I just got off the phone with my aunt and uncle who have travelled from the island of Corfu to be in Syntagma square for the protests leading up to today's meeting between the President and the Prime Minister of Greece. My uncle has lived through a Nazi occupation of...
During a radio interview last Saturday, Jean-Claude Juncker made the following statement – "The debt level of the USA is disastrous…the real problem is that no one can explain well why the euro zone is in the epicenter of a global financial challenge at a moment when...
We are now are now 90 points off the cyclical and 2011 highs in the spoo, or 6.9%. For the year we are still up 2% but things feel very shaky – not as bad as the March Tsunami dip to 1248 – but close. The most recent catalyst for weakness was Ben’s speech late...
For those in the camp that Q2 economic data weakness is temporary, the supply disruptions in Japan will ebb, the Chinese tightening measures will lead to only a modest Asian slowdown and that the current situation is basically bump in the road on the way to a...
There is no way to put a positive spin on the US data – it stinks. It’s been soft and mushy for the better part of a month now, and today we get the crème fraiche on top with payrolls. Goods manufacturing and retail services look to be the big culprits so there may be...
On 28-May I attended a roundtable discussion in Limassol, Cyprus with Athanasios Orphanides, the governor of the central bank of Cyprus, Don Kohn, the ex-vice chairman of the FRB, Lucas Papdemos, the ex-vice president of the ECB, and Nout Wellink, president of the...
The Greek situation is the single greatest tail risk for markets. Restructuring, default and/or EU exit will surely bring with it confusion and retrenchment across ALL capital markets. The current situation remains “fluid” with quarterly reviews of the austerity...
After yesterday’s longwinded commentary on the US debt ceiling and Europe I will keep today short. The panic surrounding Europe seems to have ebbed and market price action is looking slightly more balanced. Tape bombs are surely lurking around every corner as the...
It has been a busy weekend of news with Europe the prime focus of market angst. Before jumping into the issues across the pond I wanted to start today with the US Debt ceiling debate. The gang of six has disbanded and comments from Harry Reid, Barney Frank and Paul...
If you’ve been in the game for 30 minutes and you don’t know who the patsy is - you’re the patsy” – Warren Buffet. There is a non-economic buyer and holder of US government backed securities. We all know that! They are not bound by pnl, shareholders or the threat of...
If you’ve been in the game for 30 minutes and you don’t know who the patsy is - you’re the patsy” – Warren Buffet. There is a non-economic buyer and holder of US government backed securities. We all know that! They are not bound by pnl, shareholders or the threat of losses. They own the […]
