GOLD: $1342.70  UP $19.50  (COMEX TO COMEX CLOSINGS)

Silver: $16.67 UP 34 CENTS (COMEX TO COMEX CLOSINGS)

Closing access prices:

Gold $134150

silver: $16605

SHANGHAI GOLD FIX: FIRST FIX 10 15 PM EST (2:15 SHANGHAI LOCAL TIME)

SECOND FIX: 2:15 AM EST (6:15 SHANGHAI LOCAL TIME)

SHANGHAI FIRST GOLD FIX: $1335.22 DOLLARS PER OZ

NY PRICE OF GOLD AT EXACT SAME TIME: $1327.20

PREMIUM FIRST FIX: $8.02

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SECOND SHANGHAI GOLD FIX: $1335.22

NY GOLD PRICE AT THE EXACT SAME TIME:   1329.04

PREMIUM SECOND FIX /NY:$6.10

SHANGHAI REJECTS NY PRICING OF GOLD.

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ON APRIL 1  2018 I WILL NO LONGER PROVIDE THE LONDON FIXES AS THEY ARE MANIPULATED AND THEY WILL BE PROVIDED 36 HRS AFTER THE FACT AND  THUS TOTALLY USELESS TO US!!

LONDON FIRST GOLD FIX: 5:30 am est $xxx

NY PRICING AT THE EXACT SAME TIME: $xxx

LONDON SECOND GOLD FIX 10 AM: $xxx

NY PRICING AT THE EXACT SAME TIME. $xxx

end

For comex gold:

APRIL/

NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED TODAY FOR APRIL CONTRACT:399 NOTICE(S) FOR 39,900 OZ.

TOTAL NOTICES SO FAR 551 FOR 55100 OZ (1.713 tonnes)

For silver:

APRIL

8 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR

40,000 OZ/

Total number of notices filed so far this month: 19 for 90,000 oz

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Bitcoin: BID $054/OFFER $7154: UP $260(morning)

Bitcoin: BID/ $6889/offer $6989: UP $95  (CLOSING/5 PM)

end

Let us have a look at the data for today

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In silver, the total open interest ROSE  BY A GOOD SIZED 1901 contracts from 227,230  RISING TO 229,131  DESPITE THURSDAY’S SMALL 6 CENT RISE IN SILVER PRICING.  AGAIN, WE HAD NO COMEX LIQUIDATION. HOWEVER, WE WERE AGAIN NOTIFIED THAT WE HAD ANOTHER STRONG SIZED NUMBER OF COMEX LONGS TRANSFERRING THEIR CONTRACTS TO LONDON THROUGH THE EFP : 2261 EFP’S FOR MAY AND ZERO FOR ALL  OTHER MONTHS  AND THUS TOTAL ISSUANCE OF 2261 CONTRACTS.  WITH THE TRANSFER OF 2261 CONTRACTS, WHAT THE CME IS STATING IS THAT THERE IS NO SILVER (OR GOLD) TO BE DELIVERED UPON AT THE COMEX AS THEY MUST EXPORT THEIR OBLIGATION TO LONDON. ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT THERE CAN BE A DELAY OF 24-48 HRS IN THE ISSUING OF EFP’S. THE 2261 CONTRACTS TRANSLATES INTO 11.30 MILLION OZ  ON TOP OF THE RISE IN OPEN INTEREST IN SILVER AT THE COMEX AND THE STRONG AMOUNT OF SILVER OUNCES STANDING FOR APRIL COMEX DELIVERY.

ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S/SILVER/J.P.MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES, / STARTING FROM FIRST DAY NOTICE/FOR MONTH OF APRIL:

2261 CONTRACTS (FOR 1 TRADING DAY TOTAL 2261 CONTRACTS) OR 11.30 MILLION OZ: AVERAGE PER DAY: 2261 CONTRACTS OR 11.30 MILLION OZ/DAY

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE HUGE SUPPLY THIS MONTH IN SILVER:  SO FAR THIS MONTH:  11.30 MILLION PAPER OZ HAVE MORPHED OVER TO LONDON. THIS REPRESENTS AROUND 1.61% OF ANNUAL GLOBAL PRODUCTION

ACCUMULATION IN YEAR 2018 TO DATE SILVER EFP’S:  729.795 MILLION OZ.

ACCUMULATION FOR JAN 2018:                        236.879 MILLION OZ

ACCUMULATION FOR FEB 2018:                        244.95 MILLION OZ

ACCUMULATION FOR MARCH 2018:                236.67 MILLION OZ

RESULT: WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX OF 1901 WITH THE 6 CENT RISE IN SILVER PRICE.  HOWEVER, WE ALSO HAD ANOTHER STRONG SIZED EFP ISSUANCE OF 2261 CONTRACTS WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX AND TRANSFERRED THEIR OI TO LONDON AS FORWARDS. SPECULATORS CONTINUED THEIR INTEREST IN ATTACKING THE SILVER COMEX FOR PHYSICAL SILVER . FROM THE CME DATA 2261  EFP’S  FOR THE  MONTH OF MAY WERE ISSUED FOR  A DELIVERABLE FORWARD CONTRACT OVER IN LONDON WITH A FIAT BONUS.   WE GAINED A VERY STRONG  4162 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES: i.e. 2261 open interest contracts headed for London (EFP’s) TOGETHER WITH A INCREASE OF 1901  OI COMEX CONTRACTS. AND ALL OF THIS HAPPENED WITH THE RISE IN PRICE OF SILVER OF 6 CENTS AND A CLOSING PRICE OF $16.33 WITH RESPECT TO THURSDAY’S TRADING. YET WE STILL HAVE A GOOD AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING AT THE COMEX FOR DELIVERY IN THIS NON ACTIVE APRIL DELIVERY  MONTH.

In ounces AT THE COMEX, the OI is still represented by just OVER 1 BILLION oz i.e. 1.136 BILLION TO BE EXACT or 164% of annual global silver production (ex Russia & ex China).

FOR THE NEW FRONT APRIL MONTH/ THEY FILED: 8 NOTICE(S) FOR 40,000 OZ OF SILVER

IN SILVER, WE ARE NOW 5,000 CONTRACTS AWAY FROM RECORD LEVELS AND YET THE SILVER PRICE IS EXTREMELY LOW

ON THE DEMAND SIDE WE HAVE THE FOLLOWING:

1. HUGE AMOUNTS OF SILVER STANDING FOR DELIVERY  (MARCH 27 MILLION OZ AND APRIL 1.8 MILLION OZ)
2. HUGE OPEN INTEREST IN SILVER  227,200 CONTRACTS (OR 1.136 BILLION OZ/
3. HUGE EFP’S ISSUANCE EQUAL TO 2.9 BILLION OZ OR 400% OF SILVER ANNUAL PRODUCTION

AND YET WE HAVE A CONTINUAL LOWER PRICE OF SILVER DESPITE THE ABOVE HUGE DEMAND.  TO ME THE ONLY ANSWER IS THAT WE HAVE SOVEREIGN  (CHINA) WHO IS ENDEAVOURING TO GOBBLE UP ALL AVAILABLE PHYSICAL SILVER NO MATTER WHERE, EXACTLY WHAT J.P.MORGAN IS DOING. AND IT IS MY BELIEF THAT JPMORGAN IS HOLDING ITS SILVER FOR ITS BENEFICIAL OWNER..THE USA GOVERNMENT WHO IN TURN IS HOLDING THAT SILVER FOR CHINA.(FOR A SILVER LOAN REPAYMENT)

In gold, the open interest  FELL BY AN EXTREMELY LARGE SIZED 8602 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 499,565 ACCOMPANYING THE FAIR SIZED FALL IN PRICE IN THURSDAY TRADING ( LOSS OF $3.20). AS WE ENTER THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF APRIL. THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED AN STRONG SIZED 14,769 CONTRACTS :   JUNE SAW THE ISSUANCE OF 14,769 CONTRACTS AND THEN ALL OTHER MONTHS ZERO.  The new OI for the gold complex rests at 499,565. ALSO REMEMBER THAT THERE WILL BE A DELAY IN THE ISSUANCE OF EFP’S.  THE BANKERS REMOVE LONG POSITIONS OF COMEX GOLD IMMEDIATELY.  THEN THEY ORCHESTRATE THEIR PRIVATE EFP DEAL WITH THE LONGS AND THAT COULD TAKE AN ADDITIONAL 48 HRS SO WE GENERALLY DO NOT GET A MATCH WITH RESPECT TO DEPARTING COMEX LONGS AND NEW EFP LONG TRANSFERS. DEMAND FOR GOLD INTENSIFIES GREATLY AS WE CONTINUE TO WITNESS A HUGE NUMBER OF EFP TRANSFERS TOGETHER WITH THE MASSIVE INCREASE IN GOLD COMEX OI  TOGETHER WITH  THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF GOLD OUNCES STANDING FOR FEBRUARY COMEX. EVEN THOUGH THE BANKERS ISSUED THESE MONSTROUS EFPS, THE OBLIGATION STILL RESTS WITH THE BANKERS TO SUPPLY METAL BUT IT TRANSFERS THE RISK TO A LONDON BANKER OBLIGATION AND NOT A NEW YORK COMEX OBLIGATION. LONGS RECEIVE A FIAT BONUS TOGETHER WITH A LONG LONDON FORWARD. THUS, BY THESE ACTIONS, THE BANKERS AT THE COMEX HAVE JUST STATED THAT THEY HAVE NO APPRECIABLE METAL!! THIS IS A MASSIVE FRAUD: THEY CANNOT SUPPLY ANY METAL TO OUR COMEX LONGS BUT THEY ARE QUITE WILLING TO SUPPLY MASSIVE NON BACKED GOLD (AND SILVER) PAPER KNOWING THAT THEY HAVE NO METAL TO SATISFY OUR LONGS. LONDON IS NOW SEVERELY BACKWARD IN BOTH GOLD AND SILVER  AND WE ARE WITNESSING DELAYS IN ACTUAL DELIVERIES. IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A GOOD  OI GAIN IN CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES: 6167 OI CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX AND A VERY STRONG SIZED 14,769 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON.THUS  TOTAL OI GAIN: 6167 CONTRACTS OR 616700 OZ =19.18 TONNES

THURSDAY, WE HAD 24,732 EFP’S ISSUED.

ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL : 14,769 CONTRACTS OR 1,476,900  OZ OR 45.937 TONNES (1 TRADING DAYS AND THUS AVERAGING: 14,769 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY OR 1,476,900 OZ/ TRADING DAY)

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE HUGE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS :   SO FAR THIS MONTH IN 1 TRADING DAY IN  TONNES: 45.937 TONNES

TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2017, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 2555 TONNES

THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 45.937/2550 x 100% TONNES =  1.80% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL PRODUCTION SO FAR IN MARCH ALONE.*** THE ACCUMULATION OF EFP CONTRACTS IS RISING PER MONTH.

ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S YEAR 2018 TO DATE:  2090.5 TONNES

ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S FOR JANUARY 2018:           653.22  TONNES

ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S FOR FEBRUARY 2018:         649.45 TONNES

ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S FOR MARCH 2018:                741.89 TONNES

WHAT IS ALARMING TO ME, ACCORDING TO OUR LONDON EXPERT ANDREW MAGUIRE IS THAT THESE EFP’S ARE TRANSFERRED TO WHAT ARE CALLED SERIAL FORWARD CONTRACT OBLIGATIONS AND THESE CONTRACTS ARE LESS THAN 14 DAYS.  ANYTHING GREATER THAN 14 DAYS, THESE MUST BE RECORDED AND SENT TO THE COMPTROLLER, GREAT BRITAIN TO MONITOR RISK TO THE BANKING SYSTEM.  IF THIS IS INDEED TRUE, THEN THIS IS A MASSIVE CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD AS WE NOW WITNESS A MONSTROUS TOTAL EFP’S ISSUANCE AS IT HEADS INTO THE STRATOSPHERE. 

Result: A CONSIDERABLE SIZED DECREASE IN OI AT THE COMEX WITH THE FAIR SIZED FALL IN PRICE IN GOLD TRADING YESTERDAY ($3.20 LOSS). WE HAD A VERY LARGE SIZED NUMBER OF COMEX LONG TRANSFERRING TO LONDON THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE: 14,769 CONTRACTS AS THESE HAVE ALREADY BEEN NEGOTIATED AND CONFIRMED.   THERE OBVIOUSLY DOES NOT SEEM TO BE MUCH PHYSICAL GOLD AT THE COMEX AND YET WE ALSO OBSERVED A HUGE DELIVERY MONTH FOR THE MONTH OF DECEMBER. I GUESS IT EXPLAINS THE HUGE ISSUANCE OF EFP’S…THERE IS HARDLY ANY GOLD PRESENT AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR DELIVERY PURPOSES. IF YOU TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE 14,769 EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED, WE HAD A GOOD NET GAIN IN OPEN INTEREST OF 6721 contracts ON THE TWO EXCHANGES:

14,769 CONTRACTS MOVE TO LONDON AND 8602 CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX. (in tonnes, the GAIN in total oi equates to 20.91  TONNES).

we had: 152 notice(s) filed upon for 15,200 oz of gold.

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With respect to our two criminal funds, the GLD and the SLV:

GLD

WITH GOLD UP  $19.50 :  WE HAD A BIG CHANGE IN GOLD TONNAGE AT THE GLD/ A DEPOSIT OF 6.19 TONNES

Inventory rests tonight: 852.31 tonnes.

SLV/

WITH SILVER UP 34 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGE

/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

end

First, here is an outline of what will be discussed tonight:

1. Today, we had the open interest in silver RISE BY A STRONG 1901 contracts from 227,230 UP TO 229,131 (AND now A LOT CLOSER TO THE NEW COMEX RECORD SET ON FRIDAY/APRIL 21/2017 AT 234,787.  THE PRICE OF SILVER ON THAT DAY: $17.89) WITH THE SMALL SIZED RISE IN PRICE OF SILVER (6 CENTS//  THURSDAY’S TRADING).   OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE ANOTHER 2261 EFP CONTRACTS FOR MAY  (WE DO NOT GET A LOOK AT THESE CONTRACTS AS IT IS PRIVATE BUT THE CFTC DOES AUDIT THEM) AND 0 EFP’S FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON. WE HAD AGAIN ZERO COMEX SILVER COMEX LIQUIDATION. IF WE TAKE THE  OI GAIN AT THE COMEX OF 2022  CONTRACTS TO THE 2261 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S, WE OBTAIN ASTRONG GAIN OF 4162  OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS.  WE STILL HAVE A GOOD AMOUNT OF SILVER OUNCES THAT ARE STANDING FOR METAL IN APRIL (SEE BELOW). THE NET GAIN TODAY IN OZ ON THE TWO EXCHANGES:  20.81 MILLION OZ!!!

RESULT: A STRONG SIZED INCREASE IN SILVER OI AT THE COMEX DESPITE THE SMALL RISE IN SILVER PRICING  THURSDAY (6 CENT RISE IN PRICE) . BUT WE ALSO HAD ANOTHER VERY STRONG SIZED 2261 EFP’S ISSUED TRANSFERRING COMEX LONGS OVER TO LONDON. TOGETHER WITH THE STRONG  SIZED AMOUNT OF SILVER OUNCES STANDING FOR MARCH, DEMAND FOR PHYSICAL SILVER INTENSIFIES AS WE WITNESS SEVERE BACKWARDATION IN SILVER IN LONDON.

(report Harvey)

.

2.a) The Shanghai and London gold fix report

(Harvey)

2 b) Gold/silver trading overnight Europe, Goldcore

(Mark O’Byrne/zerohedge

and in NY: Bloomberg

3. ASIAN AFFAIRS

i)MONDAY MORNING/SUNDAY NIGHT: Shanghai closed DOWN 5.71 POINTS OR 0.18% /Hang Sang CLOSED  / The Nikkei closed DOWN 65.72/Australia’s all ordinaires CLOSED /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed UP at 6.2831/Oil UP to 65.25 dollars per barrel for WTI and 69.73 for Brent. Stocks in Europe OPENED DEEPLY IN THE GREEN   .   ONSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP AT 6.2830 AGAINST THE DOLLAR. OFFSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP ON THE DOLLAR AT 6.2650 /ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST USA DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING MUCH STRONGER AGAINST THE DOLLAR . CHINA IS  VERY HAPPY TODAY GOOD  CHINESE MARKETS/CHINA RETALIATES WITH TARIFFS/

3a)THAILAND/SOUTH KOREA/NORTH KOREA

i)North Korea/South Korea

b) REPORT ON JAPAN

3 c CHINA

4. EUROPEAN AFFAIRS

ii)FRANCE, TURKEY AND SYRIA

(  South Front)

5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

iii)Friday

( zerohedge)

iv)Russia/USA

( zerohedge)

Interesting:  Turkey breaks with NATO as they refuse to expel Russians.  We know that Turkey is playing with fire as they antagonize the EU over Syria .  Although Turkey condemned the alleged poisoning of Skripal, they refuse to expel any diplomats.  It is also interesting that Israel has refused to expel any Russians as they may deem the attack to be a false flag

( Jim Carey/Geopolitics.Alert com)

vii)MONDAY/RUSSIA

(courtesy zerohedge)

6 .GLOBAL ISSUES

7. OIL ISSUES

8. EMERGING MARKET

9. PHYSICAL MARKETS

10. USA stories which will influence the price of gold/silver

Trading Volumes on the COMEX

PRELIMINARY COMEX VOLUME FOR TODAY:112,749  contracts

CONFIRMED COMEX VOL. FOR YESTERDAY: 265,530 contracts

comex gold volumes are RISING AGAIN

Here is a summary of the latest gold trading volumes at the Comex per year

certainly the introduction of EFP’s has certainly had an effect:

Meanwhile, gold-trading volumes on the COMEX have never been higher:

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And now for the wild silver comex results.

Total silver OI ROSE BY A STRONG 1901  CONTRACTS FROM 227,230 UP TO 229,131 DESPITE OUR TINY 6 CENT RISE IN SILVER PRICING/ THURSDAY).   ALSO,WE WERE ALSO INFORMED THAT WE HAD A VERY STRONG 2261 EMERGENCY EFP’S FOR MAY ISSUED BY OUR BANKERS AND ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS TO COMEX LONGS WHO RECEIVED A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON: THE TOTAL EFP’S ISSUED: 2261.   THE SILVER BOYS HAVE STARTED TO MIGRATE TO LONDON FROM THE START OF DELIVERY MONTH AND CONTINUING RIGHT THROUGH UNTIL FIRST DAY NOTICE JUST LIKE WE ARE WITNESSING TODAY. USUALLY WE NOTED THAT CONTRACTION IN OI OCCURRED ONLY DURING THE LAST WEEK OF AN UPCOMING ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH AS WE HAVE JUST SEEN IN GOLD TODAY. THIS PROCESS HAS JUST BEGUN IN EARNEST IN SILVER STARTING IN SEPTEMBER 2017. HOWEVER, IN GOLD, WE HAVE BEEN WITNESSING THIS FOR THE PAST 2 YEARS. NICK LAIRD WAS KIND ENOUGH TO SUPPLY US THE TOTAL FOR 2017 GOLD EFP’S AND IT WAS 6600 TONNES FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.  WE AGAIN SURPRISINGLY HAD ZERO LONG COMEX SILVER LIQUIDATION AND WE ALSO HAVE A VERY STRONG SIZED GAIN IN TOTAL SILVER OI FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE ARE ALSO WITNESSING A STRONG AMOUNT OF SILVER OUNCES STANDING FOR COMEX METAL IN THIS  NON ACTIVE OF APRIL AS WELL AS THE CONTINUAL MIGRATION OF EFPS OVER TO LONDON. ON A PERCENTAGE BASIS THERE ARE MORE EFP’S ISSUED FOR GOLD THAN SILVER.  ON A NET BASIS WE GAINED 4161 SILVER OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS AS WE OBTAINED A 1901 CONTRACT GAIN AT THE COMEX COMBINING WITH THE ADDITION OF 2261 OI CONTRACTS NAVIGATING OVER TO LONDON.

NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES:4162 CONTRACTS 

AMOUNT STANDING FOR SILVER AT THE COMEX

We are now in the non active delivery month of April and here the front month LOST 11 contracts FALLING TO 350 contracts.  We had 11 notices filed upon (CME correction last Thursday night) so in essence we lost 0 contracts or NIL additional ounces of silver will  stand for delivery in this non active delivery month of April.

The next big active delivery month for silver will be May and here the OI LOST 1421 contracts DOWN to 153,449. June saw its first gain of one contract to stand at one.  The next big delivery month for silver is July and here the OI rose by 2435 contracts up to 40,007.

We had 8 notice(s) filed for 40,000 OZ for the MARCH 2018 contract for silver

IN THE LAST 18 MONTHS 72 NET TONNES HAS LEFT THE COMEX.

end

And now for silver

AND NOW THE APRIL DELIVERY MONTH

APRIL INITIAL standings/SILVER

we had 0 inventory movement at the dealer side of things

total dealer deposits:  nil oz

we had 3 deposits into the customer account

i) Into JPMorgan: 597,413.790 oz

*** JPMorgan for most of 2017 and in 2018 has adding to its inventory almost every single day.

JPMorgan now has 137 million oz of  total silver inventory or 53.6% of all official comex silver.

JPMorgan  deposited zero into its warehouses (official) today.

ii) into CNT:  600,489.604 oz

iii) into Scotia: 660,264.910 oz

total deposits today:  1,798.168.304  oz

we had 3 withdrawals from the customer account;

i) Scotia; 161,516.220 oz

ii) Out of Delaware: 5932.65 oz

iii) Out of CNT: 600,429.240 oz

iii) our od Brinks: 33,905.95 oz

total withdrawals;  201,355.220   oz

we had 0 adjustment

total dealer silver:  58.8561 million

total dealer + customer silver:  262.106 million oz

The total number of notices filed today for the APRIL. contract month is represented by 8 contract(s) FOR 40,000 oz. To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in APRIL., we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 19 x 5,000 oz = 95,000 oz to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of April. (350) and the number of notices served upon today (8 x 5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.

.

Thus the INITIAL standings for silver for the APRIL contract month: 19(notices served so far)x 5000 oz + OI for front month of April(350) -number of notices served upon today (8)x 5000 oz equals 1,805,000 oz of silver standing for the April contract month

WE NEITHER GAINED NOR LOST ANY SILVER OUNCES STANDING IN THIS NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF APRIL. 

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ESTIMATED VOLUME FOR TODAY: 33,834 CONTRACTS

CONFIRMED VOLUME FOR YESTERDAY: 88,190 CONTRACTS

YESTERDAY’S CONFIRMED VOLUME OF 88,190 CONTRACTS EQUATES TO  440 MILLION OZ OR 62.9% OF ANNUAL GLOBAL PRODUCTION OF SILVER

COMMODITY LAW SUGGESTS THAT OPEN INTEREST SHOULD NOT BE MORE THAN 3% OF ANNUAL GLOBAL PRODUCTION. THE CROOKS ARE SUPPLYING MASSIVE PAPER TRYING TO KEEP SILVER IN CHECK.

The record level of silver open interest is 234,787 contracts set on April 21./2017 with the price at that day at $18.42
The previous record was 224,540 contracts with the price at that time of $20.44

end

NPV for Sprott 

1. Sprott silver fund (PSLV): NAV FALLS TO -2.45% (APRIL 2/2018)
2. Sprott gold fund (PHYS): premium to NAV RISES TO -0.70% to NAV (APRIL 2/2018 )
Note: Sprott silver trust back into NEGATIVE territory at -2.45%-/Sprott physical gold trust is back into NEGATIVE/ territory at -0.70%/Central fund of Canada’s is still in jail but being rescued by Sprott.
Sprott WINS hostile 3.1 billion bid to take over Central Fund of Canada

(courtesy Sprott/GATA)

3.SPROTT CEF.A FUND (FORMERLY CENTRAL FUND OF CANADA): NAV RISES TO -2.50%: NAV 13.81/TRADING 13.47//DISCOUNT 2.50.

END

And now the Gold inventory at the GLD/

APRIL 2/WITH GOLD UP $19.50, WE HAD A BIG  CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/ A DEPOSIT OF 6.19 TONNES/INVENTORY RESTS AT 852.31 TONNES

MARCH 29/WITH GOLD DOWN $3.20 AND OPTIONS EXPIRY FINISHED, WE HAD NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS A 846.12 TONNES

March 28/WITH GOLD DOWN $16.70, ANOTHER RAID ORCHESTRATED, AGAIN NO SURPRISES AS WE WITNESS ANOTHER 1.18 TONNES OF GOLD REMOVED/INVENTORY RESTS AT 846.12 TONNES

MARCH 27/WITH GOLD DOWN $11.70 AND A RAID INITIATED, IT WAS NO SURPRISE TO SEE THAT A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 3.24 TONNES WAS USED IN THE ABOVE RAID/INVENTORY RESTS AT 847.30 TONNES

MARCH 26./WITH GOLD UP $4.60/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 850.54 TONNES

MARCH 23/WITH GOLD UP $23.30/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 850.54 TONNES

MARCH 22.WITH GOLD UP $5.90, NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 850.54 TONNES/

MARCH 21/WITH GOLD UP $9.65 NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 850.54 TONNES

March 20/WITH GOLD DOWN $5.75, A SURPRISING HUMONGOUS DEPOSIT OF 10.32 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 850.64 TONNES/

SO FAR, FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH, THE GLD HAS ADDED 19.61 TONNES WITH A NET LOSS OF $17.45

March 19/WITH GOLD UP $5.25: ANOTHER HUGE DEPOSIT OF GOLD TO THE TUNE OF 2.07 TONNES/GOLD INVENTORY RESTS TONIGHT AT 840.22 TONNES

MARCH 16/WITH GOLD DOWN $5.65/OUR CROOKS DEPOSITED ANOTHER 4.42 TONNES INTO GLD INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 838.15 TONNES

FOR THE WEEK: GOLD LOST  $11.80, BUT GOLD INVENTORY ADVANCED:4.42 TONNES

MARCH 15/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.85, NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

MARCH 14/WITH GOLD DOWN $1.55/NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

MARCH 13/WITH GOLD UP $6.25/NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

MARCH 12/WITH GOLD DOWN $3.00/NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

MARCH 9/WITH GOLD UP $2.25/NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

March 8/NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

GOLD DOWN 5.45 TODAY.

MARCH 7/WITH GOLD DOWN 8.00/A SLIGHT CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/A WITHDRAWAL OF .25 TONNES TO PAY FOR FEES//INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.73 TONNES

MARCH 6/WITH GOLD UP $15.60/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.98 TONNES

March 5/WITH GOLD DOWN $4.10/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.98 TONNES

MARCH 2/WITH GOLD UP $18.70/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.98 TONNES

March 1/WITH GOLD DOWN ANOTHER $12.30/A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY/ A DEPOSIT OF 2.96 TONNES/INVENTORY RESTS AT 833.98 TONNES

FEB 28/WITH GOLD DOWN ANOTHER 70 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 831.03 TONNES/.

feb 27/WITH GOLD DOWN $13.80 WE HAD NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 831.03 TONNES

FEB 26/WITH GOLD UP $2.40/WE HAD ANOTHER INVENTORY GAIN/THIS TIME 1.77 TONNE ADDITION TO THE GLD INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 831.03 TONNES/WE HAVE HAD 5 INCREASES IN THE PAST 6 TRADING GOLD SESSIONS/

FEB 23/WITH GOLD DOWN $1.15, WE HAD A GOOD INVENTORY GAIN OF 1.47 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 829.26 TONNES

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APRIL 2/2018/ Inventory rests tonight at 846.12 tonnes

*IN LAST 353 TRADING DAYS: 88.73 NET TONNES HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM THE GLD
*LAST 303 TRADING DAYS: A NET 67.57 TONNES HAVE NOW BEEN ADDED INTO GLD INVENTORY.

end

Now the SLV Inventory/

APRIL 2/WITH SILVER UP 34 CENTS/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 29/WITH SILVER UP 6 CENTS, THE CROOKS DECIDED THAT THEY HAD BETTER ADD SOME 943,000 PAPER OZ TO THEIR INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ

March 28/WITH SILVER DOWN 27 CENTS/AGAIN NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ

MARCH 27/WITH SILVER DOWN 14 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

WITH SILVER UP 11 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 23/WITH SILVER UP 19 CENTS, A HAD A BIG WITHDRAWAL OF 1.602 MILLION OZ.INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 22/WITH SILVER DOWN ONE CENT, NO CHANGE IN SLV INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.671 MILLION OZ/

March 21/WITH SILVER UP 21 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SLV INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.671 MILLION OZ/

March 20/WITH SILVER DOWN 13 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SLV INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.671 MILLION OZ/

March 19/WITH SILVER UP 5 CENTS, THE SLV ADDS A SMALL 659,000 OZ TO ITS INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.671 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 16/WITH SILVER DOWN 15 CENTS/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ.

FOR THE WEEK;  SILVER IS DOWN 42 CENTS YET ADDS 943,000 OZ OF SILVER INTO THE SLV/

MARCH 15/WITH SILVER DOWN 11 CENTS/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 14/WITH SILVER DOWN 8 CENTS/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 13/WITH SILVER UP 10 CENTS/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 12/WITH SILVER DOWN 8 CENTS/A BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/ A DEPOSIT OF 943,000 OZ/INVENTORY RESTS AT 319.012 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 9/WITH SILVER UP 21 CENTS, NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

March 8/WITH SILVER DOWN 1 CENT TODAY: NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 7/WITH SILVER DOWN 27 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 6/WITH SILVER UP 38 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

March 5/WITH SILVER DOWN 11 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

MARCH 2/WITH SILVER UP 23 CENTS: A HUGE 1.479 MILLION OZ WAS ADDED TO SILVER’S INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 318.069 MILLION OZ/

March 1/WITH SILVER DOWN 11 CENTS TODAY/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 316.590 MILLION OZ./

FEB 28/WITH SILVER DOWN 5 CENTS TODAY/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 316.590 MILLION OZ/

feb 27/WITH SILVER DOWN 17 CENTS/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY/INVENTORY RESTS AT 316.590 MILLION OZ

FEB 26/NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 316.590 MILLION OZ/

FEB 23/WITH SILVER DOWN 10 CENTS TODAY, WE HAD ANOTHER HUGE ADDITION OF 1.315 MILLION OZ/INVENTORY RESTS AT 316.590 MILLION OZ/

APRIL 2/2018:  NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: 

Inventory 319.012 million oz

end

6 Month MM GOFO 2.07/ and libor 6 month duration 2.44

Indicative gold forward offer rate for a 6 month duration/calculation:

G0FO+ 1.97%

libor 2.44 FOR 6 MONTHS/

GOLD LENDING RATE: .47%

XXXXXXXX

12 Month MM GOFO
+ 2.43%

LIBOR FOR 12 MONTH DURATION: 2.66

GOFO = LIBOR – GOLD LENDING RATE

GOLD LENDING RATE  = +.23

end

Major gold/silver trading /commentaries for MONDAY

GOLDCORE/BLOG/MARK O’BYRNE.

GOLD/SILVER

The following exchange from Nicholas Biezanek to me is an essential read.  In essence the banks are hiding the huge number of EFP’s through what is called a serial sub 14 day forward obligation. Anything less than 14 day forwards do not have to be included for monitoring by the Office of the Comptroller, Great Britain. I will endeavour to find out if this is exactly true.  If so, then this is nothing but a criminal conspiracy to defraud by the bankers.  Also note that all physical bars delivered upon at 2018 markings..nothing from the past..obviously bars are disappearing faster than a speeding bullet.

Nicholas to me:

Nicholas Biezanek	10:03 AM (2 minutes ago)
to William, me

Bill,Harvey,

I don’t know whether you have listened to Andrew Maguire’s interview with Greg Hunter but ,if not, then here are some key points.This interview is just to important to miss:

• Whilst the volume of gold EFPs for the 1st quarter ,ending tonight,will almost certainly exceed 2 000 tonnes,Andrew believes that these delivery obligations are rolled into serial forward contract obligations for nominal delivery in less than 14 days ,and hence avoid inclusion in the reports required by the Office of the Comptroller that seeks to monitor any  liquidity squeeze on the ‘too big to fail’ banks .The logic for excluding obligations due in less than two weeks is not immediately obvious.Perhaps this delusional Comptroller believes that these criminals will at least have the integrity and risk management systems in place to accommodate all such short term and therefore,unavoidable, commitments.
• All physical gold deliveries out of the LBMA recently bear 2018 markings only-presumably all gold bars refined prior to this date are now ‘AWOL’
• The actual gold market fractional reserving ratio may be as high as 1000/1
• Whilst every time Andrew Maguire goes on air, the paper price of gold is trashed, correlation is not to be confused with causation. At 15.00 on the last Friday of every month (perhaps today as tomorrow is Good Friday), the BIS tries to window dress its trillion USD  underwater derivatives book for reporting purposes.Therefore the paper gold price action of the last 24 hours was caste in stone.
• The bad news for the BIS, Cartel and LBMA is that the whole world is now waiting for this end of month market action and seeks to capitalize upon these waterfall paper gold price declines as unmissable windows of opportunity for physical gold acquisition.
• Many astute investors are also loading up on physical gold in order to ‘front run’ the imminent seriously large physical gold purchases for the ‘alternative currency’ -kinesis.com-that  will go live in October 2018. If you are in paper gold only (including unallocated gold holdings) you will simply be ostracized from this ‘party to end all parties’ (If you haven’t listened to this interview at least twice, then you are not really serious about the gold market)
• Denis Gartman believes that as soon as the Venezuelan Central Bank has completed its disposal of (184?) tons of gold,an orderly gold market will return.Andrew also believes that it will be ‘business as usual’, but only until the impossible,unsustainable strain and tightness in the physical gold market causes a massive price ‘reset’,probably over a weekend, and it may be soon.  (Harvey:  I strongly believe that all of the Venezuelan gold has been sold long time ago as soon as Maduro got in trouble)

Whilst I have been immersed in  GATA’s attempts to unravel the corruption,and manipulation of the physical gold market for a decade, I still find it difficult to get my mind around the magnitude of this imminent unraveling..

Regards

Nicholas

Friday night:  Bitcoin below 7,000.

(courtesy zerohedge)

3. ASIAN AFFAIRS

i)MONDAY MORNING/SUNDAY NIGHT: Shanghai closed DOWN 5.71 POINTS OR 0.18% /Hang Sang CLOSED  / The Nikkei closed DOWN 65.72/Australia’s all ordinaires CLOSED /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed UP at 6.2831/Oil UP to 65.25 dollars per barrel for WTI and 69.73 for Brent. Stocks in Europe OPENED DEEPLY IN THE GREEN   .   ONSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP AT 6.2830 AGAINST THE DOLLAR. OFFSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP ON THE DOLLAR AT 6.2650 /ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST USA DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING MUCH STRONGER AGAINST THE DOLLAR . CHINA IS  VERY HAPPY TODAY GOOD  CHINESE MARKETS/CHINA RETALIATES WITH TARIFFS/

3 a NORTH KOREA/USA

North Korea/South Korea

3 b JAPAN AFFAIRS

Friday:  Japan experiencing problems as this big exporting nation sees its industrial production slow down.  CPI drops which is something that Japan does not want. Also unemployment jumps..another sign that their economy might be in trouble

(courtesy zerohedge)

END

c) REPORT ON CHINA

Fresh from it’s successful introduction of a  yuan denominated crude oil futures, now China is orchestrating paying for oil imports directly with yuan instead of dollars

(courtesy zerohedge)

In Unprecedented Move, China Plans To Pay For Oil Imports With Yuan Instead Of Dollars

Just days after Beijing officially launched  Yuan-denominated crude oil futures (with a bang, as shown in the chart below, surpassing Brent trading volume) which are expected to quickly become the third global price benchmark along Brent and WTI, China took the next major step in the challenging the Dollar’s supremacy as global reserve currency (and internationalizing the Yuan) when on Thursday Reuters reported that China took the first steps to paying for crude oil imports in its own currency instead of the US Dollars.

A pilot program for yuan payment could be launched as soon as the second half of the year and regulators have already asked some financial institutions to “prepare for pricing crude imports in the yuan“, Reuters sourcesreveal.

According to the proposed plan, Beijing would start with purchases from Russia and Angola, two nations which, like China, are keen to break the dollar’s global dominance. They are also two of the top suppliers of crude oil to China, along with Saudi Arabia.

A change in the default crude oil transactional currency – which for decades has been the “Petrodollar”, blessing the US with global reserve currency status – would have monumental consequences for capital allocations and trade flows, not to mention geopolitics: as Reuters notes, a shift in just a small part of global oil trade into the yuan is potentially huge. “Oil is the world’s most traded commodity, with an annual trade value of around $14 trillion, roughly equivalent to China’s gross domestic product last year.” Currently, virtually all global crude oil trading is in dollars, barring an estimated 1 per cent in other currencies. This is the basis of US dominance in the world economy.

However, as shown in the chart below which follows the first few days of Chinese oil futures trading, this status quo may be changing fast.

Superficially, for China it would be a matter of nationalistic pride to see oil trade transact in Yuan: “Being the biggest buyer of oil, it’s only natural for China to push for the usage of yuan for payment settlement. This will also improve the yuan liquidity in the global market,” said one of the people briefed on the matter by Chinese authorities.

There are other considerations behind the launch of the Yuan-denominated oil contract as Goldman explains:

• A commercial benchmark and hedging tool. Until now, Chinese oil imports were based on FOB benchmarks, with long-term procurement contracts settling off Platts Oman/Dubai or Dated Brent. The INE contract has therefore the potential to become the pricing reference for CIF China crude oil, enabling corporate financial hedging. Its warehouse structure is however likely to limit its use for physical crude delivery and may in fact at times reduce its hedge efficiency.
• A new investment vehicle for onshore investors. The majority of China commodity futures trading volumes are from retail investors, yet these had until now little ability to trade oil futures. China’s capital control was the main bottleneck  to trading contracts like Brent as authorities only allow $50,000 outflow a year per person. While several petrochemical and bitumen contracts already trade in China, INE will be the first contract for crude oil, likely drawing significant interest.
• Direct access to China’s commodity markets for offshore investors. China offers deep and liquid commodity markets to its onshore investors. Due to China’s tight capital controls, however, foreign investors have so far only been able to trade these through qualified onshore subsidiaries. The INE contract opens up the first channel for offshore investors to trade in its onshore commodity market, with both the USD deposit and capital gains transferable back to offshore accounts. The government further announced last week that it would waive income taxes for foreign investors trading these new contracts for the first three years. The obligation to trade in Yuan will also add a currency risk exposure to offshore investors. We illustrate in Exhibit 6 a likely template (amongst others) of how overseas investors will be able to access INE liquidity.

The danger, of course, is that such a shift would also boost the value of the Yuan, hardly what China needs considering it was just two a half years ago that Beijing launched a controversial Yuan devaluation to boost its exports and economy.

Still, in light of the relative global economic stability, Beijing may be willing to take the gamble on a stronger Yuan if it means greater geopolitical clout and further acceptance of the renminbi.

Which is why restructuring oil fund flows may be the best first step: as of this moment, China is the world’s second-largest oil consumer and in 2017 overtook the United States as the biggest importer of crude oil; its demand is a key determinant of global oil prices.

If China’s plan to push the Petroyuan’s acceptance proves successful, it will result in greater momentum across all commodities, and could trigger the shift of other product payments to the yuan, including metals and mining raw materials.

Besides the potential of giving China more power over global oil prices, “this will help the Chinese government in its efforts to internationalize yuan,” said Sushant Gupta, research director at energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie. In a Wednesday note, Goldman Sachs said that the success of Shanghai’s crude futures was “indirectly promoting the use of the Chinese currency (which, however as noted above, has negative trade offs as it would also result in a stronger Yuan, something the PBOC may not be too excited about).

Meanwhile, China is wasting no time, and Unipec, the trading arm of Asia’s largest refiner Sinopec already signed a deal to import Middle East crude priced against the newly-launched Shanghai crude futures contract, which incidentally is traded in Yuan.

The bottom line here is whether Beijing is indeed prepared and ready to challenge the US Dollar for the title of global currency hegemon. As Rueters notes, China’s plan to use yuan to pay for oil comes amid a more than year-long gradual strengthening of the currency, which looks set to post a fifth straight quarterly gain, its longest winning streak since 2013.

In a sign that China’s recent Draconian capital control crackdowns have sapped market confidence in a freely-traded Yuan, the currency retained its No.5 ranking as a domestic and global payment currency in January this year, unmoved from a year ago, but its share among other currencies fell to 1.7 percent from 2.5 percent, according to industry tracker SWIFT.

A slew of measures put in place in the last 1-1/2 years to rein in capital flowing out of the country amid a slide in yuan value has taken off some its shine as a global payment currency.

But the yuan has now appreciated 3.4 percent against the dollar so far this year, with solid gains in recent sessions.

“For PBOC and other regulators, internationalization of the yuan is clearly one of the priorities now, and if this plan goes off smoothly then they can start thinking about replicating this model for other commodities purchases,” said a Reuters source.

Still, it will be a long and difficult climb before the Yuan can challenge the dollar and for Beijing to shift the bulk of its commodity purchases to the yuan because of the currency’s illiquidity in forex markets. According to the latest BIS Triennial Survey, nearly 90% of all transactions in the $5 trillion-a-day FX markets involved the dollar on one side of a trade, while only 4% use the yuan.

* * *

Still, not everyone is convinced that the new Yuan-denominated contract will create a “petro-yuan” as the following take from Goldman highlights:

The launch of the INE contract is not just about oil, as it will also be the first Yuan denominated commodity contract tradable by offshore investors. Such a set-up meets the PBOC’s monetary policy committee goal to raise the profile of its currency in the pricing of commodities. It has raised however the question of whether the INE contract is an incremental step in achieving the currency reserve status for the Yuan. We do not believe so.

While the INE launch does represent an additional step in the CNY internationalization, the CNY denomination of the INE contract does not in itself imply CNY investments. The INE contract does not represent an opening of China’s capital accounts since foreign deposits operate in a closed circuit, deposited in designated accounts and not to be used to purchase other domestic assets. In practice, the collateral deposit and any capital gains can be transferred back to offshore accounts. The potential for greater foreign ownership of Chinese assets is therefore not impacted by CNY oil invoicing and would require instead oil exporters to recycle their proceeds in local assets, for example. The incentive to do this has not changed with the introduction of the INE contracts. In particular, most Middle East oil producers still have currencies pegged to the dollar and limited ability to hedge CNY exposure.

Whether or not Goldman is right remains to be seen, however it is undeniable that a monumental change is afoot in global capital flows, where the US – whether Beijing wants to or not – will soon be forced to defend its currency status as oil exporters (and investors in this highly financialized market) will now have a choice: go with US hegemony, or start accepting Yuan in exchange for the world’s most important commodity.

end

China imposes tariffs on more than 125 USA imports including fruit, pork and wine as fears of a trade war grow

two commentaries Mirror and zero hedge

(courtesy Mirror.coUK)

and special thanks to Robert H for sending this to us

China imposes tariffs on more than 125 US imports including fruit and pork as fears of trade war grow

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/china-imposes-tariffs-128-imports-12288162

President Xi Jinping’s government has hit back after Donald Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminium

By

Chris Kitching

by Taboola

Emma Watson confirms romance with actor after very public show of affection

Emma Watson reacts to the huge error on her ‘Time’s Up’ tattoo

China is imposing tariffs on more than 125 US imports including fruit and pork, heightening fears of a trade war between the two countries.

Tariffs of up to 25 per cent go into effect on Monday as President Xi Jinping’s government followed through on a threat to impose the measures.

China confirmed it has suspended duty concessions on 128 US imports after President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium “caused serious damage” to Beijing’s interests.

Global markets were shaken in March when Trump announced he would impose tariffs on Chinese goods as part of his “America first” agenda.

Beijing struck back just days after the Trump administration said the tariffs on Chinese goods may not be imposed until early June.

China’s Ministry of Finance announced the new tariffs in a statement, writing: “The Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council has decided to suspend duty concessions on certain imported goods originating in the United States and implemented it on April 2, 2018.”

It said the measures were imposed in response to Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium, adding: “[The US] measures violated the relevant rules of the World Trade Organization and did not comply with the ‘security exceptions’ provision, which actually constituted safeguard measures.

“This measure was implemented on March 23 and caused serious damage to our interests.

“In order to safeguard China’s interests and balance the losses caused by the US measures to China’s interests, China has suspended duties on seven categories of 128 imported goods originating in the United States from duty duties on April 2, 2018, based on the current applicable tariff rates.

“Tariffs have been imposed on the importation of tariffs on 120 items of imported goods such as fruits and products, and a tariff rate of 25 per cent on 8 items such as pork and products. The current policy of tax-free and tax-exemption remains unchanged.”

China is imposing a 15 per cent tariff on the 120 goods including fruit, the state-owned China News Service reported.

The Trump administration hasn’t published its list of Chinese goods that will face tariffs, but US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told CNBC last week it would total more than $50bn (£35bn) and include “largely high-technology things”.

The goods will be chosen by a computer algorithm to maximize pain on Chinese exporters while minimising pain on US consumers, he added.

He said it would take years to bring the US-China trading relationship “to a good place”, and there would be “a certain amount of tension between the two” given that they have different economic systems.

Trump is imposing tariffs to punish China over allegations that Beijing systematically misappropriated American intellectual property and to prompt changes in various Chinese government policies aimed at forcing technology transfers.

The tariff list must be published by April 6 under a proclamation that Trump signed in March. The measures will go into effect following a 60-day public consultation process.

The president has led an “America first” agenda on trade which has put him at odds with a number of countries, including allies Britain and Canada.

end

China Slaps Tariffs On US Imports Including Pork, Nuts And Wine

As previewed one week ago, on Sunday China unveiled new retaliatory duties on US food imports including pork, nuts, wine and fruits of between 15% and 25% in response to Trump administration’s Section 232 tariffs (not to be confused with the $60BN in Section 301 tariffs unveiled subsequently) on steel and aluminum imports.

In a statement posted on China’s Ministry of Finance website, China’s Customs Tariffs Commission confirmed reports from March 23, stating that additional duties on 128 kinds of products of US origin would be introduced from Monday “in order to safeguard China’s interests and balance the losses caused by the United States additional tariffs.”

As was already known, the highest tariffs of 25% will be imposed on top of existing duties on imports of US scrap aluminium and various kinds of frozen pork. A lower, 15% tariff, will be slapped on dozens of US foods including wine, fresh and dried fruits such as cherries, nuts such as almonds and pistachios, and various kinds of rolled steel bars

As the FT notes, the list was consistent with measures proposed by Beijing last month when it said it was planning tariffs on $3BN of US imports. The response was seen as relatively measured since it left out key US exports to China such as soyabeans, of which the US exported some $14bn last year. Since Beijing has yet to retaliate to the 25% duty on up to $60bn of annual imports from China that Trump promised later last month, it is almost guaranteed that Beijing will make a tougher response in the future.

While most analysts say Beijing is reluctant to escalate trade disputes with Washington, as its mercantilist economy  would have more to lose in any trade war, some influential commentators in China have called for a more robust response to the US’s next set of tariffs, the details of which are yet to be announced but which are expected to be aimed at strategic sectors such as robotics, which Beijing is promoting as part of its industrial policy.

Additionally, as the FT notes, retaliating against soyabean shipments could have a big impact on US farmers, many from states that voted for Mr Trump in the 2016 presidential election. But it would also involve significant pain for China. The country relies heavily on the US for the product, which is used as an animal feed.

For now, however, and as laid out below, items on Beijing’s original hit-list, issued on March 23, includes 128 products split into seven groups and including U.S. pork, recycled aluminum, steel pipes, fruit and wine. The Chinese ministry will implement measures in two stages: first, a 15% tariff on 120 products including steel pipes, dried fruit and wine, and later, a 25% tariff on pork and recycled aluminum.

he full list of US imports targeted by China is below

see zerohedge)

 end

4. EUROPEAN AFFAIRS

France/Turkey/Syria

This is becoming a real mess:  Now France is sending military forces to North west Syria in a move to help the Kurds, knowing that Trump has announced that he will withdraw his troops “shortly”

(courtesy zerohedge)

Israeli Stealth Fighters Fly Over Iran Amid Speculation Of Imminent War

One week after Israel demonstratively released a video of  a 2007 airstrike on a suspected Syrian nuclear facility (after refusing to officially acknowledge the operation for more than a decade), the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida reported late on Thursday that 2 Israeli F-35 stealth fighters had entered Iranian airspace over the past month.

Sources quoted in Al-Jarida said that two stealth fighters flew over Syrian and Iraqi airspace to reach Iran, and even targeted locations in the Iranian cities Bandar Abbas, Esfahan and Shiraz. Then the two ultra advanced fighter jets circled at high altitude above Persian Gulf – read Iranian – sites suspected of being associated with the Iranian nuclear program.

Ominously, the Kuwaiti newspaper also reports that the two jets went undetected by radar, including the Russian radar system located in Syria. It was unclear if the provocative Israeli operation was undertaken in coordination with the US army, which recently conducted joint exercises with the IDF (recall “Top US General Says American Troops Should Be Ready To Die For Israel“)

Brig.-Gen Zvika Haimovitch, the head of the IDF’s Aerial Defense Division
and US Air Force 3rd AF Commander Lt. Gen. Richard Clark.The Kuwaiti report added that the seven F-35 fighters in active service in the Israel Air Force have conducted a number of missions in Syria and on the Lebanese-Syrian border, and highlighted that the fighter jets can travel from Israel to Iran twice without refueling.

As the J-Post puts it, “the act is a signal of heightened regional tensions, especially in light of recent Israeli military attacks in Syria, including against Iranian bases in the country.”

Of course, Israel has had no qualms about admitting it launched about 100 air strikes on Syria over the past five years, targeting Hezbollah terrorists, weapons convoys and infrastructure, and it is believed to be behind dozens more. Things turned ugly in February when an Israel attempt to provoke Syria and Iran backfired: one month ago, Israeli F-16 fighter jets entered Syrian airspace, striking 12 Iranian targets in Syria in response to an Iranian drone that was shot down over Israel. Two Israeli crew members were wounded when they ejected from their jet before it crashed, which, according to Israel, was determined to be caused by pilot error.

In response to the Iranian drone, a senior Israeli official quoted by the JPost warned that Israel will react with force to Iran’s efforts to entrench itself further in Syria: “the Iranians are determined to continue to establish themselves in Syria, and the next incident is only a matter of time,” he said, warning that Israel does not rule out that that the Islamic Republic will continue to try to attack Israel.

* * *

Meanwhile, if Israel is looking for a military conflict spark, whether legitimate or “false flag”, it may get this opportunity as soon as tomorrow, when the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas is reportedly planning a mass demonstration along Israel’s border on Friday, prompting fears of a new war with the Jewish state ahead of the Passover holiday, according to regional experts and U.S. officials who say they are closely monitoring the situation.

According to the Washington Free Beacon, following a recent military exercise described by observers as “unprecedented,” Hamas leaders called for some 100,000 Gaza Strip resident to engage in six weeks of mass demonstrations along the Israeli border as Jewish families gear up for the Passover holiday, which begins Friday evening.

Regional experts closely tracking the situation say the demonstrations are meant as cover for a mass military campaign to swarm Israel’s border and stoke violence against the Jewish state.

The situation is being closely monitored by Trump administration officials, who outlined concerns that Hamas could use civilian protesters as human shields as cover for attacks on Israeli forces. State Department officials told the Washington Free Beacon that they are aware of the upcoming protests and will be tracking the situation closely.

“We are aware of calls by Hamas asking people to march along the Israeli border over the coming weeks,” one U.S. official told the Free Beacon.” We will monitor the situation and developments closely.”

The State Department also emphasized that it still considers Hamas a terror group and is aware of its routine use of human shields during terror operations. “Our position on Hamas has not changed,” the official said. “It is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. Any use of human shields is absolutely unacceptable.”

Omri Ceren, a managing director at The Israel Project, a D.C.-based organization that works on Middle East issues, warned that Hamas is using civilian protests as cover for a massive military operation that could launch another regional war.

Evidence suggests Hamas has already prepared to flood Israel with armed assets during the demonstration and has even positioned equipment such as tractors to shift the ground and erect fortifications.

“Hamas is trying to trigger a Passover War and the U.N. seems eager to help them,” Ceren said. “Hamas is preparing thousands of civilians to rush Israel’s border, tear down the defensive fence, and provide cover as Hamas fighters flood into Israel.”

While Israeli military officials have planned to use as little force as possible to control any violent eruption, things could get out of hand quickly, Ceren said.

“The Israelis will do everything possible to prevent escalation and avoid casualties, but this is the kind of thing that could go really bad really quickly,” he explained.

Of course, the alternative is that Israel will be delighted by, and eagerly welcome any military escalation as it will give it a greenlight to strike not only Palestine, but the country it accuses of being the biggest supporter of Hamas, Iran.

In other words, there is a non-trivial probability that a war between Israel and Iran may break out as soon as this weekend, catalyzed by one of several potential triggers.

END

Friday

Israel/Gaza Strip

Hamas organizes protests in Gaza with the theme of the  “right to return” something that Israel will never agree to.

Seven Palestinians were killed and 500 wounded

(courtesy zerohedge)

Israeli Troops Kill Seven Palestinians, Wound 500 Amid Massive Border Protests

Deadly clashes broke out on Friday afternoon along the Israeli-Gaza border after Israeli security forces killed at least seven Palestinians and injured up to 500, where as previewed yesterday, a series of massive protests took place along the security fence surrounding the Hamas-controlled Gaza strip.

Sky News✔@SkyNews

Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza are taking part in protests along the Israeli border today. So far there have been clashes in several places

Thousands had gathered along the border for a six week-long “Great Return” protest when the violence broke out. IDF troops fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel pellets and tear gas at the protesters during the ongoing violence.

The first protest kicked off on Friday, when Palestinians worldwide mark Land Day, which commemorates the Israeli government’s expropriation of Arab-owned land in the Galilee on March 30, 1976, and ensuing demonstrations in which six Arab Israelis were killed.

The Israel Defense Forces estimated that 17,000 Palestinians were taking part in the demonstrations, and focused at five main protest sites where rioters reportedly threw petrol bombs and stones at troops, and burned tires.

The Israeli military said that its troops had used “riot dispersal means and firing towards main instigators” and that some of the demonstrators were “rolling burning tires and hurling stones” and Molotov cocktails and rocks at IDF troops on the other side of the border. The military maintained that it would not allow Palestinian protesters to “violate Israel’s sovereignty” by crossing the security fence.

One of the dead was aged 16 and most of the casualties were struck by gunfire, according to Palestinian medics who estimated the number of wounded at around 500 by mid-afternoon.

“We have deployed more than 100 sharpshooters, who were called up from all of the military’s units, primarily from the special forces,” Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said, Ynet news reports. “If lives are in jeopardy, there is permission to open fire.”

In a statement reported by Israeli Kan TV, the army said organizers of the protests were deliberately trying to place civilians in harm’s way, and cited an incident in which it said a seven-year-old girl was sent to the security fence in an apparent cynical attempt to draw Israeli fire, but was spotted by troops who realized what was happening and ensured she was not hurt.

Meanwhile, a Hamas official warned that there will be a reaction to any Israeli provocations.

“We don’t want to see a bloodbath. Just a quiet protest,” he said to Israel Hayom, warning that “if there are Israeli provocations and if Israel deliberately harms protesters or our people we will mount a harsh response.” Hamas had said that as many as 100,000 Palestinians will take part in Friday’s massive demonstration.

The protest also coincides with the week-long Jewish holiday of Passover, which regularly leads to increased tensions in the already-volatile region.

The six week-long demonstrations are calling for the right of return for Palestinian refugees to what is now Israel. The protests are set to culminate in May as Israel celebrates the 70th anniversary of its independence, which Palestinians call Nakba (castastrophe) day.

The IDF declared the area around the Israeli side of the Gaza border a “closed military zone,” forbidding Israeli civilians from getting close without army permission. According to the Times of Israel, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot was leading the army’s riot control operation, with assistance from the head of the Southern Command Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the head of IDF Operations Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon, and Israel’s military liaison to the Palestinians, Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai.

The army said it held the Hamas terror group responsible for any violence along the Gaza security fence during the protests and for the “consequences” of it.

Israel’s Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman warned on Friday that any Palestinians from Gaza approaching the security fence with Israel were putting their lives at risk. “Those who approach the fence today are putting themselves in danger,” Liberman said in his post. “I would advise [Gazans] to go on with your lives and not engage in provocations.”

* * *

Friday’s demonstrations mark the beginning of the Palestinians’ return to all of Palestine, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh declared in a speech at the scene of the mass protests in the Gaza Strip.

“We are here to declare today that our people will not agree to keep the right of return only as a slogan,” he said and added that the March of Return was also aimed at sending a message to US President Donald Trump to the effect that the Palestinians will not give up their right to Jerusalem and “Palestine.”

Previously Palestinians have also demanded, along with sovereignty in the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem and the Old City, a “right of return” to Israel for Palestinian refugees who left or were forced out of Israel when it was established. The Palestinians demand this right not only for those of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who are still alive — a figure estimated in the low tens of thousands — but also for their descendants, who number in the millions.

Khaled al-Batsh, the leader of the Iran-backed Islamic Jihad group, which is also among the planners of the protest, said tents would be located 500 meters from the border, just outside the buffer zone between Gaza and Israel. The protest comes amid rising tensions as the United States prepares to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

end

Friday

Israel/Gaza

Israel deploys tear gas drones on the protesters trying to disperse the protesters from penetrating the border fence

(courtesy zerohedge)

Israel Deploys Tear-Gas Drones On Gaza Protesters

Just  last week, we highlighted dramatic new footage showing  Israeli forces using a weaponized unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) against a Hamas rally in the Gaza Strip, according to the Times of Israel.

The UAV is seen flying through the skies above hundreds of protestors, while operators of the aircraft drop chemical weapons into the crowd. The Times of Israel states that the UAV released tear gas, formally known as a lachrymator agent, which causes severe eye and respiratory pain, skin inflammation, bleeding, and even blindness.

Israeli Border Police Deputy Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai, the government official behind the deployment of the weaponized unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), told Hadashot TV news that the tear gas drone provides security forces with an extended range to hurl chemical weapons at protestors.

“Beyond the fact that this equipment neutralizes any danger to the troops, it enables reaching places that until now we could not get to,” Shabtai told Hadashot TV news.

The weaponized unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) “can carry up to six canisters at a time, and drop them individually, as clusters, or all at the same time,” said the Times of Israel.

Well they have used it once again today, following the deaths of seven protesters (and over 500 wounded) amid massive border protests, AFP reports, Israeli border police unleashed tear gas from a drone onto Palestinian protesters in Gaza this morning.

A police spokesman acknowledged operational deployment of the new technology.

AFP reportsa number of people were injured by the containers, which fell from a height of between 10 and 20 metres (30-60 feet), the correspondent said.

Use of unmanned aerial vehicles to launch gas is a recent innovation, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.

“It was used a few weeks ago around the Gaza Strip area and it is also being used today, in order to prevent protesters getting to the Gaza crossing or Gaza border,” he said.

“It’s a mini-drone which has the capability of flying over certain zones and certain areas and then letting go of tear gas in areas that we want to prevent protesters from reaching.“

Meanwhile, Sputnik news agency states that Israel did not sign the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993, which enables the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to legally deploy chemical weapons such as tear gas against civilians.

“The use of tear gas in quelling civil disturbances is legal; however, the use of tear gas in warfare was banned by the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993, to which Israel was not a signatory, but has acceded.”

Israel’s decision blend high-tech drone technology coupled with chemical weapons against civilians paints a turbulent outlook for spring uprisings in the region.Nevertheless, please do not mention this technology to the countless militarized police forces across the United States; otherwise, this dystopian technology is coming to a town near you.

end

Saturday/Israel Gaza Strip

Israel announces that it will respond by going inside the Gaza Strip if organized terrorist operations continue

(courtesy zerohedge)

Israel Will Respond “Inside Gaza Strip” If “Organized Terrorist Operations” Continue

As Israel inches ever-closer to an all-out war against Hezbollah in Syria (a war that could expand to encompass southern Lebanon), the IDF this week also mercilessly crushed yet another massive Hamas-organized border protest in Gaza, deploying drones to shower thousands of demonstrators with tear gas while firing live rounds and rubber-coated steel pellets into the crowd. By the time yesterday’s border clashes had ended, at least 15 Palestinians were dead and over 500 were wounded.

Of course, a spokesman for the IDF – a Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis – denied allegations of excessive use of force. He said the men killed by the IDF belonged to a violent, militant faction of Hamas, and that several dozen people – at most – were injured by live fire while the rest were merely impacted by the tear gas and other crowd-control responses. Gaza’s Shifa Hospital received 284 injured people Friday – most of them with bullet wounds. Of those, 70 were under the age of 18. And 11 were women, per the Associated Press.

Already Saturday, several hundred people returned to the five makeshift tent encampments several hundred meters from the border; the encampments were meant to be a launch point for the marches. But if demonstrators try to rush the border fence again, Manelis said Israel would have no choice but to “expand” its response beyond the border area – echoing the extremely deadly assault unleashed on Gaza City during the summer of 2014. That episode left nearly 2,000 Palestinians dead. Of those, nearly 500 were civilians, per AP.

He said that Hamas and other Gaza militant groups are using protests as a cover for staging attacks. If violence continues, “we will not be able to continue limiting our activity to the fence area and will act against these terror organizations in other places too,” he said.

Indeed, just like during the runup to the IDF’s Operation Protective Edge, the IDF labeled Palestinians efforts to “breach” the border fence “organized terrorist operations.”

Sure enough, on Saturday Israeli troops fired warning shots toward Palestinian youths gathered at the Gaza-Israel border on Saturday, wounding 13 people, health officials said according to Reuters.

And, as we previewed last week, it is only a matter of time before Israel decides to retaliate not on the border but inside the Gaza Strip itself, potentially sparking yet another regional war.

“We won’t let this turn into a ping-pong zone where they perpetrate a terrorist act and we respond with pinpoint action. If this continues we will not have no choice but to respond inside the Gaza Strip,” Manelis told reporters in a phone briefing.

Separately, during a series of tweets, an IDF spokesperson said the army is “only interested in terrorists who are trying to disrupt Israeli life; we only act against them.” The army also claimed that “nothing was carried out uncontrolled” and that the IDF “knows where every bullet landed.” The IDF also touted its successful thwarting of an infiltration attempt by three terrorists in northern Gaza.

Curiously, those tweets by the Israeli army were then swiftly deleted.

View image on Twitter

Joseph Willits@josephwillits

‘We know where every bullet landed’, Tweeted the Israeli army. ‘Nothing was carried out uncontrolled’. Bullets which killed 15 Palestinian demonstrators and wounded 1,400. They’ve since deleted their admittance of guilt #Gazahttps://972mag.com/live-blog-thousands-rally-in-gaza-return-march/134158/ …

9:09 AM – Mar 31, 2018

• 5
• See Joseph Willits’s other Tweets

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Friday’s demonstrations were meant to be part of a six-week long campaign calling for a “right of return” for Palestinian refugees to what is now Israel. The protests are set to culminate in May when Israel celebrates the 70th anniversary of its independence – a day that Palestinians call Nakba (catastrophe) day.

The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is calling for an “independent” investigation of what happened on Friday. The UN Security Council urged restraint on both sides following the clashes, but didn’t decide on any concrete actions.

Since seizing control of Gaza back in 2007 and splitting with the more moderate Fatah party, Hamas has been involved with several deadly clashes with the IDF, as a border blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt has made it increasingly more difficult for Hamas to govern.

end

Russia/USA

Trump warns Putin of a arms race in a phone call over the weekend

(courtesy zerohedge)

“If You Want An Arms Race, We Can Do That” – Trump Challenged Putin During Phone Call

The mainstream media is convinced that all of the measures President Trump has taken to sanction Russia and push back on its expanding influence – in the Middle East and in its own back yard – have been mostly for show.

But once again, an NBC News report shows that there’s more to one-sided stories like a report in the Washington Post claiming that Trump congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his recent electoral victory against the explicit advice of Trump’s foreign policy advisors.

As it turns out, during the same conversation, President Trump didn’t hesitate to challenge Putin to an arms race, and boasted that the US would almost inevitably win.

Two officials said Trump told Putin during a phone call last week: “If you want to have an arms race we can do that, but I’ll win.”

Afterward the president gave no hint of tensions when he told reporters the two leaders had “a very good call” and that he plans to meet with Putin soon to discuss curtailing an arms race.

Within days the split between Trump’s Russia policy and public rhetoric was again on display.

Of course, as anybody with even the most glancing familiarity with global nuclear weapons stockpiles would tell you, Trump isn’t wrong.

Still, NBC News tries to play down the significance of Trump’s defiance of Putin – which included a clash between Russian fighters and US-backed coalition forces in Syria that left hundreds of Russians dead.

On at least one punitive policy – the authorization of an arms shipment to Ukraine to combat separatists in the country’s restive east – NBC said Tillerson “wore him down” – referring to Trump.

Rex Tillerson, Trump’s outgoing secretary of state, led the effort to convince Trump to approve the new arms for Ukraine, officials said. The plan, which Russia opposed, included the sale of U.S.-made Javelin anti-tank missiles that Kiev has for years requested from Washington. President Barack Obama had repeatedly refused to approve Ukraine’s request out of concern it would escalate U.S. tensions with Russia.

Tillerson scheduled a meeting with the president to discuss the plan shortly after the national security team approved it last summer, and he raised the issue with Trump in their regular meetings over the next few months, officials said.

As the policy sat on his desk awaiting his signature, the president expressed concern that it would escalate tensions with Russia and lead to a broader conflict, officials said. They said he also saw Ukraine as a problem for Europe and questioned why he should have to do something about it. And he insisted Ukraine purchase the arms from the U.S., not receive them for free, officials said, before signing off on the policy in December.

“Tillerson just wore him down,” a White House official said.

It also reported that Trump encouraged the administration not to tout any actions that might offend Putin – but the US still went ahead with sanctions and the expulsion of diplomats in solidarity with the UK. Trump has also upped the US’s support for the embattled government of Ukraine – doing more than the Obama administration ever did.

In reality, Trump is taking a much harder line against Russia since Putin unveiled a new nuclear weapon that he claims can surpass NATO missile defenses.

President Donald Trump’s national security advisers spent months trying to convince him to sign off on a plan to supply new U.S. weapons to Ukraine to aid in the country’s fight against Russian-backed separatists, according to multiple senior administration officials.

Yet when the president finally authorized the major policy shift, he told his aides not to publicly tout his decision, officials said. Doing so, Trump argued, might agitate Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the officials.

“He doesn’t want us to bring it up,” one White House official said. “It is not something he wants to talk about.”

Officials said the increasingly puzzling divide between Trump’s policy decisions and public posture on Russia stems from his continued hope for warmer relations with Putin and stubborn refusal to be seen as appeasing the media or critics who question his silence or kind words for the Russian leader. Critics have suggested Trump’s soft approach to Putin has nefarious roots that are somehow entwined with Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and the federal investigation into whether the president’s campaign colluded in that effort, something the president has repeatedly denied.

Behind the scenes, Trump has only recently taken a sharper tone on Putin, administration officials said, but even then the shift seems more a reaction to the Russian leader challenging the president’s strength than a new belief that he’s an adversary. Putin’s claim earlier this month that Russia has new nuclear-capable weapons that could hit the U.S., a threat he underscored with video simulating an attack, “really got under the president’s skin,” one official said.

Trump isn’t the only one to warn about an arms race. Several Russian diplomats have warned that the West’s response to the Skripal poisoning has been too heavy handed.

So, is NBC correct to doubt President Trump’s commitment to containing and countering Russia as it asserts its geopolitical might? Or is there another explanation for why Trump is doing what he’s doing?

What do you think?

end

Turkey/NATO/Russia

Interesting:  Turkey breaks with NATO as they refuse to expel Russians.  We know that Turkey is playing with fire as they antagonize the EU over Syria .  Although Turkey condemned the alleged poisoning of Skripal, they refuse to expel any diplomats.  It is also interesting that Israel has refused to expel any Russians as they may deem the attack to be a false flag

(courtesy Jim Carey/Geopolitics.Alert com)

Turkey Breaks With NATO, Refuses To Expel Russians

Authored by Jim Carey via GeopoliticsAlert.com,

Following the alleged March 4th  Russian poisoning of Sergei Skripal, an ex-double agent in the UK, several European countries and the US have begun ejecting Russian diplomats from their countries. With both the UK and US each ejecting dozens of diplomats, it stands to reason that every other NATO country would follow suit.

You will find more infographics at Statista

However, several European Union members have yet to follow London’s lead. One important NATO country isn’t bowing to western Russophobia: Turkey.

Despite calls from the UK for all of their allies to stand with them in “punishing Russia” they have failed to convince many of their fellow EU members, Israel, and Turkey to follow their suggestions. While there isn’t much London can do to their fellow European states, and obviously, they can’t criticize Israel; tension between Turkey and the EU has reached a point where it’s fashionable to demonize Ankara.

Both the US and UK often pander to Turkey due to the country’s strategic location and their control of the second largest military in NATO. This, however, has become much more difficult in recent months due to the increasingly authoritarian governance of the country leading to arrests of western employees, global kidnappings, and blatant defiance of international law.

This tense relationship between Turkey and the EU was on full display yesterday as Turkish President Recep Erdogan met with EU leaders about his nation’s prospects of joining the bloc. Predictably, no new results were achieved between Brussels and Ankara. This allows Erdogan to go back to turkey and play the victim, likely in anticipation of this announcement on Russia, which he will probably frame as ‘retaliation.’

Tensions between NATO and Turkey have also increased following the recent decision by Ankara to purchase Russian-made S-400 anti-air missile systems rather than the US Patriot missiles. According to Turkey the decision for this purchase was due to the vast amount of red tape around the purchase of the Patriot systems (although, they may have dodged a bullet as the Patriots have recently shown to be ineffective).

The Turks have also found themselves quarreling with the US over their support for the Kurds in northern Syria. According to Ankara (and some high level US officials) the Syrian Kurdish group’s armed by the US have very public connections to the terrorist group, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Combine all these factors and it shouldn’t be surprising to hear the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister, Bekir Bozdag announce that “Turkey isn’t considering taking any decisions against Russia.” According to Bozdag, the current crises in US-Turkish relations is a large factor in their decision not to alienate Moscow at a time when “there is a positive and good relationship between Turkey and Russia.”

While nobody can be sure what to believe coming from the Turks, Erdogan also confirmed the decision to not retaliate against Russia although he “condemns what happened in the UK and regards the use of chemical weapons as a crime against humanity.”

end

Great Britain/Russia

This is going to hurt Russia a bit:  Theresa May is considering a ban on issuance of Russian sovereign debt in London and clearing of Russian debt.  Russia will need the assistance of China on this matter.

(courtesy zerohedge)

Theresa May Reportedly Considering Ban On Russian Sovereign Debt Sales

Echoing the Treasury Department’s decision to prohibit trading in Venezuelan “hunger bonds” in US markets, UK Prime Minister Theresa May is mulling whether to throw her support behind a measure that would ban the sale of Russian sovereign debt in City of London financial markets.

And just like with Venezuela, such a short-sighted prohibition wouldn’t make it any more difficult for Russia to sell its sovereign debt. Rather, Russia would be forced to turn to China to compensate for the shortfall, according to the Guardian.

May’s decision to look into the ban comes at the behest of Foreign Affairs Select Committee Chairman Tom Tugendhat, who has repeatedly urged May to do more to punish Russia for allegedly masterminding the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with novichok – a Soviet-era nerve agent. Most recently, the tensions between the UK and Russia have precipitated a round of diplomatic expulsions, with more than two dozen countries expelling at least some Russia diplomats.

EU and US sanctions against Russia didn’t prohibit the bond sales because of a loophole that effectively set up Russian bank VTB as the main liaison between the Russian state and western financial markets. Now, Tugendhat and several of his allies in Parliament are calling for the loophole to be closed – on both sides of the Atlantic. Tugendhat has spoken about the loophole at least three times in the past week.

The denunciations come as Tugendhat’s committee is beginning an investigation into how the UK enables allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin to store and spend their money in the UK.

Tugendhat has proposed that Russian bond sales are no longer made available to key western clearing houses such as Euroclear and Clearstream, making them effectively untradeable on the secondary market and so deterring the majority of EU and US investors from buying them.

Last month’s sale was specifically skewed to make it attractive for Russian citizens living overseas to repatriate their money to Russia, a long-term goal of Putin.

According to Tugendhat and several of his advisors, cutting off Russia’s access to Western markets would be the best way to undermine Putin’s regime, per the Guardian.

Tugendhat has been briefed by a British research fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows, Emile Simpson, who has argued Russia’s greatest weakness is its dependence on western investors. He contends a policy blindness leads the west to sanction individuals, and sometimes sectors, but not to look at sanctioning the Russian state as a whole.

He said: “At present, Russia can borrow in EU and US capital markets despite western sanctions and then can support the sanctioned Kremlin-linked banks and energy companies that can no longer do so”.

Tugendhat alleges that the bond sales are one way wealthy Russians can move their money back to Russia.

Urging the foreign secretary to look at the issue, Tugendhat said: “One of the ways that people are getting their money out of this country is by allowing Russian sovereign debt to be sold in the UK, and that debt to be used to reimburse Russians, in a way, to bring back their money onshore, in Moscow terms. As that gold is moving towards Moscow, we are, quite extraordinarily, enabling those bond auctions, those debt auctions.”

Of course, thanks to Russia’s relatively low public debt levels ($122 billion in domestic debt and nearly $40 billion in Eurobonds) and its growing economy, there will likely be no shortage of buyers for Russian debt.

Recently, Russia has bragged about the strong demand for its recent auctions (as is evident by the rise in bid-to-cover sen above), saying it might take advantage of low interest rates and offer more Eurobonds thanks to interest from German investors.

Certainly, any economic stress that US sanctions are supposed to putting in Russia are not showing in its sovereign credit risk…

And while sanctions could have an immediate impact, it wouldn’t take Russia long to source new investors in mainland China.

end

MONDAY/RUSSIA

Russia now claims that the Skripal poisoning was staged by UK intelligence.  I am also in this camp

(courtesy zerohedge)

Russia Claims Skripal Poisoning Was Staged By UK Intelligence

Russia’s Ambassador to the UK, Alexander Yakovenko, says that London’s reluctance to share information on the March 4 poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal has led Moscow to suggest that London authorities actually perpetrated the crime.

“We have very serious suspicion that this provocation was done by British intelligence,” Yakovenko told Russia’s NTV channel – adding however that Moscow had no direct proof, but that the UK’s behavior constitutes strong circumstantial evidence in support of their theory.

Yakovenko also suggested that London had gained several benefits from the poisoning – both short and long-term, in that Theresa May’s government is capitalizing on the event in order to boost support at home, while burying headlines over its failures to negotiate better Brexit terms. The long-term benefit, according to Yakovenko, is that London is able to elevate itself into a primary position in the ongoing confrontation between the West and Russia.

“The Britons are claiming a leading role in the so-called containment of Russia. To win support from the people and the parliament for this containment of Russia, a serious provocation was required. And the Britons may have done a really savage one to get this support” –Alexander Yakovenko

Skripal and his daughter were poisoned in Salisbury using what the UK says was a “military grade” nerve agent developed by Russia from the “Novichok” family of toxins – however Russia’s representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) told state-run television in mid-March that the U.S. and U.K. developed the military-grade nerve agent used in the attack.

“There has never been a ‘Novichok’ research project conducted in Russia,” Shulgin told the Rossia-1 television station, as the The Moscow Times first reported. “But in the West, some countries carried out such research, which they called ‘Novichok,’ for some reason.”

According to military experts at the British Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down, the substance used in the attack is part of the “Novichoks” family of nerve agents. This roughly translates into “newcomer” in Russian.

Speaking at the 87th session of the OPCW Friday, Shulgin suggested the “unfounded” accusations from the West should be redirected at themselves. “[It] may very well be that the substance used [in Skripal’s poisoning] may have come from the stocks” of the U.S. and U.K. –Newsweek

“Our British colleagues should recall that Russia and the United Kingdom are members of the OPCW which is one of the most successful and effective disarmament and non-proliferation mechanisms,” Shulgin said. “We call upon them to abandon the language of ultimatums and threats and return to the legal framework of the chemical convention, which makes it possible to resolve this kind of situation.”

Yakovenko also notes that the British authorities have insisted on withholding information from the public regarding the deaths of high-profile people with Russian ties, such as former Russian intelligence officer Alexander Litvinenko, Georgian tycoon-turned-fugitive Badri Patarkatsishvili, Russian businessman Boris Berezovsky, and Russian whistleblower Aleksandr Perepilichny.

Following the Skripal poisoning, the UK and several of its allies responded by expelling Russian diplomats – with the Trump administration kicking 60 Russians out of the country, and the UK expelling 23. Russia returned “fire” with the expulsion of several foreign diplomats, and a demand that Britain scale back its diplomatic mission in Russia – affecting over 50 jobs.

The UK still hasn’t explained why out of the myriad of ways to kill a human being, Russia would use Novichok – certainly knowing it would directly implicate them in Skripal’s POISONING.

END

6 .GLOBAL ISSUES

END

7. OIL ISSUES

Two important commentaries re the new Petro yuan scheme.  In the first commentary, Pepe Escobar is of the opinion that China is taking the long road to solve the dominance of the USA dollar.  It believe it is shorter than what he thinks

two commentaries

(courtesy Asia Times/Pepe Escobar)

China taking the long road to solve the petro-yuan puzzle

A number of pieces have to fall into place before the petrodollar moves into second place

By PEPE ESCOBAR MARCH 28, 2018 4:03 PM (UTC+8)

The rise of the petro-yuan may depend on China’s domination of the gold market. Photo illustration: iStock

Few geoeconomic game-changers are more spectacular than yuan-denominated future crude oil contracts – especially when set up by the largest importer of crude on the planet.

And yet Beijing’s media strategy seems to have consisted in substantially play down the official launch of the petro-yuan at the Shanghai International Energy Exchange.

The dailyReport

Still, some euphoria was in order. Brent Crude soared to $71 a barrel for the first time since 2015. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) reached the highest level in three years at $66.55 a barrel; then retreated to $65.53.

A series of petro-yuan “firsts” include the first time overseas investors are able to access a Chinese commodity market. Significantly, US dollars will be accepted as deposit and for settlement. In the near future, a basket of currencies will also be accepted as deposit.

Does the launch of the petro-yuan represent the ultimate deathblow to the petrodollar – and the birth of a completely new set of rules? Not so fast. That may take years, and depends on many variables, the most important of which will be China’s capacity to bend, tweak and ultimately rule the global oil market.

As the yuan progressively reaches full consolidation in trade settlement, the petro-yuan threat to the US dollar, inscribed in a complex, long-term process, will disseminate the Holy Grail: crude oil futures contracts priced in yuan fully convertible into gold.

That means China’s vast array of trade partners will be able to convert yuan into gold without having to keep funds in Chinese assets or turn them into US dollars. Exporters facing the wrath of Washington, such as Russia, Iran or Venezuela, may then avoid US sanctions by trading oil in yuan convertible to gold. Iran and Venezuela, for instance, would have no problems redirecting tankers to China in order to sell directly in the Chinese market – if that’s what it takes.

How to bypass the US dollar

In the short- to medium-term the petro-yuan will surely boost the appeal of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), especially when it comes to the House of Saud.

It’s still unclear in what capacity Beijing will be part of the Aramco IPO, but that will be a decisive step towards the fateful historic moment when Beijing will tell – or compel – Riyadh to start accepting payment for oil in yuan.

Only then the petrodollar may be at serious risk – along with the US dollar as the global reserve currency.

I have stressed before how, at the 2017 BRICS summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin went no holds barred supporting the petro-yuan, specifically challenging the “unfairness” of the US dollar’s unipolar dominance.

How to bypass the US dollar, as well as the petrodollar, has been discussed at BRICS summits for years now. Russia is now China’s largest crude oil supplier (1.32 million barrels a day last month, up 17.8% from a year earlier.) Moscow and Beijing have been forcefully bypassing the US dollar in bilateral trade. In October last year, China launched a payment system in both currencies – the yuan and the ruble. And that will apply to Russian oil bought by China.

Still, the whole petrodollar edifice lies on OPEC – and the House of Saud– pricing oil in US dollars; as everyone needs greenbacks to buy oil, everyone needs to buy (spiraling) US debt. Beijing is set to break the system – as long as it takes.

The petro-yuan as it stands does not provide access to Chinese oil markets. It starts as a great deal especially for Chinese companies who need to buy oil but would rather avoid the oscillations of foreign exchange. Nothing changes for the rest of the US dollar-dominated commodity planet – at least for now.

The game will really start to change when other nations realize they have found a real credible alternative to the petrodollar, and switching to the yuan en masse will certainly spark a US dollar crisis.

What the petro-yuan may be able to provoke in the short term is an acceleration of the next crises in treasuries and bond markets, which will inevitably spill out in the form of a crisis in global currency markets.

That pan-Eurasian resource basket

The game-changing aspect, for now, mostly has to do with the exquisite timing. Beijing has crafted an ultra-long-term plan and yet chose to launch the petro-yuan smack in the middle of a period of sharp deterioration in trade relations with Washington.

The answer to the geoeconomic riddle is bound to be The Golden Moment. Eventually gold will rise to a level where Beijing – by then totally in control over physical gold markets – feels ready to set a conversion rate.

The – Arabian – ‘petro’ side of the petrodollar equation should have been replaced long ago by a priceless, captured pan-Eurasian resource basket. That was what Dick Cheney dreamed of – centering his dreams on the energy wealth of Central Asia and Russia.

That did not happen. What we have instead is shrieking, manic Russophobia – more like a graphic indication of how precarious is the position of Western banking elites. On top of it, with the petro-yuan, China deploys the key weapon, incorporated into BRI, capable of accelerating the end of the unipolar moment.

Yet this is just the initial step in an ultra-high-stakes game. One should keep one’s eyes firmly focused on the interpolations between trade connectivity and technological breakthroughs. The petrodollar may be in danger but is far from finished.

END

The following is a very important commentary on the subject of the Petro Yuan scheme.

This is a must read as Macleod outlines the details on the new contract of which the first deliveries will be in September. Already conditions are being laid for gold to be delivered to holders if they do not want to hold yuan. This will ultimately be the death knell of the uSA dollar  as excess dollars will now float around the world with no home except the US

a must read.

(courtesy Alasdair Macleod)

On The Yuan-Oil Futures Contract & Gold

Authored by Alasdair Macleod via GoldMoney.com,

“There can be little doubt that the introduction of the yuan-denominated oil future has been a major strategic step for China.”

Regular readers will be aware that we were among the first to alert western financial markets that China would introduce a new oil futures contract priced in yuan, months before it was officially admitted that the plans for the contract were being finalised and a date for trading was being planned.

Trading in the new Shanghai oil future commenced last Monday, and on the first three days trading there were 151,804 contracts traded with a turnover value of 65bn yuan. It is the first futures contract listed on China’s mainland available to overseas users, putting them on the same footing as domestic investors. There are 15 benchmark contracts for different delivery dates between September next and March 2019.

There is little doubt that the Chinese government views this contract as an important development, with international commodity trading houses, such as Glencore and Trafigura, encouraged to participate. Furthermore, state-owned banks would have been on hand to ensure the necessary currency and financial liquidity is available.

The Chinese are likely to ensure trading liquidity continues to build in its new oil contracts before its oil suppliers routinely use them against physical oil deliveries. Presumably, this is one reason the first delivery date is in September, while actual shipment is never more than a month or so.

This contract goes head-to-head against the petrodollar and is the first serious challenge to it since its inception in the mid-1970s. The petrodollar was born out of the monetary chaos that led to the end of the Bretton Woods Agreement, when excess dollars in foreign hands were redeemed for gold. In that sense, being the first significant threat to the petrodollar, this contract could mark the end of a monetary era.

China does not intend to replace the petrodollar with its own currency, other than for her own energy and commodity imports. To put it into context, China imports about 8 million barrels of oil per day, mostly from the Eurasian continent, which compares with global daily demand of roughly 100 million barrels. China also produces her own oil to the tune of about 3.7 mbd, so if all China’s suppliers take yuan in payment, it leaves about 88% of global demand still being priced in dollars.

Therefore, there is for the moment little alarm in Western financial markets about this development.However, at the same time, US oil production is rising, and her imports declining, so even though the energy world is dominated by dollars, the relative importance between the US and China with respect to the international oil trade is rapidly shifting away from America.

Currency factors and the Triffin dilemma.

The undermining of the petrodollar’s status, even though it is initially only at the margin, provides a weak background for the dollar. China’s trade surplus, coupled with the US trade deficit can also be expected to continue to put downward pressure on the dollar relative to the yuan. To an extent, this relative dollar weakness is expected to be offset by China’s selling of yuan for dollars in order to keep a lid on the exchange rate.

At this juncture it is worth noting that the often-quoted Triffin dilemma is likely to backfire badly on the dollar. Briefly, Robert Triffin held that the country which issues a reserve currency has to run trade deficits to ensure there is a satisfactory supply of the reserve currency for it to function as such. There is a complacent assumption that this is a continuing process, which will always ensure demand for the reserve currency. Not so: as Professor Triffin pointed out, it is a short-term expedient that creates a longer-term problem. That is the dilemma.

At some point in the future, there will be sufficient currency in foreign hands to discharge all reserve currency requirements. This could come about because enough currency has been exported for trade settlement needs. Alternatively, if the global economy goes into a trade recession, or a rival currency for trade settlement emerges, there will be a surplus of the reserve currency. The country issuing the reserve currency must then bring its trade deficit back into balance, or even into surplus, if the currency is to preserve its purchasing power.

Now we turn to the circumstance faced by the dollar. Just at the moment when the role of the petrodollar is being undermined by the new yuan contract, and the non-American world is still awash with dollars following the last financial crisis, President Trump is increasing the budget deficit, and consequently we can expect the trade deficit to increase further as well.

There can only be one result, and that is substantial and sustained selling of the dollar on the exchanges. It is reminiscent of the situation in the mid to late 1960s, when returning dollars led to three distinct failures: a failed attempt to absorb dollar sales for gold by setting up the London gold pool, a failed devaluation of the dollar from $35 to $42.22, and finally the collapse of the Bretton Woods Agreement in August 1971. That was the last great Triffin unwind, and now the next one is in prospect.

Foreign holders of dollars, including China, will wake up to the threat, if they have not already done so. So far, China has been reluctant to undermine the dollar by threatening its reserve status. She is, after all, a very large holder of both dollars and US Treasuries. But China’s priorities are now changing, and the outlook for the dollar has suddenly become a less urgent priority.

The nettle that China must grasp is that her mercantilist plans for the Asian continent are leading to the decline of American influence. There comes a point where she cannot pursue her own objectives without undermining the dollar, and with the introduction of the yuan-settled oil future, that Rubicon has now been crossed.

That is one consideration. China also plans to increase her imports of industrial commodities for domestic and Asia-wide infrastructure development. Following oil, she has no alternative but to develop liquid yuan futures contracts available to both domestic and international players in a range of these raw materials. The level of displacement for the dollar will increase as a result, and dollar prices of commodities are bound to rise, due to both China’s demand for commodities and the falling purchasing power of the dollar in more general terms. From China’s point of view, she will want to offset these price rises by allowing the yuan to rise against the dollar.

The priority for China, as she steers her economy away from her past export dependency, will be to manage domestic price inflation. It seems likely she will pursue a balanced approach, with rises in the yuan against the dollar moderated through currency intervention, along with modest increases in yuan interest rates. But there is a significant risk that selling of both the dollar and US Treasuries by the wider international community will accelerate at a time when the Americans are increasing their budget and trade deficits.

There can be little doubt that the introduction of the yuan-denominated oil future has been a major strategic step for China. China will have been worried about undermining the dollar and global financial markets. It is not her style to act in bovine fashion in a porcelain factory. For the Chinese state, the priority is control of outcomes, but at some stage she had to begin to develop her own financial markets for them to be an effective alternative to the dollar. The intent was always there, but timing of developments was never fully under her control.

Consequences for gold

This nettle has now been grasped, and a trade hullabaloo, undoubtedly connected, with America has followed. A new era for the dollar is in prospect and the price of the dollar measured in real money, gold, seems set to decline. It is put that way here, rather than the conventional approach of regarding gold priced in dollars rising, because that is the way the Chinese and the Russians will look at it. And it accords with the theory and economic history of sound money.

The initial source of the dollar’s decline measured in gold seems likely to be an acceleration of central bank demand for physical metal from the oil-exporting nations dealing with China. Some nations will be content to build their yuan reserves, or maybe sell some of them for other currencies, including the dollar. But others, particularly Russia, Iran, and possibly Qatar can be expected to increase their physical gold holdings by selling some of their yuan.

The introduction of the oil-for-yuan futures contract gives these nations the opportunity to match a sale of oil for yuan with a matching purchase of gold for yuan on two exchanges, Hong Kong and Dubai. Officially, the Chinese government has stood to one side with respect to this issue, but Hong Kong’s gold exchange is in talks with Singapore, Dubai and Myanmar to establish an enhanced gold dealing, delivery and storage facility, with vaulting storage in the Qianhai free trade zone on the Chinese mainland.

Agreement from the Chinese government can be assumed to have been a precondition for these talks to have proceeded, even though it is a private sector matter, because it involves gold, gold markets, vaulting on the mainland and foreign regulators. It is anticipated that the vaulting facility will be available in two or three months’ time, well before the first delivery date for the oil contract.

Therefore, there can be little doubt that the gold exchanges in the region are of the opinion that the new oil future will lead to demand for deliverable futures contracts out of Hong Kong and Dubai. This will represent a new source of physical demand, for which not only the East Asian exchanges are preparing, but for which bullion banks around the world must begin to accommodate.

Therefore, physical gold prices appear at the least to be firmly underwritten, because major bullion banks can be expected to accumulate bullion to deliver into this new gold corridor. But the real fun and games are likely to start when the dollar begins to lose its exorbitant privilege, the other unmentionable side of the Triffin dilemma. The potential hit on the dollar’s purchasing power, measured in grains of gold can only be guessed at this stage. But the diligent analyst might like to rake over the history of monetary chaos the last time this happened, between the 1960s and the early 1970s, for clues as to its potential scale.

end

8. EMERGING MARKET

end

And now your more important USA stories which will influence the price of gold/silver

TRADING IN GRAPH FORM FOR THE DAY

Stocks Suffer Worst Q2 Start Since The Great Depression

Well that really escalated quickly…

After last week’s “paint the tape ahead of a long-weekend” melt-up into the close, the first trading day of the second quarter was a bloodbath… In fact the worst since The Great Depression…

As David Rosenberg (@EconguyRosie) summed up so precisely: New math: every tweet by @realDonaldTrump subtracts 70 points off the Dow. Keep ’em coming.

Woah…a ubiquitous opening bounce, then puked into Europe’s close, then another attempt to ignite momentum, fails and stocks puked into red for the year again…

3rd dead cat bounce in a week…

The S&P 500 and The Dow broke below their critical 200DMA… (Nasdaq is closest to its 200DMA since Brexit plunge) –

there was a desperate last few minutes attempt to rally ’em back above the 200DMAs – Dow ended back above its 200DMA

First time the S&P has closed below the 200DMA since June 27th 2016 (Brexit)

VIX topped 25, leading the US equity index vols higher today…

Tech led the tumble…

Lowest close for NYSE FANG+ Index since January 5th…

With Tesla bonds…

and Stocks really ugly – We suspect Elon is regretting the April Fools’ joke…

https://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/styles/inline_image_desktop/public/inline-images/2018-04-02_11-00-42.jpg?itok=F2I2j8Ot

Remember Friday’s reassuring bounce in bank stocks?

Stocks caught down to bonds’ reality once again…

Treasury yields slipped lower from the US open (after opening higher)…

With the 10Y Yield dropping to neat two-month lows…

And Copper/Gold signals another 20-30bps lower for 10Y Yields…

The Dollar Index rebounded modestly as safe-haven liquidity flows picked up like last week…

Cryptos looked ugly over the weekend but ramped back to even today…

Despite dollar strength, PMs rallied on the day as crude was crushed…

And finally, as stocks sink, gold gains most year-to-date…

Bonus Chart: Fool me once, shame on – shame on you. Fool me – you can’t get fooled again…

end

Monday morning data

I would not pay too much attention to soft data Markit PMI which soared again despite the fact that the same soft data ISM mfg index went the other way.  However in both reports, the new tariffs and the decline in the dollar is causing commodity prices to rise and this is causing manufacturing input costs to soar.  Looks to me like we have stagflation which is the enemy of the Fed.

(courtesy zerohedge)

Manufacturing Input Costs Soar Most In 7 Years, Trump Tariffs Blamed

March’s final Manufacturing PMI printed at its highest level since 2015 (though very slightly below its flash print) driven by rises in new orders, output, and surging inflation.

However, while the headline data is positive, input costs rose to the greatest extent since November 2012, with companies stating that price rises often stemmed from recently announced tariffs and higher raw material costs. Average prices charged also continued to increase, with the rate of inflation quickening to the fastest since December 2013.

ISM Manufacturing confirmed this inflationary surge, with Prices Paid spiking to their highest since April 2011…

However, the headline ISM Manufacturing print disappointed, falling (in line with US hard macro data) as PMI rose…

In fact only prices paid rose across the ISM subcomponents flashing a stagflationary warning message.

Commenting on the final PMI data, Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at IHS Markit said:

“US factories reported a strong end to the first quarter, with the PMI advancing to a three-year high. The goods producing sector should therefore make a positive contribution to economic growth in the first quarter, as rising demand fueled further improvements in factory production.

“Optimism about the year ahead has meanwhile also risen to its highest for three years,generating yet another solid payroll gain and suggesting strong growth momentum will be sustained in the second quarter.

“Companies cited rising demand at home and abroad plus recent government policy announcements as helping shore up confidence in terms of their future production levels.

“However, recent tariff announcements were already reported to have added to inflationary pressures, and also led to the stockpiling of goods expected to rise further in price in coming months. Input cost inflation consequently hit the highest since 2012. Increased costs were often passed on to customers, meaning prices charged for goods at the factory gate showed the steepest rise in over four years.”

end

Early morning trading

Both the Dow and Nasdaq fall badly with the latter failing to hold key support levels

(courtesy zerohedge)

Nasdaq Fails To Hold Key Support, Stocks Tumble

It’s deja-vu all over again once more as Friday’s melt-up evaporates just as last week’s midweek dead cat bounce died… Nasdaq leading the way lower as FANGs are FUBAR…

Nasdaq failed to hold its 100 day moving average, and if we now test down to the 200DMA, it would be the first time since Brexit

And just as we saw last week, Friday’s bounce was for selling…

END

LATE TRADING/NY

Dow Dumps Over 750 Points – Takes Out February Crash Lows

The Dow Jones Industrials is now down over 3300 points from its highs, and has broken below February’s spike-crash lows to the lowest since Nov 20th..

The Dow is now the worst-performing major index for 2018 – down almost 6% YTD…

VIX is back above 25 and the curve is notably inverted.

END

Looks like we are getting a mutiny on the bounty at McDonald’s especially in California as the company renegs on wage hikes.

(courtesy zerohedge)

“I Can’t Pay My Bills” – McDonald’s Employees Furious As Company Renegs On Wage Hikes

When the initiative was first announced, McDonald’s decision to raise its employees’ wages to $1 above minimum wage (albeit only at corporate-owned stores, a minority of the company’s total count) was hailed as a radical example of corporate accountability – a direct repudiation of the far-left notion that “quarterly capitalism” and employers accepting responsibility for their employees were mutually exclusive.

As any steely eyed realist might’ve expected, McDonald’s widely lauded “wage hike” was little more than a publicity stunt. In the three years since McDonald’s announced the wage hike in 2015, the firm has essentially frozen employee wages, often leaving them just a few cents above minimum wage, as Bloomberg has discovered.

But the company doesn’t expect to experience any blowback from this decision: After all, McDonald’s never said it was pegging employees’ wages to $1 above minimum wage. The company, it appears, deliberately equivocated during its initial announced – and what’s worse, nobody in the media has called the company out.Until now, that is.

In Milpitas, California, north of San Jose, where the local minimum wage rose to $12 an hour on Jan. 1, several workers’ February paychecks show they received $12.35 or $12.45. In Los Angeles, where the minimum wage for large employers has been $12 since July, some checks show hourly pay of $12.69 or less.

Employees and members of the “Fight for $15” coalition – which had successfully pressured McDonald’s to assent to the wage hike (or so we had thought) – are understandably angry at the company, possibly having planned to receive higher wages in the near future, and based some major financial decisions on that.

“They need to give us the dollar that they promised us,” said one of those employees, Fanny Velazquez, who’s worked for the corporation for a decade. “I can’t pay my rent or my bills.”

The Service Employees International Union – most likely the initial anonymous source who brought the story to Bloomberg – blasted the company in an on-the-record statement. It’s also organizing workers to organize and exert whatever pressure they can.

The Fight For $15, a 6-year-old effort by the Service Employees International Union to organize fast food workers and secure more stringent wage laws, seized on the paychecks as evidence that the McDonald’s 2015 announcement was a “publicity stunt.”

“If McDonald’s wants to play semantics with its workers and continue to drive a race to the bottom instead of giving us real raises, it is going to continue losing workers to the growing number of employers who are leading the way to a better economy for all,” said Betty Douglas, a McDonald’s worker in St. Louis, in a statement on behalf of the Fight for $15.

Fight For $15 criticized McDonald’s pay announcement from the start, because it didn’t apply to the majority of the chain’s stores, which are owned by franchisees, and didn’t meet the group’s signature demand of $15 hourly pay.

The group plans to launch a hotline Monday that workers can call to report their wages, and will hold rallies in three cities on Tuesday to press its case that workers need a union in order to hold the company accountable.

What’s worse than McDonald’s not following through with the wage hike, employees say, is that recent changes to McDonald’s menu – primarily the “Experience the Future” suite of customizable menu options – have made the job harder.

Burger chains like McDonald’s are facing record-high turnover as workers depart for better jobs options in a tightening labor market. Last year, McDonald’s lagged behind peers like Wendy’s and Burger King in average drive-through times. Some employees complain that the chain’s “Experience of the Future,” a suite of changes to menus, technology and food delivery, has meant performing more tasks without commensurate staffing expansions or pay increases.

“It’s going to get increasingly challenging to attract the talent you want into your business,”Easterbrook said earlier this year, “and then you’ve got to work really hard through training and development to retain them.”

Of course, that McDonald’s did this shouldn’t come as a surprise to any long-time Zero Hedge readers. The company has been rapidly adopting kiosks in its dining rooms that allow customers to order without interacting with a cashier. Analysts believe these machines will eventually lead to the disappearance of hundreds of thousands of fast-food service jobs.

As we’ve said before, McDonald’s employees, while you’re agitating for a $15 minimum wage, don’t forget to thank your corporate overlords when they fire you and your comrades and replace you with this guy…

END

The Donald continues with his attack on Amazon and the deal Amazon has with the post office. Citibank has calculated that the USPS is losing 1.50 for every package sent

(courtesy zerohedge)

Trump Triples Down In Amazon Feud: “Deal With Post Office Will Be Changed”

Update (4/2/2018 10 am ET): With Amazon shares already heading lower thanks to Trump’s weekend twitter thrashing, the president has again chimed in Monday morning, tripling down on his recent threatening rhetoric toward the e-commerce giant.

According to Trump, “only fools, or worse, are saying that our money losing Post Office makes money with Amazon. THEY LOSE A FORTUNE, and this will be changed.”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

Only fools, or worse, are saying that our money losing Post Office makes money with Amazon. THEY LOSE A FORTUNE, and this will be changed. Also, our fully tax paying retailers are closing stores all over the country…not a level playing field!

Amazon shares were down more than 3.5% as the price of a single share slipped below the $1,400 level.

* * *

President Trump’s obsession and escalating feud with Jeff Bezos, and bringing Amazon to heel before it destroys what’s left of America’s crumbling brick-and-mortar retail industry, was on display Saturday morning when he fired off a series of angry tweets claiming the Bezos-owned Washington Post should register as a lobbyist and that the Post Office should jack up its parcel rates to stick it to Amazon.

“While we are on the subject, it is reported that the U.S. Post Office will lose $1.50 on average for each package it delivers for Amazon,” Trump tweeted.

“That amounts to Billions of Dollars. The Failing N.Y. Times reports that ‘the size of the company’s lobbying staff has ballooned,’ and that does not include the Fake Washington Post, which is used as a ‘lobbyist’ and should so REGISTER. If the P.O. ‘increased its parcel rates, Amazon’s shipping costs would rise by $2.6 Billion.’ This Post Office scam must stop. Amazon must pay real costs (and taxes) now!”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

While we are on the subject, it is reported that the U.S. Post Office will lose $1.50 on average for each package it delivers for Amazon. That amounts to Billions of Dollars. The Failing N.Y. Times reports that “the size of the company’s lobbying staff has ballooned,” and that…

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

…does not include the Fake Washington Post, which is used as a “lobbyist” and should so REGISTER. If the P.O. “increased its parcel rates, Amazon’s shipping costs would rise by $2.6 Billion.” This Post Office scam must stop. Amazon must pay real costs (and taxes) now!

Trump’s latest salvo follows several attack tweets earlier this week, where Trump accused Amazon of paying “little or no taxes” while putting “thousands of retailers out of business.”

His angry tweets have sent the company’s shares plunging, extending a drop that began with an Axios report saying Trump is fixated on containing Amazon’s inexorable expansion, potentially by invoking anti-trust measures and breaking down the company. In total, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos saw his net worth plunge by $13 billion during the selloff

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

I have stated my concerns with Amazon long before the Election. Unlike others, they pay little or no taxes to state & local governments, use our Postal System as their Delivery Boy (causing tremendous loss to the U.S.), and are putting many thousands of retailers out of business!

As slumping Amazon shares weighed on the broader market last week, the White House clarified that the White House had no actions planned against Amazon.

“The president has expressed his concerns with Amazon,” White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters told the press pool on Air Force One. “We have no actions at this time.”

As Politico points out, Trump’s $1.50 number comes from a WSJ op-ed which cited a Citigroup analysis that the Postal Service loses about $1.46 for every package it delivers for Amazon. But part of this is due to a law that prevents the limits the chronically money-losing USPS ability to compete with for-profit private sector peers such as FedEx and UPS.

end

Donald Stockman explains the truth behind the real earnings of the SP 500 and the truth behind  Amazon

(courtesy Donald Stockman)

The Donald’s Blind Squirrel Nails An Acorn

By David Stockman. Posted On Thursday, March 29th, 2018

It is said that even a blind squirrel occasionally finds an acorn, and so it goes with the Donald. Banging on his Twitter keyboard in the morning darkness, he drilled Jeff Bezos a new one—or at least that’s what most people would call having their net worth lightened by about $2 billion:

I have stated my concerns with Amazon long before the Election. Unlike others, they pay little or no taxes to state & local governments, use our Postal System as their Delivery Boy (causing tremendous loss to the U.S.), and are putting many thousands of retailers out of business!

You can’t get more accurate than that. Amazon (AMZN) is a monstrous predator enabled by the state, but Amazon’s outrageous postal subsidy—-a $1.46 gift card from the USPS stabled on each box—-isn’t the half of it.

The real crime here is that Amazon has been exempted from making a profit, and the culprit is the Federal Reserve’s malignant regime of Bubble Finance. The latter has destroyed financial discipline entirely and turned the stock market into the greatest den of speculation in human history.

That’s why Bezos can kill established businesses with impunity. The casino allows him to run a pernicious business model based on “price to destroy”, rather than price for profit and a return on capital.

Needless to say, under a regime of sound money and honest capital markets Amazon would be a far more benign economic creature. That’s because no real investors would value AMZN’s money-loosing e-Commerce business at $540 billion—-nor even a small fraction of that after 25-years of profitless growth.

As we observed a few weeks ago,

AMZN is allegedly a tech company owing to its cloud business (AWS). But that’s exactly the skunk in the woodpile.

When you set aside AWS’ sales and operating income during 2017, Amazon’s e-Commerce business generated $160 billion of sales, but posted operating income of negative $200 million.

That’s right. The monster of the retail midway posted no profit whatsoever last year!

And it’s getting worse. During 2016 the e-Commerce business posted $1.1 billion of operating income on $124 billion of sales; and the year before that (2015) operating income was $2.6 billion on e-Commerce sales of $99 billion.

Stated differently, incremental annual sales of $61 billion over the past three years resulted in a $2.8 billion reduction in operating profit.

There you have it. As the third great bubble of this century has accelerated towards its blow-off top, the robo-machines and momo traders have turned absolutely rabid, thereby enabling Bezos to go flat-out berserk in pursuit of growth at any cost.

And why not. At the end of the mini-correction in February 2016 Amazon’s market cap was $230 billion, but just 25 months later it was worth $775 billion at its March 12  peak.

That staggering $545 billion gain in market cap had absolutely nothing to do with financial performance, of course. Operating free cash flow was a meager $6.4 billion during 2017 and had been $6.6 billion two years earlier.

That is to say, AMZN was valued at a frisky 35X free cash flow in early 2016 and a completely insane 121X a few weeks ago. The fact that Bezos’ net worth exploded by $100 billion during that same 25 month interval perhaps explains why even the Donald found his acorn.

After all, incentivize an unusually aggressive capitalist entrepreneur with pure madness, and you will indeed get more of exactly that. There is simply no other way to describe Amazon’s preposterous $700 billion valuation and the message that sends to the company’s commander-in-chief.

To be sure, the talking heads try to pass off Amazon as some kind of latter-day technology powerhouse, but that doesn’t wash. As we also recently explained, give its cloud business the most expansive PE multiple imaginable and you still have more than one-half trillion dollars of bottled air:

Even the undoubted prowess and growth capacity of its AWS cloud service doesn’t come close to squaring the circle. In the year just ended, for example, its net income was about $3.2 billion at AMZN’s 20% tax rate.

Needless to say, the cloud business’ current super-hot growth rates mainly represent a one-time share capture from traditional standalone computer capacities. Accordingly, there is no reason to assign a crazy valuation multiple to a highly competitive business based on heavy-duty capital asset throw-weight, which will eventually bend to the single digit growth arc of the GDP.

So give it a 50X PE multiple and be done with it. That implies AWS is worth $160 billion, and the e-Commerce business is worth $540 billion.

Like we said, a market which is valuing at one-half trillion dollars a zero profit business that churns $160 billion per year of GDP anchored goods tells you all you need to know.

The point here is that Bubble Finance is truly pernicious, and in this case you have a veritable double-whammy. The thousands of closed retail stores and malls and the hundreds of thousands of lost jobs the Donald was complaining about this morning had their origin in the same monetary deformation.

To wit, America got fantastically over-stored in the first place owing to cheap debt and ultra-speculative equity markets that funded hundreds of new retail concepts and national rollouts. Indeed, it was a lethal combination: Fast-growing retail chains were awarded nosebleed PE multiples by the stock market, which, in turn, encouraged them to grow their stores bases even faster, thereby generating even more demand for debt financed square footage.

It is not by accident that the US has 5-15 times more retail space per capita than the rest of the developed world. For instance, Australia has 16 square feet per capita and the square footage per capita for UK, France and Germany are all in the single digits.

Needless to say, after all of this cheap-finance driven excess and mal-investment, Bezos now comes in with his half-trillion dollar e-Commerce sledge-hammer and pounds the chart below to smithereens.

In this context, we note that even the Fed heads admit to puzzlement as to why real final sales growth over the last 10 years has fallen to just 1.3% per annum or barely one-third of the historic trend. School marm Yellen, in fact, was always talking about the need for more education and training of the work force.

We’d suggest something a little less modern, however. About 150 years ago, the great French economist, Fredric Bastiat, demonstrated the folly of the “broken window fallacy” or the notion that destruction of capital assets was some kind of boon for growth because their replacement would generate demand for construction, materials and labor.

Obviously, today’s central bankers have done old Bastiat one better. They first fund windows no one needs, and then make the economic felons who smash them fabulously rich from their mayhem.

Needless to say, Amazon is merely symptomatic of the manner in which the systematic falsification of financial asset prices by the Fed and other central banks has corrupted the economic and financial narrative.

For instance, you cannot have the sound on for more than 10 minutes when some talking head on bubblevision says not to worry because profits are booming.

Well, no they are not—-save for round-tripping after the world’s mini-recession of 2015-2016.

In fact, the data is now virtually complete and S&P 500 earnings for 2017 posted at $109 per share compared to $106 per share for the September 2014 LTM period more than three years ago. It goes without saying, of course, that earnings growth at $1 per year per share is not much growth at all, but that’s not even the worst of it.

At the pre-crisis peak in June 2007, LTM earnings for the S&P 500 came in at $85 per share, meaning the peak-to-peak growth rate over the entire decade was just 2.5% per annum.

That’s right. The market closed today at a 24.5X PE valuation on three years of flat earnings, and during what will soon be the 10th year of the weakest business expansion in history.

Moreover, the above doesn’t represent some canky distortion unique to the S&P 500. The picture below is for all US corporations—public and private—and is presented on an aggregate dollar pre-tax basis in order to remove the impact of C-suite tax rate engineering and its persistent shrinkage of the share float via massive stock buybacks.

We’d call the trend flat on the decade and be done with it.

Way back in Q3 2006 when Goldilocks was the belle of the Wall Street ball the first time around, pre-tax corporate profits came in at an $1.655 trillion annual rate. With the aid of a magnifying glass you can perhaps see that the rate of $1.684 trillion for Q4 2107 was exactly 1.8% higher.

In a word, economic profits barely grew by 2% over that period, yet it still fostered 11 years of nearly continuous chatter on bubblevision about earnings being incredibly “strong” (except for the winter of 2008-2009, which apparently has now been air-brushed from the record).

So we are inclined to give the Donald a break. The blind squirrel in the Oval Office missed the biggest reason of all to attack Amazon, but he at least found the acorn.

That’s a lot more than you can say for the endless parade of zombified portfolio managers who fill the airtime on bubblevision.

end

Graham Summers has a good way to show us that inflation is screaming high..

a must view

(courtesy zerohedge)

The Inflation “Needle” Just Touched the Everything Bubble

April 2

By Graham Summers

The Fed is lying about inflation.

How do I know?

Because several of the Fed’s OWN in-house inflation measures are roaring.

• The New York Fed’s UIG inflation measure is currently clocking in at 3.06%.

• The Atlanta Fed’s “sticky” inflation measure is growing at an annualized rate of 2.2%.

• Even the Fed’s heavily massaged Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) metric is growing at 1.8% on an annualized basis, only slightly below the Fed’s so-called target rate of 2%.

So when I read that “inflation is subdued” or isn’t “rising fast enough” to warrant concern, I know the Fed officials claiming this aren’t even bothering to look at the Fed’s own data.

Even if you don’t believe the Fed’s data, the $199 TRILLION Bond Market is SCREAMING inflation.

The yield on the all-important 10-Year US Treasury has made a confirmed break above its long-term downtrend.

Bond yields trade based on inflation. And this chart is telling us that inflation is spiking higher.

This is not an isolated issue either..

The yields on the 10-Year German Bund, 10-Year Japanese Government Bond, and 10-Year UK Gilt are all rising to test their long-term downtrends.

If these trendlines break (as I expect they will in the coming weeks) it will mark the beginning of the end for The Everything Bubble.

All told, there is over $199 trillion in debt outstanding and an additional $500+ trillion in derivatives trading based on these bond yields.

So when this bubble bursts (as all bubbles do) we will experience a crisis many magnitudes worse than 2008.

Suffice to say, the opportunity to make MASSIVE gains from this trend is HUGE.

Best Regards,

Graham Summers
Chief Market Strategist
Phoenix Capital Research

end

SWAMP STORIES

This does not look promising:  Jeff Sessions (and probable a Deep State) hires Prosecutor Huber, an Obama appointee to investigate the FBI and he will join Horowitz in a joint effort.

it keeps the investigation under the dept of Justice.

(courtesy zerohedge)

Sessions Names Prosecutor To Investigate FBI Misconduct Claims

Attorney General Jeff Sessions revealed Thursday that John Huber – Utah’s top federal prosecutor, will be paired with DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz to investigate a multitude of accusations of FBI misconduct surrounding the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The announcement comes one day after Inspector General Michael Horowitz confirmed that he will be investigating allegations of FBI FISA abuse. 

Sessions’ decision stops short of formally appointing a special counsel to investigate – noting in a lengthy letter written to Chairmen Grassley, Goodlatte and Gowdy, Sessions that regulations recognize “the Attorney General may conclude that the circumstances do not justify such a departure “from the normal process of the department,” and that he may instead determine that other “appropriate steps” can be taken…”

View image on Twitter

Josh Caplan@joshdcaplan

BREAKING: Attorney General Jeff Sessions notifies members of Congress he will not appoint second special counsel

That said, Sessions says he will rely on Huber’s review to determine the need for a special counsel. 

“I am confident that Mr. Huber’s review will include a full, complete and objective evaluation of these matters in a manner that is consistent with the law and facts,” Sessions wrote.

“I receive regular updates from Mr. Huber and upon the conclusion of his review, will receive his recommendations as to whether any matters not currently under investigation should be opened, whether any matters currently under investigation require further resources, or whether any matters merit the appointment of a special counsel.”

Huber has also been looking at whether the FBI should have more thoroughly probed Hillary Clinton’s ties to Uranium One, a Russian nuclear energy agency. Still, it is worth noting that it was Barack Obama who appointed Huber to his position in 2015.

Sessions’ full letter can be seen below:

Meanwhile, IG Michael Horowitz confirmed that he will be investigating allegations of FBI FISA abuse on Wednesday.

“The OIG will initiate a review that will examine the Justice Department’s and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s compliance with legal requirements, and with applicable DOJ and FBI policies and procedures, in applications filed with the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) relating to a certain U.S. person,” the statement reads.

View image on Twitter

Justice OIG✔@JusticeOIG

The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General announces the initiation of a review: https://oig.justice.gov/press/2018/2018-03-28b.pdf …

While the OIG’s current investigation and upcoming report – which led to former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe’s firing, is focused on the agency’s handling of the Clinton email investigation. This new probe will focus on FISA abuse and surveillance of the Trump campaign. 

On March 1, House Intelligence Committee (HPSCI) Chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA) wrote in a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions that the FBI may have violated criminal statutes, as well as its own strict internal procedures by using unverified information to obtain a surveillance warrant on onetime Trump campaign advisor Carter Page.

Sessions has come under increasing pressure to appoint a special counsel to investigate what President Trump referred to in late February as “potentially massive FISA abuse.”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

Why is A.G. Jeff Sessions asking the Inspector General to investigate potentially massive FISA abuse. Will take forever, has no prosecutorial power and already late with reports on Comey etc. Isn’t the I.G. an Obama guy? Why not use Justice Department lawyers? DISGRACEFUL!

And while many have noted that Inspector General Horowitz is significantly limited in his abilities to investigate, with Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) noting “the IG’s office does not have authority to compel witness interviews, including from past employees, so its investigation will be limited in scope in comparison to a Special Counsel investigation,” Sessions’ pairing of Horowitz with Huber keeps the investigation under the DOJ’s roof and out of the hands of an independent investigator.

Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing has yet to be seen.

END

With 1500 Central American refugees in a caravan hoping to enter the USA, Trump has now gone nuclear and states that there will not be a DACA deal.  That is a nuclear option which will galvanize the Democrats

(courtesy zerohedge)

“No More DACA Deal” Trump Booms, “Must Go Nuclear” As “Refugee Caravan” Approaches

Minutes after wishing Americans a Happy Easter, President Trump revealed a major shift in his strategy for pursuing an immigration deal with Democrats, and it’s one that Trump-supporters-turned-critics like Anne Coulter may finally approve.

In a tweet, Trump – who has been crucified so to speak by the conservative media for caving in and failing to obtain border wall funding – complained that US border agents aren’t allowed to do their jobs properly because of “ridiculous liberal (Democratic) laws” like “catch and release”. And with more “dangerous caravans coming” to the US border, “Republicans must go to Nuclear Option to pass tough laws NOW. NO MORE DACA DEAL!”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

Border Patrol Agents are not allowed to properly do their job at the Border because of ridiculous liberal (Democrat) laws like Catch & Release. Getting more dangerous. “Caravans” coming. Republicans must go to Nuclear Option to pass tough laws NOW. NO MORE DACA DEAL!

As previously reported, over 1,500 Central Americans are on a crusade across Mexico in the hopes of being granted asylum at the U.S. border.

Setting out six days ago and marching under the slogan “Migrantes en la lucha” (“Migrants in the Fight”) during holy week, the caravan comprised mostly of Hondurans was organized roughly a month ago by the mysterious group Pueblo Sin Fronteras (People Without Borders).

Trump also accused Mexico of doing “nothing” to stop people from flowing in through the Southern border, saying “they must stop the big drug and people flows” or he will “end their cash cow, NAFTA.”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

Mexico is doing very little, if not NOTHING, at stopping people from flowing into Mexico through their Southern Border, and then into the U.S. They laugh at our dumb immigration laws. They must stop the big drug and people flows, or I will stop their cash cow, NAFTA. NEED WALL!

What Trump is referring to is that, as noted yesterday,  despite a majority of the Honduran migrants being in Mexico illegally, the caravan has not been stopped on its journey by local authorities, and people from Mexican towns along the way have been helping the refugees.

He also lashed out at the wave of undocumented immigrants “trying to take advantage of DACA.”

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

These big flows of people are all trying to take advantage of DACA. They want in on the act!

Of course, this isn’t the first time Trump has called for the Senate to implement the so-called “nuclear option” (allowing a simple majority to close debate on all legislation). Trump demanded that it be implemented just the other week while delivering his explanation for signing the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill. However. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has resisted such a move, fearing it could be brought to bear against the Republicans if the Democrats do win back control of Congress during the 2018 midterms.

Back in 2013, Senate Dems adopted the nuclear option for presidential nominations, a decision that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says he regrets.

Trump’s tweet comes as more than 1,500 Central Americans are traveling across Mexico in the hopes of being granted asylum at the US border – something that will probably pose a substantial challenge to the Trump administration by reminding his base that the southern border wall that Trump promised during the campaign is still nothing more than a prototype in the vicinity of Tijuana.

end

Trump rages that we wants to finally use the nuclear option stopping the Democrats of filibustering bills coming before Congress.  He wants his wall

(courtesy zerohedge)

Trump Rages: “Use Nuclear Option To Stop Massive Inflow Of Drugs And People”

For the second time in two days, Trump took to twitter to warn about the caravan of migrants headed through Mexico to the the US border, and bashed the Mexican government for allowing migrants untrammeled access to its northern border and Democrats for passing laws that “don’t do their job.”

In doing, the president demonstrated that he’s not only listening to his right-wing critics – of which Anne Coulter the most prominent example – who chastised him as a “lazy ignoramous” and levied charges that “all he wants is for Goldman to like him” – but is clearly worried about the midterms and a potential impeachment should Dems win the House and Senate.

It also seems that the recently emboldened President is at least trying to give the impression of putting his foot down when it comes to his promised border wall (even if he failed to obtain the funding needed to build it) with demands that Congress pass a comprehensive border-security package and lift certain restrictions on ICE agents.

Donald J. Trump

✔@realDonaldTrump

Mexico has the absolute power not to let these large “Caravans” of people enter their country. They must stop them at their Northern Border, which they can do because their border laws work, not allow them to pass through into our country, which has no effective border laws…..

Donald J. Trump

✔@realDonaldTrump

…Congress must immediately pass Border Legislation, use Nuclear Option if necessary, to stop the massive inflow of Drugs and People. Border Patrol Agents (and ICE) are GREAT, but the weak Dem laws don’t allow them to do their job. Act now Congress, our country is being stolen!

Trump then reverted to his charge that DACA is officially dead, and it’s the Democrats fault, a claim he first made on Sunday. Still, the president appeared to leave open the possibility of a deal, saying Democrats “must build Wall and secure our borders with proper Border legislation. Democrats want No Borders, hence drugs and crime!”

Donald J. Trump

✔@realDonaldTrump

DACA is dead because the Democrats didn’t care or act, and now everyone wants to get onto the DACA bandwagon… No longer works. Must build Wall and secure our borders with proper Border legislation. Democrats want No Borders, hence drugs and crime!

Yesterday, Trump demanded Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to invoke “the nuclear option” – modifying rules to require only a simple majority to end debate and move to a vote, effectively killing the opposition’s ability to filibuster. Democrats, who made this change for presidential appointments back in 2013, have said they regret it (it allowed Trump to appoint Neil Gorsuch).

Of course, what Trump isn’t saying is just as problematic as whipping up votes from Democrats. Many Republicans are wary of Trump’s lavish border-enforcement promises, and are worried that, between the infrastructure bill, tax reform and the omnibus spending bill – Trump is trying to do to the US what he did to the Trump Organization in the 1990s.

end

First there was Stormy Daniels, then Karen McDougall, and now a third woman, Jessica Denson that wants to lift NDA’s signed with the Trump administration so they would not disclose affairs with the Donald.

(courtesy zerohedge)

Three’s A Crowd – Another Woman Sues Trump To Lift NDA

First, there was ‘Stormy Daniels’ – the porn star suing President Trump to undo a non-disclosure agreement she signed about their alleged affair.

Second, there is former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who is suing the National Enquirer to void a deal that she says forced her to stay silent about an affair she had with Trump.

And now there’s a third woman seeking to overturn a pre-agreed secrecy deal.

Bloomberg reports that Jessica Denson, a Los Angeles-based journalist and actress who oversaw phone banks and Hispanic outreach for the campaign, claims she was harassed by a superior.

She had earlier filed a discrimination case against ‘Donald Trump for President Inc.’ in New York state court, but the campaign sought to enforce the confidentiality deal, filing an arbitration claim asserting $1.5 million in damages.

Now, she is suing the organization to nullify a non-disclosure agreement she signed, saying it muzzled her from airing discrimination claims.

Denson is reportedly representing herself in the lawsuits.

Michael Avenatti, Stormy Daniels’s lawyer who said he had been approached by other women who had Trump-related non-disclosure agreements, declined to comment on whether Denson had been one of them.

The Trump campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The question is – does any of this matter to anyone but Maxine Waters? Judging by President Trump’s approval ratings surge, it’s not weighing on national sentiment.

ROB KIRBY INTERVIEW WITH GREG HUNTER

I continue to enjoy Rob Kirby for his expertise in the physical gold market but also markets in general. He is seeing what I am I seeing:  a complete disappearance of physical gold and he believes this will cause a massive destruction to the global markets.

a must view/read

By Greg Hunter On April 1, 2018 In Market Analysis

By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (Early Sunday Release)

Forensic macroeconomic analyst Rob Kirby says big money knows “gold supplies are tight” and getting tighter by the day. Kirby, who also arranges gold sales by the ton on a global scale, explains, “There are reports of people trying to buy institutional amounts of physical gold bullion in the Asian market, and there is none available even if they are paying a premium. I’m not talking about availability at the coin shop where you would buy two American Gold Eagles or a Gold Panda. I am talking about institutions wanting to buy serious amounts of physical gold bullion in bar form.”

Kirby says the global financial system is packed with unpayable debt, and the insiders know many might wake up someday to find they are living in their very own Mad Max movie. Kirby says, “If the financial world is turned on its head, we could very likely see some social unrest. Things could get very, very unpalatable, and we could see a complete breakdown. . . . This leads naturally to the question if the system is this precarious, why hasn’t anybody with a whole lot of money done anything to tip it over? The reason is that virtually nobody benefits from a situation where anarchy happens, and there aren’t many people who want to be the person that pulls the pin on the grenade.”

How long can this go on for? Kirby says, “Not much longer because the amounts and volumes of delivering physical gold are growing with time at a geometric rate. The demand for physical is growing too fast for the paper to be able to justify the false price discovery. There are fraudulently concocted prices of precious metals on the COMEX exchange . . . to keep these fraudulent prices on metal believable, COMEX has had to give up at least some metal to make their fraudulent price believable. At some point, this whole system is going to be exposed for the massive fraud that it has been for a very long time. . . . What does this mean to the average guy in the street? We could see physical gold and silver prices go Bitcoin. We could see the price of silver go up 5, 10, 20 or 30 times just like Bitcoin did in a very short space of time. I feel this is ultimately what is in store for precious metals prices.”

On the inflation front, Kirby says all the money needed for hyperinflation has already been printed. Kirby contends, “It’s kind of like having a nuclear war, and people say where are the bombs going to come from? The bombs are going to come out of their silos. What people can’t believe or can’t wrap their head around is the notion and the fact that there’s $21 trillion or more that’s been ‘siloed.’ The money has been created and siloed. We know it’s been created because we know it flew through the books of the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). That’s just two government agencies. . . . We’re talking about tens of trillions of dollars. We don’t know exactly where they are or who controls them. . . . This is why you want to own some tangible stuff. This is why you want to own physical bullion, such as coins and bars, and you want to have them in your control.”

Join Greg Hunter as he goes One-on-One with Rob Kirby of KirbyAnalytics.com.

After the Interview:

Rob Kirby also says the mainstream media should be ashamed of themselves because they are more interested in a porn star that allegedly slept with the President than a missing $21 trillion at the DOD and HUD. When the world realizes this money is already printed, the U.S. dollar and Treasury bonds will take a huge hit.

Video Link

https://usawatchdog.com/global-gold-supplies-getting- tighter-rob-kirby/

HARVEY