Oddly Relevant Mar-7-2013

The rise of the sharing economy: just an example, Airbnb had over 4mm usage thus far (2.5mm in 2012 alone). Technology has reduced transaction costs and made sharing assets cheaper and easier than ever. The main worry is regulatory uncertainty and security, but this emerging model is now big and disruptive enough for regulators and companies to have woken up to it—and that’s a sign of its immense potential. [Note: I don’t know, sometimes only ownership leads to responsible use and care]…Source: http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21573104-internet-everything-hire-rise-sharing-economy

More fact on China: “Ninety members of the National People’s Congress are on a list of China’s 1,000 richest people published by the Shanghai- based Hurun Report, up from 75 last year, according to a review of the data by Bloomberg News. Everyone on the Hurun list had a fortune of at least 1.8 billion yuan ($289.4 million), more than former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.”…Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-06/china-s-richer-than-romney-lawmakers-show-xi-s-reform-challenge.html

Opinion: China must seize rare chance for reform: While the conflicts of interests among ruling elites may create incentive to endorse the rule of law, many barriers bar China from reforming: especially the concerns over the quality of leadership since its leaders are drawn exclusively from the bureaucracy. But the new leadership is not completely the products of bureaucratic training system, and this could be China’s chance. [Note: I remain hopeful]…Source: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/f0c375d0-8596-11e2-bed4-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2MuXa1oRw

Per Richard Bernstein, 3 signs to watch for the next bear market: that they don’t suggest one: (1) if the Fed tightens too much, but this is not happening any time soon; (2) if there exists significant overvaluation, but this just doesn’t seem like the case given the earnings power; (3) if there is euphoria in equity as the asset class of choice, but this is hardly the case given the cautious outlook…Source: http://pragcap.com/richard-bernstein-3-signs-to-watch-for-the-next-bear-market