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Today's Summary

Solar and wind power is almost too cheap for our economy, says KLG. EROI is a tobacco industry argument for why we should continue to use fossil fuels rather than renewables. Fannie/Freddie loaded up MBS and mortgages, which was exactly what blew them up in 2008. A renewed commitment to NATO and ASEAN will begin to reverse the decade of free-play Trump handed the worlds two most dangerous authoritarian states. Bitcoin and stablecoins are relatively slow and cannot handle high transaction volumes. The real policy battle centers on stablecoins, which are not federally insured. Chris Martenson: Federal government layoffs are a political decision by the White House, not the result of weak demand, slow consumer spending, or other economic changes. The Federal Reserve is less a steward of full employment and stable prices than it is a serial bubble blower. The Green New Deal is a way to pretend that techno-hopium will allow for modern lifestyles to continue with only nice changes Pulte and Bondi are the two biggest top-dog goofballs in this administration. LTC was bailed out by 14 private banks and brokers. China, Russia and many BRICS countries have been shifting to gold. Wolf Richter says medical cost transparency is still a nightmare that transcends even the med insurance nightmare. Economics is a “soft science” Modeling the behavioral decisions of humans are not susceptible to immutable mathematical laws – especially over the long term. EJ Antoni: Employment indicators continue to diverge from output indicators. Barry Ritholtz: Tariffs are a terrible idea from an economic standpoint. Norman Mailer and Lawrence Schillers Marilyn: A Biography. 16 of 20 markets declined month-over-month in October, signaling broad stagnation as high mortgage rates weigh on affordability and suppress price momentum. Chicago leads all major markets with a 5.8% annual price gain. Japan is an obvious alternative production base, says Sheel Mohnot. Greenfield FDI seems to be powering this rise. India has shown that it still has the political will to push through major reforms, and its manufacturing sector is improving. In a million small ways, Japan is culturally distinct from the U.S. Small business is the lifeblood of Japanese cities — and, in many ways, of the Japanese middle class. Living standards grew only 6.5% between 2007 and 2022. Stagnation isnt a criticism; its an opportunity. Overseas venture capital funds stepping up investment in Japanese startups. A Netflix series depicting the life that awaits foreign workers and entrepreneurs in Japan could potentially be a big hit. Bitcoin investors are now weighing three potential scenarios for the next weeks. Bitcoin price surged above $97,000 this week, marking its strongest level in more than two months. DASH (+60%), IP (+30%) and XMR (+13%) led top movers; XMR hit another new new ATH at $800 before retracing to $725. Figure unveiled a new public equity network. Liam Akiba Wright argues that hiring rates have fallen off a cliff since 2024. He argues that this is not due to either Trump or AI: Its not Trump policies. Saturns USDat turns Strategys dividend-paying preferred stock into a digital asset. Bitcoin hit its highest price since November 14 and is up nearly 5% over the last day. Bitcoin leads the way for liquidated short positions with $382 million. Japans finance minister endorsed deeper crypto integration, including lower taxes and exchange-level reforms. Sui network is back and fully operational after nearly six-hour stall. U.S. and Armenia set framework for trump-backed trade corridor. CME Group will add Cardano, Chainlink, cardano and stellar futures contracts to its crypto offerings on February 9. China has few options -- and growing hesitancy -- to help Iran.