The only reason why we're not in a full-blown global depression right now is because governments have binged even further on debt.
Don't be fooled by the soaring stock market; this is an extremely artificial environment.
$TLT $IEF
Don't be fooled or impressed by our soaring stock market.
Instead of a sign of health, this is a sign of an extremely unhealthy artificial economy.
Remember, Venezuela's stock market soared as people were starving.
Here's what's fueling the current speculative mania (RobinHood, Gamestop, SPACs, cryptos, etc.):
The U.S. M1 money supply has increased by an jaw-dropping 75% in the past year alone. This is happening globally, too.
All that liquidity is sloshing around looking for a home.
Germany's stock market soared during the Weimar Republic hyperinflation of the 1920s.
Again, the reason was the surging money supply, which is why Venezuela's stock market soared while people were starving.
The U.S. stock market is experiencing a smaller scale version of this.
In the early stages of Germany's hyperinflation, almost everyone was playing the market with increasing amounts of "funny money" - rapidly devaluing paper money.
The same phenomenon is happening right now in America on a smaller scale (for now!).
That piece contains an excellent chart of U.S. private sector financial assets as a % of GDP.
This is another way of visualizing the household wealth bubble that I've discussed so much.
Financial assets have become incredibly inflated due to ultra-low interest rates & QE.
If you want to understand the growing rich-poor gap (and why it is NOT the fault of capitalism), please check out the archive of my site Explaining Capitalism:
The mainstream media & economics world only wants to hear your message if you are coming from a Keynesian (pro-Fed & money printing) or leftist perspective.
If you are pro-capitalism and free markets, you are shunned into oblivion. That's my story.
"Experts have seen an increase in the frauds, many of which are preying on investors who feel they lost out on the market gains of the last few years."
"The 24-year-old founder of Virgil Capital, which ran two cryptocurrency hedge funds, admitted to duping investors out of almost $100 million and using the money to support a lavish lifestyle."
Houston ended last year with a 24% office-vacancy rate, the highest of any major U.S. city. After years of construction to accommodate an oil boom that’s now gone bust, buildings are sitting empty, values are plunging and mortgage defaults are piling up.