A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of recording a Financial Repression Authority (FRA) podcast–hosted by Richard Bonugli–with one of the world’s foremost Austrian economic analysts, Ronald-Peter Stoeferle. Mr. Stoeferle had just returned from a GOLD conference in China so he was bringing a fresh perspective on the global demand for precious metals. This podcast provides the view from Asia, a region from which we don’t receive enough information. Enjoy and I will return in full next week.
Posts Tagged ‘Swiss Franc’
Notes From Underground: A Podcast With Ronald-Peter Stoeferle
January 8, 2019Notes From Underground: Narrow-Minded Hypocrites, All I Want Is the Truth
December 13, 2018Gimme some truth. That is what John Lennon craved back in 1971. In 2018, it seems that investors and traders crave the same thing:
I’m sick and tired of hearing things
From uptight, short-sighted,narrow-minded hypocrits
All I want is the truth, just Give me some truth
I’ve had enough of reading things
By neurotic, psychotic, pig-headed politicians
No short-haired, yellow-bellied, son of tricky dicky
Is going to mother hubbard soft soap me
With a pocketful of hope
Money for dope, money for rope
Notes From Underground: Strange Days Indeed
April 17, 2018The market has several themes it is trying to digest, which made Tuesday’s price action interesting. Reported earnings have been as strong as whispered and with the Syrian bombing over the weekend, the markets had time to analyze the outcome (and as usual it was treated as a minimal event with no proliferation).
On Sunday night there was an immediate rally as the SPOOS gained 0.5 percent on the open. Strong earnings kept the rally in gear but what’s interesting that the financials failed to hold their initial rallies. This is important because most analysts were predicting significant growth in bank ROES, especially for the large Wall Street banks. Goldman’s FICC revenue increased by more than 20 percent as trading volatility provided an opportunity for one of the few remaining large prop shops remaining on the Street. The Goldman rallied fizzled and finished 2 percent down on the day.
Notes From Underground: Kudlow’s Dilemma, Tariffs Versus King Dollar
March 18, 2018The newswires were flushed with either praise about the appointment of Larry Kudlow to lead the National Economic Council, or concerns about his past dalliances with drugs and supply-side economics. This BLOG doesn’t care about one’s past human foibles as we all have failings. But the addiction to supply-side economics is and will be an issue of concern as the White House attempts to push forward with a coherent policy. The great showpiece of last week’s media frenzy over Kudlow was the transparency of what I have referred to as the mainstream media’s desire for access versus genuine discourse. CNBC was giddy over the idea that one of the network’s talking heads was going to be a key figure in forthcoming economic discussions and old loyalty OUGHT to provide greater ACCESS. The questions for the consumers of financial news will be who abuses the relationship more. But enough editorializing.
Notes From Underground: Hell Has Frozen Over. Greenspan and Harris Agree
December 7, 2017Over the last 30 years I have not had much regard for Alan Greenspan. He has been wrong on many of the issues on which he has opined, not least his speech on home bias and his pleadings for U.S. homeowners to refinance their mortgages and use home equity as a piggy bank. But like Holden, I digress. In his CNBC interview Wednesday he was adamant that fiscal stimulus was ill-advised, but tax reform was necessary. He said Congress should use the reform to close tax loopholes and run budget surpluses while we are at some modicum of full employment. I agree with this and as Greenspan maintained, the beginning of this tax reform OUGHT to be the reconsideration of Bowles/Simpson. Greenspan also stressed “… the folks in Washington do not understand that reducing the size of the system portfolio is a necessary condition for normalizing the price of credit.” I also agree with this viewpoint. And, in regards to BITCOIN, Sir Alan explained you can’t create VALUE out of nothing.
Notes From Underground: Arthur’s Song, Lost Between the Moon and New York City
August 28, 2017A long-time reader of Notes From Underground posted a comment to a previous post promoting long GOLD/short YEN. When I asked him about this trade he noted the onset of currency wars. There is no question, as I have regularly shown that many foreign central banks’ currency’s strength is a reason to maintain very low interest rates and if in place QE programs. I certainly agree with Arthur about this narrative. But from a relative value perspective the Japanese yen has already benefited from its weakening versus the EURO, Aussie, Kiwi, Canada and Swiss franc.
Notes From Underground: Shelter From the Storm
August 9, 2017Not a word was spoke between us,there was little risk involved
Everything up to that point ,had been left unresolved
Try imagining a place where it’s always safe and warm
Come in, she said, I’ll give you shelter from the storm
When Bob Dylan released this song 42 years ago it was on the album Blood on the Tracks. When the FED embarked on its QE1, QE2 and QE3 it was to respond to the blood coursing through the streets of the U.S. financial system. The U.S. banking system was threatened with insolvency and the FED‘s monetary injections sheltered the banking system from a storm of forced systemic liquidation of assets. QE1 coupled with a questionable TARP program did prevent a systemic liquidation but QE2 and QE3 I always believed were superfluous but in the land of counterfactuals it is an impossible point to prove.
Notes From Underground: I Knew I Would Return
August 2, 2017Last week’s FOMC meeting proved BORING and left me speechless … but not thoughtless. The only phrase of significance was the use of “RELATIVELY SOON” in placing some forward guidance to the beginning of quantitative tightening (h/t Boockvar). We have no idea what “relatively soon” means but I continue to ask: WHY WAIT? Yes, it may be because the FED is nervous about the potential of DEBT CEILING caused by a Congress filled with know-nothings and do-nothings clogging the day-to-day financing of government operations.
Notes From Underground: Switzerland Was Named The Fourth-Happiest Country
March 22, 2017In an inane study of the world’s countries by the U.N. and released on World Happiness Day (what an absurd concept) the land locked nation with its active printing press was heralded as ranking FOURTH while the U.S. fell to 14th. To paraphrase Tolstoy: Happy countries are all alike; every unhappy country is unhappy in its own way. On March 17 Bloomberg ran a story, “Swiss National Bank (SNB) Foreign Reserves Soar, Signaling Interventions.” In February the SNB’s reserves increased by 3.8% to 668.2 billion francs, “the biggest increase since December 2014.”
Notes From Underground (REPOST): If I was A Rich Man, They Think You Really Know
June 26, 2016While we’re waiting for the outcome of the Spanish election, I am setting the stage for a larger piece on the market reaction to a high frequency political event. There is a continuing rebuff to the global elites that only reside in their own echo chamber, much of it promoted by the established media. It’s amazing how the policy makers want to believe that the people cannot see behind the curtain. BREXIT was first and foremost a Dorothy/Wizard of Oz result.