Tag Archives: Featured

  Commercial and Non-Commercial Market Participants The commitments of traders in gold futures are beginning to look a bit concerning these days – we will explain further below why this is so. Some readers may well be wondering why an explanation is even needed. Isn’t it obvious? Superficially, it sure looks that way. As the following chart of the net position of commercial hedgers illustrates, their position is currently at quite an extended level: Gold Hedgers Position Net position...

Following a scramble by European nations to issue ultra long-dated government paper, which saw France and Belgium sell 50-year bonds last month, while Ireland and Belgium went all the way and issued century bonds, with even Switzerland locking in 42-year paper yesterday, moments ago Spain was the latest to extend maturities all the way to 2066 when it sold €3 billion in 50 year bonds at Midswaps+50. According to MarketNews, the issue was over 3 times oversubscribed with the orderbook...

The Japanese yen is recovering from two-day two percent decline.  The yen is the strongest of the majors today, rising about 0.6%.   The greenback initially extended its gains marginally in early Tokyo before the selling pressure emerging.  The price action reinforces the importance of the JPY109.50 resistance area.   The Nikkei initially moved higher and filled the gap created by the sharply lower opening on May 3, following disappointment with the BOJ lack of action at the end of the...

By all accounts Bernhard Gubser was living the American Dream. Born in Switzerland he moved to the Land of the Free in the early 1980s to work at an international shipping company based in Laredo, Texas. Eventually Mr. Gubser worked his way up to be President of the company and began traveling around the world to expand the business. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in the 1990s, something that would eventually cost him $1.35 million. As a Swiss native, Gubser had a...

  Hacks and Has-Beens NORMANDY, France – What has happened to TIME magazine? Henry Luce, who started TIME – the first weekly news magazine in the U.S. – would be appalled to see what it has become. Time cover featuring the sunburned mummy heading the globalist IMF bureaucracy (which inter alia advocates that governments should confiscate a portion of the wealth of their citizens overnight, even while its own employees don’t have to pay a single cent in taxes). Once you see the list of the...

Sometimes the mountain looks clearer from the plain the summit to paraphrase a American-Lebanese poet.   The dollar appears to have entered a new phase on May 3.  On that day, it reversed higher against the euro, yen, and sterling for lows not seen in a while.     It is tempting to construct a fundamental narrative for the change.  However, the usual drivers are noticeable by their absence.  The US economic data has been mixed, including the employment report that often sets the tone for...

The current financial market volatility increasingly reflects loss of faith in policy makers. Celebrity central bankers are learning that they must constantly produce new miracles for their followers. First, the measures implemented since 2009 created an artificial stability and an asset price boom in many markets. But the absolute rate of GDP expansion and level of price changes is inadequate to solve global debt problems. Second, new initiatives seem the risky response of clever...

  Political Correctness Comedy How to most effectively create a “safe space” on campus Cartoon by Nate Beeler We have recently come across a video that is simply too funny not be shared. It also happens to dovetail nicely with our friend Claudio’s recent essay on political correctness and cultural Marxism. Since this is generally a rather depressing topic, we have concluded that having a good laugh at it might not be the worst idea. It is especially funny (or terrifying, depending on...

A Loss of Momentum Photo credit: R.P. Visual The price of gold moved down slightly this week, while that of silver dropped more substantially—1.9%. We don’t see much decrease in the enthusiasm yet from this minor setback. This was a shortened week due to the May Day holiday outside the US. Let’s look at the only true picture of supply and demand fundamentals. Gold and silver prices. First, here’s the graph of the metals’ prices. Gold and silver prices – click to enlarge....

A Sudden Turn for the Worse Freddie Mac HQ – a strange time for posting losses Photo via nytstyle.com Freddie Mac posted a loss of $354 million this quarter, versus a $2.16 billion gain the previous quarter.  Fannie Mae did slightly better with net earnings of $1.1 billion, which were still substantially down from $2.5 billion the previous quarter though. Instead of delving into the entrails of the financial statements, I would like to ask a broader question:  Why is Freddie reporting...