Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.
Good morning, everyone, and welcome to a new trading week. The big news, of course, is that a breakthrough in the Senate has greatly increased the chances that the longest government shutdown in history is going to end pretty soon. Assets are up across the board, even though a deal to re-open the government would only be good through January, at which time we’d all go through this circus again. At least Thanksgiving isn’t going to be ruined.
Here’s what the governments around the world throw away on weapons and military. Ya know, life would be a lot cheaper if we’d stop killing each other.
So long as the government stays shut down (have you noticed?), you can expect no data to be rolled out to move equities. All “Tentative” means is that there won’t be data if D.C. remains shuttered. Embrace boredom.
As you surely have heard, SNAP benefits (called “food stamps” back in my day) are at risk of being chopped off immediately since the government is shut down. Below is a map (larger when clicked) showing the percentage of households using this handout. It’s jaw-dropping to me that this goes up to nearly 50%. Does ANYONE besides me (and premium members) work anymore?
This shows the ratio of debt to GDP of various countries. The United States is a proud member of the triple-digit-percentage club.
