Listen, do you want to know a secret?

• Currencies & metals rally on Monday.

• Who's buying the 10-year?

Good Day.... And a Tom Terrific Tuesday to you! Yes, I know this is tardy today, but.... I told you yesterday that I had scans today, and I forgot to say that there would be no Pfennig... But as it goes, I was the first in, first out of the CT room, and I was back home right away, so here I am.... the CT operator said to me, "So, you're the one that had the anaphylaxis shock right there on the table?" And I said, "yes it was me, I really thought that I had bought it that day, that this was it, I was dying.." He said, "boy that must have been scarry'... No doubt! The Lori Mechhem Quartet greets me this morning with her version of the song: Christmas Time is Here...

Well, the dollar stopped getting bought Sunday night, and that carried over into Monday's U.S. Session, which saw the BBDXY lose 5 index points, the currencies are so deep down the rabbit hole right now, that the dollar's selling didn't wake them up.... And yesterday, I made a BIG DEAL out of the idea that we wouldn't have to wait long for the metals to take off again to higher ground, if the selling had stopped.... 

Well, the selling stopped, and Gold gained $43 on the day to close at $2,610, and Silver gained 93-cents to close at $31.13.... So, it does appear to me that the waiting for the metals to rally again didn't require us to wait too long! The price of Oil bumped higher to a $68 handle yesterday, and the 10-year saw some buying, (I wonder from whom? Maybe the Fed?) and the yield fell to 4.36%.... 

In the overnight markets last night, Gold continued to lick its wounds and gain some more lost ground, and it's up $22 to start the day, while Silver is up 13-cents to start the day today... I find this rally to be something that I could count on given the harshness of the short paper trading that took place last week. I sure hope you all got your orders in for Gold or Silver while their respective prices were down.... 

The price of Oil bumped higher again overnight and trades this morning with a $69 handle.....  The Oil boys must have heard some saber rattling going on in the Middle East....  And the 10-year's yield sits at 4.35% this morning.... 

Well, wanna know a secret? (Beatles) The U.S. national debt just went over $36 Trillion! What? You didn't hear about that on the nightly news or your favorite newspaper? Well, I don't think you will, so take it from me, or go to the Debt Clock.org and see for yourself! $36 Trillion, when we had just reached $35 Trillion a few months ago.... YIKES!

It's just one thing after another with the lawmakers, and their abilities to ratchet up the deficit spending.... But one day, Alice.... To The Moon! (The Honeymooners) The collapse of the financial system in the U.S. will come upon us, but first we'll have a debt crisis, with Treasuries.... I hate to sound like Mr Gloom and Doom this morning, but somebody has to tell you the truth, that you won't get from the nightly news! 

This will be quick one because I'm getting such a late start, but it was still chock-full-o-stuff for you to think about. For certain? Are you Imprint Certain? Yes... I am!

The U.S. Data Cupboard has nothing but housing stuff this morning, Building Permits, and Housing Starts.... No thanks, I'll pass.... 

To recap... Well, we didn't have to wait long for confirmation that the metals selling had stopped, with Gold & Silver back on the rally tracks yesterday, and today.... The dollar buying has also stopped for now.... We'll have to wait-n-see if this is the new trend... And the U.S. National Debt just went past $36 Trillion!

For What It's Worth.... This article is asking the question, has the U.S. Consumer tapped out? And then it goes on to explain that it thinks so.... 

Here's your snippet: "We keep hearing that the economy is "robust" and gliding to a soft landing, but there are cracks in the foundation if you care to look closely enough.

American consumers have continued to spend over the last two years despite the stranglehold of price inflation. On the surface, this seems like a bullish indicator. But when you dig into the spending patterns, you discover that Americans blew through their savings and ran up massive credit card bills to sustain their spending spree.

And now it appears consumers might be pushing up against their borrowing limits.

The increase in consumer debt has slowed to a crawl, with both credit card spending and borrowing for big-ticket items tanking. This may indicate that Americans are close to being tapped out.

That's bad news for an economy relying on borrowing and spending to keep churning.

Total consumer debt rose by a rather modest $6 billion in September, a 1.4 percent annual increase, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve.

Americans now owe just over $5.1 trillion in consumer debt.

The Federal Reserve consumer debt figures include credit card debt, student loans, and auto loans but do not factor in mortgage debt. When you include mortgages, U.S. households are buried under a record level of debt. As of the end of the third quarter, total household debt stood at $17.94 trillion."

Chuck again.... Yes, if the U.S. Consumer has come to its senses and stopped deficit spending, that's a good thing for them, but a bad thing for the economy, which needs consumer spending to stay afloat.... Without Consumer spending, the Gov't spending had to fill in the gaps, which means more money supply and higher inflation... 

Market Prices 11/19/2024: American Style: A$.6510, kiwi .5898, C$ .7151, euro 1.0584, sterling 1.2651, Swiss 1.1350, European Style: rand 18.0583, krone 10.9941, SEK 10.9347, forint 384.35, zloty 4.0901, koruna 23.4526, RUB 100.45, yen 153.66, sing 1.3383, HKD 7.7839, INR 84.41, China 7.2394, peso 20.29, BRL 5.7872, BBDXY 1,279, Dollar Index 106.26, Oil $69.12, 10-year 4.35%, Silver $31.25, Platinum $972.00, Palladium $1,022.00, Copper $4.15, and Gold $2,633.29.

That's it for today... Stayed up way too late last night, watching the Cowboys lose again, which always makes me happy! Not a Cowboys fan... Goes back to the Big Red (football Cardinals0 who had a Big rivalry with the Cowboys... These days, I'm a fan of the Chiefs (Mo. Team) and I always like seeing the Chargers win.... My beloved Mizzou Tigers go to Miss this Saturday to play Miss. St. I sure hope they have licked their wounds from the awful loss that they had to take last Saturday and are ready to win again! The Stephen Kummer Trio takes us to the finish line today with their version of the song: Blue Christmas... I hope you have a Tom Terrific Tuesday today, and please Be Good To Yourself!