Month

Week-in-Review (expressed in YoY terms): Mon: IS terror attack kills 22 in UK, Portugal deficit less than 3% limit (only France, Spain and Greece exceed 3% threshold compared to 24 countries 6yrs ago), Fed’s Kaplan targeting 2 more hikes in 2017, S&P +0.5%; Tue: Japan PMI -0.7 to 52.0 (6mth low), rumors the ANC is discussing options to remove Zuma, German business confidence all-time high, French composite PMI 6y

Hope all goes well… Dusted on an anecdote from 2015 for Memorial Day (see below). Back next Sunday with full weekend notes. Week-in-Review (expressed in YoY terms): Mon: IS terror attack kills 22 in UK, Portugal deficit less than 3% limit (only France, Spain and Greece exceed 3% threshold compared to 24 countries 6yrs ago), Fed’s Kaplan targeting 2 more hikes in 2017, S&P +0.5%; Tue: Japan PMI -0.7 to 52.0 (6mth

Overall: “You have to keep it going, OK?” said Trump to the most handsome man he’d ever seen. “Never, ever, say that,” he continued, blowing a kiss to the man in the mirror. “That kind of sentence gets you into real trouble.” Brazil’s Temer uttered those exact words, now he’s headed toward impeachment. “But it’s not what you actually say that matters, it’s the context,” The Donald reminded himself. “I bragged about g

Hope all goes well… “If you had only one wish Daddy, what would it be?” asked Charlie. A quick jump to 5.00% ten-year treasury yields came to mind. “I’d ask that you four kiddies have fascinating lives.” Teddy was first responder, “Seriously Dad? Of all the possibilities in the entire world, that’s the best you could wish for? How about curing every disease? How about Kim Jong-un giving up all his nukes?” Charlie fol

“They made the bet,” said the Valley Boy. “We all saw the opportunity,” he said, pointing to the sky. “Pretty hard to miss.” Mankind’s energy usage from all combined sources is equivalent to 0.0125% of the 120,000 terawatts of solar energy hitting earth daily. Since Lucy roamed Africa 3.2mm years ago, we’ve consumed the equivalent of just 2.6 days of sunshine. “When people started talking peak oil, solar soared.” Chi

Overall: “Comey better hope there are no “tapes” of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press,” tweeted Trump. Media went mental. Breitbart bananas. Sycophants sucked up. Impeachment odds leapt to 3-1. And the Nasdaq 100 closed Friday +0.3%, at a record high. That’s despite this week’s 20% plunge in SNAP. But that’s nothing new. Back when we faced France’s Far-Right first-round, North Korea’s nuclear wa

“No one has a model for this,” said the CIO. “Everyone buying assets today is building somewhat plausible arguments, but they’re really all just geared to decisions made in Beijing.” The most crowded trade in the world is cognitive dissonance on China. “We need persistent increases in debt relative to GDP for the world economy to function. And since 2011, 100% of global non-financial private-sector net credit creatio

Hope all goes well… “We were Dr. McDowell’s chosen five,” said the professor of medicine, proud, struggling to maintain his composure. And Fetcher McDowell’s four other protégés raised their hands, standing amongst us, paying respects to a man who had touched us all in different ways. As one person spoke after another, the tapestry of a life well-lived took shape, its many threads connected in ways that richened the

Overall: “Macron appeals to people’s hopes and not their fears,” said Obama, hoping for another $400,000 speaking engagement from some insolvent French bank. Obviously, Obama endorsed the articulate young man, long on idealism, short on experience. The two are sides of a coin. And just as Obama would have trounced both Hillary and Trump if he’d been granted a 3rd crack, so too would Macron have beaten Hillary and Tru

“We’re early in the new President’s direction with North Korea,” said the senior military officer, reflecting on his decades of war games and exercises in the Pacific theatre. “We’re changing tactics and it’s pressurizing the situation,” he explained. “The added pressure is causing new reactions.” Kim Jong-Un claimed he was the target of a CIA assassination attempt. That’s an example of the “dear leader” reacting to