Life Imitates Art On Bloomberg News

Just a random thought, but the new reporter on Bloomberg television bears a remarkable resemblance to Louis Winthorpe III from Trading Places. The speech and mannerisms are an even better match than the look. To Adam's credit he actually knows the financial business, which makes him Einstein compared to the anchors Debby and Matt.



Bernanke and Summers can be the Duke Brothers.



And Timmy can be Clarence Beeks.



Life imitates art? If so where is Ophelia? Oh, she is on CNBC. Woof.

SP Weekly Chart Updated

Here is the chart we have been keeping through this decline and now into the bounce.

The bounce will end when it ends. It is a 'false flag' intended to spark a recovery in confidence and the economy. It is fueled by an enormous infusion of liquidity by the Treasury and Federal Reserve into a few favored banks, who are making the bulk of their newly found profits by trading.

The rally cannot be sustained without continuous printing of money. The difficulty with this tried and true monetary approach which has lifted the economy out of the last two bubble breaks is that the financial sector is closer to the heart of the credit bubble than tech or housing, which were just vehicles for the Ponzi scheme.

And the largesse is not being distributed evenly, as relative outsiders like Ken Lewis are finding out. "Not all animals are equal." And not all the pigs have purchased premier positions at the trough.

So, when will it end? On the charts, the area between 1060 and 1100 is likely, since it is in the area of a valid and confirmed neckline. But given the strength with which the SP has penetrated the prior resistance, one has to approach any forecast of an end to a rally like this with fear and trembling, and a generous portion of caution.

Still, our point is not to make a killing for the punters, but rather to help to illuminate the perfidy at the heart of the US financial system. It is truly amazing at how brazen it has become, especially under their token reformer.

The comments on this chart are those that had already been there. All that has been done is to update the chart from July, and to clean it up a bit for readability.

An Opportunity for Purveyors of Gold in London

Le Proprietaire has favored shopping at Harrod's at holiday time for many years, and finds the Food Halls to be a delight. One has to wonder if buying gold bars 'off the shelf' in size such as this indicates that there is a market to be made in London for lower scale purchases.

The Prechterian wave weenies may see anecdotal 'signs of a top' in this, but in general they have been chasing themselves silly throughout this entire multi-year bull market.

One has to wonder if the Harrod's card could be used for this type of purchase. Do they deliver the gold in their familiar green trucks? Perhaps at least provide a reinforced shopping bag for takeaway.

Ah, a ceramic post of Stilton and a box of cream crackers. Those were the days.


Harrods adds gold bars to its luxurious image

LONDON — Glittering bait for the well-heeled shopper: Harrods department store has added gold bars to its merchandise line.

The store announced Thursday that it has joined with Swiss refiner Produits Artistiques Metaux Precieux to offer gold bars weighing 27.5 pounds (12.5 kilograms). The move comes as gold prices have been going through the roof. On Wednesday, they hit another record high of $1,072 an ounce.

Based on Thursday's afternoon gold fixing price in New York, a gold bar would cost about $462,440. Customers can buy the gold through Harrods financial arm Harrods Bank, which is located in the central London's department store (didn't that used to be Lloyds? - Jesse)

"The financial environment has kindled a new demand for physical gold amongst private investors in Britain," said Chris Hall, head of Harrods Gold Bullion.

"Up until now, however, London has had no well-recognized name serving this market," he added.

Many investors believe it is currently safer to invest in gold than in stocks, property, or currencies.

"The fact that a company like Harrods is moving into the physical gold market is interesting ," said Adrian Ash, head of research at Bullionvault.com, the online gold trading company. "It shows gold is moving back into the mainstream, having spent two decades in the arena of cranks and gold bugs."

Mehdi Bakhordar, managing director of Produits Artistiques Metaux Precieux, said Harrods was the only location in London where investors could buy a 27.5 pound (12.5 kg) gold bar "off the shelf."