King Rat

Market ended today -10 pts..  yawn..   Big Deal...

Would have preferred seeing an '8' or '9' before that '10', but its ok.. we're patient.   Sincerely can't wait to turn on CNBC when the market does drop 800pts.  though we still believe they would tell their viewers to 'buy' or 'hold' rather than admit things were bad.

Now even though for the most part, we don't post during weekends, we're still quite active here at A&G, reading and listening to an array of information from a wider array of sources.  And among the psychobabble and pollyanna optimism, one quote in particular from one professional rat Investor stuck in the mind (or rather, stuck in the craw):

"Never let reality get in the way of making money."

What did he mean?  A few things actually.  First, that no matter how bad the economic news coming from Europe or Asia or even the good ole USA, if stock prices are going up, does it really matter?  And if the rats to the left & right are ignoring, you do so as well.  He also meant that ultimately it really doesn't matter to a professional Investor if a nation is crumbling or its populace is suffering.

Profit- nothing else matters.  Fear is a money-making opportunity.

Let's take the situation with Iran as an example.   Today, the European Union with immense US pressure behind it, banned the purchase of Iranian oil which caused Iran to threaten to retaliate by closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's crude is transported.

Let's put aside politics and the 'right-wrong' argument to look at this through the eyes of a sociopathic Investor rat or floor trader.  He/she is salivating at the thought of rising tensions.   Lickin' them chops at the profit to be made on investment of crude oil.  Just based on today's news alone, oil went up $1.53 to close at $99.86.

So let's say a professional investor has just invested $100k into oil based on that price.   What do you think he/she wants-  tensions to be soothed n' smoothed?   The price of oil to go down??

Doesn't matter to an investor that closing the Strait will cause gas prices to spike to possibly $5/gal or more, especially if the action is prolonged.  Doesn't matter that food prices will spike as well and that could lead to civil unrest in some nations, like in Egypt and Tunisia last year.  Just means a good time to invest in corn, wheat and other edible commodities.  Doesn't matter that a dramatic increase in the price of oil would cripple the global economy and hundreds of millions, if not billions of people would be hurt..

Nope. To an investor, its a single minded focus--  Buy today at $99.86 and hope it spikes to $150 or $200/barrel so they reap enormous profit for their sole benefit.

When you turn on financial news or hear someone extremely wealthy who made their money through investing, you should not have any admiration or respect for such vermin. Soft words and expensive threads doesn't cloak who they are--  rats.  Honestly--  you're heart should be filled with hate toward such 'things'.  For they, more than banks, financials and even corrupt politicians, are the cause of many of the problems we still are facing today.

Doesn't matter the background-  black, white, hispanic, asian... Christian or Athiest.. global investors are simply rats.   And they, the rat Investors are the "royalty". All nations, financials and corporations- in debt far beyond reasonable means of repayment and Desperate for new injections of money.. they all bow and pay homage.

This is the reality of things in the modern world.

"China Inc." Deal Premiums.......

Another way to recyle the greenback.... The race to hard assets is speeding up.....Unfortunately China´s deal ethics are more than often non existent & inhuman ( see Oil for China, Guns for Darfur / China and Sudan Fact Sheet ) UPDATE: Says China should buy gold, natural resources, U.S. land

Auch ein Weg wie man die ungeliebten und im Überfluß vorhandenen US $ Bestände wiederverwerten kann..... Die Flucht in Hard Assets wird weltweit sicher noch zunehmen.... Wenig überraschend ist China auf dem Weg zum Ziel im Zweifel jedes Mittel recht ( siehe Oil for China, Guns for Darfur / China and Sudan Fact Sheet ).....UPDATE: Says China should buy gold, natural resources, U.S. land



Is China Inc. Overpaying in Its Merger Deals? WSJ Deal Journal
Deal makers know that to succeed you have to make your assets speak louder than your liabilities. China Inc. is learning that lesson.

Just look at Sinopec’s bid to acquire Swiss oil company Addax, which has a big presence in Africa. The price that China Petrochemical Corp., the Chinese state-owned oil company known as Sinopec, is offering is much higher than usual for the sector, analysts say.

Sinopec’s offer is equivalent to $34 a barrel of proved reserves and $14 a barrel of proved and probable reserves. The African transaction average in 2007, when the average crude price is similar to current prices, was $14.40 a barrel for proved reserves and $9.90 for proved and probable reserves, respectively. On a proved basis, the 2007 average suggests $3.1 billion total value for the deal. Therefore, $7.2 billion implies a 135% premium.

The deal also shows China’s willingness to take risks, as Sinopec would gain a presence in oil-rich but politically sensitive Iraqi Kurdistan as well as offshore West Africa, one of the hottest sectors of the oil world but one that includes Nigeria, where local militants continually harass drillers.

Already this year, Chinese companies have notched 10 deals in the oil & gas space. The total number of oil & gas deals in all of last year was 14

This Sinopec deal, if completed, would be the largest overseas takeover in China’s M&A history in natural resources The deal also would boost the value of Chinese oil & gas mergers and acquisition to $12 billion, up 80% from the same period last year.

> Add this number to the mix ( via WSJ )

> Um das Bild abzurunden sollte man die nachfolgende Summe ebenfalls miteinbeziehen.....

Over the past half-year, China has proffered more than $45 billion in loans to Russia, Brazil, Venezuela and Kazakhstan in exchange for long-term crude supplies.

> Very unlikely that this trend will reverse course......

> Wenn man jetzt noch die Reaktion der kommenden "Elite" mit berücksichtigt halte ich es für extrem unwahrscheinlich das sich dieser Trend demnächst ändert...... :-)

Dennis Gartman

As we reported here, Geithner’s attempts to reassure Beijing authorities that the US government was still upholding a strong US dollar policy were met with loud laughter by an audience of students at Peking university.

Got GOLD....?

Crude politics: Oil policy changes and protests

WOW! The FT has a fantastic interactive map. I think it is a must see! Especially when i´m right and the only positiv catalyst that could prevent the market ( temporarely ) from falling further will be a falling or at least stable oil price......

Genial! Die FT hat sich selbst übertroffen. Sollte man meiner Meinung nach dringend gesehen haben ! Das gilt umso mehr wenn mann wie ich der Meinung ist das der Ölpreis der einzig verbliebene kurzfristige positive Katalysator für die Weltbörsen ist. Nebenbei bemerkt ein ziemlich verzweifeltes und schwaches Argument das von den Bullen ins Feld geführt wird..... Kurzfristig aber immer für eine kleine Bärenrally gut.....


Surging oil prices are forcing governments to reconsider their approach to subsidies and taxation, which may cause more prices rises to be passed on to the consumer. Will higher prices at the pump make a difference to Asia and the Middle East’s relentless increase in fuel demand, eventually tempering oil prices and proving those predicting $200 oil wrong?

Our interactive graphic shows selected protest actions and government policy changes.

start
interactive map

George W. Bush Is A Genius.......

After Market Sentiment & SIVs Explained... :-) comes another typical piece of Britsh humor. This time the topic is "Oil & Irak"

Nach Market Sentiment & SIVs Explained... :-) kommt hier ein weiteres Paradebeispiel für typisch britischen Humor. Thema in diesem Clip "Öl & Irak"



Besten Dank in die Schweiz an Zeitenwende