SNB & CHF

The last shred of power the elites hold is the belief of the masses that the elites are still in control. I understand the natural desire to believe somebody’s in charge: whether it’s the Deep State, the Chinese Communist Party, the Kremlin or Agenda 21 globalists, we’re primed to believe somebody somewhere is controlling events or pursuing agendas that drive global responses to events. I submit whatever control we discern is illusory, as the dynamics unleashed by...

A Failure to Integrate Values The only region in the world that has proactively tried to incorporate western culture in its societies is East Asia — Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, which was a grotesquely oppressed, poor, Third World country not too far in the past, notwithstanding its many struggles today, has furiously tried to copy the West. Famous Greek philosophers: their thoughts are a cornerstone of Western culture. [PT]Western...

“Our country continues to face a difficult and challenging time….People have lost loved ones. Many millions have lost their jobs. There is great uncertainty about the future. At the Federal Reserve, we are strongly committed to using our tools to do whatever we can, for as long as it takes…to ensure that the recovery will be as strong as possible, and to limit lasting damage to the economy” –Jerome Powell, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, June 10, 2020 America is...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.22% to 1.069 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, June 23(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: After early indecision, investors ramped the demand for risk assets, encouraged perhaps by indications that the Trump Administration going to support at least another trillion-stimulus package. The NASDAQ rallied to new record highs, and the dollar got thumped across the board. However,...

On Swiss trains passenger numbers have increased very gradually, and currently stand at around 55% of normal capacity in regional trains and 45% on intercity trains. © Keystone / Christian Beutler The collapse in the number of commuters and other passengers on Swiss trains and buses due to the pandemic is likely to leave a big hole in the finances of public transport companies. The Le Matin Dimanche and SonntagsZeitung newspapers reported on Sunday that Alliance...

Congolese demonstrations protest outside Glencore’s headquarters in Zug, Switzerland, in July 2018. © Keystone / Urs Flueeler The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has opened a criminal probe into Swiss-based commodity trader and miner Glencore over alleged corruption in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it mines copper and cobalt. Glencore said in a statement on June 19 that the Swiss criminal investigation was for the multinational’s...

There are some indexing events this week that could add to market volatility; the IMF will release updated global growth forecasts Wednesday The regional Fed manufacturing surveys for June will continue to roll out; Fed speaking engagements are somewhat limited this week Eurozone reports preliminary June PMI readings Tuesday; ECB releases its account of the June meeting Thursday All quiet on the Brexit front; UK reports preliminary June PMI readings Tuesday Japan...

We are reading now about possible regulations for air travel. In brief: passengers might be forced to spend hours at the airport. Authorities will perform medical checks, including possibly needles to draw blood, no lounges, no food or drink on board the plane, masks required at all times, and even denied the use of a bathroom except by special permission. We would wager an ounce of fine gold against a soggy dollar bill that people will hate this. The majority of...

Donald Trump’s economic populism, and his break with the established post-war conservative movement, has created an opening for new types of conservatism. Among these is the anti-market wing of the movement characterized by a renewed enthusiasm for trade controls, more spending on welfare programs, and more government regulation in the everyday lives of ordinary Americans. The economic agenda has been voiced perhaps most enthusiastically by pundit Tucker Carlson and...

(Disclosure: Some of the links below may be affiliate links) You have probably heard a lot about Financial Independence. A lot of things on this blog are about my path to Financial Independence (FI). But why would you want to be financially independent? There are many reasons for wanting to be financially independent. And as you will see, retiring may not be the most significant reason. In this post, I am going to list the main reasons people want to be Financially...