January 14, 2020
* Currencies move sideways throughout the day and night…
* Gold gets whacked again! UGH!
Good Day… And a Tom Terrific Tuesday to you! A not so great night, as LSU beat Clemson in the NCAA National Championship Game last night. I say that because my good friend, Rick B. is a diehard Clemson fan… But our Blues won! And extended their new winning streak to 4 games, all at home, with one more home game in this 5-game homestand… I got to my wound center appointment with a few minutes to spare yesterday, and was in and out in record time! Thursday’s visit won’t be like greased tracks but at least I know what to look forward to! So… What’s on your mind today? Mine is blank because of staying up too late to watch the football game. UGH! This is when I wish I had a radio show and could open up the lines for questions… Oh well, The Counting Crows greet me this morning with their song: Mr. Jones…
There wasn’t much movement in the currencies yesterday, and any that existed were moves higher VS the dollar… Gold got clobbered as nothing got better as the day went on for the shiny metal… And since the Data Cupboard was basically empty, there just wasn’t anything new under the sun for the markets to hang their hats on and trade from. And there’s really nothing to see in the Data Cupboard today either… We were supposed to at least see the Federal Budget Deficit, but that print got delayed…
Overnight has seen the trading go sideways, with what little gains the currencies mustarded yesterday being wiped out.. So, we start today in the same clothes as yesterday, with some currencies showing additional slippage..
I said yesterday that the Pfennig would be short-n-sweet, and then went on and on and on… But not today, this WILL be short-n-sweet, because, well, when the markets don’t move, and there’s no news in the markets to talk about, there’s nothing for me to write about… Of course, I could tell you story from my past in trading, or from my past in Operations, or from my past as a musician, or, and I could go on, but I really don’t want to go there on any of those today, so… short-n-sweet it is…
We have seen the Chinese renminbi rally in recent days, as they must have gotten word there that part of the trade negotiation, was that the U.S. would drop the “currency manipulator” tag that they had placed on China previously… This is a BIG deal folks… And for China to get this clean bill of health was more than a good reason to allow appreciation in the renminbi!
The thing I always like to see when the renminbi rallies is that it give the Sing dollar an opportunity to rally too… I’ve explained this before, but I’ll do it one more time! You see, Singapore and China are in competition for exports, and so Singapore allows China to take the lead, and they will gladly follow… so when the renminbi is losing ground, the sing dollar does too, and vice versa…
And if the safe haven Gold is getting sold, because of people that should know better that Save Havens should never get sold, are selling it because the markets think that safe havens aren’t needed any longer.. Well, if Gold gets treated like a rented mule, then so does the Japanese yen… I’ll always contend that yen should not be considered a Safe Haven, but it is… and brother has it been getting sold in the past few sessions…
The U.S. Data Cupboard will have the stupid CPI for December to print today… Besides that there are some Fed Head speakers, and nothing else… UGH! Where has all the data gone? Long time passing…
To recap… Not much went on with the currencies yesterday, they moved higher during the day, and sold off those small gains in the overnight markets. Gold got whacked again, and all the talk is about how there’s no need for Safe Havens, and with that thought, yen gets sold too… The renminbi has been on an appreciation tear, as the “currency manipulator” tag has been removed from the country as a part of the trade negotiation.
For What It’s Worth… I found this while perusing Reuters this morning looking for anything that would catch my eye… And this is what I found, it’s an interesting story at least, about a Gold bar found on the streets of Mexico… you can check it out here: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mexico-archeology/gold-bar-found-beneath-mexico-city-street-was-part-of-moctezumas-treasure-idUSKBN1Z90ED
Or, here’s your snippet: “A new scientific analysis of a large gold bar found decades ago in downtown Mexico City reveals it was part of the plunder Spanish conquerors tried to carry away as they fled the Aztec capital after native warriors forced a hasty retreat.
Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) announced the findings of new tests of the bar in a statement on Thursday, a few months before the 500-year anniversary of the battle that forced Hernan Cortes and his soldiers to temporarily flee the city on June 30, 1520.
A day earlier, Aztec Emperor Moctezuma was killed, or possibly assassinated, according to the native informants of one Spanish chronicler, which promoted a frenzied battle that forced Cortes, his fellow Spaniards as well as their native allies to flee for their lives.
A year later, Cortes would return and lay siege to the city, which was already weakened with supply lines cut and diseases introduced by the Spanish invaders taking a toll.
The bar was originally discovered in 1981 during a construction project some 16 feet (5 meters) underground in downtown Mexico City – which was built on the ruins of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan – where a canal that would have been used by the fleeing Spaniards was once located.”
Chuck again… Pretty cool story, eh? I remember as kids we used to dig up the back yard thinking we would find buried treasure, only to get our rear ends smacked for digging up the yard! There was always a “treasure map” being produced, and our anticipation of being “rich” was always fun thing to experience on a hot, hazy, lazy day of summer! OK… Andrew and Rachel sent us a quick video of granddaughter, Evie, making baby noises… So, cute! She’s 3 months old now… It’s been windy down here, but yesterday the wind died down a bit, and we sat outside for hours enjoying the sun, and warmth… Gladys Knight & the Pips take us to the finish line with their version of the song: Heard It Through The Grapevine. I always liked her version better, for the tempo it had… I hope you have a Tom Terrific Tuesday and will Be Good To Yourself!
Chuck Butler