The global financial system is highly interconnected so problems in one part of the world can reverberate almost everywhere else - risking a default, contagion, contracting credit and collapsing economic activity... [Take a look at the amazing graphic in this article to get] a visual guide of the intertwined complexities of the crisis.

The greatest risk to the United States economy right now is a recession triggered by the European financial crisis. [Below is a chart that clearly depicts each of the 50 states exports to Europe as a % of GDP. You will be surprised at what it reveals. Take a look.] Words: 235

Seasonality tells us that statistically the months from the end of October through the end of April are in fact the best months of the year for investing while the six months from May through October (the “sell in May and go away” strategy), are the worst but is there any validity to what’s sometimes known as “the Halloween indicator?” [Let's take a look.] Words: 460

Countries differ greatly in the levels and pattern of wealth holdings...In this article...we highlight those of Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. [Take a look at the results of our extensive research.] Words: 1314

The clock is ticking. Every second, it seems, someone in the world takes on more debt. The idea of a debt clock for an individual nation... [is old hat - see links below to many such debt clocks - but] our clock (here) shows the global figure for all (or almost all) government debts in dollar terms. Words: 300

For the past decade gold has been "catching up" to the amount of money (M2 and M3) in the system to make up for understatement of the gold price due to U.S. price fixing on its way to an inflation-adjusted value of approx. $2,300 - and that is just the beginning. If, and when, we see a release into the market of the trillions of U.S. dollars being stored on balance sheets of banks, companies, and other countries around the world then the price of gold should explode upward. Let me explain why that would be the case. Words: 850

A look at the chart for SLV from September 2007 to August 2008 (11 months) and from November 2010 to October 2011 (11 months) is remarkably similar - almost identical in fact. Therefore, if silver continues to trace out a similar path to what transpired in 2008, what are the possible implications for stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities, and precious metals? Take a look at the following 19 charts for some possible outcomes. Words: 731

The world seems to be entering a new period of stagflation similar to the 1970s - high inflation and low GDP growth - but expect this to be continually denied by mainstream news sources. Words: 633

There is more than enough reason to believe that U.S. stocks are in a bear market regardless of what percentage drop has taken place. [Let's take a look at stock momentum, various moving averages, volatility and certain technical indicators to see what they have to say in this regard.] Words: 700

If you're inclined to sit on the fence these days in the delicate art of anticipating the next phase of the business cycle, you'll get no argument from the latest update on the Chicago Fed National Activity Index, a monster index of indexes that encompasses 85 measures of U.S. economic activity. This benchmark has weakened this year but it's still not flashing a formal prediction of economic contraction...[Let me explain.] Words: 255