Investment/Trends

Washington Sees Incomes Soar as Most of U.S. Declines

"American incomes have tumbled over the last decade. But for many people in Washington, D.C., it’s been something of a party. The income of the typical D.C. household rose 23.3% between 2000 and 2012 to an inflation-adjusted $66,583, according to the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. During this period, median household incomes for the nation as a whole dropped 6.6% — from $55,030 to $51,371. The Washington, D.C. metro area — which includes the surrounding suburbs in Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia — has it even better, with a median household income of $88,233 that ranks highest among the U.S.’s 25 most populous metro areas." Continue reading →

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The Path to $10,000 an Ounce Gold, Revisited

"Most traders, obsessed with the tiniest tweaks to the monthly rate of Fed printing, are missing the big picture: Credit growth has outpaced the economy’s productive potential, both here and around the globe. Each successive growth spurt in money and credit has a weaker marginal impact on the real economy; this requires permanently easy monetary policy, and perhaps, eventually, a formal devaluation of paper against gold. In his latest Gloom Boom & Doom Report, Marc Faber argues that the Fed has lost control of the bond market. Treasury note yields have doubled from the summer 2012 lows — a development that surely wasn’t part of the Fed’s stimulus playbook." Continue reading →

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Precious Metals True To Form As Markets Wake To Reality

"As for PMs, the funds and other 'smart money' as well as retail investors took the news from the Fed to mean the USD will depreciate against hard assets of all kinds. PM gains of 10-15% were widespread within ninety minutes though most faded toward the close. September 16 nearly all issues gave back significant portions of their gains as the metals indicated that their roller-coaster nature had not gone away. With those postulates in mind, it is useful to look at some of the better companies in the sector to see how they fared the day after the QE go sign flashed. Price action is important in considering what horses you will ride." Continue reading →

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For Virtual Prospectors, Life in the Bitcoin Mines Gets Real

"Aubrey McIntosh has taken up mining in his spare time, and he's finding it hard and hot—even if it's prospecting for a virtual currency and a computer is doing all of the work. Mr. McIntosh, a semiretired chemistry professor in Morris, Minn., is among the growing ranks of enthusiasts who use powerful computers to 'mine,' in insider parlance, 'bitcoins,' an unregulated digital currency. Mr. McIntosh keeps his specialized computer, which he said cost about $1,500 and is custom-built to find bitcoins, near the chimney flue in his basement to try to get rid of all the heat it generates." Continue reading →

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High Tech Heads for the Farm

"On the basis of population growth alone, world food demand will increase by over 30%. But in addition to the increase in the number of people on the planet, growing affluence will also have a significant impact on global food demand. Today, there are about 2 billion people worldwide who are considered to be in the middle class; within 20 years, the number is expected to expand to 5 billion, with almost all of the increase coming from emerging markets. As these people enter the middle class, they will be able to afford to consume more food. Furthermore, they will be able to consume—and will demand—higher protein diets, i.e., more meat and dairy products." Continue reading →

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10 investing insights from Street Smarts by Jim Rogers

"If you were an investor and become a millionaire or even a billionaire by the age of 37, what would you do? Are you considering kicking your heels up, relaxing in your new mansion while looking ahead to a future of recreation and fun? Maybe you go the other direction. Resting with riches might be as lifeless as a phone booth. Perhaps you could create a lifelong journey, over the course of which making the whole world your backyard. You might be inspired to literally ride a motorcycle around the world, observing and learning about the planet earth while doing so. Maybe you’d be inspired to chronicle the journey, turn it into a benchmark for global investing, and then do it all over again." Continue reading →

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Jim Rogers on Financial Globalization and Mining Opportunities

"Mr. Rogers added that China should 'globalize the Renminbi in the next 20 minutes rather than the next 20 years'. He thought that China is currently the world's second largest economic entity as well as the country with most amount of foreign exchange reserve, 'there is no reason to restrict the Renminbi globalization. It is good for all Chinese people, as Renminbi globalization means all investors worldwide can invest in China, which will bring great market opportunities to China's commodities. Stock price in China will rise, China will become the world's center for commodity transaction, China's financial market will be the best in the world." Continue reading →

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