Fed up

giving in...

We are Fed up…

We can’t do this anymore, it’s too much hard work…

Says the US economy.

😂

Here are some numbers to show why the Fed might actually cut by 50bps on the 18th!
  • NFP at 142k — expectations of 165k (too few jobs created, growth negative, but unemployment was 4.2% in line with expectations)

  • Inflation heading the right way — Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast is heading lower! (link)

  • Germany faltering — their automobile production is down 8.1% vs month prior. Fed might be paying attention to global demand!

  • Volkswagen in trouble — the German car company is considering closing German factories! (Fortune)

So is this giving in to the pain… Could the economy slip quickly? Yes and no.

We are of the view there is no REAL concern yet, and we are looking more at economic cycles coming to pass…

As we are aware though, economic cycles now are not like those of the previous 100 years, and we tend to have any downturns smoothed out by nice central bank intervention!

Jerome Powell has played this extremely well in our view through his signposting and messaging throughout.

We want to get you a job!

We’ve had a thought — recruiters tend not to really know enough about the practicalities of markets and finance, but we do.

We know who a good candidate is, and usually, just by reading Fink, you’re probably setting yourself apart from the crowd.

You don’t mind our kinda chat and you like slightly off the wall ideas.

This is edge.

We think we can do a better job of placing people than the existing recruiters that are out there.

If you’re UK based, we want your CV, whether you’re looking or not.

Reply to this email with subject line ‘CV [full name]’ and a short line or two about what you’re looking for and we’ll reach out!

Top reads

  • How a mind-boggling device changed economic history (FT)

  • (From 2022) Germany is in deep Scheisse (Fink)

  • (This is for nerds) Nomura Cross Asset vol (explainer of the weird stuff that happened on Monday)

Nomura Cross-Asset VIX OPTIONS -SPACE AGAIN LOOKING PATIENT ZERO ON TODAY'S WEIRD TRADE.pdf561.85 KB • PDF File

What’s in the Spotlight?

This week, we’re talking about water.

Why?

Well, I was having a chat with a gent who is a senior consultant at a water research company.

This at first sight sounds a bit… dry (ha).

But bear with me.

Water is needed in everything — there is no process you can think of where water is not required, and yet it’s sort of thought of as a side ‘thing’ that just IS.

We’re lucky that water is just an everyday part of our lives now.

But guess what industry is currently the biggest growth sector for the Water Boys?

Yep, you guessed it.

AI and data centres.

Data centres and AI systems are major water consumers, primarily for cooling.

Large data centres can use millions of gallons daily, with U.S. centres estimated to use 174 billion gallons annually in 2021.

AI model training is especially water-intensive, with a 2023 study suggesting a single large language model could require up to 185,000 gallons.

So if you’re in the water biz, it’s probably pretty useful to start getting into some pipe repair contracts 👀

One of my first stock investments…

…was in a company called Nelnet.

They are a student loans company.

Or, at least that’s as far as the research I did back then.

I got smashed on them.

Then, I decided to think about shorting them because of how much debt was building up, but also in revenge.

Well, I am sure you can see how that played out from 2016 onwards…

I’d have been steamrolled.

But the thing is, I was told not to short US stocks EVER, back in 2016.

The gent that told me this is now in his 70s, but was an exceptional trader and stock broker in his day — he stopped me from being ravaged, ransacked and my trading account pillaged by Nelnet bulls.

Without that sort of knowledge, I’d have been…

  • Stuck in bad habits of trying to play the market both ways

  • Losing money

  • Feeling frustrated that I have no idea as to what I’d doing

Sharing knowledge like this with thousands of investors over the last few years has been fantastic and we want to share our key insights with you on Fink Ultimate.

If you want…

  • Our highest conviction investment ideas, macro frameworks and strategy ideas each week

  • To join hundreds of engaged and intelligent investors in the Fink community

  • To unlock a deeper understanding of markets

Then hit the button below and get a 20% discount off Fink Ultimate, our newsletter bundle, to supercharge your portfolio.

PS. we have 3 spaces left for the Fink cohort as 3 reservations can no longer commit to the year long programme.

The initial video showing all steps to our momentum strategy is uploaded.

If you want to literally get inside my brain at every waking moment, this cohort is for you.

Hit reply to this email, with subject line ‘cohort’ for details!