And it's a good day from him

[peterbirks]

The morning did not start auspiciously. My mobile phone steadfastly refused to recharge. Of course, I don't have a contract phone; hell, I use it so rarely that it's a miracle that I have one at all. So it's a bit of a pisser for a phone that's only seven months old to start messing you about. I was resigned to forking out another hundred or so for a new phone, because I was damned sure that my chances of finding the box, or the receipt, or anything useful, were next to zero.

But from thereonin, the riptide began. Pound goes even higher against dollar. kerching. Stop-win point is 2.05 BTW.

Get home. Share certificates from my share option scheme have arrived in the post. Kerching. Now it's just a matter of working out how many I can sell each year without incurring CGT.

Look for original box for phone. No luck. But, at the last moment, inspiration strikes. Maybe I put receipt in my tax-receipts file? (After all, it's a business expense, isn't it?) And, voila, not only is receipt there, but so is Tesco Mobile phone helpline number.

And, rock on, big up for Tesco. Not only is phonecall answered promptly, but person at other end of line is courteous, efficient, and helpful. They'll send me an envelope. I send back phone, sans battery and sans sim, and they fix it. Or, if they can't, they replace it. And, yes, I did say "Thank you very much. You've been very helpful. And it is appreciated." BT, learn some lessons on how it's done.

Then plumber phones me with quote for bathroom. Hell, I'd been resigned to chasing him up at least twice before I got any exact numbers out of him. Quote (£7.6K plus VAT, if any of you want to compare bathroom costs, and that includes the skip and underfloor heating) was two to three grand less than I anticipated. Kerching. Quids in for another three grand. OK, I know that's a bit like the wife spending a few grand at the shops and claiming at the end that the reductions were so good that she's saved you more than a grand, but, well, it felt like a saving to me.

So, all in all, a highly profitable day. All that money "saved" goes half-way towards a not-bad-car. Shall I treat myself?


Funking for Mr Ward today, of course, although he'll probably be all-in at least five times in the first couple of hours. Provided (a) he doesn't get called or (b) he gets lucky with his 75s, thigs should be fine. And the way my luck's running today (I have 2% of the action...) I'm fully confident that he'll be rolling with 250,000 by the end of the day.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

75 off mate. Did you really post that beforehand ? Spooky :-)

PS Stupid low dollar.

[andy-ward-uk.livejournal.com]

That was me obv.

[jaybee66.livejournal.com]

So Peter, you bet on the dollar depreciating and at the same time you have a dollar cash account that is depreciating.

Treading water?

What is the point of a dollar account that pays little in interest and dwindles by the second? I don't understand people who play online poker and insist on pissing away any winnings with a substantial dollar holding.

I live in Euro-land but all my money is in an Offshore Sterling account. I can't spend the interest fast enough!

[peterbirks.livejournal.com]

In the past I took the line that holding a long position in cable was a "hedge" (in fact I need a position of about £50 a cent to break even whenlooking at it this way).

However, in a discussion a while ago we concluded that, since I spend money in the US, and I use my dollar holdings for that, the depreciation of the dollar doesn't really impact my overall wealth (unless PJB plc reported solely in Sterling -- which, as a private equity company, I don't have to do). In addition, since my long-term view of the dollar remains less pessimistic, and since my dollar holdings are long-term, although the depreciation of the dollar affects the bottom line of PJB plc (reporting in sterling), it has no impact on the company's fundamental wealth. I never actually convert any dollar winnings to sterling, because I don't need the money at the moment -- i make quite enough for my modest needs from sterling income.

Meanwhile, the forex trading on sterling sits in a different part of the accounts, and that CAN be put into the bottom line (i.e., my bank account) straight away.

BTW if PJB plc decided to start reporting in dollars, I'd be getting richer by the second.

PJ

[jaybee66.livejournal.com]

BTW if PJB plc decided to start reporting in dollars, I'd be getting richer by the second.

Indeed you would. I was looking at property in the US last night. I felt very wealthy.

Meanwhile, I just found some US coinage in a storage box. It's so light it's like handling those coins that came with a toy cash register when you were a child. How long before American's start coin clipping?

Any views on gold? I'm tempted to buy a kilo ingot or two and Krugerands for loose change. I do pessimism very well.

[peterbirks.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm a fan of gold like I'm a fan of fleeing the country with only the clothes on my back if the Nazis came to power. It's not something that is a good result, but it's better than the alternative.

If inflation takes off again (as it will), then the main alternatives are equities and gold. Equities are overpriced at the moment, so that leaves gold. As 5% of your portfolio, I don't think it's a bad idea. Also, if the dollar is approaching its nadir ($2.20 being the Birks line, as you know), then Gold benefits from an appreciating dollar, because it is priced in gold.


Have you considered maize futures?

PJ

[jaybee66.livejournal.com]

Italians are having to pay more for their pasta because ethanol producers are squeezing the durum wheat market. A car is like a Tamagotchi. People are obsessed with feeding cars rather than themselves.

I'll steer clear of the futures market. In the same way that you'd steer clear of joining me for a glass. I'm into tangibles rather than derivatives now.

I might dip into shares again though. Oil companies (with large underground inventories), ethanol/bio-diesel feed stock producers and precious metal miners.

[peterbirks.livejournal.com]

My timing is legendarily shit when it comes to equities. I seem to be about 18 months ahead of the market, and I get out "too soon". I've actually gritted my teeth with some stocks since 2002, and profited as a result, but the "ones that got away" include Hunting, where I made a tidy profit (50% in a few months, I recall), but where a 400% profit was there for the taking. And the sector?

Yes, oil.

[jaybee66.livejournal.com]

I've been waiting for this and it's finally happened.


http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aLaColVYu5LA&refer=home (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aLaColVYu5LA&refer=home)

More pressure to sell dollars.

No doubt Iran, Venezuela et al will be asking Euro nations to buy oil with Euros too. The poodles in the IPE will stick to dollars.