Commodities, Stocks Tumble On Debt Worries – Brevard Times
The inability of the U.S. supercommittee to reach a debt deal, coupled with ongoing European sovereign debt woes sent stocks and commodities, including Rhodium, to fall yesterday.
Rhodium, a precious metal with industrial uses produced in South Africa and Russia, which had seen a modest rebound since late October to $1675 and ounce, has fallen within the last week to nearly $1650 an ounce along with other precious metals
The sovereign debt ‘crisis’ continues to remain a stubborn symptom of the global financial crisis where the ultimate tug-of-war remains between banks that want European governments to spread the pain of their losses on taxpayers of their respective countries in the name of austerity has caused an uprising of populist politics that refuses to budge on the matter.
In the U.S., the inability to reach a debt deal is also due to populist politics where entitlement recipients vie against special interests to make conciliatory cuts to reach a balanced budget.