Looking around the economic and financial world today, I see countless negative developments and virtually no positive developments to speak of.

Just off the cuff, I note that:

• China is entering a hard landing if not an outright economic collapse.
• Europe is facing a recession, banking collapse, sovereign crisis, and a potential break-up.
• The US is in a stagflationary recession.
• Japan is in a sovereign debt crisis, approaching armed conflict with China
• Inflationary pressures are increasing worldwide: new record food prices will hit within the next 12 months.
• The risk of armed conflict is increasing in the Middle East as well as Asia along with food inflation creating civil unrest/ riots.

Against this backdrop, the one remotely positive development as far as the markets are concerned is the belief that Central banks will somehow solve these problems via endless liquidity.

However, even this is now proving to be a false premise.

The problem with this is that the primary driver of stock prices over the last three years has been the anticipation of more monetary stimulus from Central Banks.

Indeed, the New York Fed itself has openly admitted that were it to remove the market moves that occurred around Fed FOMC meetings (the times when the Fed announced new programs or hinted at doing so), the S&P 500 would be at 600 today:

So, by announcing a program that will be on going in nature, the Fed has removed the anticipation of future Central Bank intervention from investors’ psychologies. This could become highly problematic, especially if these latest announcements turn out to be duds.

Sure enough, stocks are actually down since QE 3 was announced on September 13 2012.

So we’ve got over 50% of the global GDP (China, the EU, and the US) in recession, combined with Europe’s banking and sovereign crisis… at the exact time that the Fed appears to have run out of ammo.

It’s truly astounding. I cannot actually remember a single time in which the global economy and financial system have faced this many difficulties. And that includes the build up to the 2008 Crash.

Now more than ever, investors need to get access to high quality guidance and insights. There sheer magnitude of the issues the global financial system is facing is enormous!

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Best Regards,

Graham Summers

Since the Financial Crisis erupted in 2007, the US Federal Reserve has engaged in dozens of interventions/ bailouts to try and prop up the financial system. Now, I realize that everyone knows the Fed is “printing money.” However, when you look at the list of bailouts/ money pumps it’s absolutely staggering how much money the Fed has thrown around.

Here’s a recap of some of the larger Fed moves during the Crisis:

• Cutting interest rates from 5.25-0.25% (Sept ’07-today).
• The Bear Stearns deal/ taking on $30 billion in junk mortgages (Mar ’08).
• Opening various lending windows to investment banks (Mar ’08).
• Hank Paulson spends $400 billion on Fannie/ Freddie (Sept ’08).
• The Fed takes over insurance company AIG for $85 billion (Sept ’08).
• The Fed doles out $25 billion for the automakers (Sept ’08)
• The Feds kick off the $700 billion TARP program (Oct ’08)
• The Fed buys commercial paper from non-financial firms (Oct ’08)
• The Fed offers $540 billion to backstop money market funds (Oct ’08)
• The Fed agrees to back up to $280 billion of Citigroup’s liabilities (Oct ’08).
• $40 billion more to AIG (Nov ’08)
• The Fed backstops $140 billion of Bank of America’s liabilities (Jan ’09)
• Obama’s $787 Billion Stimulus (Jan ’09)
• QE 1 buys $1.25 trillion in Treasuries and mortgage debt (March ’09)
• QE lite buys $200-300 billion of Treasuries and mortgage debt (Aug ’10)
• QE 2 buys $600 billion in Treasuries (Nov ’10)
• Operation Twist 2 (Nov ’11)
• QE 3 ($40 billion in MBS monetization per month)

And this is just a brief recap. I’m almost certain I left something out. Indeed, between 2008 and today, the US Federal Reserve has grown its balance sheet from $800 billion to almost $3 TRILLION in size (larger than the economies of Brazil, the UK, and France).

The Fed is not the only bank to engage in such profligate policies either. Thanks to its bond purchases as well as its LTRO 1 and LTRO 2 schemes, the European Central Bank (ECB) has in fact grown its balance sheet even larger than the Fed.

As a result of this, inflation hedges, particularly Gold have been soaring. Gold was, is, and always will be THE ultimate storehouse of value. Mankind was prizing it long before the concept of stocks, mutual funds, or paper money even existed.

So with world central banks printing paper money day and night it is no surprise that Gold is now emerging as the ultimate currency: one that cannot be printed. Indeed, Gold has broken out against ALL major world currencies in the last ten years. The below chart prices Gold in Dollars (Gold), Euros (Blue), Japanese Yen (Red) and Swiss Francs (Purple):

Now, a lot of commentators have noted that gold is already trading above its 1980 high ($850 an ounce). What they fail to note is that thanks to inflation, $1 in the ‘70s is worth a LOT MORE than a $1 today.

For gold to hit a new all time high adjusted for inflation, it would have to clear at least $2,193 per ounce. If you go by 1970 dollars (when gold started its last bull market) it’d have to hit $4,666 per ounce.

If you do not already have exposure to Gold, consider getting some now. If you do decide to buy, I strongly urge you to buy actual physical bullion because it is not clear that the various Gold ETFs actually own the bullion they claim to

On that note, we just published a Special Portfolio of unique inflation hedges: investments that will not only maintain their purchasing power but will outperform even Gold and Silver as the Fed and ECB debase their respective fiat currencies.

We’re talking about investments of extraordinary value that 99% of investors are unaware of: asset plays trading at massive discounts to their underlying values. The kind of investments that can show you double-digit returns in a very short period.

This portfolio will be made available only to subscribers of our Private Wealth Advisory newsletter. The last time we opened a similar portfolio, we saw gains of 28%, 41% and 42% in a matter of months. We expect similar returns this time around as well.

To find out more about Private Wealth Advisory and get on board for this Special Inflation Portfolio…

Click Here Now!

Phoenix Capital Research

My prediction regarding the breakup of the EU was obviously way early.

However, the fact remains that the EU will break up in time. And it will likely be Spain that brings this about.

The reasons? Among other things:

1. Spain’s private Debt to GDP is above 300%.
2. A huge portion of Spain’s banking system (representing over 50% of mortgage loans AND deposits) was totally unregulated up until just a few years ago.
3. Spanish banks are drawing over €400 billion from the ECB on a monthly basis (up from €377 in June) to fund their liquidity needs.
4. Spanish banks are now net sellers of Spanish sovereign bonds (leaving the ECB as the only buyer in the market)
5. Spain’s banking system has lost 18% of its deposits in the last 10 months due to a staggering bank run.
6. The economy of Spain is a disaster with total unemployment over 25% and youth unemployment above 50%.
7. Spain is now facing a constitutional crisis with various regions looking to secede if they don’t receive bailouts from the Federal Government “without conditions.”
8. Spanish banks need to roll over (meaning renew terms on) more than 20% of their bonds this year.

So Spain will suffer a collapse, most likely of its banking system resulting in a sovereign default (barring a bailout). When this happens, some €1 trillion+ worth of collateral (still rated AAA by EU banks) will be sucked out of the system.

This in turn will spur margin and collateral calls on tens of trillions of Euros’ worth of derivative trades.

And the EU Financial System collapses.

This is reality, regardless of who wins the US election. It may take a few months before it hits… but it will hit.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a bloodbath in the markets, now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the EU crumbles.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

I realize that the situation in Europe can be very confusing. Aside from the fact that we’re dealing with over 20 different countries all with their own respective economies and debt issues, we also have the European Central Bank and the numerous bailouts and bailout funds (the LTRO 1 and 2, the EFSF, the ESM and now the OMT) to keep track of.

So for clarity’s sake, I’m going to explain Europe’s problems in simple terms.

The first thing you should know is that European banks, taken as a whole, have far more leverage than their US counterparts. According to the IMF, US banks are leveraged at 13 to 1.

European banks are leveraged at 26 to 1. Put another way, they have $26 in assets for every $1 in equity.

Think of it this way, imagine if had $100K in the bank and you borrowed $2.6 million to buy homes and other items. Do you think you would be in a stable financial condition?

That’s Europe’s banks on the whole.

However, we also know that the IMF only reports based on known assets or the asset levels that the banks admit. How many times in the last few years have we found out that banks were being honest and open about their risk levels?

Never.

So you should use the 26 to 1 leverage level as the minimum. Reality is likely far worse. Which means… European banks are insolvent.

Outside of this, European nations are also bankrupt. I realize that everyone likes to focus on Debt to GDP levels, but the reality is that European banks owe far more when you account for unfunded liabilities.

I know the same is true for the US, but the US’s unfunded liabilities pale in comparison to Europe’s. As far back as 2004, we know that:

Source: Cato Institute

So, we have a bankrupt banking system in bankrupt countries.

Now for the zinger…

This entire financial system is based on the assumption that European sovereign bonds are still are risk free.

So you have bankrupt nations, selling bonds to insolvent banks, which then use these bonds to leverage up to over 26 to 1 (by the way, Lehman was 30 to 1 when it blew up).

And that’s the ENTIRE European financial system.

I hope this clarifies why Europe is doomed. It is absolutely 100% impossible for Europe to get out of this mess unless the entire union suddenly started growing its GDP at over 10% for a decade.

That will never happen.

My advice to everyone: trust your gut. All of the accounting gimmicks and bailout ideas will never work for the simple fact that the system in Europe is totally broke. The US’s financial system, while problematic (that’s putting it lightly) is nothing compared to how bad Europe is.

I’ve said this before many times, but it cannot be overemphasized… everything I’ve been writing about for nearly a year will still happen. The fact that I was early and we were stopped out of our Euro Crisis trades because the ECB promised “unlimited” bond buying right before the Fed announced QE 3 doesn’t change the ultimate outcome: the EU breaking up and a global financial meltdown.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a bloodbath in the markets, now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the EU crumbles.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

As noted earlier in yesterday’s article, the entire European banking and corporate system is over-burdened with debt.

Germany sports a real Debt to GDP of over 200% (this from the former head of the Bundesbank), and the rest of Europe is in even worse shape.

Indeed, Jagadeesh Gokhale of the Cato Institute puts the situation as the following, “The average EU country would need to have more than four times (434 percent) its current annual gross domestic product (GDP) in the bank today, earning interest at the government’s borrowing rate, in order to fund current policies indefinitely.”

Suffice to say, no EU country has that kind of money lying around.

Moreover, the argument that the ECB or Federal Reserve could stop this from happening is misguided. True, the Central Banks have managed to prop up the markets for several years now.

So what makes this time different?

Simple: the Crisis coming from Europe will be far, far larger in scope than anything the Fed or Central Banks have dealt with before.

Let me walk through each of these one at a time. We have several facts that we need to remember. They are:

1)   The European Banking system is over $46 trillion in size (nearly 3X total EU GDP).

2)   The European Central Bank’s (ECB) balance sheet is now nearly $4 trillion in size (larger than Germany’s economy and roughly 1/3 the size of the ENTIRE EU’s GDP). Aside from the inflationary and systemic risks this poses (the ECB is now leveraged at over 36 to 1).

3)   Over a quarter of the ECB’s balance sheet is PIIGS debt which the ECB will dump any and all losses from onto national Central Banks (read: Germany)

So we’re talking about a banking system that is nearly four times that of the US ($46 trillion vs. $12 trillion) with at least twice the amount of leverage (26 to 1 for the EU vs. 13 to 1 for the US), and a Central Bank that has stuffed its balance sheet with loads of garbage debts, giving it a leverage level of 36 to 1.

And all of this is occurring in a region of 17 different countries none of which have a great history of getting along… at a time when old political tensions are rapidly heating up.

To be clear, the Fed, indeed, Global Central Banks in general, have never had to deal with a problem the size of the coming EU’s Banking Crisis. There are already signs that bank runs are in progress in the PIIGS (Spain has lost 18% of deposits this year alone) and now spreading to France.

Thus, the World’s Central Banks cannot possibly hope to contain the coming disaster. They literally have one of two choices:

1)   Monetize everything (hyperinflation)

2)   Allow the defaults and collapse to happen (mega-deflation)

If they opt for #1, Germany will leave the Euro. End of story. They’ve already experienced Weimar and will not tolerate aggressive monetization.

So even the initial impact of a massive coordinated effort to monetize debt would be rendered moot as the Euro currency would enter a free-fall, forcing the US dollar sharply higher which in turn would trigger a 2008 type event at the minimum.

In simple terms, this time around, when Europe goes down (and it will at some point in the no so distant future) it’s going to be bigger than anything we’ve seen in our lifetimes. And this time around, the world Central Banks are already leveraged to the hilt having spent virtually all of their dry powder propping up the markets for the last four years.

I’ve said this before many times, but it cannot be overemphasized… everything I’ve been writing about for nearly a year will still happen. The fact that I was early and we were stopped out of our Euro Crisis trades because the ECB promised “unlimited” bond buying right before the Fed announced QE 3 doesn’t change the ultimate outcome: the EU breaking up and a global financial meltdown.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a bloodbath in the markets, now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the EU crumbles.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

Europe is heading into a full-scale disaster.

You see, the debt problems in Europe are not simply related to Greece. They are SYSTEMIC. The below chart shows the official Debt to GDP ratios for the major players in Europe.

As you can see, even the more “solvent” countries like Germany and France are sporting Debt to GDP ratios of 75% and 84% respectively.

These numbers, while bad, don’t account for unfunded liabilities. And Europe is nothing if not steeped in unfunded liabilities.

Let’s consider Germany. According to Axel Weber, the head of Germany’s Central Bank, Germany is in fact sitting on a REAL Debt to GDP ratio of over 200%. This is Germany… with unfunded liabilities equal to over TWO times its current GDP.

That’s one thing most invetsors don’t know about Europe.

To put the insanity of this into perspective, Weber’s claim is akin to Ben Bernanke going  on national TV and saying that the US actually owes more than $30 trillion and that the debt ceiling is in fact a joke.

What’s truly frightening about this is that Weber is most likely being conservative here. Jagadeesh Gokhale of the Cato Institute published a paper for EuroStat in 2009 claiming Germany’s unfunded liabilities are in fact closer to 418%.

And of course, Germany has yet to recapitalize its banks.

Indeed, by the German Institute for Economic Research’s OWN admission, German banks need 147 billion Euros’ worth of new capital.

To put this number into perspective TOTAL EQUITY at the top three banks in Germany is less than 100 billion Euros.

And this is GERMANY we’re talking about: the supposed rock-solid balance sheet of Europe. How bad do you think the other, less fiscally conservative EU members are?

Think BAD. As in systemic collapse bad.

Indeed, let’s consider TOTAL debt sitting on Financial Institutions’ balance sheets in Europe. The below chart shows this number for financial institutions in several major EU members relative to their country’s 2010 GDP.

Source: IMF

As you can see, financial institutions in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, and Ireland are all ticking time bombs.

Indeed, taken as a whole, European financial institutions have more debt than Europe’s ENTIRE GDP.

And this is only the “official” numbers. When you account for off balance sheet liabilities, bank’s are even more indebted than this!

That’s the second thing most investors don’t know about Europe.

Let’s compare the situation there to that in the US banking system.

Taken as a whole, the US banking system is leveraged at 13 to 1. Leverage levels at the TBTFs are much much higher… but when you add them in with the 8,100+ other banks in the US, total US bank leverage is 13 to 1.

The European banking system as a whole is leveraged at nearly twice this at over 26 to 1. That’s the ENTIRE European Banking system leveraged at near Lehman levels (Lehman was 30 to 1 when it collapsed).

To put this into perspective, with a leverage level of 26 to 1, you only need a 4% drop in asset prices to wipe out ALL capital. What are the odds that European bank assets fall 4% in value in the near future as the PIIGS continue to collapse?

And at that point the entire EU banking system collapses.

To summate, everything I’ve been writing about for nearly a year will still happen. The fact that I was early and we were stopped out of our Euro Crisis trades because the ECB promised “unlimited” bond buying right before the Fed announced QE 3 doesn’t change the ultimate outcome: the EU breaking up and a global financial meltdown.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a bloodbath in the markets, now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the EU crumbles.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

Quite a few articles have been written about the importance of owning Gold and other precious metals as a means of maintaining one’s wealth in the face of rampant money printing by the world’s Central Banks.

Today I’m going to share some ideas on how to actually buy bullion.

As far as precious metals go, you need to:

1)   Own actual Bullion

2)   Store it yourself (not in a bank)

I do not recommend owning a paper gold-based ETF because frankly the custodial risk is high (that is, there’s no telling if the Gold is even there or who would get it if the ETF is liquidated).

In comparison, physical bullion, stored outside a bank, is literally money in hand. You know where it is and you can find out what it’s worth. Compare that to a Gold ETF in which you’re hoping that the bank actually has the Gold and that it could actually send it to you if you requested (fat chance).

In terms of actual gold coins, there are three coins that comprise the bulk of the bullion market. They are Kruggerands, Canadian Maple Leafs, and American Gold Eagles. I’ve been told to avoid Maple Leafs by both a trader and a bullion dealer as they can easily be scratched which damages the gold and reduces the coin’s value.

In terms of silver, the easiest way to get it is via pre-1965 coins (often termed “junk” silver). You can also get silver one-ounce rounds (coin-like medallions) and 10-ounce bars. Or you can buy Silver Eagles coins.

I cannot tell you which dealer to go with, but look for someone who’s been dealing for years (not a newbie).  You should always ask for references from the dealer (former clients you can talk to about their purchases/ experiences).

Some warning signs to avoid are dealers who try to store your bullion. Never, I repeat, never store your bullion with someone else. Always store it yourself. Also, be sure to talk to the dealer for some time and ask him or her numerous questions about the industry, the coins, etc. (feel free to test him or her on the information I’ve provided you with e.g. the three most liquid Gold coins, etc.). If they can answer everything you ask in a knowledgeable fashion, their references check out, and you verify everything they say with a 3^rd party, you should be OK.

On that note, we just published a Special Portfolio of unique inflation hedges: investments that will not only maintain their purchasing power but will outperform even Gold and Silver as the Fed and ECB debase their respective fiat currencies.

We’re talking about investments of extraordinary value that 99% of investors are unaware of: asset plays trading at massive discounts to their underlying values. The kind of investments that can show you double-digit returns in a very short period.

This portfolio will be made available only to subscribers of our Private Wealth Advisory newsletter. The last time we opened a similar portfolio, we saw gains of 28%, 41% and 42% in a matter of months. We expect similar returns this time around as well.

To find out more about Private Wealth Advisory and get on board for this Special Inflation Portfolio…

Click Here Now!

Phoenix Capital Research

For the last year, I’ve steered clear of commenting on the US Presidential election for the simple reason that I wanted us to be closer to the actual date before I went through the process of explaining what’s to come.

The reason for this is that elections by their very nature are conflicting processes. Most people vote based on emotions when we are in fact electing someone to fulfill a role that is economic in nature.

This is evident in the fact that the political hot issues being promoted (abortion, gay marriage, etc.) are in fact peripheral (they directly impact a small minority of the population) while the larger more pressing issues (the US deficit, the debt, the US Dollar, the Fed) receive very little airtime.

I didn’t want to get sucked into this because frankly, there’s no point. The US is facing much bigger issues than whether or not someone wants us to pay for their birth control or whether people of the same gender want to be married.

I apologize if this offends anyone, but this is the truth. Today, the US is running its fourth $1+trillion deficit. Our Deficit to GDP ratio is nearly 10%. Our “official” Total Debt to GDP is well over 100% though when you include the debt hidden in various Government entities and unfunded liabilities we’re well over a Debt to GDP ratio of 300% at this point.

To put these numbers into perspective, Greece had a Deficit to GDP ratio of 12% and a Debt to GDP ratio of 150% when it first entered its sovereign debt crisis. It’s since seen a GDP collapse of 20%: one of the largest economic collapses worldwide in the last 30 years.

Of course, you cannot simply compare economies by just two numbers. The US has many advantages Greece does not, including:

1)   The US has never defaulted on its sovereign debt

2)   The US has its own Central Bank that can print Dollars (Greece’s Central Bank cannot print Euros)

3)   The US is the largest most dynamic economy in the world and the provider of the world’s reserve currency: the US Dollar.

Because of this, the US gets a pass where other countries (Greece, Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Italy and soon France and Germany) do not. However, this will not always be the case. Once the debt implosion finishes in the EU, it will then spread to the UK, China, Japan, and finally the US.

At that point, the US will experience something very similar to what Greece has experienced.

Timing this in advance is virtually impossible. But we get clues as to when it might happen. Last year, the US Federal Reserve monetized over 70% of all debt issuance. The recipe for hyperinflation and a currency collapse has been the same throughout history: the rampant monetization of deficits.

Thus far, we’ve managed to get away with this for the reasons I listed above. However, this will not always be the case. And if the US does not deal with its debt problems now, we’re guaranteed to go the way of the PIIGS, along with an episode of hyperinflation.

That is THE issue for the US, as this situation would affect every man woman and child living in this country.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a US debt collapse , now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the global debt implosion accelerates.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

As I noted previous articles, Spain has essentially three options:

1)   Spain goes the “Greek route” of agreeing to austerity measures in exchange for bailouts (which will implode the economy).

2)   Prime Minister Rajoy refuses to impose austerity measures and is removed/ replaced by an EU technocrat who is pro-austerity measures (like Italy experienced last year)

3)   Spain defaults/ leaves the EU.

Thus far Spanish Prime Minister Rajoy has opted to go for #1. The end result has been riots, protests, and now the threat of Spain as a country breaking up. I’ve long averred that Spain will bring about the break up of the Euro. By the look of things, we’re not far from this.

To whit, as the above article notes, Germany, Holland, and Finland have decided to pull back on the promise of a €100 billion Spanish bank bailout first established in June. These countries are now stating that this bailout should be included as part of the ESM mega-bailout fund’s banking program that could take years to implement.

Spain doesn’t have time for this. As I’ve noted before, Spain is facing a full-scale bank run (Spaniards pulled another €17 billion from Spanish banks in August, bringing the year to date bank run to over 18% of total Spanish bank deposits).

Now add multiple regional bailout requests, as well as 25% total unemployment to the mix and Spain is an absolute disaster. The Spanish Ibex knows it too:

Congratulations Mario Draghi, you promised unlimited bond buying and you bought less than one month’s worth of gains for Spain. If you want proof positive that Central Banks are losing their grip on things, the above chart is it. The moment we take out that trendline again, it’s GAME OVER (what more can the ECB promise?)

Remember, Spain is currently drawing over €400 billion from the ECB.

Let’s put this number in perspective… in June before Spain requested a €100 billion bailout, the country was drawing only €300 billion from the ECB.

Since that time and now, the ECB has promised to provide unlimited bond buying… and even Germany has indicated it would be open to some sort of a Spanish bailout…

And yet, Spain is now borrowing even MORE than it was in June.

This is not progress in any way… if anything it indicates that things are worsening in the EU’s financial system at a staggering pace. The powers that be are keeping things calm until after the election… at which time there will be absolute hell to pay.

“So what?” many investors will ask, “Spain is nothing in the grand scheme of things.”

Wrong.

Spain’s sovereign bond market is $2.1 trillion in size. And Spanish bonds are used as the collateral for hundreds of trillions of Euros worth of derivative and credit trades.

… the global derivative market is over $700 TRILLION in size. And we know that the US only accounts for about $228 trillion of this.

The EU banking system is roughly $46 trillion in size. Total EU sovereign debt outstanding is $13.7 trillion. Assuming that EU derivatives are in the ballpark of $300 trillion or so (a safe assumption), this means that EU derivatives exposure is likely:

• Nearly SEVEN TIMES the size of the entire EU banking system.
• More than 19 times the size of total EU GDP.
• More than 21 times TOTAL EU SOVEREIGN DEBT OUTSTANDING

By now I trust you are beginning to understand why EU politicians and the ECB are terrified of an unorganized EU sovereign default: doing this would result in a significant portion of the collateral for over $300 trillion in trades (remember, I’m only assessing derivatives here) vanishing.

I simply cannot stress this last point enough so I am going to say it again in different terms: EU bonds, including the totally garbage PIIGS’ debt as well as the soon to be garbage debt from France and others are the COLLATERAL for $300+ trillion in trades.

What happens when this collateral is found to be worth much less or potentially even worthless…?

Those hundreds of trillions of Euros worth of trades blow up, there’s nothing backing them, and the banks that made them implode taking everyone’s money with them (think of an MF Global type event across the board for ALL MAJOR EU Banks).

At that point the entire EU banking system collapses.

To summate, everything I’ve been writing about for nearly a year will still happen. The fact that I was early and we were stopped out of our Euro Crisis trades because the ECB promised “unlimited” bond buying right before the Fed announced QE 3 doesn’t change the ultimate outcome: the EU breaking up and a global financial meltdown.

On that note, if you are not preparing for a bloodbath in the markets, now is the time to do so. The reality is that the Central Banks are fast losing their grip on the markets. They’ll never admit this publicly, but I can assure you that Bernanke and pals are scared stiff by what’s happening in the banking system right now.

If you’re looking for someone who can help you navigate and even profit from this mess, I’m your man. My clients made money in 2008. And we’ve been playing the Euro Crisis to perfection, with our portfolio returning 34% between July 31 2011 and July 31 2012 (compared to a 2% return for the S&P 500).

Indeed, during that entire time we saw 73 winning trades and only one single loser. We’re now positioning ourselves for the next round of the Crisis with several targeted investments that will explode higher as the EU crumbles.

To find out what they are, and take steps to protect your portfolio from the inevitable collapse…

Click Here Now!

Graham Summers

While the media world is abuzz with last night’s Presidential debate, I’d like to cut through the noise and present you with two truly staggering facts that need to be kept in mind as the backdrop for the US Presidential Election

Fact #1: EU leaders have stated point blank that they were asked to keep things quiet until after the election.

Regardless of your party affiliation, social views or the like, we have to ask ourselves “what was promised in return?”

If you’ve been reading me for some time, you know by now that the EU is in massive trouble. Spain is currently drawing over €400 billion from the ECB.

Let’s put this number in perspective… in June before Spain requested a €100 billion bailout, the country was drawing only €300 billion from the ECB.

Since that time and now, the ECB has promised to provide unlimited bond buying… and even Germany has indicated it would be open to some sort of a Spanish bailout…

And yet, Spain is now borrowing even MORE than it was in June.

This is not progress in any way… if anything it indicates that things are worsening in the EU’s financial system at a staggering pace. The powers that be are keeping things calm until after the election… at which time there will be absolute hell to pay.

And we Americans are going to be on the hook in one form or another. Something was promised in exchange for the EU keeping things quiet. And we won’t find out what it is until after November 6

Fact #2: China is facing a severe downturn if not outright collapse.

As I’ve stated many times before, the China economic “miracle” is in fact one colossal Government funded fraud. While the media attempts to spin China as still growing, executives over there have stated that in fact things are far worse than is publicly known.

Many economists expect the Chinese government to announce Thursday that economic growth in the third quarter was barely short of the official target of 7.5 percent. But Chinese business executives said that the reality was worse for many companies selling in the domestic market, leaving considerable room for a rebound.

“All industries are going down, but why aren’t the official statistics going down?” asked Bob Wang, the sales manager of Kralle Tools, a manufacturer in Wenzhou, an eastern city, that makes circular saw blades for lumber mills.

He said he believed that government officials had been underestimating the extent of China’s slowdown to avoid losing face.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/16/business/global/at-trade-fair-chinese-exporters-a-bit-more-optimistic.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2

So… expect the news out of China to get worse and worse once the election is over. How would the world react to news that the “miracle” which supposedly pulled the globe out of recession is in fact collapsing?

Not well.

Europe and China combined account for 34% of the world’s GDP. Throw in the US which has re-entered a recession and 55% of the globe’s GDP is in contraction.

And everyone is waiting on November 6 to see how this will pan out.

For that reason, I’m putting together a One Time Special Report, detailing exactly what a second term for Obama or a Romney Presidency would mean for the US economy, the US Fed, and ultimately the markets.

Not only that, but I’m outlining what investments would perform best under each candidate based on their policies and plans.

All told we’re talking about over 20-pages of intense, hard hitting research to make sure you’ve got all your bases covered going forward.

We’re only releasing 100 copies of this report (a $500 value) to the general public as part of a special offer for Private Wealth Advisory.

So if you sign up for Private Wealth Advisory now, you can reserve one of these 100 copies. If you don’t… and we sell out… then this report will no longer be available.

Already the reservations have been pouring in (not surprising given how important this is). Indeed, I fully expect we’ll sell out before the end of the week.

Ask yourself… “Is my portfolio and my wealth prepared for what may come after November 6?”

To reserve one of the remaining copies of Special Presidential Report… and take out a subscription to my Private Wealth Advisory newsletter…

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Graham Summers
Chief Market Strategist
Phoenix Capital Research

PS. I almost forgot to mention, every subscription to Private Wealth Advisory features a 30 day trial period.

If at any point during the first 30 days you find Private Wealth Advisory is not for you, simply drop us a line and we’ll issue a full refund, no questions asked.

Your copy of my Special Presidential Report is yours to keep… free of charge.

To take out a Private Wealth Advisory subscription…

Click Here Now!