Sell your gold if you believe:

• Pension funds are solvent
• Financial sector is well capitalized
• Government debt can be repaid
• Unfunded social liabilities don't matter
• Central banks are not going to print money to solve the above

Remember gold is first and foremost an insurance policy against monetary misbehaviour by our governments and central bankers.

US Employment Situation is Improving? Really?

The US Bureau of Labour Statistics reliance on labour force participation ("LFP") as a way to calculate unemployment leaves much to be desired. In practice, LFP means that as people leave the labour force, all else being equal, the BLS deems the unemployment rate to have dropped. Taken to the extreme, if LFP dropped to a single person who was also employed, the unemployment rate would be 0% with 300 million US citizens out of work. Sadly much of the recent "improvement" in employment simply stems from a drop in LFP.

I would argue that a declining LFP is not a healthy sign. In addition, the employment numbers hide another disturbing trend - long term unemployment is high - ie a large number of the unemployed have been out of work for more than 27 weeks.

Isn't Inflation Fun?

The importance of focusing on "real returns" in a "nominal return" world couldn't be made any more clear...

The Ontario Securities Commission has a detailed definition of Accredited Investor which can be found here. However in general Accredited Investor means:

• An individual who, alone or together with a spouse, owns financial assets worth more than $1 million before taxes but net of related liabilities or
• An individual, who alone or together with a spouse, has net assets of at least $5,000,000.
• An individual whose net income before taxes exceeded $200,000 in both of the last two years and who expects to maintain at least the same level of income this year; or
• An individual whose net income before taxes, combined with that of a spouse, exceeded $300,000 in both of the last two years and who expects to maintain at least the same level of income this year.
• An individual who currently is, or once was, a registered adviser or dealer, other than a limited market dealer

Some Quotable Quotes

"Let everyone be certain, Greece will not default, we will not let it default... We are returning to the road of economic stability," George Papandreou Former PM of Greece

"It's a battle of the politicians against the markets. But I'm determined to win the battle." - Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany 2010.

"No, Greece will not default. Please. In the euro area, the default does not exist because with a single currency the possibility to get funding in your own currency is much bigger," EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia

"Greece will not default." Jean-Claude Trichet, former President of European Central Bank

"ISDA has now declared that Greece's restructuring does represent a default." Reuters

Markets 1: Politicians: 0

"We see housing market slowing down, but we don't believe there's a bubble in Canadian market right now," Benoit Durocher, senior economist Desjardins...

Regards

Agcapita Farmland Fund III

Farmland increasingly is in the news as more investors come to appreciate the superior qualities of the asset class - including low return volatility, diversification benefits due to a limited correlation to public equities and good risk adjusted returns. Funds 1 & 2 have a large, diversified portfolio of land across Saskatchewan.

Agcapita Fund III is currently open and RRSP eligible.

• Residents in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan or Manitoba - Click Here to be contacted with more info.
• Resident in Ontario and an Accredited Investor - Click Here to be contacted with more info.