Markets dissapointed as FED`s Bernanke hints no QE3

Just as expected, no new news came out from Chairman Bernanke today, as he delivered his testimony to the Joint Economic Committee of Congress. He instead focused on reassuring financial markets that FED is ready to act in case of an European financial meltdown and plead against fiscal tightening. As an immediate result, gold plunged by $40 to $1592, and the S&P went down to $1321. Markets need their daily dose of stimulus talk Bernanke!

What about the $15.100.000.000.000 US public debt ?

It has been less than a month since the US public exceeded $15 trillion (a scale pretty hard to imagine without the help of an explanatory diagram). In only 2 short weeks, the figure has been boosted with an additional 100 billion and is not hovering around $15.18 trillion. This amounts to almost 99.5% of the 2010 US Gross Domestic Product and I`m expecting it to reach triple digits by the end of the year. What do you expect: the difference is a measly $70 billion.

The $1.2 trillion deadline: 23 of November

We are approaching a big day, ladies and gentlemen. It is the 23rd of November when US budget committee will have to agree on budget cuts of at least $1.2 trillion dollars over the next decade. The 12 members of the committee, both Republican and Democrats, will have to decide on measures that would curb spending and increase the fiscal intake. While the US public debt recently crossed the $15 trillion yardstick, and the  $54.5 trillion total government debt which includes unfunded liabilities like Medicare, Medicaid and toxic mortgages still held at Freddie Mac and Fannie May still in full swing, it is business as usual in Washington.

One more sell-off before QE 3

Today was one of those days that raise my blood pressure to extreme levels. The risk instrument markets sold off, with the S&P 500 going down 1.55% to $1216 and with Gold crashing 3.14% to what is now $1716. Long term chart damage has been done in both of the instruments and it can be taken as a sign of trouble to come: the utter failure of the US budget committee or the failure to bail-out the insolvent Italy. At this point FED is waiting for a major sell-off in equities before announcing another QE programme.

Precious metals rebound as global uncertainty deepens

Gold managed to break out from its bearish flag formation and sailed right through the $1700 level. Silver, on the other hand, is still within the bearish flag and at the moment is struggling to push through the $33.4 level. For long term investors this is a confirmation of the long term trend in gold and silver (which is here to stay), but for short term investors this may prove to be a good opportunity to reap a few profits by going short.

When the EU tsunami clears out the US debt crisis tidal wave will emerge

Nowadays the media are painting a bleak picture of the European Union debt crisis. The EFSF has been leveraged, the proposed "hair-cut" on Greek debt has been twisted and turned on all sides, without any visible conclusion. Contagion from the perypheral countries (PIGS) may spread out to the more stable countries: Germany and France (which is already on a credit downgrade outlook from Moody's). Meanwhile the US debt crisis tidal wave is closing by without anyone noticing.