World stocks and commodities rose on Monday, boosted by upbeat Chinese data, while U.S. oil futures jumped to a near six-month high as escalating tensions between the Iraqi government and Kurdish forces threatened supply. Global markets digested the large amount of weekend newsflow, and clearly liked what they saw as S&P futures were modestly in the green, as both European and Asian stocks are higher.
On the heels of San Franciso Fed Governor John Williams' warning that The Fed "doesn't want there to be excesses in financial markets... " Janet Yellen has reiterated her concerns that markets are a bit toppy...
Returning to the world of investing and market commentary one week after surgery, One River's CIO Eric Peters touches on some of the most topical issues, including his latest take on bitcoin and money in particular, and the definition of value (which is increasingly more weightless) in general, the deflationary impact of tech on prices and wages and what the Fed's inflation target should be in this "new normal", recent trends in R&D spending, and, of course volatility.
Below we present select highlights from Peters' latest letter:
Overall
As is his way, Billionaire investor Warren Buffett calmed an anxious nation earlier this month with his comments that:
"Valuations make sense with interest rates where they are."
And it seemed to work as stocks hit new record highs and Americans have never, ever been more sure that stocks will continue rising for the next 12 months...
Why wouldn't they - Buffett knows all, right?
Authored by Chris Martenson via PeakProsperity.com,