Economy
The $86 Trillion World Economy in One Chart (Thomas R.)
It should be noted that the diagram uses nominal GDP to measure economic output, which is different than using GDP adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP). The data in the diagram and table below come from the World Bank’s latest update, published in July 2019.
Lagarde Says `Highly Accommodative Policy’ Is Warranted by ECB (Sparky1)
Incoming European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde pledged to act with “agility” against what she described as inflation that is persistently too low, signaling that she intends to follow Mario Draghi’s example in keep monetary policy exceptionally loose. Lagarde, who ran the International Monetary Fund for the past eight years and is scheduled to take over at the ECB on Nov. 1, made the comments during a hearing before lawmakers in Brussels.
Life in Kashmir under security and communications clampdown (Sparky1)
Kashmir residents are desperate to get in touch with the outside world amid an Indian security and communications clampdown.
Trump administration unveils Fannie, Freddie overhaul, urges Congress to act (Sparky1)
As such, it may disappoint some investors who had been anticipating a speedy overhaul of the mortgage giants and conservative Republicans who had hoped the administration would take bold steps to sever all government ties with the companies.
Latest Trade War Causalities: More Than 10,000 Layoffs in August (Adam)
American companies eliminated 10,488 jobs during August due to “trade difficulties,” according to a monthly report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., a firm that tracks hiring and labor market data. Overall, employers cut 53,480 jobs in August, according to the report—that’s 39 percent more than the 38,472 jobs cut in August 2018.
Mortgage rates fell again this week — and the Fed could push them even lower (Thomas R.)
“Mortgage rates continued the summer swoon due to weaker economic data,” Freddie Mac wrote. “While economic growth is clearly slowing due to rising manufacturing and trade headwinds, economic fundamentals are still solid for U.S. consumers.”
8 Daily Habits of Frugal People (Adam)
Rather than thinking about what they’ll need just today or this week, frugal people consider what they’ll use in the next month or year. This often leads them to stock up during big sales of nonperishable goods, such as toilet paper and dry beans, rather than buying things when the urgent need arises. They’ll notice that there are only four rolls of toilet paper left and add that to their list for the warehouse club instead of waiting until they’re almost out, making an emergency trip to the local corner store and paying three times as much per roll.
Shares of Union Pacific rallied nearly 4%, despite management reducing full-year forecast for rail shipments the day prior, which Cramer said was a casualty of the U.S.-China trade war. Honeywell, 3M and Caterpillar also traded higher as much as 3%, although many investors think those companies are more levered to the Chinese economy than in reality, he said.
China Injects $126 Billion Into Its Slowing Economy (Thomas R.)
Some banks will see their reserve ratio cut by one percentage point to promote lending to small businesses and private enterprises. Senior officials also indicated this week that they planned to loosen restrictions on local governments related to raising money for infrastructure projects.
Shopkeepers lose everything to looting in Johannesburg (Sparky1)
Certain foreign and South African nationals in Johannesburg are left with nothing after falling victim to looting. South Africa has recently seen outbreaks of violence against foreign businesses, sparked by the perception that jobs are being taken away from South Africans.
Gold and Silver Prices – Day by Day (GE Christenson)
In the two major bull markets of this century, the SPX averaged about 11 up days for every 9 down days. The average down days were larger than the average up days. Eleven steps forward and nine steps backward sounds unimpressive, but the SPX rose from under 700 to over 3,000 during the latest bull market.
Gold’s big drop is just the beginning of a longer slide (Thomas R.)
Prior to this recent jump, in contrast, as you can see from the chart below, the HGNSI stood solidly in the middle of the pack. Between early May, which is when bullion registered what so far is its 2019 low, and earlier this week, the HGNSI averaged 24%, which is equal to its average level over the last two decades.
Currency That Expires – That’s the Solution – Or Just Cancel it all? (thc0655)
Europeans are accustomed to having their money simply expire. This is not limited to paper currency. They also cancel the coins. The proposal being whispered in the dark halls of Europe is that perhaps the way to impose negative rates to force people to spend is to just cancel all the currency and authorize only small notes for pocket change. They want everyone to be forced to use bank cards and this is the new theory to revitalize the economy.
Humans Are Creating Their Own Narratives (thc0655)
Before we dissect what’s really going on, allow me to point out the glaringly obvious, which is that politicians, pundits, mass media and the U.S. military don’t actually care about the societal harm of fake news or conspiracy theories. We know this based on how the media sold government lies in order to advocate for the Iraq war, and how many of the biggest proponents of that blatant war crime have gone on to spectacularly lucrative careers in subsequent years. There were zero consequences, proving the point that this has nothing to do with the dangers of fake news or conspiracy theories, and everything to do with protecting the establishment grip on narrative creation and propagation.
The Bad Daddy: My Plan to Save the World (Phil D.)
The biggest problem – you guessed it – is the debt-based paper money system. It requires endless, exponential growth (because every dollar is created as a loan, payable with interest).
If GDP isn’t growing enough to afford the interest payments, the system is collapsing, and that pain is too significant for society to worry about plastic straws in the ocean (or anything else).
The Silicon Valley Heavyweights Who Want to Settle the Moon (Adam)
Open Lunar began a few years ago as something of a thought exercise. A group of friends in Silicon Valley were taking stock of the dramatic improvements in aerospace technology along with the falling cost of rocket launches, thanks to companies like Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. and Peter Beck’s Rocket Lab. The friends came to the realization that it might soon be possible to create a small lunar settlement for about $2 billion to $3 billion. It’s a hefty sum, but a very achievable one in an era that abounds with wealthy space enthusiasts. And so, the friends decided to explore the idea of going to the moon in earnest.
HARPA: America’s New Social Credit Plan Partners Big Tech and Govt to Further Gun Control Efforts (Sparky1)
I’d like to pause for a moment to remind everyone that the national debt is over $22 TRILLION and is rapidly climbing. Check out the US National Debt Clock (the figures are real-time) to see how much we pay in taxes, how much the government is spending (they are spending far more than they are stealing from us), and unfunded liabilities (kiss your retirement goodbye if you are years away from trying to collect).
DNA Hints the Loch Ness ‘Monster’ Might Be Giant Eel (Thomas R.)
Neil Gemmell from the University of Otago in New Zealand says the project found a surprisingly high amount of eel DNA in the water. He cautioned that it’s not clear whether that indicates a gigantic eel or just a lot of little ones.
But he said at a news conference in Scotland that the idea of a giant eel is at least plausible.
Toxic Nanoparticle Air Pollution Found in Human Brain Tissue (Sparky1)
The World Health Organization reports that air pollution is at a crisis level, and that it kills more people per year than malaria and AIDS combined. What’s more, new research indicates that it may now be associated with reduced intelligence, mental illness, and Alzheimer’s.
Gold & Silver
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The post Daily Digest 9/8 – More Than 10,000 Layoffs in August, The World Economy in One Chart appeared first on Peak Prosperity.
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