We are one month away from a new year. This means that the nation is in the holiday season. This translates to positive things for the market. Seasonality... As you know, we, at Evolution have been calling for a correction. It has no chance of happening until January at the minimum. The worst that the market will do is go sideways until the door to 2022 opens. We enter the upswing of "gobble, gobble" and then, the "Santa" rally. Most probably, the market will hit new records despite the problems of inflation, labor and shortages. You can begin to see this point in the record highs for Apple, Amazon and Microsoft.
One way...
CEOs are boosting their company's stock is by announcing their firm is joining the "electric" mode. The meme saw a quick market surge for Avis and Hertz who say that they will buy electric cars to use for rentals. You will see similar action by copper firms and battery enterprises.
Hypocrisy...
shows itself in the passing of Build Back Better Bill. Yes, we need to fix bridges and roads, but where is the mention that the steel, cement, copper, etc. will be only bought from American firms? No one mentions it because they did not include this most important aspect of the stimulus. It shows the lack of creditability in both the Democrats and Republicans. This is another proof why we need a new third political party that puts the nation and its citizens first. You want more? How about SALT? This is the state and federal tax deduction for real estate taxes and interest. This is a tax loophole. By raising it higher, you only add fuel for higher home prices. So, what happened? They raised it so that rich people can keep their write-offs by buying overpriced homes and hurting everyone. This is terrible! Not only did the political parties' close loopholes, they expanded them. Hypocrisy!
This is not hypocrisy...
but it is definitely ironic. Dollar Tree which became a powerful retailer by offering items one dollar or less, now say they will not be offering any products for one dollar due to inflation. So, will there be a name change? How about $10 Store?
Big Concern...
over the intended allocation of money and medical assistance for African nations to get vaccinated against the CORVID-19 virus. History has shown that the leaders of these nations will pocket the money and even resell the medicine to other nations. They could care less about their citizens. They will deprive their people of the good intentions and put the money in their pocket. I would like to see some oversight in the distribution of the aid. By the way, many are calling for the release of the prescription code for the virus. As I hate to see this as a medical exploitation of the needy by rich pharmaceutical concerns, I will back Pfizer. They did not accept government money to solve the virus. They used their own resources. They deserve their patent.
Speaking of which...
drug prices rose 3x higher than normal during the period of 1984-2000. Of course, the Fed never made mention of this inflationary aspect. While we are on the topic of rising prices, it is possible to see another push higher for oil. The charts say it could hit $92-a barrel. Everyone can see the effect of the oil price when they visit the gas station. How about food? The DB Agricultural Fund (DBA) has been in consolidation for the past 7-months after a big runup. It now appears, again by the charts, to be ready for another leg up. Of course, we expect the Fed to remain silent about this aspect. After all, they do not include food and energy in their phony matrix, inflation formula. You don't need a long-term weather report. We have it for you. It will be cold in January.
Speaking of which - part 11.
CVS is closing 900 stores. Not only does this show poor leadership decisions, but what does this do to the phony BLS labor report? The government says unemployment is 4.6%. I think it is twice that, but 900 stores times all the employees of each store does not bode well for the labor picture. CVS says it will develop a new chain for healthcare called, "Care Centrix." The labor picture gets uglier with Sweetgreen. This salad chain will "employ" robots to serve its customers.
Put all this together and let it simmer in the pot. The heat will warm the house. Greet each other with a smile. Don't let the worries of the world cloud you. Give the season greeting.. Peace
