Larry Wilmore’s “Nightly Show” is struggling in ratings and could use some attention from Wilmore hosting the White House Correspondents Dinner. …read more
Source: Larry Wilmore missed a chance to boost his show
“Game of Thrones” and “The Walking Dead” have stretched fans’ faith with story lines that have characters magically recover from death or certain death experiences. …read more
Source: These hit series’ play fast and loose with the truth
Ed Welburn, vice president of design, is retiring after 44 years. We asked him to pick his favorite cars.
Podcast favorites: Bernie gets the Axe | Radical Islam in America | Graham Opposes GOP Leader
…read more
Source: Greatest hits from GM’s top designer
The Central States Pension fund is running out of money and seeking government approval to cut benefits for retired union truck drivers.
…read more
Source: 273,000 people bracing for pension cuts
By Tyler Durden
In the aftermath of the recent Valeant and Allergan stock price fiascoes, one month ago we showed that when it comes to 2016 hedge fund performance, it has been an abysmal year for the “smartest money” – something even Warren Buffett touched upon during the weekend – primarily due to the residual clustering effect as over the years hundreds of hedge funds ended up being long the same handful of stocks following numerous self-reinforcing “idea dinners” and quasi-collusive attempts to push up stock prices with coordinate buying. While that generated generous returns on the way up, on the way down it turned out into a bloody massacre. The recent plunge in AAPL stock, held by roughly 160 hedge funds as of Dec. 31 (or rather, make that one less after Icahn dumped his shares) only made things worse.
Adding insult to injury has been another widely documented – if ironic – outcome, namely that it has been the stocks which have the lowest hedge fund concentration that have been among the best performers of the year.
This is understandable: by definition the least held stocks are also the most shorted, and since a massive short squeeze has been the chief driver of the market rebound from the February lows, it stands to reason that the most hated names would also be the best performing.
But what is a hedge fund, concerned about FOMO and piling up redemption requests, expected to do in this kind of environment where the general market has once again stormed higher and is returning more than the majority of hedge funds.
As it turns out according to the latest Goldman Sachs data, while the “low hedge fund concentration” stock basket remains the best performing, an unexpected strategy has popped up in the secon post: stock that have a “high hedge fund concentration.”
To be sure, in what may be the most glaring bimodal distribution seen in years, the hedge fund world is now so schizophrenic that only the most and least held stocks are notably outperforming the market.
And what may be the biggest surprise, is the following chart showing just how rapidly the “most concentrated” stocks have caught up to the “least concentrated” ones:
What the red shaded area demonstrates is just how furiously hedge funds have scrambled to double down on the most popular stocks within the HF community in hopes of recovering from losses driven mostly by the short book and the outperformance of the low concentration stocks.
Judging by the most recent HSBC reports, while this strategy of further doubling down on the most concentrated names has helped P&L in recent weeks, the reality is that just like China’s recent massive credit injection, it has merely delayed the risk of a disorderly unwind. If and when this latest batch of super concentrated names goes though another period of price distress and forced selling, it will lead to even more acute pain for those hedge funds who …read more
Source: Two Charts Showing How Dazed And Confused Hedge Fund Traders Currently Are
By Tyler Durden
A lack of intervention in the Yen and strength in EUR have combined to weigh on the US dollar. Bloomberg's USD Index is back at one-year lows as, while overnight chaos sent stocks higher, it has driven investors into the safety of bonds (Treasury yields down 2-3bps) and precious metals. Gold topped $1300 and Silver $18 as EURUSD pushes above 1.1500…
USD Index getting clubbed..
Gold tops $1300…
And Silver hovers at $18…
Source: Gold Surges To Jan 2015 Highs, Tops $1300 As Dollar Extends Slide
By Tyler Durden
In what may be the biggest “self-outing” in years, overnight Australian entrepreneur Craig Wright has publicly identified himself as Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto, revealing his identity to three media organizations – the BBC, the Economist and GQ. His admission ends years of speculation about who came up with the original ideas underlying the digital cash system.
As the BBC reports, Wright has provided technical proof to back up his claim using coins known to be owned by Bitcoin’s creator. Prominent members of the Bitcoin community and its core development team have also confirmed Mr Wright’s claim although speculation remains that this may be merely a publicity stunt.
At the meeting with the BBC, Wright digitally signed messages using cryptographic keys created during the early days of Bitcoin’s development. The keys are inextricably linked to blocks of bitcoins known to have been created or “mined” by Satoshi Nakamoto. “These are the blocks used to send 10 bitcoins to Hal Finney in January [2009] as the first bitcoin transaction,” Wright said during his demonstration.
Renowned cryptographer Hal Finney was one of the engineers who helped turn Mr Wright’s ideas into the Bitcoin protocol, he said. “I was the main part of it, but other people helped me,” he said. Wright said he planned to release information that would allow others to cryptographically verify that he is Satoshi Nakamoto.
Prominent members of the bitcoin community promptly validated his claim. Soon after Mr Wright went public, Gavin Andresen, chief scientist at the Bitcoin Foundation, published a blog backing his claim. “I believe Craig Steven Wright is the person who invented Bitcoin,” he wrote.
Jon Matonis, an economist and one of the founding directors of the Bitcoin Foundation, said he was convinced that Wright was who he claimed to be. “During the London proof sessions, I had the opportunity to review the relevant data along three distinct lines: cryptographic, social, and technical,” he said. “It is my firm belief that Craig Wright satisfies all three categories.”
However, not everyone has been convinced by Mr Wright’s claims and technical proofs. In its article about Mr Wright, The Economist said “important questions remain” about whether he was Satoshi Nakamoto. In addition, many people involved in bitcoin have taken to social media to express their doubts and have called for further proof.
Why Now?
By going public, Wright hopes to put an end to press speculation about the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto. The New Yorker, Fast Company, Newsweek and many other media organisations have all conducted long investigations seeking Bitcoin’s creator and named many different people as candidates.
In December 2015, two magazines, Wired and Gizmodo, named Mr Wright as a candidate after receiving documents believed to be stolen from him that revealed his involvement with the project. Soon after these stories were published, authorities in Australia raided the home of Mr Wright. The Australian Taxation Office said the raid was linked to a long-running investigation into tax payments rather than Bitcoin. Questioned about this raid, Mr Wright said he was cooperating fully with the …read more
Source: Australian Entrepreneur Craig Wright Reveals Himself As Bitcoin Crator "Satoshi Nakamoto"
By Sprott Money
Written by Jeff Thomas (CLICK FOR ORIGINAL)
In the early sixteenth century, the Hunt-Lenox globe was drawn, showing uncharted (and presumably dangerous) areas, marked with the warning: “HIC SVNT DRACONES” – “Here are Dragons.”
Subsequent to that time, mariners sometimes adopted the phrase, “there might be dragons,” if they became concerned for their safety when in unfamiliar waters.
It’s now an archaic saying, yet it’s even more applicable today than in times of yore. There are literally millions of people (particularly in the EU, US and Canada) who are fearful that their country of residence is becoming increasingly less free and less safe for themselves and their wealth. Some are looking into the prospect of internationalizing themselves, but a much smaller percentage actually take the plunge. Why should this be so? Well, as in centuries passed, for many, the reason is that … there might be dragons.
Of course, none of the mariners of old had actually ever seen a dragon, so each one conjured up his own image, and this is just as true today. For those of us who advise on internationalization, here are a few perceived dragons that we hear about repeatedly:
I don’t know anything about internationalization. I wouldn’t know where to begin.
You’ve already begun. Follow the “International Man” website. It has over five years of archived articles that cover virtually every aspect of internationalizing. In addition, obtain a copy of “Going Global.” Go online to research destinations that fit your personal situation. Then, instead of a holiday to Disney World, go to a country that seems to you to be the most likely best choice for either a second home, or even a complete change of national residence. You’ll be amazed at how extensive and varied the opportunities are out there.
Won’t I just end up as a slave to a different country instead of my home country?
Not if you choose your destination well. Many countries are far less invasive to your freedoms and wealth than the three jurisdictions mentioned above. Some, in fact, are just as prosperous and well-developed as your present country, yet have zero direct taxes.
In addition, should you choose to live in multiple destinations, you’d be less “owned” as a visitor or temporary resident than if you were a full-time resident and citizen.
Will I have rights there, since I’ll be a foreigner?
For those countries that fall under English common law, your rights will be almost identical to those of the locals. (This is less true in countries that come under civil law – notably Spanish America and much of Europe.) However, most everywhere, you will be regarded as a guest and, in many ways be treated better than locals. In some countries, you would be treated better by both locals and the government …read more
Source: Fear Internationalization? It Could Mean Financial Security
The latest “Game of Thrones” episode added a fresh twist to the question of whether popular character Jon Snow was dead. …read more
Source: *Spoilers* So this just happened on ‘Game of Thrones…’
Halliburton and Baker Hughes are ditching their plans to merge after the Department of Justice moved to block the oil and gas industry giants from consolidating.
…read more
Source: Halliburton cancels plan to acquire Baker Hughes
Welcome to Esh Carmel Blog.
