By Peter Leeds
Will 2012 bring the end of days? The Mayans thought so, but I'm not convinced. The coming year is certain to see major events play out on the world stage that may forever alter our course in history. So what can we actually expect as we start this turbulent year and how will it impact our lives? Based on analysis which I conduct for my financial newsletter, the following 12 points are what I'm expecting to see in 2012.
Disclosures: 1) This article is written from a politically neutral viewpoint; 2) Peter Leeds is personally invested in precious metals.
1. Republicans try to win back the White House with a ticket of Mitt Romney and J.C. Watts
We're expecting Mitt Romney to be the republican's candidate. Here's where it gets interesting. Based on information from our source with over 30 years in politics, we are expecting Romney's running mate to be little known J. C. Watts, an African-American politician from Oklahoma, former professional football star, and father of six. He is well spoken, likable, and a young 55.
2. Obama wins re-election
By the time the election takes place, we're expecting that there will have been an ongoing, albeit mild, recovery in America's employment situation (see below), which will boost Obama's popularity. As well, based on the early percentages coming in for all nine battle ground states, and the number of Electoral College votes from each, we feel that Obama would win if the election were held today. We expect his lead to increase as the campaign enters full swing.
3. Occupy Wall Street soldiers on, but in a dramatically different form
The Occupy Wall Street movement will still be relevant in 2012, but not in it's current form. They will need to reinvent themselves to endure, as media interest, supporters, and activity are all on the decline. According to Google Trends, searches for Occupy Wall Street have fallen by 66 percent from their October 15th peak to November 25th. According to the Pew Research Center's weekly news index, Occupy Wall Street enjoyed 10% of the total coverage across their outlets on Oct. 1st, compared to less than 4 percent now.
4. Unemployment rate slips in 2012 to 7.5 percent
According to The Washington Post over $1.8 Trillion dollars is sitting idle in America's corporations. Much of this will finally start trickling back into the economy. The original reasons companies were hoarding cash, such as uncertainty of the economic environment and European debt contagions, are beginning to take a back seat to growth plans. These companies (such as Microsoft, with $40 billion cash on hand, Caterpillar with $3 billion, Harley Davidson with $1.5 billion, Exxon at over $11 billion, etc…) are very profitable now, and will look to use their cash to capture market share and expand. We're expecting this increased spending to result in a mild improvement in the unemployment rate, pushing it down from 9 percent
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