August 8, 2023 | “Normalized” Rates and Record Debt Mean Tough Times

Canadian banks are offering mortgage rates above 6% for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6-year terms on new purchases (below via Ratehub). Home equity lines of credit are above 7%. These are historically average mortgage rates. The trouble is that after 13 years of unnaturally low rates (2009-2022), people are carrying debt loads far above the long-term […]

August 7, 2023 | Marines Deployed as US-Iran Tensions Rise

World War III continues to heat up as the US Marines have been deployed to the Strait of Hormuz. The military also plans to deploy F-16 and F-35 warplanes and an Amphibious Readiness Group/Marine Expeditionary Unit containing 3,000 troops. France24 says that Iran has attempted, sometimes unsuccessfully, to take control of 20 internationally flagged ships […]

August 6, 2023 | The Long Wave Versus the Printing Press

This is a reprint [with a few edits] of an article I wrote way back in 2010 — when a supercycle crash was already overdue: The fascinating thing about “long wave” analysis (broadly defined to include Kondratieff waves,  Elliott waves, and William Strauss and Neil Howe’s Fourth Turning) is that while each theory uses its own indicators and terminology to show […]

August 6, 2023 | AAPL Takes the Lead…Lower

Last week’s commentary said the first big correction of 2023 had a ways to go, and that is still the case. If there were any doubts about this, Apple’s swan dive Thursday on punk Q2 earnings released after the close should have dispelled them. The most valuable stock in the world fell by nearly 5%, […]

August 6, 2023 | Turning Time, Part 2

My friend Neil Howe titled his latest book The Fourth Turning Is Here because, well, the Fourth Turning is here. It is no longer the decades-away crisis he and the late William Strauss described in their 1990s books. As noted last week, each “turning” is generally 20 to 25 years. We are in the last half of […]

August 6, 2023 | The Democrats Trying to Destroy the Supreme Court – AGAIN!

The Democrats sent a letter demanding Alito recuse himself on any such question regarding the power of the Supreme Court. Once again, just as FDR tried to stack the court to turn the United States into his vision of a Marxist Utopia following Stalin after he recognized the Communists as a legitimate government, they are […]

August 5, 2023 | Trading Desk Notes For August 5, 2023

Stock market sentiment took another step away from “irrational exuberance” this week I wrote in the July 22 TDNotes: I’ve been skeptical of the “Magnificient Seven” rally for a few months, thinking that sentiment bordered on “irrational exuberance.” However, I respected the power of the rally and patiently waited for an opportunity to fade it. I thought the “$100 Billion in […]

August 5, 2023 | Wikipedia is now Officially Government Propaganda DO NOT DONATE ANYTHING

Larry Sanger, one of the founders of Wikipedia, states plainly it is now all propaganda DO NOT DONATE TO WIKIPEDIA

August 5, 2023 | This Week in Money

• Ross Clark – Stock Markets, Stock Market Correction, Gold, Oil
• Rick Ackerman (9:13) – Stock Markets, Debt, Hot Stocks
• Martin Straith (39:32) – US Government Debt, Bonds, China, Germany

August 5, 2023 | Tech Talk for Saturday August 5th 2023

The Bottom Line North American equity indices reached an intermediate peak on or about July 27th. Thereafter, volatility increased significantly as prices moved lower. The period for increased volatility in North American equity markets has arrived. Intermediate downside risks exists between now and mid-October.

August 4, 2023 | Trudeau’s Tinder Profile

Must be a quadruple-vaccinated conformist who rejects all freedoms. Open to all genders or non-genders! Must enjoy long plane rides to Davos, the occasional lockdown, and be interested in implementing the New World Order with me and my friends at the World Economic Forum. Absolutely no truckers or family members of truckers — swipe left […]

August 4, 2023 | Ratings Agency Downgrades US Debt Triggering Widespread Criticism

  The U.S. government bonds were downgraded a notch by the ratings agency, Fitch. This means the safety of the US treasuries has slipped and there is growing concern about the longer-term outlook for debt. Is the U.S. government at risk of default? Economists reacted negatively to the downgrade with Larry Summers calling it “absurd” […]

August 4, 2023 | Food Inflation: 7.1% or 22.6% Per Year?

  If you want to know how much food has gone up in the last 12 months, don’t ask the US government – ask people who shop for food everyday. Based on a survey of 8,000 US grocery shoppers nationwide, they said food at home prices rose by an estimated 22.6% from April 2022 to […]

August 4, 2023 | Becoming Invisible, Part 7: Android Phone Privacy Settings

Google makes its (many) billions by spying on its customers, mining the resulting personal information, and using/selling the profitable bits. So it’s no surprise that phones based on Google’s Android platform have default settings that violate rather than protect customer privacy. But Android phones — especially the latest versions — do offer settings that allow […]

August 4, 2023 | Homeownership Becoming a Nightmare for Many

Each week I hear from people who bought Canadian homes over the past few years–whether as primary residences, secondary homes or rentals–and now they realize that they will need to sell. Most are facing capital losses in doing so, but the cost of continued ownership is simply unsustainable. Some recognize that location changes they made […]

August 4, 2023 | Russia Working With Africa to Lower US Dollar

Yellow Trucking Company drowns in red ink

August 3, 2023 | The Online News Act Bill C-18

The Canadian government does not want people sharing news stories online. The government should be the sole source of information. The Online News Act (Bill C-18) would require social media platforms and online sources to compensate Canadian news agencies for sharing news online. A report by Angus Reid found that 85% of Canadians do not […]

August 3, 2023 | American Economy in More Trouble Than Washington Admits

US Government Deserved a Lower Credit Rating. Receive 50% Off VR Trader Newsletters! Enter Promo Code 2022HALFOFF.

August 3, 2023 | Why AI Not Ready for Prime Time Yet

Who will win Canada’s Lithium sweepstakes?

August 2, 2023 | Hard Currencies – Fiat v Legal Tender

@absolutegeniux #viralvideo #trending #tiktokviralvideos #viral #trendingvideo #tiktok #tiktokviral #tiktokviralvideo ♬ original sound – AbsoluteGenius A man attempted to purchase strawberries with cash at an Aldi grocery store in the UK, possibly leading to his arrest. They want us to adjust to the cashless society that will implement globally by the World Economic Forum under its […]

August 2, 2023 | Dan Ariely: Don’t Make These Money Mistakes

When it comes to money, because it’s so quantifiable, you’d expect people to make very rational decisions. But they don’t. Because we’re humans, we’re more driven by our evolutionary wiring and our emotions. We make “predictably irrational” decisions, as today’s guest expert would say. Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and […]

August 1, 2023 | The Myth of FDR’s New Deal

The victor gets to write history, and that is precisely what the LEFT did with FDR and the New Deal. You will never be an accurate analyst unless you accept that you are duty-bound to investigate the truth no matter where it may lead. The myth of the New Deal and its success in dragging […]

August 1, 2023 | A New Silver Whale?

Data published in the Commitments of Traders (COT) reports over the past four reporting weeks indicate a number of highly unusual changes in COMEX silver futures positioning. One such highly unusual change is the emergence of a big managed money trader on the short side, which appears to be holding a net short position of […]

August 1, 2023 | Rising Stock Markets Overlook Broad Economic Deterioration

The year-over-year leap in the Fed Funds Rate (inverted on the lower right in orange) is leading ISM new orders down (green line on the lower right). ISM new orders (lower left, in orange, since 2002) lead corporate revenues (green). The chart below, courtesy of Francois Trahan, suggests the trends in motion. Jubilant corporate bond and […]