Wolf Richter

Watching The Fed Marinate In Its Own Artfully Concocted Pickle

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After five years of QE, and $3 trillion in new money floating around, we now have asset bubbles everywhere. Risk is no longer priced into anything. In fact, it has disappeared as a factor. And the Fed is publicly fretting about it.

Are You Overweight EU Equities For The Big Recovery Yet?

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There has been a symphony of calls for American investors to plow their money into European stocks. So, net inflows into European equity funds have set records, driven by euphoria about a presumed recovery. Equities soared. But turns out, reality has bad breath.

High-End Food-Fraud Scandal Deliciously Spirals Out of Control, Whacks Japanese Consumer Confidence

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Today it was Hotel Okura Co., which operates landmark hotels across Japan. It confessed its restaurants had misrepresented 235 menu items. That followed confessions by leading department store chains, other high-end hotel chains, traditional ryokan hotels…. New revelations bubble up daily. And consumer confidence is taking a hit.

On The Surface, There’s Nothing Perturbing In The Challenger Job Cut Report

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In terms of announced mass layoffs, 2013 is shaping up to be the best year since 1997. Overall, employers aren’t shedding lots of jobs. But glitter in some sectors covers up aggressive, permanent job destruction in other sectors – where the sky used to be the limit.

Bank of Japandemonium Killed And “Sacrificed” The JGB Market

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“The JGB market is dead,” announced with finality Tetsuya Miura, chief bond strategist at Mizuho Securities, one of Japan’s 23 primary dealers that have to bid on government securities. It had been “sacrificed” by the Bank of Japan, said another industry heavyweight.

Money Manager Nightmare: “How Can I Explain To My Clients That We Had A Third Crash In 15 years?”

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Sign of trouble: A wealth manager told me some of his elderly clients were now coming into his office, and they’d say, “My kids tell me that I can make 25% a year with stocks.” How much were they were willing to lose? “Nothing,” they’d say.

Nobel Peace Prize, Asylum for Snowden: Germans Turn Up Heat

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While the US government wants to get its hands on NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and crucify him properly, the German government remains red-faced and tangled up in its own underwear. Yet among Germans, and their politicians, support for him is surging.

Dancing Chickens And The Fed

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Some time ago, I listened to the host of a radio show tell the story about the dancing chickens – and the Fed. It wasn’t, intuitively, an obvious combo. But he nailed it, now that the 100th anniversary of the Fed’s creation is approaching.

Japanese Banks Work with the Yakuza

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As the scandal is spreading, Japan’s Financial Services Agency, which has been sleeping peacefully through this for years, will suddenly probe Japan’s megabanks, Mizuho, Mitsubishi UFJ, and Sumitomo Mitsui.

Japan’s Most Hated Outfit, TEPCO, Reports Fat Profit (From Taxpayer Bailout Money)

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TEPCO, the bailed-out owner of the Fukushima nuclear plant, famous for its lackadaisical handling of the fiasco and its parsimonious delivery of information, reported earnings today. It was a doozie! And a glimpse into what’s in store for Japanese taxpayers.