Obamacare, Obfuscation and Functional Discontinuities
Opposition to ObamaCare Considered Rational on Grounds of Equity
by Lambert Strether
From his latest presser, Obama's partisan perspective on ObamaCare:
OBAMA: Now, I think the really
interesting question is why it is that my friends in the other party
have made the idea of preventing these people from getting health care
their holy grail, their number-one priority.
However, from the public purpose perspective, the
really interesting question is why our '
friends' in
both
parties refuse to put truly universal coverage - for example, single
payer Medicare for All - on the table at all. Remember, ObamaCare is,
pathetically, projected to enroll only 7 million people in its first
year, and when fully implemented will leave about as many uninsured as
newly insured - 25 or 30 million, but with '
these people,' who's counting?
Oils Crushed, Markets Remain Up, Low Volume
Closing Market Commentary For 08-29-2013
Markets were in cruise control for most
of the afternoon session with a slight negative slant which was
expected. Then about 3 pm the decent began in earnest erasing 1/2 of
today's gains. The oils started falling at 2 pm culminating in a 2.21
point loss on Brent Crude and a 1.82 points on WTI oil. (Aftermarket
futures are still melting down.)
By 4 pm the averages were surprisingly
quiet and not much action although melted down somewhat on low volume.
The ever present BTFDers, including the bears, were not showing their
hands at the close. Very quiet. The question is what's happening
tomorrow?
What We Read Today 29 August 2013
Econintersect: Click Read more >> below graphic to see today's list.
The top of today's reading list
reports on the potential for replacing bulky, heavy batteries with
capactitors ........ and the last article reviews the status of
global current account imbalances today compared to the crisis year of
2008.
Rail Week Ending 24 August 2013: Improvement in Growth Rate Weakens
Econintersect: Week 34 of 2013 ending 24 August shows same week total
rail traffic (from same week one year ago) was mixed according to data
released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR). Railcar count
is down, and intermodal count is up.
- Weekly overall data is up, and up even stronger ignoring coal and grain;
Markets Up And Sliding Sideways On Low Volume
Midday Market Commentary For 08-29-2013
Markets generally reached Tuesday's highs
and leveled off as volume fell to near anemic levels. Even the HFT algo
computers are being cautious along with investors sitting on their
hands. Although the BTFDers have been active, the other 75% of investors
are watching the Syrian and Western military issue unfold.
By noon traders had stepped out for lunch and some went as far as catching the train to the burbs calling it a day.
Life Insurance Sector and Interest Rate Changes
by
Kyal Berends, Robert McMenamin, Thanases Plestis, and Richard J. Rosen -
Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
A Chicago Fed study finds that when bonds
increase in value (that is, when interest rates fall), stocks of large
insurance firms decrease in value more than those of their smaller
counterparts.
Forrest Fires As A Terrorist Weapon
Economic Warfare Institute at American Center for Democracy. Are some of these fires started by terrorists?
www.econwarfare.org & www.acdemocracy.org
Q2 GDP Great, Data Sucks, Markets Decline Then Recover
Opening Market Commentary For 08-29-2013
Premarket was up (+0.10%) prior to the
announcement of the US GDP (up to 2.5%) and after investors thought
about it, the futures plunged to be even with yesterday's closing
numbers.
Markets opened -0.15% lower and
immediately started a recovery that covered the opening gaps. The large
caps climbed to near yesterday's highs while the small caps did a little
bit better (+0.40%). Volume is low to moderate with some serious green
spikes from the BTFDers which leaves me to wonder if they got the memo.
Today is probably going to be the consolidation session we have been
looking for. But, then again who knows in this casino market.
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24 August 2013 Unemployment Claims 4 Week Average Degrades Slightly
Blue Line 4 Week Average
The market was expecting 330,000 to
335,000 vs the 331,000 reported. The more important (because of the
volatility in the weekly reported claims and seasonality errors in
adjusting the data) 4 week moving average
degraded slightly, moving from 330,500(reported last week) to 331,250.
Read more >>
Second Estimate 2Q2013 GDP Revised Up to 2.5%, Corporate Profits Up Also
Written by Doug Short and Steven Hansen
The second estimate of second quarter 2013 Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is now a
positive 2.5%.
- The market expected GDP at +2.1%.
- This data point was 1.7% in the advance GDP estimate.
Read more >>
Stratfor: Syria and the Limits of Comparison
By Robert D. Kaplan, Stratfor
Because so many war plans simply do not survive the reality of war
itself, each war is a unique universe unto its own and thus comparisons
with previous wars, while useful, may also prove illusory. One of the
many wrong assumptions about the Second Gulf War before it started was
that it would somehow be like the First Gulf War, in which the
pessimists had been humiliated by the ease of the victory.
Read more >>
Equality in America: Oversold and Overbought!
Written by Frank Li
Yesterday (August 28, 2013) was a big day
in America. It was the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s
famous "I have a dream" speech, and President Obama spoke from the same
spot in front of Lincoln Memorial where Dr. King stood and delivered
that speech exactly 50 years ago.
REITs and Rates
Investing Daily Article of the Week
by Ben Shepherd, Investing Daily
It's
little surprise that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments on the
impending end of quantitative easing have cause an uptick in market
volatility. While the tapering process will begin slowing the flow of
easy money into the financial system, it also signals that interest
rates are also likely to start rising sooner rather than later.
As a result, interest sensitive
investments like bonds have experienced steadily rising yields since
May, as investors have sold out. The iShares Barclays Aggregate Bond
Fund (NYSE: AGG), which measures the performance of the total United
States investment grade bond market, has declined by 5.5 percent just
since April 30.
Not So Slim's Secrets
Bullion Vault Article of the Week
Written by Adrian Ash, Bullion Vault
Buying high and holding on with Mexico's bargain-hunting billionaire...
CARLOS SLIM HELU has a lot of money. Or rather, he owns a lot of assets. More than $73 billion-worth, according to
Forbes magazine.
That pile makes Slim a key figure for self-help and business books in his home country, Mexico. And at Forbes' last count in March, the telecoms mogul was also the world's richest person for the 4th year running.
International Agency: U.S. Insurance Regulation Needs Overhaul
Econintersect:
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has severely criticized the
insurnace regulatory structure in the United States. The report by the
FSB says that the U.S. insurance industry struggles under a system which
is fragmented, improperly capitalized and subject to potential
political influence. The U.S. insurance regulatory system is said to be
in a state of major disrepair.
The "Syria" Market
Written by Harlan Pyan, AllAboutTrends.net
Editor's note: The following is an
excerpt from today's premium report by All About Trends. Enjoy a free 15
day trial to their service and receive daily stock picks, market
analysis, and a complete trading plan. Promo code: zen
Given the magnitude of the Syrian issue
here there is a good possibility that the markets are going to be held
hostage till some sort of resolution takes place. Then comes the what
after effects.
The Resilient U.S. Consumer Myth
Look How Well American Consumers Are Doing!
by Lee Adler, Wall Street Examiner
That's right folks, US consumers are doing just great. In fact, on a real per capita basis, retail spending (
ex-gasoline
sales) in July was up 3.9% from last year and up 7% from the July 2009
recession low. In fact real retail spending per capita has recovered all
the way back to where it was in 1997. That's right, the average US
consumer is consuming retail goods at the same rate he or she was just
16 years ago.
Read more >>
Google Dominates Digital Ads, Facebook Distant Second
Econintersect:
Whether online or mobile, Google is the advertizing revenue king. The
company pulls in 33% of online advertizing dollars; Facebook is number
two with only 5.5%. Google has even more dominance in the mobile ad
space with 53% of revenue in 2013, but here Facebook also has a bigger
share (16%).
Infographic of the Day: Missing the Jobs in the Middle
It is the
jobs in the middle of the pay spectrum that are missing. The economy
has lost more than 200,000 teaching, construction and community-service
jobs since 2010 -- all occupations that pay between $40,000 and $60,000
per year. This means that people who are reasonably well-educated but
don't have highly technical skills of graduate degrees are stuck.
Small Cap Molecular Analysis Companies May Provide New Diagnostic Solutions
Article of the Week from About Small Cap Stocks
Written by Allen Caron
The 10th anniversary of human genome
sequencing recently passed, and with it, coverage of just how far we've
come since then. Companies are getting closer and closer to cheap genome
sequencing, including many small cap companies. When we last discussed
molecular diagnostic small cap companies in January, we explained that
the "crowded field" of genome sequencing and testing was in part due to
the lowering costs of genome mapping. Today, companies in this sector
are beginning to collaborate to bring clinical technologies based on
genome mapping and genome sequencing to market.
Mobile Facebook Usage Rises Sharply
by Felix Richter, Statista.com
Facebook shares hit a new all-time high
yesterday after news of strong mobile growth had spurred optimism among
analysts and investors. 15 months after the company's disappointing IPO,
Facebook's shares closed at $41.34 on Monday, up 133 percent since
hitting rock bottom in September 2012.
Facebook's stock had first returned to its IPO price of $38 as recently
as August 2, after the company had delivered encouraging second quarter
results.
