Friday, March 31, 2017
The Case for Socialized Medicine / Politics / Healthcare Sector
Last week the American political establishment was shaken to its foundation when the Republican Party leadership withdrew the American Health Care Act (AHCA) just before the vote was to be taken on the floor of the House of Representatives. Besides being a most unusual procedure, it exposed a fundamental split in the country,reflected not merely in Congress but within the Republican Party. GOP purists, represented by the House Freedom Caucus, demanded more significant roll backs in socialized medicine that were contained in the Ryan plan. Their refusal to back the plan, after years of promising complete repeal, doomed the bill.
Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, March 31, 2017
Our Economies Run On Housing Bubbles / Housing-Market / US Housing
We are witnessing the demise of the world’s two largest economic power blocks, the US and EU. Given deteriorating economic conditions on both sides of the Atlantic, which have been playing out for many years but were so far largely kept hidden from view by unprecedented issuance of debt, the demise should come as no surprise.
The debt levels are not just unprecedented, they would until recently have been unimaginable. When the conditions for today’s debt orgasm were first created in the second half of the 20th century, people had yet to wrap their minds around the opportunities and possibilities that were coming on offer. Once they did, they ran with it like so many lemmings.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Brexit Gold Buying – UK Demand for Gold Bars Surges 39% / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2017
– UK investors buy gold bars as demand surges 39% in 2016
– Brexit Day sees Article 50 triggered and pound weakens
– “Brexit nerves” see “Brits hoard gold” reports WSJ
– End of 44 year relationship with closest economic partner
– May sets Brexit clock ticking in letter to Tusk
Thursday, March 30, 2017
What are the Biggest Gambling Markets in the World? / Personal_Finance / Gambling
...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
USD May Stay Soft in Near Term / Currencies / US Dollar
Although the Fed is in the rate hike cycle, USD rally started to lose momentum early this year when market started to realize that monetary policy divergence started to narrow. ECB has started to talk about rate hikes, while China started to tighten monetary policy by raising money market rates early last month. The Fed also sounded less hawkish in their last rate hike as they forecasted only three rate hikes this year and no Fed members agreed to hike rate four times.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Stock Market Mixed Expectations As Technology Stocks Reach New Record Highs / Stock-Markets / Stock Market 2017
Briefly: In our opinion, speculative short positions are favored (with stop-loss at 2,410, and profit target at 2,200, S&P 500 index).
Our intraday outlook is bearish, and our short-term outlook is bearish. Our medium-term outlook remains neutral, following S&P 500 index breakout above last year's all-time high:
Intraday outlook (next 24 hours): bearish
Short-term outlook (next 1-2 weeks): bearish
Medium-term outlook (next 1-3 months): neutral
Long-term outlook (next year): neutral
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Elliott Wave Analysis of APPLE (AAPL) / Companies / Elliott Wave Theory
With a 5 wave looking advance from 138.57, there are now enough gyrations to suggest that wave [v] could be completed, a strong reversal back below 142.00 is needed to support further downside, although if a peak is in place for wave [v], we need to see a strong break back under 138.57 to confirm wave [v] is completed, as a 3 wave pullback that stays above 140.00, likely favors further upside for wave [v], but I am counting the idea as a completed move for wave [v], so a strong reversal under 142.00, then 140.00 is the preferred route.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Did the Stock Market Top for the First Half of 2017 Just Hit? / Stock-Markets / Stock Market 2017
The top for the first half of 2017 probably just hit.
Markets do not react to what everyone knows. Markets react to surprises. And the surprise today is that the Trump administration will not be able to implement rapid reform.
Since election night, the stock market has assumed that President Trump would somehow repeal Obamacare, reform the tax code, and announce a massive infrastructure project almost immediately.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Bitcoin Price Rises Higher Than Gold… But Its Value Is a Different Story / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2017
Since hitting a record-low of $177 in January 2015, Bitcoin is up almost 600%.
On March 2, 2017, it reached a new high of $1,268 per unit—thus surpassing the price of an ounce of gold for the first time ever.
So, what’s the driving force behind this parabolic rise?
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Stock Market Mixed Session / Stock-Markets / Stock Market 2017
The stock market indices had a solid session for tech stocks, but not so for biotech's. The indices were mixed at the closed with the Dow down all day.
Net on the day, the Dow was down 42.18 at 20,659.32. The S&P 500 was up 2.56 at 2361.13, just a couple points off the high and 9 points off the low. The Nasdaq 100 was up 23.06 at 5430.27, 3 points off the high and 25 points off its low.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
SPX Forms a Triangle / Stock-Markets / Stock Market 2017
SPX is having an “inside day.” The most likely formation appears to be the Triangle. It is “buying time” and is not likely to be complete until the close of the day or early tomorrow. It appears to be finishing Wave (d) now and Wave (e) is likely to decline to the Broadening Wedge trendline at 2355.00. Using the Triangle formula, SPX is likely to make a final surge from the trendline to 2365.00. The hourly mid-Cycle resistance is at 2364.48 and the 61.8% retracement is at 2364.13. This cluster of resistance may be pretty formidable, but act as attractors until its time.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Critical Fibonacci Extensions May Mark End Of Trump Stock Market Rally / Stock-Markets / Stock Market 2017
Our research is showing critical Fibonacci extensions are in place for US Major Markets that may be foretelling of a massive market correction. Part of our research is to search for and study events and resources that are a bit abstract. One component of this research is to identify critical price levels and early warning triggers from abstract price data. The major US indexes and most individual all showing price advanced over the past years and many are showing extended price rallies since the US Presidential election on November 8, 2017. Yet, none are as foretelling as our “US Custom Index”.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Ending Syria’s Nightmare will Take Pressure From Below / Politics / Syria
Ominous developments in East Syria have drawn the United States and Russia into closer proximity increasing the likelihood of a violent confrontation. The Trump administration has embarked on a dangerous plan to defeat the terrorist militia, ISIS, in Raqqa. But recent comments by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson suggest that Washington’s long-term strategy may conflict with Moscow’s goal of restoring Syria’s sovereign borders. Something’s got to give. Either Russia ceases its clearing operations in east Syria or Washington agrees to withdraw its US-backed forces when the battle is over. If neither side gives ground, there’s going to be a collision between the two nuclear-armed adversaries.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
The Last G-20 Meeting Marks the End of Free Trade / Economics / Global Economy
BY GEORGE FRIEDMAN : In the last G-20 meeting, its members agreed to drop the forum’s commitment to free trade at the insistence of the United States. That agreement was reached at one meeting and was contained in a single document—such agreements and documents are far from written in stone.
In spite of that, it must be regarded as a historical moment. Excluding the free trade commitment from the agreement marks a fundamental shift in a concept that has been central to global economics for more than a generation.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Charts That Reveal US Real Employment Status and It’s Not Good / Economics / Employment
The “labor force” from which we get unemployment statistics includes only those people who are either working or wish to be working.
It ignores the retired, those in school, the disabled, and nonworking spouses—as well as those who are not interested in working.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
John McCain’s New World Order Is Under “Enormous Strain” / Politics / US Politics
Decades ago, John McCain was in Asia trying to kill people he didn’t know while living off the largess of money (taxes) stolen from hard working people in the US.
In any other reality but our current one he’d be considered a thieving mass murderer.
Unfortunately, in our current reality, some people call him a “war hero”.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
SNP Controlled Scottish Parliament Demands Right for Scotland to Commit Suicide - Indyref2 / Politics / Scotland
As Britain counts down to triggering Article 50 later today the SNP fired another missile at Westminister Tuesday in their continuing program towards the subversion of the settled BrExit will of the British people by voting to demand that another Scottish Independence referendum be held before the BrExit negotiations are finalised with the EU. This despite the fact that in the run up to Scotland's September 2014 Independence Referendum the Scottish Nationalists from Alex Salmond and Nichola Sturgeon down promised that they would abide by the results of the referendum, declaring that it was at least a once in a generation decision if not once in a life time decision.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
US Dollar and Gold Dumb Market Myths About to Go Up in Smoke… / Currencies / US Dollar
Everywhere I look I see talk of a major $USD bull market being underway. I see this coming from CNBC as well as so-called “investment gurus.”
This is odd… because the $USD is DOWN against every major currency thus far in 2017.
I’m not making this up. The $USD is DOWN against the Yen, the Euro, the Swiss Franc, even the British pound.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Warning: Three Major Stock Market Bellwethers Are on Red Alert / Companies / Company Chart Analysis
As we have repeatedly warned since mid-December, the “Trump trade” was based on hype.
This is not to say that President Trump will not succeed in generating economic growth… it IS to say that whatever growth is coming will do so in 2018 as opposed to the GDP growth of 5% that the market seemed to believe would be hitting in early 2017.
Read full article... Read full article...
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
USD Gold Myriad of Signs / Commodities / Gold and Silver 2017
In yesterday's alert we emphasized that the breakdown in the USD Index should not be trusted as it was not confirmed and there were several good reasons to think that it would not be confirmed. The breakdown is already invalidated and - again, as discussed yesterday - this is actually a strong bullish sign. Is the decline in the USD Index over and is the big slide in the precious metals sector just around the corner?
Read full article... Read full article...