Sadly, it wasn't a strong showing for #IBM. That said, at least it is finally showing revenue growth. $IBM

Sadly many people in #bitcoin right now are in it with the gambling mentality which, as the author demonstrates, is the exact wrong mentality for this. $BITCOMP

China is undergoing a more disruptive shift than the US as it moves from the mass production economy of emerging countries to the value added economies of advanced countries. It is doing this pretty well so far. I agree we can glean a lot from China because it exports so much to us, however, it is not goods but services that has really propelled the US. Thus China does not reflect most of the growth in the US if you are looking for it to justify a US boom. Clearly, China is far from booming. Without government intervention its economy would be the opposite of booming.

Sadly if you missed out on this it is a bit too late as most of the biotech market is already run up. That said, long term they still could be worth it. You need to do serious research to see if the company you are picking will be a long term value play or not.

I don't believe China will cease buying treasuries, although big buyers will likely cut buying as they see and expect more rate hikes and watch for signs of inflation. It is not increasing oil prices that alone are a concern for inflation watchers. There is increasing demand which is a stronger signal about potential broad based inflation on the horizon.

Sadly higher wages drive the push towards increased efficiency and automation. That drives a decrease in jobs. In economics things have a trade off. Those pushing for higher salaries across the board better be ready for the potential fallout which tends to be job loses and inflation. Growing the real economy is harder than just demanding wage increases. People need to read economics books before proposing overly simplistic solutions.

Walmart's actions are a good case in point.

Indeed, the key is asset preservation and then returns. It is often said often but rarely followed through. Rather than getting out of the market, or buying puts, asset rotation to safer but less exuberant stocks that pay sustainable dividends is a wise move as the cycle continues. One should focus on cash flows and look at the balance sheet to consider stocks from now on.

I don't believe the Federal Reserve believes what it is putting out. As stated before, they are raising rates in order to give themselves at least the slightest amount of breathing space before the cycle ends sooner or later. I don't believe, and neither does the Federal Reserve that the cycle will end this year.

It is natural that others are also wary of 2019 or 2020. After all the Federal Reserve has stimulated and now the US government has now stimulated the economy in a way that can't be repeated.

Good article again Jeff, which begs the question, why did we following Japan off the deep end even though we know what is in store for doing it? Like Japan we will forestall the inevitable effects as long as we can which just digs a deeper hole for us to fall through when we don't have the monetary or fiscal capability to dig our way out of our mess. As they put it, the closer you get to the black hole the harder it is to escape its destructive nature.

I am more scared about the real estate vesting than the stock assets, although real estate obviously can doom the economy and everything else like the last major downturn. That said, as you can see, the exposure here isn't too out of whack. Perhaps alternatives are something to look into closer.