Business

Since the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) released what is referred to as the "Panama Papers", there has been a flurry of activity taking place to see just who was involved, and to what extent.

Earlier this week, the ICIJ released a searchable database containing nearly 214,000 offshore entities created in 21 jurisdictions to make it easier for those who wish to continue to dig through the data.

• Brazil's Rousseff undone by hubris, economic missteps (Reuters)
• Trump’s Early Backers on Capitol Hill See Their Profile Raised (WSJ)
• Oil prices rise toward six-month high, tightening supply (Reuters)
• EIA says outlook for oil brightens as output disruptions erode surplus (Reuters)
• Investors Fleeing $9 Trillion of Negative Yields Fuel Bond Binge (BBG)
• Beaten-Up Hedge Fund Billionaires Reminisce About 'Golden Age' (BBG)
• Hong Kong first-quarter economic growth likely weakest in 4 years (Reuters)

If yesterday's selloff had a specific catalyst, namely some of the worst consumer retail earnings seen in years, it merely undid the Tuesday rally which levitated global risk with no fundamental driver, aside for a 200 pip spike in the USDJPY.  Some central bankers may even say it was a "magical" levitation.

Assessing The Latest Bank Participation Report 

Posted with permission and written by Craig Hemke, TF Metals Report (CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL)

by Keith Weiner

The popular belief is that gold is a good hedge against inflation. Owning gold will protect you from rising prices. Is that true?

Most people define inflation as rising prices. Economists will quibble and say technically it’s the increase in the quantity of money, however Milton Friedman expressed the popular belief well. He said, “Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon.”