SNB & CHF

  A Brutal Communist Dictator Shuffles Off This Mortal Coil The death of the brutal Cuban Communist dictator Fidel Castro closes the door, in some respect, on another disastrous page in US foreign policy history.  For all the denunciations and criticism of Castro from conservative elements and exiled Cubans, his despotic rule was the outcome of decades of American imperialism which began with President William...

Switzerland retains its number one spot in IMD‘s most recent 2016 World Talent Report. Unlike the other 60 nations in the study, which have seen their performance gyrate, a plot of Switzerland’s rank over the last ten years is a perfectly straight line. First ten years in a row. The study looks at three things: investment in people, ability to attract skilled foreigners, and readiness, a measure of the availability of...

Switzerland retains its number one spot in IMD‘s most recent 2016 World Talent Report. Unlike the other 60 nations in the study, which have seen their performance gyrate, a plot of Switzerland’s rank over the last ten years is a perfectly straight line. First ten years in a row. The study looks at three things: investment in people, ability to attract skilled foreigners, and readiness, a measure of the availability of...

Summary: US Q3 was revised higher mostly due to consumption. Business investment was a drag. Profits rose to snap a five-quarter slide. The US economy now is estimated to have expanded by 3.2% in Q3, up from the initial estimate of 2.9%, and is the fasted in since Q3 2014.  The average quarterly growth rate this year is 1.8% compared with 1.9% last year.  The Federal Reserve estimates trend growth or the...

Summary: US Q3 was revised higher mostly due to consumption. Business investment was a drag. Profits rose to snap a five-quarter slide. The US economy now is estimated to have expanded by 3.2% in Q3, up from the initial estimate of 2.9%, and is the fasted in since Q3 2014.  The average quarterly growth rate this year is 1.8% compared with 1.9% last year.  The Federal Reserve estimates trend growth or the...

Neuchâtel, 29.11.2016 (FSO) – In the 3rd quarter 2016, total employment (number of jobs) rose by 0.3% in comparison with the same quarter a year earlier (-0.1% compared with the previous quarter). In full-time equivalents, employment in the same period remained unchanged. The Swiss economy counted 4,000 more vacancies than in the corresponding quarter of the previous year (+8.1%). The other indicators also showed...

Neuchâtel, 29.11.2016 (FSO) – In the 3rd quarter 2016, total employment (number of jobs) rose by 0.3% in comparison with the same quarter a year earlier (-0.1% compared with the previous quarter). In full-time equivalents, employment in the same period remained unchanged. The Swiss economy counted 4,000 more vacancies than in the corresponding quarter of the previous year (+8.1%). The other indicators also showed...

See the introduction and the video for the terms gold basis, co-basis, backwardation and contango. How Not to Predict Gold Prices Sometimes, we think that every story in the gold community has the same template: I have inside information to share with you My peeps are telling me that <XYZ> will happen If <XYZ> happens, then the gold price will go ballistic (<XYZ> will happen, I just know it) So buy...

Swiss Franc EUR/CHF - Euro Swiss Franc, November 29(see more posts on EUR/CHF, ). - Click to enlarge FX Rates The US dollar correctly lowered yesterday, but most of the selling was over by the end of the Asian session, and the greenback steadied in Europe and North America.  The dollar is firm against the euro and yen but within yesterday’s broad trading ranges.  The Australian and Canadian dollar’s gains from...

Hidden Motives It is well-known that India’s government wants to coerce its population into “modernizing” its financial behavior and abandoning its traditions. The recent ban on large-denomination banknotes was not only meant to fight corruption. In fact, as our friend Jayant Bhandari has pointed out, fresh avenues for corruption  immediately opened up upon enactment of the ban (see “Gold Price Skyrockets in India...