Wednesday -- September 17, 2014

Going through some old posts to correct typographical errors early this morning, I'm still amazed by this, which was posted yesterday:

It's pretty well agreed that not more than four or five million people actually signed up for ObamaCare after several months of intensive marketing and arm-twisting and laws requiring folks to sign up, and yet Apple sold more than 4 million iPhones in less than one 24-hour period. And their website did not falter - though in the first three hours, the website was oversubscribed/down simply because too many folks trying to access the site. But that resolved itself in less than six hours. Ellen DeGeneres was incredulous that as many as 5 million people might have signed up for ObamaCare, and yet many more than that will buy an iPhone 6/6+ in the first two weeks it is offered. 

But, back to the Bakken.

Active rigs (per the NDIC; the graphic is not always accurate):

	9/16/2014	09/16/2013	09/16/2012	09/16/2011	09/16/2010
Active Rigs	199	178	193	199	145

RBN Energy: Hawaii's plans for utilities to shift from oil to LNG. I think I just heard Boone Pickens open a bottle of champagne.

Microsoft: the era of $99 Windows tablets is here. I say, give 'em away free, and Apple would still maintain market share.

Keystone: TransCanada sees itself in the rail business with/without the Keystone. Enbridge figured that out a long, long time ago.

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For Investors Only

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UNP hits a new high. Surges more than a dollar. BRK-B, the other train company, is also trading at new highs.

EEP is trading near its all-time high.

On September 16, 2014, I wrote:

Talking heads, according to this site, provide two reasons why the market is up today. If I'm in the mood later today, I will comment on these reasons. But right now, too tired. 

Ready to comment. This is why the market went back up, and is up today. Two reasons. First, interest rates aren't going anywhere any time soon. For Janet Yellen, there's simply no way out. And certainly not during an election season (now upon us). 

The market was trending down a day earlier because of reports that the Chinese industrial numbers were falling. Regular readers know how I feel about that. China has a young-man problem. Billions of young, unmarried men with a questionable future, and absolutely no future if there are no jobs. China cannot afford to have billions of young, unmarried men, hanging around. That's how revolutions start. China simply cannot afford to let their economy stall. They have learned from the US how to stimulate the economy, and they have lots and lots and lots of US dollars sitting in their coffers to do exactly that.

One thing the Chinese can do, is put all these young men to work building supertankers in which to store inexpensive oil. And then lay rail and pipeline to remote areas where there might be shale oil and natural gas.

And traders know that if the President seems more concerned about Ebola than everything else going on in the world, things can't be too bad off economically-speaking.

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CYA

I loved this article. Clearly the USDA chief is covering his ass.

Reuters is reporting: 

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack met with Warren Buffett last week to urge the billionaire investor to make sure his BNSF railroad is ready for an expected record corn and soy harvest this year.

Vilsack said on Tuesday that Buffett, who heads the sprawling conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, recognized the challenge and indicated his company was taking steps.

"I said, 'Warren, you've got to make sure that your railroad understands what's going on here,'" Vilsack said he told Buffett during a 45-minute conversation. "There is pressure now, but as soon as this crop is harvested, there will be more pressure."

I have no sympathy for USDA or the Obama administration on this issue. The only reason we are in this bind -- not enough rail for agriculture -- is because the Obama administration has done everything in its power to shut down new pipelines. Farmers in Iowa and farmers in Minnesota are against new pipelines. 

From what I've read, BNSF has pretty much put pedal to the metal building new rail, buying more locomotives, adding more rail cars. These capital-intensive-manpower-intensive companies can only move so fast. Perhaps if the President signed some executive orders for rail and pipeline with Americans' interests at heart, much of this would be solved.