Notes From All Over, Part 1 -- September 3, 2019

A continuation of "those not paying attention are missing an incredible investing opportunity."

Stock on thin ice -- zerohedge. Have stocks successfully averted a crisis? 

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Heard on the Street, WSJ: the American consumer keeps beating expectations. 

What is different this time round is that three years of rising employment and pay seem to have imbued household budgets with a higher degree of resilience. Last week, government statisticians revised down U.S. economic growth for the second quarter to 2%, due to the impact of weaker-than-expected exports and inventory investment, but recorded a strong pickup in company earnings and consumer spending—now upgraded to its strongest reading since 2014. Official figures also showed a sharp rise in U.S. consumer spending in July.

This has benefited much of the consumer-led economy. During the first half, earnings declined in S&P 500 sectors like industrials, materials and energy, but this was offset by profit growth in consumer industries, health care and even banks. Manufacturing is, after all, only 10% of the U.S. economy.

As a result, S&P 500 earnings per share are up almost 20% relative to the second quarter of 2018. In more export-dependent Europe, Euro Stoxx 50 earnings are only down slightly over the same period. Profits were much weaker in the 2015-2016 deceleration, particularly in Europe, where domestically focused industries are also holding up much better.

EVs: remember the hand-wringing some years ago about shortage of lithium? Now, from Bloomberg, the lithium industry buildup is outracing the EV boom. More than enough lithium.  Six new mines in Australia; EV sales slow in China.