David Stockman’s Contra Corner

Writing on his "No Mercy / No Malice" blog, Galloway says any Wall Street analyst who believes WeWork's worth over $10 billion is "lying, stupid, or both." https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-08-21/wewtf

Michael Hicks, a Ball State University economist who tracks the industry, warned that the fall in RV shipments could indicate a broader economic downturn is ahead. Hicks said shipments had fallen sharply just before the last three U.S. recessions. https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-08-20/worse-ive-seen-it-recession-imminent-rv-industry-crashes

But if central banks push interest rates below zero, this essential function of an economy doesn’t function anymore. Now risk cannot be priced anymore. The perfect example of this: Certain junk bonds in Europe are now trading with a negative yield. This shows that the risk-pricing system in Europe is kaput....

Here are the documents that Solomon believes  have the greatest chance of rocking Washington, if declassified: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-08-20/solomon-if-trump-declassifies-these-10-documents-democrats-are-doomed

The Donald's signature line at his New Hampshire rally last week will surely go down as one of the stupidest, most arrogant boasts ever to roll off the lips of a clueless politician. Speaking to an arena full of supporters, he averred that the US economy will tank if he is not reelected: (more…)

Neumann has actually been able to convince people that WeWork is a technology company, as a way to justify its absurdly high valuations. In addition to extolling their ‘culture of inclusivity’ and ‘energy of an inspired community’, the company’s SEC filing refers to their ‘extensive technology’ more than 120 times. Of course, there’s never any description of the technology, or...

Amid a collapse in global bond yields (to record lows) and soaring aggregate volumes of central-bank-created negative-yielding debt, at least one big bond shop is dumping sovereigns. https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-08-20/pimco-starts-dumping-bonds-fears-helicopter-money-around-corner

Home Depot lowered its sales forecast as the company warned that rising material costs as well as the potential effects of tariffs on U.S. consumers could weigh on growth. https://www.wsj.com/articles/home-depot-cuts-sales-forecast-posts-slightly-lower-profit-11566298171?mod=hp_lista_pos5

U.S. apparel companies are bracing for squeezed profits and potential store closures as a result of the Trump administration’s pledge to extend tariffs on Chinese imports...... About 40% of all clothing and 70% of shoes sold in the U.S. are made in China, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association....