Observations and Sample of Recent Trades (FIE:CA):

ADP reported this morning that the private sector added a seasonally adjusted 253K jobs last month. The consensus estimate was for 170K. The April number was revised down by 3K to 174K. 

ADP National Employment Report | May 2017

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Trump: 

Gallups daily poll shows that Trump is moving up some in his job approval rating after hitting 37% on 5/21/17:  Gallup Daily: Trump Job Approval | Gallup The most recent number is a 41% approval rating in that poll. 

According to CNN, U.S. intelligence intercepted communications last year where Russians discussed having potentially derogatory information on Donald and certain aides which could be used to influence U.S. policy. The White House called the story "false and unverified" and railed against the use of anonymous sources to "smear" the President.

Trump cited in a tweet that sources told Fox and Friends, one of his favorite programs that he watches everyday, that Kushner did not ask for a private channel to Putin:

Retweeting a story planted at  Fox is not the same as Kushner or Trump denying that claim. Kushner can deny it at anytime Donald that he sought to open a back channel using Russian facilities in order to evade detection by U.S. intelligence agencies, but has not done so yet.

Investigation Turns to Kushner’s Motives in Meeting With a Putin Ally - The New York Times

Report: Investigators examine Kushner's meeting with Russian banker Sergei Gorkov - CBS News

Sergei Gorkov is no ordinary banker.

His bank, Vnesheconombank (VEB), is on the U.S. sanctions list that prohibits U.S. persons from providing financing to it.  Announcement of Treasury Sanctions on Entities Within the Financial Services and Energy Sectors of Russia, Against Arms or Related Materiel Entities, and those Undermining Ukraine's Sovereignty

VEB is viewed by many as "an off-the-books kitty" for Putin to reward his allies and to pay his spies. Why Is Putin’s ‘Private Slush Fund’ Courting Jared Kushner? | Foreign Policy

A VEB employee was convicted in the U.S. for attempting to recruit U.S. citizens as spies for Russia. U.S. charges three in alleged Russian spy ring in NYC | Reuters; Russian spy Evgeny Buryakov deported from United States - ABC News

Requesting a meeting with Gorkov after meeting with the Russian Ambassador is going to be difficult to explain to non-Trump supporters.

Eric Trump denies report that Russia funded dad’s golf courses | New York Post-Eric Trump said dad’s golf courses were funded by Russia: report | New York Post

Trump administration moves to return Russian compounds in Maryland and New York - The Washington Post ("The Trump administration is moving toward handing back to Russia two diplomatic compounds near New York City and on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, that its officials were ejected from in late December as punishment for Moscow’s interference in the 2016 presidential election." Both compounds were used for spying)

Is Trump an 'adult'? Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) wont' say - POLITICO (Sasse is a Republican senator from Nebraska so arguably he may not be a "Liptard" but only arguably so in Trump Nation)

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Trump does not believe in exercise since that drains his finite lifetime supply of energy. If Donald Trump Were Actually a Battery - The New Yorker

And, I have been following the same path for many years now without even knowing why it was healthy for me to conserve my precious bodily fluids. Dr. Strangelove - Precious Bodily Fluids - YouTube; Dr. Strangelove - Water Fluoridation - YouTube

At the recent G-7, all of the leaders, except for Trump, had to walk about 700 feet for a photo op.

Trump rode a golf cart which is interesting since his Doctor referred to him as the healthiest man who ever served as President.

With Italy No Longer in U.S. Focus, Russia Swoops to Fill the Void - The New York Times

Germany's Merkel Signals Deepening Rift With U.S. Under Trump - NBC News

Well, Donald took note of Merkel's statement about the U.S. no longer being a reliable ally for Europe and tried his best to make amends with the Germans:

Germans wonder why Trump keeps lashing out at them and not Russia or Saudi Arabia - The Washington Post (not hard to figure out/no thinking required)

Darrell Delamaide, who is apparently paid to write opinion columns for Marketwatch, gave this dust up between the U.S. and Germany some really deep thought. He concluded that Trump had exposed in his tweets Germany's hidden agenda to dominate Europe. Trump provokes Merkel to reveal her true goal of dominating Europe - MarketWatch 

Yes, of course, anyone can see the real hidden German agenda that Our Dear Leader has now exposed on Twitter. It is only a question of time before our new best Friend Russia will join the U.S. once again to stop Germany from conquering all of Europe. I get it. Just brilliant Darrell. Your profile picture seems to a bit red in the face. I am not the one to say go easy on the refreshments.  

European leaders did not particularly like the Imperial Donald and do not seem willing to dance to his tune.

This is a statement released by Hope Hicks on behalf of Trump earlier this week:

"President Trump has a magnetic personality and exudes positive energy, which is infectious to those around him. He has an unparalleled ability to communicate with people, whether he is speaking to a room of three or an arena of 30,000. He has built great relationships throughout his life and treats everyone with respect. He is brilliant with a great sense of humor … and an amazing ability to make people feel special and aspire to be more than even they thought possible." 

I may borrow some of Hope's language when I write my own Wikepedia biography: I have started to write it in fact:  "South Gent has a magnetic personality and exudes positive energy. He is brilliant, Albert Einstein reincarnated in fact. Despite his brilliance, SG did not invent the word Covfefe. SG is a Really, Really Amazing Person that treats women and everyone else with respect, tells the best jokes in the history of the universe, and inspires everyone to be almost as great as he is. "  

All jokes aside, Trump's 'covfefe' tweet sparks questions too - LA Times

Thomas Friedman summarized the current status of our Nation somewhat facetiously (maybe not) as the United American Emirates: 

"We have an emir. His name is Donald. We have a crown prince. His name is Jared. We have a crown princess. Her name is Ivanka. We have a consultative council (Congress) that rubber-stamps whatever the emir wants. And like any good monarchy, our ruling family sees no conflict of interest between its personal businesses and those of the state." Trump’s United American Emirate - The New York Times

Friedman's calls Donald's foreign policy the Trump Doctrine which I believe will become better known to future historians than even the Monroe Doctrine or George Keenan's Containment Doctrine which apparently no longer applies to our new best friend Russia and our new best buddy Vlad:

"The Trump doctrine is very simple: There are just four threats in the world: terrorists who will kill us, immigrants who will rape us or take our jobs, importers and exporters who will take our industries — and North Korea. Threats to democracy, free trade, the environment and human rights are no longer on our menu." 

Who made this recent statement in response to Russia's meddling in the election? 

“The people who lost the elections do not at all want to admit that they truly lost and that the one who won turned out to be closer to the people, to understand better what the people, the simple voters wanted. Nobody wants to admit this,” he claimed. “They want to explain this to themselves and to prove to others that their policy was right, they did everything well but someone else cheated and swindled them. But that’s not the case. They simply lost and they must admit that."

Putin: Russian meddling 'fiction' invented by Democrats - ABC News

Donald has someone who agrees with him or maybe it is Donald agreeing with what Putin says.

In a rebranding that stale name United States of America, maybe TrumpLand will sound more appealing to Donald.

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Kushner:

How Jared Kushner built a luxury skyscraper using loans meant for job-starved areas - The Washington Post

Jared Kushner’s Other Real Estate Empire - The New York Times

Tenants Of "Kushnerville" Have Mass Complaints - CBSN Live Video - CBS News

Jared Kushner’s Rise: NY Magazine

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IVANKA:

I was thinking about making champagne popsicles to honor our soldiers, but thought that some might view it as gaudy. I wonder if that activity has occurred to anyone else in the U.S.

Men probing Ivanka Trump brands in China arrested, missing: CNBC

Bad idea to embarrass the Princess, especially in China, or even worse in our Second Best New Friend Saudi Arabia.

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How does a Muslim man divorce his wife in India, usually with no financial support?

Just say the word Talaq, which means divorce in Arabic, three times. Muslim Women in India Challenge ‘Instant Divorce’ Law - The New York Times

The man who stabbed three men on that Portland train, who responded to his hate filled speech directed at two teenagers, stated that he hoped that those three liberals died. He is a Trump supporter, of course, and will apparently be unable to attend the upcoming Trump rally in Portland:

Portland pro-Trump rally organizer: "I can't control everybody" - CBS News ("That's what liberalism gets you" and "You call it terrorism. I call it patriotism. You hear me? Die!" One of the intellectuals of the Alt-Right Movement no doubt).

In the U.S. now, a liberal (more affectionally called a LipTard) includes true conservatives, moderates and liberals. All liberals are retarded and read Donald's tweets either for their entertainment value or to become more depressed about nation's future.  

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1.  Intermediate Term Bond/CD Ladder Basket Strategy:

A. Bought 2 Sierra Pacific Power 2.6% General Mortgage Bonds Maturing on 5/1/26: 

Issuer: Sierra Pacific Power is an indirect subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, a consolidated subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway. 

Finra Page: Bond Detail (prospectus not linked)

Prospectus 

Credit Ratings: 

Moodys at A2

Moody's upgrades MidAmerican Energy and its US utility subsidiaries; outlooks stable

YTM at Total Cost (97.140) = 2.965%
Current Yield =  2.68%

Security: 

Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company 2016 Annual Report

The parent of Sierra Power and Nevada Power is a company called NV Energy which is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of BHE. (page 18):  

B. Bought 1 Consolidated Edison 2.9% Senior Unsecured Bond Maturing on 12/1/26-A Roth IRA Account:

Issuer: Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED)
Finra Page: Bond Detail (prospectus linked)
Credit Ratings: (ratings shown in the snapshot are believed to be wrong)
Moody's at A3
Moody's Affirms ConEd's A3 Rating; Outlook Stable
S & P at BBB+
Fitch at BBB+ Fitch Affirms ConEd & Subsidiaries at 'BBB+'; Outlook Stable

Con Edison - Investor Relations - Credit Ratings

YTM at Total Cost (98.253) = 3.112%
Current Yield = 2.95%

Con Edison Reports 2017 First Quarter Earnings
2016 Annual Report (debt discussed starting at page 86)
ED Analyst Estimates - Consolidated Edison Inc

C. Bought 2 Pepsico 2.75% Senior Unsecured Bonds Maturing on 4/30/25:

Issuer: PEP Stock Price - PepsiCo Inc.
Finra Page: Bond Detail (prospectus not linked)
Prospectus
Credit Ratings:
Moody's at A1
Moody's rates PepsiCo's new notes at A1
S & P at A
Fitch at A
Fitch Rates PepsiCo's $4.5 billion Notes Issuance 'A'; Outlook Stable

2017 First Quarter Results
2016 Annual Report
PEP SEC Filings
PEP Analyst Estimates

YTM at Total Cost (99.189) = 2.864%
Current Yield = 2.78%

D. Bought 1 PPL 2.5% First Mortgage Bond Maturing on 9/1/22:

Issuer:  PPL Corp.
Finra Page: Bond Detail (prospectus linked)
Credit Ratings:
Moody's at A1
S & P at A

YTM at Total Cost (99.449) = 2.611%
Current Yield = 2.51%

2017 First Quarter Report
2016 Annual Report

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Over the past several days, I have profitably sold some low yielding intermediate term bonds and could find nothing in the Bond Land that I wanted to buy. The proceeds went back into cash or short term CDs. Generally, when I hit the point where I find buying opportunities unattractive and/or non-existent, Left Brain has come to a conclusion that it is better to sell than to buy at current prices.

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2. Continued to Pare Canadian Reset Equity Preferred Stock Allocation:

A. Sold 100 FTSPRI at C$15.27:

Profit Snapshot: +C$479

Item # 6. Bough 100 FTSPRI AT C$10.46: Update For Exchange Traded Bond And Preferred Stock Basket Strategy As Of 3/28/16 - South Gent | Seeking Alpha

Quote: FTS.PR.I Stock Price - Fortis Inc. Pfd. Series I Stock Quote (Canada: Toronto) 

The Series I pays cumulative dividends at the 3 month Canadian Treasury Bill plus 1.45%. Par value is $25. Fortis has the option to redeem at par value plus accrued dividend on June 1, 2020 and on June 1 every five years thereafter.

The three month Canadian Treasury Bill has been stuck near .5% for awhile: Canada 3-Month Bond Yield - Investing.com

B. Sold 100 PPL.PR.C (C$1 Commission):

Profit Snapshot: C$496

Item # 4. Bought 100 PPLPRC at C$16.66: Update For Exchange Traded Bonds And Preferred Stocks Basket Strategy As Of 5/20/16 - South Gent | Seeking Alpha

Quote: PPL.PR.C Stock Price - Pembina Pipeline Corp. Cum. Pfd. Series 3  (Canada: Toronto)

This Pembina Pipeline cumulative preferred stock is currently paying a C$1.175 annual dividend in quarterly installments that translates into a 4.7% coupon on a C$25 par value. That rate is in effect to 3/1/19 whereupon the coupon resets at a 2.6% spread to the five year Canadian government bond yield.

Canada 5 Year Government Bond  Yield

3. Long Term Bond Strategy: Slightly Underweighted as of 6/1/17 (several Tennessee Municipal bond purchases have not yet been discussed):

A. Bought 5 Knox County, Tennessee 3% General Obligation Bonds Maturing on  6/1/35:

EMMA Page:
Credit Ratings:
Moody's at Aa1
S & P at AA+

YTM at Total Cost (95.819) = 3.309%
Current Tax Free Yield = 3.13%

Tax Equivalent Yield Calculator


Knox County, Tennessee  includes Knoxville, Tn., home to the University of Tennessee.
Knox County - Google Maps

Taxation:

Security:

Optional Redemption at Par on or after 6/1/25:

Sourced: OFFICIAL STATEMENT  (see description of county at pages B-18 et. seq.)

If redeemed within ten years after purchase, the bond becomes part of my intermediate term bond basket strategy.

I am funding internally the purchase of this bond from the following securities maturing in July with some money leftover given the discount to par value:

1 Merchants Bank .8% CD 7/19/17
3 Bank of China .95% CDs 7/19/17
1 Guildford Savings .65% CD 7/24/17
1 of 2 Bank of China .9% CDs 7/27/17

Proceeds from some maturing CDs are being using to buy newly issued short term CDs.


5. Canadian Income Strategy:

A. Bought 100 of the ETF FIE:CA at C$7.20 (C$1 Commission):

B. Bought 100 of the ETF FIE:CA at C$7:

I eliminated a 1700 share position earlier this year with the last 200 share disposition discussed here: Item # 4 A. Sold 200 FIE:CA at C$7.54-Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Observations and Sample of Recent Trades: 3/10/17 (GMTA, UL, FIE:CA, UL, PSAPRE )(total realized gain on 1700 shares was for USD557.32.

I am now back up to 200 shares.

Quote: FIE Fund - iShares Canadian Financial Monthly Income ETF (Toronto)

I discussed selling the 1500 share lot in a 1/5/17 comment.

This ETF owns Canadian banks, insurance companies and REITs along with two Canadian ETFs that invest in Canadian bonds and preferred stocks respectively. Dividends are paid monthly at C$.04 per share. At a total cost of C$7.2, that distribution level produces about a 6.67% yield.

Top Holdings as of Date of Purchase (5/3/17)

iShares Canadian Financial Monthly Income ETF | FIE

Dividends at paid monthly at a current rate of C$.04 per share. At a total cost of C$7 per share, the dividend yield would be about 6.86%.

The Canadian banks have been trending down recently based primarily on concerns about a bubble in Canadian home prices. Those concerns were exacerbated after a subprime lender got into financial difficulties. Canada's Subprime Lenders Collapse-Seeking Alpha The bubble in U.S. housing prices started to pop when defaults started to surge in the subprime lending market and what is commonly referred to as Alt-A loans (derisively called "liar loans"). The improvident mortgage lending by U.S. subprime lenders contributed to the price bubble, where home prices were disconnected from a borrower's ability to service the loan.

While Canada measures debt to disposable income somewhat differently than the U.S., Canadian household debt to disposable income was recently reported at 169.41. Canada Households Debt To Disposable Income | 1990-2017 | Data | Chart; Reconciling Canadian-U.S. measures of household disposable income and household debt

The U.S. ratio topped out near 132+% back in 2007:

U.S. Household Liability Level to Disposable Personal Income-St. Louis Fed (debt payments to disposable income is also important and can make higher debt levels manageable when interest costs are abnormally low as now)

This issue is more complex than my summary above. In a February 2015 post, I discussed this potential problem for Canadian banks in slightly more detail. Dividend Growth And Large Cap Valuation Strategies: Bought Toronto Dominion Bank (TD) - South Gent | Seeking Alpha


6.  Short Term Bond/CD Ladder Basket Strategy:

A. Added 2 USTs .625% Maturing on 11/30/17:

YTM at Total Cost (no commission) = 1.025%

I now own 6.

Disclaimer: I am not a financial advisor but simply an individual investor who has been managing my own money since I was a teenager. In this post, I am acting solely as a financial journalist focusing on my own investments. The information contained in this post is not intended to be a complete description or summary of all available data relevant to making an investment decision. Instead, I am merely expressing some of the reasons underlying the purchase or sell of securities. Nothing in this post is intended to constitute investment or legal advice or a recommendation to buy or to sell. All investors need to perform their own due diligence before making any financial decision which requires at a minimum reading original source material available at the SEC and elsewhere. A failure to perform due diligence only increases what I call "error creep". Stocks, Bonds & Politics: ERROR CREEP and the INVESTING PROCESS Each investor needs to assess a potential investment taking into account their personal risk tolerances, goals and situational risks. I can only make that kind of assessment for myself and family members.