Morning all,

Up bright and early this morning for another stint on Sky Biz talking about the Japanese stimulus being a game changer, a bit like the Super Mario “Whatever it takes” moment. It is. Let’s face it if every Central Bank in the World was handing out free money what would you do with it..would you blow it on sex and drugs and loose women, or would you waste it…well that’s what is happening in Global Markets. The Banks are handing out free counterfeit money for everyone to go play with and play they are. The problem is that with this give away going on it does distort things just a tad. It is creating a big bubble. Now the thing about bubbles is that they get way bigger than anyone really things and of course when they go pop there is therefore a much bigger mess to clear up.

Expect to see our market push ahead again today..yesterday’s Unemployment numbers have put rate cuts back on the agenda..I do not believe it will happen but good for the punters to talk about..let’s face it all these numbers are not designed to give a clear definitive indication of the state of the economy ..they are just designed for people to punt on…without volatile numbers and differing opinions then the financial markets would be dead!

Idea of the Day

I am starting to push the resource stocks more..now I don’t mean that the Banks are a sell ..not at all…if you are long already, then happy days, hold on take the divs and the franking, sit back and enjoy a cocktail in the sun. BUT the value is shifting towards resources..Iron Ore has not collapsed and the big guys do control the price to some extent as they toy with the $250bn worth of projects in the pipeline…if they turn off the capex then they will keep the price up but volumes will fall if they increase production and capex then the price will fall..a delicate balancing act indeed but one big resource company, actually two if you count BHP and Olympic Dam, have shown that they will can big projects if the numbers don’t stack up…WPL cans its Browse basin project worth $45bn..So the time is nigh for nibbling away at BHP and RIO plus maybe FMG and AGO if the price is right..they have been oversold and deserve better!!

Not time for all in trades but accumulate on weakness..this sector will turn at some stage and then it will be savage!!

Things to make me go all Winklevii!!

1.Last night news emerged that the Twin Winklevii had amassed a quite large position in Bitcon! Now you will remember that this is a fantasy currency made up at the stroke of a keyboard which trades on an exchange and has no backing in any hard asset, bit like the US dollar really. The Bitcon market which has rallied from $50 a coin to $250 in the last few weeks collapsed last night losing nearly 50% overnight as everyone worked out that it was a bigger scam than the Tulips of Amsterdam! Now the Vinklevii are the two US Olympic rowers in the Facebook movie and story..they do get around don’t they.

2.I cannot fathom this one out… Spain – 4000 km of high speed rail, 10 years to build; China, 18000 km of high speed rail, 10 years to build; Australia, 1700 km of high speed rail, 45 years to build. Are you serious..45 years to build a railway through the pretty Aussie Bush…come on you’re joking right? Right?

3.Now the big story this morning is WPL pulling the pin on the Browse Basin project $45bn due to being uncommercial to build…high labour costs, high Aussie dollar and environmental concerns…this is Olympic dam Mk2…the opposition will have a field day on this one and may be able to deflect the criticism on its NBN plan…slower cheaper, worse! And not infinitely upgradeable but infinitely maintained…TLS must be the happiest bunnies in the World at the moment..pay us to scrap the copper or pay us to use it…BUY TLS!

4.WPL have killed the onshore Browse basin and will now look to offshore floating facilities. WA Government not such a big fan as doesn’t create anywhere near the number of FIFO bogans to litter the streets of Perth spending their hard earned in the pubs and clubs.

5.Good numbers from the US last night on jobs…but surprisingly the IMF has downgraded the US growth numbers to 1.7% from 2% …whatever……

6. Average cost of a home in England and Wales rose 0.2% M/m to GBP230,078 in March, Acadametrics and LSL Property Services say in report. * Excluding the capital, prices fell 0.1% M/m * London prices rose at 3 times pace of national average. Meanwhile in a Galaxy far, far away… Spanish House prices dropped 9.7% YOY in Q4 2012, its biggest drop on record, taking the price back to 2004 levels.

7. BHP Billiton: Says that the shale boom in the US will spur an industrial revival and transform the world’s largest economy.

8.ACCC chairman Rod Sims has put Labour and the Coalition on notice about promised download speeds for their respective broadband policies, saying both sides will be policed to make sure they are not misleading ­consumers. While Mr Sims would not comment on the merits of the Coalition’s broadband policy unveiled this week, he did say the regulator would be watching to make sure consumers received what they were promised both by both the government and opposition and internet service providers (ISPs).

9.I forget why but I am sure this is going to become an issue.. The cost of caring for dementia patients has reached $109 billion annually, exceeding that for heart disease and cancer, and will double by the time the youngest Baby Boomers reach their 70s, according to a study. More than 5 million Americans have the Alzheimer’s, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, and that number will rise 40 % by 2025.

10. Greek January unemployment surged by 1.7% in one month to a new all time record high 27.2%. More importantly, the number of employed people in Greece, which dropped to a new record low of 3.617,771 compared to 3,888,400 a year ago (and down 11,653 from December), is now nearly as much as the entire inactive population at 3,346,423 and far below the ranks of the unemployed

11.And as a new convert to ‘Game of Thrones’ it is interesting to see how the 7 Kingdoms are effectively run by the money..Lanasters…and they say that a Lanaster always pays its debts…unlike Lehmans that is…anyway real life imitates art as  President Obama is meeting today with 15 heads of the world’s biggest banks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS)’s Lloyd C. Blankfein and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM)’s Jamie Dimon, White House officials said. The group is in Washington for the Financial Services Forum’s quarterly meeting. Lets hope he doesn’t get Boared like King Robert..yeah just finished Season One!! And didn’t pirate it!!! Don’t know how!!

And finally …..from one of my readers so don’t blame me..thanks Don for this gem..

Several men are in the locker room of a golf club. A cellular phone on a bench rings and a man engages the hands-free speaker function and begins to talk. Everyone else in the room stops to listen.

MAN: “Hello”

WOMAN: “Hi Honey, it’s me. Are you at the club?”

MAN: “Yes.”

WOMAN: “I’m at the shops now and found this beautiful leather coat. It’s only $2,000; is it OK if I buy it?”

MAN: “Sure, go ahead if you like it that much.”

WOMAN: “I also stopped by the Lexus dealership and saw the new models. I saw one I really liked.”

MAN: “How much?”

WOMAN: “$90,000.”

MAN: “OK, but for that price I want it with all the options.”

WOMAN: “Great! Oh, and one more thing… I was just talking to Janie and found out that the house I wanted last year is back on the market. They’re asking $980,000 for it.”

MAN: “Well, then go ahead and make an offer of $900,000. They’ll probably take it. If not, we can go the extra eighty-thousand if it’s what you really want.”

WOMAN: “OK. I’ll see you later! I love you so much!”

MAN: “Bye! I love you, too.”

The man hangs up. The other men in the locker room are staring at him in astonishment, mouths wide open.

 

He turns and asks, “Anyone know who’s phone this is?”

Have a great weekend!

Clarence

XXX

 

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