MAD Macro - Bridges Are Falling Down, My Fair Lady
Bridges Are Falling Down, Falling Down
The Orange Mad King I Wins Again
I normally like to start out with the funny stuff. Sadly, the Baltimore bridge collapse is the big story today. It’s not being reported yet, but it seems crazy that this was an accident. Piloting a huge container ship leaving the Baltimore Port under a major bridge is not handled by rookies. The video of this ship shows it making a direct hit. It’s not like it bumped the bridge, it hit it head on. The loss of life is very sad but this is also a major infrastructure disaster. I assume one of our major ports will be closed for months and the wonderful traffic in Baltimore will be even more wonderful. Disasters first hurt the economy and then help it. I wonder, is this Jay Powell’s chance to ease without it looking political? Next, the bridge needs to be rebuilt. It’s great that we have the Tin Man’s Infrastructure Act of 2021 to help. Oh wait, the Infrastructure Act makes it almost impossible to build anything due to the crazy regulations. Oddly, there is a good opinion article in today WSJ on the Infrastructure Act’s crazy regulations, linked here. The opinion article is titled “Buy American, Build Nothing”.
Now the funny stuff. Regular readers know that one of my major problems with the Orange Mad King I is cheating on the golf course. Well, no surprise he won two more club championships last weekend at his own club. It was a stroke play tournament and he could not play the first round so they used his score from when he played last Thursday. I guess it’s nice to make your own rules at your own club. It’s very funny that Jack Nicklaus awarded the trophy to the Orange Mad King I during the award dinner. The club championship scam is very funny. The Orange Mad King I now has 15 golf clubs around the world. By the way, that’s over the 14 club limit, another USGA rules infraction. At all of his clubs as you walk into the entrance, you are likely to see two things. First, a large club championship trophy prominently on display with the very first winner, surprise, the Orange Mad King I. The other thing you are likely to see is a large portrait of the Orange Mad King I. Now I actually don’t mind the fact that he wins the first club championship. He built the place so he should be allowed to win before there were any other members. That’s fair. Now for the portrait and the gold fixtures, the clubs might make more money without them. Of course, after Truth Social opens for trading today under the ticker DJT, money is no longer a problem. Boy, Elizabeth Warren will be back on the war path after the Orange Mad King I. There must be some way to outlaw the crazy public markets. No one should be allowed to become an overnight billionaire, especially the Orange Mad King I.
Markets are due to open higher today. Maybe traders think Jay will ease because of the bridge collapse. Or maybe everyone is excited to see the higher opening for Truth Social. Bitcoin was the big market mover yesterday. It is back above the 2021 high of 68,880 and testing the recent highs.
I updated the U.S. Dollar Index, U.S. 10yr yield, WTI crude oil, spot gold, bitcoin, S&P futures and NASDAQ 100 futures charts below.
The dollar and interest rates are slightly lower.
Crude oil is unchanged and gold is higher, testing $2,200 again. Bitcoin is unchanged after rallying 7% yesterday.
S&P and NASDAQ 100 futures are higher and could test the all-time highs again.
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Unless otherwise stated, Bloomberg is the source of all data and charts.
S&P 500 futures are a type of derivative contract that provides a buyer with an investment priced based on the expectation of the S&P 500 Index’s future value. Nasdaq 100 futures are commodities futures products traded within the equity futures sector. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil is a benchmark used by oil markets, representing oil produced in the U.S. Brent Crude Oil is a blend of crude oil recovered from the North Sea in the early 1960s, whose price is used as a benchmark for the commodity's prices. The U.S. dollar index (USDX) is a measure of the value of the U.S. dollar relative to the value of a basket of currencies of the majority of the U.S.'s most significant trading partners. UBS Bloomberg Constant Maturity Commodity Index is a total return rules-based composite benchmark index diversified across commodity components from within specific sectors.
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