Self Driving Cars: Alcoa, Google, Lyft, Apple, Uber, GM, Ford

It looks like Apple has entered the self driving car race. Yesterday Apple.Car was added to Apple's domain name lexicon.Apple joins Google, Lyft, Uber, GM, Ford, etc. as eager providers to "must have" choices for consumers.The tech group speaks to what they will be their value added to this care free driving experience. What could possibly go wrong? But who will build the platform?Tech equipped is one thing. But The car still needs wheels and a wrap around metal sheet to keep rain out and stop other cars and tech equipped pedestrians from walking into the cars space. Alcoa has a patented process called Micromill. Ford now uses it to reduce weight in its vehicles to meet government mileage goals. The Micromill processed aluminum is not only lighter than steel but more durable.The same enhanced aluminum was used in combat vehicles in Iraq. Bay Area driving isn't as dangerous as driving any where in Iraq.Let the gadget gods fight it out. They still have to come propeller hat in hand to Alcoa's engineering and metal working shop. Google will offer insurance with its entry.That's the business they really want to get a foothold. Why? Look what the insurance business did for Warren Buffett.Google's eco friendly motto will parlay no towing fees with crashed/damaged self driving aluminum cars. Just leave the car. The homeless will remove it in shopping carts for return fees.

Inflation Is Poised To Rise Because Of China Pollution

 AKS Steel Holding Company recently announced an across the board price increase on all its steel products of 2%. It cited rising demand across the globe. United States Steel has similar robust prospects. Alcoa and other basic material dealers are demonstrating a turn around in their stock price and the price of the their underlying metal ingots. China's pollution woes will provide a white hot boost to basic metals pricing. Simply the Chinese people can be content with 150 feet visability in cities because of coal-fired manufacturing and utility production or the smoke stacks will be shut down in the interest of public health. With this cutting back of steel , aluminum , copper and other materials and finished goods will come some or a lot of inflation. That will kill equities and may bring down China's highly leveraged real estate , banking and municipalities. But that may be a year away. So in the interim buy steel, copper, aluminum stocks. Later buy massive amounts of out-of the-money puts on the major indicies as stagflation grips the economies around the world.