Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, a further examination of the developing global banking crisis. (See the Economy & Finance section.)
Precious Metals:
Spot silver is looking quite bullish, up more than 5% for the week to $26.29 per Troy ounce, as of Thursday afternoon.
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An interview with Jeffrey Tucker: The Fed is Trapped: This Recession Will Be Massive.
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At Gold-Eagle.com: Ongoing U.S. Mint Failures Bring Discredit to America, Raise Costs.
Economy & Finance:
At Zero Hedge: JPM CEO Says “System Is Very, Very Sound” After Second Largest US Bank Failure In History. JWR’s Comments: Nay, the system is not sound. The sustainability of fractional reserve banking is always tenuous, at best. And presently, with yield curves inverted after an extended period of artificially-low rates, there are huge risks. Do not believe the soothsaying banksters. This is not the end of the banking crisis. In fact, I don’t believe that it is even the end of the beginning of the banking crisis…
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Linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: NBC: First Republic Bank is taken over by FDIC and sold to JPMorgan in third major bank failure of the year.
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Reported on May 3rd, by Business Today: First Republic’s Collapse Sends Regional Bank Shares Reeling.
JWR’s Observations: Several more regional banks appear to be in stock sell-off spirals, with stock trading temporarily halted for some of these bank stocks. Here is a tally of the bloodbath that took place primarily on Tuesday and Wednesday:
The regional bank index is down 29% so far, in 2023.
I must reiterate my advice: Diversify your bank deposits to several banks and at least one credit union.
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The banking crisis is having a slow-burn impact on the economy. (CNBC)
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Charlie Munger Sounds The Alarm on Issue That Could Bring Down the U.S. Economy.
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US Studies How To Guarantee All $18 Trillion In US Bank Deposits.
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WSJ: The Blue State Exodus Accelerates; New IRS data for 2021 shows voters fleeing Illinois.
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Lyft, Gap, First Republic join Disney, Amazon in layoffs.
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More socialist scheming: Financially ‘Low-Risk’ Borrowers Will Now Pay Higher Mortgage Fees In The Name Of ‘Equity’.
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CNBC: A recession may be coming — here’s how long it could last, according to economists.
Commodities:
Analysis from India: Base metal demand likely to remain strong. Here’s why.
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U.S. House Agriculture Subcommittee Holds Commodity Hearing for 2023 Farm Bill.
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From OilPrice News: The 10 Countries With The Largest Natural Gas Reserves.
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India Leads In Russian Oil ‘Laundering’ To Europe.
Inflation Watch:
Annual inflation down to 6.9% in the euro area — Down to 8.3% in the EU. A pericope:
“The euro area annual inflation rate was 6.9% in March 2023, down from 8.5% in February. A year earlier, the rate was 7.4%. European Union annual inflation was 8.3% in March 2023, down from 9.9% in February. A year earlier, the rate was 7.8%. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.”
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USDA: Food Price Outlook, 2023. An excerpt:
“Food prices are expected to grow more slowly in 2023 than in 2022 but still at above historical-average rates. In 2023, all food prices are predicted to increase 6.5 percent, with a prediction interval of 4.9 to 8.2 percent. Food-at-home prices are predicted to increase 6.6 percent, with a prediction interval of 4.4 to 8.8 percent. Food-away-from-home prices are predicted to increase 8.2 percent, with a prediction interval of 7.3 to 9.0 percent.”
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Bonds, Bitcoin, & Bullion Battered After Bank Bailout, Stagflation Scare.
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IMF Sees High Rates, Oil Prices and Inflation Worries in Middle East.
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Inflation Rate Forecast 2023/2024: Asia.
Forex & Cryptos:
Dollar May Fall Another 15% on Peak Rate Bets, Eurizon Says.
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Over at Currency Thoughts: Factory Purchasing Manager Surveys, An Australian Central Bank Rate Hike, and Much More.
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Biden Advances Plans for Americans to No Longer Own Money. (A hat tip to D.S.V. for the link.)
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XRP Price Prediction: Ripple Bears Target Fresh Lows As Sentiment Dips.
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Crypto-assets: green light to new rules for tracing transfers in the EU.
Tangibles Investing:
These 12 States Can Seize Your Home Over Delinquent Property Taxes.
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Commercial Real Estate Market Faces Next Wave of Financial Stress, Apollo’s Rowan Says.
Provisos:
SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.
News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News items from local news outlets that are missed by the news wire services are especially appreciated. Thanks!
