Thursday, May 30, 2013

Trader Dan on NPR

For those of you who might be interested in a story dealing with a proposed buyout of giant US pork producer Smithfield, by a Chinese controlled firm, Shuanghui International, you can check it out at the following link. The radio interview is three minutes so you can get the gist of what is happening in a short time.

There is also a write up if you prefer to read that instead.

While I tend to devote most of my writings at this site for gold, currency and interest rate related topics, I cut my trading teeth on the ag markets and still consider them my favorites. The Grains and the Livestock markets and I go back a long way together!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/05/30/187163300/will-chinese-firm-bring-home-the-bacon-with-smithfield-deal


7 comments:

  1. i feel terrible...i rarely sell what i have, considering myself an investor rather than a trader.....but i recently sold my PM company with gold in the 1360 area, thinking it would test a new low and potentially breach from 1321 to 1260- 1280 ish and i wanted to buy back there cos i had endured such heavy losses on the way down....the first time i sell and gold rallies, it feels strange watching it go up and not being in it...anyhow, self-pity aside, do you reckon we can see the dollar reverse to go back to its 89 ish level high? i know nothings certain but i was hoping one final leg lower for gold but as of recently looks like the dollar rise is over and gold will rise with debt of US and Europe coming to headlines, with consistent strong physical buying and with autumn coming...

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  2. Way to go Trader Dan! Nice to see you are a commodity polymath. As always, thanks to the incredible service you provide.

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  3. Trader Dan,

    Having read and listened your thoughts on markets for a long time, really appreciate your effort to share, and courage to speak against currupted monetary system and injustice to common people, and promote ideas for surviving the difficult time now and ahead towards a better world.

    You are a seasoned and acclaimed trader, however I often find your comments outside trading strangely goes different way from your intentions of above.

    Take this aquisition for instance. I am a chinese and I am totally against this acquisition for all different reasons, just like against Chinese investment in mid-America, not mentioning (although the media feed you and western audience a different idea, on pork US legally allow use of Ractopamine and Clenbuterol while China has the strictly control on artificial additive, of course China has its own food safety problem but not quite catching up with US yet on the level of systematic abuse by large firms control seeds/meat/water production, Mcdonalds dollar burger cheaper than fresh vegtable and coke cheaper than good water, so in fact i dont want pork export from US or beef for that matter, in fact US use all kinds of influence to force countries to accept US beef that in the end only those rely on US military support accept it sometimes like Japan and Taiwan island). However I find troubling to understand when you say "the buyer choose to dictate the firm rather than following the market force".

    1. Under private ownership of amercian legal system and principle of capitalism, the owner seems to have the right to "dictate" its own property

    2. you put this company possibly AGAINST the articicial idea of market, which is the combined action by participants including entity such as.......this company itself? so how are they against each other

    3. capital chase profit under capitalism (sometimes or most of the time nowdays disregarding other members of society or law, otherwise legalise it) and if it failed to be efficient / competitive/ below regulatory standard / have quality issue it simply goes down, so what is really your concern there specificly

    Other part of interview was about boycott the company and stop the deal for NATIONAL SECURITY REASON. This is used on foreign acquisition deal in oil, telecom, now food industry in US. Do you have an opinion on this govenmental intervention? Of course intervention is far beyond foreign deals in US society but you know more than I do.

    My judgement is this is simple protectionism and although you and other interviewed use different words, without even realising benefiting the resident capital and companies in US to avoid competitiors, not giving a damn about the comsumers who eat what they can AFFORD. I totally understand that. I too totally understand nationals wants US to avoid competitors like China on a country level, doesnt matter "the market forces". My only concern is you and I will see nationalistic factor playing more just like previous depression in history of capitalism, winning cheap support to sustain what cannot be sustained, then going direction nobody desires in the end to hide the crime. All starts from demonising foreign things and no doubt chinese will boycott some, i mean a lot of foreign companies too.



    Taking

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  4. Thanks Motomoto, it's good to hear a voice from outside the US for a change.
    As a kiwi I know first-hand what it's like for large Chinese corporates to raid your countries primary industries. Chinese firms now own large tracts of NZ forestry, farmland and processing plants all with the aim of sending the end product back to feed the ever growing number of mouths at home. Just as China is doing all over the planet with Australia, Africa and South America garnering most of the headlines. Funnily enough China isn't the largest foreign “investor” in NZ's primary industries; the USA is. The good old USA has been doing exactly the same for generations.
    If it was ok for the US to open up international markets for themselves in the guise of globalisation then it is beholding on the US to allow a little quid pro quo. Forget selling a few pigs to China, how about letting NZ companies sell tariff free dairy, beef and other primary products in the USA.
    Poor wee New Zealand has been living the free market dream for most of my adult life stripping away almost all government subsidies to our producers and removing almost all tariffs on imports while our largest trading partners haven’t deemed it necessary to reciprocate.
    Personally I believe the whole globalisation mess should be shut down and to hell with TPP type free trade agreements. But that will never happen. The US political lobbying system is too powerful & will never be shut down short of revolution. Which means folks, we’re all being screwed by US big business and banks, even away down here.
    Once the USA goes by the wayside the next empire will rise to take its place which will be no different. At least China doesn’t pretend to be democratic. I'm just thankful I'm living at the bottom of the world on my 20 acres in God's own country away from all that mess and away from the shit fight when it finally does come.

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    2. Thanks pj & Moto, it really is nice to hear voices from outside the USA. I agree with your sentiment pj, regarding how the Western but especially US multinational corporations have a knack for tilting the game in their favor to make it easier for them to exploit the entire world. We in the US are not immune to their game however, just ask the millions of unemployed manufacturing workers whose jobs have been systematically exported to the rest of the world. I see this Smithfield deal as just another chapter in the decline of our once prosperous nation and I expect more of the same in the coming years. I don't blame the Chinese for trying to protect themselves from the currency devaluation taking place. They are wise enough to see what is coming and look to trade their vast USD holdings for something tangible. Also, as long as we have pimps masquerading as leaders in Washington DC, I agree with your sentiment that doing the right thing will never happen (short of a revolution). I wish you the best down there on your 20 acres in God's own country, and good luck to all of us wherever we are.

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  5. Well, its Friday, last day of the month.

    My guess is that "Stawks" are going to soar into the closing bell and PM's will get smashed once again.

    Remember, above ground supplies of gold and silver is limited.

    Annual mine production is limited and shrinking.

    However, the ability to print "Short At Market" COMEX order tickets is UNLIMITED.

    That is why gold and silver can be so easily crushed, because the Heidelberg presses inside Ft. Knox are printing pallets of COMEX order tickets every day.

    So there is really no limit as to how far down the can push the commodity markets.

    And don't get me started on physical vs. paper. They pretty much track tick for tick at my local gold dealer.

    Pretty soon they will turn to the NYMEX and do the same with crude and gasoline, where downside momentum is just now starting to accelerate.

    Who would have thought that Central Banking could so easily "whip inflation"?

    Bernanke probably cannot believe it himself, at how easy it has become.

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