Friday, June 1, 2012


Euro VIX Jumps As ECB Pumps

Depending on whether you look at broad liquid risk markets or narrow manipulated 'repressed' illiquid markets, your take on today's European action will be different. Equity markets were crushed. Corporate and Financial credit spreads blew wider. Volatility (Europe's VIX) exploded over 36%. So far so good? But Italian and Spanish bonds rallied. It seems EUR96 was the line in the sand that the ECB (or their proxy banks) decided was enough for Spanish 10Y bonds and that was where they were defended to (though we are suspicious why ECB would step in now after 4 months absence). There was eventually some notable divergence between underperforming Spain and outperforming Italy by the close (+40bps on the week vs +27bps). We suspect that much of the sovereign outperformance was a combination of Sovereign CDS-Bond basis traders (buying bonds and buying protection in Spain to lock in that wide spread) and a replay of the short financial credit, long domestic sovereign credit trade (as in banks will underperform the sovereign if things hit the fan/wall). That is the flow that was evident when looked at across markets. All in all, a terrible end to an awful week and hopefully we have helped explain why sovereigns outperformed (technicals) as CDS remain at wides and stocks at lows.

 

Obama Ordered The "Code Stux"

When Iran's nuclear facilities were publicly crippled in 2011 by what then was considered a revolutionary computer virus which destroys physical equipment, many immediately assumed the virus originated in Israel for obvious reasons. They were wrong. In what can be described as the first presidentially-mandated and condoned act of cyberwarfare, one circumventing the War Powers Act of course, the NYT informs us that the order to physically impair Iranian sovereignty came from none other than the Nobel Peace prize winning president: Barack Obama.




Payroll Postmortem

In perhaps the under-statement of the year, BofA's Economics group note that "May's unemployment report was a disappointment" with evidence of a weather reversal and weakness concentrated in construction, leisure, and temporary help. Pointing out that "This is the recovery of fits and starts", BofA believes we are entering a slow patch in the second half of the year. They do not see this report as sufficient to prompt Fed action in June, but it makes August QE increasingly likely. The weakness in the US data is overlapping with an intensifying crisis in Europe, which means the risk-off trade continues.



Spain DefaultSwaps at Record as Bond Risk Increases in Europe

Eric De Groot at Eric De Groot - 6 minutes ago
All signs pointing to official policy action this summer. Headline: Spain Default Swaps at Record as Bond Risk Increases in Europe The cost of insuring against a default on Spanish government bonds rose to a record as the nation’s debt crisis deepened. Credit-default swaps linked to Spain’s notes climbed nine basis points to 609 at 10:40 a.m. in London, according to data compiled by... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
 

QE(N) Will Lift All Asset Boats

Eric De Groot at Eric De Groot - 34 minutes ago
The key to timing short-term trend inflections is volume. Volume at support and resistance zones, for example climax bottoms and tops as well as gaps, reveal changes in the force behind the trend. Richard Wyckoff made millions by recognizing that when price fails to break resistance or support with force, it inevitably reversed and attempted to break support or resistance with force. 74.7... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] 
 

Mining Shares Continue to Outperform the Broader Equity Markets

Trader Dan at Trader Dan's Market Views - 1 hour ago
The last time we had a THREE CONSECUTIVE WEEKS during which the mining shares outperformed the broader US equity markets was in late October/early November of 2011. While the month of May this year has been attrocious for the S&P 500, it has been an excellent month for the miners. June is starting out on a good note to say the least as we witness today's strong upmove in the mining shares. My interpretation of this event is that today's payrolls number, which was so horrible that it cannot have any sort of positive spin placed upon it, has jolted traders into moving more and mor... more » 
 

US economy added 69K jobs in May, fewest in a year

Eric De Groot at Eric De Groot - 2 hours ago
More evidence of what Insight readers already know, the economy is slowing. Today's weak employment data (see chart and headline) will increase both political and social pressure for another installment of QE(n). Chart: Job Creation Histogram (JCH): Net Nonfarm Payrolls Added/(Lost) less Civilian Labor Force Added/(Lost), 12 Month Average. Headline: US economy added 69K jobs... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] 
 

Gold ETF (GLD) Total Assets WA Stochastic

Eric De Groot at Eric De Groot - 3 hours ago
The third hook in the D-wave decline Gold bulls are frustrated by slow and elongated setup. Gold bears are frustrated by sluggish downside action. WA, currently at 9%, remains in statistically oversold territory. Contrarian traders and investors are waiting for 0% readings for entry. There been only three 0% WA readings since 2006. Long-term investors are waiting for a 50%... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] 
 

Precious Metals Are Going To Make A Lot Of Money For A Lot Of People In The Next Decade

Admin at Jim Rogers Blog - 5 hours ago
If it goes down, I hope I am smart enough to buy more, and I hope I am smart enough to buy more silver, because precious metals are going to make a lot of money for a lot of people in the next decade. - in MoneyNews *Related: SPDR Gold Trust ETF (GLD), IShares Silver ETF (SLV) * *Jim Rogers is an author, financial commentator and successful international investor. He has been frequently featured in Time, The New York Times, Barron’s, Forbes, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times and is a regular guest on Bloomberg and CNBC.*





ISM Miss Add To Economic Collapse Woes: 5 ISM Sub-Indices In Contraction Territory

Just in case someone did not get the earlier BLS-doctored message, the final two economic indicators of the day just printed and were... drumroll... misses. Because remember: not only the 1%ers but the 99ers have to be begging Bernanke to print. And so he will: ISM Manufacturing prints at 53.5, down from 54.8, and expectations of 53.8. Prices Paid plunge by 13.5, but the kicker: 5 out of the ISM's 10 sub indices are now in contraction territory.. And the cherry on top: Construction Spending unchanged from an upward revised 0.3 to 0.3, obviously, missing expectations of a jump to 0.4. Looking forward to the Tim Geithner Op-Ed: "Welcome to the recession."





Bill Gross Channels 1972 Rock


 




Dow Jones Now Red For 2012

The Dow Jones Industrial Index just joined its Transports cousin in the the red for the year.







Gold Explodes, Spam Unchanged

Gold has jumped over $50 post-NFP, now back over $1600. Maybe, just maybe, as we have been saying since January 1, 2012 is a carbon copy of 2011, and the NEW QE is coming now that only central planning can sustain an epic economic collapse (for a few months at least)?





Teleportation To Swiss Safety Pushes Record Negative 2 Year Yield

The best news of the day is that the world just can't wait to pay off Swiss government debt by "buying" Swiss government debt with its -30 bps yields.
 





US Tremor Now Hitting Europe Where Germany Is In Freefall

Europe was leaking on slower growth expectations and ongoing pain in Spain but the US NFP print hit it while it was down and stumbled the already-underperforming German DAX - now down almost 4% on the day. Interestingly the Italian and Spanish yields and yield spreads are compressing modestly (doesn't seem at all clear why unless desperation has brought the rest of LTRO money off the table among Spanish banks - though Bund relative weakness may explain it - though rumors of ECB buying are out - after 4 months off). Bunds are underperforming notably as 10Y TSY - 10Y Bunds drops 7-8bps from this morning's highs - did another safe-haven just get dissed?





Gold's Surge, Stocks Purge, And Treasury Yield Records Emerge


The market was anxious going in to the NFP print but once the dismal data point hit, things deteriorated rapidly.
Pre-NFP ->EUR 1.2322, ES 1292, WTI $84, 10Y 1.51%, 30Y 2.59%, gold $1554
Post-NFP -> EUR -10pips 1.2312, ES  -10 1282, WTI -$1.2 $82.8, 10Y -5bps 1.46%, 30Y -7bps 2.52%, gold +$18 $1572
Treasury yields at record lows (10Y well below and 30Y right at Dec08 lows) as Gold pops (QE hope?) but stocks don't for now (reality of QE's inability to really help?). Oil down on global growth markdowns and EUR modestly weaker (choppy but practically unch now) - though looks like its all relative printing expectations now.





NFP Huge Miss At 69,000 On Expectations Of 150,000; Unemployment Rate 8.2%

And we have NEW QE liftoff, just as we predicted yesterday: "That the ADP would miss today's expectations of 150K is no surprise: after all as we have been explaining for a while, the only way the Fed will have a green light to proceed with NEW QE if it so chooses at the June 19-20 meeting, is if the economic data suddenly turn horrendous. Which means tomorrow's NFP data is make or break: in fact, as far as markets are concerned, the worse the better - should a -1,000,000 NFP print come in, stocks will soar." It may take a little while for the realization to soak in. The actual number of +69,000 was a massive miss to both the expectation of 150,000, and the whisper number 100,000, and a drop from the massively revised April 77K, which was 115K before. And that is with a 204,000 addition from Birth Death. Just a total disaster for Obama who has decided to sacrifice the perception of an improving economy just so he can give Bernanke a green light to goose the stock market.





Greece Faces Electric Meltdown

Maybe the electrician-in-chief can send them some of those unused Solyndra solar panels?





Gear Up!

“Gear up!” That is what I say to you this morning. Open your closet door, drag out the flak jacket from 2009, lace up your boots, unlock your guns, bring out the ammo and get ready to go at it one more time because the placid fields of Verdun, long silent, finds the Germans and the French at it once again and we are all about to be dragged back into it; like it or not. There is quite serious business afoot and, just like in war, the political statements made are nothing more than propaganda to mislead the enemy and the enemy is YOU.





Dan Loeb Down 2.6% In May, YTD Profits Cut By 40%

We warned Dan Loeb about those Portugese bonds.





Frontrunning: June 1


  • Germany shifts, gives Spain more time on deficit (Reuters)
  • Europe must prepare an emergency plan (FT)
  • EU Spain reveals €100bn capital flight (FT)
  • Spain’s Guindos says future of Euro at stake in Spain (Bloomberg)
  • ECB, EU officials warn euro’s survival at risk (Reuters)
  • China can ‘cope’ if Greece exits Euro, NDRC Researcher says (Bloomberg)
  • Japan Warns Against Rising Yen (WSJ)
  • Global stocks investors head for exits (FT)
  • Hot Copper Shorts Burning Commodity Firms (Caixin)





Global PMI Summary


All we can say is thank god for Hungary and, well, uhhh, Greece (that would be pre XGD Greece of course) in keeping the monthly average somehwat respectable.










Overnight Sentiment: Bath Salty

Just about an hour before the US non-farm payroll number is expected to print, and finally resolve the lingering question whether the Chairman will print in 3 weeks, things in Europe have gone from horrible to zombie.  A series of horrendous economic reports out of Europe including record Eurozone unemployment, a confirmation of the final European PMI plunge including the second largest monthly decline on record in UK manufacturing, and various soundbites from Syriza's Tsipras, have pushed the EUR to fresh two year lows, Spanish CDS to new all time wides German 2 Year bonds joining Switzerland in negative terriroty, and finally, Bloomberg, as noted earlier, to be "testing" a placeholder for a post-Euro Drachma.  As BBG summarizes: "European markets fall, led by consumer & tech stocks with the German market underperforming. The euro falls against the dollar and German 2-yr yields drop into negative territory. Chinese manufacturing PMI data below expectations, though above the 50 level; European manufacturing PMI in line with expectations, below 50. Euro-zone unemployment met expectations and seems likely Irish voters endorsed the EU fiscal treaty. Commodities fall, led by oil & natural gas. U.S. nonfarm payrolls, unemployment data due later." In summary - all data today fits with Raoul Pal's less than optimistic presentation from yesterday.





Today’s Items:

First…
Money Flies Out of Spain
http://www.reuters.com
Like squirrels hiding their nuts, Spaniards are taking their money out of Spanish banks at an accelerating rate. In the last month alone, over $82 billion dollars worth has “vaporized” out of the region.  Get ready for Capital controls, bank holidays, and other measures to stem the tide of withdrawals.

Next…
Why Switzerland is the New China
http://ftalphaville.ft.com
One would have thought that the Swiss were more sensible; however, they have made it abundantly clear that they will defend the 1.20 floor against the euro no matter what.  Officials in Switzerland are thinking about capital controls and negative interest rates to achieve this.  Of course, all this may be bluster to allow politicians to buy time to secure their own assets before it falls apart.

Next…
Bond Yields Continue to Hit Record Lows
http://www.cnbc.com
Investors, seeing the crisis of the euro, believe that U.S. Treasuries are a refuge. To that end, the demand has allowed the 10 year Treasury yield to fall below 1.58 percent. This, despite that U.S. jobless claims rising 383,000 in May. It will not be long before these suckers err… investors find out that they went from the frying pan directly into the fire with their wealth.

Next…
JPMorgan to Spin Out ‘Special Investments’
http://www.cnbc.com
JP Morgan is spinning out the “Special Investments group” as executives cover-up err… clean up the division that caused multi-billion dollar trading loss.  This group will focus on basic asset-liability management.  Asset-liability?  You mean, like the silver in the SLV that does not exist?

Next…
Banks Pressured to Buy Government Debt
http://www.cnbc.com
You just can’t make this stuff up folks… US and European regulators are essentially forcing banks to buy up their own government’s debt. So, when governments are unable to make the bond payments, or force haircuts for lenders on those bonds, the banks will go under.

Next…
People Will Be Shocked at the Chaos Heading Our Way
http://kingworldnews.com
John Embry believes that many people are becoming aware that Europe is imploding and there are no solutions.  What is going on right now is a rush to the supposed safe havens like US Treasuries.  With that said, it will not be long before more massive quantitative easing takes place in the U.S. With the manipulation and rush into paper assets, gold and silver are at all time lows; thus, before the sling-shot upside occurs, make preparations and keep stacking.

Next…
Obama In Serious Trouble
http://theulstermanreport.com
Even though this insider claims he was not religious, he is now praying everyday for himself and the country because of Obama.  In fact, this insider states that Obama is far worse than his critics believe and that he is a dangerous person.  He claims that Obama takes great pleasure in drones killing people and that hes is a lazy slob of a president.  Of course, Romney – being the flip side of Obama, is most likely just as bad. In short, the country is in the crapper and the paper is running low.

Finally, Please prepare now for the escalating economic and social unrest. Good Day







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