Analysis Topic: Interest Rates and the Bond Market
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Spot The Debt Bubbles, Ruling Elite Bankers Bankrupting Entire Nations / Interest-Rates / Global Debt Crisis
BIG PICTURE – Let the truth be known, the world is being held hostage by powerful bankers. Thanks to the fiat-money fractional reserve system, bankers have become the ruling elite and as a result, entire nations are going bust.
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Monday, January 10, 2011
Geithner Says the US Government Is Bankrupt / Interest-Rates / US Debt
The U.S. government is insolvent. Who says so? Timothy F. Geithner, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury.
Geithner sent a letter to Congress on Jan. 6, 2011 asking for the debt limit to be raised. If it is not raised, he warned, the U.S. will default on its debt. In his words:
Never in our history has Congress failed to increase the debt limit when necessary. Failure to raise the limit would precipitate a default by the United States."
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Monday, January 10, 2011
Brazil Accuses US, China of Currency Manipulation, Looming Trade War / Interest-Rates / Global Debt Crisis
Here are a few of the many stories I am following: The risk of trade wars escalates as Brazil accuses the United States and China of currency manipulation. In turn, the IMF is upset at Brazil for imposing capital controls. In Belgium, the king wants to end the "unprecedented hell" that has left Belgium without a government for 211 days smack in the midst of a budget crisis. China is set for multiple rounds of credit tightening even though China's growth is weakening. Interest rates in Portugal and Spain suggest more bailouts coming up. Ireland is pondering the Iceland Solution and that has the IMF more than a bit upset.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Italy The Invisible Elephant in Europe's Escalating Sovereign Debt Crisis / Interest-Rates / Global Debt Crisis
In regards to the escalating sovereign debt crisis in Europe, most eyes have been focused on Greece, Ireland, Spain, and Portugal, the so-called PIGS.
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Saturday, January 08, 2011
Reckless U.S. Deficit Spending May Reap Inflation Whirlwind / Interest-Rates / US Debt
Bill Gross, the PIMCO Money Manager, to whom it is often worth listening, cautioned this week that our nations leaders really do not know where they are going. They are mired in the fiscal quicksands of perpetual trillion dollar deficits. I believe as he does that there will be more agony ahead after the present euphoria in the equity markets. Thus I say, “Caveat Emptor-Let the Buyer Beware!” Our leaders are paying scant attention to the “Buck” that is being passed on to our children who are going to be stuck with the bills that we are dumping on them. Today I do not see anybody around to weep for our infants. As the reporter covering the burning of the Hindenburg shouted in horror, “O the humanity!”
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Saturday, January 08, 2011
Meaningful Base for U.S. Treasuries / Interest-Rates / US Bonds
Let's take an updated look at the bond market via the iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treas Bond ETF (NYSE: TLT). After all of the fireworks from Wed's ADP forecast for additions to payrolls of nearly 300,000 into this morning's disappointing payrolls data reported by the Governement, we find the TLT's over $1.00 off of its recent low of 91.03 in what looks like the makings of a secondary low within a base-like pattern the started at the Dec 15 low of 90.47.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
Spanish and Portuguese Bonds Hit Hard on Sovereign Debt Financing Concerns / Interest-Rates / Global Debt Crisis
Portuguese and Spanish 10-year bonds are getting smacked hard as refinancing needs mount. Greek yields are at all-time highs and a milder (for now) selloff continues on Belgian and Italian bonds as well. A flight to safety on German bonds is again in play, with German 10-year yields dropping slightly. The Euro once again flirts with December and Mid-September lows.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
A Day in the Life of the National Debt / Interest-Rates / US Debt
As an example of the kind of sheer monetary insanity that is happening all around us and that is going to destroy the United States of America, and probably most of the world, too, the national debt of the United States of America hit a new, all-time record: An astonishing $14,025,215,218,708.52, which can be more conveniently referred to as $14.025 trillion, and which works out to a debt of $140,252.00 for every non-government worker in the Whole Freaking Country (WFC), the interest on which (at 5%) is $7,012.60 for each of those selfsame non-government workers. Per year!
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
Life without the Fed: The Suffolk System / Interest-Rates / Central Banks
CJ Maloney writes: Suppose for a moment that Republican Congressman Ron Paul's fondest wish came true, and the Federal Reserve Bank was not only audited but closed down. As far-fetched as such a notion may seem, it would not be the first time in our nation's history that a central bank has been shuttered. For all the Fed's imposing grandeur, Ben Bernanke is running our third (albeit longest-running) try at a central bank. This country has lived without a central bank before and, if given the chance, could do so again. Most every American (led by Paul Krugman), though, would be horrified at the thought.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
2011: Year of the Yellow Brick Road / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
The Wizard of Oz would be proud of our policy makers: perception may be reality when it comes to investor confidence, even if we live in a fairy tale. However, investors that can afford to build a yellow brick road paved with gold may outshine those who build theirs with magic.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
Flight to safety does not equal flight to German Bunds Anymore / Interest-Rates / Credit Crisis 2011
Edin Mujagic writes: Mention the words ‘euro area’ and ‘periphery’ and immediately almost everyone will associate that with troubles, strikes, indebted nations and rating downgrades, to name just a few flattering possibilities.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
Municipal Bond Forecast: Deadbeat States Emerge as Biggest Threat to Muni-Bond Investors / Interest-Rates / US Bonds
Martin Hutchinson writes: The U.S. municipal bond market could be cruising for a bruising.
The same thing goes for muni-bond investors.
The danger is right out in the open for everyone to see. But investors aren't heeding the warnings.
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Thursday, January 06, 2011
EU Commission Plans Haircuts on Euro-zone Bank Debt / Interest-Rates / Credit Crisis 2011
A European commission has come up with a new proposal to shield taxpayers from the banking crisis via haircuts in senior bank bonds. The proposal only covers bank debt, not sovereign government debt, and supposedly it applies to some mythical time in the future, not now.
However, sovereign yields have hit new record highs in Greece, and are close to record highs in Portugal, Spain, and Ireland, I fail to see how the crisis can possibly be contained, and I fail to see why it takes a commission to decide that bank bondholders need a haircut. It should be perfectly obvious there is no other possible solution. The big fear is haircuts spread to sovereign debt.
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
How the Fed Could Become Insolvent / Interest-Rates / Central Banks
Terry Coxon, Editor, The Casey Report writes: You've seen the proof in real time. Once-dominant industrial companies, e.g., General Motors, can run out of money. The biggest banks, e.g., Bank of America, can run out of money. Even sovereign governments, e.g., Greece, can run out of money. Yes, all those organizations are still limping along, but only after being rescued by other giant institutions, such as the U.S. government, the less unhealthy European governments, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.
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Friday, December 31, 2010
Global Interest Rate Hiking Cycle Gathers Steam; What to Do … / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse, here in the U.S. markets late last week. But on Christmas Day, China’s central bank shocked investors …
Specifically, the People’s Bank of China raised short-term interest rates for the second time in the past three months.
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Thursday, December 30, 2010
Rising Interest Rates Reveal Debt Reality / Interest-Rates / US Debt
The Fed's lucky streak of luring bond investors with low interest rates may be drawing to a close. Nevertheless, the extended period of low borrowing costs has bred a new breed of investor. To the bulls and bears, we can now add the ostriches - those who bury their heads in the sand of declining debt service ratios while refusing to face up to intractable levels of total US government debt. If these ostriches were to actually look at the numbers, they would realize that it is their investments which are made of sand.
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Thursday, December 30, 2010
Debt Bubble Chronicles: We Are Now Paying for the Destruction of the US Dollar and Economy… Literally / Interest-Rates / US Debt
We just hit another milestone in insanity.
I’ve written before that thanks to its QE lite and QE 2 programs, the Fed is now officially the single, largest owner of US debt. However, even that nonsense pales in comparison to the Fed’s latest accomplishment, that of owning over $1 TRILLION in US debt.
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Thursday, December 30, 2010
The Fed’s Monetary Policy Is About to Run Into a BRIC Wall / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
Over the last few months I’ve noted repeatedly that THE key issue for the financial markets is the ongoing tension building between the Fed’s pro-inflation policy and China’s anti-inflation policy.
That tension just kicked it up a notch.
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Thursday, December 30, 2010
US Cities at Risk of Bankruptcy / Interest-Rates / US Debt
PRESS TV writes: Next to the housing crisis, some economists say cities declaring bankruptcy is the biggest threat to the U.S. economy in 2011 More than 100 cities could go bust in the new year derailing the economy in America.
In Michigan, a small city called Hamtramck says it only has funds to operate until March first. City officials have slashed money for boarding up abandoned houses, cutting grass and no money has been set aside to plow snow from the streets.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Asset Speculation and Capital Destruction, The Cost Of 0% Money / Interest-Rates / US Interest Rates
Since the early 1990 decade, the nation's maestros have promulgated the notion that cheap money is a beneficial factor for the sustenance of wealth, for economic development, for the standard of living, for the robust industries, in general for the American society. Nothing could be further from the truth, but even today the reckless US economists from the Keynesian Camp and their controllers from Wall Street have convinced the multitudes that cheap money is a good thing. Cheap money comes with a deadly ultimate cost. The inept professor occupying the US Federal Reserve Chairman post has gone on record claiming the US banking sector has a secret weapon in the Printing Pre$$ that it can use with zero cost, in its electronic form.
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