drbubb

High Margin Requirements Are Killing The Silver Market Zero Hedge - 2 Hours ago By EconMatters The CME raising margins for Silver Futures to such a degree that relative to market price, futures multiplier, and physical demand by consumers is just too high has basically killed

BATTERIES (& Condensors) are important Production of Electric Transport Vehicles, Motor-wheels and Super Condensers Supercondensers Ecological clean traction and impulse supercondenser banks are the quick-recharged sources of electric power with long cycle life. The less charging time is achieved in comparison with storage batteries! They are intended for electric power supply to various users of low and medium power to which severe requirements are applied on ecology cleanness, cycle lifetime and readiness for operation. more: http://www.energia.r...rcondenser.html

Nissan Leaf Park it here? You can also think of the Leaf as a storage battery on wheels Solar costs are dropping... Berkeley, CA — The installed cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the United States fell substantially in 2010 and into the first half of 2011, according to the latest edition of an annual PV cost tracking report released by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). The average installed cost of residential and commercial PV systems completed in 2010 fell by roughly 17 percent from the year before, and by an additional 11 percent within the first six months of 2011. These recent installed cost reductions are attributable, in part, to dramatic reductions in the price of PV modules. Galen Barbose of Berkeley Lab’s Environmental Energy Technologies Division and co-author of the report explains: “Wholesale PV module prices have fallen precipitously since about 2008, and those upstream cost reductions have made their way through to consumers.” === http://newscenter.lbl.gov/news-releases/2011/09/15/tracking-the-sun-iv/

U.S. Mint Silver Coins Run Out as Buying at 5-Year High Bloomberg - 5 Hours ago The U.S. Mint sold out of 2013 American Eagle silver coins at a time when investors bought the most metal in five years through the biggest exchange-traded product. The mint’s sales are “temporarily”

Copper is also going nowhere LINK to Mining Stocks? It could be that we will need to see some improvement in Copper and Gold prices before mining stocks will move much

Bonds have rallied / TLT-chart / from 117.50 to over 120, Closing TLT : 120.07 +0.55 Open:120.61 / High:120.70 / Low:119.97 Volume: 5,241,683 Percent Change: +0.46% But stocks have held up well. (they normally travel in Opposite directions) Is this decoupling, or is something else at work? New year re-allocations, perhaps

Remember: The usual thing that happens at the end of a long upwards trend is: Those that have been fighting the trend, throw in the towel. It looks to me that we are seeing some of that behaviour now Having said that, when I look at this chart It is rather easy to imagine a bullish exit from the recent pause. CLUE? If we are getting any clues now from Barratt etc. / BDEV-chart : PSN They are currently suggesting a continuing move in an UPWARDS direction.

Right now, it may look and feel (to most UK people) that a nice Spring Rally may be just ahead in UK Property But that is not guaranteed. I wonder when we will see the Retiring baby-boomers beginning to take advantage of the Obvious huge Arbitrage opportunity represented by the GAP between London prices and Rest-of-UK prices ? I am watching the differential with interest, and also watching UK Gilt Rates creep higher The timing of these most recent moves (rates up, property easing) may not look coincidental in hindsight /see: London Crash thread : http://www.greenener...pic=17186&st=40

Buying at Half price, and eliminating all debt, is a pretty powerful incentive ! Especially when you may have some doubts about future Pensions. Mo : Rt'mov London RestUK L-R Gap Ratio 12: 224,060 438,324 146,967 291,357 298.2% F : 233,252 449,252 149,658 299,594 300.2% M : 236,939 455,159 151,853 303,306 299.7% A : 243,737 464,944 152,815 312,129 304.3% M : 243,759 469,314 152,803 316,511 307.1% J : 246,235 477,440 153,332 324,108 311.4% Jl : 242,097 460,304 151,633 308,671 303.6% A : 236,260 454,875 150,173 304,702 302.9% S : 234,858 456,237 149,719 306,518 304.7% O : 243,168 478,071 151,123 326,948 316.3% N : 236,761 483,709 147,163 336,546 328.7% : Record GAP, & Ratio D : 228,989 464,398 144,953 319,445 320.4% ===== : : Markets have a way of sucking people in at/near the Top ! (I am not guaranteeing that the Nov.'12 Ratio was at the Top, but it might turn out to be.) Of course, the average person will not "get it", until we are well off the highs. And sometimes the intensity is even higher immediately after the top, when some people think they can get a bargain on the first dip Are we now in that sort of market? Let's next look at what one of the Top pundits for Central London has to say.

A break of that downtrend may well Accelerate the slide in bonds / rise in yields

In 2013, perhaps we can embrace an expanded and renewed Mission : READ MORE about this concept in a new Fringe thread

Thanks, 99th. TLT has now rallied back, almost to 120, from the recent low near to 117 - that's nearly 3% TLT : 119.85 +1.06 / +0.89% TLT-120 was support when I started this thread, and it may now be resistance This chart / TNX-chart / suggest that the trend in long rates is still UP

From DrB's Diary... With GOLD DOWN over $13

INFLATION STRESS in Hong Kong Hongkongers' median pay rose by only about 10 per cent between 2001 and 2011, despite property prices going through the roof and food prices climbing steadily. According to the Census and Statistics Department, the 2001 median monthly income for men was HK$12,000. But a decade later it was HK$13,000 - a rise of just 8.3 per cent, and that does not take inflation into account. Women's incomes went up 10 per cent, from HK$10,000 to HK$11,000. . . . The average per square metre price for a property measuring between 100 and 160 square metres in Kowloon went up 3.76 times over the 10 years to HK$154,327. A property of the same size on Hong Kong Island went up 2.95 times to an average of HK$167,939 per square metre. The figure was HK$34,812 for a New Territories property in 2001, which increased to HK$73,228 in 2011. === http://www.scmp.com/...-pc-last-decade Inflation is not the answer. Growing the economy in a sensible way, so that Incomes rise over time, is better. The reason smart government PUSH UP INTEREST RATES is to (amongst other things) keep home prices down, so that there will be maintained some sort of prudent balance between incomes and home prices. This HK government is not doing that - and there will be hell to pay one day. Low end property prices are rising too fast in HK now, and that is building in troubles for many. Buying property is usually a prudent way to protect yourself from rising rents. But now, Buying has become a dangerous way to expose yourself to rising interest rates, unpredictable government policies (and falling house prices.) OTP- on AX

Yes. But it left a gap, which leaves me a bit uncomfortable. Maybe it needs to fill that

Review of Silver and Gold related etfs AGQ / 2x Silver ... update : 6mos AGQ could easily fall a bit further, like to the summer "breakout point" of $40. USLV / 3x Silver ... 2 years : 6mos Funnily enough, USLV (unlike AGQ) has touched the Uptrend line. SLV / Silver etf ... 3 years : 6mos SLV has already touched the uptrend line a few days ago near $28.60. GLD / Gold etf ... 12mos : 6mos The selling is running out of steam. Look closely. The very last low was on LIGHT volume. The selling may be done. And if Gold rises, so should Silver, and the silver etfs.

(From OTP): The SCMP article today on Property Launches... er, ah Sucks. ("Flat launches set to give market a boost") Here's what they should have said: + the 15% BSD is hitting New flats more than the secondhand market, because developers have to sell, while owners of secondhand can JUST WAIT, especially owner occupiers, or those with tenants in their investment flats. And new flats in HK have been overpriced for a long time, the premium to secondhand can be 10-20%, and that's too high + SHKP recognised this reality, and has priced its flats at Wings-2 accordingly, and a price which is competitive with the secondhand market. In fact, the sales of these new properties may force the secondhand market lower, as fresh supply (at competitive prices) SHOULD do. Take out the car park, and consider the other discounts, then the Wings-2 North facing properties were priced at HKD 8,100-8,900 per sf (Gross), depending on the floor, with the lower price being the 6th floor. + One West Kowloon is not selling well because it is not in West Kowloon. It is in Sham Shui Po, next to the "Four Little Dragons." In fact, they should have called the property: "One (Mile from) West Kowloon", or maybe: "Dragon Five", if they were more honest. + High Place, the 76 flat development from Henderson in Kowloon City, had its name mistranslated. It was "High Prace", or "High Price", and is clearly oevrpriced in the present market. At HKD 22,000 psf, I cannot see it selling well.

Using the 2013 Forecast / seeing Gilt-Rate moves in action in the UK:

Henderson Land considers building HK$1mn flats (story in today's SCMP) Chairman SK Lee is considering building $1 million flats in the NT - but he needs the government to waive the Land premiums, so he can build on (cheap) abandoned farmland. (Hey, where's the food going to come from in HK's future?) Meantime, his company is now selling 286 - 433 sf flats at more than HK$22,000 per sf, net. So one wonders how large these $1 mn flats will be. === -OTP on AX : http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/forums/hong-kong-property/threads/149807/$1mn-flats-coming-to-hong-kong?/

Commodities start 2013 with a bang after fiscal cliff deal Business Recorder - 7 Hours ago Commodities mostly rallied last week on investor relief as US lawmakers clinched a last-gasp deal to avoid the fiscal cliff of tax hikes and spending cuts in the United States, stoking optimism over demand.

From the E-Wave thread here

NATIONWIDE is out - down 0.97 % in Dec. N : : 163,853 D : : 162,262 / Figures in the Press Release are Seasonally adjusted UK house prices little changed in December, continuing the trend evident throughout 2012 Price of a typical home declined by 0.1% in December Overall in 2012 the price of a typical home declined by 1%, reversing the 1% increase recorded in 2011 The typical UK home is now worth £162,262 Within England, the North/South divide in property prices continued to widen View our December Press Release here NO BARGAIN, Big Risk (on rising rates): " Housing still appears relatively expensive on a number of metrics. House prices are still around 5.1 times earnings, above the long term average of 4.2. The monthly mortgage payment on a typical home is currently equal to around 33% of average earnings, close to the twenty year average, even though interest rates are close to all time lows. " Most regions saw price falls during 2012 11 out of 13 UK regions saw annual price falls during 2012 London best performing region in 2012 Northern Ireland continued to see largest price falls Within England, the North/South divide in property prices continued to widen View our Q4 2012 Press Release.

Possible LOW in place On Friday, SLV dipped below the Uptrend line, but then clawed its way back above it. It looks like a classic V bottom to me, including the common "scary" opening gap down

EXCERPT: The only issue with this is that the Fed lied. Today, the Fed’s balance sheet is $1.3 billion smaller than it was at this time last year. Last week it was $19 billion smaller. The largest year over year growth the Fed balance sheet has shown since QE 3 was announced occurred on November 23, 2012 when the Fed balance sheet was a mere $48 billion larger than it was at the same point in 2011.

Close for GLD : $160.44 -0.76 (x 10.34 = $ 1,659) Open:159.52 / High:160.635 / Low:158.89 Volume: 19,100,877 Percent Change: -0.47% The day's Low for GBS was: $157.00