09-11-2017, 11:21 PM
At the start of the year, we were surprised when SocGen's Albert "Ice Age" Edwards, the biggest perma-deflationist on Wall Street, flipped his outlook on the US economy, and said he now expected a fast spike in inflation driven by wage growth, which in turn would prompt an even more accelerated tightening cycle by the Fed. We did not see it, and said so, pointing out that the bulk of US job growth in recent years has been among industries that have little to no wage power. More than half a year later, and several months after a puzzled Edwards asked "Where Is The Wage Inflation?", the SocGen strategist has finally thrown in the towel, and in a note released this morning, admits he was wrong, or as he puts it "I was too optimistic", to wit: At this point in the US economic cycle a tight labour market would normally be producing a notable upturn in wage and CPI inflation. This would usually prompt the Fed into a tightening cycle that would typically end in a surprise recession. This is exactly what I expected to occur at the start of this year and I thought it would be that recession that would tip the US into outright deflation ? but I was wrong. I was too optimistic!
"I Was Wrong": Albert Edwards Finds Something That Has Never Happened Before | Zero Hedge
ICOs, or Initial Coin Offerings, are an alternative, unregulated way of fundraising enabled by blockchain technology. Investors are sold digital “tokens” in exchange for their financial contributions, which can then varyingly be used to allow access to the finished product, act as a kind of voting power, or for other purposes. Once esoteric, they’re currently one of the hottest tickets in tech circles. And that billboard was, at the time, one of the most visible examples yet of how even the most arcane aspects of the cryptocurrency craze are now bleeding into the “real” world — accompanying a wave of interest in more “mainstream” digital currencies like bitcoin. ICOs are booming — repeatedly raising hundreds of millions of dollars and overtaking mainstream funding sources. Digital currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are soaring in value, increasing tenfold in a little over a year.
The bear case for crypto – Preston Byrne
What is sustaining copper on its seemingly inexorable march toward $7,000 a metric ton? It's worryingly hard to say. The metal has gained 48 percent over the past year, a standout performance that's the best by some margin of the London Metal Exchange's main industrial metals. Bulls seem to think it has further to go: Investment funds' net long position in Comex copper was a record 125,000 contracts as of Aug. 22, according to regulatory data released Friday.
There's No Copper Bottom to This Inexplicable Rally - Bloomberg
Schools in 45 states have pushed their start times back to fall in line with research that looks at the biological clock of adolescents. Administrators have found short-term roadblocks but long-term rewards for students, parents, and teachers. A greater appreciation for the benefits, not the downsides, of starting school later could help more schools help their students.
School start times are finally getting pushed back — and it's working - Business Insider
This is a guy who knows a guy, a middleman in the black market for Instagram verification, where anyone from a seasoned publicist to a 22-year-old digital marketer will offer to verify an account—for a price. The fee is anywhere from a bottle of wine to $15,000, according to a dozen sources who have sold verification, bought verification for someone else, or directly know someone who has done one or the other. "These guys pay all their bills from one to two blue checks a month," another message from the middleman added later. The product for sale isn't a good or a service. It's a little blue check designated for public figures, celebrities, and brands on Instagram. It grants users a prime spot in search as well as access to special features. More importantly, it's a status symbol.
Inside the black market where people pay thousands of dollars for Instagram verification