Archive for October, 2014
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
Nate Silver of the 538 Blog opines on the mid term election. The GOP, he concludes, still holds the edge in the race to control the Senate and his model gives the GOP a 63 percent chance of gaining control.
Via Nate Silver at ESPNs 538 blog:
Senate Update: The Republican ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Midterm Election Update
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
The Governors of New York and New Jersey jointly decided that health care workers who return from lands rife with Ebola should endure three weeks of quarantine. That seems appropriate since a doctor who just returned from west Africa is now infected with the disease and currently in great distress. ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Querulous Quarantine Quarrel
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
This article at the WSJ signals that all is clear and owning bonds is a trouble free enterprise. I do not forsee a bear market either but with so many so comfortable it is probably a time to exercise prudence in establishing a long position.
Via the WSJ:
Abreast of the Market
Darker ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Love Affair with Bonds
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
Via Marc Chandler at Brown Brothers Harriman:
Positioning and Recent Price Action
The US dollar gained against most of the major foreign currencies last week, but the overall tone, leaving aside the yen, was largely consolidative in nature. The greenback was soft in the first half of the week but recovered in ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on FX Technicals
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
Via WSJ:
ECB Says 25 Banks Fail Stress Tests
Number of Failures Slightly Larger Than Analysts Expected
By
Gabriele Steinhauser,
Max Colchester,
David Enrich and
Todd Buell
Updated Oct. 26, 2014 7:22 a.m. ET
Twenty-five eurozone banks flunked financial-health exams designed to measure their ability to withstand another economic crisis, falling short of minimum levels of capital ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Official Release of Europe Stress Test Results
Sunday, October 26th, 2014
Bloomberg reports that Ms Merkel is set to accept some flexibility on the question of deficit targets for EU members.
Via Bloomberg:
Merkel Changes Tone as She Hints at Euro-Area Investment Needs
By Ian Wishart Oct 25, 2014 8:09 AM ET
German Chancellor Angela Merkel indicated she is ready to make a grand ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Kinder Gentler Merkel
Saturday, October 25th, 2014
I have not published one of these in quite some time but this news has me hearing the sound of time's winged chariot hurrying near. Jack Bruce was the bass player and one of the founders of one of the legendary rock groups of the 1960s, Cream. He founded ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Aging Baby Boomer Alert
Saturday, October 25th, 2014
The original intent of IRA accounts back when the government first authorized them was that they would be long term assets and would supplement Social Security income for people in the great wide swath of middle incomes. This story relates how that idea has not held up over time and ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on IRA Accounts as a Piggybank
Saturday, October 25th, 2014
Via Bloomberg:
China State Economist Sees 2015 Growth Slowest in Over 2 Decades
By Bloomberg News Oct 25, 2014 5:08 AM ET
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China’s economic growth is expected to be at 7 percent ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on GDP Slowdown in China
Friday, October 24th, 2014
Via Merrill Lynch:
Due to the pressure on the ECB to do QE, the rebound in US interest rates is underwhelming relative to the increase in stocks
US credit benefits from the rise in stocks while interest rate risks remains subdued. Longer term we remain more cautious...
...as interest rates go up and ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Merrill Lynch on Credit Spreads