Quick Favor: Tell the Ninja What You Want Covered

The Ninja put together a short survey to learn what you want covered, where you need help with your money, and what he should focus on over the next 90 days. It takes about two minutes and asks for no personal information. The more he hears from you, the better he can bring the right news at the right time.

Take the 2-minute survey

I Spoke With Truck Drivers — It's Worse Than You Think

May 16, 2026 | Economic News Ninja

🚛 East Coast truck drivers told the Ninja that freight is slowing right now, with less product moving and trucks no longer leaving fully loaded. The freight industry is the canary in the coal mine for the economy, and truckers are among the first to feel a slowdown.

📦 A partially full truck costs nearly the same to run as a full one, so the cost per item shipped rises and gets passed from the trucking company to the shipper to the store to the consumer. Companies are also delaying pickups to combine loads, which slows shipping and business activity across the board.

🔻 Less freight moving points to consumers and businesses buying less, which feeds a domino effect of lower revenues, fewer raises, and more layoffs. The Ninja's read is that this slowdown will pull down home prices, stock valuations, and crypto this summer.

The Next BIG Silver Price Move To Come

May 16, 2026 | Economic News Ninja

📉 Silver fell 11 to 12% in a single day as the bond market sold off and yields pushed higher. The metal is now down more than 40% from its high near $120 an ounce, trading around $68 to $70.

⚖️ The Ninja's view is that gold and silver are elevated mainly because of derivatives and leverage, not inflation, which makes them a sentiment trade that can reverse fast. He sees a deeper correction coming once the stock market turns.

🔁 In 2007, gold and silver sold off hard alongside the stock market, bottomed about five months before equities, then took off only after the market itself bottomed. The Ninja expects the same sequence this time: a sharp metals drop first, the real move higher later.

Detroit Auto Makers Just Fired 19% Of Its Workforce

May 15, 2026 | Economic News Ninja

🏭 GM, Ford, and Stellantis have cut more than 20,000 US salaried jobs, about 19% of their combined workforce, from their recent employment peaks this decade. CNBC reports the reductions are tied to evolving technology in the industry, including the rise of AI.

💻 General Motors added to the cuts this week by laying off 500 to 600 salaried workers globally, largely in IT operations in Texas and Michigan. When AI replaces a role, the Ninja's point is there is no reason for that type of job to come back.

⚠️ Each layoff is one more household that, by and large, has not saved enough to cover a car payment, credit card, or mortgage past a couple of months. The Ninja pushes back hard on the idea that AI will simply create replacement jobs, and says the move is to get more valuable by learning AI faster than it can replace you.

A Secret Oil Price Surge Is About To Happen

May 13, 2026 | Economic News Ninja

⛽ OPEC oil production has fallen more than 30%, roughly 9.7 million barrels per day, since the Iran war began in late February. OPEC is deliberately slowing output because higher prices destroy demand, and pumping oil nobody buys makes no sense.

📉 OPEC cut its 2026 demand growth forecast to about 1.2 million barrels per day, down from a previous estimate near 1.4 million. Weaker demand growth confirms that higher fuel costs are already pulling activity out of the global economy.

🛢️ Less oil in the market keeps prices higher for longer, because commodity traders price scarcity directly into futures. The Ninja expects fuel costs to feed straight into inflation this summer, forcing rates higher and stressing the consumer.

The Planned Inflationary Collapse Has Begun...

May 12, 2026 | Economic News Ninja

📈 The Consumer Price Index rose 3.8% year-over-year in April 2026, up from 3.3% in March, with a 0.5% jump in a single month. A half-percent monthly move shows how fast fuel and energy costs are infecting prices, and the Ninja expects the June, July, and August numbers to be worse.

🏦 The 10-year Treasury yield has climbed sharply over the last 30 to 60 days as bond investors demand higher rates and countries like Japan pull back from buying US debt. With fewer buyers for government bonds, the administration is courting stablecoin issuers to step in as the new buyer.

💰 Warren Buffett is sitting on roughly $400 billion in cash and noted the market has been cut more than 50% three times during his run at Berkshire Hathaway. The Ninja is 80% in cash himself, waiting for late summer and early fall to move on discounted real estate, stocks, and crypto.

The Hidden Truth About The Silver Price vs The Dollar YouTubers Don't Know

May 16, 2026 | The Economic Ninja

🏦 30-year Treasuries topped 5.1%, the highest in nearly a year, while the 10-year yield crested 4.5% and is pushing toward 4.6%. The Ninja warns this is about to move mortgage rates meaningfully higher.

🥈 Silver fell more than 10% and gold dropped 3.2% as a stronger dollar and rising yields sapped their appeal. The Ninja calls precious metals a sentiment play that moves fast because the paper and futures markets reprice rapidly.

📈 He explains the cycle move the silver community misses: buy a 10-year bond yielding 5%, and when rates fall, that bond becomes worth far more than its face value. It is the same setup that let patient investors clean house in 2007 as yields rolled over.

Trump vs China Over Taiwan

May 15, 2026 | The Economic Ninja

🇨🇳 At a two-day Beijing summit, Trump refused to say whether the US would defend Taiwan, telling reporters "I don't talk about that" aboard Air Force One. Xi Jinping warned of clashes and even conflict if Taiwan independence is mishandled, with the global semiconductor race sitting underneath the standoff.

📈 The 10-year Treasury yield crested above 4.5%, a level the Ninja calls rare and one where markets start to freeze because the cost of debt gets expensive. Rising yields push mortgage rates higher and are already making homes harder to sell.

🏚️ Multi-million dollar homes are sitting unsold, and the Ninja warns that pressure flows straight down into lower-priced markets. When investors who own the larger homes get nervous, they stop putting money into stocks, real estate, and crypto, slowing the money velocity that drove the boom.

Oil Price Jump That Trump Just Caused

May 15, 2026 | The Economic Ninja

⛽ Trump told Fox News he is losing patience with Iran and has warned Americans to expect the same or higher fuel prices by the midterms. Every week the conflict drags on keeps the price of oil higher for longer.

🤝 Trump said Xi Jinping agreed to buy more US oil and to stop sending military equipment to Iran during the Beijing summit. The Ninja's read is that Washington pushed oil prices up through pressure on Venezuela and Iran, then sold the more expensive barrels to China.

🏠 Six months or more of sustained high fuel prices lead to layoffs, store closures, and a falling real estate market, the same pattern seen in 2007 and the late 1970s. The Ninja points to a home he is watching where the price per square foot has collapsed 50% in the last two and a half years.

The Wholesale Inflation Numbers Show How Bad It Will Be This Summer

May 13, 2026 | The Economic Ninja

📊 The Producer Price Index rose 1.4% in a single month, nearly triple the 0.5% Wall Street consensus. Wholesale prices are what businesses pay long before goods reach the grocery shelf, and the Ninja says store prices follow roughly eight weeks later with profit added on top.

🔧 The services index accelerated 1.2%, its biggest gain since March 2022. This is the surcharge wave the Ninja warned about, as plumbers, electricians, and contractors tack on extra fees because they are feeling it at the pump.

🏠 Homes in some of the most desired markets in the country are already down more than 35% from their peak. The Ninja is 80% in cash alongside Warren Buffett, waiting for the kind of repricing he last saw in the summer of 2008.

We Are Buying Real Estate Live At Auction Now

May 12, 2026 | The Economic Ninja

🏛️ The Ninja bid live at a San Diego County tax auction where three contiguous parcels with a combined opening bid under $40,000 sold for roughly $375,000. A comparable property down the street sits in escrow near $299,000, and the winning bidder paid about 10% under market value.

📅 Florida's tax auctions open later this month and run into June and July, with Palm Beach County alone holding more than 23,000 liens. Florida pays up to 18% on the top end, and missing the window means waiting a full year for the next round.

💰 One student earned 12% in roughly eight weeks on a $100 tax lien, while competitor programs charge $10,000 to $50,000 for worse training. The Ninja's full program with a year of group coaching runs about $1,300, and the real barrier to becoming your own bank is information access, not capital.

Starbucks Regional Offices SHUTTING DOWN | Here's Why

May 16, 2026 | Real Estate Ninja

☕ Starbucks is laying off 300 US corporate employees and shuttering some regional support offices, its third round of job cuts under CEO Brian Niccol. CNBC reports the company calls the moves part of a turnaround strategy to return to profitable growth.

📉 Rising coffee bean prices and higher wages are squeezing Starbucks at the same time customers are spending less. When consumers cut back, churn slows and publicly traded companies turn to layoffs as the fastest fix.

🏘️ The Ninja's point is that this is not just a Starbucks story, with layoffs spreading across the country as productivity slows. Rising layoffs at big employers are exactly the signal that drives the next real estate cycle turn.

LIMITED-TIME BUNDLE - SALE ENDS TONIGHT

The Real Estate Crash Kit Bundle

Get ready to buy when prices break, instead of watching from the sidelines.

Why now: Every story in this issue points the same direction. Freight is slowing, layoffs are spreading, yields are climbing, and the real estate market is starting to turn. The Crash Kit is the Ninja's playbook for the cycle that is already underway.

Who it's for: You want to buy a home, rentals, or auction property in the downturn ahead, and you would rather learn the cycle now than guess your way through it later.

Get the Crash Kit Bundle

Sale ends tonight at 11:59 PM Pacific. Once it closes, the bundle price goes back up.