The Venezuelan government of Nicolás Maduro is desperately attempting to reverse the entire nation from teetering on outright state collapse. In a bold response to western sanctions pressures which have significantly contributed to Venezuela’s severely damaged economy, the Maduro government has launched an oil and gold-backed cryptocurrency platform as means of both defense against hyperinflation […]
The second longest bull market in stocks was brutally interrupted in early February 2018 with some serious volatility, including the largest single day point drop in the history of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. I mean, why would something like that happen if the economy is otherwise doing so well, investors are so clearly exuberant, […]
The history of Wall Street and Anglo-American finance in China is one that is rarely discussed in western media or even academia, whereas knowing it would explain much about both China’s stunning economic rise over the past 70 years, as well as certainly seemingly rising tensions between China and the US today. It’s hard to tell if there is genuine tension and enmity because of credible rivalry status between the US and China, or if everything is proceeding according to wider, deeper, much longer-term planning based on desired, durable and thus political coordination. Large US, UK and EU
Chinese government officials recently informed Washington of intentions to ‘slow’ or outright ‘halt’ state purchases of US Treasury bonds. The economic realities underlying Beijing’s report caused noticeable effects on the bond and stock markets. Wider geopolitical considerations were certainly felt among analysts, government officials and within industry. With the Trump Administration’s looming trade war against China sitting alongside threats posed to Chinese allies North Korea and Iran, China’s palpable concerns – and China’s perceived need for putting its largest trade partner on not
As is now common knowledge, the 2008 Global Financial Crisis was triggered within the US mortgage and real estate markets. What’s not so commonly known, however, is that the state of said real estate market – both residential and certainly commercial – remain precarious, with information opaquely presented by sell-side industry cheerleaders, foremost realtors themselves and the institutions which underwrite them. In this latest episode of Money and Fear, we’ll review data points which reveal what you’re not told enough regarding true supply and demand parameters,
In this latest episode of Money and Fear, we’ll gauge a sense or three of what to expect next year by reemphasizing economic realities today. We’ll review data and charts that neither the Fed, nor the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nor the mainstream corporate business press want you to see, for fear of any dilution of the very ‘animal spirits’ which they all deem as necessary to keep the equities and Bitcoin gravy trains seem credible. Viewers like yourselves will then be left with the task of thinking critically about how you want to manage your finances while staying awake to economic rea
Based on core global economic fundamentals, the gold price should be well north of $10,000 an ounce.
“Cold hard cash”. Paper currencies and coinage have been around for centuries. So why is there a “war” against cash, all of a sudden? Sure, governments and the central and private banks which control them can claim that this war is meant to prevent crimes and illicit activities, but are there deeper, longer term reasons involved? Especially considering what “money” is and how it has the capacity to so uniquely dictate human energy? Could the aim toward complete digitization of cash involve the wanting of complete control over each individual’s economic affairs, and thereby, every perso
There’s certainly no love lost here for shamed film producer Harvey Weinstein or his ilk, and there’s zero excuses for his behavior towards women, colleagues, staff and talent. The recent spate of scandals coming out of Hollywood involving the past sexual assaults and offenses of both high and low-profile executives and creative talent are odd only in the sense of their volume, timing and seemingly coordinated effort. Yet *where* was the weight of such a coordinated national effort – which apparently involves the mainstream media, law enforcement and even government – in years or decades
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 23,000 last week, yet how and why?!? The nonfictional US economy is much worse off than the stock indices lead on about. Increasingly opaque digital means for trading massive volumes through “dark pools” and high frequency trading algorithms beg deep questions over how & why the equities markets seem so untethered from economic reality. What are the roles of our largest banks, government agencies and their “revolving door” staffing policies in potentially propping up the stock market, and for what ultimate political purp