Gold Rallies as America’s Debt Crisis Reaches Standstill

July 18th, 2011 • No Comments

With gold at a record $1602 an ounce, there is little doubt that the world has lost faith in the global economy. The United States has still not reached a deal to raise its debt ceiling, which may lead to a default on loan payments come August 2nd. The crisis stems from the fact that the United States is one of the few countries that has a statutory limit on its national debt. This creates periods of uncertainty where it is not known if the government will be able to meet its financial obligations. Continue reading ‘Gold Rallies as America’s Debt Crisis Reaches Standstill.’

Canada: The New America?

June 15th, 2011 • No Comments

There has been a sharp change in the nature of Canadian politics over the last few years. Canada’s political scene has been typified by a politeness and respect not found in many other developed nations. It was a cross between Britain without the heckling in parliament and America without the sharp contrasts in policy. And Stephen Harper has been the one to change all that.

Starting in 2006, and continuing through the 2011 elections campaign, Canadians saw for the first time serious attack ads coming from the Conservative Party. These were followed, no less, by similar responses from the Liberals and NDP. These attack ads take comments out of context and target personal traits and faults in MPs and party leaders. Mostly, they are a tool of fear-mongering politicians to convince voters that the world will end if the other side gets into power. Attack ads are the sign of weakness of a party (and I am pointing fingers at all Canadian parties here), they are done based on a fear that when policies line up there will not be enough to differentiate one from one’s opponent. Continue reading ‘Canada: The New America?.’

America Could Default on National Debt

June 10th, 2011 • No Comments

The American national debt may have finally reached its’ limit. The debt is currently sitting around $14.3 trillion dollars, of which Chinese government holds $1.145 trillion. Although it has held up to $1.175 trillion at one time the Chinese government is cutting its holdings over fears of the stimulus spending that the United States has used to try and hold its economy together.

A Chinese ratings house, Dagong Global Credit Rating Co. Ltd. is insisting that the US is already defaulting on its loans from China. The US has allowed its dollar to weaken against other currencies such as the Canadian dollar and the Euro. If this were true it would mean that the country’s credit rating would be lowered at least a grade, raising the interest rate on any further loans. This could be potentially disastrous for the already beleaguered nation. It would also send a ripple effect throughout the world’s economies. Continue reading ‘America Could Default on National Debt.’

U.S. House Prices Marked Record Fall

March 31st, 2009 • No Comments

The largest 20 U.S. cities, according to a private survey by Standard and Poor’s/Case-Shiller released this week, saw a 19 per cent fall year-over-year as of January 2009, while a separate index confirmed a 19.4 per cent decline in the 10 largest metropolitan areas. Continue reading ‘U.S. House Prices Marked Record Fall.’