Big gains in stock markets in US and European Union

 Sahit Muja

Sahit Muja: Big gains in stock markets in US and European Union

European stocks has big gains today,  Britain 2.21%, Germany 3.93% France 4.38% and Italy 6.06%  outweighing real economic news and job creation .

The U.S. economy added more jobs in July than in any month since February, but the unemployment rate  up to 8.3%.
Employers added 163,000 jobs in July, far above the paltry 64,000 they added in June, the Labor Department said Friday.

Investors in the U.S. and European Union welcomed the payroll news sending stocks to a three-month high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 232.95 points, or 1.81%, to 13103.
Wow - lots of sniping on  stock markets. The fact is that no one has any lock on decent ideas for restarting the economy in U.S. and EU - and no one bears all the blame.

The economy in US and EU is clearly still struggling. President Obama did have a veto-proof Congress for his first two years, got his stimulus, most of which went to transfer payments to states for their payrolls, not directly to "creating new jobs"., and spent a year on his health-care bill.

He has been decidedly partisan in his approach to Congress (we all remember his snarky comments about "go sit in the back of the bus", and "elections have consequences, we won"), so  I don't present him as some paragon of bipartisanship or problem solving.

President Obama is just not an economic growth guy,  His entire background and his actions as President show that he is fundamentally redistributive. Because he sees everything in the economy as a zero sum game, where if someone else is doing well, it must be because someone else is doing worse.

That is radically different from how America was built,  it wasn't about tearing down what someone else accomplished, it was about growing the economy for everyone's benefit.

That is what I will be basing my vote on - who can best grow the entire economy for the benefit of the maximum number of people. After all, the best way to protect our social programs like Medicare, SS, and Medicaid, is to have a healthy economy.

The Eurozone unemployment is estimated at 11.1%.
The 17 countries that use the euro are struggling as economies across the region face deepening recessions. Greece, Spain and Italy lead the trouble spots, are threatened with a financial collapse that could tear the 13-year old currency union apart and rock the global economy.

To me the worst joke is how markets went up today as unemployment is growing in US and EU. The investors in US and EU trip over each other to buy a share of this "wonderful economy". So much for investing on long term fundamentals. I'm afraid bad luck in gambling will be the same as playing stock market.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals
New York

Financial crisis accelerated in EU markets fell sharply.

 Sahit Muja

 Sahit Muja: Financial crisis accelerated in EU markets fell sharply.

European stock markets fell sharply today as fears grew that ECB action alone cannot save the euro.To me the worst joke is how markets went up when Draghi made his unfounded promise last week.

Last week, Draghi had promised he would do everything to save the euro, raising hopes the ECB would intervene directly. And now markets are down as Draghi emphasized that ECB action alone cannot save the euro.

Everywhere you look, it is the consumer that lacks money to spend, driving down demand. But as soon as a central bank announces they will inflate some more of people's savings away, investors trip over each other to buy a share of this wonderful economy. So much for investing on long term fundamentals.


Do you folks really think the recovery could start one of these days? By printing more money? It appears that throughout world financial markets "investors" (really "traders") have very short time horizons.

They cheer every central bank move that reduces tomorrow's interest rates, since they are using OPM which becomes cheaper to borrow.
The true investors are being very guarded with their "investments" (aka capital spending and hiring).

The reality is that nobody has the money to pay for credit fueled growth of the last decade, neither the US nor Europe, not even Germany. You do not solve a debt problem with more debt, at some point the debt has to be restructured and someone is going to take the losses, mainly the banks.
This has to end badly.

Austerity is not a destination, it is a path. Handled right, austerity can lead to prosperity if governments and individuals take advantage of it to renew their economies. Handled wrong, it leads to chaos and poverty.

The euro crisis was caused by the reckless spending of southern European countries and the reckless lending of French & German banks.

Reckless spending and reckless lending are two sides of the same coin. The French & German have decided to make only the reckless spenders suffer through austerity to bailout the reckless lenders.

The bailout for Greece was in effect a bailout for French and German banks who held most of Greek debt.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals
New York 

Markets: A $60 trillion global debt will boost gold prices

 Sahit Muja

 Sahit Muja: US Gold

Sahit Muja: Markets: A $60 trillion global debt will boost gold prices.

Printing money is only way out for US and Europe to pay $30 trillion in debt. US and EU can't print gold.
The gold is a safe haven from the inherent risks in global pyramid scheme money system. Gold is safe store of value. Paper debts, paper assets, paper currency, they can all default or deflate tremendously in value.

Paper is the hedge, not gold. When I look at the miserable balance sheets of the European Union, US, UK, Japan and many countries, I know the gold is only safe investment..
If the US government were a corporation, it would be bankrupt. Gold is certainly not a dangerous investment relative to others. Real Estate is still overpriced as are most stocks by many metrics.

There is some $60 trillion dollars of dollar global debt, $30 trillion of it owed by EU the USA. The ONLY way out for the mega-debtors is to inflate the euro and dollar - so inflate they will.
Given that the Fed and other central banks can inflate away the value of fiat money, and government's can print more money.The Federal Reserve has kept U.S. interest rates at virtually zero, with no sign of a hike on the horizon, thereby lowering the opportunity cost of buying gold.

The bankers have made speculators of us all. Thanks to the Fed, the stock market is once again all bubbled up and ripe to pop for the third time in 12 years. Housing prices still have not returned to historical multiples of income.
Albanian Minerals expect central banks in China, India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, EU, US to fuel demand for gold. China is stocking up on gold as it divests itself of its dollar and euro holdings but also is encouraging its increasingly affluent citizens to buy gold.

China will only be buying more gold in the future as it attempts to divest itself of some of its estimated $3.2 trillion in U.S. dollar reserves
To find new deposits of gold, mining companies must invest more in infrastructure and drill deeper into undeveloped areas to find the last remaining of gold.

Albanian Minerals expect that gold prices and demand is expected to increase from lots of factors, from increase in the world population and the decline of the gold production, from devaluation of currencies and geopolitical problems.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals, New York

EU has failed spectacularly Obama is still promising European socialist model

 Sahit Muja

Sahit Muja: EU has failed spectacularly Obama is still promising European socialist model

President Obama is a politician that will pander to any demographic needed to buy their votes. He wants Americans to dependent on the Federal Govt.

The voters figured out they could vote themselves money, socialized medicine, and welfare programs from the treasury by electing President Obama who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them. The number of people that do not pay taxes outnumbers the people paying taxes, this is good news for Obama.

The disgusting rhetoric form our President foreshadows the economic disaster we face.

The euro fell below $1.21 for the first time in two years during European trading Thursday, while the yen was broadly stronger after the Bank of Japan held off from expanding its asset-purchase program.

The reason Europe and US is in such trouble is because they followed the Keynesian textbook.

When economy ran into trouble, US and EU ramped up government spending. They ran huge deficits on programs, millions of government employees, socialized medicine, and welfare programs.

Now the chickens have come home to roost and all they have to show for their government spending is massive debt and high unemployment that will burden their economy for over a generation.

What is unfolding all over Europe and in large part across our very own states that have similar political frameworks - high taxes, high spending and big government entitlements, should be a wake up call to all Americans.

You can tax 100% of the income of the "rich" and it still doesn't put a dent in the spending going on with Obama's administration.
Furthermore, look what is happening at the state level when you "tax the rich" and "tax corporations." They all flee for higher ground.

Instead of getting a piece of the tax revenue, now those governments are getting 0 because people in states like NJ, NY, CA, MD, etc. are all moving away to more favorable states.

The same happens with corporations and entire industries.
Is this not common sense? When you tax people and companies in a way that discourages investment, business and even residency in that tax area, it results in a larger net loss of tax revenue.

Socialism is a rampant failure at every turn, yet folks like President Obama is still willing to give it a try for 4 more years.

The U.S. would do well not to go down this path.

Today, we have $16 trillion in debt, which is more than 100% of our GDP. Thanks to President  Obama's spending,  we're adding debt at a rate of more than $1.2 trillion a year. The US poverty has deepened fueled by unemployment.The US now has the highest poverty rate – ever.  President Obama has failed spectacularly.

Watching the slow-motion collapse of the EU, the American people should learn a vital lesson and respond in 2012 election:

You can't spend your way to prosperity, and the lavish promises of the never-ending welfare state can't be kept.

U.S. voters have a choice between more spending, bigger government and higher debt. = A failed European socialist model — or  economic growth, smaller government and fiscal restraint.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals
New York

The US and EU oil sanctions against Iran to cripple Iranian economy

 Sahit Muja

Sahit Muja: The US and EU oil sanctions against Iran to cripple Iranian economy

 Iran dismissed a US and European Union oil embargo and said it was fully prepared to counter the impact of sanctions with a $150 billion war chest of foreign reserves.
Today the European Union is putting in place a complete embargo of oil imports from Iran .

The United States imposed a new round of sanctions that could punish any foreign country that buys Iranian oil. However, it has issued six-month exemptions to 20 importers of Iranian oil who have significantly cut their purchases, including China, which has openly opposed the pressure on Iran.

 Iran has stated that its oil exports were down 20 to 30 percent in 2011. Iran's currency has plunged near 50 percent against the dollar since last year.
The New U.S. Sanctions on Iran is having, and will continue to have, a very real and negative effect on the Iranian economy and the well being of Iranians.


Iran's bluster and saber rattling means they fear the new round of economic sanctions will work. Iran's government is more afraid of its young unemployed than America.
Tensions in Iran are growing because of  Syria and the Iranian government knows that they are vulnerable to large scale rioting against the government that might finally take it down.

The US should proceed with sanctions restricting transactions with Iran’s Central Bank.
The US should continue to focus on ensuring the safe passage of sea commerce through the Straits of Hormuz, in compliance with international laws.

The Obama's administration finally figuring out a way to get to the Iranians - through the pocket book.
The US will continue to sail into the Gulf at will and if challenged, will certainly dispatch any forces sent to block our Naval forces from entering the Persian Gulf.

A United States carrier goes nowhere without being escorted by a state the art destroyer, cruiser force, radar early warning aircraft, electronic warfare airborne and sea born spoofers and jammers capability and close liaison with in area US Air force assets.

If Iran wants a huge fire in its hand in the Straits of Hormuz, Iran army will be totally destroyed. Let Iran try messing with such a capable US battle force.
The US army technological defense perimeter is beyond anything the Iranians imagines exists. Even a radar evading missile cannot get through.
A shot at a US Carrier by Iran would draw a massive response from the US Navy.

The United States is sole superpower in this planet, no army in the world has a chance, let alone Iranian military junk from China and Russia.
The world cannot be held hostage to the threats of a madman who’s on the brink of arming his country with nuclear weapons capabilities.
Time for the Iranian people to have their own Persian spring and overthrow the Ayatollah's and President Ahmadinejad before the rest of the world have no other option.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals
New York

US, EU and Japan blame China for their failures to produce rare earth metals

 Sahit Muja: Albanian Minerals, New York

Sahit Muja: US, EU and Japan blame China for their failures to produce rare earth metals.

The United States, the European Union and Japan filed a case at World Trade Organization against China over its restrictions on exports of rare earth metals.

President Obama blames China for his failures. Mr Obama how about you work to put in place initiative and drive investment in rare earth metal industry and create jobs in the U.S.

Mr. Obama, it's time to stop blaming others and taking responsibility "Your failures are never your fault, they are always caused by others".

Many Americans don't realize the amount of misinformation that fills their heads. The endless blame for China in the U.S is so popular these days and Obama is sailing with the wind to get some votes in 2012 election.

There is no reason under the sun to continue the dependency on China. The U.S boasts the third largest reserves of rare earth metals in the world.

China says it curbed output and exports to conserve resources and protect the environment. China is contributing tremendously to the rare earth industry.
China, whose reserves only make up one-third of the world total, currently accounts for nearly 90 percent of the total global production.

The 17 rare earth metals include lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, promethium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium and lutetium as well as scandium and yttrium.

Many of these minerals may be difficult to extract and refine, but they are not all that "rare.". The U.S., Russia, Australia, Canada and Albania have significant deposits of rare earth metals.

The U.S, has millions of tonnes of rare earth elements but it would take years to extract them.The US boasts the third largest reserves in the world after China
"Rare earth" is an alternative name for the lanthanides of the elements ranging from 57 to 71 – plus yttrium and scandium.

The elements are integral to modern life, and are used in everything such as electronics, magnets, defense materials, disc drives, hybrid cars, wind turbines, iPhones, flat-screen televisions, sunglasses to lasers and aircraft used by the military.

China controls 90 per cent of the world's supply and has been tightening its export quotas, sparking concerns in the U.S., Europe and Japan .
Environmental policies in the U.S., Japan and Europe has discourage the miners, thereby handing this monopoly to China

The United States and other nations can ramp up production and other infrastructure required for the mining and refining of these rare earth minerals.
Even if the WTO action is successful China will still have a monopoly .

There is no reason under the sun to continue the dependency on China. This is a strong case for returning investment to the United States.
There is a clear and present danger to our national security interest. We can and must supply our own needs. 

China's state-run Xinhua news agency on Tuesday said in a commentary that "Beijing will defend the nation's rare-earth industry, which involves the mining and processing of key minerals used in everything from consumer gadgets to electric cars to defense systems".
"It is rash and unfair for the United States to put forward a lawsuit against China before the WTO, which may hurt economic relations between the world's largest and second-largest economies:.

Sahit Muja
President and CEO
Albanian Minerals
New York

The bankruptcy of Greece is only a matter of time.

 Albania

Sahit Muja: Eurozone leaders only bought some time with Greece's bailout. The bankruptcy of Greece is only a matter of time.

The Greek parliament approved a austerity bill to secure a second $130 billion bailout and avoid default after a day of street battles between police and protesters left Athens in flames.

 

The EU is simply trying to prolong the official announcement so they can contain the damage from the French and German banks tanking and recapitalize some of them that can be saved.

 

The Greek politicians too are just trying to hold on to their posts while they get their exile homes ready.

Greece will keep promising everything to get more writedown,“bailout” and then Greece will elect a new government that will begin the process for default.

 

In the end, Greece would be better off outside the Euro, trading short term pain for a chance at prosperity.

But that won’t happen as long Grease’s government is controlled by the technocrats who work for the Troika.

 

Greece has agreed to the Troika's demands and will get the money. The money“bailout” won't even reach Greece but go straight to their lenders.

 About 80% of the bailout is going to pay off bonds, that are owned by banks in Germany and France.

 

In the mean time they have fewer people in jobs and the way things are in Greece, it's unlikely to get investment to start employing the rapidly rising unemployed.

 

As far as I can see, the spiral of economic downwards will continue for a lot longer.
Most skilled Greeks may leave the country and wealthy people will be getting their money out and escape.

 

The social fabric of Greece is getting torn apart and the country will be left with huge social problems for a long time.

 

Greece need economic growth to pay the debt and that is nowhere to be seen.
They may have to declare bankruptcy.

 

Greece has no industry outside tourism to grow the economy, not a good idea to be on the front page news with riots and violence.

Sahit Muja

President and CEO

Albanian Minerals

New York