Monday, September 07, 2015

Financial Sarcasm Roundup for 09/07/15

One great thing about this blog is that visitors from the future can see how sarcastic I was at this point in history. I will be just as sarcastic in the future.

Japan's Q2 GDP is still down, no matter how you slice the inventory numbers. Maybe they could slice up some sushi rolls to go with those numbers. I'll have the dragon roll and California roll, please, because one plate is never enough. Abenomics is still in vogue over on that side of the Pacific Ocean. It will probably survive until a round of hyperinflation ruins the ability of ordinary Japanese to purchase very expensive imported foodstuffs for their sushi.

China is rapidly selling off its foreign exchange reserves to support its stock markets and currency. The US is not at all prepared for a sudden run on the dollar, but that is now very likely as more central banks follow China's path. Janet Yellen and Stanley Fischer are going to have some sleepless nights at the Eccles Building running scenarios on how to mitigate a dollar run. I expect pizza delivery services in Washington, DC will work overtime when the Federal Reserve starts pulling all-nighters.

Global supply and demand keep pushing oil prices down. Gas-guzzling Americans can enjoy a few more months of easy motoring. It's premature to call a bottom as long as financially weak oil service firms have access to cheap lines of credit in the US. I await the high yield debt market's collapse and the de-listing of multiple oil companies before I consider the sector a bargain.

If this blog were food, it would probably taste like vinegar.