you are the media you consume.
$200bn more pumped in. Jesus Christ. I hear Jim Cramer used the words "run on the banks" today, too. You know, when people say my generation is a lot like my grandparents, I tend to take it as a compliment. This isn't what I had in mind. Conservatives want live babies so they can raise them to be dead soldiers. - George Carlin
If you're banking on any of these, and are fairly young, I submit that you might as well be in Vegas. Conservatives want live babies so they can raise them to be dead soldiers. - George Carlin
For people with more money than sense, art beats stocks and property. And, unlike getting a new car, they are happy if they have to pay more. There's nothing like putting your futures up on a wall ;-) You can't be me, I'm taken
As soon as President McCain is sworn in, I suspect monetary policy will change... Fai de bèn a Bertrand, te lou rendra en cagant
Recall US interest rates in 2000 when Gore was more or less in a Democratic re-election dynamic and the first of Greenspan's bubbles was deflating. Unlike now, they were ratcheting up interest rates. Fai de bèn a Bertrand, te lou rendra en cagant
But in an unusual move, AAA-rated mortgage securities issued by banks will also be accepted. Many investors have shied away from these mortgage-backed securities because they fear defaults in the underlying assets will erode the value. The effort, which is being done in conjunction with other central banks in Canada and Europe, is designed to promote trading in these markets that have frozen up, experts said. The measure allows banks to temporarily get these illiquid securities off their books. "They are providing liquidity to keep the deterioration of that market from bringing down the broader economy," said Ian Lyngen, interest rate strategist with RBS Greenwich Capital.
The effort, which is being done in conjunction with other central banks in Canada and Europe, is designed to promote trading in these markets that have frozen up, experts said. The measure allows banks to temporarily get these illiquid securities off their books.
"They are providing liquidity to keep the deterioration of that market from bringing down the broader economy," said Ian Lyngen, interest rate strategist with RBS Greenwich Capital.
non-economist guess here: presumably they will transfer as much of this illiquid shit to the public as they can before the election, then raise interest rates after the election to save the dollar, and thus lock in the market "winnings" over the past few decades for the wealthy. Goodbye roads, schools, and firefighters. It will have to get that bad to get the public angry enough to demand their share back, though.
The good news for me is that the dollar isn't likely to stay at $1.55 USD/EUR, so I won't be converting my cash quite yet.
Hell, maybe I'd better vote McCain. Fai de bèn a Bertrand, te lou rendra en cagant
I guess I should work like hell on the side this spring to save some money and go on vacation to the US. I will be as rich as a king with all my hard currency! And the gasoline is almost free over there. Maybe a coast-to-coast road trip? ;D
And I've just figured out I can buy government bonds straight from the Swedish state online (no fees at all, wooo!) with a duration of 2 months to 25 years. There are inflation protected ones too. The intertubes is just great. Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.
I bailed on USO due to the contango issue that causes it to under perform vs. the spot price. If/when we get into a nasty recession and it drops back down to $70/80 a barrel I might pick it up again.
I made my own little big oil "index fund" by including pretty much equal amounts of Exxon, Chevron, Total, Conoco and Shell. Well, a little extra of Exxon. And none of the British "we can't even spell maintenance" Petroleum idiocy.
Haven't got enough money to include lots of smaller companies like Andarko and Talisman, even if those probably have a brighter future than the supermajors.
With the giant size of the companies and the inherent diversification of integrated big oil, the company risk goes away a bit. Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.
Dunno enough about Dubai, but Mongolia sounds good if I can find it on the map... ;-)
Btw one of the better meals I've had was in a Mongolian barbecue restaurant in Bergen.
Yummm. But not recommended for vegetarians... "Any economic unit can emit money. The serious problem is to get it accepted" Hyman Minsky
For short term stuff, other economies are looking better. Romania is bit of a star at the moment. The break in the political log-jam in Cyrpus has brought a rash of N Cypriot property onto the market.
I also sensed a lot of confidence from Turkish sellers as well. Last year everything was being sold on EU membership, but I think they've realised they've got a good product whatever (and they do on the south coast but Bodrum is massively oversold). EU membership is just a bonus. keep to the Fen Causeway
I think as energy costs rise, the sheer unsustainability of Dubai's rash of building is going to be a problem. Most of it isn't built to last and it really is AirCon Central....water isn't going to get any cheaper either.
I'm a fan of Northern Cyprus too, but the title situation is still problematic on much of it.
Wherever you can get mortgages you'll see property prices going up, of course. "Any economic unit can emit money. The serious problem is to get it accepted" Hyman Minsky
Most of the N Cypriot stuff was new build on virgin land where compnsation costs would be marginal compared to the value of the property.
Still no old property coming up, but the idea is that, although title is a problem, there will be a rational solution to it cos they can't allow it to cause problems down-line.
. keep to the Fen Causeway
