Fed's Beige Book Is Out

Everyone will be scouring for apocalyptic suggestions (need.moar.Kew - EEE) in the following...

• FED SAYS `HIRING WAS STEADY OR SHOWED A MODEST INCREASE'
• FED SAYS ECONOMY EXPANDED AT `MODERATE PACE' LAST MONTH
• FED SAYS `AUTOMOBILE SALES GENERALLY REMAINED STRONG'
• FED: `CONTACTS WERE SLIGHTLY MORE GUARDED IN THEIR OPTIMISM'
• FED SAYS `INFLATION REMAINED MODEST ACROSS DISTRICTS'
• FED SAYS MANUFACTURING EXPANDED, CONSUMER SPENDING WAS STEADY
• FED ECONOMIC SURVEY COVERS PERIOD FROM LATE APRIL UNTIL MAY 25
• FED SAYS DEMAND WAS STRONGEST IN AUTO AND STEEL MANUFACTURING

...And won't find them. So: just what basis will the Fed have to do more QE again? Paging Jon Hilsenrath: Jon? Jon?

Who Is Right - Gold Or Stocks?

From early October of last year (Grand Plan and Global CB intervention) until the start of the LTRO program in Europe, Gold and Stocks (and Treasuries and the USD) all traded in sync with one another. Since the LTRO program, the equity market has generally been on its own in terms of belief. While growth hope, Europe's recovery, and the Bernanke Put (as well as a short-squeeze of epic proportions) were at play, it seems to us that the Fed's Twist program has been ignored by the money-printing crowd (since Twist was sterilized and did not expand the monetary base (excess reserves) - which gold reacts to; but did provide flow - helping stocks - as the Fed's DV01 increased; implicitly devaluing the currency even though Fed's efforts to dissuade have worked) while the ECB's LTRO provided a liquidity overhang that at-first-glance removed one short-term structural risk from US markets (the Europe contagion). Since we made clear that LTRO is in fact an encumbrance and not 'clean' debt monetization (which fits with gold not moving as much), equity markets in Europe have retraced all of those gains - leaving US still elevated. The last few days, gold and stocks have surged together as hope for LTRO3 (seemingly gone now) and Fed QE3/4 (not sterilized; with ES -7.75% from its highs?) has become imminent. However, Gold and stocks remain very far apart in the medium-term and Rick Bensignor sees trendline support and DeMark TD Setups providing an excellent risk-reward for a Short Stocks, Long Gold trade from here.

 

EU Expects Spanish Bank Bailout Loans To Be Double The €40 Bn Previously Disclosed

While the Reuters story, which we noted earlier, and which speculated that a no-strings attached bailout of Spanish banks may be coming courtesy of a German stealth funding of the nearly empty Spanish bank bailout fund, has been making the rounds over and over, the latest incarnation of the underlying narrative, brought to us courtesy of the FT, has a novel twist: "EU officials are also debating the size of the loans needed. Senior Spanish banking executives have put the figure at about €40bn, but EU officials have been looking at plans that are at least double that, according to people briefed on the discussions." In other words, just as we speculated, Goldman's big picture estimate of Spanish bank funding needs was woefully inadequate, and once the dirty truth is uncovered, it will become apparent that losses, which at this point are nothing more than capital shortfalls from deposit runs, are far, far greater than anyone speculated. It also means that the disconnect between the European reality, and what the media and politicians are spoonfeeding the gullible public, has hit unprecedented levels. Finally, once Germans once again realize they have been lied to, what happens then: will they simply fork over the cash as rumored, or will they finally say enough? According to this lead article in German Welt, the answer is not looking too good for the broken European monetary experiment.

A Central Banker Utters The Truth

from Testosterone Pit.com:
On July 1, the Republic of Cyprus, a tiny country on a divided Mediterranean island, will rotate into the Presidency of the Council of the European Union—one of those bitter European ironies because Cyprus will likely have to be bailed out, according to Central Bank governor Panicos Demetriades. It adopted the euro in 2008 and is already in a heap of trouble. Last year’s loan from Russia has kept it afloat, but now it’s bailout and haircut time. For the very peculiar morass Cyprus is mired in, read…. Another Eurozone Country Bites the Dust.
And reality is now even staining the Teflon economy of Germany with a daily litany of suddenly awful data points:
New vehicle registrations, which had been holding up well, fell in May by 4.8% compared to prior year. Commercial vehicles spiraled down by 13%, and heavy trucks crashed by 32%.
Read More @ TestosteronePit.com

If Greeks Exit On Their Own, Expect Hyperinflation Next: Axel Merk

by Jim Puplava, Financial Sense:
Jim welcomes back Axel Merk this week, Founder of Merk Investments LLC. Axel sees major problems with inflation if Greece leaves the Euro on its own, but not so bad with EU assistance. Axel doesn’t see the formation of a Eurobond market yet, but some form of deposit insurance may be next. Axel believes the problems in Europe stem from a general lack of leadership.
Click Here to Listen to the Audio
Read More @ Financial Sense.com

Hot-Tip From Convicted Ponzi Master: "Join My Ponzi: It Is Better Than The Fed's"

What's the difference between today's global finance system and a Ponzi scheme? This is the question that a 56-year-old veteran Russian financial scammer has been asking his victims. As Bloomberg points out, chillingly, he almost has a point. Sergei Mavrodi is one of the most infamous names in Russia's recent history. Back in February 1994, amid the turmoil of the country's transition to a market economy, the mathematician organized a Ponzi scheme called MMM. Now he's back with an even more audacious endeavor: the honest scam. Last year, he announced the new project, MMM-2011, by stating boldly that it would be another Ponzi scheme. Depositors would be paid solely from funds invested by other depositors. There would be no attempt to generate income in any other way. This, he said, was perfectly all right, and no different than the way some of the largest institutions in global finance operated, from the Russian pension fund to the U.S. Federal Reserve. Perhaps most notably, Bloomberg reports his perspective on "What is money?" he wrote. "Nothing! Nihil. A phantom. … It is backed by nothing at all and printed by the masters in any quantity, at will."

More Young Americans Out of High School Are Also Out of Work

Eric De Groot at Eric De Groot - 1 minute ago

Whether it be the Arab spring or the collapse of the American dream, the driving force of social and political change will be the lack of opportunity for both the uneducated and educated. Headline: More Young Americans Out of High School Are Also Out of Work For this generation of young people, the future looks bleak. Only one in six is working full time. Three out of five live with their... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]


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Brainwashing Starts With This Two-Letter Word

The big news out of New York City these days is Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s proposed ban on the sale of soda drinks over 16-ounces (about 1/2 liter) at restaurants, movie theaters, sports stadia, street carts, fast food chains, etc. Bloomberg stressed that we have a responsibility to combat obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, and that the government must consequently regulate what people can/cannot put in their bodies. Michelle Obama even came down to applaud the idea.“Excuse me,” I asked, “but who exactly is ‘we’…? I certainly didn’t come into this world born with a burden prevent obesity. And I’m pretty sure nobody else signed up for it either.” ‘We’ is one of the most dangerous words in the English language, particularly when bandied about in Western representative democracy. It’s a term often used when a politician wants to thrust a burden or obligation onto everyone else’s shoulders, but without being too direct about it... Such policies, however, fall on a very slippery slope. When government begins regulating X, the regulation of Y and Z will follow by extension. This is how frogs are brought to a boil– slowly, deliberately, gradually, and grounded in good intentions. The real question is whether you want to be trapped in the same pot as everyone else.

The Achilles’ Heel: Silver & Gold React to Worldwide Economic Chaos, Like Real Money

“Bring back real money, silver and gold!” – Max Keiser

GOLD:

SILVER: The Achilles’ Heel

The 18 reasons to buy senior gold mining companies: Dr John Wolstencroft talks to Dominic Frisby

from Gold Money News:

Private investor Dr John Wolstencroft and the GoldMoney Foundation’s Dominic Frisby talk about investing in senior gold mining companies. Wolstencroft presents his 18 thoughts on why the big gold mining companies currently offer a very interesting investment opportunity.
Wolstencroft states that we are very lucky to see the major gold miners at valuation levels not seen for a long time. He emphasises that those valuations can be made without the shaky gold reserve assumptions that have been used in the past to promote these stock when they were not showing great profits. But now – on the basis of actual P/E ratios, cash flow or dividend yields – many of these companies are now cheap.

Health freedom victory: Organic farmers file appeal vs. Monsanto

by Ethan A. Huff, Natural News:
The freedom to grow uncontaminated, non-genetically-modified (non-GMO) food in America today is under continual threat by corporate agriculture and biotechnology companies whose unscrupulous business models include suing farmers whose crops become inadvertently contaminated with patented, GMO technologies. But a band of organic farmers and food freedom advocates is moving forward, despite opposition, with a lawsuit of their own that seeks permanent, injunctive protection against this predatory practice that is driving many farmers out of business.
As we reported last year (http://www.naturalnews.com/031922_Monsanto_lawsuit.html), a group of family farmers, seed companies, organic advocacy organizations, and health freedom activists decided to file a preemptive lawsuit against Monsanto seeking protection for farmers against potential lawsuits involving GMO contamination of their crops. The lawsuit seeks no monetary compensation, and is purely focused on establishing reasonable protections for farmers against corporate bullies that would seek to drive them out of business using supposed patent violations as their weapon of choice.
Read More @ NaturalNews.com

Wisdom of Regulators? … Systemic Risk Group Formed to Supervise Wall Street

from The Daily Bell:
Group Forms to Urge Strict Oversight of Wall Street … Efforts to increase and improve regulation of Wall Street have bogged down, according to Sheila C. Bair, the former chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. On Wednesday, she will announce a new group, the Systemic Risk Council, that will monitor and encourage regulatory reform … The organization is being formed by the Pew Charitable Trusts, where Ms. Bair now works, and the CFA Institute, an organization of financial analysts. – New York Times

Dominant Social Theme: Since Wall Street can’t run itself we’ll provide the leadership.

Free-Market Analysis: So a new group will do what Wall Street won’t – bring sanity to finance! Or will it …
Read More @ TheDailyBell.com

Virginia governor backs domestic spy drones for police use

by J. D. Heyes, Natural News:
Call it a judicious use of modern technology if you want to, but the fact is the increasing use of military-style drones for domestic surveillance is becoming alarming, and it’s an issue that, sooner or later, either Congress or the courts are going to have to deal with as more Americans become concerned about their privacy.
Drones are now being endorsed in some of the highest offices, the latest to include the governor of Virginia. Republican Bob McDonnell, a former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, not only backs the use of drones by police, he went further to say deploying them to monitor citizens of the Commonwealth is “the right thing to do.”
Granted, it’s hard to tell the two major political parties apart these days, but isn’t the Republican Party supposed to be the party of a smaller, less intrusive government? Not if you’re a McDonnell Republican, apparently.
Read More @ NaturalNews.com

Obama Threatens Veto of NDAA 2013: Too Many Restrictions on His “Exclusive” Authority

by Joe Wolverton II, The New American:
Last week, several major news outlets reported on a Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) released by the White House regarding the Fiscal Year 2013 version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

In the SAP, President Obama lays out 32 reasons why he is likely to veto the newest iteration of the NDAA.

The headlines announcing the President’s promise to reject the NDAA are identical to those published early last December, just a couple of weeks before the President took time off from his Hawaiian vacation to sign the measure into law. Somehow, President Obama was able to set aside his issues with the act and grant himself the power to indefinitely detain Americans without charge or trial.

Read More @ TheNewAmerican.com

Silver Explodes Nearly 5% to $30, Gold Nears $1650

from Silver Doctors:
Gold and silver have exploded higher this morning, with silver up over $1.30 or 4.5% to $29.97- within pennies of the critical $30 level.
Silver has now broken out of its 3 week wedge formation to the upside, a strongly bullish indicating that a triple bottom may well have been placed near $26.75. Silver began its move around 6am EST, about an hour after the London market reopened after a 4 day bank holiday. It then consolidated until 8am EST, and made another sharp move to the upside on the COMEX open.
It will be critical for silver to get above $30 and hold the level through consecutive pit closes. Now that the short term downtrend has been broken to the upside, professionals will be strongly buying into any dips.
Read More @ SilverDoctors.com

Gold bugs defy bear market threat

by Nicholas Larkin and Debarati Roy, MineWeb.com
Some investors are refusing to surrender even after failed Greek elections drove the euro to a two-year low against the dollar and gold slumped as much as 21% in December from the record $1,923.70 set in September.

Gold is stuck in the longest slump in a decade as investors shun bullion for the dollar and bonds, just seven months after Bank of America Corp. said Europe’s debt crisis would send prices to a record $2,000 an ounce.
Billionaire George Soros bought more in the first quarter and hedge-fund manager John Paulson held on to the biggest stake in the SPDR Gold Trust, the largest exchange-traded product backed by bullion, Securities and Exchange Commission filings show. Some investors are refusing to capitulate even after failed elections in Greece drove the euro to a two-year low against the dollar and gold slumped as much as 21 percent in December from the record $1,923.70 set in September.
Read More @ MineWeb.com

Caesar – Gold To Be Viewed As Risk Free Asset In This Chaos

from KingWorldNews:
With investors wondering where global markets are headed next, today King World News interviewed 25 year veteran Caesar Bryan. Gabelli & Company has over $31 billion under management and Caesar Bryan has managed the gold fund since its inception in 1994. Caesar told KWN that he expects central banks to be much more active going forward. Here is what Ceasar had to say about the ongoing crisis: “We are still seeing the effects of too much debt, and the authorities are coming to grips with how to deal with this phenomena. This is going to prove to be a very tough assignment.”
Caesar continues @ KingWorldNews.com

Eyewitnesses: Mitt Romney Attended Bilderberg 2012

Four separate hotel staff report seeing presidential candidate
by Paul Joseph Watson, Infowars:
Four separate eyewitnesses inside the Westfields Marriott hotel in Chantilly Virginia told London Guardian writer Charlie Skelton that Mitt Romney was in attendance at Bilderberg 2012, suggesting the Republican candidate could be the elite’s pick for the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
“Four eyewitnesses on the hotel staff told me Willard Mitt Romney was here at Bilderberg 2012. My four eyewitnesses place him inside. That’s one more than Woodward and Bernstein used. Romney’s office initially refused to confirm or deny his attendance as Bilderberg is “not public”. They later said it was not him,” writes Skelton.

The London Guardian writer adds that the fact Romney’s name did not appear on the official list of attendees is meaningless. Numerous power brokers, including Bill Gates, were photographed arriving at the event yet were not included on the list of participants, as is routinely the case.

With speculation already raging that Romney’s potential VP – Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels – was already being groomed by Bilderberg cronies, Romney’s appearance at the secretive confab of global power brokers suggests that he is being favored by the elite, who have seemingly lost faith in Barack Obama.
Read More @ Infowars.com

ECB Rate Cut Talk Lifts Gold

from, Gold Money:
The “flight to safety” in the US dollar and Treasury market has eased somewhat over the last couple of days, amid hints that the European Central Bank could announce an interest rate cut following a policy meeting today. The European Commission is also due to release a 156-page document today detailing dramatic new powers that regulators will have to deal with failing banks. Though such regulation will not take effect until 2014, it is adding to the market’s general impression that politicians are slowly getting a grip on the eurozone situation. But with the Spanish finance minister warning yesterday that Spain’s credit markets are freezing up and that his country is “too big” to be rescued by the EU bailout mechanisms, any such market relief may only be fleeting.
As with Asian and European shares, gold and silver have crept slowly higher in trading this morning, fired on by the prospect of looser ECB monetary policy. The ECB is currently targeting 1%, which is slightly higher than the Bank of England’s 0.5% rate, the Federal Reserve’s 0.15% and the Bank of Japan’s rate, which is close to 0.00%. Ordinarily one would expect easier monetary policy to translate into a weaker currency – meaning in this case that the euro would continue to fall against other currencies if the men in Frankfurt cut rates today.
Read More @ GoldMoney.com

America In Decline: The Soul Crushing Despair Of Lowered Expectations

from The Economic Collapse Blog:
All over America tonight there are people that believe that their lives are over. When you do everything that you know how to do to get a job and you still can’t get one it can be absolutely soul crushing. If you have ever been unemployed for an extended period of time you know exactly what I am talking about. When you have been unemployed for month after month it can be very tempting to totally cut yourself off from society. Those that are kind will look at you with pity and those that are cruel will treat you as though you are a total loser. It doesn’t matter that America is in decline and that our economy is not producing nearly enough jobs for everyone anymore. In our society, one of the primary things that defines our lives is what we do for a living. Just think about it. When you are out in a social situation, what is one of the very first things that people ask? They want to know what you “do”. Well, if you don’t “do” anything, then you are not part of the club. But the worst part of being unemployed for many Americans is the relentless pressure from family and friends. Often they have no idea how hard it is to find a job in this economy – especially if they still have jobs. Sometimes the pressure becomes too great. Sadly, we are seeing unemployment break up a lot of marriages in America today. Things are really hard out there right now. A very large number of highly educated Americans have taken very low paying service jobs in recent years just so that they can have some money coming in even as they “look for something else”. Unfortunately, in many cases that “something else” never materializes. In the past, America was “the land of opportunity” where anything was possible. But today America has become “the land of lowered expectations” and the worst is yet to come.
Read More @ TheEconomicCollpaseBlog.com

Laws restricting nonviolent activity are acts of aggression

by J.G. Vibes, Activist Post
There is this idea in our society that has been bred into us through the media, government schools and culture, where law must line up perfectly with traditions and social convention. If something is frowned upon or taboo, you can rest assured that there is someone out there who thinks that it should be illegal.
When a particular activity or behavior starts to bother people in the kinds of societies that we have today, all too often those people are very quick to suggest that the proper solution to this problem is to throw that person in a cage. That may sound kind of harsh, but that is exactly what you are advocating when you claim that something should be illegal.
Read More @ Activist Post

Jim’s Mailbox

June 6, 2012, at 11:04 am
by Jim Sinclair

Jim,

This Egon Van Greyerz interview certainly speaks to your call for QE to infinity. I’m curious if you share his view of a 40% chance of deflationary implosion?
CIGA Phil

Phillip,

Will you guys ever understand that in currency induced cost push inflation is a currency event and both what you think deflation is business wise occurs along with hyper inflation?

I have explained this at least 1000 times since 2001.

Jim

 

In The News Today

June 5, 2012, at 12:51 pm
by Jim Sinclair
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

The end is not near, it is here and now.

G7 to Hold Emergency Talks on Eurozone crisis, Spain Tops Agenda
G7 is holding the emergency conference call ahead of the EU meeting in late June and is expected to urge for more concrete action to save the single currency region. By Geetha Pillai
June 5, 2012 8:37 AM GMT
Risks from Spain’s banking troubles along with eurozone crisis would be dominating the agenda of an emergency conference call to be held on Tuesday by the financial heads of the Group of Seven industrial nations.
Ministers and central bankers from the seven industrialised nations such as the United States, Canada, Britain, Japan, Germany, France and Italy would be discussing issues such as the eurozone crisis and the state of the Spanish economy at a special conference call.
"We have reached a point where we need to have a common understanding about the problems we are facing," Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi told reporters.
The fate of Spain, in view of its banking crisis, is being closely watched by global markets as there are serious concerns about it following the path of Greece, Ireland and Portugal which are already into bailout territory.
"Markets remain skeptical that the measures taken thus far are sufficient to secure the recovery in Europe and remove the risk that the crisis will deepen," Jay Carney, the White House secretary told reporters.
More…




Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

This is all coming to a head faster than anyone anticipates.

Soros’ three months is madness issued for the purpose of MSM/MOPE.

Spain warns of credit freeze By Aaron Smith and Alfred Souza
June 5, 2012: 10:50 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Spain’s Treasury minister appealed to European leaders for financial support Tuesday, saying the country’s credit markets are seizing up.
The yield on Spain’s 10-year bond has been flirting dangerously close to the 7% mark that smacks of default anxiety. Over the past week, the 10-year yield has been at its highest level since November.
Treasury Minister Cristobal Montoro told Spanish radio station Onda Cero that it is "technically impossible" for Spain to bail itself out. He said that Spain needs to get more money to improve its debt situation to open the bond markets back up so people can invest in the country.
"The risk premium says Spain doesn’t have the market door open," said Montoro. "The risk premium says that as a state we have a problem in accessing markets, when we need to refinance our debt."
Economists estimate that the Spanish government has about €800 billion in outstanding debt.
Meanwhile, the European Stability Mechanism, a bailout fund that comes into effect this summer, will be equipped with only €500 billion.
Spain, the new epicenter of Europe’s woes
Montoro said that Spain wants "to continue being part of the [eurozone] and must bet on the European institutions" to financially support the fiscally troubled Iberian nation.
The extent of Spain’s fiscal troubles were unveiled in May, when the government announced a €19 billion rescue of Bankia, one of Spain’s top lenders.
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

You have to be kidding!




Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

You might laugh but I suggest this carries a real message. As I said to you today, Soros’ statement that Euroland has three months breathing time is fodder for MSM – MOPE. Euroland and the US Federal Reserve will be lucky to get three more weeks. That was the message of last Friday’s market.

The PPT (Plunge Protection Team) was saved by the day of the occurrence, Friday. If it had happened on a Monday there would not have been two days of time out in between. All PPT had to do was to jiggle the Dow and NASDAQ index futures in Europe to open unchanged to better by taking off the short side of the huge index spreads at a profit.

The sign the sage should carry is not The "end is near," the proper sign should say, "the end is here."

Uncollateralized Trillion Euro Perpetual Zero Coupon By Barry Ritholtz – June 5th, 2012, 11:45AM
Michael Belkin is the author of the eponymously named Belkin Report — a highly respected institutional quantititative/technical service that looks at global markets in equities, commodities, currencies and bonds.
His report this week is tongue-in-cheek titled “Where Else Are You Going To Put Your Money?” and begins with this delightful spoof of the Euro bailout being contemplated by the ECB, LTRO, Germany and others and is appropriately named Uncollateralized BWDGTFBCWT Obligation, Series 17.01.
Mike imagines a trillion Euro perpetual zero coupon offered by Goldman Sachs, proceeds of which will be invested in Bailing Wire, Chewing Gum, Toasters, Facebook Shares and Circular Wire Transfers, which if you have to ask then you don’t want to know.
Prospectus below — be sure to read the fine print.
More…





Must See...

Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

This is a visual that deserves your review as it is all you need to know about why now is the end.

Click here to view the infographic…

 

 

Jim’s Mailbox

June 5, 2012, at 12:48 pm
by Jim Sinclair

Dear Eric,

The end is not just near. It is here now!

Jim

Spain Warns Market Access Being Shut, Calls For EU Action On Bank Recap CIGA Eric
The calls for liquidity will be answered soon. Headline: Spain Warns Market Access Being Shut, Calls For EU Action On Bank Recap
By David Roman MADRID–Spain Tuesday urged euro-zone partners to act faster to help support its enfeebled banks, with Budget Minister Cristobal Montoro saying that the government has effectively lost access to capital markets because of steep risk premiums demanded by sovereign bond investors. In making this dramatic admission, Mr. Montoro joined recent calls by the Spanish government for direct aid from European Union institutions for Spanish banks as the government hopes to avoid a full-blown bailout package. The matter has gained urgency after Madrid was forced into a EUR19 billion euro rescue of lender Bankia SA (BKIA.MC) and as the government’s borrowing costs have surged to record highs. Yields on Spanish 10-year bonds were above the 6% mark for the third straight week and at late in Europe, the yield was at 6.26%. By comparison, the yield on the German 10-year bond, considered a haven for investors, was at 1.20%. "What this premium tells us is that the State, and Spain as a whole, has a problem when it comes to accessing markets, when we need to refinance our debt," Mr. Montoro said in a radio interview. "What that premium says is that Spain doesn’t have the market’s door open, as such, the challenge is to open that door and regain the confidence of those markets, our creditors." Speaking later Tuesday in parliament, Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said that the European Union needs to quell doubts on the euro’s project by reinforcing integration and creating a common banking union and euro-zone bonds. Mr. Rajoy said that Spain plans to continue an ambitious reform drive, but EU partners must also do their part to improve the situation. The warning from Madrid is reminiscent of similar alarms over prohibitive borrowing costs sounded by Greece, Portugal and Ireland before entering into bailout talks with such international lenders as the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. It also came as finance chiefs from the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations Tuesday discussed Europe’s financial crisis and potential responses amid concerns that the continent isn’t moving fast enough to contain its problems. A U.S. Treasury official said that the talks, among G-7 finance ministers and central bankers, at Tuesday’s teleconference included "progress toward financial and fiscal union in Europe." This plan has been gaining traction recently but may not be in place in time to address Spain’s urgent funding needs.
Source: online.wsj.com
More…




Jim,
How have you been my friend? My wife and I are so thankful to you for your advice from six years ago now. I followed it, and we are sitting relatively secure.
We were wondering what your thoughts were concerning moving cash from the banks, when this pops, should we be mostly out of the banks?
The community is so blessed to have your insights as we move forward. Thank you – Thank you.
CIGA Mike and Bonnie

Dear Mike and Bonnie,

Cash in banks is unsafe as the FDIC insurance on accounts is under-funded.

You either keep the cash itself since there is no interest paid to speak of, or buy gold.

Jim

Full-time jobs are getting harder to find CIGA Eric
The Great Recession which has become the social acceptable description of yet another Depression continues to wreck havoc on families across America.  Part-time rather than full-time jobs in the lower-paying, service-producing sector is becoming the norm to make ends meet (chart).
Chart: Good-Producing (GP), Manufacturing (MFG), and Service-Producing (SP) Sector As % of Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP)

Headline: Full-time jobs are getting harder to find
By Eve Tahmincioglu Andrea Mulhearn Brobst wants a full-time job. Despite having a four-year degree in business, she’s only been able to find a low-paying part-time retail job since she was laid off “from a real job at the beginning of this economic mess,” she said. And Kathi Nguyen has been relying on temporary jobs since she lost her full-time corporate position in 2007. “It’s just an extremely frustrating situation,” she said. “I want full-time.” Unfortunately, finding a coveted full-time gig has gotten harder since the Great Recession hit, and last week’s May unemployment data showed the problem is getting worse. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an uptick in the number of workers classified as “involuntary part time,” or those who’d rather be working a 40-hour plus week. The data shows the number of people working part time for economic reasons climbed above 8 million in May. There are two types of employees that come under the involuntary part-time category: those who are working fewer hours because their present employer cut back hours due to business conditions, and those who just can’t find full-time jobs. While the number of employees who saw their full-time work schedules cut by their existing employers stayed about even with last month, and declined 8.8 percent from last year; the number of workers who could only find part-time jobs rose about 12 percent to 2.6 million in May, and increased about the same percentage compared to the same month last year.
Source: msnbc.msn.com
More…



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