AIG's Benmosche, Speaking From His Seaside Villa, Says World Will Need To Retire At 80
The
other government-sponsored Ben-with-a-beard was in contemplative mood
as the CEO of AIG relaxed at his Croatian seaside villa in a recent
Bloomberg TV interview. Benmosche stated that "Retirement ages
will have to move to 70, 80 years old" as that "would make pensions,
medical services more affordable... taking the burden off of the youth."
Opining on Greece (well the Greek people really): "they have to see
that there is no easy way out of this" and the government must get them
to work longer (Greek life expectancy is 81.3 years so there's plenty of hours left for retirement).
Towing his corporate over-lord status quo line, he notes that Greece
abandoning the euro could be a disaster for the country but we assume if
only they would work 23 hours-a-day for 81 years at a 95% tax rate then
TROIKA will be more than happy to use them as a rotating receptacle for
European bank holdings.
Record Number Of US Households On Foodstamps
Last
month, when the USDA released the latest foodstamps numbers for the
month of February, there was some hope that following a third month of
declines, we may just have seen the peak of US foodstamp usage and going forward we would only see the number decline. Sadly, the latest numbers refutes this: in March a total of 46,405,204 persons were at or below poverty level and thus eligible for foodstamps,
a 79K increase in the month. Yet while many individuals have learned
to game the system, and this numbers at the peak may fluctuate, when it
comes to the far more comprehensive and difficult to fudge "households on foodstamps" number, there was no confusion: at 22,257,647, the number of US households receiving the "SNAP treatment"
rose to an all time high, even as the benefit per household dropped to
the second lowest ever. At least all these impoverished believers in
hope and change have FaceBook IPO profits to look forward to. Oh wait.
The
other government-sponsored Ben-with-a-beard was in contemplative mood
as the CEO of AIG relaxed at his Croatian seaside villa in a recent
Bloomberg TV interview. Benmosche stated that "Retirement ages
will have to move to 70, 80 years old" as that "would make pensions,
medical services more affordable... taking the burden off of the youth."
Opining on Greece (well the Greek people really): "they have to see
that there is no easy way out of this" and the government must get them
to work longer (Greek life expectancy is 81.3 years so there's plenty of hours left for retirement).
Towing his corporate over-lord status quo line, he notes that Greece
abandoning the euro could be a disaster for the country but we assume if
only they would work 23 hours-a-day for 81 years at a 95% tax rate then
TROIKA will be more than happy to use them as a rotating receptacle for
European bank holdings.Record Number Of US Households On Foodstamps
Last
month, when the USDA released the latest foodstamps numbers for the
month of February, there was some hope that following a third month of
declines, we may just have seen the peak of US foodstamp usage and going forward we would only see the number decline. Sadly, the latest numbers refutes this: in March a total of 46,405,204 persons were at or below poverty level and thus eligible for foodstamps,
a 79K increase in the month. Yet while many individuals have learned
to game the system, and this numbers at the peak may fluctuate, when it
comes to the far more comprehensive and difficult to fudge "households on foodstamps" number, there was no confusion: at 22,257,647, the number of US households receiving the "SNAP treatment"
rose to an all time high, even as the benefit per household dropped to
the second lowest ever. At least all these impoverished believers in
hope and change have FaceBook IPO profits to look forward to. Oh wait.
Gold Wins As Financials And USD Deteriorate
With
Europe's credit traders on vacation, volumes overall were muted today
in Europe but average in the US. The lack of discipline that normally
occurs when the credit boys leave the room helped lift sovereign credit
in Europe and implicitly US equity futures (ES) into the open today,
which marked the top for the day (back in the green after an ugly
Sunday night) as dismal macro data dragged debt and and equity markets
back down to overnight lows. Credit and equity moved in sync in general
but across broad risk-assets, correlations were loose at best as Gold was very stable holding gains from Friday
while Silver exhibited its high beta ebullience and Copper and Oil
followed stock's path down and back up. Treasuries leaked higher in
yield with a steepening in the curve (though 10Y and 30Y outperformed 7Y
as the Twist pivot maturity seemed most active). EUR strength was
sustained from early morning in Europe with JPY weakness providing some
support for stocks but it seemed both VWAP and the 200DMA were the key
levels today and despite two stop-runs in the afternoon, we
flushed down at the last minute (off near day's highs - thanks to
Egan-Jones' UK downgrade news) to close red for ES (2nd day in a row
below 200DMA). Financials (which are close to red for the year
and about to cross below Healthcare and Staples) did not participate in
the swings as much with JPM and MS worst today -3% (with the latter now 25% lower than the March 2009 market trough levels)
and the other TBTFs around -1.9%. VIX oscillated rather like ES today -
as usual but popped back above 26% to close marginally lower on the
day. While correlations did drift today, stocks remain a little too full
of hope still against overall risk markets but with UK closed again
tomorrow, we may have to wait for Wednesday to see how Europe (and
implicitly the rest of the world) feels.
With
Europe's credit traders on vacation, volumes overall were muted today
in Europe but average in the US. The lack of discipline that normally
occurs when the credit boys leave the room helped lift sovereign credit
in Europe and implicitly US equity futures (ES) into the open today,
which marked the top for the day (back in the green after an ugly
Sunday night) as dismal macro data dragged debt and and equity markets
back down to overnight lows. Credit and equity moved in sync in general
but across broad risk-assets, correlations were loose at best as Gold was very stable holding gains from Friday
while Silver exhibited its high beta ebullience and Copper and Oil
followed stock's path down and back up. Treasuries leaked higher in
yield with a steepening in the curve (though 10Y and 30Y outperformed 7Y
as the Twist pivot maturity seemed most active). EUR strength was
sustained from early morning in Europe with JPY weakness providing some
support for stocks but it seemed both VWAP and the 200DMA were the key
levels today and despite two stop-runs in the afternoon, we
flushed down at the last minute (off near day's highs - thanks to
Egan-Jones' UK downgrade news) to close red for ES (2nd day in a row
below 200DMA). Financials (which are close to red for the year
and about to cross below Healthcare and Staples) did not participate in
the swings as much with JPM and MS worst today -3% (with the latter now 25% lower than the March 2009 market trough levels)
and the other TBTFs around -1.9%. VIX oscillated rather like ES today -
as usual but popped back above 26% to close marginally lower on the
day. While correlations did drift today, stocks remain a little too full
of hope still against overall risk markets but with UK closed again
tomorrow, we may have to wait for Wednesday to see how Europe (and
implicitly the rest of the world) feels.Morgan Stanley Has Lowest Close Since December 2008, Down 40% From Jim Cramer's "Dirt Cheap" Level
Little to be said here: everyone's favorite proxy of all that is broken with Europe, and now the retail investor, Margin Stanley just closed at the lowest price since December 2008. The move lower continues as Zero Hedge warned back in September of 2011. Compare this to Jim Cramer's February 2 pronouncement that Morgan Stanley is a "dirt cheap stock"... at $19.66!? The 40% prolapse in the four months since probably make it dirtest cheapest?Egan Jones Downgrades The UK From AA To AA-
When one is expected to go down for missing a comma in their NRSRO application, one at least should go down swinging. Sure enough, Egan-Jones, the only rating agency with any credibility left, is at it again, this time cutting the big momma itself - the UK - from AA to AA-.SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Quiet Day Despite Early Volatility
The Hoarding Continues: China Purchases A Record 100 Tons Of Gold In April From Hong Kong
A month ago we were delighted to counterpoint Charlie Munger's prior
remarks about the level of "civilization" of a given consumer based on
their sentiment vis-a-vis gold, by demonstrating that Chinese purchases
of gold from Hong Kong rose to a record.
To wit: "Imports from Hong Kong were 135,529 kilograms (135.53 metric
tons) between January and March, from 19,729 kilograms in the
year-earlier period, according to data from the Census and Statistics
Department of the Hong Kong government. Shipments in March rose 59
percent from February, yesterday's data showed." We have just gotten the
April update, and, lo and behold, the country which is now the biggest
buyer of gold, having surpassed India, just set a new record: "Gold imports by mainland China from Hong Kong climbed 65 percent to a record in April, advancing for a third straight month as investors sought a hedge against financial-market turmoil and an economic slowdown. Shipments totaled 103,644.5 kilograms (103.6 metric tons) in the month from 62,913 kilograms in March,
according to export data from the Census and Statistics Department of
the Hong Kong government today. In the first four months, imports were
239,174 kilograms from 27,114 kilograms a year earlier, according to
Bloomberg calculations. China doesn’t publish such figures." In other
words: in the first four months of 2012 Chinese purchases have increased by an unprecedented 782% over 2011.
IrrAUSional Exuberance
While
Australian bank credit spreads are rising dramatically in the last few
months and the ASX 200 index has dropped significantly (though remains
27% above its 2009 lows), nowhere is the levered bet on China's
ongoing dominance and growth writ larger than in the massive number
associated with Australian Miners' Capex in the last few years. As Sean
Corrigan of Diapason Commodities notes, the 1017% (or 39.5%
annualized) rise in the absolute spend over the last 7 years clearly
went exponentially ponzi-like in the last few years as it did compared
to Manufacturing and Total CapEx. While equities and credit
have fallen, it seems the 'expected' cut in spending from slowing China
demand has yet to hit CapEx and that means troubled for all those
levered bag-holders.
A Central Bank Running Suicide? SNB Prints At Pace Not Seen Since EUR/CHF Parity In August 2011
The most recent money supply data from the Swiss National Bank (SNB) has shown increases of huge amounts. As compared with its loss of 19 bln. francs in 2010
(3% percent of the Swiss GDP), the central bank printed tremendous 17.3
bln. in the week ending in June 1st and 13 bln. in the one ending in
May 25th. These numbers were not seen since August 2011 when the SNB
increased money supply by 50 bln and 40 bln per week buying the EUR/CHF
at rates between 1.00 and 1.13. Now, however they are buying at 1.20
and are risking extreme losses, especially because many other central
banks are dumping euros.
I arrived in Chantilly, Virginia on Saturday June 2 around 9:45 am.
After hearing so many reports of intense enforcement of
jaywalking/traffic laws in the area near the Westfield Marriott, and
because the only “safe” parking area was so far away, we were forced to
make the trek of about a mile to a mile and a half from our lot to the
main entrance of the hotel.The actual “main” entrance for ordinary purposes, which leads to the Marriott parking lot, was completely sealed off by the police, complete with traffic cones, patrol cars, and police tape. No vehicles were coming through this entrance and there were also no protesters at this entrance at the time we passed by. Thus, we moved on to the “main” entrance where Bilderberg attendees had been arriving throughout the weekend and where all the protesters had gathered. Thankfully, after some discussion, some did eventually make their way to the first entrance, equipped with cameras and recorders in case there were attendees who planned to arrive through this gate in addition to the one they had been using previously.
Read More @ Activist Post
from RussiaToday:
by “Prepared Pastor”, SHTFPlan:
It had been several years since I left my positions on the city fire
department and county HAZMAT team to move to the mountain state to teach
wilderness survival and firearms, but I still missed being an emergency
responder. Especially after moving to town when I got married and
started a family. When a friend asked me to join him at a CERT training
session, all I knew was that it was an acronym for Community Emergency
Response Team.
- Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are trained and instructed to identify and report ‘suspicious behavior’ to the FBI and other authorities.
- CERT volunteers are being actively used in covert surveillance activities.
- CERT volunteers are organized to work with local and federal law enforcement agencies.
- CERT volunteers may be forced into service in the event of a national emergency.
Read More @ SHTFPlan.com
It had been several years since I left my positions on the city fire
department and county HAZMAT team to move to the mountain state to teach
wilderness survival and firearms, but I still missed being an emergency
responder. Especially after moving to town when I got married and
started a family. When a friend asked me to join him at a CERT training
session, all I knew was that it was an acronym for Community Emergency
Response Team. - Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) are trained and instructed to identify and report ‘suspicious behavior’ to the FBI and other authorities.
- CERT volunteers are being actively used in covert surveillance activities.
- CERT volunteers are organized to work with local and federal law enforcement agencies.
- CERT volunteers may be forced into service in the event of a national emergency.
Read More @ SHTFPlan.com
by David Schectman, MilesFranklin.com:
Friday could be the
turning point for gold this year. Gold was up a monster 4.05% with a
$63 move. Gold is usually capped at 1% and a 2% day is rare, so 4.50%
is really BIG – one of the biggest one day gains in history.
What happened? The situation in Europe is frightening and getting worse by the day. The employment numbers were so dreadful that there was no way to give them a positive spin. But until Friday, these types of negative stories had no positive affect on the price of gold. In fact, the MSM was routinely reporting that gold had lost its “safe haven” status. But then, in one day, it suddenly turned around and gold became the “safe haven” place to move money. Ya can’t have it both ways – either it is a “safe haven” or it isn’t. Well, what do you expect from the lame brains in the MSM?!
Ted Butler has an answer. He says it’s all about manipulation on the COMEX. Just as the Cartel (JPM) can orchestrate the price DOWN, they can also orchestrate it UP. Manipulation is not just “down,” it occurs when one or two entities move the market in the direction that they desire. It wasn’t hard to do – prices had been pushed so low that they were ready to bust out. And co-incidentally, Jim Sinclair predicted that gold would break out in June, and so it is.
Read more @ MilesFranklin.com
BTFD...Keep Stacking...
Will
America be next? Here at the Daily Bell we believe the West is facing
payback time for the forced, non-democratic and now failing EU experiment as well as the central banking cartel inspired fiat money and sovereign debt collapse now wrecking economies and impoverishing the citizens of most nations.
Daily Bell Chief Editor Anthony Wile: “I encourage all Daily Bell readers interested in gaining a better understanding about the geopolitical and monetary factors influencing today’s major financial trends to attend FreedomFest 2012. The lineup of speakers is outstanding and valuable information will doubtless be offered through this important three-day gathering.”
The solution to preserving your wealth, sovereignty and liberty can be found at FreedomFest this July. For more info, visit www.freedomfest.com. Please watch this brief video to learn more:
Read More @ TheDailyBell.com
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Friday could be the
turning point for gold this year. Gold was up a monster 4.05% with a
$63 move. Gold is usually capped at 1% and a 2% day is rare, so 4.50%
is really BIG – one of the biggest one day gains in history.What happened? The situation in Europe is frightening and getting worse by the day. The employment numbers were so dreadful that there was no way to give them a positive spin. But until Friday, these types of negative stories had no positive affect on the price of gold. In fact, the MSM was routinely reporting that gold had lost its “safe haven” status. But then, in one day, it suddenly turned around and gold became the “safe haven” place to move money. Ya can’t have it both ways – either it is a “safe haven” or it isn’t. Well, what do you expect from the lame brains in the MSM?!
Ted Butler has an answer. He says it’s all about manipulation on the COMEX. Just as the Cartel (JPM) can orchestrate the price DOWN, they can also orchestrate it UP. Manipulation is not just “down,” it occurs when one or two entities move the market in the direction that they desire. It wasn’t hard to do – prices had been pushed so low that they were ready to bust out. And co-incidentally, Jim Sinclair predicted that gold would break out in June, and so it is.
Read more @ MilesFranklin.com
BTFD...Keep Stacking...
from Silver Doctors:
Quotes from the MOPE piece bashing gold:
Gold defies efforts to calculate its worth—or even to describe how it behaves as an investment. That means there isn’t a clear reason to invest in it.
If you must own some gold to sleep better, stick with a multivitamin approach: A little bit won’t hurt. A lot can prove toxic.
Gold lost money for 20 years
Treasury bonds are the real safe haven
Gold is prone to long booms and busts. Before its latest dip, it multiplied five times in value over a decade, mocking stocks and other investments. Before that, it lost money for 20 years.
Click here to be fully indoctrinated on the crapiness of gold by the WSJ:
Read More @ SilverDoctors.com
Quotes from the MOPE piece bashing gold:Gold defies efforts to calculate its worth—or even to describe how it behaves as an investment. That means there isn’t a clear reason to invest in it.
If you must own some gold to sleep better, stick with a multivitamin approach: A little bit won’t hurt. A lot can prove toxic.
Gold lost money for 20 years
Treasury bonds are the real safe haven
Gold is prone to long booms and busts. Before its latest dip, it multiplied five times in value over a decade, mocking stocks and other investments. Before that, it lost money for 20 years.
Click here to be fully indoctrinated on the crapiness of gold by the WSJ:
Read More @ SilverDoctors.com
by Bix Weir, Road to Roota:
Very few things shock me these days in our rigged markets but this one is a stunning revelation that was openly discussed on CNBC this morning. Gary Kamenski of CNBC comments on the strange spike of Facebook stock last week and blames it on James Gorman of Morgan Stanley for “Paining the Tape” which he claims is “perfectly legal”.
So the lead Facebook underwriter was giving an interview on CNBC telling everyone to watch the intraday trading and then Morgan Stanley jacks up the price of Facebook in the last few trading minutes and for some reason this commentator thinks it’s “perfectly legal”!
IT’S NOT LEGAL AT ALL! As a matter of fact…IT’S PERFECTLY ILLEGAL to manipulate the price right before the close or at ANYTIME!!
A few minutes later Komenski came back on to clarify what he said by saying…(paraphrased)”Just to be clear ‘Painting the Tape’ is a way of moving the price for outside reasons and is perfectly legal”!
WE ARE LIVING IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE MY FRIENDS!
Read More @ Road to Roota
Very few things shock me these days in our rigged markets but this one is a stunning revelation that was openly discussed on CNBC this morning. Gary Kamenski of CNBC comments on the strange spike of Facebook stock last week and blames it on James Gorman of Morgan Stanley for “Paining the Tape” which he claims is “perfectly legal”.
So the lead Facebook underwriter was giving an interview on CNBC telling everyone to watch the intraday trading and then Morgan Stanley jacks up the price of Facebook in the last few trading minutes and for some reason this commentator thinks it’s “perfectly legal”!
IT’S NOT LEGAL AT ALL! As a matter of fact…IT’S PERFECTLY ILLEGAL to manipulate the price right before the close or at ANYTIME!!
A few minutes later Komenski came back on to clarify what he said by saying…(paraphrased)”Just to be clear ‘Painting the Tape’ is a way of moving the price for outside reasons and is perfectly legal”!
WE ARE LIVING IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE MY FRIENDS!
Read More @ Road to Roota
by Matt Quigley, SilverBearCafe.com:
Here is your guide to these and other events likely to move markets in the days ahead.
North America
In the wake of Friday’s disappointing US jobs report – the weakest in a year – investors’ calls for additional stimulus measures from the Federal Reserve have reached a fevered pitch.
As a result, markets will be listening even more attentively than usual to central bankers in the week ahead. And they will have plenty of opportunities to do so.
Read More @ SilverBearCafe.com
Here is your guide to these and other events likely to move markets in the days ahead.North America
In the wake of Friday’s disappointing US jobs report – the weakest in a year – investors’ calls for additional stimulus measures from the Federal Reserve have reached a fevered pitch.
As a result, markets will be listening even more attentively than usual to central bankers in the week ahead. And they will have plenty of opportunities to do so.
Read More @ SilverBearCafe.com
from KingWorldNews:
On the heels of the spectacular rally in gold on Friday, and with
global markets continuing to struggle, today King World News interviewed
acclaimed money manager Stephen Leeb, Chairman & Chief Investment
Officer of Leeb Capital Management. Leeb told KWN that Chinese gold
imports spiked to unbelievable record levels. But first, here is what
Leeb had to say about the situation in Europe: “As George Soros
said this weekend, ‘It’s not just the eurozone that’s at stake, it may
be the whole EU that’s at stake. I think the Greeks will decide to stay
with the euro. It’s dawning on them that the consequences of
withdrawing will be dire, at least for the near-term.
The big question overhanging Europe is Germany. I think Germany is getting the message that if everything fails but Germany, Germany fails too and they fail in spades. You are getting to the point where you are definitely going to see some serious added liquidity in the eurozone.
It’s not going to be six months from now. It’s going to be in the short-term. That’s a very big deal….”
Leeb continues @ KingWorldNews.com
On the heels of the spectacular rally in gold on Friday, and with
global markets continuing to struggle, today King World News interviewed
acclaimed money manager Stephen Leeb, Chairman & Chief Investment
Officer of Leeb Capital Management. Leeb told KWN that Chinese gold
imports spiked to unbelievable record levels. But first, here is what
Leeb had to say about the situation in Europe: “As George Soros
said this weekend, ‘It’s not just the eurozone that’s at stake, it may
be the whole EU that’s at stake. I think the Greeks will decide to stay
with the euro. It’s dawning on them that the consequences of
withdrawing will be dire, at least for the near-term.The big question overhanging Europe is Germany. I think Germany is getting the message that if everything fails but Germany, Germany fails too and they fail in spades. You are getting to the point where you are definitely going to see some serious added liquidity in the eurozone.
It’s not going to be six months from now. It’s going to be in the short-term. That’s a very big deal….”
Leeb continues @ KingWorldNews.com
by Brendan Conway, Barrons:
More quantitative easing by the Federal Reserve:
It may be a matter of a few conference calls. Certainly gold’s price
reflects that view this morning after a rough payroll report that has
now erased what was left of the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s YTD gain. Precious metals are, for the moment, back.
Gold futures are among the few things leaping, gaining 3.2% in early Friday trading. The SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) is jumping similarly, as is the iShares Gold Trust (IAU). The effect is spreading to mining stocks as the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) rises 5.2% and the Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ) adds 5.9%. Silver is participating, driving the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) up 2.4%.
Read More @ barrons.com
More quantitative easing by the Federal Reserve:
It may be a matter of a few conference calls. Certainly gold’s price
reflects that view this morning after a rough payroll report that has
now erased what was left of the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s YTD gain. Precious metals are, for the moment, back.Gold futures are among the few things leaping, gaining 3.2% in early Friday trading. The SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) is jumping similarly, as is the iShares Gold Trust (IAU). The effect is spreading to mining stocks as the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) rises 5.2% and the Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ) adds 5.9%. Silver is participating, driving the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) up 2.4%.
Read More @ barrons.com
from laroucheyouth:
LaRouchePAC June 4th, 2012 • Strategic Overview As the rate of collapse outpaces the rate of hyper-inflationary bailout, the British monetary system is moving closer and closer to war. Our Alternative to destroy this failed monetary system once and for all with Glass-Steagall must be implemented immediately.
LaRouchePAC June 4th, 2012 • Strategic Overview As the rate of collapse outpaces the rate of hyper-inflationary bailout, the British monetary system is moving closer and closer to war. Our Alternative to destroy this failed monetary system once and for all with Glass-Steagall must be implemented immediately.
America Lost: Two Ron Paul Chairman Assaulted by Shreveport Police at LAGOP State Convention
by Ron Holland,The Daily Bell:
Will
America be next? Here at the Daily Bell we believe the West is facing
payback time for the forced, non-democratic and now failing EU experiment as well as the central banking cartel inspired fiat money and sovereign debt collapse now wrecking economies and impoverishing the citizens of most nations.Daily Bell Chief Editor Anthony Wile: “I encourage all Daily Bell readers interested in gaining a better understanding about the geopolitical and monetary factors influencing today’s major financial trends to attend FreedomFest 2012. The lineup of speakers is outstanding and valuable information will doubtless be offered through this important three-day gathering.”
The solution to preserving your wealth, sovereignty and liberty can be found at FreedomFest this July. For more info, visit www.freedomfest.com. Please watch this brief video to learn more:
Read More @ TheDailyBell.com
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