Feb 23. US Ten year note gravitates to 2%
–Late in the day Wednesday, April Gold jumped $20 to over 1780/oz, which is a new high for this calendar year and places the high from early November, around $1800, squarely in the crosshairs. Oil also remains strong, with many articles being written about high gasoline prices. No worries though, Nancy Pelosi is on the case: “Independent reports confirm that speculators are driving up the cost of oil, hurting consumers and potentially damaging the economic recovery. Wall Street profiteering, not oil shortages, is the cause of the price spike.” She neglected to mention gold. Or the Fed. Or QE. Huffington Post reports that “Three members of Congress receive threatening letters.” I guess the others must have gotten delayed in the US Postal system.
–The US isn’t the only country with policies that sometimes produce results that politicians couldn’t possibly have foreseen. UK’s Telegraph reports: “The amount of income tax paid fell sharply last month in the first formal indication that the new 50p higher rate is not raising the expected amount of revenue. Senior sources said that the first official figures indicated that there had been “manoeuvring” by well-off Britons to avoid the new higher rate. [There are] …fears it is forcing entrepreneurs to relocate abroad.” Better get Scotland Yard on that mystery.
–France, having more important issues to confront, “…abolished the ‘sexist’ term Mademoiselle from all official documents because it suggests a woman is ‘available’.” [Daily Mail] Just a wild guess, but I’m sure Dominique Strauss-Kahn had a hand in guiding such a sensitive issue.
–Tens in the US closed at the magnetic level of 2%. Today’s news includes Jobless Claims, expected 355k, and 7 year auction.
