Energy Stocks Are the Best Contrarian Bet You Can Make Today

"Wool production, Cactus? You guys have sheep here?" I asked.

"Ha ha ha. Now that's funny!" Cactus said. "OOOL production, Steve. No 'W.' Or as you say, 'OY-EL.'"

West Texas is only a short plane ride from Florida. But as I found out firsthand, it feels like a different world.

Yesterday, I explained what I learned when I visited my friend Cactus last month. I wanted to see the worst energy bust of our lifetimes firsthand. And I left Texas as bullish as I've ever been on an investment idea.

That's because major booms tend to happen after dramatic busts. And that's where we are in the energy market right now.

Mission Creep or Creepy Mission: The New York Fed’s Trading Desk Has Ballooned to $6.59 Trillion Today from $576 Billion in 2008

By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: December 11, 2020 ~

Few Americans are aware that the central bank of the United States, the Federal Reserve, has its own trading desk in New York that interacts every business day with the trading desks of the giant Wall Street banks.

When Americans think of massive trading operations, names like JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS and Citigroup come to mind. But if we measure trading desks by the value of their portfolio holdings, these global banks are pikers compared to the Fed’s trading desk, operated by one of its 12 private regional banks, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (New York Fed).

Extreme Charts – December 11

Calling the US stock market “expensive” is like calling the sun “warm.” It really doesn’t do it justice.

“Insanely overvalued” is more accurate, as the following charts illustrate:

Stocks are now more expensive than ever versus commodities…

What does all this mean? One of two mutually exclusive things:

1) In the past, when stocks have gotten anywhere near their current valuation levels they have subsequently crashed. So if history still matters, look out below in 2021.

2) If we’ve entered a new, hyperinflationary world where governments and central banks try to inflate their way out of their past mistakes without regard for the impact on price levels or currency values, then stocks might continue to rise in nominal terms while falling in inflation-adjusted terms. In other words, we become a banana republic. Gold, in this scenario, will rise faster than equities so it’s still possible to make money shorting, but only in a pair trade coupled with long gold positions.

My personal story from the collapse of the Soviet Union

When I was a kid growing up in the Soviet Union, it was essentially forbidden to make a better life for yourself.

You couldn’t just decide to go back to school, start a business, or switch careers to a thriving new industry.

And it didn’t matter how hard you worked– you were most likely NEVER going to be promoted. All the top jobs in the Soviet Union were reserved for party loyalists.

The government removed EVERY possible economic incentive to achieve more… which is why service was pitiful, technology was lagging, and the Soviet economy was consistently in the dumps.

4 ways to invest in the growing cannabis market

“It’s a tremendous global opportunity.”

This is what cannabis research expert Jason Wilson shared with Frank’s audience on a recent episode of Wall Street Unplugged.

Wilson works with ETFMG, a company that specializes in creating funds for investors who want to focus on a particular industry. And it’s the leading exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuer behind MJ—the world’s largest cannabis ETF.

Wilson explained, “We’re going to see federal legalization in the U.S… and quite likely in the next few years we’re going to have 40, pushing 50 countries globally that have medical cannabis programs.” 

Blockchain Bites: Record-Breaking ‘Active’ Bitcoin Users as Wall Street Ponders Mass Adoption

Hi all, thought we’d try something different in today’s edition of Blockchain Bites. Yesterday and today saw a flurry of news that seemed disparate and unconnected but may actually tell a bigger story about changing institutional attitudes to bitcoin and crypto, generally.

PayPal and BlackRock executives both said that digital assets could have a much larger role in the global financial system. Meanwhile, NYDIG continues to build out crypto-focused investment funds targeting high-net worth individuals.

This Forgotten Market Has More Upside Ahead

Markets have been breaking out around the globe – even ones that most U.S. investors ignore...

The big catalyst was the positive vaccine news we've seen in recent weeks. We now have not one, but two potential vaccines with a 95% efficacy rate in early testing. And on Monday, trial results came out for a third candidate, too.

A successful vaccine would give us the first hope of a post-pandemic world. It would be a huge win to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and help strengthen our economic recovery.

Simply put, this means we could actually – finally – start getting back to normal. And that's exactly what the investment world – and everyone else – wants to hear.

As the rally kicked off in global markets, one stood out among the rest...

Japanese stocks recently hit their highest level in roughly 30 years. This is an often-forgotten market. But you don't want to forget about it today.

This Simple Habit Will Improve Your Health and Wealth

Dear Friends…

I have a confession to make. I love to eat good food.

My biggest weakness is sweets. I can line up a row of cream-filled Krispy Kreme donuts and mow them down with the ruthlessness of a tin-pot dictator.

I’ve ferociously scarfed down entire tomahawk steaks by myself.

I’ve weathered the withering judgment of waiters asking if someone else will be joining me as I’ve gone ahead and ordered two entrees and two desserts.

And yes… I’ve even been guilty of stashing hidden caches of chocolates, cakes, and cookies the way some alcoholics hide booze around the house.

Food has been my friend, my comfort, and (I thought) my salvation.

After one particularly fierce eating session that covered four pints of ice cream… a quart of heavy cream… 48 cookies… and 20 candy bars, I hit rock bottom… or so I thought.

I resolved to change, and I did.

Nickel in America Is About to Explode in Headlines

By David Forest, editor, Strategic Investor

In many parts of the world, vendors sell things on the roadside. Pulling up at a red light, you can lean out your window to buy gum, phone chargers, even brooms.

But there was one item I’d never seen before, the first time I went to the Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar.

Government legislation.

Driving from the airport into downtown, we stopped at a red light. When I looked up, there was a young man outside holding up printed booklets.

Squinting, I could see the title: “Foreign Investment Law.” The enterprising fellow was selling copies of the newly enacted legislation.

It was probably a good gig…

Back then in 2010, investors were flooding into Myanmar. The place was seen as a gold mine. It had been closed off to the world for half a century. It boasted a large population and abundant resources.

Gold and Silver Melt, or Meltdown?

Since early July, I’ve told my subscribers in the precious metals markets to take a Katusa Free Ride on all our gold stocks.

Thus, all but one stock in our portfolio has a zero-cost base and we are flush with cash.

Is it time to jump in right now?

Before we get into what to do now, let’s do a quick review of the gold market for the last nine months up to September 2020.

Gold and silver were fresh off of multi-year highs…

Retail and institutional interest were at multi-year highs…

And volumes were through the roof.

New buying and market interest led to a large number of new gold and silver exploration companies. Promoters know that when the ducks are quacking, they must be fed.

On the back of a 20% rise in the gold price in 2020, this led to a massive number of financings and raises.

• There was approximately $5.4 billion in resource financings YTD and 28 new gold companies alone.

A Bitcoin whale just shorted $100M BTC — Are big holders expecting a larger drop?

A Bitcoin whale placed a $100 million short on Nov. 15 after various on-chain data hints at a whale-induced BTC sell-off throughout the past week.

A Bitcoin (BTC) whale placed a $100 million short on Bybit, according to the pseudonyms trader CL. It comes after various on-chain data points toward a whale-driven sell-off throughout the past week.

Though the momentum of Bitcoin remains strong, there are many reasons that make $16,000 an attractive area for sellers.

There is significant liquidity at $16,000, primarily because it is a heavy resistance level. But the level has seen relatively high buyer demand, stablecoin inflows show. Hence, the battle between buyers and sellers at $16K makes it an area with high liquidity, which is compelling for sellers.

The Bogus Case Against Gold

Gold is in the early stages of its third great bull run that will take it to record heights.

The first two great bull markets were 1971-1980 (gold up 2,200%) and 1999-2011 (gold up 760%). After peaking in 2011, gold fell sharply from that peak to below $1,100 per ounce by 2015.

Now the third great bull market is underway. It began on December 16, 2015, when gold bottomed at $1,050 per ounce at the end of the 2011-2015 bear market. Since then, gold is up significantly, but it’s small change compared to 2,200% and 760% gains in the last two bull markets.

Still, most mainstream economists dismiss gold. They call it a barbarous relic and say it has no place in today’s monetary system.

But today, I want to remind you of the three main arguments mainstream economists make against gold and why they’re dead wrong.

Big City Exodus: Rents of Single-Family Houses Rise Across the US, Even as Apartment Rents in Expensive Cities Drop Sharply

By Wolf Richter for WOLF STREET.

Like so many trends, the growth in the number of single-family houses for rent, and the increase in rents at those houses, preceded the Pandemic, but the Pandemic has accelerated them. In September, single-family rents across the nation rose 3.8% from a year ago, according to the Burns Single-Family Rent Index (chart by John Burns Real Estate Consulting, click to enlarge):

The steepest year-over-year increases in single-family rents occurred in Kansas City (+7.7%), Memphis (+7.5%), Tucson (+7.4%), Phoenix (+7.3%) and Sacramento (+7.3%).

“Landlords are able to raise rents right now at a rate that is high in normal times,” Rick Palacios Jr., head of research at John Burns, told the Wall Street Journal. “It’s ridiculously high when you put it in a backdrop of a recession.”

Talk about a landslide

Well that wasn’t exactly the landslide we were promised.

Obviously there are a lot of unknowns right now. But regardless of who ends up being declared (or ruled) the winner, there are a few things you can count on:

The nation will remain divided. About 50% of the voting population will be even angrier than before. Conflict will likely escalate, along with peaceful protests.

Governments at various levels, including state and local, will continue to take on dangerous quantities of debt and make financial decisions that are incredibly costly over the long-term.

Raging mobs, whether in the streets or on Twitter, will continue to advocate taking what you have earned, and forcing you to abide by their absurd restrictions on thoughtcrime.

US Seized More Than $1B in Silk Road–Linked Bitcoins, Seeks Forfeiture

The U.S. is suing for the forfeiture of thousands of bitcoins, totaling more than $1 billion, that it recently seized, the Department of Justice said Thursday.

• The seizure on Tuesday, tied to early darknet market Silk Road, is the largest the U.S. has ever conducted, the DOJ said.

• Court documents reveal the seized funds include over 69,370 bitcoin and nearly equivalent amounts of forked cryptos bitcoin cash (BCH), bitcoin gold (BTG) and bitcoin satoshi vision (BSV).

• Prosecutors say an unnamed hacker stole the trove from Silk Road and moved them to a wallet where they sat from April 2013 until the Tuesday seizure.