threat, prove it. This is the price you pay to live in free society right now. It’s just the way it is.”—Sergeant Ed Mullins of the New York Police Department
https://www.rutherford.org/publications_resources/john_whiteheads_commentary/round_the_clock_surveillance_is_this_the_price_of_living_in_a_free_saf
Just … wow. I’m sure that the contradiction that came out of his mouth went over the good Sergeant’s head. Or maybe he meant to say “safe” as opposed to “free”.
Double-plus good.
Yikes.
Meanwhile, in Bakersplat we have these lovely people:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57584637-71/police-accused-of-erasing-cell-phone-footage-of-fatal-beating/
RMS: all of the above.
Did anyone ever consider the possibility that continually pushing on a string might prolong rather than hasten economic recovery?
Wall Street holds its breath waiting for central bank stimulus decisions
Bloomberg News
on May 15, 2013 at 10:36 AM, updated May 15, 2013 at 10:46 AM
U.S. stocks were little changed, after benchmark indexes climbed to records yesterday, amid speculation on central-bank stimulus measures as reports showed manufacturing contracted in the world’s largest economy.
Deere & Co. lost 4.1 percent as the world’s biggest agricultural-equipment maker cut its equipment-sales forecast. ExOne Co. sank 7.1 percent after reporting a first-quarter loss. Macy’s Inc. rose 1.1 percent after reporting profit that beat estimates and increasing its share buyback program.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.1 percent to 1,648.49 at 10:12 a.m. in New York. The benchmark gauge rallied 1 percent yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 10.59 points, or 0.1 percent, to 15,204.66. Trading of S&P 500 stocks was 9.3 percent below the 30-day average at this time of day.
“It would be surprising if there was a meaningful and prolonged pullback at this point,” Oliver Pursche, co-manager of the GMG Defensive Beta Fund and president of Suffern, New York-based Gary Goldberg Financial Services, said via phone. The firm manages about $650 million. “The global economic outlook gives some support to the idea that more easing is on its way, especially with soft inflation.”
The U.S. bull market has entered its fifth year. The S&P 500 has surged 144 percent from a 12-year low in 2009, driven by better-than-estimated corporate earnings and three rounds of bond purchases from the Federal Reserve.
Output at factories, mines and utilities fell a more-than- forecast 0.5 percent after a revised 0.3 percent gain in the prior month that was weaker than previously reported, data from the Fed showed today.
…
Stocks close higher despite gloomy economic news
Stock indexes shake off early slide, close higher
The Associated Press
Traders gather at the post of specialist Ronnie Howard, center, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Monday, April 29, 2013. Enthusiasm on Wall Street sparked by another positive report on the U.S. economy helped push most Asian stock markets higher Wednesday May 15, 2013. But lower-than-expected German economic growth disappointed investors elsewhere. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
14 hours ago • Associated Press
NEW YORK • The stock market continued its climb into record territory Wednesday, despite a handful of disappointing economic reports.
It’s a recurring theme in the stock market. While surprisingly bad news can still shake investors’ nerves, they’ll often shrug off reports of sluggish economic growth because it suggests that the Federal Reserve will keep pumping money into financial markets.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 60.44 points to close at 15,275.69, an increase of 0.4 percent. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 8.44 points to 1,658.78, up 0.5 percent. Both the Dow and the S&P 500 closed at all-time highs on Tuesday. The Nasdaq composition was up 9.01 points to close at 3,471.62.
News of slowing manufacturing in the U.S. and a widespread slowdown in Europe weighed on financial markets in early trading, but the stock market quickly recovered.
“Yes, we’re at all-time highs, but valuations are still attractive,” said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank’s wealth management group. The S&P 500 is trading at 15 times earnings for 2013, in line with the historical average of the closely watched price-to-earnings ratio.
…
EUROPE NEWS
Updated May 15, 2013, 8:18 p.m. ET
Euro Crisis Mires Continent in Longest Slump Since War
By MARCUS WALKER in Berlin and BRIAN BLACKSTONE in Frankfurt
The recession in the euro zone stretched into the first quarter of this year, demonstrating that a recovery remains more elusive than many expected. Dow Jones’s Geoffrey T. Smith looks at the problems still facing the region.
The euro-zone debt crisis has mutated into Europe’s longest slump of the postwar era, with no recovery in sight for a broad swath of the continent.
Continuing government austerity, banks that can’t or won’t lend and heavy household debts are weighing on many countries. Weak business surveys are challenging official predictions, including from the European Central Bank, that growth will return this year.
The euro zone’s output of goods and services, or gross domestic product, fell in the first three months of the year at an annualized rate of 0.9%, data out Wednesday showed. That was the sixth-straight quarter of a recession that began in late 2011, and puts the region in contrast with other recovering economies. U.S. GDP grew at a 2.5% pace in the first quarter, and early Thursday, Japan said its GDP jumped 3.5% in the quarter. U.K. output rose last quarter as well.
Depression-like conditions in Southern Europe, combined with slowing global growth, are dragging down the core economies: Germany is barely growing and France is steadily contracting.
The 17-nation euro zone, which accounts for 17% of world GDP, remains the weakest link in the global economy, mired well below its level of economic activity before the 2008 financial crisis. Social strains, political paralysis and rising debt burdens are reigniting doubts about its economic future.
“The ECB’s recurrent predictions of an imminent recovery are the triumph of hope over wisdom,” said Willem Buiter, chief economist at Citigroup Inc. Euro-zone countries will face a mix of recession and tepid recovery for “two or three more years,” he said.
…
pick your poison, stocks or homes?
Cash. The risk of loss on any thing but cash is far too great.
Even cash is losing at whatever current inflation is. And it ain’t single digit.
However, cash is far safer at this time.
There is no inflation bud.
Cash is not risk free. If you keep it in the mattress, a thief can come in and steal it. If you keep it in a bank, the government can steal it (see Cyprus).
Your house will give you wings.
Until those wings fold under the weight of massively inflated mortgage payments on what is always a depreciating asset.
Housing prices? Look out below.
Sounds to me like both stocks and housing are about to get flushed down the crapper again.
May 16, 2013, 9:34 a.m. EDT
U.S. stocks fall from record highs as claims climb
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks opened mostly lower Thursday, pausing after another record-setting session, as data had jobless claims hitting a six-week high and housing starts down sharply in April.
…
If you want to throw your money away, the choice should be booze or hookers.
Why not both?
Yeah, what’s this “or” nonsense?
S Corp IRA stuffing
“Every year, Frank Tristani assigns his McMaster University finance students the task of showing whether renting or buying a home makes you wealthier.
As Mr. Tristani scores the results, owning never wins. “Over six years, no one has been able to substantiate buying as creating more wealth over the long term,” he told me in an e-mail.
By necessity, more people are considering renting, at least temporarily, as an alternative to buying in a housing market where sales have slowed but prices have for the most part continued to edge higher.
There will never be a definitive answer to the question of how owning a home compares to lifelong renting, but we can at least dismiss the old “renting is financial idiocy” view as Flat Earth thinking. An analysis supplied by Mr. Tristani suggests a renter with steely savings discipline could actually end up wealthier than a homeowner.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/mortgages/would-you-be-better-off-financially-renting-or-buying-a-home/article11952313/
An analysis supplied by Mr. Tristani suggests a renter with steely savings discipline could actually end up wealthier than a homeowner.
Of course. And if they don’t have discipline they’ll simply have a much higher standard of living than the homeowner when it comes to food and fun. Especially if they rent something modest. Because after all, if it’s not yours and you don’t need to use it to prove your worth to the world, why would you want to spend most of your money on it?
I agree with this prof’s point (college students really need to be taught to question ALL assumptions, esp. coming from a finance/econ prof) but I think an equally valid lesson would be to consider living significantly below one’s means. No matter what you do for housing, if the expense makes up less than 15% of post-tax income, it’s basically a non-issue. Hell, if you want to live in a luxury hotel, that works too if it’s a small enough part of your budget and you’re saving money like crazy.
We save something like 60 or 70% of our post-tax income. (Some months higher, some lower, my wife doesn’t get a paycheck in late July or in August at all.) Because we pay cash for even big expenses, it’s pretty easy for us to draw a direct connection between hard work that earns the money and how the money is spent. For a lot of people, the idea of forced savings and the direct relationship between work vs consumption is blurred. Advertising works. And cultural messages are powerful. Just go look around at Towson Mall, Tyson’s Corner, or King of Prussia Mall on a weekend afternoon… people are brainwashed to consume consume consume. I couldn’t even find a parking spot in the parking garage at Towson Mall when I took my wife there to get a dress for wedding season. People are nuts.
Because we pay cash for even big expenses, it’s pretty easy for us to draw a direct connection between hard work that earns the money and how the money is spent.
My basic budgeting strategy is keeping track of all my expenses on a day to day basis, whether I put them on a credit card or write a check for it. Reminding myself daily of the cash I am spending keeps me very aware of the connection between the work I did, the savings I put by, and where the $ goes.
The measure of wealth is not purely financial, or at least that’s how I live my life, and what I teach my kids.
Wealth is also: family, friends, community, good health, a job you love, and living in a place you love.
The measure of wealth is not purely financial, or at least that’s how I live my life, and what I teach my kids.
- Things rich people never say, Alex?
If you’re saving 70% of your income, that’s nuts IMO. It’s no better than someone who spends 110% of their income. There’s a happy medium where you can buy nice things and save as well. It doesn’t have to be one extreme or the other.
I don’t keep track of it to the penny like some here. But on average I save around 20% of my income. I don’t buy things just to buy. But I don’t deprive myself either. I drive a couple of nice cars, I have the latest gadgets (TVs, iPhones, etc), I eat out a fair amount at higher end restaurants, take a couple of nice vacations every year, buy my kids the toys they want (within reason but that’s not a money thing it’s a learn you can’t get everything you want in life thing). I don’t borrow money for any of it.
I suppose I could eat rice and beans every night, never go anywhere, use a 10 year old cell phone, drive a 15 year old car and watch TV on a black and white 13″. And then I could save 80% of my income as well. But for what? So when I’m old and can’t enjoy much in life I can look at my piles of money shortly before I croak and think “I’ve made it”? No thanks.
There’s a lot of black and white thinking on this blog. Always, never, save everything or go totally into debt.
Moderation. Live your life like there’s no tomorrow AND save for your retirement.
The gray area is confusing, but that’s ife.
Why is it crazy to save 10k/month and live on 5k?
If you don’t save up a nice stack, you can’t be aggressive, you’re limited to l00ser lifestyle choices and investment options. I also don’t think 5k/month budget really constitutes hardship (we actually usually stay more around 4k… of which PITI and all utilities & internet/cable are approx 1650).
We have a new CRV, paid cash, although I admit we did drive the previous car for almost 12 years because there was essentially nothing wrong with it (thank you, Honda). My car won’t impress anyone, I work in downtown DC and take the train in. I have 3 samsung smart TV’s, one of which is 60″ and hooked to an obscene home theater system*. We do dinner or drinks in Fells Point or Harbor East a few times a week. We take 2 vacays a year. Our house is hooked up, completely reno’d to match what we want. We give really good wedding/christmas/birthday presents. What other questions do you have? What else should I spend money on right now? I’m confused.
* Lest you think this a foolish purchase, I spent only $800 for that TV because someone returned it to BestBuy with a 1/2″ long, superficial scratch in the extreme lower right corner. LULZ, I got it for 1/2 price.
Don’t get so testy FTE. I don’t care if you live in a tent and save 99.9% of your income. It’s your life, live it as you see fit. It doesn’t affect me one way or another, just like it doesn’t affect you how I spend my money.
To me, $5K a month in DC is not enough to live a comfortable lifestyle, at least for my family. But everyone has different priorities and that’s fine.
I have Samsungs as well. Best TVs out there bar none.
First you have to have the money to save.
First you have to have the money to save.
Yup, many Americans have nothing left for savings after their cell phone, cable TV and cigarettes are paid for.
You forgot the Escalade driven to the food stamp office.
Yup, many Americans have nothing left for savings after their cell phone, cable TV and cigarettes are paid for.
Most Americans don’t smoke, cellphones can be cheap and are a must. Cable TV does not amount to squat when it comes to entertainment, diversion and education. And human beings need entertainment diversion and education.
Most Americans don’t…
Whatever. My sister recently spent $138 buying a lamp she has little use for. The next week she told me she didn’t have enough money to buy time for her dirt-cheap cell phone. The amount she wasted on that lamp is more than enough to buy her 800 minutes of cell time good for 12 months.
Precisely eco. There are people who necessarily eat predominantly rice and beans, don’t even own a cell phone, hardly ever go out let alone take a vacation, and get their tv reception from a coat hanger antenna.
For an increasing number of Americans, saving money means picking through the vacuum cleaner bag for change that accidentally got sucked up so it doesn’t get thrown out.
This professor’s assumptions are heavily biased to favor renting.
“The House Agriculture Committee approved a five-year, $500 billion farm bill on a 36-10 vote. The next step will be debate by the full House, which is likely to start in June.
The House and Senate bills each end the $5 billion-a-year direct-payment subsidy, long a target of reformers, and spin off at least three new types of crop insurance.
Almost half the savings in the House bill would come from a $20.5 billion cut over 10 years in spending on food stamps for low-income Americans.
The House plan would restrict eligibility and require closer accounting of certain costs. It would be the largest cut in food stamps since the 1996 welfare reform law, experts say.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/us-usa-agriculture-farm-bill-idUSBRE94F05M20130516
Know your meme: “food stamps are bankrupting this country”
And never mind that contractors account for 70% of the Pentagon’s costs for services. Food stamps for Lucky Ducky = socialism. Billions of free cheese for Lockheed, Raytheon, etc = invisible hand of free market.
Food stamps == welfare for farmers
Nothing enrages “Real Americans” more than seeing some Lucky Ducky (especially if they’re black) busting out the SNAP card to pay for food.
20% of American households are on foodstamps and the number is climbing. How is Obama going to get reelected again if he cuts those constituents off at the belly?
We need to impeach Obama right now before he starts another war to distract the public from whats really happening.
I’m not kidding. Obama is a Trojan horse put into office to mollify the progressives so the real masters of the universe can gut the middle class and create a permanent ruling class. One thing you can count on is there will be no cuts in the food stamp program since that is the cheapest way to keep the serfs from rising up and demanding a living wage.
so the real masters of the universe can gut the middle class and create a permanent ruling class.
I think that is has been in place for decades.
One thing you can count on is there will be no cuts in the food stamp program since that is the cheapest way to keep the serfs from rising up and demanding a living wage.
Correct.
and it’s not Obama per se, rather the system that put him there. Reform the system.
Never forget, Obama’s real agenda is Sharia Law.
This is the top story on Drudge right now.
http://m.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-calls-over-marines-shield-himself-and-turkish-pm-rain_724653.html
Obama is a muslim, a socialist, a dog-eater, a Kenyan, an inept president, but even worse than all of that, he is a p*ssy who can’t get wet (cus it’ll probably mess up his jheri curl) so he needs the marines to hold an umbrella over him!
One thing you can count on is there will be no cuts in the food stamp program
That program is cheaper than fire insurance.
As long as the first primary is in Iowa, food stamps and farm subsidies will never be cut.
“How is Obama going to get reelected again…”
Did everybody miss this?
I remember when the Wing Nuts were saying that Clinton was going to declare martial law at the end of his second term and appoint himself emperor or something. Now we’re starting to hear the same thing regarding Obama.
But nobody on the left said anything like that about GWB, right?
http://www.gatheringspot.net/topic/general-discussion/bush-buys-99000-acres-paraguay-4th-reich-exodus
“Bush Buys 99,000 Acres In Paraguay–4th Reich Exodus?
The Cuban news service reports that George W. Bush has purchased 98,840 acres in Paraguay, near the Bolivian/Brazilian border. Jenna Bush paid a secret diplomatic visit to Paraguayan President Nicanor Duarte and U.S. Ambassador James Cason. There were no press conferences, no public sightings and no official confirmation of her 10-day trip which apparently ended this week.
The Paraguayan Senate voted last summer to “grant U.S. troops immunity from national and International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction.” Immediately afterwards, 500 heavily armed U.S. troops arrived with various planes, choppers and land vehicles at Mariscal Estigarribia air base, which happens to be at the northern tip of Paraguay near the Bolivian/Brazilian border. More have reportedly arrived since then.”
This one is my favorite left wing conspiracy theory.
http://elainemeinelsupkis.typepad.com/war_and_peace/2006/10/few_people_unde.html
“The move to station top rank, far right wing paramilitary proto-nazi troops in Paraguay in the same province where the Bushes are buying land is a sign they are moving The Base to an alternate location. Who else has been moving about the planet establishing ‘The Base’?
In Arabic, ‘The Base’ is ‘al Qaeda.’ The bin Ladens and the Bushes are very intertwined. And both families view the world as their playground. And there is dark forces at work between the families for Osama bin Laden’s father and eldest brother both died in Texas flying on seperate Bush planes. The Bushes also belong to severa interlocking cults that are also interlocked with the Vatican and with royalty in Europe. These cults want world domination and in addition, the return to the Old Ways which is serf/slave/master/king. With cringing Jewish financial backers living in fear while the general population’s lives are short and brutish. This longing for the world of the Middle Ages shouldn’t be snorted at, it is very powerful as we can see in organizations such as the Society For Creative Anachronism, for example. “
The wealthy and powerful have more in common with each other than they do with the average person, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, religion, culture, or language.
I remember the conspiracy theories at the end of the Bush presidency. I don’t remember any with Clinton.
“A survey of thousands of peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals has found 97.1% agreed that climate change is caused by human activity.
Authors of the survey, published on Thursday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, said the finding of near unanimity provided a powerful rebuttal to climate contrarians who insist the science of climate change remains unsettled.
The survey considered the work of some 29,000 scientists published in 11,994 academic papers. Of the 4,000-plus papers that took a position on the causes of climate change only 0.7% or 83 of those thousands of academic articles, disputed the scientific consensus that climate change is the result of human activity, with the view of the remaining 2.2% unclear.
The study described the dissent as a “vanishingly small proportion” of published research.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/may/16/climate-research-nearly-unanimous-humans-causes
When consensus is nearly unanamous, maybe it is time to bet against it. Humans tend to not figure things out very well, rather they try to come to agreement.
We are doing our part by not creating more “child creatures”. Breeding more humanoids is the absolute worst thing for the ecological health of the planet. And praying to Sky Wizard won’t save us either.
And on the day the Earth melts down, the people ask “Oh Lord, why did you not send us a sign, warning us to change?”
The Lord replied, “I did, you dipchits, and all of the scientists told you about them. Instead, you listened to the paid shills……”
Neo, the “scientists” are the paid shills. You don’t think they support themselves working a real job nights and weekends, do you? OK, the Prince of Wales might be an exception. This is the same crowd of carneys that told us sugar coated cereal was the best thing to eat for breakfast 40 years ago, and that we were headed for the next ice age. If you don’t sing the company song, you don’t get paid.
The AMA is probably the biggest bunch of crooks and shills out there. This is not the same group that hypes nutrition and medical science.
This is not the same group that hypes nutrition and medical science.
This group is much worse.
Which group? confused…
Perhaps you would like to join the Ban Smart Meter group in your area? They have presented scientific proof that our utility companies are trying to kill us with RF radiation. They have experts like Bill Vander Zalm (former Premier of British Columbia, CA), Dr. David O. Carpenter (Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at University at Albany), B. Blake Levitt (an award-winning science journalist)
http://takebackyourpower.net/
http://www.bantexassmartmeters.com/
sponsored by:
Grassroots Texans Network
Park Cities/Preston Hollow Tea Party
Carrollton Tea Party
PS: Be sure to use your cell phone to call and make reservations to their next gala event. Operators are standing by!
All I know is to never put your bee hive under high tension power lines. They become unproductive.
In order to discredit AC, Thomas Edison collected dogs, cats, sheep, horses and even elephants to electrocute with AC. The research laboratory became a veritable slaughterhouse:
“While the AC controversy raged, Harold Brown approached Thomas Edison to ask for the use of his laboratory to demonstrate that alternating current was more deadly than direct current. Edison recognized how he could use Brown to discredit alternating current and received Brown with great enthusiasm, assigning his chief electrician, Arthur Kennelly, to work with Brown. Much to Brown’s delight, Edison himself promised to take a special interest in his work. Indeed, Edison wasted no time in writing to Henry Bergh of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, asking for some “good-sized” dogs on which to experiment.”
Science marches on!
The group that is skimming few people or the group that is skimming the whole world? Tough Choice….
who are you saving the planet for, if not for future “child creatures”? i’m with you on the sky wizard thing.
We are a big fan of the non-humanoid creatures that inhabit high latitudes and high altitudes.
Belief in biblical end-times stifling climate change action in U.S.: study
The United States has failed to take action to mitigate climate change thanks in part to the large number of religious Americans who believe the world has a set expiration date.
Research by David C. Barker of the University of Pittsburgh and David H. Bearce of the University of Colorado uncovered that belief in the biblical end-times was a motivating factor behind resistance to curbing climate change.
“[T]he fact that such an overwhelming percentage of Republican citizens profess a belief in the Second Coming (76 percent in 2006, according to our sample) suggests that governmental attempts to curb greenhouse emissions would encounter stiff resistance even if every Democrat in the country wanted to curb them,” Barker and Bearce wrote in their study, which will be published in the June issue of Political Science Quarterly.
The study, based on data from the 2007 Cooperative Congressional Election Study, uncovered that belief in the “Second Coming” of Jesus reduced the probability of strongly supporting government action on climate change by 12 percent when controlling for a number of demographic and cultural factors. When the effects of party affiliation, political ideology, and media distrust were removed from the analysis, the belief in the “Second Coming” increased this effect by almost 20 percent. (This suggests there is a significant overlap between those three variables and belief in the “Second Coming.”)
“[I]t stands to reason that most nonbelievers would support preserving the Earth for future generations, but that end-times believers would rationally perceive such efforts to be ultimately futile, and hence ill-advised,” Barker and Bearce explained.
That very sentiment has been expressed by federal legislators. Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) said in 2010 that he opposed action on climate change because “the Earth will end only when God declares it to be over.” He is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.
We are a big fan of the non-humanoid creatures that inhabit high latitudes and high altitudes.
———–
You mean goats? You are a big fan of goats? Or the never-defeated hide & seek champion Sasquatch?
I guess either one makes an equal amount of sense.
Don’t bet against the physics. Humans are having negative effect on the planet’s ecosystem but never ever underestimate humans ability to ignore future consequences of their actions. Over the long arc of history you can see greed trumps fear 90% of the time.
I think the worst effects of climate change won’t come until I’m older, so I’m not worried for myself. The only tough part is, I want one kid. How does a responsible person have a kid when they know that the planet is likely going to be badly f’ed up in the offspring’s lifetime?
The hardcore muslims and christians won’t stop producing offspring.
“We’re so self-important. Everybody’s going to save something now. “Save the trees, save the bees, save the whales, save those snails.” And the greatest arrogance of all: save the planet. Save the planet, we don’t even know how to take care of ourselves yet. I’m tired of this $hit. I’m tired of f-ing Earth Day. I’m tired of these self-righteous environmentalists, these white, bourgeois liberals who think the only thing wrong with this country is that there aren’t enough bicycle paths. People trying to make the world safe for Volvos. Besides, environmentalists don’t give a $hit about the planet. Not in the abstract they don’t. You know what they’re interested in? A clean place to live. Their own habitat. They’re worried that some day in the future they might be personally inconvenienced. Narrow, unenlightened self-interest doesn’t impress me.
The planet has been through a lot worse than us. Been through earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, continental drift, solar flares, sun spots, magnetic storms, the magnetic reversal of the poles … hundreds of thousands of years of bombardment by comets and asteroids and meteors, worldwide floods, tidal waves, worldwide fires, erosion, cosmic rays, recurring ice ages … And we think some plastic bags and some aluminum cans are going to make a difference? The planet isn’t going anywhere. WE are!
We’re going away. Pack your $hit, folks. We’re going away. And we won’t leave much of a trace, either. Maybe a little Styrofoam … The planet’ll be here and we’ll be long gone. Just another failed mutation. Just another closed-end biological mistake. An evolutionary cul-de-sac. The planet’ll shake us off like a bad case of fleas.
The planet will be here for a long, long, LONG time after we’re gone, and it will heal itself, it will cleanse itself, ’cause that’s what it does. It’s a self-correcting system. The air and the water will recover, the earth will be renewed. And if it’s true that plastic is not degradable, well, the planet will simply incorporate plastic into a new paradigm: the earth plus plastic. The earth doesn’t share our prejudice toward plastic. Plastic came out of the earth. The earth probably sees plastic as just another one of its children. Could be the only reason the earth allowed us to be spawned from it in the first place. It wanted plastic for itself. Didn’t know how to make it. Needed us. Could be the answer to our age-old egocentric philosophical question, “Why are we here?”
Plastic… assh0le.”
As a non-breeder, single occupant, two vehicle household, we are happily spewing as much CO2 as possible in our finite lifetime, contributing to your sprog’s f’d future. Burn, baby, burn
The planet will be here for a long, long, LONG time after we’re gone just because we destroyed our environment.
How does a responsible person have a kid when they know that the planet is likely going to be badly f’ed up in the offspring’s lifetime?
You don’t know that. There are different kinds of knowledge & the one you have just referred to is not very reliable. The real question is, how does a person have a child that they know will some day die?
THAT sort of knowledge sells life insurance policies.
George Carlin was great. But I still think plastic is a blight upon the planet.
I would like to know Joe and other yuppies plan to save their children when an Asteroid’s hits the earth. I will guarantee the children will survive and may even thrive the effcts of
global warming</strike climate change.global warming</strike climate change.Over the long arc of history every single one of us is dead.
Humans tend to not figure things out very well, rather they try to come to agreement.
Science. Have you heard of it? Maybe electricity, atomic power, aircraft, modern medicine, spacecraft?
Those things weren’t magically given away by faeries.
Who cares about scientific consensus? The religious text contains all knowledge. Science is the root of evil, and it’s all womens fault!
Judging from their rather loud whistling, Canadian housing market ‘experts’ must be enjoying their stroll past the graveyard.
Signs of spring – and a soft landing – in Canadian real estate
TARA PERKINS - REAL ESTATE REPORTER
The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, May. 15 2013, 9:11 AM EDT
Last updated Thursday, May. 16 2013, 5:18 AM EDT
The housing market is doing precisely what policy makers in Ottawa set out to achieve, cooling down without flaming out.
The number of homes that changed hands over the Multiple Listing Service in April was just 3 per cent lower than a year ago on an annual basis, compared with a 15-per-cent drop in March. April’s relatively small decline comes on the heels of average declines that topped 13 per cent during the previous five months, noted Royal Bank of Canada economist Robert Hogue.
…
How to profit as Canada’s housing bubble pops
By Matthew Partridge
May 16, 2013
House under construction near Toronto © Getty Images
Canada’s bubble is about to burst
Bank of England boss Mervyn King gave his farewell speech yesterday.
He was putting a brave face on the economy, no doubt with his legacy in mind. But now all eyes are on his successor, Mark Carney, who takes over from July.
One reason Carney was picked is because he ‘saved’ Canada from recession as governor of its central bank. George Osborne is hoping he can do the same for Britain, by thinking ‘outside the box’ on monetary policy.
But George should be careful what he wishes for – because the Canada that Carney leaves behind is looking distinctly wobbly.
…
If you take on mortgage debt at current massively inflated housing prices, you’ll enslave yourself for the rest of your life.
“Debt is bondage.”~ Suze Orman, May 11, 201
“Debt is Slavery” - Blue Skye, year after year.
“Cash is king” - Combotechie, year after year.
The King rules over the Slave.
Cash rules over Debt.
Proverbs 22:7
“Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.”
And the concordance suggests that borrowing results in poverty, hence you will be ruled over and powerless.
Good lesson. Universal Truth.
26:11 is even better, considering the current attempts to reflate the stock and housing markets:
“As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly.”
Gold prices take a tumble
• Soros splits with Chinese housewives on gold | Physical gold demand shines in first quarter
May 16, 2013, 5:12 a.m. EDT
Gold prices drop nearly 2% as dollar climbs
By Barbara Kollmeyer and Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
MADRID (MarketWatch) — Gold futures took another big tumble on Thursday, dropping around 2% as the dollar pushed higher, while a report provided some insight on demand before the massive slide in the metal’s prices last month.
Gold for June delivery went from a loss of around $4 in Asia to a drop of $25.50, or 1.8%, to hit $1,370.70 an ounce.
That came as the dollar pushed higher across the board. The ICE dollar index, which measures the greenback’s movement against six other major currencies, jumped to 83.974, a leg up from Asia and versus 83.795 on Wednesday.
Data out of Japan showed economic growth of 0.9% in the first quarter, beating forecasts.
There is also a slate of economic reports from the U.S. on Thursday.
On Wednesday, gold fell below $1,400 an ounce to its lowest finish in about four weeks, as the U.S. dollar rose and outflows from gold exchange-traded funds continued.
Separately, the World Gold Council on Thursday in a report said investors during the first quarter didn’t buy enough physical gold to offset outflows from gold-exchanged traded funds.
…
Gold
Soros Cut Gold ETF Holdings Before Price Crash
Published: Thursday, 16 May 2013 | 2:19 AM ET
By: Matt Clinch
George Soros, founder and chairman of Soros Fund Management reduced his holdings of exchange-traded products backed by gold before a price plunge last month that saw the precious metal lose 12 percent in value.
A Securities and Exchange Commission filing for Soros Fund Management shows that Soros reduced his stake in the SPDR Gold Trust from 600,000 shares in December 31 to 530,900 by March 31. The stake is now valued at just below $82 million, according to the report.
Speaking to a Chinese newspaper in April, Soros said that gold had disappointed the public, and was meant to be classed as the ultimate safe haven.
(Read More: Gold Demand Slides to 3-Year Low In First Quarter)
…
May 16, 2013, 1:01 a.m. EDT
Physical gold demand shines in first quarter: WGC
Total Q1 gold demand falls, but physical demand strengthens
By Myra P. Saefong, MarketWatch
Thomson Reuters GFMS, World Gold Council
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Investors didn’t buy enough physical gold to offset outflows from gold-exchanged traded funds in the first quarter, but total ETF gold holdings were still higher than a year ago, and demand for jewelry, bars and coins grew a lot thanks to China and India, a report from the World Gold Council released Thursday shows.
The report helps shed light on demand during the period just before April’s plunge in gold-futures prices and steep outflows from gold ETFs.
…
Sounds like Mr. Soros is winning, while Mrs. Chan and Mrs. Chakravartee are loosing.
Buy stocks and houses today…lose your shirt tomorrow.
The great thing about the current high roller’s rally in stocks and houses is that it is primarily driven by 0.1% peops — i.e. those who whose finances will not be irreparably damaged by the next crash.
Which beget the fundamental question;
Why buy a house today and these massively inflated prices? Buy later, after prices crater for 75% less.
this stock market rally is truly a miracle.
And the impending correction will be heavenly.
I really am beginning to see the wisdom of HA’s/RALs ways…..
What was the saying? “Make up a lie, and repeat it often enough, and people will believe it….”
He’s working it from the other direction: “Repeat the truth often enough, and people will eventually believe it”
And that’s the issue.
The truth is housing prices are still massively inflated by 200%+ irrespective of location with maybe 2 or 3 exceptions. On the east and west coasts? Prices are inflated by 300%, minimum.
“2 or 3 exceptions”. Wow, this is a major breakthrough. Now, pray tell, what are those exceptions? Punkin Center, CO? Muleshoe, TX? Climax, GA?
You already quoted them once today Krusty.
ADD much?
“…with maybe 2 or 3 exceptions….”
Ahhh, the first cracks appear in the wall. You’re slipping ex. Stand firm and resolute.
Cracks? Has not Detroit cratered?
Is not every other area subject to cratering?
You guys really got to get on the ball.
Was referring to your doctrinaire assessments, not the market.
I bought a home in the worst bubbly market (SE FL) at the worst possible time (May 06) for $345,000, and at its lowest point it was worth $155,000, a 55% drop. That was absolutely unprecedented in the history of the USA.
And now you’re saying we’re going way beyond that. I just want everyone to imagine a home close to you that just sold for $500,000. Now in your wildest dreams, can you imagine that home being sold again for $125,000, a 75% drop? If you can imagine that, then by all means, keep waiting for this prediction to come true before you buy.
I agree that this market was not allowed to find its natural bottom due to low interest rates and other government supports. But 65%-75% overvalued? Not even Whac-a-Bubble and goon squad will agree with you on that number.
The 65-75% drop could happen (never say never), but the broader economic environment in which it could doesn’t sound like something to look forward to.
“The 65-75% drop could happen…”
It already did happen…in Detroit and similar locales.
“It already did happen…in Detroit and similar locales”
Yes, WAB, I get that, and I agree, but HA is saying it will happen again, from here, after that drop already happened. And goon, the only “broader economic climate” I imagine that happening in would be nuclear war, new black plague, or alien invasion. I think that housing prices would then be a secondary discussion.
You overpaid for what is always a depreciating like millions of others who are incurring massive losses.
What’s the problem now Krusty Perkins?
“nuclear war, new black plague, or alien invasion…”
All it would take is for Americans to stop borrowing for a living. That alone would be the end of the world as we know it. You might think that is unpossible, but the greatest credit expansion in the history of the human race is unwinding right now at glacial speed.
OK, homes are overpriced, let’s get that out of the way.
Now please be more specific, and tell me, for a house that sold for $500,000 in the last 6 months, when will it decline 75% and sell again for $125,000? You don’t even have to be very specific, just within a year or so. Give me any zip code, and a one-year window, and let’s watch sale prices.
That’s a gem, what date will the mania end, completely. The crusades lasted 200 years, that was a pretty big mania.
Krusty,
Nobody cares about a house the sold at bubble prices.
Ya know…. I understand you realtors are trying to make a living. We all are. The public believes you’re crooks when in reality, it seems you’re just clueless. I don’t mean that in a negative way. You guys just don’t know what you’re talking about.
“All it would take is for Americans to stop borrowing for a living. That alone would be the end of the world as we know it.”
Blue, if after the last housing bubble crash that big awakening didn’t happen, I have no faith it will happen now.
“The crusades lasted 200 years”
200 years? That’s as specific as you can get? Then why even make these claims? I can predict anything within my wildest imagination with that timeframe. 200 years from now, I will have DNA extracted from my bone marrow and my entire being reconstructed around my dry skeleton. And when they bring me back, the first thing I will do is buy a 2013 $500,000 house for $125,000.
HA, you know deep down that I’m really not a Realtor, right?
Krusty,
You know deep down that your charade is old and worn out. Right?
“You know deep down that your charade is old and worn out. Right?”
I’m old and worn out, but my charade has not yet begun to fight.
That’s obvious Krusty.
In the mean time, go school yourself on something more worthy than walking suckers through depreciating houses and babbling “it’s a great time to buy”.
For the past 6/7 years I’ve been hearing predictions of a complete collapse of the system, of riots, of gold at $10,000 an ounce. All sorts of end of the world predictions, always just around the corner. This is nothing new of course. There has always been a small percentage of the population that is convinced the world’s about to end.
Falling housing prices to dramatically lower and affordable levels is the end of the world? Seriously?
Pick yourself up off the floor and cheer up Mr. Slithers. Dramatically lower and more affordable housing prices is bullishly optimistic.
What planet are you living on?
Home Prices in U.S. Case-Shiller Index May Pop: Chart of the Day
The wholesale real-estate costs climbed 9.1 percent in the 12 months ended in April, the biggest year-to-year pop since 2005. The latest data available show the Case-Shiller index climbed 9.3 percent in February from the same month in 2012, making it the biggest gain since mid-2006.
If the correlation with the PPI real-estate index holds, then the Case-Shiller index may approach its 2005 year-to-year gains of almost 17 percent in coming months, according to Basile.
“Positive news on house prices should continue,” Basile said in research note.
Trulia Bubble Watch: Today’s Rising Home Prices Are A Rebound …
http://www.forbes.com/…/trulia-bubble-watch-todays-rising-home-prices-are-a-re...
2 days ago – The inside scoop on properties, places and real estate pros. … No. Bubble-phobes can rest easy. Even with recent sharp home price increases, …
Is California’s Wild Housing Market a Sign of a Bubble? | AOL Real …
realestate.aol.com/blog/2013/03/28/california-housing-bubble/
Mar 28, 2013 – Housing bubble: California may be the site of a new one. … California is sweeping the top cities where home list prices are rising the fastest.
San Francisco Housing Bubble May Be Brewing, Says New Report
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…/san-francisco-housing-bubble_n_3088591….
Apr 16, 2013 – The former number is rising much faster than the latter, indicating that the … In a typical real estate bubble, individuals put all their money into …
Los Angeles Housing Market May Be In a “Mini Bubble” - State O …
la.curbed.com/…/los_angeles_housing_market_may_be_in_a_mini_bub…
Apr 12, 2013 – They are rising and selling fast the market is taking off all over Los Angeles. … Please..our economy can not handle another housing bubble bursting. …. No matter how hard the real estate market crashes, it will always come
Housing Prices Do Show Signs of a Bubble | Capital Mind
capitalmind.in › HomeLoans
May 8, 2013 – Real Estate, Not That Great Long Term, says Ajay Shah » » … Buildup: Prices increase, transactions increase – there’s a bubble building up. … Ahmedabad might be in the early fall stage, with prices having gone up nearly …
“and babbling “it’s a great time to buy”.”
He already agreed that houses are overpriced. Doesn’t sound like he’s saying what you claim.
Perk:
You have to be careful about “imagining” what might happen. It’s important to stick to the data, analyzed by a validated model. Not saying that RAL is correct about his 65-75% national correction. I’m just saying that using your imagination is no good either.
RAL has been spouting off the same 65% number for months, and months and months, which is akin to claiming prices will fall 65% from levels that all indications appear to be this cycle’s trough (in 2012).
I think that prognostication is going to end up being very wrong.
I fear (I can’t speak for others) that prices continue to rise from where they are today to crazy levels (again) and then re-crash back down to (or perhaps even somewhat below) the inflation adjusted trough.
Where prior cycles took upwards of a decade for such a cycle to play itself out, I fear that with the Fed and lending policies, we rebubble and crash much faster than a decade. Is it 1 year? I personally doubt it. Could it be within 5 years? Maybe.
“this cycle’s trough (in 2012).”
!
That’s where we think you are missing the bigger picture.
See…. here’s the problem.
Rental Watch, an established misrepresenter of the truth, and a few underwater debt-donkeys have no idea how to accurately measure the value of a house. They don’t know where to begin.
What we know to be the truth is that it will take a 40-50% decline in resale prices just to reach the cost of a new structure, M+L+P. Now would you pay new price for a 20 year old house? No more than you’d pay a new price for a used car. Why? Because houses depreciate. In reasonable, usable condition, you only net 66% of new price on a used item. Houses are no different. Now that’s assuming the house is in tip top shape.
As everyone know, prices were never allowed to correct and are still sitting at late 2003, early 2004 levels and slipping. Housing demand is at 1997 levels and falling. In the absence of demand, prices always fall. Why is there no demand? Because prices are massively inflated. It’s the way the world works.
Pointing and laughing at a few suckers getting fleeced is the right thing to do.
“That’s where we think you are missing the bigger picture.”
The pricing picture that I’m looking at is represented by the Shiller 1890-present inflation-adjusted graph. What bigger picture are you talking about? The massive money printing that is going on to support the economy?
Then it ought to dawn on you that prices are still massively inflated.
Ya know….. you’re another sucker who got fleeced in the last year or so. Of course you have a stake in the direction of prices.
Why not be honest? Just once.
http://www.econ.yale.edu/~shiller/data.htm
Third to last paragraph has a link to the current data.
Then add on top of the fact that post-Boskin Commission, they have taken away at least 0.5% annually from the inflation number as compared to prior times (many decades), which tended to keep the inflation adjusted numbers slightly higher than they would have been using pre-Boskin Commission calcs, and you see that we hit this cycle’s trough in early 2012.
What did you pay for your debt-shack Rental Watch?
“There has always been a small percentage of the population that is convinced the world’s about to end.”
Someday they will be right.
‘And goon, the only “broader economic climate” I imagine that happening in would be nuclear war, new black plague, or alien invasion.’
I guess you can’t imagine the Fed ending its QE3 MBS purchase program, even though there is plenty of discussion these days about that happening in the foreseeable future.
What happened to 65%?
What happened to Joshua Tree? Accept it, you can’t live without jabbing at him on a daily basis, can you?
It’s all fun & game……
Accept it, you can’t live without jabbing at him on a daily basis, can you?
Well, not every day, but it IS kinda fun.
Junkie,
Lets resumed our lesson from yesterday.
How many sq ft is the debt-dump you bought?
Comment by PeakHubris
2013-05-15 11:30:13
“The economy has turned into one giant system of rot where bankers and politicians push people to borrow more money than they can possibly pay back, then appropriate taxpayer funds to the lenders to facilitate some sort of debt forgiveness. Absolutely disgusting.”
Which pushes taxpayers to borrow more money than they can possibly pay back.
U.S. National Debt Clock : Real Time
http://www.usdebtclock.org/ - 216k -
I didn’t know $17 trillion was coming up that fast.
17 tril or 34 tril, what’s the difference?
“17 tril or 34 tril, what’s the difference?”
One-Mississippi, two-Mississippi, three-Mississippi……
A thousand seconds = nearly 17 minutes.
A million seconds = nearly 12 days.
A billion seconds = nearly 32 years.
A trillion seconds = nearly 32,000 years.
The difference? The correction is that much closer.
Los Angeles Rental Rates Falling
http://picpaste.com/pics/30372e7288a9a070b2480f58cb7131ac.1368667282.png
How porn links and Ben Bernanke snuck into Bitcoin’s code
By Steve Hargreaves and Stacy Cowley
@CNNMoney May 2, 2013: 7:11 PM ET
The code on the left records a bitcoin transaction from July 2011. Converted into text, it generates a portrait of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
Here’s a little-known quirk of cyber currency Bitcoin: There are coded messages hidden in the ledger that track bitcoin transactions. Most are innocuous, but this week, the discovery of a malicious transmission filled with porn links set the Bitcoin community abuzz.
…
From the article:
“They liken the coded messages in Bitcoin’s ledger to graffiti, and say it’s inevitable that someone would eventually inject something unsavory. … Because bitcoin transactions are anonymous…”
Why can’t someone code the names of bitcoin transactors into the ledger, thus tracing the supposedly untracable?
Anonimity is not guarenteed.
All Bitcoin transactions are fully traceable. That’s what keeps someone from spending the same Bitcoin twice.
Download Blockchain to see the transactions.
The coming political battle over Bitcoin
By Timothy B. Lee, Published: May 15, 2013 at 10:47 am
Julian Assange of Wikileaks, which might have benefitted from dealing in Bitcoins. (Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP)
Given that Bitcoin first broke into mainstream attention when Gawker explained how to use it to buy drugs, perhaps the surprise is that it took federal regulators this long to take action against it.
In the wake of the Gawker story two years ago, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) described Bitcoin as an “online form of money laundering” and called for the authorities to shutter the Bitcoin-based drug market Silk Road. Yet until recently, the feds have taken a relatively hands-off posture. Agencies have issued guidelines and signaled that they are monitoring the situation, but none have taken active steps to force Bitcoin intermediaries to comply with federal regulations.
That hands-off stance may have started to change this week when the feds took action against Mt. Gox, the world’s leading Bitcoin exchange. Many people use Dwolla, a PayPal-like payment network, to send dollars to their Mt. Gox accounts. They then use those dollars to buy Bitcoins. On Tuesday, Dwolla announced that it had frozen Mt. Gox’s account at the request of federal investigators. It’s the first federal action against the currency.
CNet has confirmed that the asset seizure was initiated by Homeland Security Investigations, a division of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Among other things, that agency has the power to enforce laws against money laundering and drug smuggling.
…
Mt Gox is based in Japan.
No one knows where the Silk Road is, so it can’t be shutdown.
“In the wake of the Gawker story two years ago, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) described Bitcoin as an “online form of money laundering” and called for the authorities to shutter the Bitcoin-based drug market Silk Road. ”
Holy s**t! I never thought I’d see the day. But I actually agree with Chuckles on something.
Cotati California Police Brutality Break into private … - YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eKBAsSu45U - 218k -
This should give all the people in Palm Beach County a warm and fuzzy after Sheriff Ric Bradshaw got an extra $1 million to launch “prevention intervention” units featuring specially trained deputies. The teams will respond to citizen phone calls to a 24-hour hotline with a knock on the door and a referral to services, if needed.
So any of the many loons in this county can call the hotline with any made up bullsh#t and have the ” specially trained deputies” knock on your door. Well, if you are planning on sending deputies to knock on doors of people who allegedly said “hates the mayor and he’s gonna shoot him,” what kind of training do you think they are gonna get?
“We want people to call us if the guy down the street says he hates the government, hates the mayor and he’s gonna shoot him,” Bradshaw said. “What does it hurt to have somebody knock on a door and ask, ‘Hey, is everything OK?’ ”
It’s one thing to knock on the door. It’s quite another to barge in or arrest a person. If a search is warranted, then the cops need to get a warrant. I just worry that this program, once widely accepted, will morph.
Warrants? That’s so pre-9/11.
One of my first visitors when I moved up here 20 years ago was our local sheriff, who dropped by and introduced himself, suggested I buy a shotgun (and told me where I could get a good deal on one) and left me his card “just in case you need anything or have any questions.” Nothing intimidating, it was all very neighborly, but he made his point and reassured me all at the same time.
“I’m not here to enforce the law,” he’d said. “I’m here to keep the peace.”
Community policing at its finest.
“It’s quite another to barge in or arrest a person.”
That clip didn’t show them making an arrest, they kicked the door In and tazed the lady who had her hands up and then the dude filming.
USA! USA! USA!
It Can Happen Here: The Bank Confiscation Scheme for US and UK Depositors
By Ellen Brown
Global Research, March 29, 2013
The 15-page FDIC-BOE document is called “Resolving Globally Active, Systemically Important, Financial Institutions.” It begins by explaining that the 2008 banking crisis has made it clear that some other way besides taxpayer bailouts is needed to maintain “financial stability.” Evidently anticipating that the next financial collapse will be on a grander scale than either the taxpayers or Congress is willing to underwrite, the authors state:
An efficient path for returning the sound operations of the G-SIFI to the private sector would be provided by exchanging or converting a sufficient amount of the unsecured debt from the original creditors of the failed company [meaning the depositors] into equity [or stock]. In the U.S., the new equity would become capital in one or more newly formed operating entities. In the U.K., the same approach could be used, or the equity could be used to recapitalize the failing financial company itself—thus, the highest layer of surviving bailed-in creditors would become the owners of the resolved firm. In either country, the new equity holders would take on the corresponding risk of being shareholders in a financial institution.
No exception is indicated for “insured deposits” in the U.S., meaning those under $250,000, the deposits we thought were protected by FDIC insurance. This can hardly be an oversight, since it is the FDIC that is issuing the directive. The FDIC is an insurance company funded by premiums paid by private banks. The directive is called a “resolution process,” defined elsewhere as a plan that “would be triggered in the event of the failure of an insurer . . . .” The only mention of “insured deposits” is in connection with existing UK legislation, which the FDIC-BOE directive goes on to say is inadequate, implying that it needs to be modified or overridden.
In the US, depositors have actually been put in a worse position than Cyprus deposit-holders, at least if they are at the big banks that play in the derivatives casino. The regulators have turned a blind eye as banks use their depositaries to fund derivatives exposures. And as bad as that is, the depositors, unlike their Cypriot confreres, aren’t even senior creditors. Remember Lehman? When the investment bank failed, unsecured creditors (and remember, depositors are unsecured creditors) got eight cents on the dollar. One big reason was that derivatives counterparties require collateral for any exposures, meaning they are secured creditors. The 2005 bankruptcy reforms made derivatives counterparties senior to unsecured lenders.
. . . Bank of America’s holding company . . . held almost $75 trillion of derivatives at the end of June . . . .
That compares with JPMorgan’s deposit-taking entity, JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, which contained 99 percent of the New York-based firm’s $79 trillion of notional derivatives, the OCC data show.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/it-can-happen-here-the-bank-confiscation-scheme-for-us-and-uk-depositors/5328954 - -
Yes they will try it but that will be the end of banking as we know it if they steal from depositors.
Stealing from depositors is the Federal Reserve’s job.
They’ve stolen about 95% of the dollar’s value since 1913.
More recently, they have stolen any chance for small depositors in banks or money-market funds to earn a dime in interest from their deposits. All of it goes straight into the coffers of Megabank, Inc.
Direct lending. http://www.lendingclub.com. 12-13% per year for me, personally.
Efficient, yet illegal.
Why would anyone ever make a bank deposit again?
Just came back from Germany.
Can someone remind me why the US is the ‘greatest’ country in the world?
Most US cities fail miserably when compared to European power houses like Munich or Berlin starting with their public transportation system.
People work less, seem to enjoy life more. Most people are multilingual and appreciate art and history (24 opera performances in Berlin just in may!!). I rarely observed fat people unlike most Americans. They don’t freak out about sex or drinking; how can that be?
We are seriously declining as a country in the US…
The “rugged individualist”, “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” mythology of the USA is a big fat lie that the 0.1% have effectively sold to a populace too stupid to think otherwise.
America isn’t a country, it’s a game.
…and it’s rigged.
Germany’s home ownership rate is in 40’s and USA’s is in 60’s.
Home ownership is the root of all evil. Home owners are evil doers. Central planners/Debt pushers are the devils.
Counties with highest levels of home ownership
1 Bulgaria 97 2011[2][3]
1 Lithuania 97 2009[4]
1 Mexico 84 2009[5]18:48
1 Greece 80 2009[6]
2 Hungary 91.9 2001[7]
3 Singapore 90.1 2012[8]
4 Nepal 85.2 2011
5 Russia 84.7 2011[9][10]
We are heading towards the same economic fate as these countries if we continue our obsession within buying and selling houses.
Although it would not be bad to be in same league with Singapore. With our central planners and current corpse of politicians, we will not be Singapore.
Define “Ownership”. Does that mean a paid off deed sitting in the safe?
Or a cardboard shack on a hill outside Mexico City?
A: Because Germany is full of……ummm….Germans?
Here is a hint. 3rd Generation Turkish immigrants who have been in Germany for 50 years do not get German citizenship.
Ethnic German 80.7
Oh… And German people are SO beautiful
that’s racis.
So? Should I apologize for being attracted to tall, slender and blond?
Nothing wrong with that. But she ain’t attracted to you. She prefers a few shades darker. ALOT darker.
Maybe you should visit and see that’s not the case. There are NOT those many ‘interracial’ couples IMHO
Maybe you should study some history, mature a few more years and don’t act like a schlepp tourist.
Also true for German males.
Oh you better believe it. Of my 6 second generation german friends (rather acquaintances), 4 have wives of african descent.
There is nothing wrong with it. It just is.
Statistically we are still talking a very minor number, but Germans (male & female) and whole Europe is somewhat ahead of USA in inter-marriages. They marry very late, too. First marriage in many countries are at mid 30’s while in US it’s 26.
So? Should I apologize for being attracted to tall, slender and blond?
But American women have good teeth…….
So do africans.
“First marriage in many countries are at mid 30’s while in US it’s 26.”
And in those countries the replacement rate is below 2, which means the populations are declining. You think social security’s in trouble here? It’s nowhere near the trouble Germany and France and Italy’s versions are in. And that because Euros simply aren’t having any kids. They’re living the HBB dream…no kids, a small rented apartment in the city. Which is great…until you get old and there’s nobody to take care of you and the govt has no money to give to you. Good luck.
So do africans.
May be true but not as straight as Americans’ for sure.
Germans have a good medical system.
US has better orthodontic care.
Why do germans have an affinity for africans?
Are you talking past or present? I think they always did. German colonies were mostly Africans IIRC.
They do? I saw almost no African people
I think they always did. German colonies were mostly Africans IIRC.
Indeed. A strange affinity indeed.
You are a racis.
Our differences only make us stronger1
http://money.cnn.com/2013/05/15/news/economy/minority-majority/
r!
A: Because Germany is full of……ummm….Germans?
That may be part of their success. What’s not so widely known is that there some reforms enacted around 8 - 10 years ago which led to a big increase in the number of German lucky duckies.
from Spiegel:
Low-Paid Workers Struggle Despite Germany’s Booming Economy
Study Finds Alarming Increase in Urban Poverty Across Germany
Report Cites Rise in Low Wage Workers Dependent on Welfare Benefits
It’s interesting how quickly things changed. In December 2005 I was flying from Frankfurt to Dulles and sat next to a college age German girl. She was visiting her German friend in Omaha who was doing an internship there. IIRC her friend was a mechinical engineer grad from Germany doing an internship in USA. She was excited to visit USA and bemoaned the fact that how bad the unemployment looked for young people like her in Germany. I believe this was at the tail end of the Schroder’s regime.
My sister had a German Exchange student in her house last year.
Same thing. She wanted to stay in the US.
Of course, she was smoking hot, which gets a lot of people to “third base” in the US of A, no matter what their skills or intellect.
Yep.
Do the men wear leotards and play harpsichords too?
I read in a history book that it was popular upper class men during the 1930’s and 1940’s.
“I rarely observed fat people unlike most Americans. ”
You weren’t looking very hard.
BERLIN — Half of German adults are obese (13.7%) and overweight (36.4%)”
http://www.gallup.com/poll/150359/half-germans-obese-overweight.aspx
Interesting… I wonder where those are…. I must have been continuously blinded by so much beauty that I ignored the ugly ones
Dude, you are a tourist. Tourists alaways visit the nice areas and mostly meet nice people in any country.
When you’re on vacation everything is perfect and everyone is beautiful. That’s the problem with making a judgement on a country based on what you see in a week while traveling. You see only the good since you’re looking for the good. Like fat people. 1/2 the people you saw were fat but in your eyes you “rarely observed fat people”.
That’s not true. I go to San Antonio or Dallas and most are fat
Because when you go to evil right wing places like TX you only see the bad because you’re looking for the bad. You see what you want to see that fits into your pre-conceived notions.
Who the hell vacations in Dallas Texas?
Who the hell vacations in Dallas Texas?
They have special tours dedicated to seeking out, ridiculing and feeling superior to fat people. It’s one of the few growing businesses in the USA.
He was probably visiting Bush’s new liberry.
BERLIN — Half of German adults are obese (13.7%) and overweight (36.4%)”
And 35% of Americans are obese and 74% are either obese or overweight.
Perhaps it was “relative perception”. In other words the Germans are also fat, just not as fat as we are, so by comparison the look thin.
Berliners are probably not as fat as the rest of the country, just as you will meet many thin people in cosmopolitan cities.
There are “skinny people” neighborhoods in every city, too. Head on over to SF’s Marina or Pacific Heights (or specific whites as we call it) and all the ladies are anorexic thin carrying yoga mats and pushing strollers.
SF you dont see a lot of really obese people on NYC subways or busses….except for lawyers cramming their size 19 neck into a stuffed shirt and carrying those big expendable luggage type cases..
People work less, seem to enjoy life more.
We Americans are obsessed with work. Which makes the people of many other countries think that we’re really, really, really odd.
You mean we’re not?
At this point we Americans work more hours per year than the Japanese, who were in first place twenty years ago. And we’re far ahead of the Germans.
Just came back from Germany…..People work less, seem to enjoy life more.
They have much less wealth inequality and they don’t worship at the alter of the false religion of trickle down Bull S*!t
Hey folks, we tried it for 30 years in America. It didn’t work. Admit it.
We are seriously declining as a country in the US…
It’s too soon to tell. Tune in again in 30 years & compare the USA with the Euro-zone.
Some of us won’t be here in 30 years, so that’s moot.
Even worse, at the last 30 and that’s now 60 years of second rate standard of living.
That’s decline in anybody’s book.
We are seriously declining as a country in the US…
It’s too soon to tell.
Unless one uses math.
People work less, seem to enjoy life more.
Well, they don’t have to worry about how to pay for their healthcare or how they are going to retire, so I suppose that flipping houses for $$$ doesn’t enter their collective mindset.
Brett:
Those people also live in massively ugly apartment complexes. As far as “not freaking out about alcohol or sex”, do you mean to say that they are slutty alcoholics? Just sayin’.
Americans have more of an ability to choose their own lifestyle. We don’t all have to be the same.
Unless you live in a dry county.
Or want to hire a prostitute.
Yeah, if you want to engage in behavior that has been deemed by the vast majority to be socially destructive, then you will encounter laws.
The laws in the United States are far less controlling than the laws in the EU, especially when it comes to your economic options. The USA is not perfect, but legalizing prostitution won’t make it better. Also, dry counties are weird because you could always buy the alcohol on Saturday, and then drink it on Sunday.
Want to grow some tomatoes? If you live in Germany (or anywhere in the EU), you might go to jail or pay a heavy fine if you plant unauthorized seeds. Such a better system they have over there, unlike America where you can plant a tomato in your backyard without needing the approval of a govt agency.
http://www.realseeds.co.uk/seedlaw.html
As for no worries about retirement? That’s because they have their heads in the sand.
http://www.thelocal.de/society/20130502-49495.html
“Young Germans are more optimistic than ever, with a survey on Thursday revealing that 95 percent think they’re set up for a good future, despite the fact not that many of them take saving for old age seriously. Almost a third if the 2,500 people interviewed told pollsters they didn’t think they’d ever be unemployed. And while most of them said they did have concerns about their pension, not the same amount said they were taking steps to secure one.”
“Why buy a house today at these massively inflated prices when you can rent for half the monthly cost? Buy later after prices crater for 65% less. If you buy a house at these prices, you will lose alot of money.
Why buy a house today at these massively inflated prices when you can rent for half the monthly cost?
Show me the numbers.
Buy or rent? 10 major cities
http://money.cnn.com/gallery/real_estate/2013/03/28/buy-rent/index.html
While markets vary wildly, prices are so reasonable and interest rates so low that buying is the better option in most of major U.S. cities, said Jed Kolko, Trulia’s chief economist. Nationwide, home buyers who remain in their homes for three years will save an average of 19% over renting. If they hold onto their homes for 7 years, the savings advantage grows to 44%
Rio:
I think that was true a year ago. However, some cities have appreciated so rapidly, that it’s already reversed. Phoenix is up 32% y-o-y (per square foot), but rents are down there. Can you believe I was actually trying to move to Phoenix last year, just so I could get a really cheap house? It didn’t happen, so I’m not trying any more. Phoenix is a really nasty place. The houses HAVE to be cheap to convince people to live there.
If they hold onto their homes
This is a big factor. My decision to buy had a lot to do with the fact that I plan on staying put for the next 20-30 years. And the high cost of renting.
So-and-so is still too scared to answer this question:
Go to craigslist and find me a 3/2 SFH rental in 94110 (the Mission or Bernal Heights) that has a yard and allows big dogs for less than $2500 month.
In fact, try and find a rental like that anywhere in SF (and not across the street from a housing project).
Then tell me that renting is half of my $2K PITI+M
DebtDonkey,
What is the square footage of the debt shack you’re renting from the bank?
How long before US fiat will substitute Venezuela’s chronic shortage of toilet papers?
Get more than you thought possible in a brand new home.
http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/moar
Musta been some party….
“Last year Vice President Joe Biden saw the wedding of his daughter Ashley to Philadelphia doctor Howard Krein. He also saw the bill.
According to financial-disclosure forms released Wednesday afternoon, Biden took out a home-equity line of credit valued between $100,001 and $250,000 in 2012 — his second in as many years. The 20-year line of credit from the Wilmington Savings Fund Society has an interest rate of 4.49% and replaces a $15,001 to $50,000 line of credit from 2011 from the same bank at a higher rate.
Biden hosted his daughter’s private wedding reception at his Wilmington, Del., home in June for the “bride and groom’s close family and friends,” according to a White House statement at the time.”
http://swampland.time.com/2013/05/15/biden-take-out-home-loan/#ixzz2TT85q0T1
Of course the little Ashley had no objections her Dad betting his house on her wedding. Children….what can I tell you?
Too bad for Sarah Palin, she is never going to make Al Gore money after she’s done in 2016.
I post an example of Biden taking out a HELOC. You reply with Sarah Palin. Amazing. Dude, the election was 5 years ago. You won. Move on.
You just don’t get it.
I hope my kids elope.
The Coming Housing Collapse
http://www.forbes.com/sites/afontevecchia/2013/03/05/peter-schiff-and-the-coming-housing-collapse-the-fed-instead-of-lehman-owns-the-mortgage-market/
Current asking prices of resale housing are massively inflated regardless of location. The risks are at record highs, the losses are massive. BEWARE
Men who are physically strong are more likely to have right wing political views
•Weaker men more likely to support welfare state and wealth redistribution
•Link may reflect psychological traits that evolved in our ancestors
•Strength was a proxy for ability to defend or acquire resources
•There is no link between women’s physical strength and political views
By Emma Innes
PUBLISHED: 05:21 EST, 16 May 2013 |
Men who are physically strong are more likely to take a right wing political stance, while weaker men are inclined to support the welfare state, according to a new study.
Researchers discovered political motivations may have evolutionary links to physical strength.
Men’s upper-body strength predicts their political opinions on economic redistribution, according to the research.
The principal investigators - psychological scientists Michael Bang Petersen, of Aarhus University in Denmark, and Daniel Sznycer, of the University of California in the U.S., believe that the link may reflect psychological traits that evolved in response to our early ancestral environments and continue to influence behaviour today.
Professor Petersen said: ‘While many think of politics as a modern phenomenon, it has - in a sense - always been with our species.’
Professor Petersen said: ‘Despite the fact that the United States, Denmark and Argentina have very different welfare systems, we still see that - at the psychological level - individuals reason about welfare redistribution in the same way.
However, the researchers found no link between upper-body strength and redistribution opinions among women.
He said, together, the results indicate that an evolutionary perspective may help to illuminate political motivations, at least those of men.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2325414/Men-physically-strong-likely-right-wing-political-views.html?ito=feeds-newsxml - -
So I have to ask….. are you suggesting an individual’s political views might influence his propensity to wear a leotard and play harpsichords on weekends?
“So I have to ask….. are you suggesting”
I’m not suggesting nothin’.
So I have to ask….. are you suggesting an individual’s political views might influence his propensity to wear a leotard and play harpsichords on weekends?
Let’s not confuse correlation and causation :-).
Lindsey Graham doesn’t look like a man with upper body strenght and neither does Rubio.
Although now that I think about it, both of my DBLLs did have limited upper-body strenght and both of their wives wore the Levi’s in the family.
“Lindsey Graham doesn’t look like a man with upper body strenght and neither does Rubio.”
How is Rubio doing with his comprehensive immigration plan?
They will pass this in the senate by hooks and crooks. The scandals lately have actually helped the immigration “discussion” in the senate. Will it pass the house? No one knows but people like Paul Ryan are for it so something will get passed in the house, too.
All I can hope is that the republicans are at least smart enought to not to provide an easier path to citizenship for the illegals. Make them legal but do not make them citizens. A new voting bloc as big as the population of Spain will make the US officially a 3rd world country in next 10 years. Guaranteed.
What total bullcrap.
Why?
You buy the IQ correlation though, don’t you?
“You buy the IQ correlation though, don’t you?”
You probably had to be smart to figure out a way to get the dude with the big paid for cave, whose family was livin’ large eating Bronto steaks every night to redistribute some of that Brontosaurus to the cavless people with limited upper-body strenght.
It took several of the weaker guys to accomplish what the stronger guy could do. So they had to learn to cooperate.
Men who are physically strong are more likely to have right wing political views
Multiple Scientific Studies Confirm: Extreme Conservatism Linked To Racism And Low I.Q.
http://aattp.org/multiple-scientific-studies-confirm-extreme-conservatism-linked-to-racism-and-low-i-q/
An article published at Psychology Today by Goal Auzeen Saedi, Ph.D. of Millennial Media writes about the correlation between far right-wing conservatism, low intelligence and racism.
Saedi writes,
“Hodson and Busseri (2012) found in a correlational study that lower intelligence in childhood is predictive of greater racism in adulthood, with this effect being mediated (partially explained) through conservative ideology. They also found poor abstract reasoning skills were related to homophobic attitudes which was mediated through authoritarianism and low levels of intergroup contact.”
Yes, political views are a sex-linked, heritable trait. You go, Denmark “scientists”.
You go….“scientists”.
Your Brain on Politics: The Cognitive Neuroscience of Liberals and Conservatives
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/09/07/your-brain-on-politics-the-cognitive-neuroscience-of-liberals-and-conservatives/
…Recent converging studies are showing that liberals tend to have a larger and/or more active anterior cingulate cortex, or ACC—useful in detecting and judging conflict and error—and conservatives are more likely to have an enlarged amygdala, where the development and storage of emotional memories takes place. More than one study has shown these same results, which is why I felt it was worth investigating….
….So—for liberals to make a case for an idea or cause, they come armed with data, research studies, and experts. They are convinced of an idea if all the data checks out–basically they assign meaning and value to ideas that fit within the scientific method, because that’s their primary thinking style. Emotion doesn’t play as big of a role in validation. Not to say that liberals are unfeeling, but just more likely to set emotion aside when judging an idea initially, and factor it in later. Checks out scientifically = valuable. Liberals can get just as emotionally attached to an idea, but it’s usually not the primary trigger for acceptance of an idea.
Conservatives would be less likely to assign value primarily using the scientific method. Remember, their thinking style leads primarily with emotion. In order for them to find an idea valuable, it has to be meaningful for them personally. It needs to trigger empathy. Meaning, they need some kind of emotional attachment to it, such as family, or a group of individuals they are close to in some way…..
How do you define “liberal” vs “conservative”? That sounds ambiguous to me.
How do you define “liberal” vs “conservative”? That sounds ambiguous to me.
Use a liberal or conservative interpretation. It won’t be ambiguous.
Has Eric Witholder had anything to say about anything he didn’t know anything about today?
You’d think an empire deputy like (with)Holder would know something… anything. After all…. he and his inner circle has an crumbling, corrupt rotten empire to hold together.
Just too funny…
Well, who else are they gonna vote for?
———————–
Unions, Retirees Slam Emanuel Plan To Cut Health-Care Subsidy
WLS-AM (Chicago) | 5/16/13 | WLS-AM (Chicago)
Union leaders and retirees blasted Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday for saving $108.7 million by phasing out a city subsidy for retiree health care and using roughly the same amount of public money to build a new basketball arena near McCormick Place.
“Why are retirees with the least ability to absorb this financial blow the first ones made to suffer?… Can’t the mayor find the savings elsewhere?” Fraternal Order of Police President Mike Shields wrote in an email to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Obama lived in Chicago (after being born in Kenya)
Terrrists Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dorhn live in Chicago
America hater Rev. Wright is from Chicago
Corrupt crook Rod Blagojevich was Governor of Chicago
110% of the electorate votes Democrat in Chicago
who else are they gonna vote for?
I have a foreclosure prevention event on the 1st of every month, I pay my mortgage.
County foreclosure prevention events scheduled
by Kim Miller
There are four upcoming foreclosure events scheduled for the general public and Bank of America customers this month.
The Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County is offering free foreclosure seminars for all homeowners on May 21 in Delray Beach and May 30 in Jupiter.
The Delray Beach seminar will be held from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the public library, 100 W. Atlantic Ave. Jupiter’s event will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Jupiter Community Center, 200 Military Trail.
Homeowners can meet one-on-one with attorneys at both events to learn more about their foreclosure options.
Reservations are required. For the Delray Beach event, call 561-655-8944, ext. 326. For the Jupiter event, call 561-741-2278.
Bank of America has invited more than 800 Palm Beach County residents to attend two events on May 29 and May 30 at the Palm Beach Gardens Marriott, 4000 RCA Boulevard. The event will be held between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
This event is for Bank of America customers only.
Customers can register for all upcoming events and find a list of documents required by going online to
http://www.bankofamerica.com/homeownerevent or calling 1.855.201.7426 (toll-free). Appointments are available from 8:00 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. daily.
I have a foreclosure prevention event on the 1st of every month, I pay my mortgage.
The Free Sh*t Army is disappointed.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-16/brooklyn-to-california-bubble-threat-grows-in-housing.html
Rebubble, rebubble, rebubble…
What happens when government “helps”
same as in health care
same as in housing
——————————
Student Debt Will Punish US for Years: Strategist
By Christina Medici Scolaro - Big Data Download – 5/16/2013
Currently there are $986 billion dollars in outstanding student loans in the United States, and of that, over ten percent of the loans are more than 90 days delinquent.
According to credit company Equifax, student loan delinquencies outpace most other loans. In the first quarter, auto loans have the lowest 90-day default rate, coming in at less than four percent. Mortgage delinquencies stand at 5.4 percent, and credit cards are slightly higher at 10.2 percent. The worst of the four groups are held by students hoping to make a better life for themselves through education. In the fourth quarter, 11.2 percent of student loans were 90 days delinquent.
The demographic with the highest delinquency rates are 30-39 year-olds. They have the most debt per person, on average about $33,000 dollars, versus the average of $25,000 dollars per head.
The price of tuition itself has risen by more than 26 percent since 2005, according the national center for education, and student “fees” can add a substantial amount to a loan on top of that. ConvergEx points out that $100 fees for things such as registration and technology don’t seem like much but as they add up, the original price tag falls farther and farther below the “real cost.”
Student loans are not dischargeable in bankruptcy and continue to accrue penalties if not paid. In a classic catch-22 scenario, defaulting on a student loan default can ruin a person’s credit – and chances of landing a job. Prospective employers are able review credit reports prior to hiring.
Colas told “Big Data Download” that one of the few happy points with regard to student loan debt is that the US government is on the hook for the majority on the debt rather than financial institutions or bondholders. The government could take write-downs against non-performing loans but the country is not in a situation where the entire financial system could take a major hit.
BOOK REVIEW: ‘Is College Worth It?’
Washington Times | 05/16/2013 | David DesRosiers
“Is College Worth It?” provides a thoroughgoing deconstruction of the “of course it is” delusion. It turns out that for too many, and maybe even most of our young people, the answer to this central question is, sadly, “no.” “Whether the standard of excellence for higher education is cultivating the mind and the soul or maximizing financial return on investment, most of higher education fails most students,” the authors write.
College has simply become too expensive. In the time between when I graduated from college and when my kids will start in a couple of years, the price differential, adjusting for inflation, has jumped 300%. When I went to college, my parents just wanted me to follow my muse, develop my mind and be happy. This led to my getting a doctorate — and to everyone’s surprise, I somehow figured out how to make a good living. However, a bachelor of arts degree in political science at a price of more than $150,000 now seems like a bad life choice. Somewhere during the past 25 years, the idea of following your muse in college got killed.
What killed it is explained by the “Bennett Hypothesis,” which by now should be elevated to the status of a theory or a law: “College tuition will rise as long as the amount of money available through federal student aid continues to increase with little or no accountability.”
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/blog/bs-md-gun-bill-signed-20130516,0,7526263.story
Is it go time yet?
It’s time to pull a Gatsby.
Do You Want Me To Read The Card? - YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBEjqax6h3s - 169k -
Is it go time yet?
IMO states can make whatever laws they want and they can be tested for constitutionality through the courts without any issues. People (and businesses) can move if they find that their state plays too fast and loose with their rights. There are checks and balances.
The danger with Federal laws is that they can take them all and then handle the court cases later and there’s nowhere to go to avoid losing them while you wait for the system to work.
But if you’re just trying to be annoying you’re succeeding.
“But if you’re just trying to be annoying you’re succeeding.”
Never let yourself be annoyed by someone with with limited upper-body strength.
‘Is it go time yet?’
You’re a little late:
‘It’s Go Time In California’
http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/?p=7715
Is a story about racism racist if people other than whites are racists?
Map shows world’s ‘most racist’ countries
Daily Mail (UK) | 16 May 2013 | Hugo Gye
An international poll has revealed the world’s least tolerant countries—with Hong Kong at the top of the list and Britain near the bottom.
The global social attitudes study claims that the most racially intolerant populations are all in the developing world, with Bangladesh, Jordan and India in the top five.
By contrast, the study of 80 countries over three decades found Western countries were most accepting of other cultures with Britain, the U.S., Canada and Australia more tolerant than anywhere else.
That’s what I’ve been saying too. White people do not realizing that they are the objects of racism. You may want to give that Chinese guy a fair shake, but he may not wish to return it.
There’s a reson former colonies do not trust the white men. Last time they invited them, the locals ended up losing alot.
I coulda swore Australia was a colony at one time.
So was the United States.
Yes, you are racist for posting this. Proceed directly to Diversity Training. Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200. Social justice will only be achieved by giving Jesse Jackson’s kidz another Anheuser-Busch distributorship.
http://jessejackson.org
I remember meeting a former colleague of Chinese descent. I was with a two colleagues of Asian descent (non Chinese). They shook hands. I put my hand out and the colleague of Chinese descent refused to shake hands. It was awkward. I suppose some of them think all white people are dirty. Usually it’s the Asian males who are racist against white males. That’s how it is where I work in L.A.
I regret voting for Obama.
Don’t you think the damage is already done?
What do you mean?
At first I was disappointed (in Obama) but after watching him under pressure I have grown to despise him. Just look at the way he handled the end of the Bush tax cuts. He didn’t have to lift a finger and our budget deficit would have been cut in half by the end of his second term. Given how corrupt the system has become why bother to vote?
homes are cheap historically.
Nonsense.
Housing prices are still at near peak bubble prices of 2004.
The risk of massive loss is high.
How ginormous will the U.S. farmland bubble need to grow before the Fed finally can spot it?
ft dot com
May 16, 2013 9:01 pm
US farmland prices rise despite weak grain market
By Gregory Meyer in New York
Farmland prices in the US corn belt have risen at double-digit clip this year despite weaker grain markets in a move that will intensify debate over whether loose monetary policy and congressional largesse are inflating a bubble.
Agricultural land values increased 15 per cent on last year during the first quarter in a district that includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said on Thursday. The region’s farmland values have trebled in the past decade.
Whether the market is overheating has become a feverishly discussed question among land shoppers from farmers to pension funds. Past booms have ended in prolonged declines, with US prices plunging by 66 per cent from 1919-1940 and more than 40 per cent from 1981-1987, according to research published by the Kansas City Fed.
“We’re trying to decide is this a cyclical thing, or is it permanent?” Mike Maires, senior real estate portfolio manager at Utah Retirement Systems, said at the recent Global AgInvesting conference. “It’s important for us that we don’t enter at a peak.”
Signs are emerging that the torrid rate of farmland gains may be cooling – the rise in the Chicago Fed district was a tad less than last year’s increase. Prices fell in Wisconsin, while rising 20 per cent in Iowa, the biggest corn and soyabean grower.
Bulls argue that with the world population set to top 9bn by 2050 and people in emerging markets eating more grain-fed beef, chicken and pork, the land rush is just beginning. Investors own less than 1 per cent of US farmland, suggesting an absence of speculative froth.
Perry Vieth, president of US land fund manager Ceres Partners, said: “It is farmers who are buying. When Goldman Sachs shows up at the auction, I’ll know it’s time to flip over to the sell side.”
Farmers making the biggest real profit in 40 years have borrowed at ultra-low interest rates to accumulate acreage. Unlike the last boom of the 1970s, the ratio of farm debts to assets is at a historic low.
However, the US Department of Agriculture forecasts farmers will be paid 32 per cent less for corn this year if expectations of a record harvest hold true. “Lower crop prices could slow the upward trend in farmland values,” wrote David Oppedahl, Chicago Fed economist.
Also, not all farmers have strong balance sheets; nearly a third of bankers surveyed by the Kansas City Fed said a substantial share of their farm customers had debt-to-asset ratios of more than 40 per cent. A rise in interest rates would put pressure on land prices.
“Some bankers expressed concern that a downturn in farm income or land values could impact the ability of more leveraged operations to meet debt obligations, particularly for borrowers using land as collateral on other loans,” the Kansas City survey said. Land values in its district are up 20 per cent on year.
…
The Precious™ ain’t all that no more…
Gold falls on stronger dollar, heads for worst week in a month
Austrian gold Vienna Philharmonic bullion planchets are seen in the Austrian Mint (Muenze Oesterreich) headquarters in Vienna April 23, 2013. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
By A. Ananthalakshmi
SINGAPORE | Fri May 17, 2013 9:59am IST
(Reuters) - Gold fell for a seventh straight session on Friday as the dollar strengthened and investors cut exposure to the metal, sending holdings in exchange-traded funds to their lowest in four years.
Gold has lost nearly 6 percent of its value in the six sessions through Thursday as stocks gained on the back of strong U.S. economic data, and on fears the Federal Reserve could end its bullion-friendly bond buying program.
Spot gold was down 0.53 percent at $1,378.41 an ounce by 0346 GMT, having fallen to a four-week low of $1,369.29 on Thursday as renewed liquidation in gold ETFs and a recent drop below the $1,400-per-ounce level spooked investors.
The metal is down 17 percent for the year and is on track for its worst weekly decline in a month.
Physical demand was also quiet on Friday as consumers in the biggest gold buyers, India and China, wait for prices to stabilize or drop further, traders and dealers said.
“Many people are waiting on the sidelines as they are expecting another drop,” said Brian Lan, managing director of GoldSilver Central Pte Ltd in Singapore.
…
What is the variation amongst a customized-produced hair technique and an “off-the-shelf” hair technique.
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fabrics meet the criteria to use the application. This is the cause,
why the acceptance and need for designer outfits, footwear and handbags have been raising by just about every passing day.