Business

Despite equity prices soaring to within inches of all-time record highs, it appears 'rich' Americans are no longer impressed by The Fed's handiwork. As Bloomberg's Consumer Comfort index slumps to its weakest since Dec 2015, high-income (over $75k) Americans suffered their biggest plunge in confidence since October 2013 seemingly unable to revive their animal spirits as much as CFOs and their buybacks.

High income Americans confidence typically lags stock market performance by about 4 weeks but has broken this time...

The coming ‘sharia gold standard’ or shariah compliant gold could lead to a very significant source of  new demand for physical gold coins and bars in the Islamic world. It is believed that this will contribute to much higher prices and gold “soaring” as some of the $2 trillion of assets held in Islamic financial institutions are allocated to the very small physical global gold market. 

Submitted by David Stockman via Contra Corner blog,

First there were seventeen. At length, there was one.

Donald Trump’s wildly improbable capture of the GOP nomination, therefore, is the most significant upheaval in American politics since Ronald Reagan. And the proximate cause is essentially the same. Like back then, an era of drastic bipartisan mis-governance has finally generated an electoral impulse to sweep out the stables.

Update: The selling continues as the market opens...

The battle between Elon Musk and Jim Chanos continues in the pre-market as non-GAAP exuberance is trumped by epic cash burns and reality-checks from hedge fund managers. The after-hours panic-buying algos appear to have enabled more than a few to exit in a hurry...

Even with near record short-interest...

The squeeze couldn't hold...

Overnight strength in the USDollar has begun to rollover, most notably against the Yen, and that is sparking a bid in commodities - industrial and precious metals. Canada headlines (and Libya) along with dismal US jobs data have also piled on, sending WTI Crude to test $46 (and copper is rallying) as Gold and Silver surge...

As The USD rolls over...

Crude is spiking...

And Precious metals are bid...