Get ready for the Dow at 6,000 by 2016: Pro - (www.cnbc.com) The
stock market is in a bubble that is setting up for a major crash, with the Dow Jones
industrial average likely
to hit the 17,000 level within the next few weeks before plummeting to around
6,000 by 2016, author and market observer Harry S. Dent Jr. told CNBC on
Monday. "I think we see another correction, crash, that is larger than the
last one," said Dent, author of The Demographic Cliff, during an
interview on "Closing Bell." "I think this will be the most
dangerous period in people's lives in investing." The fundamental
problem plaguing global economies is a shift in demographics, Dent said. An
aging work force will soon retire, outnumbering younger workers, thereby
draining government entitlements, he said. Despite government stimulus, younger
workers tend to spend less, too, Dent continued. "Generations spend and
then they don't," Dent said. "Governments are fighting that with
massive stimulus, and it shows why the economy is so weak with so much
stimulus. Demographics is the only way you can explain that."
S&P's
rise underpinned by borrowed money - (www.ft.com) US
stocks are being propelled to fresh highs by investors borrowing a record
amount of money in a high stakes gamble that is raising concerns over the
potential for a sharp correction in the five-year bull run. With the S&P
500 registering a fresh closing peak of 1,859.45 last week, margin debt –
money borrowed to buy stocks – hit a record level in January, according to data
from the New York Stock Exchange. Peaks in the use of borrowed money have in
the past been a precursor to big bear markets and viewed as a warning sign. Though margin debt has been hitting record
highs in recent months, it now stands at $451bn on the NYSE, a rise of more
than 20 per cent over the past year and above 2007’s peak of $381bn. Five years
ago it hit a low of $173bn. In past market peaks, excessive levels of margin
debt exacerbated the subsequent slide in stocks, as investors were forced to
quickly sell their holdings as prices fell, sparking a nasty downward spiral.
Russian
assets plummet on Putin's threat to invade Ukraine - (www.reuters.com) Russian
stocks and bonds plummeted on Monday and the central bank hiked interest rates,
burning its way through as much as $12 billion of its reserves to prop up the
rouble as markets took fright at the escalating tension with neighboring
Ukraine. Investors were ditching all Russian assets alike - the rouble, stocks
and bonds. The market capitalization of the Russian rouble-denominated MICEX
stock index fell some $60 billion since Friday, more than the $51 billion
Russia spent on the Winter Olympics in Sochi last month. The Ukrainian hryvnia
has firmed since curbs were imposed on deposit withdrawals last week, but
Ukrainian eurobonds fell sharply. Russia's central bank unexpectedly raised its
key lending rate - the one-week repurchasing agreement - to 7 percent from 5.5
percent, in an attempt to stem capital flight. The central bank did not mention
Ukraine in its statement, but said the decision to raise rates was aimed at
preventing "risks to inflation and financial stability associated with the
recently increased level of volatility in the financial markets".
Realtors
Directly Corrupting US Law in DC, Again - (www.opensecrets.org) "Disappointing."
That's how both the National Association of Realtors and the Private Equity Growth Capital
Council have
described Rep. Dave Camp's
(R-Mich.) proposal to overhaul the tax code. In his quest to simplify the
code for families, Camp, chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee,
would trim some longstanding perks benefiting the real estate
and private equity and investment industries: the mortgage interest and
carried interest deductions. A tribe of lobbyists is pressing conservatives to snuff Camp's proposal, threatening to
withhold precious campaign dollars. The mortgage interest deduction allows
homeowners to reduce their tax obligation by subtracting the interest they've
paid on their mortgage. Tampering with it could hurt home sales, and thus the
bottom line of real estate agents and the many others who depend on the housing
market for their livelihoods. Cuts to the carried interest deduction,
which allows private equity managers to pay a lower tax rate than other
workers on
about one-third of their income, would only affect a tiny -- but generally
very wealthy -- proportion of the population.
Hotel
hermit got $17M to make way for 15 Central Park West - (www.nypost.com) In
2004, developers Will and Arthur Zeckendorf bought the famed Mayflower Hotel
and several adjacent lots on the Upper West Side for just over $400 million,
with the goal of creating the city’s most exclusive residential building — 15
Central Park West. Only one thing stood in their way: A 73-year-old recluse
named Herb Sukenik, who refused to move from the hotel. In this excerpt from
his new book, “House of Outrageous Fortune” (Altria Books), author Michael Gross
reveals the most expensive eviction in New York City history. After
buying the Mayflower Hotel, the Zeckendorf brothers were legally responsible
for buying out and even relocating those living in rent-controlled apartments
in the top floors — residents whose leases prevented them from being evicted. They
turned to Michael Grabow, a relocation lawyer, “to get the last four bachelors
out,” he says. “They’d been there 30 to 35 years each, in tiny little rooms.” One
was 98 and had relatives in Mexico. “After 35 years, he checks out with a
single suitcase,” Will Zeckendorf says. “Plus a million-dollar check,” Arthur
Zeckendorf adds, laughing grimly.
Crimea
Crisis Worsens as Ukraine Says Russia Threatens Navy - (www.bloomberg.com)
Despite its problems, Ukraine is a prize for Russia, Europe - (www.washingtonpost.com)
Despite its problems, Ukraine is a prize for Russia, Europe - (www.washingtonpost.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment