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  • Barclays admits that speculation influences prices

    April 20, 2012 By dave Leave a Comment

    In its February 2012 report on commodity investments, Barclays admitted that an increase in commodity speculation leads to increased prices. The report lists three main causes of the current run-up in commodity prices, stating,

    “The second key driver is that commodity investors have begun allocating to commodities again after beginning 2012 heavily underexposed to the sector.”

    The report goes on to explain that “net long hedge fund positions across all U.S. commodity futures markets have [Read More...]

    Filed Under: excessive speculation

    Financial Reforms are NOT ruining Wall Street

    February 17, 2012 By dave Leave a Comment

    A recent article by New York Magazine’s Gabriel Sherman, entitled, “The End of Wall Street as They Knew It” opines that “public anger and new regulations” signify the beginning of the end of opulent Wall Street compensation. Yet the CEOs of the major financial institutions say that the problem is actually the European economy.

    Check out Matt Taibbi’s risible “Why Wall Street Should Stop Whining” where he destroys the myths laid out in Sherman’s article.

    Filed Under: National

    A Thanksgiving Rhyme

    November 25, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Here’s a thoughtful Thanksgiving rhyme from a colleague at Better Markets:

    This year as we approach Thanksgiving,
    Let’s think about how banks make livings,

    And as we dab at gravy stains,
    Take pause at all ill-gotten gains;

    For quite against the festive mood,
    The banks are bidding up our food,

    And through excessive speculation
    Are placing ransoms on our nation;

    For only some few years ago,
    Commodities were fairly stable,

    But [Read More...]

    Filed Under: National

    Help prevent another financial meltdown – take action today

    November 16, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Your action is required to help avoid another financial crash. We received very bad news on November 15 when the House-Senate conference committee released its proposed budget for 2012; unfortunately it does not include the needed increase in funding for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the agency that manages derivatives markets, the central cause of the financial meltdown.

    Without an increase in funding, The CFTC will not be able to enforce the financial reforms [Read More...]

    Filed Under: Dodd-Frank bill

    CFTC nears decision on speculation limits, Wall Street pulls out all stops to weaken laws

    September 20, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    With more deadlines approaching for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), its internal drama made public by the so-called “whistleblowers,” and Bernie Sanders’ op-ed calling on regulators to “stop thumb[ing their] noses” and to get serious about getting rules written and regulations in place, the commodity speculation debate has heated up over the past week.

    On Wednesday, Reuters broke a story about in-house conflict at the CFTC particularly over the “position limits” rule, which in [Read More...]

    Filed Under: position limits

    High food prices lead to riots

    August 19, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Researchers at the New England Complex Systems Institute recently released a report titled, “The Food Crisis and Political Instability in North Africa and the Middle East,” in which they show that, while there are a number of causes of political unrest and turmoil, the price of food seems to be the most relevant factor.

    The report is perhaps best summed up in this revealing graph:

    … all the more reason to [Read More...]

    Filed Under: global food crisis

    Bart Chilton explains situation of commodity markets

    August 19, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Bart Chilton, one of the five commissioners on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) recently gave an excellent 4-part interview with Real News.

    In the first part, Chilton explains the problem of over-the-counter (OTC), or “dark markets” – so named because of their lack of transparency. He also explains the problem with what he calls “massive passives” (pension funds laying down huge, long-term bets on commodity prices) and “cheetahs” (high frequency traders) and their effects [Read More...]

    Filed Under: position limits

    Study shows 83 cents of each gallon of gas is from excessive speculation

    June 29, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Two professors from the University of Massachusetts Amherst released a study yesterday in which they estimate that in the month of May, 83 cents of the price of a gallon of gas in the United States was due to excessive speculation. “Considering the U.S. economy as a whole, this translates into a speculative premium of over $1 billion for May alone,” wrote co-authors Robert Pollin and James Heintz.

    The co-authors say that their estimate is [Read More...]

    Filed Under: oil speculation

    Faith and hunger groups hold vigil in front of NYMEX

    June 28, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    Taking advantage of the ironic juxtaposition of the Irish Hunger Memorial park in front of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), a group of faith-based and hunger organizations held a vigil today to draw attention to the problem of excessive speculation in commodity markets. In the same way that the Irish potato famine was caused not only by natural causes but also bad public policy, organizers of the event pointed to the important role that the deregulation [Read More...]

    Filed Under: position limits

    Wikileaks show Saudis warning about oil speculation for years

    May 25, 2011 By dave Leave a Comment

    A State Department cable leaked by Wikileaks shows that Saudi oil experts have warned U.S. officials about excessive speculation in oil markets since at least February 2007. In a section of the cable titled “Oil Increasingly Integrated into the Global Financial Markets” Corporate Advisor on Energy Outlook for Saudi Aramco Yasser Mufti is alleged to have lamented that “investors tended to view oil futures as just another asset class, ripe for investing.” The cable further [Read More...]

    Filed Under: oil speculation
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    Related Links

    • Americans for Financial Reform
    • Better Markets
    • Commodity Markets Oversight Coalition
    • Commonly Raised Objections
    • Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
    • Stop Oil Speculation Now
    • Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment
    • World Development Movement

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