2012 Commentaries
Deck the Halls with Spoos & Blues, Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la
This will be my last note for 2012, and as such I thought it would be most appropriate to review the one theme we have pushed consistently throughout the year. Yes, you guessed it, the third iteration of our rhyming risk-on refrain: spoos and blues. The origin of this trade idea can actually be traced […]
The BoJ Pretends While the Fed Perplexes
Back on Nov 1st, when the NKY was below 9000, I wrote a commentary entitled “A lesson on how to lose central bank independence”. The note highlighted a “curious additional release” on the BoJ website after their October policy meeting entitled “Measures Aimed at Overcoming Deflation” http://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2012/k121030b.pdf. This statement was jointly signed by the BoJ […]
Chairman Evans?
Interpreting the December FOMC statement is not an easy task. The market is still digesting what an explicit 6.5/2.5 “Evans Rule” really means. Is it bullish? Is it bearish? Is there room to miss? Under what conditions would a miss be tolerated? What are the next steps if inflation dips or unemployment rises? How quickly […]
Forget Gangnam Style - its About Abe Style
The most interesting story on the global macro horizon has nothing to do with the fiscal cliff, US housing markets, Greece, Argentina, Spain or China. This story has been percolating for decades, and an enormous amount of money has been lost by the global macro investing community trying to get it right. The story of […]
Black Friday Comes Early on Wall Street
Black Friday is the annual celebration of American consumerism. The morning after we all sit with our families, gain 5 pounds, and watch some meaningless football match involving the Detroit Lions, we march off to the shops. It starts at 4am as stampedes of fleece sweatpants, college football jerseys and white sneakers swarm through the […]
True Romance" in Washington DC
In Quentin Tarantino’s first film, True Romance, the final scene is a classic Mexican standoff. The mob on one side, the cops on another side and a smattering of criminals in the middle. Three parties all ready to take the others down and get out alive. Its a complicated web of stories that has some […]