One of the biggest fears today is that the US is entering a Japanese-like slump that could last a decade. But Justice Litle says we have learned the lessons from that crisis. This time, the government fears doing too little, but gives little thought about the risks of doing too much. And this is why we should be more scared of one day ending up like Zimbabwe…

This from Taipan Publishing Group:

The world is clearly afraid that “Great Depression 2.0” could be at hand. Downturns come and go, but the global economy as a whole hasn’t contracted since the 1930s. Some think it could happen again next year.

We hear less about it in the news, but there is another fear that keeps investors up at night – the off chance that America turns into Japan.

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PKey Newsbr•nbsp;Britain's services sector contracted at its fastest rate in at least 12 years, a closely-watched survey showed Wednesday, ratcheting up expectations that the Bank of England will cut interest rates by a full percentage point on Thursday. (AP)br•nbsp;The Australian economy grew at its slowest pace in eight years last quarter. (IHT)brKey Reports Due (WSJ):br7:00a.m. MBA Mortgage Application Survey for Nov 28: Previous: -2.1%. br8:30a.m. 3Q Productivityamp;Labor Costs, revised: Expected: +3.1%. Previous: +4.3%. br10:00a.m. Nov ISM Non-Mfg Index: Previous: 44.4. br10:35p.m. API Oil Industry Report for Nov 28 br10:35p.m. US Energy Dept Oil Inventories for Nov 28 br2:00p.m. Federal Reserve Beige Book /P PTomorrow (Time GMT):/P P12/4/2008nbsp;12:00 nbsp;UK nbsp;BOE ANNOUNCES RATESnbsp;2.50% nbsp;3.00% br12/4/2008nbsp;12:45 nbsp;EU nbsp;ECB Announces Interest Ratesnbsp;3.00% nbsp;3.25% /P PQuotable brThe world has run out of willing and creditworthy private borrowers. The spectacular collapse of the western financial system is a symptom of this big fact. In the short run, governments will ...

Global stocks decline as gloomy economic news flow resumes… Euro zone services activity falls to a fresh record low… Central banks expected to cut rates aggressively… MSCI World stock index down 0.4 percent

A tentative rebound in global stocks spluttered on Wednesday while euro zone government bond yields hit a three-year low as gloomy economic news highlighted the case for more aggressive interest rate cuts in Europe this week.

The euro stayed on the backfoot and oil held near a 3-1/2 year low a day before the European Central Bank, Bank of England and Sweden’s Riksbank are all widely expected to cut borrowing costs.

Supporting those expectations, economic reports on Wednesday showed the euro zone’s services economy fell deeper into recession in November than initially thought and inflationary pressures eased.

“This is a horrible survey across the board, showing that the euro zone service sector is being hit ever harder

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RBA cuts 100 BPS…  It IS a recession!  Paulson to ruffle feathers?  Yen to rally hard? And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Right out of the starters blocks this morning, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) pulled the rug right out from under the “high yield status” of their economy, with another HUGE rate cut overnight… This time, the RBA cut 100 BPS, to an internal cash rate of 4.25%. This brings the total since September to 300 BPS! WOW! Talk about effectively unwinding seven years of tightening! The statement following the rate announcement leads me to believe that the RBA is probably finished cutting rates for now… It will be a wait-n-see what happens globally, before the RBA entertains any talk of further rate cuts… At least that’s my opinion!

Had a long talk with the legal beagles yesterday… The just don’t like what / how I say things. This all stems

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PKey Newsbr•nbsp;The World Bank on Tuesday cut its growth forecast for China next year to 7.5 per cent, the slowest rate of expansion since 1990, and said the impact of the global financial crisis was likely to “intensify”. (FT)br•nbsp;[UK] Prime Minister Gordon Brown swept aside three decades of economic orthodoxy with tax increases on the rich and plans that will double Britain’s national debt./P PKey Reports Due (WSJ):br7:45a.m. ICSC Chain Store Sales Index For Nov 22: Previous: +0.3%. br8:30a.m. 3Q Preliminary GDP: Previous: -0.3%. br8:30a.m. 3Q Preliminary Corporate Profits: Previous: -0.4%. br8:55a.m. Redbook Retail Sales Index For Nov 22: Previous: -1.1%. br9:00a.m. Sep SP/Case Shiller Home Price Index: Previous: -17.7%. br10:00a.m. Nov Conference Board Consumer Confidence: Expected: 38.5. Previous: 38.0 br10:00a.m. Nov Richmond Fed Mfg Survey: Previous: -26. br10:30a.m. Nov Dallas Fed Mfg Production Index: Previous: -13.7. br5:00p.m. ABC/Wash Post Consumer Conf For Nov 22: Previous: -52. brnbsp;/P PQuotable brThe government is ...

World Beer sales are slipping, and dudes like Homer are drinking less.  That means beer companies are going to be making less money in 2009, so let's get drunk and short them all. So what stocks to short? These frosty mugs: Beer Company Ticker Share Price ($) Mkt Cap Companhia de Bebidas das Americas (ADR) ABV 46.59 28.61B Molson Coors Brewing Company TAP 42.55 7.81B Craft Brewers Alliance, ...

China’s stimulus package proves that the global infrastructure boom is not dead, says Justice Litle. And that’s big news for base metals like copper. These are essential for construction, and will soar as the world attempts to rebuild its economy. That makes strong base metal producers a bargain now.

This from Taipan Daily:

“Dr. Copper” is known as the metal with a PhD in economics.

This is because the use of copper is so widespread throughout our lives. Most of the appliances in your house use copper: the fridge, the dishwasher, the microwave, and the washing machine just to name a few.

By the time you add up the electrical wiring, pipes and so on, the average home uses 400 pounds of copper. And your car? Another 50 pounds.

We also know that, on average, 40% of annual copper consumption goes to building

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Well, the wonderful rally we had on Tuesday was not allowed to blossom into anything on Wednesday. The high of the day was about 15 minutes after trading began on the Globex trading system at the start of the business day in Sydney, very early Wednesday morning. From there, the price oscillated between $750 and $760…until half an hour after the London p.m. fix. Then, the $20 price spike that we had on Tuesday at that time, was completely reversed…almost to the penny. In silver, every rally ran into a not-for-profit seller. I counted eight price reversals in that 24 hour period…from when the Globex opened in early morning trading in the Far East…right up until Globex trading ended in New York yesterday afternoon about 5:15 p.m. That’s the last six hours of the blue trace and the next 17 hours of the red trace on the Kitco chart below.

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The election of Barack Obama does not change America’s fundamental economic flaws, says Bill Bonner. The slump caused by too much debt will continue. And a US dollar crash caused by reckless money printing is still just around the corner.

This from The Daily Reckoning:

America’s voters spoke yesterday [Tuesday]. And they said “Give us Obama.” And it came to pass that the man called Obama was given unto them.

“America is a place where all things are possible,” said the man himself in his victory speech.

And yes, it is possible for a half-black man to be elected. But no, all things are not possible. It is not still not possible to get rich by spending money. Nor is it possible to save a man from too much debt by giving him more credit. And you still can’t trust a politician… or his money.

The election “changed everything,” shouts the

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The $800 billion bailout, and billions more being pumped less obviously into the global economy, will cure nothing. Americans are clamoring for a savior. No one is willing to believe that the party is over. In the past, someone always came to our rescue.

Like a parent dispelling a childhood nightmare, FDR soothed the masses with the assurance that they had nothing to fear but fear itself. To this day, he is revered for turning a depression into the Great Depression. In the aftermath of the dot-com bubble, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan came to the rescue with a brand-new bubble in real estate.

Even if there was someone out there who could pull off one more illusionary rescue, it would only delay the inevitable and worsen the pain. Pain now or more pain later. The compassionate solution is to let Adam Smith’s invisible hand guide us, as should have been happening all

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