The results of the central bankers’ great experiment with money printing are now in, and they are fairly depressing, as the charts above confirm: On the left are the IMF’s annual forecasts from 2010 – 2018 (dotted lines) and the actual result (black) Until recently, the Fund was convinced the world would soon see 5% […]
Chemicals and the Economy
Most hedge funds not an “alternative” asset class
Warren Buffett is the world’s most successful investor, earning $62bn from his investments by 2009. But if he had instead channelled this money through hedge funds, and still been equally successful, he would have ended up with just $5bn. They would have taken the other $57bn. Hedge funds have thus been the most successful way […]
Buffett says US rich should pay higher taxes
Last year, Warren Buffett paid only $7m taxes, just 17.4% of his income. Now he says rich Americans, including himself, should pay more, in order to help reduce US debt. He notes that: • In 1992, the wealthiest 400 Americans paid 29.2% tax on $16.9bn income • In 2008, they paid just 21.5%, on incomes […]
$25bn M&A surge suggests market top is close
Financial markets are different from other markets. And the way we relate to them is different too. Shops, for example, would never seek to win new customers by advertising ‘Prices increased 10% last week’. Instead, they splash red signs across their windows featuring their ‘new, lower prices’. But sellers of financial products do the exact […]
Top 10 posts in 2009
Blog readers have a wide range of interests. That is clear from the list below of the Top 10 posts in 2009. It also confirms the complexity of the chemical industry, and its fascination. In alphabetical order, it is as follows: • Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble • Companies remain cautious on the outlook • […]
Kerkorian down $650m: Lahde up 1000%: Buffett buys
One of the oldest rules in investment is that ‘When a good management finds itself running a bad business, its the reputation of the business that survives’. Legendary US investor Kirk Kerkorian has just proved he is no exception. Back in April, he spent $1bn on buying a 6.3% stake in Ford Motor Co, and […]
US economy ‘flat on the floor’ says Buffett
Warren Buffett, the world’s leading investor, was quite candid yesterday in his views on the US economy. `In my adult lifetime, I don’t think I’ve ever seen people as fearful, economically, as they are right now,’ Buffett, 78, told PBS. ‘They are not wrong to be worried’. He added that a lack of short-term credit […]
August highlights
Many readers have been out of the office during August on a well-deserved break. I am therefore highlighting below the main postings over the past month, in the hope this will help them to catch up quickly on key developments – please click on the highlighted title if you want to read the original posting: […]
The nudist beach on Wall Street
When you’re the richest man in the world, you can generally say what you think. Thus Warren Buffett reflected reality back in March, when he commented that ‘by any commonsense definition, the US is in recession’. Yesterday, he probably ruffled a few more feathers when he told CNBC that he thought the US economy was […]
Revisions, revisions
Statisticians love re-writing economic history. And a notable example of this has occurred today. US government statisticians reported that the US economy actually declined by 0.2% at the end of last year. Whereas, 6 months ago, they reported it as having grown by 0.6%. Few readers of this blog will be too surprised. Earlier this […]
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