A FULL two percentage points of US third quarter growth of 3.5% was down to stock building. Total US inventories grew by $76bn in Q3 following a $37bn contraction in the second quarter. The fourth quarter is always a period of destocking in the US and everywhere. This will combine with the big build-up in […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Stock Markets: Real Implications For Petchems and Risks Of A “Cynical Bubble”
By John Richardson WHEN stock markets are rising, the proverbial garden can look as if it is blooming with summer flowers without a weed in sight. But the underlying data suggest wealth inequality is still a major issue in the US, with the inequality creating iconoclastic politics in the US that continue to threaten a […]
The Real Economies Set To Dominate Q2
By John Richardson Sometimes a picture is worth many thousands of words. The above chart, supplied by one of the blog’s resources analyst contacts in Perth, Western Australia, neatly illustrates the dangerous divergence between real ecoomies and financial markets. As the Nikkei 225 has surged, Arabian Gulf very large crude carrier (VLCC) freight rates to […]
Place Your Bets – Who Is Right?
By John Richardson DOW Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris said in a 27 July conference call that China’s industrial economy was still doing very well. “They’re managing themselves down very nicely,” he added, pointing to official GDP growth numbers of 8-9%, which translate into chemicals and plastics growth of 12-13%. “We’re not seeing any issue here […]
How long can bear-market rallies last?
The current run-up in equities might go on and on – perhaps even for several years, according to economist Russell Napier. But he warns, in this excellent video interview with FT journalist John Authers, that an extended boom in equities doesn’t necessarily mean the economic fundamentals are sound. For example,the stock market rally after the […]