Salient to Investors: The Economist said that: During the first 6 years of Reagan’s presidency, the US economy grew 22% and the median household income grew by 6%. During the first 6 years of Clinton’s presidency, the US economy grew 24% and the median household income increased 11%. During the first 6 years
READ MORE... →Fareed Zakaria said: Over time, countries that grow economically tend to become more democratic, excepting oil-rich states that are run by dictators. China will not become a Western-style liberal democracy, but should consider Singapore’s example. Minxin Pei wrote in 2006 that China had had virtually no move toward political openness
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Fundacion Alternativas said 700,000 Spaniards left Spain between 2008 and 2012. The National Statistics Institute reports 547,890 left in 2013, 79,306 of them Spanish nationals born in Spain. Spaniards are fleeing 25% unemployment and flocking to Latin America, including Brazil, where language barriers are few, the cost of
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Warren Buffett said his firms’ pensions funds are all-equities with no bonds. Buffett said he assumes Pimco would have all kinds of professional money managers managing money so would not have changed just because Bill Gross left. Buffett and deputy investment managers, Todd Combs and Ted Weschler,
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: David Bloom et al at HSBC said: A sustained rise in the dollar may be insufficient to push inflation back to target in countries struggling with the threat of deflation, but it could buy them time and help prevent inflation expectations becoming permanently detached from target. History
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Warren Buffett has said he likes industries that come with barriers to entry. Many publicly traded dealers own 60 to 100 stores, so would be attractive acquisitions to Buffett’s automotive division, with the type of recurring revenue streams from service and parts that Buffett likes. Morningstar said the 10
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Thomson Reuters said US junk bond funds had the biggest withdrawal last week since a record withdrawal during the first week of August, bringing the net amount redeemed in 2014 to $15.6 billion. Lipper said leveraged loans had their 12th straight week of outflows, bringing the total for
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Paul Krugman writes: Bill Gross’s fall is a symptom of depression denial syndrome: the refusal to acknowledge that the rules are different in a persistently depressed economy. Since 2008, the US has been stuck in a liquidity trap – a desired saving glut with no place to
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Christine Lagarde at the IMF said: The global economic outlook is less positive than in April but is still in recovery, and improved from a year ago. IMF growth forecasts for Hong Kong have not changed. The financial crisis left more major scars and legacies that the
READ MORE... →Salient to Investors: Randy Bateman at Huntington Asset Advisors said investors have always relied on the Fed priming the pump, which ends this month so investors are moving focus to the many geopolitical situations and economic concerns. Economists forecast growth from Japan to China will slow every year through 2016. Tim Courtney at Exencial Wealth
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