Recent plans regarding a natural gas plant that has been long-delayed over the years could be the stepping-stone that may transform Ghana’s economy. The president, John Dramani, has announced that he believes the construction of such a facility will be more beneficial and crucial to the economy of Ghana than even an oil discovery.
The US dollar remains in a consolidative mode as participants await fresh incentives. The bulls have been denied fresh excuses to push the trend that has carried the US Dollar Index higher for an unprecedented ten consecutive weeks.
Fitch Ratings affirmed its AAA rating on debts and currency issued by the United States, saying that their outlook for the U.S. economy is “stable”. The ratings agency said American has “unparalleled” financing flexibility driven by the U.S. dollar’s status as the world’s most in-demand reserve currency. This currency demand affords America the flexibility to issue more debt and to raise the nation’s total debt load, the agency said, despite concerns that American sovereign debt levels have become unsustainable.
If Australia’s property bubble bursts, the consequences would be disastrous for an economy dominated by oversized banks. But Government policies aimed at propping up the market are simply making the bubble bigger. And bigger.
On Independence Day 2014, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his financial inclusion plan to provide a bank account to every Indian household. His ‘Jan-Dhan Yojana’ (Scheme for People’s Wealth) — which, in typical Modi vernacular, plays on rhyming words — seeks to provide financial independence to unbanked Indians through a two-phase plan.
Earlier fears of a sharp decline in economic growth and stock prices fell away as European investors dismissed risks of an independent Scotland and as the Federal Reserve indicated hesitation to raise interest rates on U.S. Treasuries.
In a two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, Federal Reserve members decided that the pace of slowing bond purchases would remain steady, with the U.S. Central Bank expecting to end its bond buying program before November.
Recent hiring numbers have begun to see a significant slowdown within the United States this year, as employers were only capable of adding a further 142,000 jobs to the market. This provided a severe setback for the economic expansion that was never really gaining speed for most of 2014. With the ACA, Sarbanes-Oxley, high taxes, terrible regulations, America continues to shoot itself in the foot.
The launch of the new 4-year lending facility by the European Central Bank was disappointing. Participation was light. Some 255 banks (of 382 eligible institutions, which represent more than 1300 entities) borrowed a total of 82.6 bln euros. The consensus was for 150 bln euros, and less than 100 bln was thought to a failure.
A Millennial (someone under 35) with a net worth greater than $10,400 is wealthier than half of their peers, according to a recent survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank. Explanations for this paltry figure include the post recession income drop, the exponential increase of student debt in recent years, the avoidance of stock-holding among young people and the fact that so few people in this demographic own their homes.
The Scotland vote today is the main event, and as important as a “yes” vote would be, it is not the only event today. And there is not much more to add to the discussion. While the polls remain a statistical dead heat, the wisdom of crowds work implies giving more weight to the bookmakers and the markets, which clearly favor a “no” victory. There is some genuine concern that Scottish referendums will be a recurring theme (see Quebec) on a small victory for the unionists.
