The Trump Family Crypto Project Dosen't Sit Right With Me

(9/17/2024)

1. 🚩 Trump's crypto project, World Liberty Financial, aims to create a crypto banking platform with a token called WLFI, featuring an equity structure of 20% for founders, 77% for user rewards, and 63% for public purchase.

2. 💡 The project's inflationary nature allows unlimited token printing by the founding team, similar to Dogecoin, potentially leading to price manipulation and misunderstanding of the underlying asset.

3. 🔄 Trump's involvement could result in market manipulation through narratives of taking down crypto markets, causing flash crashes, and attracting institutional buyers, with potential SEC intervention causing volatility.

4. 🏛️ The Trump family's crypto project is rivaling established exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange and Chicago Mercantile Exchange, challenging the control of powerful groups such as money changers and money makers.

5. 🕵️ The project's lack of transparency regarding founders, business partners, and advisors raises concerns about its integrity and potential for manipulation, especially given its timing near the 2024 presidential election.

Goldman Sachs Takes BIG Hit Because Of Consumer Business

(9/16/2024)

1. 💰 Goldman Sachs suffered a $6 billion pre-tax loss since 2020 on consumer lending, with charge-off rates nearly double those of other cards due to weakened consumer spending.

2. 🏦 Banks are desperately selling credit card debt to other lenders at 10 cents on the dollar to mitigate losses, indicating severe financial strain in the consumer lending sector.

3. 🍎 Goldman Sachs, with zero prior experience in consumer lending, is seeking to exit its partnership with Apple, which includes the Apple Card and Savings Account, totaling $17 billion in credit balances.

4. 📉 Ali Bank faces significant challenges with the second worst subprime credit card portfolio among banks, according to the latest Fed stress test.

5. 🚗 Goldman Sachs plans to sell its GM credit card business with $2 billion in card balances to Barclays, as part of a broader trend of banks exiting the credit card business due to massive losses.

Huge Insider Selling Berkshire Hathaway Stock As Warren Buffett Liquidates

(9/16/2024)

1. 🚨 Ajit Jain, head of Berkshire Hathaway's insurance division, sold over half of his stake worth $139 million, his largest sale since 1986, signaling a potential overvaluation and crash in the company's stock.

2. 💹 Berkshire Hathaway's minimal buyback activity and $1 trillion market cap with stock price above $700,000 suggest the company believes its stock is overvalued and may decline in the future.

3. 🏢 The insurance division led by Ajit Jain is considered a bellwether for Berkshire Hathaway's overall health, as it ensures derivatives and is critical to the system.

4. 💼 Warren Buffett has been selling off massive chunks of Berkshire Hathaway stock for multiple years, potentially indicating a long-term shift in the company's outlook.

5. 📊 Steve Czech, founder of Czech Capital Market, suggests that Berkshire Hathaway's stock is no longer undervalued based on recent market indicators and insider selling activity.

Lumber Prices Are Falling At My Home Depot

(9/16/2024)

1. 🏘️ The real estate market crash is evidenced by plummeting lumber prices, with 2x4 by 8 boards dropping from $12 during the pandemic to just $3.65 at Home Depot, presenting opportunities for those who understand housing cycles.

2. 🌲 Softwood lumber prices have been volatile due to increased demand, tariffs, supply chain bottlenecks, and insufficient domestic production, prompting NAHB to advocate for a long-term tariff deal with Canada.

3. 🏗️ Home builders are focusing on fulfilling existing contractual obligations and managing unsold inventory rather than constructing new homes, indicating a shift to repair mode in the industry.

4. 📉 The collapse of lumber futures prices, combined with higher labor and electricity costs, has made lumber production unprofitable, leading to mill closures and potential shortages at retailers.

5. 📊 The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that framing lumber composite prices were flat in September 2022 for the first time in nearly two months, signaling a possible turning point in the market.

Home buyers are now in the driver seat

(9/16/2024)

1. 🏠 In August 2022, 19.3% of homes for sale had price cuts, the highest in 5 years, signaling a buyer's market with increased inventory and reduced prices according to Realtor.com.

2. 💰 The Federal Reserve artificially inflated the median home price to an all-time high of $482,000 in Q1 2022 by revising numbers, masking an actual 8% nationwide crash in the real estate market.

3. 📉 Home prices fell 1.5% to $429,000 in August 2022, with the West and Midwest regions experiencing the most significant price reductions at 3.5% and 3.3% respectively.

4. 🏙️ In cities, renting is now cheaper than buying, a trend expected to accelerate, while small towns face low inventory due to homeowners with secure jobs or retirees reluctant to give up their 3% mortgage rates.

5. 🔮 The 2024 housing market is less frenzied than previous years, with fewer price increases and more price cuts, indicating a less speculative market according to a Realtor.com employee.