Bitcoin Forum

After almost a year and a half of holding its policy interest rate unchanged, the Reserve Bank of Australia cut by a quarter percentage point Tuesday, citing weak inflation and a stronger-than-desired currency. The move put the cash rate at a historic low of 2.25%. With the interbank market having priced in a 60% chance of a cut, according to Reuters, the Australian dollar fell sharply on the news, dropping to 76.72 U.S. cents from 78 U.S. cents just before the announcement. Stocks rose, meanwhile, with the S&P/ASX 200  up 1.1%, extending its pre-decision gain of 0.3%. In comments accompanying the move, RBA Gov. Glenn Stevens said that the consumer price index "recorded the lowest increase for several years in 2014," and " it appears likely that inflation will remain consistent with the target over the next one to two years," given weak growth in labor costs. Meanwhile, Stevens repeated the RBA view that the Australian dollar remained "above most estimates of its fundamental value, particularly given the significant declines in key commodity prices."

As China enters its third year of slowing growth, there is growing concern the debt reckoning cannot be kicked down the road any longer, and the days of almost unlimited risk-free credit are coming to a close, writes Craig Stephen.

Demand for residential loans continued to weaken, despite the fact that banks have made it easier to get a mortgage, according to a survey released by the Federal Reserve Monday. “Weakening demand for residential loans...is broadly consistent with the weakening in home sales activity in recent months,” said Millan Mulraine, deputy head for U.S. research at TD Securities.

A stronger-than-expected reaction to the European Central Bank’s asset-purchase program and increased risks of a crisis to the euro bloc have added to the pace of the common currency’s downward trajectory, says Barclays’ currency research group in a note to clients.

The bank predicts the euro will weaken to $1.08 by the end of June, and to $1.05 by the end of September. But Barclays anticipates that by the end of the year the euro will be trading at a 1-to-1 ratio with the dollar for the first time since 2002, the year it entered circulation as a physical currency. That forecast is down from Barclays’ earlier prediction that the euro would trade at $1.07 by the end of 2015

Only after the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and the days following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, have currencies been more volatile, said Bank of America Merrill Lynch strategist David Woo

Just when U.S. stocks were rebounding, late-day news that the European Central Bank is rejecting Greek bonds as collateral sent stocks south, with the S&P 500 finishing lower on Wednesday.

After a four-day rally, which sent oil price up more than 20% oil prices fell sharply Wednesday, with March WTI crude CLH5, +0.87%  dropping nearly 9% to settle at $48.45 a barrel.

The European Central Bank said Wednesday it would suspend a waiver it had extended to Greek public securities used as collateral by the country’s financial institutions for central bank loans.

2/2/15 News

Australia cuts rates after long calm; Aussie dollar dives (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/australia-cuts-rates-after-long-calm-aussie-dollar-dives-2015-02-02) --I expect them to begin QE within the next 2-3 years

Not sure if OP is looking to moderate this thread, but I'll add this to the stack of news today

Denmark rates go negative on 4th cut in 3 weeks

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-05/it-will-now-cost-you-075-save-money-denmark-danish-central-bank-cuts-rates-fourth-ti

thanks lythos! very interesting and I find your comments insightful.

It has become a weekly thing now. In its desperation to preserve the EURDKK peg, the Danish central banks has cut rates into negative, then cut them again, then again last week, and moments ago, just cut its deposit rate to negative one more time, pushing NIRP from -0.5% to -0.75%, its fourth "surprise" rate cut in the past 3 weeks!

...Schaeuble stressing that bailout promises must be kept if Greece is not to lose international trust and confidence and, lastly, Varoufakis pointing out that Greece will never recover under the weight of its current debt load.

Greece and its European partners — including Germany — have to come to an agreement before the current bailout program ends on Feb. 28 or Greece is at risk of running out of money. However, during Thursday’s press conference Varoufakis stepped up his push for a bridge loan to buy time for negotiations with the country’s creditors.

In an unprecedented event, the yield on Nestle's corporate debt went negative this week.

That means investors are essentially willing to pay for the right to park their cash in the safety of the Swiss chocolate company. The bonds might as well come with a note saying: "In Nestle we trust."

"You're looking at something that's never happened before. It's a brand-new phenomenon," said Richard Salditt, a credit analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. "Strange things are going on in financial markets."

Nice posts, keep it going!

The negative interest on bonds proved that people who have fiat money are desperately buying any asset that they can get their hands on. I have not been able to imagine a possible event to trigger the collapse of fiat money, but I think it is coming from the shaken confidence, and it is getting close

Forgot where I read it, but an interesting perspective on this: yields are chasing down the dis-inflation rate. If nominal rates are -3% then even if bonds go to -1% it is still a +2% in effect. But the combination of this, deflation and currency wars all lead to either hyperinflation or monetary reset.

Lythos good point re: Denmark. Being smaller than the EU / US, how long can they expand their balance sheets before it affects them negatively?  

Nice posts, keep it going!

The negative interest on bonds proved that people who have fiat money are desperately buying any asset that they can get their hands on. I have not been able to imagine a possible event to trigger the collapse of fiat money, but I think it is coming from the shaken confidence, and it is getting close

Forgot where I read it, but an interesting perspective on this: yields are chasing down the dis-inflation rate. If nominal rates are -3% then even if bonds go to -1% it is still a +2% in effect. But the combination of this, deflation and currency wars all lead to either hyperinflation or monetary reset.

Lythos good point re: Denmark. Being smaller than the EU / US, how long can they expand their balance sheets before it affects them negatively? 

I'm think that will not be a problem, the asset side keeps growing and the liability side (money) is actually hold by the large commercial banks, as long as these banks have a mutual agreement with central bank to not let their huge stash of cash flow out, there will be no inflation

Well the idea behind QE is to print money to give to banks, the banks should then be loaning out that money to business etc and thus not only spur economic growth but also cause a bit of inflation to reach their 2-3% inflation goals. Eventually that money will hit the market and then a while down the road people will realize that monetary policy has made the money less valuable and THEN inflation hits. I honestly expect to see BIG changes in peoples (mainstream) attitude to fiat currencies by the end of 2016.

That's the plan, but now every major institution knows this and they will not loan out that money to business (due to already severe over production of almost everything), those money just went to other area like commodities and bonds

The only investment that demonstrably keeps its value over a long period is gold, and in future perhaps also bitcoins.

...they'll no longer be buying when rates sink, and no longer be selling when they rise. It simply costs too much in terms of capital... Therefore markets can tumble a lot faster than in the past...

Central banks can print money limitlessly and these days they are telling us that openly. It's therefore no longer recoverable.

My analysis:
What does that mean? Real GDP growth for the US in Q4 was only 1.1%!!! which is an absolutely terrible growth rate. The government uses the GDP deflator to supposedly account for inflation/deflation in GDP numbers, but that also gives them a LOT of lead way to fudge the numbers however they want and thus they are reporting a much better (still mediocre though) GDP growth than actually occurred for Q4.

Here's google translate of a Denmark bank introducing negative .5 deposit rates for some customers

"For the first time in the history of Denmark is it going to cost money to have a regular bank account in a bank.

Thus introduces FIH from next month minus interest on customers' bank accounts. This brings the bank's customers continue to fork out for funds deposited in an account at FIH.
The new system applies to the bank's day -to-day account, which is what you might call a regular salary account - minus interest rate of 0.5 per cent . shall enter into force on 9 March and will both apply to residential and business customers .
not surprisingly,
According to one expert , it is far from surprising that FIH introduces less interest .
- FIH is about to close their bank down , and by introducing less interest forcing some existing customers out . So if someone were to do it, it was them , said John North, director of Mybanker .
FIH justify the step with the bank pays money to funds deposited in the National Bank.
It happens after three hectic weeks in which National Bank has reduced the deposit rate four times - most recently yesterday afternoon , when it was lowered by a further 0.25 basis points to -0.75 percent .
- It is expensive for FIH , but you could say that it comes at an opportune time . But it is also a proof that it is bad business , customers are the acidic , says John Norden .
Calls for calm
Although FIH now has taken the historic step and introduced less interest , there are no indications according to John Norden that other banks will follow suit.
- We are in a very unusual situation with low interest rates , but I do not think it gets other banks to do the same. It is clear that there is a pain threshold , but it is difficult to say when it is reached, explains John parts."

Ukraine has no money and barely any economy. It's already talking to the IMF about a $15 billion bailout and what's euphemistically being called a debt "restructuring"—i.e., default—as its reserves have dwindled down to $6.42 billion, only enough to cover five weeks of imports.

The hyrvnia fell from 16.8 to 24.4 per dollar, and then again to 25.3 on Friday, on the news that the government wouldn't intervene it in anymore.

In a note Monday, analysts at Citigroup raised the possibility that West Texas Intermediate oil prices may fall to as low as the $20 range. Prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange already suffered a loss of 46% last year.

But the recent rally looks more like a “head-fake than a sustainable turning point,” said Citi analysts, lead by Edward Morse.

The oil market should bottom sometime between the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second quarter, with oversupply being a key factor, Citi analysts said.

I don’t think it will be resolved without Greece leaving the eurozone...

A defiant Tsipras told lawmakers Sunday that he would be unwinding several austerity measures that were conditions of its international bailout. He said he’d be raising minimum wage, dropping a property tax, and a few other goodies Europe’s leaders are sure to be flipping out over right now

The country’s €240 billion (roughly $272 billion) rescue runs out at the end of the month, and Greece’s government has warned that the money could run out in a few weeks. Analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch said in a note Monday that the country probably can get through International Monetary Fund payments in March, but not likely past May.

Sweden joins the NIRP brigade

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-12/sweden-central-joins-nirp-club-lowers-interest-rate-01-launches-qe

SASAC notified centrally administered SOEs on Feb. 9 that they “must not increase the total amount of salaries” if their profit target this year is lower than last year’s profits

“We are already at the level where stocks are simply expensive. If markets rise from this level significantly due to foreign demand or lack of alternatives - this will form a bubble,” Smith said.

Yet retail sales excluding gas were still flat compared to December, a sign that Americans aren’t using their fuel bonanza to spend more on other goods and services. Instead they are saving more.

Negative interest rates are pretty cool and all.  However I want to see even more fiat accounting innovation. 

We aren't using the whole complex plane here people!  Imaginary interest rates are the next big thing, you heard it here first . 

Next step will be directly confiscating money from accounts: -10% interest means your money at banks get a hair cut by 10%

Obviously, if they print more money, there will be more deflation (more money means more debt, thus more austerity  and less spending), a low inflation rate will make banks keep printing until they bought every assets out there

How do you figure if more money is printed that leads to deflation?

FED print 100 dollar, and bought 100 dollar worth of government bonds, and then government have 100 dollar to spend. However, they must make back that 100 dollar plus interest, means the total money in the society will lose $2 when they return that 102 dollar to central bank. So, for each 100 dollar FED print and retrieve, the society as a whole will lose 2 dollar, a temporary stimulation is followed by a even deeper deflation due to less money to spend in future

Even there is no interest charged, this temporary stimulation will increase the incoming and spending of the society for a while, but when it stopped, people are staying at a much higher living cost of everything, with same amount of money in society, thus quickly fall back into recession

The only way out of this deflation spiral is to expand the debt forever exponentially, but then the ballooning interest cost will cut more and more into the income and eventually income will start to shrink no matter how much more debt is raised

Innovators are eager to try new ideas, to the point where their venturesomeness almost becomes an obsession. Innovators’ interest in new ideas leads them out of a local circle of peers and into social relationships more cosmopolite than normal.  Usually, innovators have substantial financial resources, and the ability to understand and apply complex technical knowledge.  While others may consider the innovator to be rash or daring, it is the hazardous risk-taking that is of salient value to this type of individual.

Cybercriminals have stolen up to $1 billion since late 2013 from banks across 30 countries, including the U.S., Russia, Europe and China, a computer security company says in the latest report to draw a red circle around the financial sector as a vulnerable target for hackers.

The majority of brokerages (88%) and financial advisers (74%) said they “have experienced cyberattacks directly or through one or more of their vendors.” But only a small portion of the more than 100 firms surveyed — 15% of broker dealers and 9% of advisers — guarantee they’ll reimburse clients for losses related to a cyberattack, the Securities and Exchange Commission found.

Greece will seek an extension to its loan agreement from the rest of the eurozone Wednesday, an official with knowledge of the situation said...
The Greek government has so far insisted that budget cuts and economic overhauls mandated by the current rescue deal are hurting its economy and society and that the currency union’s finance ministers haven’t offered sufficient leeway on implementing those measures.

But as the above chart, joined by the following charts, shows, investors often ignore disappointing economic information as a bull market progresses, just as they did before the previous two recessions. And when market prices just start building rapidly on themselves, without a strong economic platform or continued stimulus from the Federal Reserve, the market bubble that is created should eventually pop

News 2/17/15


The banking industry’s biggest cyber fears (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-financial-industrys-biggest-cyber-fears-2014-09-10?page=1)


--88% of brokerages have been victim of cyberattacks, only 15% admitted that they will guarantee funds lost to attacks
--74% of financial advisers have experienced attacks. 9% gaurantee funds.
Peachy

Greece intends to ask for extension Wednesday, says official (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/greece-intends-to-ask-for-extension-wednesday-says-official-2015-02-17)
--Sounds like a rumor to me. I'm not 100% convinced that all the sudden Tsipras will reconsider the extension without a restructuring of their debt.


7 charts that suggest the rising stock market may be wrong (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/7-charts-that-warn-the-stock-market-may-be-wrong-2015-02-17)


--Retail sales are down, many commodities are down, corporate profits are down (post-tax), hourly wages for production workers are down, personal consumption expenditures (leaving out food and gas) are down which may or may not be signalling more deflation (which is terrible in fiat based currencies and leads to bankruptcy)

1. Business cycle: The current business cycle is 67-month-old, prompting worries that it is soon to expire and lead to a recession. But given that the U.S. economy is still performing at below potential and the typical signs of imbalances aren't apparent, the current cycle will remain intact for now.

2. Strong U.S. dollar: A firm dollar hurts U.S. exports and weakens American products’ competitiveness but it alone won't trigger a recession or a bear market.

3. The Federal Reserve: The Fed turning hawkish is a worry but given the current composition of the Fed, the possibility of an ill-timed interest rate hike is limited.

4. Weak Oil: Lower oil prices is more of a boon than a bane as less money spent on gas and fuel will mean more cash for consumers and businesses.

5. Earnings: “This is a serious problem,” said Kostohryz. The S&P 500 earnings per share risk is flat to negative in 2015 and PE ratios are peaking, limiting the market’s upside.

6. Valuation: Although some experts believe the market is overvalued based on the “Shiller PE10,” the indicator isn't foolproof. “PE ratios are at levels that have historically served as a peak in valuations, but aren't yet at levels that can be considered to constitute a ‘bubble.’”

7. Greece: Investors are underestimating the possibility of a negative outcome in Greece’s debt crisis. But the Eurozone is sufficiently prepared to deal with any fallouts.

8. Ukraine: The West and Russia won't go to war over Ukraine. The situation in the Eastern European country may deteriorate in the coming months but it will have limited impact on U.S. markets.

9. China: The Asian powerhouse is slowing but the Chinese government is expected to deploy aggressive fiscal and monetary measures to prevent a “hard-landing.”

10. Geopolitical instability: Oil-dependent regimes such as Venezuela are likely to face greater instability while rising Muslim extremism in the Middle East could lead to political and social upheaval in the region.

So far, “crude-oil supplies remain strong, and OPEC is showing no signs of cutting in the immediate future,” said Kevin Kerr, president of Kerr Trading International. “That is all putting pressure on [WTI] crude around the $50 mark.”

According to a survey released Monday by Bankrate.com of more than 1,000 adults, 37% of Americans have credit card debt that equals or exceeds their emergency savings.

The Nasdaq only crossed the 5,000 mark once before. This was back on March 9, 2000, just before the collapse of the so called dot-com bubble.

With the burst of the bubble, the Nasdaq went on to fall 78% to a then-six-year low of 1,114.11 on October 9, 2002. The ensuing bull run elevated the index back as high as 2,859.12 on Halloween 2007. That marked a 157% gain from the October 2002 low, but still 43.37% off the 2000 record close. But the financial crisis soon halted the advance.

News 2/23/15

10 reasons U.S. stocks may see a 10%-20% correction by July (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/10-reasons-us-stocks-may-see-a-10-20-correction-by-july-2015-02-23)


Is OPEC ready to announce an output cut? (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/is-opec-ready-to-announce-an-output-cut-2015-02-23)
--In short, doubtful.

1 in 3 Americans on verge of financial ruin (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/1-in-3-americans-on-verge-of-financial-ruin-2015-02-23)


4 things to know as the Nasdaq nears 5,000 (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/4-things-to-know-as-the-nasdaq-nears-5000-2015-02-23)
--Breaks 5,000->Crash->2,800->crash->5,000->?

--Also for the S&P 500...  what do you think comes next?
https://i.imgur.com/fvfy6d1.png

It’s time to start the countdown to the crash of 2016. No, this is not a prediction of a minor correction. Plan on a 50% crash.

Cash hoard

Berkshire Hathaway is flush with cash, sitting on $62.4 billion as of Sept. 30.

In January, the consumer price index sank by a seasonally adjusted 0.7%, the biggest one-month drop since the end of 2008, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

I don't think I agree with this. If the $100 is printed and we now owe $102 to the fed, then we have even more money printed to pay our debts back and this cycle repeats. Yes debt forever increases (and at a faster rate than the money supply), but all of this printing leads to inflation (dollar becomes cheaper and it takes more of them to buy the same good)...It's only if we stop printing that we would start to have deflation and economic collapse.

Please tell me if I'm wrong or missing something.

Printing does not necessary leads to inflation, since the inflation indicator does not include capital goods, more money will just raise the asset price and bond price. And now more money means more debt, means more of the income will be used to pay the debt, and less money will be used to pay the daily consumption, so there will be deflation even the money printing is accelerating

Of course when banks receive the interest, they will spend, which put those interest money back into circulation, but their spending is very limited and could not create much jobb

Shut out of debt markets and faced with a steep fall in tax revenues, Athens is expected to run out of cash by the middle or end of March. Its finance minister has warned that Greece will struggle to repay creditors starting with a 1.5 billion euro IMF loan repayment due in March.

Don't believe any news about Greece. That theater could continue forever - until the EU bankrupts itself constantly bailing out a corrupt and inefficient government/banking system.

When money can be printed how do you run out? You DON'T you make headlines and politics, but at the end of the day you - the elite - get your house and your dinner for free.

It doesn't end until people say stop and choose a medium that cannot be faked - like Bitcoin.

(Gold also cannot be faked, but using it is just as cumbersome and expensive as our current structure of propping up the elites - at least the elite get something out of fiat)


In the near future Bitcoin will start to swallow up all this fiat, the more the fiat price lowers the faster it will go. Bitcoin is like a financial black hole, it is yet small - but just wait.
At first people will go to Bitcoin because of the price increases, later they will come because it is stable and fiat is collapsing.

In the near future Bitcoin will start to swallow up all this fiat, the more the fiat price lowers the faster it will go. Bitcoin is like a financial black hole, it is yet small - but just wait.
At first people will go to Bitcoin because of the price increases, later they will come because it is stable and fiat is collapsing.

Abraham said it’s not “an anomaly” to see fraud accounting for about 6% of Apple Pay transactions, compared to about 0.1% of transactions using a plastic card to swipe

In a surprise move, the RBI just cut its main interest rates for the second time in two months, taking it from 6.75% to 6.50%, in what the central bank calls a “pre-emptive” policy move, but what is in reality merely a confirmation that so far in 2015 at least 20 central banks have lowered their interest rate.

Buffett compares Greece to a "dog peeing on the carpet" of Europe, suggesting Germany stop "rewarding behavior you want to get rid of."

None of this might matter were it not for the fact that extremely low interest rates have fueled increased risk-taking by borrowers and yield-hungry lenders. The result has been a massive mispricing of financial assets. And that has created a growing risk of serious adverse effects on the real economy when monetary policy normalizes and asset prices correct.

Posted this on another Spec thread but it is more fitting here.

Many messy implications.

http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/03/03/the-u-s-government-should-pay-anonymous-in-bitcoin-to-fight-isis/

More and more stocks no longer are in uptrends, even as the S&P 500 manages to maintain its uptrend,” said Carter Braxton Worth, chief market technician at Sterne Agee. “Unsustainable divergence, we’d say.”

http://ei.marketwatch.com//Multimedia/2015/03/09/Photos/ZH/MW-DH293_Market_20150309121018_ZH.jpg?uuid=d2e662fc-c676-11e4-8f80-95657135611e

China's economy grew 7.4% last year, its worst showing in 24 years. The government has set an even lower target for this year of about 7% growth.

The central bank took advantage of mild inflation and cut benchmark interest rates, effective March 1, to help bolster economic growth. It was the second rate cut in a little over three months.

Home-price growth has slowed, according to recent data. The year-over-year growth rate for the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city composite slowed to 4.5% in the final month of last year, compared with 13.4% growth in December 2013.

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks dropped on Tuesday, giving the S&P 500 its biggest decline in two months, on increasing views the Federal Reserve may raise rates as soon as June.

The Dow and S&P 500 ended in negative territory for the year, with the S&P 500 off 3.5 percent from its March 2 record closing high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its worst one-day point drop in five months as investors began pricing in a rate hike by the Federal Reserve by the middle of the year, while other central banks are embarking on a quantitative easing path.

n a unanimous vote, the Fed as expected dropped its pledge to remain “patient” about raising rates in a statement released after a two-day meeting. And 15 of the bank’s top 17 officials think the Fed will raise rates sometime this year. See text of statement.

Still, the Fed cautioned that it will wait to raise rates until it has “seen further improvement in the labor market and is reasonably confident that inflation will move back to its 2% objective over the medium term.”

With a firm "no comment" Janet Yellen shied away from burstng the bubble in "extremely stretched" Biotech and Social Media stocks, but was forced to admit that "overall measures of equity valluations are on the high side." Then, rather oddly, she notes that The Fed sees unusually low spreads in corporate bond markets... which is odd since they have actually widened dramatically in the last year or so, perhaps signalling just how "high" valuations are in stocks...

Yellen "no comment" on Biotechs... but "market valuations on the high side."

With Greek bank bonds collapsing, stocks near record lows, Greek default risk at post-crisis record highs, and Greek government bond yields spiking, it has been surprisng that we have not seen the ATM lines and generalized 'panic' of a population in fear of being "Cyprus'd." Well, now as ekathimerini reports, that appears to escalating and rapidly as credit sector officials estimated that the flight of deposits yesterday alone amounted to 350-400 million euros, which was some five times higher than the daily average in previous days.

As ekathimerini reports, Greek banks are suffering from fresh turbulence due to the tension and the apparent collision course between Athens and its creditors. Bank stocks gave up more than 8 percent of their value on Wednesday, while the outflow of deposits was far greater than on previous days.

... France has taken the first step.  It seems the terrorists involved partially financed these attacks by cash, as well as by consumer loans and the sale of counterfeit goods.
French Finance Minister Michel Sapin brazenly stated  that it was necessary to "fight against the use of cash and anonymity in the French economy."  He then announced extreme and despotic measures to further restrict the use of cash by French residents and to spy on and pry into their financial affairs.

These measures, which  will be implemented in September 2015, include prohibiting  French residents from making cash payments of more than 1,000 euros, down from the current limit of  3,000 euros.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Don’t fret. Stocks aren’t overheating. That is the message Goldman Sachs chief global strategist Peter Oppenheimer, offered up on CNBC on Monday.

The Goldman strategist included the key term “yet” in his comments about the growing fear in the market that stock’s are getting too rich.

But as investor and financial blogger Simon Black points out, last week, “A senior official from the Justice Department spoke to a group of bankers about the need for them to rat out their customers to the police.”

Assistant attorney general Leslie Caldwell gave a speech in which he urged banks to “alert law enforcement authorities about the problem” so that police can “seize the funds” or at least “initiate an investigation”.

As Black highlights, according to the handbook for the Federal Financial Institution Examination Council, such suspicious activity includes, “Transactions conducted or attempted by, at, or through the bank (or an affiliate) and aggregating $5,000 or more…”

News 3/24/15


Feds Urge Banks to Call Cops on Customers Who Withdraw $5,000 or More (http://www.infowars.com/feds-urge-banks-to-call-cops-on-customers-who-withdraw-5000-or-more/)
--"War on cash intensifies"

The reality is that banks are closing the loop of their whole FRB system, so that everyone is only playing game on that giant exchange (banking networks), if no withdraw will happen then no bank run is possible

Just to provide a little context for the less technically minded market watchers, the CAPE ratio is the ratio of the S&P 500 index to trailing 10-year average earnings. Q-ratio is the market value of nonfinancial corporate equities outstanding divided by net worth, while the Buffett Indicator describes the ratio of corporate-market value to gross national product. All three of those metrics are approaching two standard deviations above historical means, while forward P/E ratios are within historical norms.

The carnage on the Street marks the third consecutive losing session, with the S&P 500 and Dow industrials recording the sharpest losses in two weeks and occurred as one of the year’s biggest mergers, a deal between Kraft Foods Group Inc. and H.J. Heinz Co., was announced in the morning.

Analysts attributed the selloff to pre-earnings season jitters and investors cashing out of stocks in companies that have seen big run-ups.

The Nasdaq Composite COMP, -2.37%  ended the day down 118.21 points, or 2.4%, at 4,876.52.ost 19.06 points, or 0.9%, to 2,072.44. Biotechnology stocks were hit the hardest, with the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF IBB, -0.06%  dropping 4.1%.

The S&P 500 SPX, -1.46%  fell 30.45 points, or 1.5% to 2,061.05, with nine of its 10 main sectors finishing sharply lower. Energy sectors stocks defied the trend and followed a rally in oil prices higher sparked by an intensifying conflict in Yemen.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -1.62%  lost 292.60 points, or 1.6% to 17,718.54, and turned negative for the year. All but two of its 30 components closed lower.

Should we be worried about another dot-com crash?

After all, the Nasdaq Composite is back up to 5,000 — the giddy level last seen during the peak of the big tech bubble back in 2000.

There are frothy signs everywhere — booming real estate in San Francisco, overnight millionaires with messenger bags, and everyone doing deals.

Everyone’s got “the next Uber,” “the next AirBnB.” Kids with peach fuzz on their cheeks say they’re going to reinvent the world — and investors with billions believe them.

Heavens, even Mark Cuban is calling it madness — and saying it’s worse than last time.
FAA Grants Approval to Outdated Amazon Drones
(3:05)

Is the FAA too slow or is drone technology developing too fast? WSJ’s Jack Nicas reports on Amazon’s next steps in getting its drones approved by the FAA. Photo: DPA/Zuma Press.

Maybe he’s right. Cuban’s a smart guy. And maybe this is all going to end very, very nastily, as it did last time.

But if this is a similar mania, it’s hard to see it in the numbers. Here are three reasons why is this is not the same as it was then.

One: This Nasdaq 5,000 is not that Nasdaq 5,000.
...
 But by the numbers we do not seem to be back up to those wild, crazy days. Yet.

On Wednesday, combined trading on the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets hit 1.24 trillion yuan ($198 billion), the seventh straight session in which turnover surpassed the 1 trillion yuan mark. By comparison, the New York Stock Exchange typically saw $40 billion-$50 billion a day in trading during the first two months of this year.

... “even the cleaning lady” has opened an account to play the market.

In a note this week entitled “The Worrying Sense of Calm in China,” analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch got right to the point: “Risk-Love (equity sentiment) in China’s equity market is in euphoria territory. It is time to book some profits.”

“China’s real interest rates remain too high, the currency is too expensive, fiscal policy is tight, and debt deflation is taking hold,” the analysts said.

"There will never be a good time to raise rates off zero when you've been there for six years," Peter Boockvar, chief market analyst at The Lindsey Group, told CNBC. "The Fed's screwed, essentially."

"Zero ... is just an unnatural rate six years into a recovery." Boockvar said. "But the problem is that GDP growth hasn't averaged more than 2.5 percent (during the recovery), so they're stuck in this lackluster, mediocre-type growth rate."

U.S. stock funds have seen $44 billion in outflows in the year-to-date for their worst start to a year since 2009, said Bank of America Merrill Lynch strategists in a note Thursday. Meanwhile, European equity funds have enjoyed $46.6 billion in inflows so far in 2015, as the table below shows.

The driving forces behind the move away from U.S. stocks include investors having been positioned too bullishly, weaker-than-expected economic data and the dollar’s rally, according to the BAML strategists.

The federal government is planning a tax on bank deposits at the May budget in a move that will raise about $500 million a year but which bankers warn could be passed on to customers.

The bank tax, as proposed by Labor ahead of the 2013 election, where it lost government, would be a 0.05 per cent levy on every deposit of up to $250,000. It was scheduled to start on January 1, 2016, and budgeted to raise $733 million in its first 18 months of operation.

...

Rgr that, 10-4 re Chinese bubble indicator.

*  *  *

There is so much going on re economic troubles (and more worrying for me: "Economic Totalitarianism") that I am actively fishing for even MOAR practical ideas on financial self-preservation. And I have done a fair amount of "preparing" over the years...

I really hate that our .gov and the ultra-wealthy & ultra-powerful have so corrupted our system.

Have we REALLY gotten to the point where it is now (or will be soon):

-- Gold
-- Bearings (our small business run by my in-laws in Peru, our "Plan B" country)
-- Bitcoin (mix them and hide them well)
-- Bullets

that will preserve us as individuals?

Ugh.  As they write at Zero Hedge, the guillotines are getting hungry.......