Monday, August 10, 2009

More Readers ...

This most influential blog seems to have quite a following at Barron's now. Mike Santoli at Barron's borrowed my thinking for his column in this week's edition, titled, "Can the S&P handle 1200?" I have written for months that 1200 was a logical place for stocks to go in a "return to normalcy" Here's how he phrased it: "Tough as it may be to place much faith in such a target, the 1200 level is of particular interest and importance. That's about where the market was when Lehman Brothers failed. Other indicators have reverted to pre-Lehman levels, as popularly noted -- including the pace of job losses, interbank lending conditions, spreads on auto-loan securities and volatility indexes."

That's also where the market was before the panic caused by the beefers and shorts. Now that Ben has dealt with most credit market problems, with commercial real estate being last and in process, a return to normal economic conditions should be at hand barring new troubles.

Worldwide economic conditions are improving. From FT: "Business confidence is surging across European manufacturing, with the UK and Italy taking the lead, according to reports on Monday that also highlight the turnround in countries such as Brazil and China. Optimism about production trends is back at levels seen before the intensification of the global slowdown late last year, and points to a clear growth in manufacturing activity by the middle of 2010, the latest KPMG business outlook survey shows. The results are the latest evidence of a synchronised global rebound, possibly at a faster pace than expected until recently."

Copper prices seem to have a clear uptrend for now. At some point they'll level off, but if US housebuilding ever recovers - maybe another year - that metal will surge to the old high, in my humble opinion.

And one more sign of a return to normalcy: (WSJ) "Yanks Get Their Swagger Back
With Red Sox Streak Broken, Planets Are Realigned. ... How do we know the Yankees are playing well again? Because they're annoying. That's how it is with the Yankees: When they're playing poorly, they're strangely lovable in their vulnerability and fear of failure. But when they're rolling, like they are now after four straight wins against the Red Sox, they're ruthless."

I read that A-roid made a game winning hit. It's about time he earned his pay. The Red Faces ... oops ... Sox need to loosen their collars. Hmm David Roidtiz says some bad supplements caused his positive drug test. Sure ...

Actions

Doing nothing. Krypto Fund is doing well. Lately it's significant real estate holdings and REITs (via VNQ - the Vanguard real estate ETF) have perked up. In the last bull market (out of the 2002-3 bottom), those stocks performed very, very well. Real estate is a distinctive asset class and needs to be treated as such. If conditions just return to normal, VNQ will provide excellent gains.

Word of the Day

"Ersatz" - adjective [$10]
Ersatz means being a usual artificial and inferior substitute.
Sentence: The SEC has announced more hearings on short selling. I expect that corrupt agency will provide the same ersatz regulation as it has done for years as it operates out of the pockets of Wall Street.

Le Mot du Jour

"Conjoncture" - noun, feminine; and "Conjoncturel, -elle" - adjective.
Conjoncture means situation, circumstances (economic).
Conjoncturel means linked to the present economic climate.
La Phrase: La conjoncture dans le monde entier s'ameliore.
Sentence: The economic situation all over the world is improving.

48 comments:

Bud said...

Bman when are you expecting the monthly jobs number to be positive ??


positive = 150k a month

Bud said...

Bman was Pequot capital a beefer ??

some nasty allegations on stock manipuulation and insider trading against them


the key word being 'allegations'

Bud said...

Bman i was playin golf with a very distant cousin of mine.....................he also graduated form the beefer school ( harvard ) and has an advanced mathematics degree from MIT.........and he is a futrures and derivatives trader at a japanese bank


needless to say he completely disagrees with you that 'futures trading is not an asset class'



PS......i tried to understand what he does.........had no clue.......basically uses math models to look for 'mispricings'

Spin-em said...

I nono whahappennn....I onleetake my Flintstone vitaminnn

Monday...spit...clap clap..Barney

Tuesday...spit,,,clap,,clap.. Dino

Wed......spit...clap clap...Betty

but Thurs...I spit you see.. clap clap too....but I drop Wilma on floor...so..I may have been...how you say?.....lilbit careless....nono steroids.....I just forgot to hit.....dooonoo how to hit bezball nomor......sososos sorry to ressawks fans who thought they shit was steroid free....whooooo bustballs but now......sososo quiet

Bunkerman said...

I'd guess we get a good jobs number late this year.

Bunkerman said...

"Was Pequot a beefer ?"

Does a bear s*** in the woods ?

Is the Pope Catholic ?

sheeshh ...

OK maybe that was a fat one down the pipe for warm-ups

Bunkerman said...

next time you see him, tell him that Fischer Black, whom I had at MIT in a finance class, agreed with me and not him.

well ... I agree with Fischer Black is a fairer way to say it.

lolol futures aren't even assets ... nor derivatives. There is net zero value in them inherently. Even long is canceled perfectly by a short.

Bunkerman said...

btw, he should know who Fischer Black was.

Bunkerman said...

that "asset class" nonsense is just a sales pitch for the suits running the pension funds, to convince them they aren't just speculating in futures ... which they are.

mfl59 said...

ohhhh...Fischer Black...creator of the nonsensical Black-Scholes Theory...the "theory" which pretty much brought down the entire system with Long Term Capital Mgmt...

Bunkerman said...

actaully, you're wrong about that, mfl.

Fischer Black understood when that model broke down and breaks and would never have invested in LTCM.

He explained those limitations in the class.

Bunkerman said...

lol ... of course all this VIX stuff, adn all the other optino "greeks" uses that formulae to crunch numbers.

Bunkerman said...

lol, I remember we discused investments and he said he only invested in T-bills. Everything else was too risky.

Bud said...

T-bills only ?? everything else too risky ???


yeah and i'm the stupid one......oh sorry.........'ignorant'


what a bunch of thumping tosh

Frosty said...

"I'm being distracted by computers that are giving me problems."...thx jim....always something...sure to be fixed by month end to punch the visa skim tickets.

Frosty said...

Bunky your heros at the FOMC meet this week to play move the bubble, do you feel no shame sir...unemployment, get the helmet ready 10%+ is a lock.

Bunkerman said...

uh oh frosty ... you probably just jinxed yourself.

hmmm I guess you're abeliever in Obama ... that's what he says re unemployment

Bud said...

pierdol sie bob !!!!!!



PS....still wanna be friends ???

Bud said...

Bman is BRK.A a beefer ??


they own long-term warrants on long-term beefer GS

Bud said...

Bman is sugar an asset class ???


jim rogers says buy sugar

Frosty said...

Bud playin prison rules...I understand...CATM buy off revy book over 7 and what to do...get nasty now, jim wants the prowler waxed.

Bud said...

hey frosty.............are you also a yankee fan now ???


this site is infected with those scum sucking cockroaches.........be honest bob............this could be a pivotal point in our......'friendship'

Bunkerman said...

Bud, vos questions me fatiguent. Servez-vous de votre tête.

Bunkerman said...

Bud, do you think there should be an asterisk next to the Red Sox Series win in 2004 ?

Bud said...

GRVY


'nailed it' 'highfive'


oh.....i am sure 25 cents is not worth your time...........you guys are all zillionaires........f'ng douchebags




danke vielamls jim !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bud said...

oh sorry


Dziękuję bardzo jim !!!!!!!!!

mfl59 said...

Bud may I get a handicap update please? And Bob wants to know if you walked off of Whsitling Straits before finishing 18...Thanks friend...

Frosty said...

Y.A.N.K.E.E.S.
Here come the YANKEES
Let's get behind and cheer the YANKEES
They're gonna learn to fear the YANKEES
Everyone knows they play to win, cause

They're the New York YANKEES
Show them today why you're the YANKEES
No other way when you're the YANKEES
Wadda ya say we win a brand, new, ballgame

We're gonna shout when ya powder the ball
We're gonna scream, "put it over the wall"
The other teams gonna know what it means to play the Y.A.N.K.E.E.S
We love the Yankees
Shout it out loud , We Love The YANKEES
We're really proud of our YANKEES
And we're gonna win today
2, 3, 4, Hit, Run, Fight, Score, Go! Go! Go!

We're gonna shout when ya powder the ball
We're gonna scream "put it over the wall yo"
The other teams gonna know what it means to play the Y.A.N.K.E.E.S
We love the Yankees
Shout it out loud, We Love The YANKEES
We're really proud of our YANKEES
And we're gonna win today

Y.A.N.K.E.E.S. Yes
Y.A.N.K.E.E.S. Yes

Bunkerman said...

frosty, the bubble of the year is T-notes & bonds.

Next one ?

not yet determined ...

Spin-em said...

HOLY COW!!!! OHHH THAT AZZHEAD'S A HUCKLEBERRY........

mfl59 said...

What a weekend....Joe Girardi is a genius...unreal...the Stadium was rocking....just like the gold old days....

Bud said...

listen ace........you a yankee fan.....we ain't friends........got that??


i don't associate with scum sucking cockroaches...........just saying you despise the yankees isn't enough ...........you have to prove it with a post on the evil empire


that's ok though..........you switched...........you're a fag now.......nuthin wrong with that.........oh wait.............there is something wrong with suckin A-fraud's cock..........like the 50k scumbags were all weekend

Bud said...

Bman .........do you want position limits on oil ( commodity ) futures..............or do you want pension funds to be barred by law from trading them ??


article in the wsj over what the CFTC wants is scary......gary genzler sounds like a member of the soviet politburo

Bunkerman said...

Both sound correct to me, Bud.

Position limits get the Street under control and the derivatives indirectly; and pension funds should not be doing that on any grounds.

Control the rich & powerful, let the common man do anything.

Bunkerman said...

Populist libertarianism is the right way.

Bunkerman said...

Actually, the SEC should break up the big Street firms into being EITHER a broker OR a dealer. No crossing the line to eat one's own clients.

A new, stronger Glass-Steagal is needed.

Bunkerman said...

credit default swaps should be banned or regulated by making the seller put up t-bills for the full risk.

Owners of credit swaps who own the bonds should be barred from voting in reoganizations, etc.

Bunkerman said...

btw my comment re position limits applies to all commodity futures.

Frosty said...

Bunky...your heros at the SEC may have engaged naked short selling...stock borrow rather tight in some areas...perhaps the last push in this rally the final clean up?

Frosty said...

Vinny Farrell must read the blog...is he invited on the fishing trip?....any truth that your hero ben bought the 7yr in the open market after last weeks action, $75 large on the long end this week, nonono worries.

Spin-em said...

shutup and take your medicine azzhead.......cryin bitch

mfl59 said...

Bunkerman is nuclear war bullish for stocks?

Bunkerman said...

uh mfl ... isn't it a bit early to be hitting the keg ?

Bunkerman said...

why would Ben need to buy the 7 yr - it got great demand at teh aution.

btw, remember the Fed often makes purchases on behalf of foreign central banks.

Bunkerman said...

the world must be getting back to normal: the Yankees have the best record in baseball, the Red Sox are choking and the Cleveland Indians are languishing near the cellar.

The stars are aligned again.

Hmmm I wonder if Yankee domination is correlated to bull markets ?

early 1920s. 1950s. early 1960s.

Frosty said...

why would Ben need to buy the 7 yr - it got great demand at teh aution.

uh because he agreed to come in and buy after...that is what created the demand...gesh, like talking to Bud.

Bunkerman said...

uh frosty ... have you seen black helicopters ?

If not, leave the conspiracy to a pro like me.

;)

Frosty said...

LAMOO...well played sir...well played indeed.