Readings — 9 August 2026
MACRO — THE ECONOMY
The Interest Bill: FYTD gross interest rose to $1.17T (31 Jul), up from $1.05T last edition; the debt itself grew to $39.89T (7 Aug), from $39.84T (30 Jul). [Confirmed]
Manic Mr Market: unchanged at 218.1% (2026 Q1) — still Significantly Overvalued, same quarter’s reading as last edition. [Confirmed]
The Melting Anchor: the dollar’s gold value keeps eroding — now 0.80% of its 1971 value (was 0.86%); live gold spot has jumped to $4,391/oz, up sharply from $4,053/oz (3 Aug), consistent with this week’s rate-cut repricing. [Confirmed]
Red Ink Rising: unchanged — still FY2025 net interest $970.1B, 13.84% of the federal budget; annual series, next refresh at the CBO’s ~Feb/Jun baseline.
US Treasury Dashboard: first appearance in Readings (live since 3 Aug, too new for last edition). 10-year yield 4.75%, 30-year 5.27%, curve not inverted (10Y–2Y spread +0.47pp); Broad Dollar Index 120.69; federal debt outstanding $39.77T, 80.6% held by the public. [Confirmed]
MICRO — THE STOCKS
Utopia’s Eleven: combined market cap rose from $26.45T to $28.03T. NVIDIA holds the lead at $5.32T (was $4.86T); Apple second at $4.48T. Banquo’s Ghost narrowed to $2.38T (from $3.33T). [Confirmed]
The Debt Garden: combined plot rose from $27.8B to $29.9B; Ares Capital still largest at $14.4B; still 6 of 6 below series high, median 415W since peak (was 405W). [Confirmed]
Cape Fear: unchanged at 42.18 — same Jul 2026 print, still the 99th percentile since 1881. [Confirmed]
Mathematical Scenarios: now synced to Cape Fear’s current 42.18 print. Staying at today’s multiple implies +21.9% by 2036; reverting to the full-history mean implies −48.6%. [Confirmed]
The High Water Mark / Leg by Leg: roster has grown sharply, now 78 companies tracked (up from 17), averaging 82.3% of their recorded highs; 11 sit at or within 1% of theirs, led by Grupo Cibest (108.7%*) and Marathon Petroleum (103.4%*). [Confirmed]
DEMOS — THE PEOPLE
The Mood of the Crowd: unchanged — US sentiment still 55.2 (2nd percentile), UK confidence still −17.0 (24th percentile); the August US preliminary lands 14 Aug. [Confirmed]
The Camel’s Back: unchanged at 155 — illustrative scaffolding, no live feed, nothing to update.
Hot or Not: unchanged — still 35% Trump second-term approval, latest read 8 Jun 2026. [Confirmed]
POLIS — THE STATE
The Watchtower: US midterms now 84 days out (from 92); the next Fed decision (16 Sep dot-plot) sits 36 days out; UK election unchanged at ~3.0 years out. [Confirmed/Inferred as tagged on-site]
The Long Fuse: no live feed, nothing to update.
FLOWS — THE CAPITAL
Net Liquidity Tracker: unchanged — still $5.92T, same 22/24 Jul reading. [Confirmed]
The Tide Table: unchanged — same year-end-2025 dataset. [Confirmed]
Mind the Gap: unchanged since 17 Jul — ¥162.43, 1.84pp spread.