Monthly Archives: July 2014

3D Printer Can Now Turn Molten Gold To Jewelry

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“Shapeways, a 3D-printing marketplace and community that emerged from a tech incubator of the Dutch electronics giant Philips, has added precious metals to its material options. As well as 14-karat gold and sterling silver, jewelers – and others – can now work with platinum, 18-karat gold, 14-karat rose gold and 14-karat white gold.   Shapeways said the latest additions means it offers the most options for 3D jewelry printing. The company’s system also means that jewelers do not need to maintain inventory. They can either print the products as needed or sell through Shapeways.  Most of the metal items on Shapeways are 3D printed using a wax casting process.”

http://www.israelidiamond.co.il/english/News.aspx?boneId=918&objid=14642

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China Finds $15 Billion of Loans Backed by Fake Gold Trades

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“Twenty-five bullion processors in China, the biggest producer and consumer of gold, made a combined profit of more than 900 million yuan from the loans, according to a report on the National Audit Office’s website.  Public security authorities are also probing alleged fraud at Qingdao Port, where copper and aluminum stockpiles may have been pledged multiple times as collateral for loans. Steps by the Chinese government to rein in credit by raising borrowing costs in recent years created a surge in commodities financing deals that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimates to be worth as much as $160 billion.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-26/china-finds-15b-of-loans-backed-by-falsified-gold-trades.html

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Leaked paper: EU wants ‘guaranteed’ access to US oil and gas

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“The EU wants the US to lift its restrictions on exporting gas and crude oil as part of ongoing trade talks, according to a leaked document.  EU and US trade officials will hold their sixth round of talks on an ambitious Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) in Brussels next week, which officials argue could be worth €100 billion per year.  At the top of the EU’s demands is for Washington to scrap its requirement to review whether exports are in the public interest before approving any foreign sales.  A number of EU countries have large deposits of shale gas in their own soil, but most have so far been reluctant to start exploiting it because of environmental concerns.”

http://euobserver.com/news/124910

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Russia blacklists 12 Americans in retaliation for U.S. sanctions

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“The Russian Foreign Ministry published a list of 12 Americans barred from entering the country on Saturday after the United States expanded sanctions on Moscow over the Ukraine crisis.  The blacklist included persons related to legalizing and using torture against inmates of the Guantanamo prison in Cuba, and U.S. servicemen involved in abuses against detainees in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq or those who concealed crimes.  In particular, Moscow banned entry for U.S. congressman James Moran, as a response to a similar move taken by Washington against Russian State Duma, lower house of the parliament, deputy Adam Delimkhanov.”

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2014-07/19/c_133496286.htm

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Obama, Merkel Discuss New Sanctions On Russia After Jet Crash

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“President Obama spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the possibility of new sanctions against Russia if it doesn’t take steps to de-escalate the conflict in Ukraine that may have played a role in the shooting down of a commercial jet.  ‘While agreeing to continue efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the current crisis, they reaffirmed their determination to remain in close contact as they consider what additional actions may be required,’ the White House said of the phone call between the two leaders.  ‘They emphasized that Russia bears a clear responsibility to deny separatists in eastern Ukraine continued access to heavy weapons and other support from inside Russia.'”

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukraine-plane-crash/obama-merkel-discuss-new-sanctions-against-russia-after-jet-crash-n159986

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Hungry U.S. Power Plant Turns to Russia for Coal Shipment

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“Utilities in the U.S. are scrambling for coal, on pace to increase imports 26 percent this year. Russia, the world’s third-largest exporter of the fuel, will boost shipments 3.9 percent to 106 million metric tons this year, IHS Energy forecasts, part of President Vladimir Putin’s plan to expand Russia’s role in the global coal market.  The Russian fuel appeals to power producers because it emits less sulfur than other coals, making it easier to comply with environmental rules, and has a high heat content, meaning it can produce more power per measure of fuel, Stevenson said.  In 2012, Putin pledged to spend $120 billion to expand Russia’s coal mining capacity and boost exports through 2030.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-15/hungry-u-s-power-plant-turns-to-russia-for-coal-shipment.html

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The Feds Step Up Utility Growth

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“Federal regulators’ recent move to change the criteria used to calculate regulated utilities’ allowed returns may be a small victory for income investors.  Over the past few years, regulators pared utility profits in response to ultra-low Treasury rates. But investors and energy executives have long argued that these historically low rates are a market distortion created by Federal Reserve stimulus and, therefore, do not accurately reflect utilities’ actual operating environment.  The order in late June by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity in interstate commerce, finally acknowledged this reality.”

http://www.investingdaily.com/20767/the-feds-step-up-utility-growth-2/

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Merger mania returns to 2007 levels

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“It’s only June, but already there has been $786 billion worth of mergers and acquisitions in the United States, according to Dealogic. That’s a lot more than the past few years and not far off from the total for all of 2007, the last ‘big spender’ year.  Historically low interest rates coupled with strong corporate balance sheets — all that cash on hand — are also making acquisitions attractive. Companies often borrow heavily to finance deals, and debt is cheap right now.  But the fact that the stock market is hovering near records also suggests that takeover targets are not cheap.  [And] the reality is that successful acquisitions that really help companies long-term are in the minority.”

http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/16/investing/mergers-and-acquisitons-boom/

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Income Investing When Interest Rates Rise

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“Cash is trash these days because yields are too low. You lose purchasing power after inflation and taxes. You’ll find that on a five-year CD you’re going to earn a little over 2%.  You can earn a higher yield with longer maturity bonds, but investors fear rising interest rates. Once the Fed starts to raise short-term rates (and perhaps before), other rates will rise. That will reduce the value of bonds and bond funds. A modest rate increase will reduce the value of the bonds by more than one year’s interest income.  When you want higher yields than cash and fear what rising rates will do to bonds, consider putting the safe or fixed-income portion of your portfolio in certain types of annuities.”

http://www.investingdaily.com/20770/income-investing-when-interest-rates-rise/

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Don’t Buy Into the Bond Mania

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“You would think a country with a track record like Ivory Coast’s would have trouble tapping the bond market, but this week, almost exactly three years since its last default, it successfully sold $750 million worth of 10-year bonds.  Just last month Kenya sold $2 billion worth of bonds (with orders of $8 billion).  Zambia, Morocco and, less surprisingly, South Africa have also successfully issued sizable chunks of debt in recent months. Ecuador, which last defaulted in 2008, issued $2 billion worth of bonds this week. Rwanda issued $400 million in Eurobonds last year.  My concern at this point is that the bull market in bonds isn’t over yet and is, in fact, approaching a state of mania.”

http://www.investingdaily.com/20772/dont-buy-into-the-bond-mania-2/

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