Landlords and estate agents who are competitors to the quick-fix companies are sceptical about the services they offer. John Socha, vice-chairman of the National Landlords Association, who is leading a campaign to stamp out these schemes, says: 'These companies take advantage of people when they are at their most vulnerable. Many of them have large debts and in some cases are about to have their homes repossessed by their lenders for months of mortgage arrears.' - Christopher Browne: guardian.co.uk
by Chuck Butler
And now...today's Pfennig!
Good day. And a Happy Friday to one and all! Well, if you
thought you heard me screaming at the walls earlier in the week, I'm certain
you're hearing me now! More examples of demented trading thoughts and some
interest inflation reports to talk about today before we head off to the West
(Southwest for me) for the weekend.
First of all, new home sales in the
I heard some pundits say that the dollar rallied because the
median house price edged up 0.3%, but Holy Home Sales, Batman, isn't this a
significant slowing from the recent rapid pace of increase? Correct,
Robin. In fact, the number of homes on the market at current selling
rates (a measure of supply) rose relative to last month’s level and currently
stands at 6.5 months at the current sales rate. This level is the highest since
November 1995.
This news should have been very negative for the dollar,
especially following up on the existing home sales falling 4.1%. But Noooo! To top off the awful looking data, durable goods for
July fell more than was expected. Durables fell 2.4% in July, but once again
the spin-doctors placed their imprint on this report too, taking out the
transportation piece that fell 9.7%. They said that durable goods gained during
the month. What? Of course, last month when the data for durable goods orders
printed, the spin-doctors lauded the 7.1% increase in transportations. But
since it didn't suit them this month, they decided to take it out.
When is the American public going to put their foot down and
say? When will they stop accepting trumped-up data? Probably
never. So, with each report I sit here and point out the discrepancies,
but nobody cares. Or I should say, the markets don't care!
So, to recap yesterday's events: We had an awful showing in durable goods and
new home sales, but the dollar rallied. Give me a break!
OK. For some inflation reports. Two
Big Kahunas have reported their latest consumer
inflation reports overnight.
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The yen got sold on the report, but I doubt seriously this
changes anything with regard to the Bank of Japan's plans to raise interest
rates on a quarterly basis. So, look at the yen sell off for what it is:
nothing more than providing cheaper levels to buy!
Now,
Anyway, 2.2% with a falling oil component isn't going to
scare the ECB one iota. They are not going to fall for a “Norman Greenbaum” oil component, and 2.2% is still above their
ceiling target of 2%. However, the euro has been sold since the report printed.
What are these traders/investors thinking about? Oh, by the way, in case you're
wondering who/what a Norman Greenbaum is, it's a
reference to a "One Hit Wonder" - Spirit In The
Sky.
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OK. So, the good finish to the week I thought would be going
on, isn't. In fact, it's the exact opposite. I'm
shaking my head. I've already screamed at the walls. I've got to stop though,
because I don't need my blood pressure to go higher! All I can say is that I'm
still holding onto the thought that this trading pattern is put to bed once
everyone gets back to their desk after Labor Day.
Big Ben Bernanke speaks today.
This ought to be interesting, eh? Big Ben is attending the Annual Big
Boondoggle at
I think the markets will be listening for any "Hawkish
Tones." If he gives us some, or the markets perceive him to have given
them some, the dollar will remain in rally mode. If he doesn't, the dollar
could be sold.
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Two currencies that haven't gotten caught up in all this
“dollar buying” are the pound sterling and the Canadian dollar/loonie. Both of these currencies have been underpinned this
week by data that suggests each respective central bank has more rate-hike work
to do.
So, on that piece of good news, I'm going to head to the big
finish. At least I can feel good going into the weekend about those two!
Currencies today: A$ .7610, kiwi .6360, C$ .9045, euro
1.2775, sterling 1.8905, Swiss .8075, ISK 70, rand 7.1350, krone
6.3150, SEK 7.22, forint 217.19, zloty 3.07, koruna 22, yen 117.10, baht 37.60,
sing 1.5775, INR 46.55,
That's it for today. I sure hope this weekend slows down a bit so I can enjoy it! It's a Cards/Cubs weekend at Busch Stadium, and I don't have one ticket! Ugh! We actually had a full desk most of this week, which is pretty cool when that happens! I've got the con on the Pfennig Monday and Friday of next week, Chris will have it the remainder of the week. So, have a great Friday and week!
Chuck Butler is the senior vice president of EverBank World Markets. He oversees the trading desk and
operations for over 12,000 individual and corporate clients, both in the
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Chuck is the author of The Daily Pfennig, which is reposted here at The Daily Reckoning. His respected analysis is frequently quoted in or referenced by: the Wall Street Journal, U.S. News and World Report, CBS Market Watch, USA Today, CNNfn, the Chicago Tribune and many other publications.
Posted:
Source: dailyreckoning.com
are threatening to take resale prices down with them
after more than a dozen record-setting years in a row.
Jerry W. Jackson: Sentinel Staff Writer.