Tag Archive: newsletter

Swiss Rail shares bumper profits with passengers

2019-03-29

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2019-03-29

In 2018, Swiss Rail made a profit of CHF 568 million, 42.5% more than in 2017. Part of the rise was due to higher than average spending on maintenance in 2017. It is worth noting that Swiss Rail receives a large sum from taxpayers every year. In 2018, the company received CHF 3.5 billion of public funding, CHF 2.7 billion of it booked as income.

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Watchdog confirms illegal activity by cryptocurrency firm Envion

2019-03-29

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2019-03-29

An investigation by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has revealed the that Zug-based cryptocurrency venture Envion unlawfully received deposits from at least 37,000 investors. Envion unlawfully accepted over CHF90 million ($90.5 million) in its Initial Coin Offering (ICO) without the necessary statutory licence, according to a statement by FINMAexternal link on Wednesday.

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Is the World Becoming Wealthier or Poorer?

2019-03-29

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2019-03-29

There is nothing intrinsically profitable about either robotics or AI. At the request of colleague/author Douglas Rushkoff (his latest book is Team Human), I'm publishing last week's Musings Report, which was distributed only to subscribers and patrons of the site.) The core assumption of Universal Basic Income (UBI) and other plans to redistribute wealth and income more broadly is that the world is becoming wealthier, and so the pool of income and...

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Dépossession. Des politiques monétaires mortifères…

2019-03-28

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2019-03-28

Liquidity ratio 2015-2017
L’économie du pays est promise à un effondrement. Il suffit pour s’en convaincre de voir la quantité de surfaces commerciales disponibles. En Suisse, près de 1200 entreprises ont fait faillite entre janvier et février! L’information du jour est un non-évènement, puisque annoncé de longue date sur ce site. Par ailleurs, elle ne semble intéresser personne à Berne, dans les « agglomérations », ou autres »Régions ».

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FX Daily, March 28: Brexit Uncertainty Deepens as Parliament is Divided, while Turkey’s Short Squeeze Falters

2019-03-28

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2019-03-28

The lurch lower in global interest rates continue. The US 10-year yield is at new 15-month lows, five basis points through the average effective Fed funds rate. Late yesterday, it appeared that 10-year German Bund yields slipped below similar Japanese government bond yields for the first time since Q4 16, but when the JGB market opened, it the 10-year JGB yield fell a couple more basis points to minus 10, the most negative since August 2016.

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Swiss chocolate consumption slides

2019-03-28

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2019-03-28

In 2018, Switzerland’s population consumed around 87,000 tonnes of chocolate. However, average chocolate consumption dropped from 10.5 kg per person in 2017 to 10.3 kg in 2018, a decline of roughly 2%. This decline reflects last year’s longer hotter summer, according to the industry association Chocosuisse.

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Monthly Macro Monitor: Well Worried

2019-03-28

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2019-03-28

Yield Curve and Lending Standards 1990-2018
Don’t waste your time worrying about things that are well worried. Well worried. One of the best turns of phrase I’ve ever heard in this business that has more than its fair share of adages and idioms. It is also one of the first – and best – lessons I learned from my original mentor in this business. The things you see in the headlines, the things everyone is already worried about, aren’t usually worth fretting over.

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Gold Gains On Recession Concerns and ‘No Deal’ Brexit Risks

2019-03-28

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2019-03-28

Gold in GBP (1 Year), 2018-2019
– Gold gains due to concerns about slowing growth, monetary and geopolitical risks – Increasing possibility of ‘No Deal’ Brexit heightens recession risks in UK, Ireland – Brexit uncertainty is impacting UK & Irish economies; Likely do long term damage – UK sees sharp slowdown in mortgage approvals in February as housing market slows – Gold surges to near all time record highs in Australian dollars at $1,860/oz – Gold in sterling, euros and...

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FX Daily, March 27: Global Bond Rally Continues, Greenback Remains Firm

2019-03-27

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2019-03-27

Overview: The US 10-year yield is trading below the Fed funds target. The two-year yield is trading below the lower end of the Fed funds target range. A warning by New Zealand that the next rate move could be a cut sent New Zealand and Australian yields to new record lows. In Japan, the 10-year yield slipped below the overnight unsecured call rate.

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Pound to Swiss Franc Forecast – Will GBP/CHF rates rise or fall on Brexit?

2019-03-27

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2019-03-27

The Brexit date of 29th March has been delayed to the 12th April or the 22nd May as the EU provide a lifeline to the UK to help them avoid a no-deal scenario. This has helped the pound to rise and has provided some of the best rates to buy Swiss Francs in many months.

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Cool Video: Bloomberg–Sterling and the Euro

2019-03-27

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2019-03-27

I joined Shey Ann and Amanda Lang on the Bloomberg set to talk about sterling and the euro. The media makes it sound like there was a coup in the UK and Parliament has taken control of Brexit. This is an exaggeration. The House of Commons did secure tomorrow to have "indicative votes" on the different alternatives. These votes are not binding on the Prime Minister who as already indicated some alternatives that she will not accept.

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Additional flaw found in Swiss Post e-voting system

2019-03-27

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2019-03-27

A second error in the Swiss Post planned e-voting system has been discovered as the public intrusion test phase comes to an end. The Federal Chancellery announced the need for action and confirmed a review of the e-voting certification and approval process. The same computer experts who discovered a critical error in the source code of Swiss Post’s new e-voting system earlier this month announced they discovered a further security gap.

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When Are We Going to Tackle the For-Profit Monopolies Which Censored RussiaGate Skeptics?

2019-03-27

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2019-03-27

The Dominance of Google and Facebook
We either take down Facebook and Google and turn them into tightly regulated transparent public utilities available to all or they will destroy what little is left of American democracy. The RussiaGate Narrative has been revealed as a Big Con (a.k.a. Nothing-Burger), but what's dangerously real is the censorship that's being carried out by the for-profit monopolies Facebook and Google on behalf of the status quo's Big Con.

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Germany: signs of rebound ?

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

German IFO Indices 2010-2019
German growth may remain subdued in H1 2019, before picking up somewhat in H2 2019 as some near-term risks dissipate.Germany’s leading indicator, the Ifo index, rose in March, driven by an increase in both sub-components: current assessment and expectations.

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FX Daily, March 26: Semblance of Stability Re-Emerging

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

Overview:  The sell-off in equities seemed to peak yesterday, and US indices were narrowly mixed. Traders found comfort in that performance, even though the S&P 500 finished a little below 2800, and took the markets in the Asia-Pacific region higher, except in China, where the Shanghai Composite fell 1.5%. 

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Swiss parliament calls for more online purchases to be taxed

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

Since 1 January 2019, companies abroad making more than CHF 100,000 in revenue must charge Swiss VAT on sales made to anyone in Switzerland. Now the Swiss government has decided to take aim at online platforms such as Aliexpress and Wish, according to the broadcaster RTS.

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Europe and China

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

The US-China trade talks look like they may very well continue through most of the second quarter, despite how much progress is being claimed.  Meanwhile, the tariffs remain in effect, but the market's sensitivity to developments has slackened since it was clear the Trump and Xi were not going to meet at the end of this month.

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On Board Keynes Express to Ruin, Report 24 Mar

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

Gold and Silver Price
Last week, I ranted about the problem with our monetary system and trajectory: falling interest rates is Keynes’ evil genius plan to destroy civilization. This week, I continue the theme—if in a more measured tone—addressing the ideas predominant among the groups who are most likely to fight against Keynes’ destructionism.

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The Media, Mueller, the Big Con and the Democratization of Narrative

2019-03-26

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2019-03-26

Falling for a con is painful. The first reaction is to deny being conned, of course. The second is to blame skeptics for being correct in their skepticism. Here's the fundamental "story" of the Mueller Investigation: elites don't like "the little people" democratizing public narratives. 

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FX Daily, March 25: Monday Blues: Equities Pare Quarterly Gains

2019-03-25

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2019-03-25

Overview:  Global equities have soured after the US shares dropped the most since very early in the year before the weekend.  Asia's sell-off was led by the 3% decline in Nikkei, while Malaysia fared among the best, surrendering 1%.  Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is off for a fourth session. It lost 1.2% at the end of last week and gapped lower today but stabilizing after the better than expected German IFO survey.

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