Good morning.
The United States has started preventing chip exports to China in recent months, citing national security concerns. China is now making its counter-move, by starting up an export curb on key metals. China is a world leader in the production of rare-earth elements. Many are found elsewhere in other parts of the world, but often at a far higher production cost.
This could mark the start of a post-Covid trade war between the U.S. and China. Unlike the last one, which involved much more talk than action, it could result in a quiet escalation before cooler heads and diplomacy prevail.
Investors should look for resource stocks that have operations outside of China, who could be the key beneficiaries to the trade war. And look for a potential escalation as an opportunity to buy a dip on the chipmakers, which are largely priced for perfection right now.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
U.S. States And Currency Competition
The U.S. dollar has been the world reserve currency since 1944. At the Bretton Woods Conference, the dollar was pegged to gold and every other currency was pegged to the dollar. The fixed exchange rate system that emerged provided… [Read Here]
More Evidence The Economy Continues To Spiral
Despite so much evidence to the contrary, the Biden administration continues to insist that the U.S. economy is on the right track. But is that really true? Thanks to the Federal Reserve, interest rates are now much higher and the money supply has been… [Read Here]
July 06, 2022
Good morning.
Fears of a recession continue to rise. The real issue impacting markets is how deep and for how long such a recession lasts. The good news? It will likely bring down inflation. The fear is already bringing down oil prices, which are now back around $100 per barrel.
That should start showing up at the gas pump in the coming weeks, assuming the trend holds. And it’s a sign that investors may want to take some profits in the oil space. It’s had a fantastic run in the past two years, but with OPEC committed to a further production increase this summer amid an economic slowdown, it’s time to look for profits in more beaten-down parts of the market.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
Economists Predict What Comes After Historic Inflation
Most investors have been surprised by the last six months. The total return of the US Treasury Index was the worst since 1788 according to Deutsche Bank. Stocks closed June with one of the largest corrections since 2008. And now… [Read Here]
Riding Out the Recession In Commercial Real Estate?
Years ago — during the Great Recession — one of Tennessee’s finest developers shook his head at his financial situation and said, “My net worth’s gone down by half, but my cash flow’s the same.” Commercial real estate has… [Read Here]
July 06, 2021
Good morning.
For most, the headline of an economic article is usually what ends up being the key takeaway. That’s just good journalism! Yet when the unemployment rate drops to 5.9 percent, as it did last Friday, that’s not telling the whole story.
For instance, 55 percent of all new jobs created were in hospitality and the government. With restaurants reopening, of course we need waiters and bartenders again. While these can be good jobs with tips included, however, they’re not high paying jobs. And most government jobs were teaching jobs, which also tends to be on the lower end of the pay scale, even as such jobs increasingly require advanced degrees.
The growth in these jobs points to a lopsided economic recovery, with manufacturing and white-collar jobs, which tend to be far higher paying, still lagging. And while that sounds bad, it still points to an economy that has room to grow.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
Yellen: Without Debt Limit Hike, U.S. May Default by August –Reuters Staff,Reuters
“Failing to increase the debt limit would have absolutely catastrophic economic consequences,” she said. If Congress doesn’t act by July 31, the dominos will start falling… [Read Here]
Your Income & Buying Power Chewed Up by Red-Hot Inflation –Wolf Richter,Wolf Street
Inflation-adjusted income fell 2.4% in May alone. Americans are struggling to spend heroic amounts of money as fast as they can. They just can’t keep up with inflation… [Read Here]
July 06, 2020
Good morning.
I always consider July 4th as the first day of summer. I guess that’s because it’s the first holiday of the summer and it seems summer plans start to heat up. While this year may be lesser in terms of travel plans, it makes you wonder whether the market will have fewer bullish or bearish plans as well. There’s a lot of talk about masks for good reasons, but most of the masks I’ve tried aren’t that great. They leak around the top of your nose and below your mouth. They fall down. They are hot and uncomfortable … and, frankly, most don’t work that well.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
The Ax Has Fallen In Hong Kong
The Chinese government has officially imposed a national security law on the island of Hong Kong — Asia’s financial hub — that ends the territory’s “special” status.
In other words, it destroys the autonomy and freedom that made capitalism- and democracy-loving Hong Kong different from China for more than two decades.
Kim Iskyan wrote about this proposed measure in the May 26 Digest … and now, China is imposing it.
As the Economist explains, it gives Chinese leaders in Beijing “sweeping power to crush dissent in the territory using its own secret police and even its own courts” and “is one of the biggest assaults on a liberal society since the second world war.”
The law broadens the definition of, and increases the punishment for, crimes labeled as terrorism, subversion, secession, and collusion with foreign powers.
An old friend of mine in Hong Kong put it this way…
“Hong Kong is China now: There’s nothing else to say.”
July 06, 2019
We might be one “Hello” away from meeting the person that will change our life.
Learn the four colour personalities in one hour!
Which colour personality are you? Your prospects?
Discover the secret language of each colour personality.
Hi, Keith and Tom “Big Al” Schreiter here.
When closing yellow personalities, we should understand their priorities:
- Help more people. Yellow personalities find happiness and fulfillment by helping others.
- A community. They love relationships and a feeling of belonging to a team.
- A mission. A campaign to improve people’s health provides a sense of purpose.
- Connections. For many yellow personalities, a connection with their sponsors and fellow team members is the reason to join.
This makes it easier to know what to say. So here are some closing examples:
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- “Start thinking of exactly who you want to help now.”
- “Having a new career helping people either works for you, or it doesn’t. So, what would you like to do?”
- “We can do this together. Let’s start now.”
- “You seem to love what we are doing. Let’s work together.”
- “With your help, we can affect more lives. Will you help us share this?”
Would these closing sentences work with the other personality types? Not really. We need to understand who we are talking with, and then our closing sentences will resonate with them.
Keep Smiling … friends will wonder what you’re up to! 🙂
