Notes From All Over -- August 20, 2021

Updates

Later, 12:04 p.m. CT: this market is the best market I've seen in decades. There is just enough volatility to allow folks like me to buy on the dips, but the dips are not so bad to scare the heck out of me. The market provided two buying opportunities this week, Wednesday and Thursday, August 18 - August 19, 2021. Did anyone really think the Dow / S&P 500 would be down three days in a row?

And then the easy money (ten-year treasury bills paying 1.26%); the Fed talking about tapering (just talking); and then this, my favorite graphic:

Something no one talking about: Baby Boomers taking social security. Perhaps 70%, perhaps 75% of those baby boomers need that social security to survive, but a lot do not. Of those that do not, many are putting that $3,000 / month back into the market. And folks forget that spouses get to collect up to 50 percent of their spouses social security. 

Lana Del Rey, tired of singing the blues:

Original Post

The next big thing: Netflix -- one of my favorite subjects on the blog -- called this years ago; Netflix surges; up $22 yesterday; up 4% yesterday; trading at $544. 

From Tomi Kilgore: Netflix stock shoots up toward biggest gain in seven months. 

From Benzinga:

Streaming giants Disney Co, Netflix Inc and Roku Inc

are in constant competition to dominate the screens of viewers worldwide. Traders and investors may prefer the companies for different reasons: Netflix as a pure streaming play; Roku hosts a variety of different streaming services including Netflix on its set-top box; or Disney, which offers diversity through its streaming, cruises, amusement parks and retail footprints.

All three stocks have settled into patterns that could give both bulls and bears a way to play.

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site.  Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here. 

Deere: quarterly profit surges. 

• third-quarter profit more than doubled, as higher agricultural income on the back of strong crop prices boosted demand for farm and construction equipment.
• net income attributable to the company rose to $1.67 billion, or $5.32 per share, in the quarter ended Aug. 2, from $811 million, or $2.57 per share, a year earlier. 
  

Toyota, VW: we talked about this earlier. Semiconductor shortages put world's largest automakers at risk. Link here. 

Sabbath Mode: self-help. Link to The WSJ. If link breaks or one encounters a paywall, google sabbath mode overn.

Cargo ships again idling off jammed southern California ports: again, WSJ.

Apple: patents "removable key" to double as a micro-mouse. Link here.

Credit cards: more businesses are assessing fees on purchases made with credit cards. This story interests me not one bit, but I'm posting it because this practice was pretty much the standard among local, mom-and-pop shops in Kalispell, MT, when I was there this past summer. 

I don't frequent such retail establishments if they add additional fees, unless there are not options. There are seldom any situations when there is no option. Wouldn't it be better to simply quietly raise the price of merchandise by 3% and off a three-percent discount on items purchased with cash? Or better yet, no discount at all. But don't add a fee to my credit card purchase that is so obvious. 

My hunch: shoplifting (by customers and staff) is a bigger problem than the credit card fee charged by the issuing company. As long as I'm on this rant, one week where credit card customers don't pay for anything with a credit card, and this craze will go away overnight. Processing checks (and especially the checks that bounce) cost a whole lot more than credit card transactions.