Author: The Freedom Watch Staff

This author has written 11091 articles

Insatiable appetite for gold fuels India’s smuggling industry

"Indian gold smugglers are adopting the methods of drug couriers to sidestep a government crackdown on imports of the precious metal, stashing gold in imported vehicles and even using mules who swallow nuggets to try to get them past airport security. Stung by rules imposed this year to cut a high trade deficit and a record duty on imports, dealers and individual customers are fanning out across Asia to buy gold and sneak it back into the country. Sri Lanka, Thailand and Singapore are the latest hotspots as authorities crack down on travellers from Dubai, the traditional source of smuggled gold." Continue reading →

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Debt hits 200-year high; IMF warns of ‘savings tax’ and mass write-offs

"Much of the Western world will require defaults, a savings tax and higher inflation to clear the way for recovery as debt levels reach a 200-year high, according to a new report by the International Monetary Fund. The IMF working paper said debt burdens in developed nations have become extreme by any historical measure and will require a wave of haircuts, either negotiated 1930s-style write-offs or the standard mix of measures used by the IMF in its 'toolkit' for emerging market blow-ups. Financial repression can take many forms, including capital controls, interest rate caps or the force-feeding of government debt to captive pension funds and insurance companies." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDebt hits 200-year high; IMF warns of ‘savings tax’ and mass write-offs

Why I’m Leaving

"My grandparents emigrated from Portugal to Mozambique during the 1940s and 50s in search of a better life. The massive and undeveloped colony seemed like the land of milk and honey for those willing to get their hands dirty. A few decades later my parents-to-be immigrated to South Africa as Mozambique headed towards what would become a 10-year war for independence. Then when I was just 4 years old they decided that a fascist state fully enveloped with the evils of apartheid was no place to raise a child. My mother was fortunate enough to get a work visa into the United States and that’s where we’ve been ever since. Now the time has come for me to follow in my family’s footsteps." Continue reading →

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3 Urgent Steps for the Ultimate Strategy in 2014!

"There’s no doubt we’re living in crazy times. Despite a slight reduction in the amount of unbacked money it prints every month, the Fed is still burying the world in unbacked paper dollars. Despite a 'budget deal,' the massive federal debt is nearing the $18 trillion mark and annual deficits are still massive. Despite the trillions Washington has poured into the economy over six years, growth is still sub-par. Despite Washington’s claims to the contrary, the real unemployment rate, measured the way our government used to, is still 13.2 percent. Yet this year alone, the S&P 500 has hit nearly four dozen new all-time highs in 2013. So what’s the wisest wealth-building strategy in times like these?" Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: Avoid This Popular Stock in 2014…

"All eyes have been fixed on the stock market in 2013. But one of the most significant moves has happened in supposedly 'safe haven' bonds. Mom & Pop investors who rushed out of the stock market and into bond funds have been burned. In 2013, investors holding the iShares Barclay’s 20+yr Treasury Bond ETF lost 13.5%. This is strange, because the Fed has been supporting the long end of the Treasury market with $540 billion of Treasury bond purchases under QE3. If this is how long-bond investors are rewarded with the Fed set to buy another half trillion dollars of long bonds next year, it doesn’t bode well for bond bulls. Our advice: Steer clear of T-bonds in 2014." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Avoid This Popular Stock in 2014…

Is The NSA Changing Bank Accounts?

"The panels' recommendations are heartening because they are overwhelmingly critical of the NSA; the panel went so far as to unanimously call for splitting up the agency and for safeguards such as transparency. This is another surprise because the panel was hand-picked by Obama and included the die-hard loyalist Cass Sunstein and former CIA deputy director Michael J. Morell. Obama quickly indicated his rejection of some of the panels' recommendations. Meanwhile, everyone should make sure they have a print copy and a screen shot of their latest financial statements on hand. People should consider holding assets in a less conventional place than large and 'trusted' financial institutions." Continue reading →

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ED officials raided two bitcoin trading firm in Ahmedabad

"Days after the RBI issued a cautionary note regarding the use of popular virtual currency Bitcoin, Enforcement Directorate officials here raided two companies running Bitcoin transactions in India. ED officials told ET that on Thursday raids were conducted on the offices of rBitco.in and buysellbitco.in. This is India's first bitcoin raid and second globally after FBI conducted the raid in October, they said. As per the sources, the owners of the both the bitcoin trading firm would be booked under FEMA Act initially. However, after detail investigation of the data collected, if any havala transaction or criminal nature transaction is detected then they would be booked under the appropriate Act." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingED officials raided two bitcoin trading firm in Ahmedabad

FinCEN: Bitcoin Miners Need Not Register as Money Transmitters

"According to the letter, miners are still free to purchase goods or trade with exchanges with the bitcoins they produce whether operating as individuals or businesses. The news should come as a relief for smaller-scale mining operations. Jerry Brito, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center, indicated that FinCEN wrotein a private letter last July that all miners would have to register as MSBs, and uncertainty had remained since then. This could have put many individuals out of the mining business with its range of compliance regulations, such as having an auditor on staff. The exact wording of the letter still leaves some room for interpretation, though." Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman Is Wrong: Bitcoin Isn’t Evil, But Monetary ‘Stimulus’ Is

"Krugman asserts that bitcoin is evil because it is a 'weapon intended to damage central banking' and makes it harder for states to tax and monitor people. He gets it exactly backwards. A weapon is a tool used to attack someone. But bitcoin users aren’t attacking anyone; they are avoiding an attack. As the tax burden grows heavier, and surveillance intrudes more deeply, it’s reasonable for people to seek shelter. They just want to protect themselves." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPaul Krugman Is Wrong: Bitcoin Isn’t Evil, But Monetary ‘Stimulus’ Is

Bill Bonner: Should You Turn Bullish in 2014?

"As far as we know, as long as the Fed keeps pumping, prices for stocks, Andy Warhol doodles and Manhattan apartments will keep going up. But that doesn’t mean any of them are good investments. Stocks, for example, are an option on a bigger Fed-induced bubble. But they’re not cheap. A simple look at the 12-month “as reported” P/E for the S&P 500 will tell you that. Could this continue? Yes, of course. Or, it could blow sky-high. Yes – 2013 was one for the history books; 2014 almost surely will be, too." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Should You Turn Bullish in 2014?