Personal Savings As A Percentage Of Disposable Income
thestatedtruth.com | October 31, 2009
White House Using Unrealistic Assumptions For Annual Budget Deficits……..
thestatedtruth.com | October 31, 2009
“Inflation is a monetary phenomenon, as Milton Friedman said. But hyperinflation is always and everywhere a political phenomenon, in the sense that it cannot occur without a fundamental malfunction of a country’s political economy.” Look at the chart below. Using realistic assumptions, It suggests that the annual US government fiscal deficit will approach $2 trillion [...]
Another Opinion From A Really Smart Guy…..Wilbur Ross Sees ‘Huge’ Commercial Real Estate Crash
thestatedtruth.com | October 31, 2009
Wilbur Ross Sees ‘Huge’ Commercial Real Estate Crash By John Gittelsohn and Thomas R. Keene Oct. 30 (Bloomberg) — Billionaire investor Wilbur L. Ross Jr., said today the U.S. is in the beginning of a “huge crash in commercial real estate.” “All of the components of real estate value are going in the wrong direction [...]
Flying Pigs…..Banks Get New Rules on Property
thestatedtruth.com | October 31, 2009
A bunch of crap……….Banks have generally been keeping a lid on commercial real-estate losses by extending these mortgages upon maturity. However, that practice, billed by many industry observers as “extending and pretending,” has come under criticism by some analysts and investors as it promises to put off the pains into the future. Banks Get [...]
Proposed Legislation To Reform America’s Financial Service Supervision Includes Granting The Secretary Of The Treasury A Veto Over Section 13(3) Emergency Action By The Federal Reserve Board Of Governors
thestatedtruth.com | October 29, 2009
Fed Independence: R.I.P.? October 29, 2009 It’s now official. The proposed legislation to reform America’s financial service supervision includes granting the Secretary of the Treasury a veto over Section 13(3) emergency action by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. If this becomes law, it will be a sad day for the independence of America’s central [...]
Paul Tudor Jones Says Now Is Time, Place For Gold As An Asset
thestatedtruth.com | October 29, 2009
Paul Tudor Jones Says Now Is Time, Place for Gold as an Asset By Nicholas Larkin Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) — The time to hold gold is now as faster inflation and increased purchases through exchange-traded funds and by central banks boost demand amid stagnant mine output, Paul Tudor Jones’s Tudor Investment Corp. said. “I have [...]
Something Fishy Is Going On With The Dollar…….Just How Close To A Currency Disaster Are We?
thestatedtruth.com | October 28, 2009
GMAC (The Car Financing Arm) Needs Another Government Injection (Its 3rd) Of $2.8 To $5.6 Billion
thestatedtruth.com | October 27, 2009
The U.S. government is likely to inject $2.8 billion to $5.6 billion of capital into the Detroit company, on top of the $12.5 billion that GMAC has received since December 2008, these people said. The latest infusion would come in the form of preferred stock. The government’s 34% stake in the company could increase if [...]
John Mauldin Reviews David Einhorn Of Greenlight Capital…..He’s One Of The Smartest Guys Around
thestatedtruth.com | October 27, 2009
This is a must read for everyone……. David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital is one of the smartest guys in the stock business. He says….As I see it, there are two basic problems in how we have designed our government. The first is that officials favor policies with short-term impact over those in our long-term interest because [...]
Banks Say To Government…..Better You Take The Risk On Our Loan Portflio Then Us!
thestatedtruth.com | October 26, 2009
Here Comes The Second Wave Of Mortgage Problems
thestatedtruth.com | October 26, 2009
Subprime resets crushed the housing market in ’07 and ’08. Now a new wave of adjustable-rate mortgages is just around the corner. “These helped frame where we are in the mortgage crisis,” “which has been the main shark in the water over the past couple of years. You should know where that shark is [...]
The Value Of Debt Relief
thestatedtruth.com | October 25, 2009
Debts have value only to the extent that they are being paid, and a rapidly rising number of U.S. households aren’t doing so. Those defaults are leading to losses at banks, a wave of foreclosures, trouble for neighborhoods and strife for families. But they are also providing an immediate, albeit radical, form of debt relief. [...]
Lender Capmark Financial Group (The Old GMAC Mortgage And Real Estate Operations) Files for Bankruptcy Taking Down With It 10 Billion Of Commercial Real Estate Loan Originations And 21 Billion Of Debt
thestatedtruth.com | October 25, 2009
Lender Capmark Financial Group Files for Bankruptcy By Dawn McCarty Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) — Capmark Financial Group Inc., the lender owned by firms including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and KKR & Co., filed for bankruptcy protection after posting a second- quarter loss of about $1.6 billion. The company listed consolidated debt of $21 billion and [...]
Decreased Final Demand Leads To Increased Savings
thestatedtruth.com | October 24, 2009
We now have Decreased Final Demand and its counterpart Increased Savings. Although the savings rate has come back down to 3% from 6% a few months ago, almost every expectation is that it will rise over the next 3-5 years back up to the 9% level where it was only 20 years ago. The psyche of [...]
John Mauldin Reviews The Next Element Of Deflation
thestatedtruth.com | October 24, 2009
The next element of deflation is massive Wealth Destruction. Two bear markets and a housing market collapse have put the American consumer on the ropes. And the next bear market will bring him to the canvas. Then we have Reduced Borrowing and Lending, as consumers are paying down debt and banks are reducing their lending. [...]
Rick Ackerman Makes A Monsterly Good Point!
thestatedtruth.com | October 23, 2009
Banking ‘Talent’ Has Nowhere to Go By: Rick Ackerman, Rick’s Picks Rick’s Picks Friday, October 23, 2009 With draconian pay cuts looming in the banking industry, the last thing we’ll have to worry about is mass defections of talent. In fact, the financial sector is deflating these days as fast as the Heene’s balloon, [...]
Commercial Real Estate Bust Looms Dead Ahead
thestatedtruth.com | October 23, 2009
Commercial Real Estate Bust Looms By John W. Schoen Thurs., Oct . 22, 2009 That big whoosh you’re hearing is the air rushing out of a commercial real estate bubble. More than two years into the worst housing crisis in decades, commercial real estate is shaping up as the second half of what some are [...]
Bye Bye Birdie…..The Treasury Department Said It Will Close Chrysler Financial
thestatedtruth.com | October 22, 2009
October 22, 2009 http://detnews.com/article/20091022/AUTO01/910220490 Treasury Surprises Chrysler Financial DAVID SHEPARDSON AND ALISA PRIDDLE The Detroit News Washington — The Treasury Department said today Chrysler Financial will close its doors by the end of 2011. “Chrysler Financial is currently following Treasury’s directive to liquidate its business in an orderly fashion,” said Kenneth Feinberg, the Treasury Department’s [...]
The Top 5 Banks, And What We Have To Show For Them
thestatedtruth.com | October 22, 2009
Here’s one of the more convincing series of charts we’ve seen in a while… Bailing out the big US banks – at least the way our government did it – was not a good idea: In the year ending June 30, the biggest five banks in the US grew deposits by 29%, the FDIC said [...]
Galleon’s Wall Street Web Of Alleged Insider Network……….
thestatedtruth.com | October 21, 2009
Printed In The Wall Street Journal, Page A4
Stratfor….The Curious Case of Adlene Hicheur
thestatedtruth.com | October 21, 2009
The Curious Case of Adlene Hicheur October 21, 2009 By Scott Stewart On Oct. 8, 2009, French police and agents from the Central Directorate of Interior Intelligence (known by its French acronym, DCRI) arrested French particle physicist Adlene Hicheur and his brother, Halim, who has a Ph.D. in physiology and biomechanics. French authorities arrested the [...]
Hedge Fund Manager John Paulson Says Gold Is His Favorite Position Today……..
thestatedtruth.com | October 21, 2009
Opinions…..John Paulson, a presenter at the Grant’s Fall Investment Conference was undoubtedly the richest man in the room. Portfolio magazine dubbed him “The Man Who Made Too Much” after he made $3.7 billion by betting against mortgage-backed securities (MBS). He is one of the greatest hedge fund managers ever. Gold is his favorite today. As to [...]
It’s Not Question Of If, But Only A Question Of When!
thestatedtruth.com | October 20, 2009
Oct. 20, 2009, 12:25 p.m. EDT Hedge Manager Sprott Sees Trouble US government is new “dead man walking” By Alistair Barr, MarketWatch NEW YORK (MarketWatch) – When so-called quantitative easing by central banks ends, the world economy may slip back into trouble, Canadian hedge fund manager Eric Sprott warned on Tuesday. Toronto-based Sprott called [...]
The New Normal…..Things Are Looking Better But For The Wrong Reasons
thestatedtruth.com | October 20, 2009
Chart from The Wall Street Journal
Comparison Of Commercial vs. Residential Real Estate Changes
thestatedtruth.com | October 20, 2009
Einhorn Bets On Major Currency ‘Death Spiral”
thestatedtruth.com | October 19, 2009
Oct. 19, 2009, 2:39 p.m. EDT NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Greenlight Capital is betting on the possibility of a major currency collapse and a surge in interest rates, the hedge-fund firm’s manager David Einhorn said Monday, citing ballooning government deficits in some of the world’s most developed countries. Einhorn, who warned about Lehman Brothers’ frailty [...]
Is He Kidding? Ted Turner Only Worth About 1.8 Billion Now, Has To Live With Less…..Say’s “You Know, If You Economize And Don’t Buy Any New Airplanes Or Long Range Jets, You Can Get Buy On A Billion Or Two”
thestatedtruth.com | October 18, 2009
Turner Lost CNN, Fonda, Fortune, Feels ‘Like a Dummy’ By Brett Pulley and Anita Sharpe Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) — Ted Turner, the cable television pioneer who became one of the richest Americans, recalls the pain of losing his job at Time Warner Inc., his wife, the actress Jane Fonda, and $7 billion of his fortune. [...]
U.S. Has record Budget Deficit……..
thestatedtruth.com | October 16, 2009
Geithner Says U.S. Must Instill Confidence in Fiscal Management By Robert Schmidt Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the U.S. must reduce its record budget deficit as soon as the economy returns to a sustainable growth rate without relying on government assistance. “Americans understand that we have to go back to living [...]
Dirty Swines…..Minnesota Pigs Tested Positive for H1N1
thestatedtruth.com | October 16, 2009
Minnesota Pigs Tested for H1N1, May Be First in U.S. By Whitney McFerron Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) — Three pigs from the Minnesota state fair have been “tentatively identified” as having swine flu in what may be the first U.S. cases of the H1N1 virus among domestic livestock. The pigs were tested at the fair [...]
More On Problem Mortgages…….
thestatedtruth.com | October 15, 2009
“US foreclosures jumped to an all-time high of 937,840 in the third quarter,” writes Ian Mathias in today’s issue of The 5 Min. Forecast. “That’s a 23% rise from the same time last year, says a report from RealtyTrac today. One in every 136 households received a filing – also a record. Once again Nevada [...]
Dow 10,000….That Was Then, This Is Now
thestatedtruth.com | October 15, 2009
That Was Then, This Is Now – In his terrific “Big Picture” blog, Barry Ritholtz cited a neat 1999 comparison by Peter Boockvar. Here’s the citation…… With the DJIA approaching 10,000 again, let’s reminisce about 1999, the year it first passed that magic level on March 29th. Millennium by the Backstreet Boys was the best [...]
States’ Tax Revenue Fell Record $63 Billion in Year
thestatedtruth.com | October 15, 2009
States’ Tax Revenue Fell Record $63 Billion in Year By Michael Weiss Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) — States’ tax revenue fell a record $63 billion during the fiscal year ended June 30, the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government, an Albany based research organization, said in a report released today. The data, based on U.S. Census [...]
U.S. Foreclosure Filings Jump 23% to Record in Third Quarter
thestatedtruth.com | October 15, 2009
U.S. Foreclosure Filings Jump 23% to Record in Third Quarter By Dan Levy Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) — U.S. foreclosure filings climbed to a record in the third quarter as lenders seized more properties from delinquent borrowers, according to RealtyTrac Inc. A total of 937,840 homes received a default or auction notice or were repossessed by [...]
Boomers Have Their Backs Against The Wall…..
thestatedtruth.com | October 14, 2009
by Bill Bonner London, England Two important items in the news today: First, Bloomberg reports that retails sales fell 2.1% in September – the biggest decrease this year. Know what that means? It means the “Age of Thrift” is here…and that consumers really are cutting back – just like we said they would. And it [...]
China And Exxon Mobil Are Locked In A Bidding War Over Large New Oil Find…..
thestatedtruth.com | October 14, 2009
“China National Offshore Oil Corp and Exxon Mobil are about to enter a bidding war over oil-rich water near Ghana. At stake is ‘Jubilee,’ a recently discovered offshore site that probably holds a couple billion barrels of oil. This isn’t China’s state-owned offshore oil company’s first foray into the global energy grab, but its one [...]
So Now You know……October 13,1792
thestatedtruth.com | October 13, 2009
October 13, 1792 White House Cornerstone Laid The cornerstone is laid for a presidential residence in the newly designated capital city of Washington. In 1800, President John Adams became the first president to reside in the executive mansion, which soon became known as the “White House” because its white-gray Virginia freestone contrasted strikingly with the [...]
“What Happened To Global Warming?”
thestatedtruth.com | October 13, 2009
“What happened to global warming?” asks a headline at the BBC. Folks in the Rockies are shivering. “Western Montana breaks records,” says a report. Missoula reported a low of 8 degrees yesterday…14 degrees lower than the previous record for this early in the season. Nearby Idaho had heavy snow last week too. Same thing in [...]
The Gap In The GAPP……………..
thestatedtruth.com | October 12, 2009
The fiscal condition of the United Sates has deteriorated dramatically during the last several years. On the basis of current obligations, US indebtedness totals “only” about $12 trillion. But when utilizing traditional GAAP accounting – the kind of accounting that every public company in the United States MUST use – US indebtedness soars to $74 [...]
Consumer Credit Plunging In A Free Fall
thestatedtruth.com | October 12, 2009
Interesting huh? Consumer credit has fallen off a cliff. What does that mean exactly? It means Americans aren’t borrowing…and they aren’t buying either. From The Daily Reckoning
Back In Earlier Days You Had To Mind Your “P’s” and “Q’s”
thestatedtruth.com | October 11, 2009
In the 1700′s, at local taverns , pubs, and bars, people drank from pint and quart-sized containers. A bar maid’s job was to keep an eye on the customers and keep the drinks coming. She had to pay close attention and remember who was drinking in ‘pints’ and who was drinking in ‘quarts,’ hence the term ‘minding your [...]
Killing The Goose That Layed The Golden Egg…..By John Mauldin
thestatedtruth.com | October 11, 2009
Thoughts from the Frontline Weekly Newsletter Killing the Goose by John Mauldin October 9, 2009 In this issue: Killing the Goose What Were We Thinking? Let’s Play Turn It Around Detroit, the Red Sox and the Yankees, and Traveling Too Much Peggy Noonan, maybe the most gifted essayist of our time, wrote a few weeks [...]
What’s The Difference Between A Ballon And A Bubble?
thestatedtruth.com | October 10, 2009
www.ingerletter.com
Dificit’s Come, But They Never Seem To Go
thestatedtruth.com | October 10, 2009
www.ingerletter.com
Four bad Bears, Currently Not Looking So Bad!
thestatedtruth.com | October 10, 2009
www.ingerletter.com
The Old Saying Goes, As Goes California, Goes The Nation…..
thestatedtruth.com | October 9, 2009
California Revenue Trails Estimates in ‘Major Blow’ to Budget By William Selway and Michael B. Marois Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) — California’s revenue collections trailed its forecasts by $1.1 billion over the first three months of the fiscal year, showing new deficits are emerging in the budget Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed July 28. Revenue was [...]
Who Is Buying U.S. Government Debt?
thestatedtruth.com | October 9, 2009
CHART OF THE DAY: Besides The Fed, Nobody Is Buying Agency Debt Joe Weisenthal and Kamelia Angelova Oct. 8, 2009, 2:24 PM Where would we be without the Fed and its printing press? There’s been a lot of debate about the appetite of foreign investors of our debt — Treasury auctions continue to be strong, [...]
Hmm, Don’t Mean To Keep Beating A Dead Horse, But…………
thestatedtruth.com | October 9, 2009
“Thirteen months ago, the government took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, both on the verge of failure,” writes Ian Mathias in today’s issue of The 5. “What have we learned since then? Jack… “The Federal Housing Administration, ‘appears destined for a taxpayer bailout in the next 24 to 36 months,’ Edward Pinto said at [...]
We’ve Worried About This For Some Time, Now It Looks Like A Fastball Right Between The Teeth ……………….
thestatedtruth.com | October 8, 2009
The credit crisis has forged an even larger gap between the rich and poor, though it might not last for long,” writes Ian Mathias in today’s issue of The 5. “The richest 10% of Americans made at least $138,000 each this year, according to Census data released last week. That’s a record high 11.4 times [...]
What A Bunch Of Morons……
thestatedtruth.com | October 8, 2009
How can they lose this much money? Oh, they’re giving loans to the same home buyers that wiped out sub prime. The Federal Housing Administration, which insures mortgages with low down payments, may require a U.S. bailout because of $54 billion more in losses than it can withstand, a former Fannie Mae executive said. It [...]
Gene Inger From The Inger Letter……….
thestatedtruth.com | October 7, 2009
Total consumer credit is now back to July of 2007 levels; and has yet to decelerate. If this pattern continues, give it another year or so and we’ll be in better national shape (the retail sales in the morning may indeed affirm the wisdom of the American people; while the fools chatter on television about [...]
Back In The Late 1700′s……….
thestatedtruth.com | October 6, 2009
In the late 1700′s, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from the wall, and was used for dining. The ‘head of the household’ always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting on the floor. Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would [...]
Rick Ackerman…..World Is Watching Stanford’s Fire Sale
thestatedtruth.com | October 6, 2009
Rick’s Picks Tuesday, October 6, 2009 “Phenomenally accurate forecasts” Stanford University is attempting to unload $1 billion worth of hard-to-sell assets — a treacherous undertaking that the Wall Street Journal said was being closely watched by private equity. That’s an understatement, since hundreds of the world’s biggest institutional and sovereign investors have portfolios very similar [...]
This Is One Very Big Company…….
thestatedtruth.com | October 6, 2009
Exxon Mobil Passes PetroChina as World’s Most Valuable Company By Joe Carroll Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) — Exxon Mobil Corp. overtook PetroChina Co. as the world’s most valuable company, ending a four-month reign by the Beijing-based oil producer after price controls in China failed to keep pace with rising crude costs. State-controlled PetroChina’s Shanghai-traded shares have [...]
The Broken Dollar……And Gold Goes To New All Time Highs
thestatedtruth.com | October 6, 2009
Back In The Day……….
thestatedtruth.com | October 5, 2009
In the 1700′s men and women took baths only twice a year (May and October). Women kept their hair covered, while men shaved their heads (because of lice and bugs) and wore wigs. Wealthy men could afford good wigs made from wool. They couldn’t wash the wigs, so to clean them they would carve out a loaf of [...]
George Soros Said In Istanbul “The U.S. Will Be Very Slow In Recovery” U.S. Consumers Are “Overdebted” And The Banking System Has Been “Basically Bankrupt,” …..“The United States Has A Long Way To Go.”
thestatedtruth.com | October 5, 2009
Soros Says ‘Basically Bankrupt’ Banks Restrain U.S. By Simon Kennedy and Rainer Buergin Oct. 5 (Bloomberg) — Billionaire investor George Soros said the U.S. economic recovery will be sluggish as “basically bankrupt” financial companies and indebted consumers impede it. “The U.S. will be very slow in recovery,” Soros said in a panel discussion in Istanbul, [...]
Jim Sinclair Gives A Qualified Opinion On The U. S. Dollar
thestatedtruth.com | October 4, 2009
Oct 04 2009 By: Jim Sinclair The US dollar is NOT a safe haven. It is actually one of the most dangerous places to be. Let’s stop and think about this scenario: There are mechanics to all things including consideration of the US dollar as a safe haven. Right now that consideration is a knee jerk [...]
This From Gene Inger of The Inger Letter
thestatedtruth.com | October 4, 2009
There remains some moral hazard, but on that score we’re encouraged by monetary authority comments of late; with several Fed heads inferring a clamping-down of easy money before the politicians get carried away more (can’t say ‘too’ carried away as of course they already did that). And yes, I continue to believe that much of [...]
In The Day….Things Were Very Different
thestatedtruth.com | October 3, 2009
In George Washington’s days, there were no cameras. One’s image was either sculpted or painted. Some paintings of George Washington showed him standing behind a desk with one arm behind his back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on how many people were to be painted, but by how [...]
Annual Per Capita GDP……And Japan’s Stunning Revaluation
thestatedtruth.com | October 3, 2009
Only 20 years ago every broker was convinced Japan would soon be the world’s economic powerhouse. Eight of the world’s ten biggest companies were Japanese in 1988. Today, the biggest (Toyota) is 22nd and only five others are in the top 100. Stunning to say the least…………………
5 Tries In Afghanistan, 0 For 4 So Far By The Great Powers
thestatedtruth.com | October 2, 2009
A Look At The Worlds 3 Largest Economies
thestatedtruth.com | October 2, 2009
The IMF expects China to continue growing around 8-9% a year as Japan – the world’s second largest economy – will be lucky to grow much faster than 1.7%.
Swiss Health Care Thrives Without Public Option
thestatedtruth.com | October 1, 2009
Swiss Health Without Public Option By NELSON D. SCHWARTZ October 1, 2009 ZURICH — Like every other country in Europe, Switzerland guarantees health care for all its citizens. But the system here does not remotely resemble the model of bureaucratic, socialized medicine often cited by opponents of universal coverage in the United States. Swiss [...]
Consumer Protection, Now That’s A Noble Idea
thestatedtruth.com | October 1, 2009
Bernanke Urges ‘Strong’ Consumer Protection in House Testimony By Scott Lanman and Craig Torres Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told lawmakers that protecting consumers of financial services is “vitally important,” while omitting prior criticism of an Obama administration proposal to shift such powers from the Fed to a new agency. [...]