Author Archives: Darren Marchal

Asian Markets Struggle After Wall Street Losses

Asian stocks indexes struggled on Thursday after a rough day on Wall Street on Wednesday which culminated in losses in all three major indexes. Leading Wall Street’s losses was Snap which tanked 15 percent on Wednesday after reporting disappointing revenue. Tesla shares also plummeted 5 percent after the company’s Chief Executive, Elon Musk, refused to…

Gold Price Drop May Resume As US Data Bolsters Fed Optimism

Gold prices attempted a short-lived recovery but failed to sustain momentum yesterday. The metal probed higher as a reserved tone from the Fed cooled hawkish exuberance, as expected. A reversal wasn’t far behind however as traders digested language signaling greater scope for tightening beyond 2018. That steepened the yield curve and sent the US Dollar higher, tarnishing the…

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“The USD rout continues. The trade-weighted dollar’s depreciation in Q1 was the fifth in a row, with a cumulative 9% drop since the end of 2016. Foreign investors may be finding American assets unattractive amidst unsustainable U.S. budget deficits which have historically been correlated with a weakening greenback. Washington’s protectionist tendencies are also not helping…

Does Government Debt Really Matter?

The numbers on the US Debt Clock are spinning at a dazzling pace. US government debt is now over $21 trillion, $174 thousand per taxpayer. Add another $3 trillion for debts of state and local government on the stack. Unfunded federal government promises are almost $113 trillion, $900,000 per taxpayer, not including another $6 trillion in state…

Even Bad News Won’t Derail This 6% Yield

AT&T (NYSE: T) shares took a beating last week. The price fell after weaker-than-expected first quarter results. The lower price pushed the yield up to a mouthwatering 6%. The company pays a 6% per share quarterly dividend and has raised the dividend 34 years in a row. Some investors are worried that AT&T could run into more difficulties if the federal…

The Great Contagion

Hyperbole is such a vile term. Defined as “extravagant exaggeration,” we are nothing short of drowning in it. What little is left of journalistic integrity is sacrificed daily at the altar of hyperbole. Politicians have raised their rhetoric to such deafening volumes their speech writers are at the risk of running low on exclamation points….