Monday, November 19, 2012

Expect a Fiscal Cliff ‘Resolution’ But… ; Ghana is Bullish on Gold | CAMI

11/19/12.. fiscal cliff musings.. .

One note that I don't address  in my latest post. Don't fall in Shoprite! I am ok, but I have had this muscular problem with my lower legs. Last night both legs gave out and even with my cane I was powerless to get back up, no strength. Fortunately, when I realized I was going down fast, I controlled the fall by falling on my knees (ouch buy they took the impact).  maybe it looked as if I was tying my shoe laces, or looking for something on the floor. There were plenty of people walking by but no help to get me back up. I guess I have to scream help? Even more fortunately my wife and son were not too far away and got me back on my feet. At least the store floor was nicely polished.

 
Since I have been talking about mostly gold and the financial prudence of having it in this space, I will use this as yet another example of how people are just focused on their own agenda and fail to react to outside anomolies unless directly confronted. Let's hope that people at least become more cognizant of the stranger than usual financial events happening in this world.  This would include a dollar destroying agenda by the people (our so called leaders) who should be protecting the dollar. Just a thought.

Please read more here...
Expect a Fiscal Cliff ‘Resolution’ But… ; Ghana is Bullish on Gold | CAMI

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Terms of this blog

This intentionally obscure blog remains a free service. In particular, you will see no Google affiliate ads as I do not want to unwittingly advertise anything that would actually be in opposition to this blog's general content. I go to other financial sites that may lambaste a certain entity on Wall Street, but then feature a Google generated ad for the same company. I understand the economic realities of life, but I find the conflicts between content and advertising on blogs to be nothing better than mainstream media financial tv channels filled with advertisers with less than stellar reputations (which is most of them - without naming names). I would encourage other bloggers to shun automatically generated ads placed into your blog no matter what the service to avoid conflict of interest, or at least find a way to control who advertises on your pages.
--
I have a particular affinity for the people at Certified Assets Management International (CAMI) of Wilmington, DE. At some point it is my intention to place a CAMI add on this blog gratis (for free). Robert Higgens, Alberto Washington and the crew are the go to people for products related to precious metals AND CAMI's new and unique Coin Funds for high net worth individuals seeking superior returns. Safe and reliable decent returns have disappeared with Bernanke's near zero interest policy. CAMI is also nice enough to reproduce the content of this blog on their website.

I have seen the CAMI complex first hand. It's an amazing place. Call CAMI at 866-765-3352
--
The bottom line, is that as of this point, I have no wish to "monetize" this blog, but to be an irritant to financial wrong doers far and wide. They may wear nice pinstripe suits on Wall Street, or in the "City" (of London), but they are merely common crooks at the core, but all the more dangerous since they commit their heinous crimes with seeming impunity as they have effectively managed to buy off governments and thus pervert the rule of law.

You are free to comment on posts and if there is decency and accuracy to your comments, they will be posted. This is an at will service. In other words, if you don't like the blog, exercise the will to not read it. Good hearted suggestions and constructive criticisms are always welcome. If I am dead wrong, or have fallen for a bogus internet report (it can happen to the best of us) email me at jimkingsland at gmail.com and let me know.

To my many subscribers, thanks for hanging in there with me for all these years. The events since I started blogging in 2006 have at least been an interesting learning experience.

Disclaimer: This blog is not here to render specific trading recommendations and advice since I do not know your tolerance for risk and I am not a registered financial advisor on Wall Street (almost went for the Series 65, but then asked if I really wanted to tacitly endorse Wall Street by bowing to their requirements NO was the answer). However, I do like to expose ideas and trends for you to investigate that could lead you to decide to invest in some way, but your investment decisions are solely up to you. Bear in mind that even new trends and ideas can become outdated or invalidated quickly and without notice in this fast paced world. Your own research is required and must be up to the minute and thorough, if not exhaustive in nature.




Friday, November 9, 2012

$$ Choppy Times Ahead For Stocks; Precious Metals to Be Choppy But Bias Remains Long Term Bullish | CAMI

Folks, I have been away due to Sandy.  We were without power for nearly two weeks and then when it came back on the memory board in my furnace was fried by a power surge. But now the power is back and as of Friday night and $900 later the furnace has been repaired and it is starting to get warmer in the house!


Choppy Times Ahead For Stocks; Precious Metals to Be Choppy But Bias Remains Long Term Bullish | CAMI

Monday, October 22, 2012

Positive Real Estate Signs; Gold Glitters a Little Less Than Expected | $$

Read the latest commentary here...

Positive Real Estate Signs; Gold Glitters a Little Less Than Expected | CAMI

There was some pent up buying demand at the open following the Friday Dow drop of over 200 points.  Aside from negative geopolitical events, earnings season has not been kind to Wall Street (see First Call chart included in the link above). Caterpillar is the latest Dow Component to reveal a lower outlook for the year.

The highlight of the week may very well be Apple earnngs on Thursday. I am looking for a further shake out before the stock can attempt to rebound.  I am not specifically playing $AAPL earnings and thinnk we could see $600 before we again see $650, or $700.

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Monday, September 24, 2012

Have a Computer and Phone? Easily Buy Gold Plated Tungsten Products

You'll have to cough up a little extra for the call to China, but going to the tungsten-alloy.com website is essentially free of charge (aside from your monthly internet bill).

Here's the site: http://tungsten-alloy.com/gold-plated-tungsten-alloy-coin.html.

Surely, none of my readers would go to that site and purchase gold plated materials and pass them off as real, gold items. Perish the thought!

Again, this brings to mind some serious doubts about what is really out there in terms of physical supply, especially the bars held by ETFs like GLD, Give it some time, the GLD ETF will be a reminder to all that they never held any gold to begin with through GLD. This may not happen tomorrow - to wit, I am no advising people dump GLD tomorrow, but it clearly behooves the GLD holder to think about the ramifications of putting too many GLD eggs into one basket.

While I realize many hold GLD because they cannot hold physical gold in their retirement accounts, the recent attention this topic has received should make GLD holders consider the merits of buying physical gold and silver and to stay away from the paper GLD product which may be backed by a lot more Tungsten than gold.


Sunday, September 23, 2012

Developing: More Gold Bars Found w/Tungsten

CNN video here is an eye opener.  Easy solution for the average person is to acquire rare gold coins with about an ounce of gold (too little for counterfeiters to deal with). From Fort Knox to the Treasury to Comex Warehouses, or whomever -- all needs to be audited and confirmed as real gold bars. Imagine the thought of the GLD ETF not having nearly the gold it is supposed to have because of tungsten bars.

I would be on guard for a gold take down attempt. So far the press has latched on the coverage of gold bars known an PAMP gold bars.

This is another big weekend development in news surrounding gold.



Last week the NY Post broke the story about a single fake bar. Now more are popping up. This is nothing new... Tungsten Genesis

Consider this as well...

How to use Ultrasound test - http://youtu.be/rh0Mcagio5Q

From a commentator on Zero Hedge:
"
The only cost effective material for creating an insert would be tungsten (W) as it has close to the same density as gold (Au). However, the speed of sound in W is~5000 m/s whereas in Au it is ~3000 m/s (a significant difference). I'd be quite confident that ultrasound would detect this.

Materials other than W would be easy to detect by measuring & weighing the bar (density would be wrong). Uranium is detectably less? dense by speed of sound like W. Plutonium is denser but more expensive than Au."

Argentina Seeks to Reduce Gold Hoarding

It is in this article, in Spanish, from a newspaper in Argentina. http://www.cronista.com/finanzasmercados/Bancos-y-casas-de-cambio-exportaran-el-oro-que-ya-no-pueden-vender-en-el-pais-20120911-0050.html.

The Mainstream media will eventually catch on.

The gist of the article leads me to believe that while it is not illegal to own gold in Argentina, its government has taken to regulating the purchase and sale of gold for FOREX purposes.

As economic conditions deteriorate in that country, people are naturally flocking to gold. This means competition for the government, which if it has any sense, is also hoarding gold!

Gosh, were has this script played out before?? Gold hoarding because people are shunning a broken fiat currency which then causes liquidity problems for said country to operate within the world banking system? Hmmm, it sounds like this has happened before in some other BIG country - back in the 1930s which led to gold confiscation. Oh, right, here in the U.S.  New times, same old tricks. Next, we'll be hearing about the taxation of gold transactions and/or confiscation.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

A Quick Summary: DEUTSCHE BANK: Western Economies Are Screwed, And Investors Face A 'Disturbing Paradox'

The authors of this DB report believe a gold standard is possible. I would disagree so long as there is a Shadow Banking system with its derivatives and notional value of over a quadrillion dollars and the ever traditional fractional reserve banking system that tolerates leverage at the excruciating levels of 40x or more which is ultimately a by product of Central Banking and accounting mumbo jumbo. The system  of finances today are to corrupted to be inter mingled with a gold standard. The Gold standard is a lovely idea, but structural problems stand in the way. But I digress.

The problems DB also addresses with the colossally extreme levels of debt are in my opinion beyond ever settling (paying off) and can only be perpetuated by continuous restructurings which only lead to higher levels of debt. Is that really a cycle that go on to infinity? The bankers may be clever, but they are not eternal.

The unworkable solution would be a jubilee, or a reset of the system back to zero with a complete structural reform to prevent a new cycle of extreme leveraging. Banks, or the lending class hold an unprecedented level of control over society today. One upon a time, the leaders of eons ago, were smart enough to know that the lending class would from time to time (every 75 years or so) have to be neutered, or that debtors would owe forever. Jubilee was the answer and it worked.

That certainly was no fun for the lending class who ultimately have become the banksters as we know them today. They have never wanted jubilee as it starved them of fees and the ability to enslave people to permanent debt serfdom. They have since made sure to eliminate the concept of jubilee by becoming interwoven with government. Jubilee will never happen voluntarily again. As a result, at some future point we are doomed to a banking system implosion under its own weight and as it overwhelms the ability for society to share in the supply of available money. Yes, one day your ATM cards will not work. Then, the bankers will find a way to take over and control bartering. Humanity seems destined to lose out to the banking cabal no matter what. Now there's a cheery thought! Now go hug a loved one and go about your 'normal' business. lol.

DEUTSCHE BANK: Western Economies Are Screwed, And Investors Face A 'Disturbing Paradox' http://www.businessinsider.com/deutsche-bank-issues-a-terrible-warning-on-the-health-of-the-global-financial-system-2012-9?

DJIA considering structural changes: report

Remember, stock benchmarks like the Dow and the S&P are MANAGED indexes, meaning that over time changes are made to the indexes when companies change hands, die, or become irrelevant. This means that stock indexes are skewed to a positive bias to reflect changing trends (positive trends). They are thus not a completely honest portrayal of what is really going on. But so be it. Certainly adding Apple, or Google could put additional shine on the Dow. As one example, how useful is it to have a single digit stock like Alcoa as part of the Dow? The best days of AA have passed and its moves as part of the price weighted Dow Jones average have a tiny impact on the overall Dow.

It would be a barrel of monkey fun to have Apple, or Google in the 30 component Dow on days when those two stocks alone could make the Dow go ape-you-know-what! lol.

I would hasten to add that gold is not "managed". It stands amidst the financial noise as itself whether the times are bad or good for gold. There is no substitute for it.

"SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The owner of the Dow Jones Industrial Average is considering changes to make it more relevant and will discuss possibilities at its next meeting with major index users, according to a media report Saturday. The changes are being considered by Dow owner Stndard & Poor’s because the index is supposed to be a measure of U.S. industrial titans but doesn’t include Apple Inc [s:aapl], Google Inc. [s:goog] or Berkshire Hathaway Inc. [s:brk.a], the Financial Times reported, noting they are three of the largest U.S. companies. There would be problems adding them to the Dow bedause they would dominate the 30-stock index that’s weighted by price, the FT said. David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee for S&P DJ Indices, said the issue is being discussed, the FT reported."

Dave is among my Linkedin contacts. We interviewed him regularly at Bloomberg. Should I contact him about this? No, I'm sure he has better things to do, like figure out how to m ake the Dow more relevant.

Forget About GDP, Look at Sagging Household Income

We are regularly bombarded with economic data and other information that attempts to protray the economy as bumbling along at a sub part GROWTH pace.  The rebound in pockets of the real estate market from desperation lows to an improvement in the unemployment rate thanks to millions dropping out of the workforce are dishonestly heralded as signs of economic recovery. Yet, people know that something is just not quite right - that the reality of every day life and the optimism of a smattering of favored statistics (favored by those who benefit from the positive spin as opposed to the stark reality) are out of sync.

Here is a very simplistic, but real answer to why things just don't seem quite right.

Consider the chart below from John Williams and his Shadow Stats service. It shows REAL income, or income adjusted to account for inflation, or the sagging buying power of the dollar. Inflation eats away at buying power as it is like a tax that takes money away from you. Most don't realized just how fleeced they are over time by inflation and how they become poorer as a result.

As illustrated, real income is in the tank, where it was back in the 1960's. True, we take home more dollars (though real wage deflation is taking a toll as our economy becomes more services oriented) than in the 60's, those dollars don't go as far today.

The text book definition of recession is two consecutive quarters of GDP contraction. But since the GDP figure can be goosed by using unrealistically low inflation assumptions, I see GDP portraying the sub par economic growth it portrays as being useless and almost propaganda in its nature. On the other hand, when something like real wages is considered - it is no wonder why the present economic times feel tough. They are. This is a far more practical example of why it feels recession like in the great "out there".

If this chart were to have shown a rise in real income, then we could have a serious conversation about a return of prosperity. But there is no evidence to be found for that in this data series.

The Fiscal Gap is Really Over $222 Trillion Meaning the U.S. has NEGATIVE Net Worth

This is bad news here. In light of this week's release of Household Net Worth data at $62.7 trillion as of the 2nd quarter of this year - DOWN a tad from Q1 - the picture is gloomy. It's not so much that net worth slipped, but that compared to what is known as the "fiscal gap", or Alternative Fiscal Scenario (AFS) from unfunded liabilities at a staggering $222 Trillion that we see just how piled high and deep the country is.. By this measure, the U.S. has a negative net worth of in excess of $100 trillion when you consider that along with the $222 trl AFS...

-There is $16 trl in treasury debt;
-A Fed balance sheet of over $2 trl worth of junk paper to say nothing of the mystery $16 trln given to banks during the height of the financial crisis.

More on the AFS: Blink! U.S. Debt Just Grew by $11 Trillion http://bloom.bg/OMHrbd via @BloombergView

Oh, and the latest household net worth data dump from the Fed merrily assumes that all of that net worth can be  liquidated. Paper worth vs real, future obligations do not portend happy financial times ahead.

And by the way, 68% of the so called net worth is financial assets, or over $51 trl. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that QE3 is aimed lock stock and barrel at inflating this realm. Good luck to them in keep the inflation bogey man in the closet.

Coordinated Toilet Flushing - A Hyperinflation Story


I have a trillion dollar Zimbabwe note in my desk for kicks and giggles. It is worth less than 1 American dollar. Zimbabwe is the land of hyper inflation and this coordinated toilet flushing is an unintended consequence of out of control monetary policy which exacerbates shortages of anything. 
It sounds silly at first, but there is nothing funny about what has happened in that country. America is at that loss of control-point with QE3. I am not saying that Zimbabwe like hyperinflation is on the way for the U.S., but faster inflation (higher prices) certainly are along with eventual product shortages and all the fun stuff that comes with morphing into a third world financial basket case. Thus far, monetary hyperinflation here has been confined to the banking system. Let's hope it stays that way, or we'll all be flushing too.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Will High Gasoline Prices Spoil Things for Obama? Will SPR be Used??


9/16/12

There are numerous commentators who are saying last week’s ‘open ended” QE initiative announced by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is a deliberate move on the part of the Fed to save the Presidency of Barrack Obama. I won’t jump into that political speculation directly, but I would like to point out that the Fed’s work may be all for naught in the coming months if the price of gasoline hammers consumers to the point of taking their frustrations out on the D.C. incumbents, including the President, on election day.

On September 13th, I commented on the ill timed rise in gasoline for the President:

 “Sorry to my Obama fan readers. But this needs to be said. The high price of gasoline is just the oil industry's way at settling some scores with Obama. How convenient that prices go UP before the election this time? Just bad timing, or planned? The higher prices shall be worth some near term pain, if it can get that guy out of the White House. No one forced the big O to waste so much money on green, or to act as he did with the XL pipeline, or to put the Middle East region in a state of greater tension because he favors the "brotherhood". I could go on and on. Sure, Brent has remained persistently high, but that's just one factor. The recent fizzled storm that shut in some Gulf production is a tiny factor and is over emphasized by the financial press. Sorry to politicize gasoline, but I see this move as more than just a coincidence in an election year. If these prices don't miraculously soon come down, this high profile pocketbook issue might very well tip the scales to Romney who needs all the help he can get.”

I made that comment on my http://www.financialbalderdash.com blog. One subscriber even cancelled after I made the post! Lol. Yes it was on the partisan side – how dare I point out a few failures of our present leader.  

As it is turning out, perhaps it is not a conspiracy by ‘Big Oil’ against Mr. Obama, but one of the first unintended fruits of the world’s central banking policy of unlimited printing. Gasoline is up over a half dollar a gallon in the last two months, or since the European Central Bank moved to a stance of blind creation of reserves (printing).

Did someone forget that as the U.S. and Europe race to fiat currency oblivion that maybe commodities prices, such as gasoline, might just rise?? It makes me chuckle in a disparaging sort of way as these Central Bankers are such fools.

It may very well be that they forgot that in the daily grind for the average person (a majority of whom do not own houses), that the price to fill up a tank to enable the grind to continue might draw more negative scrutiny than the thought of mortgage rates coming down another ½ a point in the coming weeks? Are these policy makers a bunch of schlubs, or what?  One must always consider Unintended consequences and think outside of one’s reality. In the case of the Fed head, I would wonder the last time he actually filled his own car with gas? Or, if he recently has done such an average thing (which I am doubtful of unless he puts on a toupee, sunglasses and skinny jeans to go out incognito), pump price might not resonate in his mind since he could pay any price for gasoline as part of being of the elite class. 

In other words, they either never thought about what could be a brick wall to the QE tricks, or they forgot about the masses who would be hurt by high gasoline and what that could mean for the election outcome if there was pressure put on the Fed to act in September to help the president.  

Obama could very well lose the election come November if gasoline prices continue to trend higher.

The SPR Solution Non Solution

BUT, and this is a big BUT: The president has already talked about using the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to attempt to force pump prices lower. This little saga could bring some further surprises, though an SPR gambit to lower gas prices might fail.  Here's why: 

The SPR is intended for real emergencies like a sudden cutoff of overseas of supplies, or to supply crude oil for national defense purposes. The SPR was not intended to be a solution to lower the price of fuel before an election. 

Given the state of the oil industry, a release from the SPR would bump into constrained refinery ability. The solution is not more oil to lower pump prices. Another four years has passed with little progress on the issue of national energy. While I am thinking that Romney would not necessarily make a greater difference over the next four years on the matter, I highly object in the short term for the potential that the SPR may be misused. 

I can already see it now. What was supposed to be an energy savings account (SPR) gets used to try to lower pump prices for the convenience of holding on to political power, setting a new precedent that would fritter the energy savings account away. 

The solution to getting whacked at the gas station would actually be to have a sane Fed, better foreign policy for a more peaceful world and a long term energy plan to reduce the need for oil from most countries that hate us to begin with! But that would be hard to do as the real solution lie in the real of serious structural reform and in today’s society it’s all about taking the easy way out with band aid repair that fail to cure the core problems. 

And when push comes to shove, the situation will boil down to an Administration's power grab and not something aimed directly help people reduce to cost to drive. They will sell it as help to us, but you should know better that it is really help for them. 

Nothing would surprise me anymore – even a vain attempt by the present Administration to use the SPR for political gain. If they do, they should be wary of unintended consequences. Stay tuned.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

My Brief Take on the High Post Labor Day Gasoline Price

Sorry to my Obama fan readers. But this needs to be said. The high price of gasoline is just the oil industry's way at settling some scores with Obama. How convenient that prices go UP before the election this time? Just bad timing, or planned? The higher prices shall be worth some near term pain, if it can get that guy out of the White House. No one forced the big O to waste so much money on green, or to act as he did with the XL pipeline, or to put the Middle East region in a state of greater tension because he favors the "brotherhood". I could go on and on. Sure, Brent has remained persistently high, but that's just one factor. The recent fizzled storm that shut in some Gulf production is a tiny factor and is over emphasized by the financial press. Sorry to politicize gasoline, but I see this move as more than just a coincidence in an election year. If these prices don't miraculously soon come down, this high profile pocketbook issue might very well tip the scales to Romney who needs all the help he can get.

We Live in a Twisted Financial Reality - CAMI - Museum Quality US Coins for the Advanced Collector

We Live in a Twisted Financial Reality - CAMI - Museum Quality US Coins for the Advanced Collector

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Kid makes Ron Paul friendly video, gets a visit from the FBI

I know Ron Paul has no chance, nor Gary Johnson and that getting Mr. Obama out of office will require voting for Romney, but read the comments section of this video. Very revealing stuff on how the political establisment harasseses people with differing views.


How 9/11 Changed My Life - CAMI - Museum Quality US Coins for the Advanced Collector

Off topic today...

How 9/11 Changed My Life - CAMI - Museum Quality US Coins for the Advanced Collector

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Corruption at it Worst; Gold Demand Trends; Drought; Farcebook


8/16/12

Corruption At Its Worst
Here’s your promised change from 4 years ago – an even MORE corrupt system: No One Will Be Charged With a Crime for the MF Global Collapse - Yahoo! News http://news.yahoo.com/no-one-charged-crime-mf-global-collapse-111056124--finance.html via @YahooNews. 

The moral to the story: the House generally wins in some way, shape, or form. The people of the MF house win by being able to walk away scot-free. Make sure the core of your net worth is not filchable through these non federally insured segregated accounts!! Most of these accounts were used simply as hedges within the farming industry related to the original intent of futures markets dating back hundreds of years. It was the House (MF) that went on a gambling binge and took everyone down with it. We now know the Chicago Merc is of no use in this situation. What will the SIPC do? The loss of a billion dollars is a gain for the party on the other side of the bad trades.  

Gold
The end of the world again confronts gold holders – at least in the estimation of the mainstream media in reaction to WGC data that shows a 7% decline in world gold demand during the 2nd quarter from the year before. Demand slackened in China and India, but increased due to safe haven demand in Europe.

The lithium in the report comes from solid demand from world central banks where demand more than doubled year over year. Put two and two together for yourself, dear reader. I would say that if the controllers of the financial game (central banks) are buyers of gold as a means of distancing themselves for being overweight dollars, the average person should also be looking at gold as a place to store wealth.

However, it appears that American buyers have not been heeding the message. U.S. bar and coin demand fell 27% year-on-year to 14.4 tons, the WGC said. At this time there isn’t further elaboration on that steep drop in demand.

With gold headed for Tier One asset banking status, I still see a positive gold outlook.

Drought
I touched on the drought situation yesterday. While the near term temperature forecast in the Midwest has moderated to an outlook of reasonable temperatures, the outlook for rain is still looking hobbled


As a result, September corn is holding at close to the $8/bushel level. The mainstream media is hyping the drought with stories like this:
Corn price increase to affect pumps, pantries: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48684467/ns/local_news-indianapolis_in/t/corn-price-increase-affect-pumps-pantries/#.UC0X7fnqzjI.twitter via @msnbc

However, other world corn growers, including Brazil are likely to fill enough of a void in U.S. crop yields to stave off a worldwide crop disaster scenario at least through this fall. In terms of price, much will depend upon what the USDA will announce in the coming weeks. The risk is weighted toward the USDA having underestimated U.S. crop damage. Imho prices still have a good chance of resuming higher.

A fresh Nadir for FaceBook
This space warned you about this IPO last spring. Bagholder city. Facebook shares fall to a record low as the post-IPO lockup on about 271 million shares expire. The stock is down nearly 6% at $19.89. More than 1.3 billion more shares to be unlocked before the end of the year. -- http://on.mktw.net/NHDRBI
I won’t say that I have seen it and reported it all on Wall Street, but I’ve seen enough over 25 years to know a bad deal when it comes along. Unfortunately in this day and age, much of what is coming to market is poison and doesn’t take a degree in rocket science, or special powers of discernment to determine a loser. It’s as if the street will bring anything to market without even the pretense of trying to gussy up an offering. 

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

I'm Back


  • 8/15/12
    I’m Back
    I wish I could say I was away for a vacation, but very sadly my wife’s brother was killed in a workplace accident and we ended up rushing out to Belleville, Illinois for the wake and funeral.
    Corn
    Parched fields of corn caught my eye while we were in that Midwest location. After trading as low as 35 in May and June, the CORN ETF continues to hold above $50. The actual September corn futures have moderated a bit in recent days thanks to cooler weather break and are trading below $8 a bushel, but the concern with this and other crops is the need for drought busting weather. That seems elusive at the present time.
    The weather guessers at NCEP are scratching their heads seeing EC, or equal chances for above or below normal precip moving toward fall. At this point, people should not only be praying for rain, but doing rain dances, etc.
    weatherguess
    Gold
    There has been a drought of sorts for gold: a QE drought. Thus far, it has been all quiet from the Fed. I could spend lots of time speculating on Fed possibility, political ramifications, etc., but let’s wait to see what Fed officials attempt to jawbone (speak about) in the coming weeks for QE hints. Keep in mind, the Fed jawboning has had a lot more to do with calming financial markets and reminding the stock and bond casinos that the Fed “stands ready” to act though it has yet to act again to satisfy the animal spirits in search of QE (though you can certain argue that by not acting, the Fed is acting).
    Related: Goldman Sachs is saying they do NOT anticipate QE3 this year http://stks.co/k8gx. gosh, maybe QE is coming, or GS just went short the market!
    Related: Paulson Steps Up Gold Bet to 44% of Firm’s Equity Assets http://t.co/QqLPL87a
    A brief closing thought…
    As we move deep into the heart of August, markets are operating at a very dull roar on both sides of the Atlantic. Volume may be drifting lower, but the problems have not disappeared.
    German Bund Yield Reaches Six-Week High on Spain Aid Speculation http://buswk.co/OXFwk1 via @BW

Monday, August 6, 2012

Tisk Tisk Mr. Willis; Stocks Seek Higher Ground To Start off the Week


Tisk Tisk Mr. Willis; Stocks Seek Higher Ground To Start off the Week

8/6/12

I must have struck a sensitive nerve. Conscience has a way of doing that to people. What they must know is a shoddy practice, in this case I called out PCGS and NGC on the slabbing of a plethora of modern coins as being perfect MS70 examples (when everyone knows that true perfection should be a rarity and not a mass production operation) causes people to take impulsive punitive little actions. In this case, I got kicked off the friends list of Don Willis, PCGS Collectors Universe prez, on Face Book! LOL.

This came about after I highlighted a study (read it here) done by coin expert and journalist Mark Ferguson (his site here) confirming that CAC stickered coins on the slabs of PCGS and NGC graded coins do fetch premiums in the coin market place.  My additional observation was that CAC does not sticker the modern slabs. At the extreme, 1978 Eisenhower dollars are the stopping point on the CAC time line to qualify for verification. CAC says it on it’s own website  “CAC Does Not accept Modern Coins / Bullion Coins”. Yes, in RED.  (See theCAC list here)

Related: What is CAC verification? (Go Here).

Here’s how the conversation went down on Facebook. Note: Someone removed a somewhat bitter final post written by Mr. Willis to Mr. Higgens.  I didn’t remove it. Usually on Facebook that means the writer of the post removed it.

Description: https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/173178_580128454_327335989_q.jpg
Jim Kingsland shared a link.
Shaky Labor Market; Gold Developments; Congrats to CAC! Why I have a number of Beefs with PCGS and NGC $$ http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/2249-2/


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It doesn't take much to offer an opinion on an already certified coin that is guaranteed by someone else. If you look at a coin in a holder and can't tell if it has a problem then you do need help from a dealer such as Albanese.
Friday at 10:58am via mobile · Like · 1
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Rock on Don!Cac is class!
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Jim Kingsland i know my post today will not make me many new friends. I would say many don't know what they are doing and do need John's help through CAC. It is well known that there is a large overhang of problem slabs in the great "out there" that can flummox too many. I see it as a glaring problem that CAC helps people to avoid.
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Robert Higgins I think you need a lesson in respect !!!
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Jim Kingsland I respect the top grading services as we would be worse off without them, but I respect CAC even more.
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Robert Higgins Let me rephrase this: Don Willis, I think you need a lesson in respect!!!
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Don Willis, it was nice being FB friends while it lasted.
The subject of CAC gets under the skin of the coin graders and its benefactors in the coin industry. They misunderstand CAC, which seeks to merely to verify coins that are solid for the grade, which just happens to be of importance to coin collectors. CAC is not here to point out grading service inaccuracies. Yet, the grading services involved seem to think CAC is out to get them, or question their expertise.

I would add that Mr. Willis should re-consider his well rehearsed line above about it not taking “much of an opinion on an already certified coin that is guaranteed by someone else.” I would point out that the “opinion” that’s being offered coming from this “Albanese” as Willis puts it, is John Albanase the co-founder of PCGS!   I get a good chuckle when I get the hackles up of a person when I point out easily refutable thinking.

Suggestion to Mr. Willis: If you are so thinned skinned about the reality of the marketplace and how it embraces CAC verified coins, perhaps PCGS could employ its own verifier who for an extra fee could confirm the PCGS slab is solid for the grade. This would go beyond what I find is the murky “+” designation. The marketplace clearly likes a CAC solid-for-the-grade verified coin.
The bottom line, is that I have personally observed (and I am not speaking now in defense of CAC, but for myself) is that not everything that is graded MS70 is MS70. I find that to be unconscionable.
Now, should I point out other beefs with the coin graders? I shall leave that for another post.  The top forces in the coin industry need to clean up their acts.
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Mondays have been droopy days for Wall Street over the past few months, lacking for the most part in gains for the first trading day of the week. This morning stock futures are up, but that doesn’t indicate whether the close shall  be positive or negative.

I tweeted about VXX (volatility) over the weekend. It’s getting to extreme lows. I think it’s a much easier play than trying to figure out when the SPY rally fades. Follow my tweets, I am @jkings1
It was a $10 stock a few trading sessions ago. Now it’s looking like a $2, or less issue. Good Knight. Knight Shares Halted After Rescue Plan - MarketBeat - WSJ http://t.co/rrag3p3h

While, the old adage, ‘never short a dull market’ comes to mind as we move deeper into August. This will simmer-down on both side of the Atlantic, especially in Europe, where the sovereign debt issue will somehow be put on hold for the rest of the month could manifest itelf, if the bulls are lucky. However, we learned last summer, going into Labor Day that these markets can become topsy turvy due to unforeseen (by most) events in Europe.
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Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Wednesday Stock Rally; Gold Surge; The Trouble w/New QE; Apple Earnings Miss


7/25/12
Early Stock Rally Potential
Today looks like rally day for this week – a bit like a few moments of comic relief in a Shakespearean tragedy. Fundamentals remain the same this morning as they were yesterday save a few better than expected earnings reports from names like CAT, Boeing and Ford. Overall the U.S. economy is in slight growth, sputter mode; European countries (eg. Spain, Italy, Greece – even Polish yields were on the rise Tuesday) are in big trouble, but for this morning futures are green. Read more here: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/2194-2/

Monday, July 9, 2012

Earnings Hocus Pocus Focus; Euro Woes; My Cat’s Modeling Gig; Counterfeit Coins


7/9/12
Yearnings for Earnings
Starting this week and for the next three weeks, Wall Street’s attention turns to turns to quarterly earnings. Capital IQ consensus is expecting a 1% DECLINE in the 2nd quarter operating earnings to be reported in the days ahead. IF the numbers are as dreary as the consensus of ANALysts are predicting, this is going to be a messy time ahead for the market of stocks. On the other hand, there is often a positive spread between the expectations versus the actual numbers and that could usher in a brief time of mirth and merriment before the August doldrums set in. Which will it be??

PLEASE READ MORE: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/earnings-hocus-pocus-focus-euro-woes-my-cats-mdeling-gig-counterfeit-coins/

Thursday, July 5, 2012

You Can Smell The Central Bank Desperation as Support Builds in Gold and Silver

Surprise! The latest interest rate cut in the world of Central Banks comes from the European Central Bank. Yes, things are going so well in Europe that the ECB has flashed this wonderful signal of confidence by cutting its benchmark lending rate from 1% to .75% (as if this is going to have some wonder stimulus impact – a whopping 25 basis points). Very funny, once again. This move below the 1% (which had been considered someone’s barrier in the halls of the ECB), shows one thing: desperation knows no barriers and takes the ECB only 75% basis points to zero.... PLEASE READ MORE: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/you-can-smell-the-central-bank-desperation-as-support-builds-in-gold-and-silver/

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Wall St Rests Ahead of Employment Friday; The LIBOR Banking Scandal and Why It Matters


7/4/12
Happy Independence Day!
The Wall Street crowd has the day off en masse today for the 4th of July. Then, for the next two trading sessions of the week, a boney group of traders will be on duty: better known as the ‘skeleton crews’. The timing is interesting for the skeleton crews since this Friday (the first Friday of July) features the release of the monthly employment data for June. Given the recent data highlighting a slowdown in global manufacturing activity, any better than expected figures from the massaged employment series could spark another day at the races for Wall Street. IF the jobs numbers.... please read more HERE.... http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/2136-2/

Monday, July 2, 2012

So Far The Biggest Banking Fiasco EVER is Upon Us; PMIs Down Globally – Told Ya So. LOL.


Just a day of rally from last week’s developments in Europe? Let me be blunt: NOTHING good will ultimately come from the European TARP-like scheme to shore up Spanish, Italian banks and other European banks. There will be NO good outcome from so called printing, or shuffling of debt from an official bank balance sheet to Frankenstein junkyard of bad debt. Any repudiation, or transfer of debt, or whatever it shall be called comes at a cost and that cost will ultimately be paid by taxpayers via a direct increase in taxation, or through austerity, or both.... PLEASE READ MORE and be disturbed HERE:
http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/so-far-the-biggest-banking-fiasco-ever-pmis-down-globally-told-ya-so-lol/

Another Jim Kingsland in the media moment

Another Jim Kingsland in the media moment, Quoted this time in this article in Financial Advisor Magazine.... http://stks.co/l0uI $$

Friday, June 29, 2012

The Latest Mini Rally Due to Euro Hopes



Brief Market Commentary
6/29/12
On my way to 12 year old Son’s golf award ceremony (the next Arnold Palmer in the making).
Another mini rally is at hand. The latest European Harry Houdini financial-move is based on creating new debt to replace old debt through the European Stability Mechanism, or ESM. The question of who pays for this supposed non sovereign route of rescuing banks through a European Bank Supervisor (who would need to be chosen by the end of the year remains to be seen). The broader issue of pooling debt remains to be resolved as well. For now, the market is seeing the glass as being half full and is rising. But let’s get something straight right away: The ESM is not a magic money machine
Read More Here: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/2130-2/

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Why Gold (and silver) Are Important; Hi EU, Wouldn’t Want to Be You; The Great Housing Comeback



6/27/12
For those who have waited to buy gold, or silver as a form of financial insurance, what are you waiting for?? If people are holding off on allocating some of their dollar wealth toward an easy to buy hard asset, then they shall never get it – until it’s too late.
I was asked by a member of the press about where I thought... Please read more at: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/why-gold-and-silver-are-important-hi-eu-wouldnt-want-to-be-you-the-great-housing-comeback/

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Filthy Fed and Ugly Housing Data; Range Bound Gold and the Range Bound Fed


  • 6/21/12
    Eco Scribbles Not so Good
    The Philly Fed Survey Collapses… 

  • My pronouncements on housing have been on the money. It’s not rocket science. There is a lot of delusion out there about housing coming back. I deal with numbers and facts. Existing Home Sales MISS EXPECTATIONS, Fall 1.5% To 4.55M (Exp. -1.1% To 4.57M)... 

    Gold is Range Bound
    The gold struggle that I have talked about for much of the year continues. I am surprised that so many have been directionally bullish both near and longer term. Long term I see a rise for gold as a crumbling of the fiat system is 99-44/100% inevitable. However, I remind again, that so long as the dollar retains its favored status as the reserve currency of the world and a means to escape the euro, gold will remain in a trading range near term – a time-out mode, if you will.

  • Please READ MORE HERE: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/range-bound-gold-and-the-fed/



Tuesday, June 19, 2012

The Housing Mess; Europe Gets Uglier; FED Meeting; The Trillion $ Retirement Problem and More



  • 6/19/12
    Housing
    Many tell me I am unreasonable in my negative outlook on housing for not only the next few years, but at least for a decade. I am willing to admit that certain hot markets like mid to lower Manhattan, or Greenwich, Connecticut do exist as the rare exceptions to an otherwise moribund housing picture. For the very wealthy who don’t need to be concerned with a 20% downpayment things are peachy, for the rest of mainstreet America it is a different story.
    The hyperster housing folks have more to work with today, or do they? Housing starts plunged from a revised 744K to 708K. Actual completions fell by a whopping 10%. Permits (promises to build at some future point) soared from 723K to an annualized rate of 780K. Let’s see first if the permits result in higher start numbers in the months ahead. June 30th marks the 3rd anniversary of Cramer’s proclamation that the bottom housing was in. LOL.
    Related and Supplemental: construction sector has been losing jobs for 5 months straight.. http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/USCONS
    European UnDelight
    Anyone start the day off buying 1 year Spanish bills with a record yield of 5.07? Last week’s “Spailout” of €125 billion received an underwhelming response because Spain really needs much, much more. 


    PLEASE READ MORE: http://www.certifiedassets.com/inv/news/the-housing-mess-europe-gets-uglier-fed-meeting-the-trillion-retirement-problem-and-more/

Monday, June 18, 2012

Me in the Media; Bad Signs from Europe; Awaiting the Feds