Mike's Spotlight

This Is Important!

This Is Important – 2020 World Outlook from MoneyTalks on Vimeo.

2020 World Outlook Financial Conference Highlights

Tickets are SOLD OUT but you don’t have to MISS OUT

When I emailed Martin Armstrong, the man the Wall Street Journal called the highest paid financial advisor in the world – the man who is on the speed dial of central banks and sovereign wealth funds around the world – to join us at the World Outlook Financial Conference this weekend he wrote back saying, we are headed into such a crazy period that there is just no precedent in modern times.

This month he wrote, We face a global contagion never witnessed before in economic history.” That follows from his statement in July, I have never witnessed such complete disruption to the world economy on a massive scale of this nature. This is going to be a challenge to survive.”

So is that what Martin Armstrong has been warning about?  

I’ll ask him at the Conference on both Friday and Saturday, but I suspect it’s a lot more than a serious liquidity problem. There are $12 trillion in negative yield bonds, which is crushing European pension fund returns and their ability to make payments to future retirees. That’s what the French pension protests are about.

The bottom line is that I have literally never been more interested in hearing what Marty has to say. Every major trend we’ve been predicting on MoneyTalks and at the World Outlook Financial Conference is in full force – headlined by a decreasing level of confidence in government. And you can still purchase access to the streaming video archive which you can watch on any device from anywhere in the world on your schedule. Video you’ll be able to access within 48 hours of the event. (It’s the next best thing to being there)

The world is changing in dramatic fashion. Volatility is going to intensify. The World Outlook Financial Conference track record speaks for itself. Our official World Outlook Small Cap portfolio has delivered double digit returns every year. We can help you navigate those changes and the volatility.

To Sum Up……

Maybe we’ve been lucky that every year our specific recommendations have paid for the price of a video archive subscription several times over. Although past performance is not a guarantee of future results, featuring analysts with exceptional track records like Martin Armstrong, Ryan Irvine, Greg Weldon and Mark Leibovit (who in September, Timers Digest named gold market and stock market Timer of the Year) – puts the odds in our favour.

Specific stock recommendations at the conference like Microsoft are up 35%, Xpel Inc is up 95%, Viemed is up over 85%, Go Easy is up 37%, Parkland Fuel is up 22%.  Our small cap portfolio put together with Ryan Irvine and Keystone Financial is once again up double digits. Virtually all recommendations are up with the notable exception of oil and gas stocks, but those recommendations were for people willing to hold 3 to 5 years. It wasn’t a trading recommendation so the jury is still out. At this year’s conference we will ask Josef Schachter for an update.

Making money and protecting you from losses is the goal of the World Outlook Financial Conference, and I’m very pleased with the results. For anyone who acted on the specific advice, the $158 video subscription was probably the best investment they made last year. And you can still purchase access to the streaming video which you can watch on any device from anywhere in the world on your schedule. Video you’ll be able to access within 48 hours of the event. (It’s the next best thing to being there)

What’s coming starting in January through 2022 will have a dramatic impact on your financial well being. You can’t afford to get this wrong.

Mike

What Good Is A Warning – If You Don’t Pay Attention?

That’s a good question.

When I emailed Martin Armstrong, the man the Wall Street Journal called the highest paid financial advisor in the world – the man who is on the speed dial of central banks and sovereign wealth funds around the world – to join us at the World Outlook Financial Conference next week he wrote back saying, “we are headed into such a crazy period that there is just no precedent in modern times.”

This month he wrote, “We face a global contagion never witnessed before in economic history.” That follows from his statement in July, “I have never witnessed such complete disruption to the world economy on a massive scale of this nature. This is going to be a challenge to survive.”

At the time, he warned of a major liquidity problem in September. Fast forward two months to the night of September 16th. The interest rates charged to borrowers in the overnight market jumped from 2% to 10% in a matter of hours. The Federal Reserve was forced to step in and provide hundreds of billions in an effort to keep interest rates down. And they’re still doing it.

We witnessed a 400% jump in overnight night lending rates, so what’s the takeaway?

The obvious one is that lenders wanted to be paid more before they parted with capital. In a nutshell they are worried about problems in Europe’s financial system starting with Germany’s biggest bank Deutsche Bank, which has seen its share price drop 90% from their 2007 highs. Lenders are still stung by the memory of 2008 when they lost billions because they didn’t know the exposure of lending institutions to the subprime problem – and they don’t know the exposure of borrowers to European banking problems like Deutsche Bank – so they didn’t want to lend. At least until they got paid a lot more in interest for taking on more risk.

The big question is how long can the Federal Reserve and other central banks keep manipulating the market to keep rates low? When rates go up it won’t be because the central banks want to push them higher. It will be because they can’t control the market. The overnight lending market just gave us a glimpse into what that looks like.

So is that what Martin Armstrong has been warning about?

I’ll ask him at the Conference on Feb 7th & 8th, but I suspect it’s a lot more than a serious liquidity problem. There are $12 trillion in negative yield bonds, which is crushing European pension fund returns and their ability to make payments to future retirees. That’s what the French pension protests are about.

Who buys negative yield government bonds that promise to pay you less when they mature in five or ten years? The dominant buyer is the European Central Bank, who now owns 40% of all outstanding European government bonds. So they’re the seller on one side and the buyer on the other. This is not going to end well.

Then there is the $9 trillion in US dollar denominated debt in emerging market countries. So as the dollar goes up, interest and principal payments become unworkable. The question is – which banks, hedge funds and other financial institutions lent them the money?

Of course, there is also politics. The US presidential election is in November and the leading Democratic contender is old time socialist, Bernie Saunders…enough said. And we still don’t know what Brexit will look like.

The bottom line is that I have literally never been more interested in hearing what Marty has to say. Every major trend we’ve been predicting on MoneyTalks and at the World Outlook Financial Conference is in full force – headlined by a decreasing level of confidence in government.

In 2015 at the Outlook Conference I stated that we were entering the Age of Consequences where the impact of sovereign debt, unfunded pension promises, the manipulation of interest rates and US denominated emerging market debt would dominate financial markets. Maybe not a surprise. I think most people knew that trying to solve the 2008 credit and debt crisis by encouraging more borrowing with record low interest rates would have consequences.

So What Do You Do

There are definitely specific steps to take. The key is to understand what’s going on and position yourself correctly. Not only will you survive this period but you’ll make a lot of money. For example, for over 10 years on MoneyTalks we’ve talked about the problems in Europe pushing money into the US dollar and quality stocks in search of safety since 2010 and the Greek bond crisis. And it’s still happening. US stocks made new highs last week and the US dollar is the strongest currency in the world.

But at the same time – the evidence is mounting that these major trends are coming to an end. This is at the heart of Martin Armstrong’s warning. I have a high degree of confidence that the next two years will make the last five look tame and there are specific steps you should take to protect and take advantage of the change.

I appreciate that there are a ton of opinions and analysis out there, the only way to evaluate and judge whether one approach or model is better than another is the examine the track record. And on that score I don’t know a better one than what we’ve produced at the World Outlook Financial Conference.

Last week Barron’s ran the headline – “Ready or Not, Here Comes Dow 30,000.” The fact is that’s been the call on MoneyTalks since March 2009 and at the World Outlook Conference since February 2010 – and we’ve never wavered.

Last year WOFC Small Cap Portfolio is now up over 77%. Every year since we introduced our annual Small Cap Portfolio it’s been up double digits. Of course past success is no guarantee of future performance but I like our chances given that I choose our speakers based on their track record.

And on that score the group of headliners including Martin Armstrong, the incredible Greg Weldon, Keystone Financial’s Ryan Irvine, BP Global’s Paul Beatty, Josef Schachter and Mark Leibovit who was just named Timer’s Digest Timer of the Year is the best I’ve seen …anywhere. A bold statement but their results speak for themselves.

So My Question

What are you doing Friday, February 7th and Saturday, February 8th? Unless it’s the birth of a child or a wedding I hope you decide to join us at the World Outlook Financial Conference. You’ll laugh (rumour has it that Ozzie will be in Lederhosen) – you’ll cry (rumour has it that Ozzie will be in Lederhosen) – but best of all you’ll be far better prepared to survive and thrive during the historic financial changes that are to come.

I hope to see you there.

Sincerely

Mike

PS    Bulletin: This just in – rumour has it that it will be me not Ozzie in lederhosen – now that would be a sight.

PPS    I’ve just been told we can only fit 76 more people in the room – so don’t wait. For tickets and other details CLICK HERE.

PPPS    If there is no way for you to attend in person don’t forget – the HD video archive of all our mainstage speakers will be available for viewing on any device within 48 hours of the Conference’s end. Unlimited access on your schedule. Get your access codes HERE.

For The First Time in 10 Years and 11 ½ Months, I’m Concerned

I don’t have a lot of time so let me get straight to the point. Maybe it was a lucky guess – but on Saturday, March 7th, 2009 on MoneyTalks I told the audience that I had turned bullish on the stock market, especially in the US. The Dow Jones was just over 9,000. Since that time I have never wavered in being long term bullish stocks. Not once.

Our target was 30,000 on the Dow, which seemed crazy at the time. At every Outlook Conference since February, 2010 I have reiterated my long term bullish view. As you probably know – the Dow has breached 29,000 for the first time – and that’s why I’m concerned, especially given it has occurred within a few days of the Armstrong Model’s key turning point coming this weekend. I don’t know what the model is pointing to – escalation in Iran, the beginning of the Senate Impeachment trial, or maybe the extradition hearing of Meng Wanzhou – but I have learned over the last 35 years to never ignore those key dates.

In the meantime, until things become clearer, I think it’s never a bad idea to review your current investments and make sure that they reflect your comfortable level of risk. Maybe it’s time to adjust your holdings. (Not a surprise recommendation coming from someone who’s number one rule of investing is to manage risk.) I’ll have a clearer picture of what’s coming by the time the World Financial Outlook Conference starts on February 7th. Better still, I’ll ask Martin Armstrong, the world’s top economic and financial forecaster, who will join us along with Mark Leibovit who was just named Timers Digest Timer of the Year.

The Best Part About Investing

There are a great many differing opinions about the markets. And just as many approaches and methodologies used to determine what to buy, when to sell etc. The good news is that you don’t have to guess whether one particular approach is better than another – you just look at the track record. That’s what I love about the markets – there’s always a scorecard. In the end there’s no BS, no stories, no excuses – just results.

And the results of our recommendations at the World Outlook Financial Conference speak for themselves. For the eleventh consecutive year, thanks to the expertise of Ryan Irvine and Aaron Dunn at Keystone Financial, our official WOFC Small Cap Portfolio has yielded double digit returns.

Actually it’s better than that. As of January, 3rd the average gain of each of the stock in the 2019 Small Cap Portfolio is 67%. If you had simply bought 100 shares of each of the six stock recommendations it would have cost $16,307 and on January, 3rd this year they’d be worth $25,686.

That’s a terrific return on the $159 ticket.

One Caveat

Of course past performance is not a guarantee of future results, but featuring analysts with exceptional track records like Martin Armstrong, Ryan Irvine, Mark Leibovit and BT Global’s Paul Beattie puts the odds in our favour.

On real estate Ozzie Jurock’s record at the World Outlook Financial Conference on when and where to buy real estate is spectacular and this year he has three new areas that you should be aware of.

As you probably guessed, I want you to come to the 2020 World Outlook Financial Conference. Why? Because we’re living in a time of historic change and people who don’t understand what’s going on are going to be financial road kill. Of course, many people already are – but conference attendees who followed our past recommendations into the US dollar, US stocks, real estate in Vancouver, Phoenix, Montreal and Victoria, and have bought the World Outlook Small Cap Portfolio have done well.

I also understand that not everyone is interested in their personal finances – and I respect that but I’ll warn you that whether you’re interested or not – what’s coming during the next two years will have a dramatic impact on your financial well being.

I hope to see you at the Conference.

All my best,

Mike

PS – The World Outlook Financial Conference is Friday, Feb 7th and Saturday, Feb. 8th at the Westin Bayshore Hotel in Vancouver. For more information and to buy tickets click on the EVENTS button

It’s Easy To Forget The Best of Canada

While politicians push the politics of division amidst an avalanche of misleading statements and at times outright lies it’s easy to overlook the rest of Canada that’s on display daily in communities across the country.