The Hun's News Invasion, 11/30
November 30, 2009
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Almost every week day, I read a large number of news articles from a number of publications. I collect them and store the content in a little "database" I have, so I can retreive them at a future data. Since I do this most days regardless, I've thought about sharing this content in various places online.
Today, my friends, CAPS shall get its first dosage of the Hun's news invasion!:
"Dubai Crisis is Arab Economy's Opportunity"
Link - Market Watch
Article about Dubai, disparities of wealth, and how the Middle East seems to be more characterized than most regions by a lack of a middle class.
"How China is Overbuilt"
Link - The Economist
There have been a lot of articles popping up lately about a potential Chinese bust. I'm becoming more and more convinced that not only is this a possibility, but that it also may be the flame that ignites a second leg of the Great Recession. Fwiw, I largely agree with the hypothesis that China is overbuilt and that much of the growth is an illusion. How this should be translated into an investment perspective - I'm not so sure. Remember, China has relatively low debt and can afford to continue the mirage so long as foreign capital pours in and so long as they can continue to fund massive building projects that aren't necessarily economically productive. Remember, the Soviet Union didn't die in a day and the US has been on a reckless path since the Reagan Administration, but it took awhile for the consequences to be unleashed. All the same, there's enough about China right now to make me fear that a bust could come sooner rather than later.
"Brazil to Keep Real Near 1.7 USD"
Link - Bloomberg
Conversely, I'm more of a believer in the Brazilian growth story than the China one.
"Buyers Take a Pass on Some Failed Banks"
Link - Wall Street Journal
Good article on how some of these banks are so weighted down by junk, that no one even wants to buy them with large FDIC guarantees.
"Remaking St. Charles in the Shade of Green"
Link - Washington Post
I found this little gem buried in the WaPo's local news section today. It's interesting, but it also seems a bit strange. Essentially, the community of St. Charles, MD is taking dramatic steps to become a "green community" because they believe this will be good for business. If you read between the lines, you can translate this into 'people want their property values to go back up.' What makes this bizarre is that St. Charles is an deeper suburb over 20 miles away from Washington, DC and a bit isolated from most of the DC's regions job centers. There is no Metro rail access any where near St. Charles, either. So, I find it interesting that a community that is basically full of people that will use vast amounts of oil for daily commuting will try to bill itself as "green." I have no real comment on whether this is good or bad --- just found it interesting.
Chelsea Clinton Engaged to Banker
Link - BBC
Finally, I saved the best for last. I briefly glanced over this headline and almost decided not to read it. But I thought it would be alright to take a little guilty pleasure and read about Chelsea Clinton's engagement. Turns out, instead of being the nothing article I expected, it actually is one of the most (unexpectedly) insightful articles on the relationships of the Clintons I have ever read. Chelsea is marrying a banker --- and not only a banker, but a Goldman Sachs banker! Does anyone else find this aristocratic class forming right before our eyes to be a bit surreal? But wait ... there's more! The banker's father was a politician who served time for bank and wire fraud! So just in case you had any doubts about the ethics of our American aristocratic families --- you have another inkling that should destroy that.
That's all for now! Have a good day.
If you'd like to see more Hunnish news invasions, maybe I shall consider make it a semi-regular feature.
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