march 25, 2022 · by harveyorgan · in Uncategorized · Leave a comment·Edit
MARCH25
GOLD; $1954.60 DOWN $7.60
SILVER: $25.40 DOWN $0.20
ACCESS MARKET: GOLD $1958.40
SILVER: $25.53
Bitcoin morning price: $44,499 UP 594
Bitcoin: afternoon price: $43,905 up 1594
Platinum price: closing DOWN 22.25 to $1005.20
Palladium price; closing DOWN $148 at $2379.85
END
end
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comex notices/
March: JPMorgan stopped/total issued 1/5
EXCHANGE: COMEX
CONTRACT: MARCH 2022 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES
SETTLEMENT: 1,961.600000000 USD
INTENT DATE: 03/24/2022 DELIVERY DATE: 03/28/2022
FIRM ORG FIRM NAME ISSUED STOPPED
104 C MIZUHO 1
435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 3
657 H MORGAN STANLEY 5
661 C JP MORGAN 1
TOTAL: 5 5
MONTH TO DATE: 11,726
NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED TODAY FOR Mar. CONTRACT 5 NOTICE(S) FOR 500 OZ (0.0155 TONNES)
total notices so far: 11,726 contracts for 1,172,600 oz (36.772 tonnes)
SILVER NOTICES:
9 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 45,000 OZ/
total number of notices filed so far this month 10,496 : for 52,800,000 oz
END
Russia is a major supplier of silver to London while Mexico supplies the COMEX
With the sanctions, London has no way to obtain silver other than compete with NY.
END
GLD
WITH GOLD DOWN $7.60
WITH RESPECT TO GLD WITHDRAWALS: (OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS):
GOLD IS “RETURNED” TO THE BANK OF ENGLAND WHEN CALLING IN THEIR LEASES: THE GOLD NEVER LEAVES THE BANK OF ENGLAND IN THE FIRST PLACE. THE BANK IS PROTECTING ITSELF IN CASE OF COMMERCIAL FAILURE
ALSO INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (phys) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD//
A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//A DEPOSIT OF 5.52 TONNES INTO THE GLD//
INVENTORY RESTS AT 1093..18 TONNES
Silver//SLV
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER DOWN 20 CENTS
AT THE SLV// NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/ THE SLV//
INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV
CLOSING INVENTORY: 552.320 MILLION OZ
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI ROSE A GIGANTIC SIZED 3499 CONTRACTS TO 158,595 AND CLOSER TO THE NEW RECORD OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THE GIGANTIC GAIN IN OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR STRONG $0.54 GAIN IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON THURSDAY. OUR BANKERS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT ROSE BY $0.54) AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OUT ANY SILVER LONGS AS WE HAD A HUMONGOUS GAIN OF 5774 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE MUST HAVE HAD:
I) HUGE BANKER SHORT COVERING AS THEY ARE VERY ANXIOUS TO GET OUT OF DODGE!!/. II)WE ALSO HAD SOME REDDIT RAPTOR BUYING//. iii) A HUGE ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS iiii) A HUGE INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 42.860 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 65,000 OZ //NEW STANDING 52.860 MILLION OZ // V) HUGE SIZED COMEX OI GAIN/
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL:
THE DIFFERENTIAL FROM PRELIMINARY OI TO FINAL OI SILVER TODAY: CONTRACTS : —-606
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS MAR. ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF MAR:
TOTAL CONTACTS for 19 days, total contracts: : 34,771 contracts or 173.855 million oz OR 9.147 MILLION OZ PER DAY. (1830 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL NO OF OZ UNDERGOING EFP TO LONDON 34,771 CONTRACTS X 5,000 PER CONTRACT:
EQUATES TO: 173.855 MILLION OZ
.
LAST 11 MONTHS TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED IN MILLIONS OF OZ:
MAY 137.83 MILLION
JUNE 149.91 MILLION OZ
JULY 129.445 MILLION OZ
AUGUST: MILLION OZ 140.120
SEPT. 28.230 MILLION OZ//
OCT: 94.595 MILLION OZ
NOV: 131.925 MILLION OZ
DEC: 100.615 MILLION OZ
JAN 2022// 90.460 MILLION OZ
FEB 2022: 72.39 MILLION OZ//
MARCH: 173. 855 MILLION OZ//A NEW RECORD FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND WE ARE STILL GOING STRONG THIS MONTH.
RESULT: WE HAD A GIGANTIC SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 3499 WITH OUR STRONG $0.54 GAIN IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX// THURSDAY THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A HUGE SIZED EFP ISSUANCE OF 2275 CONTRACTS( 2275 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR MAY AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX TO LONDON AS FORWARDS THE DOMINANT FEATURE TODAY: /HUGE BANKER SHORT COVERING AS THEY GET OUT OF DODGE//// WE HAVE A HUGE INITIAL SILVER OZ STANDING FOR MAR. OF 42.860 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 65,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW STANDING 52.860 MILLION OZ// /// .. WE HAD AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED GAIN OF 5774 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES FOR 31.900 MILLION OZ WITH THE STRONG GAIN IN PRICE.
WE HAD 36 NOTICES FILED TODAY FOR 180,000 OZ
THE SILVER COMEX IS NOW BEING ATTACKED FOR METAL BY LONDONERS ET AL.
GOLD//OUTLINE
IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST ROSE BY A SMALL SIZED 490 CONTRACTS TO 608,575 AND CLOSER TO NEW RECORD (SET JAN 24/2020) AT 799,541 AND PREVIOUS TO THAT: (SET JAN 6/2020) AT 797,110.
THE DIFFERENTIAL FROM PRELIMINARY OI TO FINAL OI IN GOLD TODAY: —–442 CONTRACTS.
THE BIS HAS ABANDONED THE GOLD COMEX TRADING!!!
.
THE SMALL SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI CAME DESPITE OUR STRONG GAIN IN PRICE OF $24.95//COMEX GOLD TRADING/THURSDAY/.AS IN SILVER WE MUST HAD HUGE BANKER/ALGO SHORT COVERING ACCOMPANYING OUR GOOD SIZED EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE. WE HAD ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION
WE ALSO HAD A HUGE INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR MARCH AT 14.818 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 500 OZ//NEW STANDING 36.497 TONNES
YET ALL OF..THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $24.95 WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY’S TRADING
WE HAD AN GOOD SIZED GAIN OF 3220 OI CONTRACTS (14.99 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
E.F.P. ISSUANCE
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A GOOD SIZED 4330 CONTRACTS:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 609,017.
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE AN GOOD SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 4820, WITH 932 CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX AND 4330 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 4820 CONTRACTS OR 14.99 TONNES.
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A GOOD SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (4330) ACCOMPANYING THE SMALL SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI (490,): TOTAL GAIN IN THE TWO EXCHANGES 4820 CONTRACTS. WE NO DOUBT HAD 1) HUGE BANKER SHORT COVERING ,2.) HUGE INITIAL STANDING AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR MARCH. AT 14.818 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 500 OZ//NEW STANDING 36.497 TONNES /// 3) ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION ///. ,4) SMALL SIZED COMEX OI. GAIN 5) GOOD ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL/
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2022 INCLUDING TODAY
MARCH
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF MAR :
117,219 CONTRACTS OR 11,721,900 OR 364.60 TONNES 19 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 6169 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 19 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES: 364.60TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2020, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 364.60/3550 x 100% TONNES 10.25% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL PRODUCTION
ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S YEAR 2021 TO 2022
JANUARY/2021: 265.26 TONNES (RAPIDLY INCREASING AGAIN)
FEB : 171.24 TONNES ( DEFINITELY SLOWING DOWN AGAIN)..
MARCH:. 276.50 TONNES (STRONG AGAIN/
APRIL: 189..44 TONNES ( DRAMATICALLY SLOWING DOWN AGAIN//GOLD IN BACKWARDATION)
MAY: 250.15 TONNES (NOW DRAMATICALLY INCREASING AGAIN)
JUNE: 247.54 TONNES (FINAL)
JULY: 188.73 TONNES FINAL
AUGUST: 217.89 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE.
SEPT 142.12 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE ( LOW ISSUANCE)_
OCT: 141.13 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE (LOW ISSUANCE)
NOV: 312.46 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE//NEW RECORD!! (INCREASING DRAMATICALLY)//SIGN OF REAL STRESS//SURPASSING THE MARCH 2021 RECORD OF 276.50 TONNES OF EFP
DEC. 175.62 TONNES//FINAL ISSUANCE//
JAN:2022 247.25 TONNES //FINAL
FEB: 196.04 TONNES//FINAL
MARCH: 364.60 TONNES INITIAL( THIS IS NOW A RECORD EFP ISSUANCE MONTH.
SPREADING OPERATIONS
(/NOW SWITCHING TO GOLD) FOR NEWCOMERS, HERE ARE THE DETAILS
SPREADING LIQUIDATION HAS NOW COMMENCED AS WE HEAD TOWARDS THE NEW ACTIVE FRONT MONTH OF APRIL.WE ARE NOW INTO THE SPREADING OPERATION OF GOLD
HERE IS A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF HOW THE CROOKS FLEECE UNSUSPECTING LONGS IN THE SPREADING ENDEAVOUR ;MODUS OPERANDI OF THE CORRUPT BANKERS AS TO HOW THEY HANDLE THEIR SPREAD OPEN INTERESTS:HERE IS HOW THE CROOKS USED SPREADING AS WE ARE NOW INTO THE NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF MARCH HEADING TOWARDS THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF APRIL, FOR GOLD:
YOU WILL ALSO NOTICE THAT THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST STARTS TO RISE BUT SO IS THE OPEN INTEREST OF SPREADERS. THE OPEN INTEREST IN WILL CONTINUE TO RISE UNTIL ONE WEEK BEFORE FIRST DAY NOTICE OF AN UPCOMING ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH (MAR), AND THAT IS WHEN THE CROOKS SELL THEIR SPREAD POSITIONS BUT NOT AT THE SAME TIME OF THE DAY. THEY WILL USE THE SELL SIDE OF THE EQUATION TO CREATE THE CASCADE (ALONG WITH THEIR COLLUSIVE FRIENDS) AND THEN COVER ON THE BUY SIDE OF THE SPREAD SITUATION AT THE END OF THE DAY. THEY DO THIS TO AVOID POSITION LIMIT DETECTION. THE LIQUIDATION OF THE SPREADING FORMATION CONTINUES FOR EXACTLY ONE WEEK AND ENDS ON FIRST DAY NOTICE.”
WHAT IS ALARMING TO ME, ACCORDING TO OUR LONDON EXPERT ANDREW MAGUIRE IS THAT THESE EFP’S ARE BEING 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.
First, here is an outline of what will be discussed tonight:
1.Today, we had the open interest at the comex, in SILVER, ROSE BY A GIGANTIC SIZED 3499 CONTRACTS TO 157,989 AND CLOSER TO OUR COMEX RECORD //244,710(SET FEB 25/2020). THE LAST RECORDS WERE SET IN AUG.2018 AT 244,196 WITH A SILVER PRICE OF $14.78/(AUGUST 22/2018)..THE PREVIOUS RECORD TO THAT WAS SET ON APRIL 9/2018 AT 243,411 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS WITH THE SILVER PRICE AT THAT DAY: $16.53). AND PREVIOUS TO THAT, THE RECORD WAS ESTABLISHED AT: 234,787 CONTRACTS, SET ON APRIL 21.2017 OVER 4 1/2 YEARS AGO.
EFP ISSUANCE 2275 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
MAY 2275 ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 2275 CONTRACTS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON. IF WE TAKE THE COMEX OI GAIN OF 3499 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 2275 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,
WE OBTAIN AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED GAIN OF 5774 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACT FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES.
THUS IN OUNCES, THE GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 28.87 MILLION OZ,
OCCURRED WITH OUR STRONG $0.54 GAIN IN PRICE.
OUTLINE FOR TODAY’S COMMENTARY
1/COMEX GOLD AND SILVER REPORT
(report Harvey)
2 ) Gold/silver trading overnight Europe,
(Peter Schiff,
3. Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com,
4. Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
5. Other gold commentaries
6. Commodity commentaries/cryptocurrencies
3. ASIAN AFFAIRS
i)FRIDAY MORNING// THURSDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 39.45 PTS OR 0.14% //Hang Sang CLOSED DOWN 541.07 PTS OR 2.47 % /The Nikkei closed UP 39.45 PTS OR 0.14% //Australia’s all ordinaires CLOSED UP 0.27% /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed UP 6.3626 /Oil UP TO 110.20 dollars per barrel for WTI and UP TO 116.71 for Brent. Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN // ONSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP AGAINST THE DOLLAR AT 6.3626 OFFSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP ON THE DOLLAR AT 6.3744: /ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE STRONGER/
A)NORTH KOREA/
b) REPORT ON JAPAN
OUTLINE
3 C CHINA
OUTLINE
4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE
5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE
6.Global Issues
OUTLINE
7. OIL ISSUES
OUTLINE
8 EMERGING MARKET ISSUES
COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS
GOLD
LET US BEGIN:
THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST ROSE BY A SMALL SIZED 490 CONTRACTS TO 608,575 AND CLOSER TO THE RECORD THAT WAS SET IN JANUARY/2020: {799,541 OI(SET JAN 16/2020)} AND PREVIOUS TO THAT: 797,110 (SET JAN 7/2020). AND THIS COMEX INCREASE OCCURRED WITH OUR GAIN OF $24.95 IN GOLD PRICING THURSDAY’S COMEX TRADING. WE ALSO HAD A GOOD SIZED EFP (5216 CONTRACTS). . THEY WERE PAID HANDSOMELY NOT TO TAKE DELIVERY AT THE COMEX AND SETTLE FOR CASH.
WE NORMALLY HAVE WITNESSED EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS ISSUED BEING SMALL AS IT JUST TOO COSTLY FOR THEM TO CONTINUE SERVICING THE COSTS OF SERIAL FORWARDS CIRCULATING IN LONDON. HOWEVER, MUCH TO THE ANNOYANCE OF OUR BANKERS, THE COMEX IS THE SCENE OF AN ASSAULT ON GOLD AS LONDONERS, NOT BEING ABLE TO FIND ANY PHYSICAL ON THAT SIDE OF THE POND, EXERCISE THESE CIRCULATING EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN LONDON AND FORCING DELIVERY OF REAL METAL OVER HERE AS THE OBLIGATION STILL RESTS WITH NEW YORK BANKERS. IT SEEMS THAT ARE BANKERS FRIENDS ARE EXERCISING EFP’S FROM LONDON AND NOW THEY ARE LOATHE TO ISSUE NEW ONES.
EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
WE ARE NOW MOVING TO THE NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF MAR.. THE CME REPORTS THAT THE BANKERS ISSUED A GOOD SIZED TRANSFER THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE AS THESE LONGS RECEIVED A DELIVERABLE LONDON FORWARD TOGETHER WITH A FIAT BONUS.,
THAT IS 4330 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: ;: , . 0 APRIL:4330 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:
TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 4330 CONTRACTS
WHEN WE HAVE BACKWARDATION, EFP ISSUANCE IS VERY COSTLY BUT THE REAL PROBLEM IS THE SCARCITY OF METAL AND IT IS FAR BETTER FOR OUR BANKERS TO PAY OFF INDIVIDUALS THAN RISK INVESTORS ESPECIALLY FROM LONDON STANDING FOR DELIVERY. THE LOWER PRICES IN THE FUTURES MARKET IS A MAGNET FOR OUR LONDONERS SEEKING PHYSICAL METAL. BACKWARDATION ALWAYS EQUAL SCARCITY OF METAL!
ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE GAINED THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A GOOD SIZED TOTAL OF 4802 CONTRACTS IN THAT 4330 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A SMALL SIZED COMEX OI GAIN OF 490 CONTRACTS..AND THIS GOOD GAIN OCCURRED DESPITE THE HUGE IN PRICE OF $24.95.
// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR MAR (36.497),
HERE ARE THE AMOUNTS THAT STOOD FOR DELIVERY IN THE PRECEDING 12 MONTHS OF 2021:
DEC 2021: 112.217 TONNES
NOV. 8.074 TONNES
OCT. 57.707 TONNES
SEPT: 11.9160 TONNES
AUGUST: 80.489 TONNES
JULY: 7.2814 TONNES
JUNE: 72.289 TONNES
MAY 5.77 TONNES
APRIL 95.331 TONNES
MARCH 30.205 TONNES
FEB ’21. 113.424 TONNES
JAN ’21: 6.500 TONNES.
TOTAL SO FAR THIS YEAR (JAN- DEC): 601.213 TONNES
YEAR 2022:
JANUARY 2022 17.79 TONNES
FEB 2022: 59.023 TONNES
MARCH: 36.497 TONNES
THE BANKERS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE //// (IT ROSE $24.95) AND THEY WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN FLEECING ANY LONGS AS WE HAVE REGISTERED A GOOD SIZED GAIN OF 16.367 TONNES ON TOTAL OI FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR HUGE GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR MAR (36.497 TONNES)…
WE HAD –606 CONTRACTS SUBTRACTED FROM COMEX TRADES. THESE WERE REMOVED AFTER TRADING ENDED LAST NIGHT
NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 4820 CONTRACTS OR 48,200 OZ OR 14.99 TONNES
Estimated gold volume today: 200,590 ///fair
Confirmed volume yesterday: 259,726 contracts fair
INITIAL STANDINGS FOR MAR ’22 COMEX GOLD //MARCH 25
| Gold | Ounces |
| Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory in oz | nil oz |
| Withdrawals from Customer Inventory in oz | 5494.321 oz Manfra BRINKS includes 3 kilobars |
| Deposit to the Dealer Inventory in oz | nil OZ |
| Deposits to the Customer Inventory, in oz | nil |
| No of oz served (contracts) today | 5 notice(s)500 OZ 500 TONNES |
| No of oz to be served (notices) | 8 contracts 800 oz 0.0248 TONNES |
| Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month | 11,726 notices 1,172,600 OZ 36.472 TONNES |
| Total accumulative withdrawals of gold from the Dealers inventory this month | NIL oz |
| Total accumulative withdrawal of gold from the Customer inventory this month | xxx oz |
For today:
dealer deposits 0
total dealer deposit nil oz
No dealer withdrawal 0
0 customer deposits
total customer deposit: nil oz
2 customer withdrawal
i) Out of Brinks 5397.868
ii) out of Manfra 96.453 (3 kilobars)
total withdrawals: 5494.321 oz
ADJUSTMENTS: dealer to customer
i) JPMorgan: 122,067.470 oz
ii) Out of Malca: 11,092.095 oz
CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR MARCH.
For the front month of MARCH we have an oi of 13 contracts having LOST 196
We had 201 notices filed yesterday so we gained 5 contracts or 500 oz will stand at the comex as these guys refused to be EFP’d over to London.
Our banker friends have run out of gold metal everywhere.
April saw a loss of 26,853 contracts down to 128,869.
May saw a GAIN of 104 contracts to stand at 4818
June saw a GAIN of 27,277 contracts up to 402,525 contracts
We had 5 notice(s) filed today for 500 oz FOR THE MAR 2022 CONTRACT MONTH.
Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer account and 19 notices were issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equates to 5 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 1 notice(s) was (were) stopped/ Received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account and 0 notice(s) received (stopped) by the squid (Goldman Sachs)
To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for the MAR /2021. contract month,
we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (11,726) x 100 oz , to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of (MAR: 13 CONTRACTS ) minus the number of notices served upon today 5 x 100 oz per contract equals 1,173,400 OZ OR 36.497 TONNES the number of TONNES standing in this active month of mar.
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the MAR contract month:
No of notices filed so far (11,726) x 100 oz+ (13) OI for the front month minus the number of notices served upon today (5} x 100 oz} which equals 1,173,400 oz standing OR 36.497 TONNES in this NON active delivery month of MAR.
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING: 36.497 TONNES (A WHOPPER FOR A MAR (NON ACTIVE) DELIVERY MONTH)
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
COMEX GOLD INVENTORIES/CLASSIFICATION
NEW PLEDGED GOLD:
191,133,764.7, oz NOW PLEDGED /HSBC 5.94 TONNES
99,258.893 PLEDGED MANFRA 3.08 TONNES
54,339.114oz PLEDGED JPMorgan no 1 1.690 tonnes
243,923.704, oz JPM No 2 7.58 TONNES
898,821.330 oz pledged Brinks/27,96 TONNES
12,249,333 oz International Delaware: 0..3810 tonnes
Loomis: 18,615.429 oz
total pledged gold: 1,506,092.234 oz 46.84 tonnes
TOTAL REGISTERED AND ELIG GOLD AT THE COMEX: 34,439,784.089 OZ (1071.22TONNES)
TOTAL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 16,896,007.044 OZ (525.53 tonnes)
TOTAL OF ALL REGISTERED GOLD: 17,543,776.965 OZ (545.68 tonnes)
REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 16,0376,684.0 OZ (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD) 498.83 tonnes
END
MAR 2022 CONTRACT MONTH//SILVER//MARCH 25
| Silver | Ounces |
| Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory | NIL oz |
| Withdrawals from Customer Inventory | nil oz |
| Deposits to the Dealer Inventory | nil OZ |
| Deposits to the Customer Inventory | 105,120.740 oz |
| No of oz served today (contracts) | 36CONTRACT(S) 180,000 OZ) |
| No of oz to be served (notices) | 40 contracts (200,000 oz) |
| Total monthly oz silver served (contracts) | 10,532 contracts (52,860,000 oz) |
| Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Dealers inventory this month | NIL oz |
| Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Customer inventory this month |
| month |
And now for the wild silver comex results
we had 0 deposits into the dealer
total dealer deposits: nil oz
i) We had 0 dealer withdrawal
total dealer withdrawals: nil oz
We have 1 deposits into the customer account
i) Into Delaware: 105,120.740
total deposit: 105,120.740 oz
JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 180.228 million oz/340.283 million =52.98% of comex
ii) Comex withdrawals: 0
total withdrawal nil oz
one adjustment:
customer to dealer: Manfra 115m152.110oz
the silver comex is in stress!
TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 92.363 MILLION OZ
TOTAL REG + ELIG. 340.283 MILLION OZ
CALCULATION OF SILVER OZ STANDING FOR MARCH
silver open interest data:
FRONT MONTH OF MARCH OI: 76, HAVING GAINED 4 CONTRACTS FROM WEDNESDAY.
WE HAD 9 NOTICES SERVED UPON YESTERDAY, SO WE GAINED 13 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 65,000 OZ WILL STAND
FOR DELIVERY OVER HERE AS THESE GUYS REFUSED TO BE EFP’D TO LONDON.
APRIL HAD A 20 CONTRACT LOSS// CONTRACTS LOWERS TO 514
MAY HAD A GAIN OF 2302 CONTRACTS UP TO 118,572 contracts
.
TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 36 for 180,000 oz
Comex volumes: 38,651// est. volume today//poor/
Comex volume: confirmed yesterday: 67,203 contracts ( good )
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in MAR. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 10,532 x 5,000 oz = 52,660,000 oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAR (76) and the number of notices served upon today 36 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.
Thus the standings for silver for the MAR./2021 contract month: 10,532 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for front month of MAR (76) – number of notices served upon today (36) x 5000 oz of silver standing for the MAR contract month equates 52,860,000 oz. .
the record level of silver open interest is 234,787 contracts set on April 21./2017 with the price on that day at $18.42. The previous record was 224,540 contracts with the price at that time of $20.44
END
GLD AND SLV INVENTORY LEVELS:
MARCH 25/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.60 : A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 5.52 TONNES INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1093.18 TONNES
MARCH 24/WITH GOLD UP $24.95: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 4.06 TONNES INTO THE GLD..//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1087.66 TONNES
MARCH 23/WITH GOLD UP $15.75//NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1083.60 TONNES
MARCH 22/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.75: A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.16 TONNES OF GOLD DEPOSITED INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1083.60 TONES
MARCH 21//WITH GOLD UP $.25 : A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 9.00 TONNES INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 1082.44 TONES
MARCH 18/WITH GOLD DOWN $13.55 NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1073.44 TONES
MARCH 17/WITH GOLD UP $33.50: A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 11.61 TONNES INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1073.44 TONNES
MARCH 16/WITH GOLD DOWN $18.50//A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.33 TONNES FROM THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1061.83 TONNES
MARCH 15/WITH GOLD DOWN $30.80 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1064.16 TONNES
MARCH 14//WITH GOLD DOWN $22.75, HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//STRANGE: A DEPOSIT OF 2.62 TONNES INTO THE GLD.//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1064.16 TONNES
MARCH 11/WITH GOLD DOWN $14.60: A BIG CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.74 TONNES FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 1061.54 TONNES
MARCH 10//WITH GOLD UP $11.55: A HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.06 TONNES FORM THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1063.28 TONNES
MARCH 9/WITH GOLD DOWN $53.85//A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 4.64 TONNES INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1067.34 TONNES
MARCH 8/WITH GOLD UP $46.10: A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 8.42 TONNES INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1062.70 TONNES
MARCH 7/WITH GOLD UP $28.40 A HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 4.06 TONNES INTO THE GLD..//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1054.28 TONNES
MARCH 4/WITH GOLD UP $28.40//NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1050.22 TONNES
MARCH 3/WITH GOLD UP $13.95: A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 7.84 TONNES//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1050.22 TONNES
MARCH 2/WITH GOLD DOWN $20.80//A MONSTER CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 13.36 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 1042.38 TONNES
MARCH 1/WITH GOLD UP $42.60: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //INVENTORY RESTS AT 1029.32 TONNES
FEB 28/WITH GOLD UP $12.95: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1029.32 TONNES
FEB 25/WITH GOLD DOWN $38.95: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1029.32 TONNES
FEB 24/WITH GOLD UP $17.35//A HUGE CHANGE AT THE GLD: 5.23 TONNES INTO THE GLD// IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY REST AT 1029.32 TONNES
FEB 23/WITH GOLD UP $2.00 : NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1024.09 TONNES
FEB 22/WITH GOLD UP $6.20: A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 4.65 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 1024.09 TONNES
FEB 18/WITH GOLD DOWN $1.80: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONNES
FEB 17/WITH GOLD UP $29.50: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONNES
FEB 16/WITH GOLD UP 414.60 NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONNES
FEB 15/WITH GOLD DOWN $12.70 NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONNES
FEB 14/WITH GOLD UP $27.20 NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONNES
FEB 11/WITH GOLD UP $4.50 A HUGE CHANGE IN GOLD IVNETORY AT THE GLD// A DEPOSIT OF 3.48 TONNES INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 1019.44 TONES
CLOSING INVENTORY FOR THE GLD//1093.18 TONNES
Now the SLV Inventory/( vehicle is a fraud as there is no physical metal behind them
MARCH 25/WITH SILVER DOWN 20 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 552.320 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 24/WITH SILVER UP 54 CENTS TODAY; A HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.092 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 552.320 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 23/WITH SILVER UP 24 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 550.288 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 22/WITH SILVER DOWN $0.29 TODAY : NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 550.288 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 21/WITH SILVER UP 16 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 550.288 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 18/WITH SILVER DOWN 37 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.217 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 550.288 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 17/ WITH SILVER UP 72 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 3.049 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLVV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 548.071 MILLION OZ
MARCH 16/WITH SILVER DOWN 56 CENTS TODAY: A SMALL CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 462,000 OZ FROM THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 544.560 MLLION O
MARCH 15/WITH SILVER DOWN 18 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.022 MILLION OZ
MARCH 14/WITH SILVER DOWN 64 CENTS TODAY; STRANGE A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.125 MILLION OZ/INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.022 MILLIONOZ
MARCH 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 13 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 542.897 MILLION OZ
MARCH 10/WITH SILVER UP 39 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 542.897 MILLION OZ/
MARCH 9/WITH SILVER DOWN 88 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 5.174 MILLION OZ OF FAKE SILVER.//INVENTORY RESTS AT 542.897 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 8/WITH SILVER UP 88 CENTS TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.217 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS A 548.071 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 7/WITH SILVER UP 40 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.854 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 4/WITH SILVER UP 50 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.854 MILLION OZ/
MARCH 3/WITH SILVER UP 2 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.854 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 2/WITH SILVER DOWN $.32 TODAY: A SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 198,000 OZ FROM THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 545.854 MILLION OZ//
MARCH 1/WITH SILVER UP $1.13 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 546.052 MILLION OZ//
FEB 28/WITH SILVER UP 31 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY REST AT 546.052 MILLION OZ//
FEB 25/WITH SILVER DOWN 64 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 5.510 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 546.052 MILLION OZ/
FEB 24/WITH SILVER UP 15 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 551.597 MILLION OZ
FEB 23/WITH SILVER UP 22 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 551.597 MILLION OZ//
FEB 22/WITH SILVER UP 30 CENTS TODAY: A SMALL CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 350,000 OZ INTO THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 551.597 MILLION OZ//
FEB 18/WITH SILVER UP 7 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 1.017 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 551.227 MILLION OZ
FEB 17/WITH SILVER UP 31 CENTS TODAY: A HUGE CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.402 MILLION OZ//INVENTORY RESTS AT 550.210 MILLION OZ/
FEB 16/WITH SILVER UP 21 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 547.808 MILLIONOZ
FEB 15/WITH SILVER DOWN 46 CENTS TODAY : NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 547.808 MILLION OZ//
FEB 14/WITH SILVER UP 49 CENTS TODAY; A HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 3.235 MILLION OZ INTO THES LV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 547.808 MILLION OZ
FEB 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 18 CENTS TODAY:NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 544.573 MILLION OZ///
SLV FINAL INVENTORY FOR TODAY: 552.320 MILLION OZ//
PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER STORIES
1.PETER SCHIFF
Jerome Powell, The Tough Guy?
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 09:30 AM
Authored by Michael Maharrey via SchiffGold.com,
Suddenly, Fed chair Jerome Powell is a tough guy.
Is he though?
Earlier this week, Powell delivered what Reuters called “his most muscular speech to date” on the battle against inflation.
The central bank launched its war on inflation at the March FOMC meeting with an unimpressive first shot. It raised interest rates by a quarter-point. Peter Schiff called it the most anticipated and least significant rate hike ever. I compared it to dropping leaflets on the enemy saying, “We really mean it now.”
But while the Fed made a very tentative first move against inflation last week, Powell ratcheted up the tough talk this week. He said the central bank will have to move “expeditiously” to raise rates and “return the stance of monetary policy to a more neutral level.” He even mentioned moving to a more restrictive monetary policy “if that is what is required to restore price stability.” And Powell said flat-out the Fed was prepared to hike “more aggressively.”
If we conclude that it is appropriate to move more aggressively by raising the federal funds rate by more than 25 basis points at a meeting or meetings, we will do so.”
Powell continues to insist that the economy is strong enough to handle rate hikes.
Other Fed members piled on.
“I have everything on the table right now. If we need to do 50, 50 is what we’ll do, ” San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said this week.
“With the labor market so strong, inflation, inflation, inflation is top of everyone’s mind.”
This seems a lot like Fed “open-mouth” operations. Powell and his minions are talking tough to see how the markets react to the possibility of more aggressive tightening. If the markets don’t tank – and so far they don’t seem to be – they’ll likely push forward. Pete Schiff said that the Fed will let rates rise until the markets roll over.
Remember, the only reason Powell is confident that the Fed can raise rates and shrink its balance sheet is because Powell is convinced we have this super-strong economy. And one of the reasons for the economic strength is the stock market. So, as long as the stock market is going up, Powell has no reason to question that narrative that the economy is strong.”
Here’s the question. Is Powell & Company strong enough to hold its ground when the bubble economy pops and the markets start to crash?
Because that’s what’s going to happen.
There is a tipping point. There will be a rate hike that is one rate hike too many – the proverbial straw that breaks the camel’s back. And I don’t think it will take too long to get to that level. I’ll be surprised if they can push rates to 2%.
Then what?
During his post-FOMC press conference, Powell indicated that price stability is so important that the Fed may have to keep on hiking even if unemployment rises. The implication is that the central bank will push forward with tightening even if it causes a recession.
I’m skeptical.
In the first place, a 2 or 3% interest rate is not enough to fight inflation. Real rates would remain deeply negative. Paul Volker pushed real rates to about 6% to get in front of the inflation curve in the early 80s.
But Jerome Powell is no Paul Volcker. He’s more of a Biff. (The bully in Back to the Future for those who might not get the reference.)
He can talk the talk. But can he walk the walk when the economy starts falling down around his ears?
Again, I’m skeptical.
The Fed plan seems to be to raise rates a little and hope inflation goes away. But as Mike Tyson said, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
It’s easy to talk tough before you step into the ring. It’s easy to be confident before the fight really begins. It’s a different matter when fists start to fly.
So, that brings us to the real question.
What does Powell do when the economy punches him in the mouth?
My gut is he will fold like the empty suit he is.
The Fed has a playbook. When the economy tanks, the central bank cuts interest rates and launches quantitative easing. That’s the fork it knows. Why should we expect Powell to behave any differently when the economy crashes the next time?
Sure, everybody at the Fed knows that inflation is a problem and they really need to get ahead of the inflation curve. But they had to know this months ago. They did nothing. That tells me they don’t want to do anything. They’re afraid to do anything. They don’t want to step into the ring. They know they are in for a butt-whipping.
They know that a real inflation fight will collapse this fake, debt-ridden, bubble economy.
Circumstances have forced Powell to get in the fight. He’s saying all the right things. But when the punches start to land, I think Powell will retreat to his corner. I think the political pressure will be too much. The moment it becomes clear the economy is not “strong,” the moment the markets really start to crash, everybody will demand that the Fed do something.
It will.
Today, Powell says he’s going to stand his ground. But I think when push comes to shove he will sacrifice the dollar for political expediency. The Fed will rush in to bail out the economy and pump the air back into the market bubbles.
It always does.
2.LAWRIE WILLIAM//,//Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, James RICKARDS/
-END
–
-END-
LAWRIE WILLIAMS
3. Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
Let us see what they come up with!!!
London Daily Mail..
Hackers claim to be preparing to reveal Bank of Russia’s secrets
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 11:55Section: Daily Dispatches
Now how about the Federal Reserve?
* * *
Anonymous Claims It Has Hacked Russia’s Central Bank and Will ‘Release 35,000 Files with Secret Agreements’ in 48 Hours
By Tom Pyman
Daily Mail, London
Thursday, March 24, 2022
International hacking collective Anonymous claims to have exploited Russia’s central bank — and is threatening to release 35,000 files which include “secret agreements,” in the next 48 hours.
The bank is responsible for protecting and ensuring the safety of the ruble, the Russian currency which has plummeted in value since the invasion of Ukraine began last month.
In a post on Twitter late last night by one of the group’s accounts, Anonymous revealed its latest hack, though details were limited.
Alongside an image of a smiling mask — now synonymous with the group — it wrote: “Just In: The #Anonymous collective has hacked the Central Bank of Russia. More than 35.000 files will be released within 48 hours with secret agreements. #OpRussia.” …
… For the remainder of the report:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10647467/Anonymous-claims-hacked-Russias-Central-Bank.html
* * *
END
This is a big story! Commodity traders are sounding the alarm due to the fact that their crooked game is coming apart. Traders use huge leverage…sometimes 10 x 1 when they purchase commodities. Now many purchased commodities from Russia and Ukraine and cannot get the goods. However they sold these commodities to hedge their bets and cannot get the original stuff. The the commodity rises in price and thus they are doomed This is why they are asking for a bailout (more market liquidity)
(Bloomberg News/GATA)
Commodity traders sound alarm on plunging market liquidity
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 12:08Section: Daily Dispatches
By Archie Hunter and William Mathis
Bloomberg News
via Yahoo Finance, Sunnyvale, California
Thursday, March 24, 2022
Whipsawing commodity prices and eye-watering margin calls are forcing traders to reduce their activity, driving liquidity out of markets and exacerbating price swings, according to some of the world’s biggest trading houses.
“We’re seeing clearly that liquidity in terms of being able to find buyers and sellers in distressed or highly volatile markets is becoming less,” Engelhart Commodities Trading Partners Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Huw Jenkins said at the FT Commodities Global Summit in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Engelhart halved its positions over the past six or seven months, he said.
The company is not alone. As commodities swing wildly, traders and industrial players are struggling to keep up with massive cash requirements to back up their positions or put on new ones, which is squeezing participants out of the market.
The drop in liquidity is heightening volatility when prices do move. Benchmark European natural gas, also known as TTF, surged as much as 34% Wednesday as Russian President Vladimir Putin prepared to demand ruble payments for the fuel. That was just the latest example of the wild price swings spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. …
… For the remainder of the report:
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/commodity-traders-sound-alarm-plunging-211036246.htm
end
Russia has no intention of selling any of its gold. This is stupid@!!
(London’s Financial Times/GATA)
G7 to crack down on Russia’s ability to sell its gold
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 14:55Section: Daily Dispatches
How, exactly? By imposing comprehensive sanctions on China? That will make the current trade disruptions seem like a picnic. What if Russia starts demanding gold as payment for its oil and gas, which Europe already has exempted from sanctions?
* * *
James Politi and Sam Fleming
Financial Times, London
Thursday, March 24, 2022
BRUSSELS, Belgium — G7 leaders have agreed to crack down on Russia’s ability to sell its gold reserves to support its currency as they launch a new effort to hinder any attempts by Moscow to evade financial sanctions imposed by the west.
The move was unveiled on today as G7 leaders met at NATO headquarters in Brussels to beef up the economic punishment inflicted on Vladimir Putin’s regime as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It comes as the Biden administration and European governments focus on tightening the sanctions introduced at the start of the conflict and consider additional measures against Moscow.
“G7 leaders and the EU will continue to work jointly to blunt Russia’s ability to deploy its international reserves to prop up Russia’s economy and fund Putin’s war, including by making clear that any transaction involving gold related to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation is covered by existing sanctions,” the White House said in a statement. …
… For the remainder of the report:
https://www.ft.com/content/76e52790-7d3d-4303-a8c4-441da2aa39a8
end
Chris Powell has got it correct!! Let the MInt buy a futures silver contract and ask for delivery.
Please read the following!!
(Chris Powell/Patrick Heller)
Patrick Heller: When it comes to buying silver, U.S. Mint’s hands are tied
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 20:19Section: Daily Dispatches
8:16p ET Thursday, March 25, 2022
Dear Friend of GATA and Gold (and Silver):
Writing today at Numismatic News, veteran numismatist Patrick Heller explains that federal law is actually preventing the U.S. Mint from minting silver coins in a couple of usual series.
That is, Heller writes, the law forbids the mint from paying more for silver than the “average world price” as “determined by a widely recognized commodity exchange.
“So of course the Treasury secretary, supervisor of the mint, has chosen the London silver futures market’s price, which is determined by banks working with Western governments to suppress monetary metals prices, even as prices in the physical silver market typically are higher.
Heller writes: “The federal government has a strong interest in holding down silver (and gold) prices as a major tactic to minimize the interest rate it pays on its $30 trillion of debt. This concern would almost certainly override any consideration of allowing the U.S. Mint the flexibility to acquire sufficient silver.
“So long as the market price for physical silver remains consistently higher than the paper commodity contract price, the U.S. Mint is going to continue experiencing difficulty in obtaining sufficient silver.”
Heller’s analysis is headlined “When It Comes to Buying Silver, Mint’s Hands Are Tied” and it’s posted at Numismatic News here:
https://www.numismaticnews.net/coin-market/acquiring-silver-u-s-mints-hands-are-tied
CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
CPowell@GATA.org
end
To friendly nations, Russia well accept bitcoin or their national currencies. For non friendly countries roubles or gold only. Russia knows the game very well. They played along for years receiving dollars and then steadily buying gold with those dollars. This will be a game changer with Russia asking non friendly nations to be paid in gold (if available)for their gas/oil purchases. It will not be long before Russia will announce a western default.
(CNBC)
Russian parliamentarian envisions selling oil and gas for bitcoin and gold
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 23:38Section: Daily Dispatches
By MacKenzie Sigalos
CNBC, New York
Thursday, March 24, 2022
Faced with stiffening sanctions from Western countries over its invasion of Ukraine, Russia is considering accepting bitcoin as payment for its oil and gas exports.
In a videotaped news conference held on today, the chair of Russia’s Duma committee on energy said in translated remarks that when it comes to “friendly” countries such as China or Turkey, Russia is willing to be more flexible with payment options.
Chair Pavel Zavalny said that the national fiat currency of the buyer — as well as bitcoin — were being considered as alternative ways to pay for Russia’s energy exports.
“We have been proposing to China for a long time to switch to settlements in national currencies for rubles and yuan,” Zavalny said in translated comments. “With Turkey, it will be lira and rubles.”
He didn’t stop with traditional currencies.
“You can also trade bitcoins,” he said.
Bitcoin is up close to 4% over the last 24 hours to about $44,000. The price of the cryptocurrency spiked around the time that news reports of Zavalny’s remarks first crossed.
The energy chair also doubled down on President Vladimir Putin’s promise Wednesday to require “unfriendly” countries to pay for gas in Russian rubles. Putin’s announcement sent European gas prices soaring over worries the move might aggravate an energy market already under pressure.
“If they want to buy, let them pay either in hard currency — and this is gold for us — or pay as it is convenient for us — this is the national currency,” Zavalny said, in comments that echoed the president’s warning from the day before. …
… For the remainder of the report:
end
Chris Powell…
So why doesn’t the U.S. Mint try buying silver via futures contracts?
Submitted by admin on Thu, 2022-03-24 23:50Section: Daily Dispatches
11:51p ET Thursday, March 25, 2022
Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:
Responding tonight to Patrick Heller’s explanation for the U.S. Mint’s suspension of silver coin production — that the mint is legally required to pay futures market prices for silver even as real metal isn’t immediately available at those prices —
— some friends raise a good question.
That is, why can’t the mint try obtaining the silver it needs through the purchase of futures contracts and then taking delivery?
Maybe the mint would say it would want immediate delivery of the metal and not want to have to wait for a futures contract to come due. Of course that would not be very persuasive. After all, wouldn’t some metal later be better than no metal ever?
But then some excuse would have to be provided as cover for the likely real reason, which Heller offered: that the U.S. government doesn’t want the mint facilitating demand for the monetary metal and driving up its value against the dollar.
CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
CPowell@GATA.org
end
Russia will not sell any of its gold
(MarketWatch/GATA)
Sanctioning Russia’s gold won’t work but may prompt repatriation from NY Fed, Lundin says
Submitted by admin on Fri, 2022-03-25 00:39Section: Daily Dispatches
What Traders Think of U.S.-led Efforts to Block Gold Transactions by Russia’s Central Bank
By Myra P. Saefong
MatketWatch, New York
Thursday, March 25, 2022
The U.S. made it clear on Thursday that any transaction involving gold related to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation is covered by existing sanctions, but that’s unlikely to have an immediate impact on the gold market despite Russia’s estimated $132 billion in gold stockpiles.
“Russia’s giant bullion holdings could, in theory, help finance its war machine if Moscow can find a buyer among foreign banks or governments,” Adrian Ash, director of research at BullionVault, told MarketWatch. …
“Any sanctions on Russia’s gold reserves would do little more than reveal the degree to which government bureaucrats don’t understand gold,” Brien Lundin, editor of Gold Newsletter, told MarketWatch. “The beauty of gold, unlike currencies, is that it is an untrackable store of value that has no counterparty,” he said.
“At least in smaller amounts, Russia could easily sell gold on the open market,” he said. “In bulk quantities, it could just as easily sell the gold to China with no record of the transaction,” Lundin said, adding that China has demonstrated that it is an “eager buyer of gold.”
He believes the end result of the gold-related actions would be to “alert the 36 countries who hold significant portions of their gold reserves in the values of the New York Federal Reserve that they should take their gold back as soon as possible.”
If that happened, that would “create significant turmoil in the gold market since the [Federal Reserve] has demonstrated difficulty in actually finding and transporting the gold held for other nations,” Lundin said. The Fed famously told Germany it would take seven years to repatriate just a portion of their holdings, though it took only four years, he said. …
… For the remainder of the report:
END
Perfectly correct: Russia’s palladium and platinum are too important to sanction
(Ronan Manly)
Ronan Manly: Russian palladium and platinum are too important to sanction
Submitted by admin on Fri, 2022-03-25 00:03Section: Daily Dispatches
12:01a ET Friday, March 26, 2022
Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:
Bullion Star’s Ronan Manly reports tonight that, like Russian oil and gas, Russian palladium and platinum have been determined by the London Platinum and Palladium Market to be too important to sanction.
Manly’s report is headlined “Russian Palladium and Platinum — Too Important to Sanction” and it’s posted at Bullion Star here:
CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
CPowell@GATA.org
END
4.OTHER GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES
5.OTHER COMMODITIES/
DIESEL
Global diesel shortage will push oil prices much higher
(Kemp/Reuters)
Global Diesel Shortage To Push Oil Prices Much Higher
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 05:00 AM
By John Kemp, senior market analyst at Reuters
Worsening diesel shortages in the United States and the rest of the world are intensifying upward pressure on petroleum prices and threaten to recreate the conditions that led to the record price spike in 2008.
U.S. distillate fuel oil inventories, the category including diesel, fell by 2 million barrels to 112 million barrels last week, according to high-frequency data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Distillate stocks have declined in 52 of the last 79 weeks by a total of 67 million barrels, and are at the lowest for the time of year since 2014 and before that 2008 (“Weekly petroleum status report”, EIA, March 23).
Distillates have emerged as the tightest part of the oil market: U.S. inventories are 20% below the pre-pandemic five-year average for 2015-2019 compared with deficits of 11% in crude and 1% in gasoline.
If stocks move in line with seasonal patterns over the last ten years, inventories are expected to drop to a low of 104 million barrels before the middle of the year, which would make them as tight as they were in 2008.
In the reasonable worst case scenario, however, stocks could deplete to as little as 93 million barrels, which would be critically low and lead to explosive upward pressure on prices.
Global Shortfall
Similar distillate shortages have emerged in Europe and Asia as the rapid recovery in consumption after the pandemic has outrun increased output of crude oil and refinery production of diesel.
By the end of February, Europe’s distillate stocks had already fallen to the lowest seasonal level since 2008. Singapore’s stocks are currently at the lowest seasonal level since 2006.
Middle distillates such as diesel and gas oil are primarily used in freight transport, manufacturing, farming, mining, and oil and gas extraction, making them the most cyclically sensitive part of the oil industry. Synchronised global expansion in North America, Europe and Asia has created an acute shortage much as it did in 2007/2008.
In consequence, distillate prices are leading the entire oil market higher, with upward pressure on diesel prices spilling over into the adjacent market for gasoline and the upstream market for crude.
In the United States, the average on-road price of diesel has climbed by 61% over the last year compared with a 47% rise in gasoline prices, according to the EIA.
In 2008, distillate shortages helped to push crude to an inflation-adjusted peak over $187 per barrel around the middle of the year, after distillate stocks hit abnormal seasonal lows a few months earlier.
Ukraine Invasion
A similar scenario seems to have been playing out this year. But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and sanctions imposed in response threaten to make the shortage of distillates even more severe.
Russia is a major exporter of middle distillates as well as distillate-rich residual fuel oil and crude, primarily to countries in Europe. Russia accounted for 29% of Europe’s imported crude oil and 39% of its imported products in 2020, according to BP (“Statistical review of world energy”, BP, 2021).
Russia’s Ukraine invasion and escalating sanctions pose an increasing threat to these distillate and other oil flows.
Futures markets have anticipated a possible disruption by pushing distillate prices to an enormous premium over crude. Front-month European gas oil futures prices are trading at a premium of $46 per barrel over Brent, up from $15 before the invasion and less than $4 a year ago.
In real terms, current gas oil prices of around $167 per barrel are already in the 97th percentile for all months since 1990, though still well below the inflation-adjusted peak of $226 in 2008.
Ultra-high prices are a signal to refiners to maximize crude processing and distillate production, and to consumers to reduce diesel use as much as possible, to rebuild depleted inventories.
Over the next three months, diesel output needs to accelerate significantly, consumption growth must slow, and the market must avoid a significant loss of Russian exports. If that is not possible, the result is likely to be a severe price spike, which will enforce a reduction in consumption through a business cycle slowdown.
end
Nickel
Special thanks to Doug C for sending this to us:
LME to Nearly Double the Size of Its Default Fund After Nickel Short Squeeze – Bloomberg
Inbox
| douglas cundey | 7:33 AM (18 minutes ago) |  | |
| to , me |
LME to Nearly Double the Size of Its Default Fund After Squeeze
Mark BurtonMarch 25, 2022, 7:05 AM EDT
The London Metal Exchange told members it will nearly double the size of its clearinghouse default fund as the exchange grapples with the fallout from an unprecedented short squeeze that has roiled metals markets.
The LME has notified members that the default fund will increase to $2.075 billion from $1.1 billion from April “due to a rise in stress testing losses,” according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be because the information is not public. Member contributions, which are based on relative initial margins, are due on April 4.
6.CRYPTOCURRENCIES
7. GOLD/ TRADING TODAY
Your early currency/gold and silver pricing/Asian and European bourse movements/ and interest rate settings FRIDAY morning 7:30 AM
ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED UP 6.3626
OFFSHORE YUAN: 6.3744
HANG SANG CLOSED DOWN 541.07 PTS OR 2.47%
2. Nikkei closed UP 39.45PTS OR 0.14%
3. Europe stocks ALL GREEN
USA dollar INDEX UP TO 98.58/Euro RISES TO 1.1013
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +.240/ !!!!(Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese yen vs usa cross now at 121.65/ THIS IS TROUBLESOME AS BANK OF JAPAN IS RUNNING OUT OF BONDS TO BUY./JAPAN 10 YR YIELD IS NOW TARGETED AT .11%/JAPAN LOSING CONTROL OF THEIR BOND MARKET//
3c Nikkei now ABOVE 17,000
3d USA/Yen rate now well below the important 120 barrier this morning
3e WTI:: 110.20 and Brent: 116.97
3f Gold DOWN /JAPANESE Yen UP CHINESE YUAN: DOWN -SHORE CLOSED UP// OFF- SHORE UP
3g Japan is to buy the equivalent of 108 billion uSA dollars worth of bond per month or $1.3 trillion. Japan’s GDP equals 5 trillion usa./“HELICOPTER MONEY” OFF THE TABLE FOR NOW /REVERSE OPERATION TWIST ON THE BONDS: PURCHASE OF LONG BONDS AND SELLING THE SHORT END
Japan to buy 100% of all new Japanese debt and by 2018 they will have 25% of all Japanese debt. Fifty percent of Japanese budget financed with debt.
3h Oil DOWN for WTI and DOWN FOR Brent this morning
3i European bond buying continues to push yields lower on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund FALLS TO +.0.502%/Italian 10 Yr bond yield FALLS to 2.02% /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD FALLS TO 1.38%…ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD/GERMAN BUND: 1.520: DANGEROUS FOR THE ITALIAN BANKING SYSTEM
3j Greek 10 year bond yield RISES TO : 2.79
3k Gold at $1953.80 silver at: 25.62 7 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00
3l USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble UP 400/100 in roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 98.33
3m oil into the 110 dollar handle for WTI and 116 handle for Brent/
3n Higher foreign deposits out of China sees huge risk of outflows and a currency depreciation. This can spell financial disaster for the rest of the world/
JAPAN ON JAN 29.2016 INITIATES NIRP. THIS MORNING THEY SIGNAL THEY MAY END NIRP. TODAY THE USA/YEN TRADES TO 121.65 DESTROYING JAPANESE CITIZENS WITH HIGHER FOOD INFLATION
30 SNB (Swiss National Bank) still intervening again in the markets driving down the FRANC. It is not working: USA/SF this morning .9265– as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF 1.0205 well above the floor set by the Swiss Finance Minister. Thomas Jordan, chief of the Swiss National Bank continues to purchase euros trying to lower value of the Swiss Franc.
USA 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.360 DOWN 1 BASIS PTS
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 2.509 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 14.84
Futures Ramp To Session High As Oil Slides
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 07:50 AM
After a jerky, stop and go session that saw several sharp moves in both directions only to reverse into a relatively narrow trend, S&P futures were near session highs, up 0.3% or 14 points to 4,526 around the time US traders got to their desks as investors evaluated economic risks from Federal Reserve monetary-policy tightening and Russia’s war in Ukraine. Sentiment was boosted by WTI crude futures sliding 1.6% as the EU continues to make plans to reduce its dependence on Russia. Asia stocks were mixed, with losses led by Hang Seng which closed down 2.5%, while Europe’s Stoxx Europe 600 index rose, led by the tech and real-estate sectors. President Joe Biden will travel to Poland for a visit focused on refugees as his European trip continues. The dollar dropped, bitcoin jumped near $45,000 while Treasuries were flat, remaining on course for one of their worst quarterly routs since at least the early 1970s.
“In the near term, we believe that outcomes for markets will focus primarily on the question of when we will reach — or if we have already reached — peak sanctions and oil prices,” said UBS Wealth Management CIO Mark Haefele.
Major U.S. technology and internet stocks are slightly higher in premarket trading on Friday, suggesting the group will close out a second straight week with solid gains. Cannabis shares soared in premarket trading after a House panel said that it would consider a bill to decriminalize marijuana. Here are all the notable premarket movers:
- Cannabis stocks surge in U.S. premarket trading after a House panel said that it would consider a bill to decriminalize marijuana. Tilray (TLRY US) +19% premarket, Sundial (SNDL US) +23%.
- Shares in Chinese ADRs dropped in U.S. premarket trading, mirroring losses for their Hong Kong-listed counterparts, as peer Meituan dropped 8.6% ahead of its results. Alibaba (BABA US) -4.8%, JD.com (JD US) -4.7%.
- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY US) jumped in premarket as activist investor Ryan Cohen is nearing a settlement at Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. that would see three new directors appointed to the retailer’s board, according to people familiar with the matter.
- MEI Pharma (MEIP US) shares drop 45% in U.S. premarket after the company and Kyowa Kirin said the FDA discouraged an accelerated approval filing for zandelisib based on Phase 2 Tidal study data.
- Honest Co. (HNST US) falls 21% in U.S. premarket trading after earnings missed analysts’ estimates. Jefferies analysts downgrade the stock to hold, saying they’re disappointed by the personal-care company’s growth and consider its promise and potential to be in conflict with its performance.
- CuriosityStream (CURI US) tumbled 13% in extended trading after the streaming platform focused on factual programming gave a revenue forecast for the first half of the year that trailed analysts’ projections.
- Maxeon Solar (MAXN US) shares fell 8% in extended trading on Thursday, after the maker of renewable energy equipment reported fourth-quarter revenue that was slightly below expectations. It also gave a first- quarter revenue forecast that is below the average analyst estimate.
Investors continue to grapple with the ramifications of Russia’s invasion and isolation, including elevated raw-material costs that have stoked expectationsof higher inflation and more aggressive Fed interest-rate hikes. Key parts of the U.S. Treasury yield curve continue to flatten or are inverted. That’s stirring debate as to whether the bond market is flagging a steep economic slowdown or even a recession ahead.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration is increasingly worried that Russian President Vladimir Putin may lash out dangerously, pressured by the struggles of his military campaign and far-reaching sanctions. The U.S. and its allies warned Putin against using biological, chemical or nuclear weapons.
The Fed’s steps to contain inflation are “what ultimately will drive a more aggressive inversion of the curve, which we think is coming quite quickly,” Gene Tannuzzo, global head of fixed income at Columbia Threadneedle Investments, said on Bloomberg Television. That doesn’t necessarily signal a recession, he added, since “this is a very different cycle and the first one in over 30 years where the Fed is playing catch-up to inflation.”
On the strategy front, Bank of America Corp.’s Bull & Bear Indicator is flashing green for the first time since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, potentially signaling gains for global equities in the weeks ahead. U.S. data on Friday include pending home sales and Michigan sentiment, while no major earnings release is scheduled.
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 index rose, led by the tech and real-estate sectors. The FTSE 100 underperformed, dropping as much as 0.3%. Banks, insurance and energy are the worst-performing sectors as crude oil retreated and the U.S. and European Union announced an agreement to wean European countries off Russian natural-gas supplies. Here are some of the biggest European movers today:
- Trelleborg shares jump as much as 26% in Stockholm after agreeing to sell the tires business on which the Swedish industrial group was founded more than a century ago.
- HomeServe shares rise as much as 16%, extending yesterday’s gains, after Brookfield said one of its private infrastructure funds is in the early stages of considering a possible offer for the home emergency and repair services provider. Analysts think the M&A interest is not surprising given HomeServe’s low valuation and attractiveness.
- Adyen shares rise as much as 3.9% after Morgan Stanley recommends SAP and Sage as two safe havens to own amid market uncertainty, along with Adyen, Capgemini and Trustpilot as picks for when risk appetite returns.
- Hibernia REIT shares rise as much as 38% after a unit of Brookfield Asset Management agreed to buy the real estate company for EU1.09b in cash.
- Antofagasta shares drop as much as 4.7% after UBS cut the recommendation to sell from neutral as possible higher taxation in Chile is no longer discounted and copper prices aren’t sustainable.
- Husqvarna shares fall as much as 8.8% after the firm said it can’t keep up with demand for its products because Russia’s invasion in Ukraine has exacerbated the global shortage of components and prolonged lead times.
- Rational shares fall as much as 9.4% as some analysts cut price targets following Thursday’s earnings report. Separately, RBC analysts said in a note they are concerned about the cost outlook after Rational reported “fine” fourth-quarter earnings.
Russian equities fell during the second day of limited trading after a record long shutdown of the country’s stock market.
Earlier in the session, Asian stocks fell, paring a weekly gain, as traders assessed interest-rate hike prospects and delisting risks for Chinese companies in the U.S. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined as much as 0.7%, with Chinese internet giants Alibaba and Tencent the biggest drags. The Hang Seng Tech Index fell 5% after the U.S. said it’s “premature” to speculate about a deal to keep Chinese stocks from being kicked off American exchanges, and investors sold Meituan shares ahead of its earnings release that came in after market close. Meituan’s Revenue Slows in Latest Sign of China Crackdown Toll Stock traders also continue to grapple with hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve amid a surge in food and energy prices, worsened by supply disruptions caused by the Russia-Ukraine war.
Still, the Asian stock measure was on track for its second-straight weekly rise, up 0.8% since the March 18 close. “We expect the equity markets to eventually be range-bound,” said Ray Sharma-Ong, investment director for multi-asset solutions at abrdn. Concerns on soaring prices, softer global demand and tightening global liquidity conditions still exist while the U.S. monetary policy path is “yet to be determined,” he added. Benchmarks in Hong Kong and China led losses Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose for a ninth straight day, while the country’s central bank governor said a weaker currency is a plus for the Japanese economy
The Hang Seng Tech Index slides as much as 4.5%, with Meituan’s 8.2% loss making it one of the worst performers on the gauge; NetEase and Alibaba are other big losers, down about 5% each. “Some risk averse behavior of selling Meituan shares ahead of earnings is understandable, given most of the tech names in China reported weak results and their shares drop post result, with the exception of Xiaomi,” says Willer Chen, an analyst at Forsyth Barr Asia Ltd. “It’s a sign of panic selling as new guidelines will increase costs to the company on improved standards for food delivery workers, says Rebecca Lim, founder of AutoML Capital, referring to actions on Meituan, adding investors are looking for more “fundamentally solid” companies”
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 capped its ninth-straight day of gains, its longest win streak since September 2019, after a day of mostly directionless trading. Tokyo Electron and Shionogi were the largest contributors to a 0.1% rise in the blue-chip gauge. The broader Topix closed a few basis points lower, ending its win streak at eight days, as drugmakers gained and telecoms fell. The yen strengthened after dropping 1% Thursday to 122.35 per dollar, its lowest level since 2015
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.3% to close at 7,406.20, gaining for a fourth session. Miners and utilities led sector gains. Brickworks was among the top performers after it was upgraded at Ord Minnett. Telix Pharma was the biggest laggard, dropping the most in about two years. In New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.3% to 12,055.00.
In FX, the yen advanced after the Bank of Japan refrained from intervening in the government bond market as yields edged up to a level that previously spurred action. The decision triggered a yen squeeze. USD/JPY fell almost 1% to 121.18 after rallying 1% on Thursday, with a slew of ‘one-cancels-the-other’ orders being triggered and indicating leveraged clients pared risk into the weekend. The BOJ abstained from intervening despite yields rising to the highest level since January 2016, spurring speculation the central bank would offer to buy an unlimited amount of government debt at fixed rates.
“The yen rose, perhaps as the BOJ didn’t step in, but it’s more due to buying back the currency after yen short positions have accumulated from persistent selling,” said Tohru Sasaki, head of Japan markets research at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Tokyo
In rates, Treasuries front-end trades heavy, flattening the curve with longer-dated tenors trading rich on the day. S&P 500 futures hold small gains while WTI oil futures are falling for a second day. Front-end Treasury yields cheaper by ~2bp on the day near session highs, flattening 2s10s spread by 2.7bp as 10-year yields around 2.36% are little changed vs Thursday’s close; long-end of the curve is richer by ~2bp on the day, flattening 5s30s by as much as 3bp to 11bp, a new multiyear low. U.S. session includes February pending home sales and March final University of Michigan sentiment, and three scheduled Fed speakers.
In commodities, WTI futures are down over 2%, natural gas drops over 4%.
Nasdaq contracts lose 0.1%. Bonds push higher, belly of the gilt curve outperforming bunds and USTs by 2-3bps. Peripheral spreads tighten slightly to core. Bloomberg dollar spot index recoups much of Asia’s weakness. CAD and GBP are the weakest performers in G-10 FX, JPY and SEK outperform. Spot gold holds steady near $1,955/oz
Bitcoin holds above 44k with little action seen across the major cryptos
Looking to the day ahead now, and data releases include UK retail sales for February, Germany’s Ifo business climate indicator for March, and the Euro Area M3 money supply for February. Over in the US, there’s also February’s pending home sales, and the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for March. Meanwhile from central banks, today’s Fed speakers will include Waller, Williams and Barkin.
Market Snapshot
- S&P 500 futures up 0.2% to 4,523
- STOXX Europe 600 down 0.2% to 452.14
- MXAP down 0.5% to 179.73
- MXAPJ down 0.9% to 583.79
- Nikkei up 0.1% to 28,149.84
- Topix little changed at 1,981.47
- Hang Seng Index down 2.5% to 21,404.88
- Shanghai Composite down 1.2% to 3,212.24
- Sensex down 0.8% to 57,154.90
- Australia S&P/ASX 200 up 0.3% to 7,406.25
- Kospi little changed at 2,729.98
- German 10Y yield little changed at 0.51%
- Euro up 0.2% to $1.1018
- Brent Futures down 2.0% to $116.59/bbl
- Gold spot up 0.1% to $1,958.79
- U.S. Dollar Index down 0.19% to 98.60
Top Overnight News from Bloomberg
- Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said stable inflation was needed to trigger policy change at the central bank not yen weakness, in remarks that appeared aimed at cooling speculation of possible stimulus tweaks driven by the sliding currency and signs of heating prices.
- The U.S. and the European Union announced an agreement to try and boost the supply of liquefied natural gas to European countries by the end of 2022 with at least 15 billion cubic meters.
- German business confidence plunged to the lowest level since the early months of the pandemic after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine clouded the outlook and caused energy prices to soar.
- U.K. retail sales unexpectedly fell in February as an end to coronavirus restrictions saw Britons change their spending patterns as they socialized more and returned to the office.
- United Co. Rusal International PJSC, the huge aluminum producer fighting blow-back from Russia’s war in Ukraine, is getting some help from traders in China to keep its smelters running.
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
Asia-Pac stocks traded mixed with the growth and tech-led momentum from the US fading overnight. ASX 200 was led higher by strength in mining stocks but with upside capped by a lack of fresh catalysts. Nikkei 225 was indecisive as JPY nursed recent losses and the 10yr yield neared the BoJ’s cap. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. weakened with tech names pressured after the US downplayed speculation of a deal on Chinese stock listings and with the PBoC’s liquidity boost only providing brief support.
Top Asian News
- Chinese ADRs Drop Premarket After Recent Rally as Meituan Slides
- China Bond Market Exodus Shows Signs of Gathering Pace in March
- China Crash Mystery Deepens as Evidence Suggests Midair Breakup
- China Talks for South Pacific Security Pact Alarm Australia
European bourses came under pressure in early trade before seeing a mild recovery. The region ultimately remains caged within tight ranges. Sectors are now mostly higher with no overarching theme. US equity futures are flat across the board but off earlier lows. ES June found support at 4,500
Top European News
- Brookfield Agrees to Buy Hibernia REIT for $1.2 Billion in Cash
- Russia High-Wire Act to Avoid Default Leaves Bondholders on Edge
- NortonLifeLock, Avast Deal Faces In-Depth U.K. Probe
- Germany Targets End to Russian Gas Imports by Middle of 2024
FX
- The yen launches another recovery attempt after slumping to new multi year lows as pre-weekend and fy end positioning prompts turnaround – Usd/Jpy circa 121.50 vs almost 122.50 at one stage.
- Greenback mixed otherwise as DXY rotates around 98.500 awaiting more Fed speakers.
- Franc firm post-SNB as safe haven allure returns to an extent – Usd/Chf under 0.9300 and Eur/Chf probing 1.0200.
- Euro underpinned by decent option expiries at 1.1000 strike in wake of a downbeat German Ifo survey, but Pound flagging after weak UK retail sales data and bleak GfK consumer sentiment reading
- Cable under 1.3200 and close to Fib level, Eur/Gbp over 0.8350 and above several upside chart points
Fixed Income
- Gilts and Bunds retain recovery gains after weak UK retail sales data and a bleak German Ifo survey
- US Treasuries remain sub-par and the curve slightly steeper ahead of pending home sales final UoM survey and more Fedspeak
- BTPs firm after top end of the range Italian debt sales
Commodities
- WTI and Brent May contracts lost ground in early European trade with several factors in play for the oil complex, although the front-months are trimming losses.
- EU is to work towards the aim of attaining around 50BCM of additional LNG from the US for EU members until at least 2030, according to a document.
- German Economy Minister hopes that by summer, Germany only imports 24% of gas from Russia; in talks to tap into the Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) for LNG of 27GW capacity.
- Elsewhere, spot gold manages to hold USD 1,950/oz+ status with its 21 DMA also seen at the psychological mark as the yellow metal waits for the next catalyst.
- LME nickel initially soared at the open and briefly breached USD 40k/t to the upside in the 3M contract before reversing gains in what remains a volatile market
US Event Calendar
- 10:00: Feb. Pending Home Sales (MoM), est. 1.0%, prior -5.7%; YoY, est. -2.2%, prior -9.1%;
- 10:00: March U. of Mich. Sentiment, est. 59.7, prior 59.7
- Expectations, est. 54.4, prior 54.4
- Current Conditions, est. 67.5, prior 67.8
- 1 Yr Inflation, est. 5.4%, prior 5.4%; 5-10 Yr Inflation, prior 3.0%
Central Bank Speakers
- 10:00: Fed’s Williams Discusses Monetary Policy, Financial…
- 11:30: Fed’s Barkin Discusses Containing Inflation
- 12:00: Fed’s Waller Discusses Central Bank Digital Currencies
DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
I’m supposed to be playing my first round of golf for two months tomorrow but just as my knee is slowly regaining strength so my back has folded into a state of complete agony. On Wednesday night I walked back to the tube after work and had to stop on the stairs as I was in complete agony. A sprightly old lady asked me if I was ok and needed help? I have breathtakingly painful sciatica and a second opinion last week suggested that the MRI scan showed some evidence that on one side of my back the sciatic nerve doesn’t have the same room as on the other side. It therefore gets pinched every time I make a step and compounding the matter is now probably very inflamed. So after anti-inflammatories have failed, the next stops are an injection, Pilates, and then if that doesn’t work an operation to shave away some of the bone. In the meantime, if anyone has any sciatica relief tips please let me know.
The relief for markets yesterday was that the data remains pretty resilient to strong across the world. In particular, the flash PMIs for March came in on the upside almost everywhere, with the Euro Area composite reading decelerating by less than expected to 54.5 (vs. 53.8 expected), whilst the US composite PMI unexpectedly rose to 58.5 (vs. 54.7 expected).
Against that backdrop, the S&P 500 (+1.43%) bounced back after the previous day’s losses, as part of a broad-based advance that saw almost 90% of the index’s constituents move higher on the day. Tech stocks led the way, with the NASDAQ (+1.93%) outperforming, and in another milestone, the VIX index of volatility fell -1.90pts to 21.7pts, its lowest closing level since February 9, a couple of days before the US warned about an imminent Russian invasion. European equities put in a more subdued performance earlier in the day though, with the STOXX 600 (-0.21%) falling back for a 2nd successive day.
The stronger data went hand-in-hand with a resumption of the bond sell-off, with yields climbing to fresh highs once again in Europe. Those on 10yr bunds (+6.4bps) and OATs (+5.5bps) both hit a post-2018 high, and 10yr BTP yields (+7.0bps) reached their highest levels in nearly a couple of years as well. In fact, as I mentioned in my chart of the day yesterday (link here), it’s recently been one of the worst times to have invested in European sovereign bonds, and if you were investing in 10yr bunds you’d need to have started before December 2013 if you were to still have a positive real return right now. Given annual inflation is currently running above 5% in Germany, it might be a while before investors are able to contemplate a sustainable positive real return again. As a reminder, if you’re not on my chart of the day and want to be then let me know.
For the US there was a similar pattern yesterday, with yields on 10yr Treasuries (+8.0bps) moving higher and closing at 2.37%, albeit not quite hitting their peak from a couple of days earlier. That comes as investors are continuing to ratchet up the implied chances of a 50bp rate hike at the next meeting in early May, with Fed funds futures now putting the odds at 77% as even dovish Fed officials join the chorus considering a +50bp hike in May. In terms of yesterday’s Fed speak, Chicago Fed President Evans, who traditionally skews dovish, said that “given the pressures that I see, I would be comfortable with just each meeting increasing by a quarter-point”, though he said he was “open-minded” about a 50bps hike if required. Despite the continued move toward a +50bp May hike, the yield curve steepened +4.2bps to 23.1bps, its highest level in a week, on the back of the strong underlying economic data.
On energy prices, Brent Crude (-2.11%) and European natural gas prices (-4.61%) fell on the announcement anticipated later today that the US is planning measures to increase exports to the EU, along with an expansion in Canadian exports announced yesterday. However, it’s not clear how impactful those exports can be in relieving supply in the near term, so we have to wait and see for the sustained impact. Elsewhere, the IOC estimated that Iran would be able to ramp up oil production to near local highs of 4mm/bbls a day, while Iranian leaders indicated that a nuclear deal could be reached in the near term, putting some more downward pressure on oil pricing.
At the NATO summit, leaders said in their statement that the Russian use of a chemical or biological weapon would “result in severe consequences”. Meanwhile, the alliance also agreed to extend Secretary-General Stoltenberg’s mandate by another year, which will have implications on the central bank side as he was due to take over as Governor of the Norges Bank later in the year. Instead, their current interim governor, Ida Wolden Bache, will take the job permanently. NATO leaders also agreed to double the number of battle groups deployed to the alliance’s eastern reaches.
At the EU summit, EU leaders joined the US in accusing Russia of war crimes in Ukraine and demanding they stop. Further, they agreed to tighten some sanctions and close the loopholes on other sanctions, while the US announced additional sanctions covering more Russian elites, lawmakers, and defense companies. As mentioned, the summit also revealed that the US is also set to announce measures to increase energy exports to the EU today, covering both oil and liquid natural gas, following reports that Canada also plans to increase their exports to nations trying to wean themselves of Russian energy. On the energy front, the EU threw water on the idea that Russia could force payments for energy exports be denominated in rubles, with Chancellor Scholz and Premier Draghi both saying that would constitute a contract default. There were also warnings of imminent food shortages from Presidents Biden and Macron as a result of the war.
The G7 also met, and echoed NATO’s warning to Russia against using biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons. President Zelensky chimed in to encourage the G7 to wrench sanctions another notch tighter as well.
On the war itself, a senior Ukrainian aid noted the situation on the ground was basically frozen, while there were reports of cautious optimism about negotiations sealing a ceasefire deal.
Overnight in Asia, equity markets are struggling to build on an overnight rally on Wall Street with almost all major bourses in negative territory. The Hang Seng (-1.62%) is leading losses across the region after Tencent Holdings reported its slowest ever quarterly revenue growth yesterday. Meanwhile, shares of JD Logistics dropped more than -12% after the company announced that it will raise H$8.53 billion ($1.09 billion) through a share sale. Chinese stocks are trading lower with the Shanghai Composite (-0.47%) and CSI (-0.94%) both down amid some US-China tension over Russia’s war against Ukraine while the Kospi (+0.06%) is swinging between gains and losses. Elsewhere, the Nikkei (-0.30%) has lost ground this morning, reversing its earlier gains after stronger inflation data. Tokyo’s core CPI rose +0.8% y/y in March, the fastest pace since December 2019, versus +0.7% expected and a 0.5% gain in February. Additionally, the overall CPI reading in March advanced +1.3% from a year earlier, hitting the highest since April 2019 and against a +1.0% rise in the prior month. The stronger-than-expected data pushed yields on 10-yr JGBs to move higher to 0.24%, close to its upper limit of 0.25% where many expect the BoJ to intervene and buy unlimited amounts of bonds. So watch this space.
Looking forward, stock futures in the US are pointing towards a slightly stronger start with contracts on the S&P 500 (+0.19%), Nasdaq 100 (+0.20%) and Dow Jones (+0.19%) all in positive territory.
Back to yesterday, and while the flash PMIs set the tone on the data side, other releases pointed towards a strong performance into March. One was the weekly initial jobless claims from the US, which fell to 187k in the week through March 19 (vs. 210k expected), which is actually their lowest level since 1969. Continuing claims for the week through March 12 also fell to 1.35m (vs. 1.4m expected), marking their lowest level since 1970. On the other hand, the preliminary February reading for durable goods orders showed a larger-than-expected -2.2% contraction (vs. -0.6% expected), whilst core capital goods orders were down -0.3% (vs. +0.5% expected).
To the day ahead now, and data releases include UK retail sales for February, Germany’s Ifo business climate indicator for March, and the Euro Area M3 money supply for February. Over in the US, there’s also February’s pending home sales, and the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for March. Meanwhile from central banks, today’s Fed speakers will include Waller, Williams and Barkin.
END
3. ASIAN AFFAIRS
i)FRIDAY MORNING// THURSDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 39.45 PTS OR 0.14% //Hang Sang CLOSED DOWN 541.07 PTS OR 2.47 % /The Nikkei closed UP 39.45 PTS OR 0.14% //Australia’s all ordinaires CLOSED UP 0.27% /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed UP 6.3626 /Oil UP TO 110.20 dollars per barrel for WTI and UP TO 116.71 for Brent. Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN // ONSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP AGAINST THE DOLLAR AT 6.3626 OFFSHORE YUAN CLOSED UP ON THE DOLLAR AT 6.3744: /ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE STRONGER//
3 a./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA
///NORTH KOREA
END
3B JAPAN
Japanese 10 yr bond yields rise to .14% (bond falls in price). The Yen rise a bit to 121.65 to the dollar from 122.4. The Japanese government fails to intervene with yields
hitting 6 yr highs
(zerohedge)
JGBs Slide, Yen Spikes As Parazlyed BOJ Fails To Intervene With Yields Hitting 6 Year High
THURSDAY, MAR 24, 2022 – 10:04 PM
After sliding relentlessly for much of the past month on expectations that the BOJ will be the “odd” central bank out, refusing to join its developed peers in tightening financial conditions, and the USDJPY rising as high as 122.44 earlier (from 115 three weeks ago), the yen jumped on Friday morning in Japan, after the 10Y JGB crossed a critical resistance level without intervention from Kuroda.
Entering the final trading day of the week, with 10Y JGB yields on the verge of rising above 0.23%, traders were bracing for another massive bond market intervention by the BOJ. As Bloomberg’s Wes Goodman put it, “there’s a good chance the Bank of Japan will buy bonds as soon as Friday to curb the advance in yields. JGB ten-year rates are climbing in tandem with yields globally, rising to 0.23%.”
As shown in the chart below, when JGBs hit that level last month, the central bank responded with one of its an unlimited fixed-rate purchases, in effect putting a hard stop to further declines in JGBs.
As a reminder, as part of its Yield Curve Control, the BOJ capped the maximum yield on the 10Y JGB at 0.25% although it would never let it rise quite as high. And while a move to curb yields may also weaken the yen, already at a six-year low, that shouldn’t deter the BOJ according to Goodman, who notes that “Governor Kuroda said last week that a weak currency should still be seen as positive for the economy, and he repeated his admonition that the BOJ won’t hesitate to add to easing if needed.”
Or perhaps not… because with the 10Y rising as high as 0.24% on Friday morning, the BOJ remains oddly silent so far, which to some traders this suggests that even the BOJ may be willing to risk higher (and perhaps sharply higher) yields to stay in sync with its peers.
Alternatively, had the BOJ intervened, it could have set off a selling cascade in the Yen which could push it into uncontrollable freefall.
And indeed, with 10Y JGBs rising to a level not seen since 2016 moments ago Kuroda hit the tape, suggesting that the central bank is suddenly worried that the yen may in fact fall so far it would never come back:
- *KURODA: DON’T THINK MARKETS HAVE LOST FAITH IN YEN
- *KURODA: DESIRABLE FOR FOREX TO MOVE IN STABLE MANNER
- *KURODA: RISING U.S. RATES SAID TO BE BEHIND RECENT WEAK YEN
But what he said next was the punchline:
- *KURODA: FAITH IN FISCAL SITUATION IS KEY FOR MONETARY POLICY
- *KURODA: LOSING FISCAL FAITH CAN SPUR YIELDS, CUT EASING EFFECT
- *KURODA: BOND BUYING IN YCC IS SOLELY FOR MONETARY POLICY
And so Japan, that paragon of MMT crackpots everywhere, suddenly finds itself trapped in a lose-lose dilemma: intervene in the bond market and spark a furious, potentially destabilizing and uncontrolled plunge in the yen which would also lead to galloping (if not worse) inflation, which could collapse what little faith remains in the BOJ, or do nothing and contain the slump in the yen while risking far higher yields which in a country where the debt is orders of magnitude greater than GDP, could also spell fiscal and monetary doom.
As a result, the market – having long gotten used to amicable interventions from the BOJ – will now surely test one of these two outcomes, and how the BOJ responds could have dramatic consequences for this original MMT test case. Should the BOJ’s reaction spark further erosion of faith in either Japan’s fiscal or monetary policies, the outcome for the world’s most indebted nation would be disastrous.
end
3c CHINA
CHINA//
Port congestion soars again to a 5 month high
(zerohedge)
“Ripple Effect” – Chinese Port Congestion Soars To Five-Month High
THURSDAY, MAR 24, 2022 – 10:00 PM
Top Chinese ports in Shenzhen and Hong Kong record some of the largest congestion in nearly half a year due to China’s zero-tolerance approach, locking down more than 50 million people and shuttering factories to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Bloomberg reports 174 vessels anchored or loaded off the country’s top ports, the largest number since Oct. 21, when a massive typhoon battered the area.
“Shenzhen is the second-busiest port next to Shanghai, so we will expect to see significant volume shift to the other ports within China,” said Ryan Closser, a director at FourKites, a supply-chain information provider.
“A couple more weeks of shutdown may not have a huge disruption, but the longer the area is shut down, the more of a ripple effect it will have,” Closser said.
Even though workers have been sent back to factories, and some lockdowns have been lifted, the disruption alarmed A.P. Møller – Maersk A/S, the world’s largest container shipping company by capacity, last Friday, telling clients to expect new supply chain snarls and logistical delays.
“While manufacturing also takes place in other parts of the country, these delays will still affect output, though not drastically,” Maersk said in a memo to clients.
Vessel observation data show increased congestion of container ships at Chinese ports. Meanwhile, congestion at Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach has subsided this year.
Bloomberg notes the growing threat of “possible delays to goods heading to the U.S. this summer.”
end
CHINA///SOLOMON ISLANDS//
This is a big deal as the USA generally rules the South Pacific. It is raising alarm bells
special thanks to Robert H for sending this to us:
.China and Solomon Islands Draft Secret Security Pact, Raising Alarm in the Pacific – DNyuz
Inbox
| Robert Hryniak | 4:04 PM (3 minutes ago) |  | |
| to |
With all the Neocon attention to Russia the real hegemony game goes on, unseen and unchecked.
China and Solomon Islands Draft Secret Security Pact, Raising Alarm in the Pacific
SYDNEY, Australia — A leaked document has revealed that China and the Solomon Islands are close to signing a security agreement that could open the door to Chinese troops and naval warships flowing into a Pacific Island nation that played a pivotal role in World War II.
The agreement, kept secret until now, was shared online Thursday night by opponents of the deal and verified as legitimate by the Australian government. Though it is marked as a draft and cites a need for “social order” as a justification for sending Chinese forces, it has set off alarms throughout the Pacific, where concerns about China’s intentions have been growing for years.
“This is deeply problematic for the United States and a real cause of concern for our allies and partners,” Charles Edel, the inaugural Australia chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said on Friday.
“The establishment of a base in the Solomon Islands by a strategic adversary would significantly degrade Australia and New Zealand’s security, increase the chances of local corruption and heighten the chances of resource exploitation.”
It is not clear which side initiated the agreement, but if signed, the deal would give Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare of the Solomon Islands the ability to call on China for protection of his own government while granting China a base of operations between the United States and Australia that could be used to block shipping traffic across the South Pacific.
Five months ago, protesters unhappy with Beijing’s secretive influence attacked the prime minister’s residence, burned businesses in the capital’s Chinatown and left three people dead. Now the worst-case scenario some Solomon Islanders envision would be a breakdown of democracy before or during next year’s election, with more unrest and the threat of China moving in to maintain the status quo.
The leaked document states that “Solomon Islands may, according to its own needs, request China to send police, armed police, military personnel and other law enforcement and armed forces to Solomon Islands to assist in maintaining social order, protecting people’s lives and property.”
It allows China to provide “assistance on other tasks” and requires secrecy, noting, “Neither party shall disclose the cooperation information to a third party.”
Matthew Wale, the leader of the opposition party in the Solomon Islands’ Parliament, said he feared that the “very general, overarching, vague” agreement could be used for anything.
“The crux of it is that this is all about political survival for the prime minister,” he said. “It has nothing to do with the national security of Solomon Islands.”
For Beijing, the deal could offer its own potential reward. “China may, according to its own needs and with the consent of Solomon Islands, make ship visits to, carry out logistical replenishment in and have stopover and transition in the Solomon Islands,” the draft states.
It also says the Solomons will provide “all necessary facilities.”
The Chinese Embassy in the Solomon Islands did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment.
Australia, which has traditionally been the islands’ main security partner — also sending police officers to quell the unrest in November at the government’s request — responded swiftly to the leaked document.
“We would be concerned by any actions that destabilize the security of our region,” Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Members of the Pacific family are best placed to respond to situations affecting Pacific regional security.”
Despite such affirmations, Australia has been losing influence in the Solomons for years. The larger country has a history of condescending to the region, downplaying its concerns about climate change and often describing it as its own “backyard.”
Mr. Sogavare has made no secret of his desire to draw China closer. In 2019, soon after he was elected, he announced that the island would end its 36-year diplomatic relationship with Taiwan, the self-governing island that China claims as its own, in order to establish official ties with Beijing. He argued that Beijing would deliver the infrastructure and support that the country needed.
The Sogavare government quickly signed agreements giving Chinese companies the right to build roads and bridges, and to reopen one of the country’s gold mines. A Chinese company even tried to lease the entire island of Tulagi.
That deal was eventually deemed illegal, after critics rose up in anger. Residents of Tulagi and Malaita, an island province where local leaders expressed strong opposition to China, have said that bribes are constantly being paid by proxies of Beijing with bags of cash and promises of kickbacks for senior leaders often made during all-expenses-paid trips to China.
The violent protests in November in the Solomon Islands reflected those frustrations. They erupted on the island of Guadalcanal, in the capital, Honiara, where American troops fought a brutal battle against the Japanese starting in 1942. The clashes were sparked by anger over allegations of China-fueled corruption and a perceived unequal distribution of resources, which has left Malaita less developed despite having the country’s largest population.
Malaita’s premier, Daniel Suidani — who has banned Chinese companies from Malaita while accepting American aid — said that the anger stemmed from “the national government’s leadership.”
“They are provoking the people to do something that is not good,” he said in November.
Mr. Wale, the opposition leader, said he has encouraged the prime minister to negotiate with Malaita, with little success.
“The political discourse over these things is nonexistent,” he said, adding that the proposed agreement with China would make the relationship more volatile.
Anna Powles, a senior lecturer at the Center for Defense and Security Studies at Massey University in New Zealand, said the recent upheaval and continued insecurity pointed to high levels of stress on the government over the pandemic, the economy and “longstanding concerns about the capturing of the state and political elites by foreign interests.”
“Some of the biggest implications here are about how strategic competition is disrupting local government,” Dr. Powles said.
American officials have also become increasingly concerned. In interviews over the past few years, they have often cited the Solomons as a grave example of China’s approach throughout the Pacific, which involves cultivating decision makers to open the door for Chinese businesses, migration and access to strategic resources and locations — most likely, the Americans believe, for civilian and military uses, at sea, and for satellite communications.
Many Pacific islands, including Kiribati and Fiji, have seen a sharp increase in Chinese diplomats, construction deals and Chinese migration over the past five years. Disputes and tensions have been growing over Beijing’s role in a region that has often either been ignored or been seen as little more than dots on the map for great powers to toy with.
Last month, during a visit to Fiji that focused heavily on competition with China, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced that the United States would soon open an embassy in the Solomon Islands after closing one in the 1990s. It is still many months from being operational, and on Friday, American officials did not initially respond to requests for comment.
“They certainly can do more and faster,” Mr. Wale, the Solomons opposition leader, said. “They just seem to be dragging their feet.”
The post China and Solomon Islands Draft Secret Security Pact, Raising Alarm in the Pacific appeared first on .
end
CHINA/COVID/MANDATES
END
.
4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK AFFFAIRS
EU/RUSSIA
As expected the EU fails to agree on a Russian oil/gas import gain
(zerohedge)
Oil Prices Tumble After EU Fails To Agree On Russian Import Ban
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 08:36 AM
As Austria had already indicated, several European countries failed to agree on a ban on imports of Russian crude.
The U.S. and U.K. have moved to ban imports of Russian crude, but several European Union countries have resisted pressure for an embargo due to their heavy reliance on supplies from the country.
And that sent crude prices lower (WTI back to a $108 handle)…
Prices are also falling because the Caspian Pipeline Consortium said crude loadings have resumed out of its terminal on Russia’s Black Sea coast after an interruption earlier this week due to bad weather
Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a joint task force to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels and strengthen European energy security.
“In the near term, we believe that outcomes for markets will focus primarily on the question of when we will reach — or if we have already reached — peak sanctions and oil prices,” said UBS Wealth Management CIO Mark Haefele.
There’s also growing anxiety that Europe might run out of diesel following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The continent only has about 40 days supply of the crucial fuel in its stockpiles. Europe has historically taken about 20% of its imports from Russia. But European oil companies are shunning petroleum supplies from the country as the fighting spills into a second month, and instead are seeking shipments from as far afield as the Middle East, Asia and the U.S. Shell, BP and TotalEnergies are already restricting deliveries of the fuel in Germany.
All of which has sent European diesel prices to extreme highs relative to Brent…
Europe’s self-interested (and why not) decision is not exactly the unity that Biden proclaimed… and besides, Biden already said that sanctions don’t deter but that the pain for the west will continue.
end
//AUSTRIA/
Austria is totally against a boycott of Russian oil/gas
(zerohedge)
“It Doesn’t Work” For Us – Austrian Chancellor Rejects Biden’s Pressure To Boycott Russia Energy
THURSDAY, MAR 24, 2022 – 05:20 PM
As President Biden struggles to convince America’s European allies to bite the bullet and agree to tougher sanctions on Russian energy during his trip to Brussels (where he is participating in meetings with NATO, the G-7 and the EU), Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer offered the latest example of why this this will likely be a futile effort on Biden’s part, as uniting Europe in opposition to Russia simply isn’t feasible given its dependence on Russian oil and gas.
Nehammer
Speaking Thursday, Nehammer denied reports in the Austrian press claiming his government was in talks to agree to an embargo on Russian energy. The reality couldn’t be further from the truth he said, adding that talk of a Russian energy boycott is “unrealistic and wrong”.
“It doesn’t work. Austria gets 80% of its gas from Russia.” What’s more, rumors of a boycott are harmful in and of themselves, because they serve to drive energy prices higher.
Austria depends on Russia for nearly 60% of its total energy consumption, and an even larger share of its natural gas imports, as Nehammer noted, which is why growing pressure from US President Joe Biden to restrict imports of Russian energy simply isn’t feasible.
Speaking later in the day ahead of a meeting of EU leaders, Nehammer reiterated that Austria was opposed to a boycott of Russian energy. And Austria isn’t alone, as Nehammer explained that many of his European neighbors, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria are equally dependent on Russian energy supplies, making a boycott “unrealistic.” Even as some of those same nations prepare to host larger numbers of NATO troops, Russia could unleash serious economic damage simply by restricting energy supplies.
Instead of imposing new sanctions, Nehammer said the EU should focus on closing “loopholes” in existing sanctions.
Nehammer isn’t the only senior Austrian official to repudiate the push to limit Russian energy exports. Back in February, Austria opposed adding sanctions on Nord Stream 2 to a package of EU sanctions, a battle that it eventually lost. He’s also not the only European leader to oppose Russian energy sanctions. Just yesterday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz again dismissed calls to boycott Russian energy.
Scholz added that other countries in the EU are even more dependent on Russian oil than Germany is, and that “nobody must be left standing out in the rain in this regard.”
Russian energy boycotts aren’t the only issue that Austria opposes. Nehammer said last week that a proposed “EU Army” – an idea that has been pushed by French President Emmanuel Macron and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel is “not going to happen”.
In other European energy news, Italian leader Mario Draghi said Thursday that the US and Canada should help Europe by providing more energy supplies, alluding to earlier reports that the US is working on a plan to boost shipments of LNG to Europe (a plan that would be similar to the ‘Marshall Plan for energy’ that JPM CEO Jamie Dimon suggested earlier this week).
A team of analysts from Bank of America noted that EU members remain “split” on a Russian energy boycott. Countries such as Sweden, Ireland, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia view an oil ban as an option, while Germany and Austria are opposed. According to the EIA, Germany imported 490 kbpd of crude oil and condensate, accounting for 21% of Russian imports into OECD Europe, and second only to the Netherlands at 640 kbpd.
end
GERMANY
More helicopter money for Germans as they receive a lump 300 euro payment amid exploding energy costs
(zerohedge)
German Taxpayers To Receive €300 Lump Sum Amid Exploding Energy Costs
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 03:30 AM
As California looks to ‘ease’ crippling gas prices by handing out $400 debit cards, Germany (and we suspect many other countries) will soon be offering workers a one-time €300 (US$329) payment to ‘offset’ the effects of inflation.
As for the economic effects of such ‘offsets,’ Rabobank notes:
The EU was already looking at spending lots on energy subsidies… unless the surge in energy prices is short-lived –which hinges on the war and the metacrisis suddenly resolving themselves(!)– then this is how you return to something like a 70’s-style wage-price spiral.
More on Germany via The Local,A woman adjusts the thermostat on her radiator. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Marcus Brandt
After a meeting late on Wednesday evening, the German government managed to agree on a package of relief measures for households struggling with energy costs, including cut-price transport tickets and a one-off energy allowance.
The new measures, which include a one-off €300 energy allowance for workers, should offer quick and unbureaucratic relief for low- and middle-income earners, the government said on Thursday.
When the allowance comes in, all employed persons liable to income tax will be paid a one-time flat-rate energy allowance of €300 as a supplement to their salary.
In their original proposals, the SPD had envisioned this money being paid out via the 2023 tax return, which would have the disadvantage of not reaching consumers’ pockets for another two years.
But the government may be working on a quicker way to release the money to struggling households.
This allowance is in addition to a €200 lump sum that’s set to be paid to people receiving social welfare payments such as housing benefit and Hartz IV.
Aside from the allowance, the traffic-light coalition is also planning a tax cut on fuel for drivers, improved energy efficiency measures and more relief measures for middle- and low-income families.
It will also introduce the SPD’s plans for a ‘child bonus’ on €100 per child, similar to the one introduced during the height of the Covid crisis.
Public transport ticket
There are also plans to slash prices on public transport with a 90-day ticket for just €9 in an attempt to encourage financially burdened car drivers to switch to greener transport options.
“Taking the bus and train will probably never have been cheaper in Germany,” said Green party co-leader Ricarda Lang.
The traffic-light coalition of the SPD, Greens and FDP had met at 9pm on Wednesday to thrash out a package of measures that each of the parties would be happy with.
Many of the measures were hotly debated within the cabinet.
One of the most controversial plans – a proposal for a petrol rebate put forward by Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FPD) – didn’t make it into the finalised package.
Announcing the measures on Thursday morning, the coalition promised that the “middle” of society would be relieved efficiently and in a socially just manner.
FDP leader Christian Lindner said the agreement of the coalition leaders was proof of the government’s ability to take decisive action.
“The coalition is convinced that we have to protect the people and the economy in the face of these enormous price increases in the short term and for a limited period of time,” he said.
The coalition had agreed on a first relief package in February before the outbreak of the Ukraine war.
Among other things, it provided for the abolition of the Renewable Energy Act (EEG) surcharge, worth billions, on electricity bills from July.
Previously, this was planned for the beginning of 2023. The package also included an increase in the commuter allowance for long-distance commuters.
end
5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
RUSSIA
This has been their plan all along. Russia is buying gold from its banks at 5,000 roubles/gram which works out to 1555.00
I am also pretty sure that Russia has been keeping their official reserves secret and stored their gold at the major banks
They are officially going to raise the level of their official reserves.
Now Russia will sell its oil/gas for gold to non friendly nations.
They also believe that the rouble will rise against the dollar and is worth probably around 60 roubles to the dollar.
Russian Central Bank Starts Buying Gold
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 11:50 AM
A day after Biden and his pals in Brussels discussed ways to stop Russia utilizing its gold reserves to maintain some stability in an increasingly chaotic economy, the Bank of Russia has just announced plans to begin buying gold from its banks at a fixed price.
This could serve two purposes: 1) provide a path to liquidity for SWIFT-constrained banks, and 2) centralize more of the nation’s gold as Putin accelerates his de-dollarization plans.
Full Bank of Russia statement:
In order to balance supply and demand in the domestic precious metals market, the Bank of Russia will buy gold from credit institutions at a fixed price from March 28, 2022.
The price from March 28 to June 30, 2022 inclusive will be 5,000 rubles per 1 gram.
The established price level makes it possible to ensure a stable supply of gold and the smooth functioning of the gold mining industry in the current year.
After the specified period, the purchase price of gold can be adjusted taking into account the emerging balance of supply and demand in the domestic market.
The buying price, as the chart below shows, is significantly below the current market price…
This implies Bank of Russia believes the Ruble should be higher relative to the dollar.
Remember, Russia has been de-dollarizing for years…
Remember ‘nothing lasts forever’… especially reserve currencies.
end
/RUSSIA//NATO/BULGARIA,ROMANIA/HUNGARY.SLOVAKIA
NATO continues to increase its battleground deployment into eastern flank states
(Dave DeCamp/Antiwar.com)
NATO Doubles Battlegroups In ‘Eastern Flank’ States: Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania & Slovakia
THURSDAY, MAR 24, 2022 – 08:00 PM
Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the military alliance will double the number of battlegroups it has deployed in Eastern Europe. Stoltenberg made the announcement just ahead of the major NATO summit attended by President Biden on Thursday.
“The first step is the deployment of four new NATO battlegroups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia, along with our existing forces in the Baltic countries and Poland,” Stoltenberg said. “This means that we will have eight multinational NATO battlegroups all along the eastern flank, from the Baltic to the Black Sea.”NATO file image
Stoltenberg didn’t initially detail how many troops would be in the new battlegroups. According to a NATO fact sheet from 2021, there are 4,615 NATO troops spread across the four battlegroups that are currently deployed across Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.
Stoltenberg also hinted that there will be other plans for NATO to bolster its forces in Eastern Europe announced at Thursday’s summit. “I expect leaders will agree to strengthen NATO’s posture in all domains, with major increases in the eastern part of the alliance on land, in the air and at sea,” he said.
Here’s what NATO put out in its statement after Thursday’s emergency summit, which Joe Biden and other world leaders attended:
In response to Russia’s actions, we have activated NATO’s defense plans, deployed elements of the NATO Response Force, and placed 40,000 troops on our eastern flank, along with significant air and naval assets, under direct NATO command supported by Allies’ national deployments. We are also establishing four additional multinational battlegroups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. We are taking all measures and decisions to ensure the security and defence of all Allies across all domains and with a 360-degree approach.
Over the past few months, the US has deployed tens of thousands of additional troops to Europe and is expected to send more, or at least make the deployments permanent. Sources told NBC News on Tuesday that Biden is expected to announce a plan to permanently maintain an increased number of troops in NATO countries near Ukraine.
The US and NATO military buildup in Eastern Europe is done in the name of deterring Russia. But some of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s primary motivations for the invasion were Ukraine’s alignment with NATO and the Western military alliance’s presence on Russia’s borders. In the lead-up to the attack, Putin sought security guarantees that NATO wouldn’t expand further eastward, but the US didn’t take his concerns seriously.
end
UKRAINE/RUSSIA
Here Are All The Latest News And Developments From The Ukraine War: March 25
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 09:10 AM
With newsflow out of Ukraine nothing less than a firehose (of often fake news), with market moving headlines firing every other minute on average, traders can be forgiven if they have just given up following the narrative. To help out, here is a snapshot of all the latest market-moving news out of Ukraine from the last few hours courtesy of Newsquawk:
Defense/Military
- “There is progress in ceasefire negotiations with Russia”, according to Ukrainian President Advisor cited by Sky News Arabia; expresses “cautious optimism” about talks with Russia; There is a possibility of a diplomatic breakthrough in talks with Russia
- Turkey President Erdogan says Russia and Ukraine can reach compromise on four of six issues discussed, but territorial disputes remain.
- Russian military will submit a proposal to Russian President Putin on how best to respond to NATO beefing up its Eastern flank, according to the Kremlin
- US Pentagon senior official said Russia is running out of precision-guided munitions for the war in Ukraine and that the Ukraine war makes Russia a strategic burden for China.
- US Pentagon’s new strategy will describe Russia as an acute threat but one that cannot pose a long-term systemic challenge, while Russia will emerge from the Ukrainian war weaker militarily and politically.
Energy/Economic Sanctions
- EU joint statement noted the EU demands that Russia stop committing war crimes in Ukraine and EU is prepared to close loopholes in Russian sanctions.
- US President Biden said US, EU coming together to reduce the bloc’s dependency on Russian energy; we should not subsidise Russia President Putin’s attack on Ukraine
- Australia announced new sanctions on Russia and Belarus including Belarusian President Lukashenko and members of his family.
- Russia is mulling selling its oil and gas for Bitcoin as sanctions intensify, according to CNBC.
- US DoJ charged four Russian government workers over hacking campaigns that targeted the global energy sector, according to FT.
Dedollarization
- Indian Government is expected to formally announce a INR-RUB payment arrangement next week which would allow the bypassing of US sanctions, according to Sputnik.
Other
- North Korea confirmed Thursday’s launch was a ‘new-type’ Hwasong-17 and that its leader Kim directly guided the ICBM test, while Kim sees the new ICBM as an important deterrent against nuclear war. Kim also stated the new weapon shows the might and modernity of North Korea’s strategic force and that they are preparing for a long confrontation with US imperialism. Furthermore, he said North Korea’s strategic force is ready to check and contain any military attempt by the US, while he warned whoever attempts to infringe on North Korea’s security will pay dearly.
- US imposed sanctions on five entities and individuals in Russia, North Korea and China for weapons proliferation, according to the State Department.
- Indian Foreign Minister said military talks with China have made progress, but issues are not sorted out, according to Reuters.
END
UKRAINE/RUSSIA//USA/EUROPE
special thanks to Milan S for providing this summary for us:
Chess moves this week
Inbox
| Milan Sabioncello | 8:05 AM (15 minutes ago) | | |
| to me |
This week so far…
Some absolute phenomenal chess moves being made by the Whitehats this week. You can see it so clearly that the Alliance are trolling the DS and rolling with the Bossman Trump. Putin is a genius with stacking of massive amounts of Gold over the years, he knew the end of the cabal Fiat currency was coming.
Ukraine is now telling EU countries NOT to pay Russia with Rubles. It’s ok though because Russia is saying even to unfriendly countries, you can pay for natural Gas with gold. BQQM!
You’ve got Trump now going in for the kill and suing a whole list of the swamp that tried to rig the 2016 election and then falsely accuse him of colluding with Russia.
Russia has announced an arrest warrant for George Soros, as Soros is the main promoter of the Ukraine war and also sponsor of the 2014 riot in Yanukovych. And CHINA has declared SOROS is a financial terrorist.
Russian Parliament Chair calls for Joe Biden’s impeachment over illegal funding of Azov Battalion
Russia accuses Hunter Biden for financing the Ukrainian Biolabs….
Hunter Biden Bio Firm Partnered With Ukrainian Researchers ‘Isolating Deadly Pathogens’ Using Funds From Obama’s Defense Department.
Former US Attorney General Bill Barr on Monday accused President Biden of having “lied to the American people” about his sons Laptop and emails
2 days ago Hillary Clinton, Jen Psaki, Klaus Schwab, King of Norway, German President all test positive for Convid in the same day. The Hunter Biden Laptop from Hell is coming in thick and fast.
Durham to produce ‘LARGE VOLUME’ of classified discovery in Steele dossier source case
China’s foreign ministry on US visa restrictions on Chinese officials. Says the US should immediately revoke sanctions, otherwise China will respond with reciprocal counter measures.
Kim Jong-un says North Korea will prepare for a long-term confrontation with the United States.
And India, has still refrained from vocally condemning Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
Hope your all Buckled up tight
@samanthaaldersonnews
end
RUSSIA/USA/UKRAINE//another update
Update as of the 24th
Inbox
| Robert Hryniak | 1:52 PM (2 hours ago) | | |
| to |
Speech of the Russian Defence Ministry Spokesman, Major General Igor Konashenkov
On February 24, 2022, the Russian Armed Forces launched a special military operation in Ukraine.
I want to emphasize that the special military operation is carried out strictly according to the approved plan.
The absolute priority of the actions of the Russian Armed Forces during the operation is the exclusion of unnecessary civilian casualties.
High-precision weapons selectively and accurately destroy Ukraine’s military infrastructure, equipment and weapons, ammunition stores and material assets of the troops.
From the first days of the operation, when planning any action, special attention has been given to saving civilian infrastructure and civilians in Ukraine.
Before we move on to the current results of the operation, I want to show you once again the originals of the secret cipher telegrams of the 4th brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine captured by Russian servicemen.
This is the original of the secret order of the commander of the National Guard of Ukraine, Colonel General Balan, dated January 22, 2022.
The document is addressed to the heads of the northern Kiev, southern Odessa and western territorial administrations of the National Guard of Ukraine.
The order details a plan for the preparation of one of the strike groups for offensive actions in the zone of the so-called “joint forces operation” in the Donbass.
I especially want to draw your attention. All measures of the nationalists’ combat coordination are ordered to be completed by February 28. In order to start performing combat missions as part of the Ukrainian “joint forces operation” in the Donbass in March 2022.
Since February 2022, Ukrainian troops have multiplied artillery attacks on Donbass with prohibited large-caliber artillery weapons.
Against the background of false statements about the desire for peace, Kiev has begun large-scale artillery preparations for the offensive of a shock group of troops drawn to the east of Ukraine with the support of aviation and missile systems.
The special military operation launched by the Russian Armed Forces on February 24 thwarted a large-scale offensive by shock groups of Ukrainian troops on the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republic, which are not controlled by Kiev. This made it possible to save tens, if not hundreds of thousands, of Donbass civilians, whom the Kiev regime has been methodically shooting with large-caliber and rocket artillery for the past 8 years, driving the elderly, women and children into basements.
I would like to emphasize that the Russian servicemen taking part in the operation are courageously and selflessly fulfilling their military duty.
By now, more than 3.5 thousand servicemen of the Armed Forces have been awarded high state awards for their heroism in performing combat tasks during a special military operation.
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will continue to carry out the special military operation until all the tasks are completed.
At the end of today’s briefing, I note that the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation will continue to regularly and through all available channels to bring truthful information to the public about the progress and results of the ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.
We can see that despite the lowered “iron curtain” of information boycott by Western countries towards the Russian Federation, the truth about what is happening in Ukraine successfully overcomes these artificial obstacles. Because truth is power.
(Documents can be downloaded at this link: https://t.me/mod_russia_en/403)
There were further statements that are not as yet available formally. IntelSlava reports:
️Russian Defense Ministry: at the suggestion of the Ukrainian leadership, the country has become a haven for 6,595 foreign mercenaries and terrorists from 62 states, they are not subject to the rules of war, they will be ruthlessly destroyed.
️Ukraine has no organized reserves left – Russian General Staff
️Ukrainian air force and air defense system have been almost completely destroyed, the country’s Navy has ceased to exist — Russian Defense Ministry
️The main tasks of the first stage of the Russian operation in Ukraine have been completed, the combat potential of the Ukrainian troopshas been significantly reduced – RF Ministry of Defense
️ LPR liberated 93% of the territory of the republic, DPR – 54%, battles in Mariupol continue – Russian Defense Ministry
The number of foreign mercenaries in Ukraine is declining, not a single one has arrived in a week – General Staff of the Russian Federation
️All captured weapons and military equipment are being transferred to the LPR and DPR, 113 tanks and 138 Javelin anti-tank systems have already been transferred, the Russian Defense Ministry reports
️As of March 25, 2022, 1,351 servicemen were killed, 3,825 were injured” – Ministry of Defense
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Speech of Head of the National Centre for Defence Control of the Russian Federation Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev
March 25, 2022
The special military operation in Ukraine with its corresponding objectives and tasks was preceded by an eight-year period of a highly grave humanitarian disaster in Donbass that made more than 6.5 million persons to be victims of violations of human rights and caused deaths of more than 14.5 thousand persons. The almost daily shelling carried out by the Armed Forces of Ukraine and nationalist battalions caused 4,115 infrastructure buildings destroyed and 55,310 damaged, including residential buildings, educational establishments, hospitals and many other social facilities.
Over these eight years, 19.5 per cent of the infrastructure of the Donetsk and Lugansk people’ s republics has been completely destroyed and up to 37 per cent damaged by the use of heavy weaponry from Ukraine.
From April 2014 to February 2022, 1,451,304 refugees had been displaced just to the Russian Federation.
Due to a rapid aggravation of the situation and increase of the shelling intensity on the territory of Donbass, only from 18 to 23 of February the number of refugees had rapidly increased; during these six days, the border of Russia has been crossed by 106,946 persons.
The rest of the population – 3,600,940 people, including civilians, mostly elderly, children, women and some vulnerable groups – continued to be shelled every day, in basements without any basic conditions for life – no water, heat, electricity, food or medicines.
This period comparable with two Great Patriotic Wars 1941-1945 in terms of timeline caused numerous victims every day.
Meanwhile, the countries of the so-called “civilised” West, led by the United States of America, have deliberately kept silent about all this, showing complete indifference to the fate of millions of residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk people’ republics.
The special military operation commenced in the conditions of this highly grave humanitarian crisis.
Since 4 March, the Russian Federation has been providing humanitarian corridors on a daily basis, exclusively for humanitarian purposes, in the directions of Kiev, Chernigov, Sumy, Kharkov and Mariupol, of which one humanitarian corridor to Russia and one more through Kiev-controlled territories towards Ukraine’s western borders.
The Ukrainian side has never confirmed a single humanitarian corridor towards the Russian Federation for the entire period.
At the same time, we coordinate all additional humanitarian corridors proposed by Kiev on a daily basis.
The Russian Armed Forces strictly observe ceasefire on all routes, despite the fact that this slows down the pace of conducting a special military operation. But this is done solely in the interests of saving civilians.
And on the Ukrainian side, systematic shelling of humanitarian convoys and attempts to shift responsibility for their own inhumane acts to units of Russian troops continue. So, this week alone, 17 attacks on civilians traveling along humanitarian corridors were recorded, including the cynical shelling of a convoy of refugees from Mariupol.
In the face of tough opposition from the official authorities of Ukraine, since the beginning of the special military operation, 419,736 people, including 88,373 children, have been evacuated to Russia from dangerous areas of Ukraine, Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics. 49,362 units of personal motor transport crossed the state border of the Russian Federation.
Without any participation of the Ukrainian side, nine thousand foreign citizens who applied for help were assisted in the evacuation.
Russia continues to work on the preparation, delivery and distribution of humanitarian aid to the civilian population of the liberated territories.
A total of 5,043 tons of basic necessities, food packages, including baby food, vital medicines and hygiene products were delivered. 617 humanitarian actions were carried out in Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics, Kiev, Chernigov, Sumy, Kharkov, Zaporozhye, Kherson and Nikolaev regions.
All Ukrainian prisoners in the Russian Federation are treated as required by the norms of international humanitarian law. They are kept in decent conditions, provided with three meals a day, timely and qualified medical care is provided to them. They are not subjected to violence or psychological pressure. Everyone is given the opportunity to contact relatives.
Interaction with the International Committee of the Red Cross on these issues is organized.
At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities, against the general background of the lawlessness that reigns everywhere in Ukraine, grossly violate elementary humane norms, not to mention the requirements of the Geneva conventions,
regarding the treatment of prisoners of war.
Despite this, or most likely contrary to what the Kiev authorities are doing, the Russian side will continue to treat Ukrainian prisoners of war humanely and respectfully.
Being aware of the nature of all the existing difficulties, as well as the essence, the origins and the character of the provocations carried out by the Kiev regime, considering the passiveness of the international organizations, the Russian Federation will continue opening and maintaining humanitarian corridors every day and informing the Ukrainian party and all the international community.
The Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation General of the Army Sergei Shoigu reports regularly to the leadership of the country as the implementation of the special military operation, as the efforts adopted by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation to provide humanitarian aid and security at the liberated territories.
END
6// GLOBAL COVID ISSUES/VACCINE MANDATE
end
ISSUES/GLOBAL ISSUES
COVID// VACCINE//GLOBAL//CANADA
GLOBAL ISSUES
end
VACCINE MANDATES/
VACCINE INJURIES
Pandemic of Vaccinated
Inbox
| Milan Sabioncello | 3:53 PM (13 minutes ago) | | |
| to me |
https://rumble.com/vygjlw-pandemic-of-the-vaccinated.htm
END
VACCINE IMPACT
Moderna Seeks Approval from FDA and European Medicines Agency (EMA) to Start Injecting Children Under 6 with mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines
March 24, 2022 4:59 pm
Fierce Pharma reported yesterday that Moderna is seeking approval for their COVID-19 mRNA vaccine to be injected into children under the age of 6, from both the U.S. FDA and the European EMA. They are also asking the FDA to approve their vaccine for children between the ages of 6 and 11. Using government official statistics, children in this age group have almost a zero percent chance of dying from COVID-19, as we have previously shown in numerous articles. And yet, the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) is reporting almost 45,000 injuries and deaths in this age group following COVID-19 vaccines, and we know that this is severely under-reported. This begs the question then as to why the FDA would even consider a COVID-19 shot for this age group (I think we all know the answer to that question), and why parents would take the risk of injuring or killing their child with one of these experimental shots? This is simply the same demonic spirit we have seen throughout history that moves people to sacrifice their children to “gods” like Molech and Baal in ancient times, and is now being manifest in “modern” culture through the vaccine cult. Here are a few tragic stories that have been posted to Telegram within the past few days of parents who sacrificed their children to the vaccine gods and now have either a dead child that they have to bury, or one disabled for the rest of their life.
Will Russia Backstop The Ruble With Gold?
March 24, 2022 6:37 pm
Now that Russia has come right out and said it will only transact in Rubles when selling oil to “unfriendly” nations, I’m expecting gold to be the next safe haven for the nation to fall back on, as it desperately tries to backstop both its currency and its economy. The backstopping of the Ruble with gold can come in many forms and doesn’t have to be a direct peg from the Ruble to gold – it can also include the far more likely scenario of accepting payment for oil, the country’s most ubiquitous and valuable resource, in gold. A new directive from President Vladimir Putin saw the Russian leader say in a televised government meeting yesterday: “I have decided to implement … a series of measures to switch payments — we’ll start with that — for our natural gas supplies to so-called unfriendly countries into Russian rubles.” I said last month that Putin would push back on economic sanctions by “allying himself further with China, and even discussing with China the prospects of a monetary system outside of the current global monetary system.” Tying the Ruble directly to oil makes it “sound money” of sorts, because it is tied to a commodity with demand which ostensibly will help buoy demand for the currency. Demand for gold in Russia could continue to be voracious, especially now that the West is considering sanctions on Russia’s gold, including preventing the country from selling gold on international markets. Hilariously, the New York Times reported that U.S. Senators consider Russia’s gold to be a “loophole” in sanctions against the country: “The senators suggested that Russia’s $130 billion worth of gold reserves were a loophole in the sanctions that were imposed on Russia’s central bank. They said that Russia was laundering money through gold by buying and selling it for high-value currency.” But it isn’t a loophole: this is the reason gold is a safe haven. There’s almost always going to be a bid for it somewhere – that’s part of what makes it sound money. And so preventing Russia from selling their gold actually does them a favor, of sorts, and encourages them to continue to build their stockpile. In fact, removing supply from the market may only serve to help gold’s price in dollars rise, potentially.
Michael Every
Michael Every on the day’s major topics
Rabo: This Is The Market’s Worst-Case Scenario
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 10:40 AM
By Michael Every of Rabobank
The Wisdom of Solomon
The mainstream financial industry is finally grasping that the comfy tectonic plates they sit on are not just shifting but smashing into each other. Yesterday saw a Bloomberg op-ed titled ‘Putin and Xi Exposed the Great Illusion of Capitalism’, It read like a greatest hits of this Daily, referring to Norman Angell, imperialism, WW1, The Treaty of Versailles, imbalances and fascism, WW2, Bretton Woods 1, and communism and the Cold War. The conclusion: “Unless the US and its allies mobilize to save it, the second great age of globalization is coming to a catastrophic close…. Unless something is done quickly and decisively, the world will divide into hostile camps, regardless of what happens in Ukraine. And this divided world will not suit the West.” Likewise, Larry Fink of BlackRock states: “The Russian invasion of Ukraine has put an end to the globalization we have experienced over the last three decades.”
The Financial Times headline is NATO warning Russia not to use chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons – and Western preparations in case they do. The Russian case for potentially doing so to change the war’s momentum is laid out as The Institute for War notes: “The Ukrainian government and military directly stated for the first time on March 24 that the Kremlin believes its invasion of Ukraine has entered a second, “protracted” phase”. The assessment is that Russia no longer threatens Kyiv, needs far more troops, and is digging in. As @b_judah reports, while things can still shift on several fronts, “…the base case is this settling into a war of attrition. One view is the battle lines will like a sort of gigantic version of the Donbas frontlines post-2014.”
Short of no-longer-unthinkable WMD usage, it’s the market’s worst-case scenario. No quick end to the war. No quick political settlement. No quick back to normal. And the Balkans are smouldering; North Korea just test-fired an ICBM and stated it will prepare for long-term confrontation with the US; Armenia and Azerbaijan are close to conflict again; and Iran is primed for action in the Middle East, with Houthi proxies having targeted Red Sea oil tankers recently. At least a cease-fire has been agreed between Ethiopia and Tigray.
The G-7 is hence split over the issue of energy boycotts. That, as the US promises to send LNG to the EU –totaling 4% of its consumption(!)– and Russia leaves Europe unclear over when/if it will shift to rouble payments for gas, and is saying gold can be used instead, or perhaps Bitcoin. In which case, the latter two are arguably about to run up against Western sanctions.
As I dot-joined yesterday, eyes are now being turned to China. Former Trump National Security Advisor McMaster told the US press: “Of course they’re going to give arms to the Russians” – a claim with huge implications. But before that, yesterday saw news that ‘US sets red lines for China helping Russia dodge sanctions’, noting the White House has warned Beijing not to take advantage of business opportunities created by sanctions, help Moscow evade export controls, or process its banned financial transactions. There is now also a US red line over “systematic efforts, industrial-scale efforts to try to reorient the settlement of financial payments.” So, China tries to avoid the US dollar with Russia, and it faces US secondary sanctions.
Today, Politico notes ‘China’s Russia embrace triggers Congress blowback’ and: “The Biden administration’s efforts to enlist Chinese government support to isolate and punish Russia for its Ukraine invasion have hit a brick wall. China is maintaining its diplomatic, economic and rhetorical alignment with Russia and is disavowing any meaningful role in leveraging its influence with Russian President Putin to end hostilities that both the EU and the US State Department say have included war crimes against Ukrainian civilians. That positioning has provoked public dismay that is boosting the rollout of congressional initiatives to deter China from economic or material support for Russia’s war machine and to impose stiff penalties if Beijing provides such assistance.” Indeed:
- Republican senators are proposing a Crippling Unhinged Russian Belligerence and Chinese Involvement in Putin’s Schemes (CURB CIPS) Act to block China from providing Russia financial system access to evade sanctions. This would target China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS), China’s version of SWIFT as well as Russia’s System for Transfer of Financial Messages (STFS). Specifically, the proposed legislation would freeze or terminate any US-based accounts connected to Chinese financial institutions, or block their US-based property, that engage in transactions with a Russian financial institution using either CIPS or SPFS.
- There is a renewed push for House Foreign Affairs Committee support for the Protecting Americans from Corporate Human Rights Abusers Act, which will curtail Chinese state firms’ access to US capital markets.
- A member of the House Committee on Financial Services is also pushing a Special Drawing Rights Oversight Act to prevent Russia from accessing CNY.
- House representatives have further introduced legislation to revoke China’s Permanent Normal Trade Relations status to punish it “for its heinous human rights atrocities — especially and including the regime’s ongoing genocide and forced labour of Uyghurs and other Central Asian minorities.”
And this is the current Congress: the incoming one is likely to be even more hostile. Let’s not forget even the White House wants to kick Russia out of the G-20, while China wants it to stay in: what happened to the G-8, one might ask? Even Stephen Orlins, president of the New York-based National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, as pro US-China relations as one can get, says: “We are at a potential inflection point. If China uses its unique relationship with Russia to mediate an end to this Russian invasion, sentiment on Capitol Hill toward China could improve. At the other extreme, if China should supply Russia with military equipment, U.S.-China relations will drop to levels not seen since the establishment of diplomatic relations.” Against that backdrop, what is the smartest Chinese geopolitical move?
Arguably not ‘China Confirms ‘Policing’ Deal with Solomons’. In short, the Solomon Islands may allow Chinese police, and military, to be stationed there, giving China its second foreign military base after Djibouti, and its first in the Pacific. Australia and New Zealand are shocked, as are the US and ASEAN. Indeed, it’s hard to see any wisdom of Solomon in that decision unless Beijing has already decided that the warnings of Bloomberg and Fink are coming to pass. Notably, China has seen large capital outflows since Russia invaded Ukraine, unlike other EM: it is being treated differently. The headline above, combined with the mood in the White House and Congress, suggests there could be a lot more ahead. China may or may not be trying to build something with Russia, and the Solomons, but its economy is still dollar-based at heart: it may have to find that out the *very* hard way.
Meanwhile, other big policy shifts loom. The West is trying to show it can fight Putin and emerging-market hunger, as ‘G-7 leaders pledge action to address food shortages caused by war’. They state: “We will make coherent use of all instruments and funding mechanisms to address food security and build resilience in the agriculture sector in line with climate and environment goals.” Yet there are enormous implications: let’s see the details of how one boosts agri planting within four weeks, as fertiliser costs soar, and deals with food-as-fuel biodiesel. Likewise, White House advisor, and environmentalist, Deese is now saying there should be greater oil production in the US – presumably as opposed to in Venezuela or Iran. But what policies will shift to see it happen, and when?
Against this, US durable goods orders dropped more than expected yesterday (-2.2%), suggesting that even though the Fed keeps talking about 50bp moves, and bond yields are surging (albeit US 2s and 10s slightly lower at 2.14% and 2.36%, respectively, at time of writing), the actual economy is already slowing. And that’s before we get $150 oil and food-flation.
The Fed may be about to make a terrible policy error, but if this current phase of globalization is ending, it won’t be the only one to have done so. So will everyone who didn’t see the ‘Great Illusion of Capitalism’ ending.
There will be real consequences for the way the Fed works –and the way we all do– if either of those come to pass, and far more so if they both do at once. Perhaps indicatively, over the border in Mexico, yesterday saw the President announce the central bank rate decision to hike 50bp well in advance of the actual news(!) Less central bank independence? Impossible!
Unless we are in a war economy in a collapsing global system in which supply chains are the front line, barter and counter-trade return, industrial policy is needed, so is MMT, where possible, and even rationing, price controls, and perhaps capital controls are required in places. So, yes, that means real consequences for all of us in business and markets. You can take traditional market rules of thumb and try to use them as fuel or food, and instead embrace older wisdom, such as that wars are highly inflationary before they are then deflationary.
None of this is new –or unexpected– if one wanted to look for it. I turn to the Wisdom of Solomon to make that key point:
“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. No one remembers the former generations, and even those yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow them.
Happy Friday.
7. OIL ISSUES
USA/EU
USA strikes a deal with the EU to boost LNG exports which will reduce the bloc’s dependence on Russian gas. However it will add dramatically to citizens cost of energy.
(zero hedge)
US Strikes Deal With EU To Boost LNG Exports, Reduce Bloc’s Dependence On Russian Gas
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 07:11 AM
After EU leaders regrouped on Friday for the second day of a Brussels summit organized to allow them to discuss strategies or ratcheting up the pain on the Russian economy (which is already facing the most stringent international economic sanctions ever applied to a major world power), President Biden has confirmed that the US and EU have agreed on a new scheme to increase exports of American LNG to the Continent.
In a plan that resembles Jamie Dimon’s call for a “Marshall Plan for Energy”, the US and the EU on Friday agreed to ship an additional 15 billion cubic meters of LNG to the 27-nation bloc this year. The shipments will consist of supplies from the US and “elsewhere” (i.e. Canada).
Of course, that sum still wouldn’t be enough to completely wean the bloc off its reliance on Russia imports. In fact, it only covers roughly two-thirds of the record 22 billion cubic meters of LNG the bloc imported last year.
As we noted earlier, Russia supplied 25% of all oil imported by the EU, which is three times more than the second-largest trade partner, and even larger quantities of natural gas, as data from Eurostat reflect.
Source: Visual Capitalist
For those who aren’t familiar with the mechanics of importing natural gas, the fuel can be tricky to export by ship. Unlike other fossil fuels like crude and coal, natural gas must be cooled into liquid form, packed onto a tanker, then carefully “re-gasified” at special facilities. On the other hand, the natural gas that flows through pipelines like Nord Stream 2 avoids this cumbersome process entirely.
Unfortunately for the Europeans, the new plan could take years to implement, raising the possibility of further increases in European natural gas prices.
But while the Biden Administration has generally been hostile to the American energy industry, the deal virtually guarantees new markets for American LNG, incentivizing domestic producers to expand capacity – and quickly.
At present, the US is the world’s largest natural gas producer, and in January and December, it was the largest exporter of LNG (that is, natty gas that doesn’t travel through pipelines). Already, nearly 70% of those LNG shipments went to the 27 nations of the EU, the UK and Turkey.
Just yesterday, some European leaders were dismissing reports of a potential Russian energy import boycott as “wrong” and even “harmful” (since they could induce more panic-buying of energy, which in turn would send prices higher). But today, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that Germany’s Economy Ministry wants to halve the country’s dependence on Russian energy by mid-year, while becoming independent of Russian coal by the fall. By 2024, Europe’s largest economy hopes to be fully independent of Russian gas.
“By the middle of the year, Russian oil imports to Germany are expected to be halved,” Spiegel quoted the memo as reading. “By the end of the year, we aim to be almost independent.”
“By autumn, Germany can be independent of Russian coal.”
Ministry officials have already “optioned” three floating LNG terminals.
It’s an ambitious plan, but it still wouldn’t be enough to justify a complete boycott.
While oil and gas are critical for humanity’s survival, Europe also depends on Ukraine and Russia for imports of wheat, fertilizer and other soft commodities that are vital to guaranteeing sufficient food supplies. While Jamie Dimon’s “Marshall Plan for Energy” appears to have come together relatively quickly, how much longer will it be before the US is also forced to share some of America’s (increasingly precious) food supplies with the Europeans as well? Because even President Joe Biden acknowledged yesterday that Continental food shortages would likely materialize as a “necessary price” of the EU’s sanctions
end
Saudi Arabia hit with a massive strike on its oil refiners as the Iranian Houthis attempt to disrupt global oil to which Biden is very happy.
(zerohedge)
Saudi Arabia Says It Will “Not Be Held Responsible” As Houthis Attempt To Disrupt Global Oil
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 02:30 PM
(Update 14:30ET): Saudi state media is citing the kingdom’s energy ministry to confirm that petroleum products distribution facilities in the cities of Jazan and Jeddah were hit in Friday’s Yemeni Houthi missile and drone attack, which included at least 16 projectiles targeting Saudi infrastructure, including reportedly a water plant.
The energy ministry said the kingdom will “not be held responsible” for any shortage of oil supplies to global markets caused by the attacks, which in the past weeks have ramped up. Given the quickness with which the Houthi military via its spokesman proudly owned up to the attack, it’s expected more will come.
Further the Saudis said the Yemen Houthis were bent on disrupting the world’s energy supply and security…
This also obviously comes as the White House has already long been scrambling to shore up alternate and additional supplies of oil in the face of the Russia-Ukraine invasion crisis.
* * *
(Update 12:16ET): A confirmed Houthi attack, with full Houthi military statement expected to be issued soon.
It appears there have been other inbound attacks, some of which the Saudis say they’ve intercepted:
- HOUTHI STATEMENT ON SAUDI OPERATION COMING `SHORTLY’: SPOKESMAN
- SAUDI ARABIA DESTROYS 2 DRONES LAUNCHED TOWARDS NAJRAN: ARABIYA
- YEMEN’S HOUTHIS LAUNCHED MISSILES AND DRONES ON ARAMCO FACILITIES IN JEDDAH – MILITARY SPOKESMAN
- YEMEN’S HOUTHIS MILITARY SPOKESMAN SAYS TARGETED VITAL FACILITIES IN SAUDI ARABIA’S CAPITAL
- ARAB COALITION SAYS HOUTHI LAUNCHED 16 HOSTILE ATTACKS ON FRIDAY
* * *
(Update 11:30am): as Energy Intel’s Amena Bakr notes, it appears that Houthi rebels will – as widely expected – take the claim for the attack on the Aramco facility in Jeddah:
* * *
Oil has spiked to session highs, slamming the Nasdaq down to session lows)…
… after breaking reports of a major fire burning uncontrollably at a Saudi Aramco facility in the port city of Jeddah. According to unconfirmed reports, a Houthi missile or possible drone strike hit the facility from Yemen. The Saudi Press Agency tweeted that a projectile fell on a power distribution station in Samtah, causing a fire; No casulties have been reported. Meanwhile, Al-Arabiya reported that a strike hit the tanks of the National Water Company in Dhahran Al-Janoub, adding that civilian vehicles and residential houses were also hit.
Today’s alleged attack follows a series of recent attacks from Yemen on various Saudi sites, including a last Sunday drone and missile attack also on Jeddah.
While social media videos appear to confirm the inferno, there has not yet been an official confirmation of the reported missile strike.
Another video shows huge plumes of smoke above Jeddah:
And more from the scene…
The blaze appears to be the result of possibly the biggest Houthi attack in months that the kingdom has witnessed, also at a moment the US has said it is transferring more Patriot missile systems to defend against the attacks out of Yemen.
8 EMERGING MARKET& AUSTRALIA ISSUES
Australia//// NEW ZEALAND/ SOUTH AFRICA/BRAZIL/ARGENTINA/COVID/VACCINES/LOCKDOWNS
AUSTRALIA/
Your early currency/gold and silver pricing/Asian and European bourse movements/ and interest rate settings FRIDAY morning 7:30 AM
Euro/USA 1.1013 UP .0004 /EUROPE BOURSES //ALL GREEN
USA/ YEN 121.65 DOWN 0.704 /NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT .11% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…
GBP/USA 1.3193 DOWN 0.0002
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED DOWN 38.02 PTS OR 1.12%
Hang Sang CLOSED DOWN 541.07PTS OR 2.47%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP 0.27% // EUROPEAN BOURSES OPENED ALL GREEN
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES ALL GREEN
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SANG CLOSED DOWN 541.07 PTS OR 2.47%
/SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 38.02 PTS OR 1.12%
Australia BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.27%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 39.45 PTS OR 0.14%
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE RED
Gold very early morning trading: 1953.50
silver:$25.61-
USA dollar index early FRIDAY morning: 98.58 DOWN 21 CENT(S) from THURSDAY’s close.
THIS ENDS FRIDAY MORNING NUMBERS
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And now your closing FRIDAY NUMBERS 1: 00 PM
Portuguese 10 year bond yield: 1.33% UP 4 in basis point(s) yield from YESTERDAY/
JAPANESE BOND YIELD: +0.24% UP 0 AND 0/10 BASIS POINTS from YESTERDAY/JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/
SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 1.44%// UP 3 in basis points yield from yesterday.
ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD 2.08 UP 3 points in basis points yield from yesterday./
the Italian 10 yr bond yield is trading 64 points higher than Spain.
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: RISES TO +0.589% IN BASIS POINTS ON THE DAY//
THE IMPORTANT SPREAD BETWEEN ITALIAN 10 YR BOND AND GERMAN 10 YEAR BOND IS 1.49% AND NOW ABOVE THE 3.00% LEVEL WHICH WILL IMPLODE THE ENTIRE ITALIAN BANKING SYSTEM. AT 4% SPREAD THERE WILL BE A HUGE BANK RUN…
END
IMPORTANT CURRENCY CLOSES FOR FRIDAY
Closing currency crosses for FRIDAY /USA DOLLAR INDEX/USA 10 YR BOND YIELD/1:00 PM
Euro/USA 1.0989 DOWN .0019 or 19 basis points
USA/Japan: 122.09 down 0.256 OR YEN UP 26 basis points/
Great Britain/USA 1.3188 DOWN 6 BASIS POINTS
Canadian dollar UP 45 BASIS pts to 1.2476
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The USA/Yuan, CNY: closed ON SHORE (CLOSED ..UP 6.3663
THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)..6.3839
TURKISH LIRA: 14.83 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WISH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.
the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.24
Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 10 IN basis points from THURSDAY at 2.475% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic
USA 30 yr bond yield: 2.539 UP 5 in basis points
Your closing USA dollar index, 98.77 DOWN 2 CENT(S) ON THE DAY/1.00 PM/
Your closing bourses for Europe and the Dow along with the USA dollar index closing and interest rates for FRIDAY: 12:00 PM
London: CLOSED UP 15.97PTS OR 0.21%
German Dax : CLOSED UP 31.97 POINTS OR 0.22%
Paris CAC CLOSED DOWN 2.09PTS OR 0.03%
Spain IBEX CLOSED UP 25.50PTS OR 0.31%
Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 157.20 PTS OR 0.64%
WTI Oil price 113.22 12: EST
Brent Oil: 119.66 12:00 EST
USA /RUSSIAN /// RUBLE FALLS TO: 101.50 DOWN 3/4 RUBLES/DOLLAR
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +.589
CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM
Euro vs USA: 1.0989 DOWN .0019 OR down 19 BASIS POINTS
British Pound: 1.3188 DOWN .0006 or DOWN 6 basis pts
USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 124.76 DOWN 0.0045
USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.2476 DOWN .0045 (CDN dollar UP 45 basis pts)
West Texas intermediate oil: 113.22
Brent OIL: 119.66
USA 10 yr bond yield: 2.475 UP 10 points
USA 30 yr bond yield: 2.589 UP 5 pts
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 14.83
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA///USA/ ROUBLE: 101.50 UP 3/4ROUBLES (ROUBLE DOWN 3/4 ROUBLES/USA )//
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 153.30 PTS OR 0.44%
NASDAQ 100 DOWN 11.38 PTS OR 0.07%
VOLATILITY INDEX: 20.97 DOWN 0.70PTS OR 3.23%
GLD: 182.43 DOWN 0.70 PTS OR 0.38%
SLV/ 23.47 DOWN .14 PTS OR 0.59%
end)
USA trading day in Graph Form
Stocks, Gold, & Oil Surge On Week As Yield Curve Carnage Screams ‘Recession’
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 04:01 PM
The ongoing hawkish push higher in market expectations for 2022’s rate-hike trajectory with 9 more rate-hikes now expected by the end of December. But as the chart below shows, as the hawkishness rises, so does the chance of a recession, and the market is expecting more than 2 rate-cuts starting next year…
Source: Bloomberg
Bonds were the story of the week as the bloodbath did not stop, especially at the short-end, with 5Y yields up a stunning 44bps (while 30Y was up ‘only’ 17bps)…
Source: Bloomberg
The bloodbath in bonds has sent the short-end and belly soaring in yields to the point that 5s30s got very close to inverting (for the first time since May 2006). The flattest 5s30s print today was just 1.3bps…
Source: Bloomberg
This long-spread joins 20s30s, 3s10s, 5s10s, and 7s10s in recession-screaming inversions…
Source: Bloomberg
It’s a recession! How do we know? “Because I was inverted…”
And so, amid all the surging rates and hawkish expectations, stocks managed gains on the week with Nasdaq and S&P outperforming while The Dow could not get much done and Small Caps closed lower. A late-daye panic-bid lifted Small Caps almost back to green on the week…
Wondering why the market went vertical into the close? Some algo wanted to hunt down the stops at the 100DMA…
VIX appears to be pricing in ‘peace’ this weekend as it closes at a 20 handle…
The early week short-squeeze faded on Thursday and Friday as ammo ran out…
Source: Bloomberg
Energy stocks strongly outperformed on the week with Healthcare the laggard. Financials managed modest gains…
Source: Bloomberg
On the week the very recent trend of growth outperforming value stalled – after erasing value’s relative outperformance from the start of the month…
Source: Bloomberg
Oil prices ended higher on the week amid an avalanche of Russia/Rubles, Iran nuke deal, pipeline closures, and storage facility attacks. PMs were also up on the week but copper ended lower…
Source: Bloomberg
The dollar ended the week modestly higher, bouncing off unch twice during the week..
Source: Bloomberg
Cryptos rallied on the week with ETH and BTC up around 6%…
Source: Bloomberg
Interestingly, financial conditions in US, Japan, China, and Europe all stopped ‘tightening’ this week…
Source: Bloomberg
Finally, we note that as mortgage rates have exploded higher – at their fastest pace in decades – they have also decoupled dramatically from 10Y Treasury yields – now over 200bps above 10Y.
Source: Bloomberg
As Mike Shedlock notes, six of the last seven recessions began shortly after the spread exceeded 200bps, warning that “We are now in the danger zone.”
And the forward Treasury curve is inverted in 2s10s, another high conviction recession signal…
Source: Bloomberg
Given that we are suffering the worst drawdown in global bond prices on record…
Source: Bloomberg
We could perhaps expect some rebalancing/rotation (buy bonds, sell stocks) early next week.
END
I) /MORNING TRADING
END
AFTERNOON
END
II)USA data
This is a crisis: house affordability with mortgage rates hitting a 3 yr high
(zerohedge)
Housing Affordability Crisis Imminent As Mortgage Rates Hit 3 Year High
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 08:06 AM
US mortgage rates continued their near-vertical ascent, soaring to levels not seen since Jan 2019 at an almost unprecedented speed…
The average for a 30-year loan was 4.42%, up from 4.16% last week, sending ‘affordability’ spiraling lower:
“Rising inflation, escalating geopolitical uncertainty and the Federal Reserve’s actions are driving rates higher and weakening consumers’ purchasing power. In short, the rise in mortgage rates, combined with continued house price appreciation, is increasing monthly mortgage payments and quickly affecting homebuyers’ ability to keep up with the market.” Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, said in the statement.
For some context, this is the fastest three-month rise in 30Y mortgage rates since 1994…
Which implies the plunge in mortgage applications has further room to fall…
And existing home sales could be set for a freefall…
Housing affordability tends to lead the trajectory for existing home sales, by roughly half a year. According to BofA, the rates shock suggests affordability will be down more than 25% YoY by March – a record decline – with additional downside from higher home prices! If demand follows a similar trajectory, existing home sales could fall below 5mn saar by 2H 2022.
And this further massive rates move suggests that the affordability index will see another significant move lower.
This all reinforces warnings from the latest existing home sales report, with NAR chief economist Larry Yun cautioning that “housing affordability continues to be a major challenge, as buyers are getting a double whammy: rising mortgage rates and sustained price increases.”
Interestingly, given the extraordinary supply challenges, BofA expects home prices to stay hot at a 10% Y/Yclip in 2022 despite the record plunge in housing affordability and despite existing home sales pulling back. In other words, 2022 will likely be the last hurrah of the US housing market.
Will the Biden admin blame Putin for US housing un-affordability too?
end
Fourth straight month for USA pending home sales to plunge. The reason unaffordability of homes
(zerohedge)
US Pending Home Sales Plunge For 4th Straight Month
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 10:05 AM
After unexpectedly plunging in January, pending home sales were expected rebound very modestly in February (despite both new- and existing-home-sales tumbling as mortgage rates soar). The analysts were very wrong as pending home sales puked 4.1% MoM (after a downwardly revised drop of 5.8% MoM in January). That is the fourth straight monthly drop…
Source: Bloomberg
Pending home sales are down 5.45% YoY and the pending home sales index is at its lowest since May 2020…
Source: Bloomberg
A recent report showed a measure of homebuilders’ sales expectations for the next six months slumped in March to the lowest since June 2020 amid growing concerns over the combination of rising construction costs and higher interest rates.
“Pending transactions diminished in February mainly due to the low number of homes for sale,” Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said in a statement.
“It is still an extremely competitive market, but fast-changing conditions regarding affordability are ahead.”
And we suspect this is far from over as mortgage applications in the last week tumbled once again, now at its lowest since pre-COVID seasonal lows…
Source: Bloomberg
All of which has occurred before The Fed actually hiked rates even once and as housing affordability is about to crash by the most on record…
The costs and financial hurdles to buying a home are not the only thing that have been on a tear recently. Rents have been on fire over the past year, with the Zillow Observed Rent index soaring 14.9% yoy to $1,904 in January.
“The surge in home prices combined with rising mortgage rates can easily translate to another $200 to $300 in mortgage payments per month, which is a major strain for many families already on tight budgets,” Yun said.
Will the Biden admin blame Putin for US housing un-affordability too?
end
UMich Sentiment Slumps Further In March, Inflation Expectations At 41-Year High
FRIDAY, MAR 25, 2022 – 10:14 AM
The final data for March’s University of Michigan sentiment survey was expected to confirm the preliminary data’s collapse to 11-year lows, but in fact it worsened intra-month from 59.7 to 59.4 for the headline index. Both current conditions and expectations also fell modestly intramonth to multi-year lows…
Source: Bloomberg
Politically, sentiment is down across the board, but Democrats and Independents are suffering the most…
Source: Bloomberg
From a political perspective, Republicans report a much higher awareness of inflation. When asked how their finances have recently changed, half of Republicans mention inflation compared to 19% of Democrats.
And perhaps most importantly for now, inflation expectations remain at 41 year highs
Source: Bloomberg
It seems all that Fed jawboning about how they will control inflation is not working.
About a third of consumers expect their overall financial position to worsen in the year ahead, the highest recorded level since the survey began in the mid 1940s, the report said. Furthermore, more consumers mentioned reduced living standards due to rising inflation than any other time except during the recessions seen in the late 1970s and 2008.
IIB) USA COVID/VACCINE MANDATES
iiia) USA inflation//SHIPPING commentaries//LOG JAMS//
end
iiib) USA economic stories
end
iv)swamp stories
END
The King Report //major stories of the day/plus Swamp stories
AP: G-7 nations restrict Russian Central Bank’s use of gold in transactions; US announces new sanctions against elites.
Russia holds roughly $130 billion in gold reserves, and the Bank of Russia announced Feb. 28 that it would resume the purchase of gold on the domestic precious metals market…
The Biden administration announced more sanctions targeting 48 state-owned defense companies, 328 members of the Duma, Russia’s lower parliament, and dozens of Russian elites…
https://fortune.com/2022/03/24/us-new-russia-sanctions-elites-g7-central-bank-gold-transactions/
US Treasury: RUSSIAN HARMFUL FOREIGN ACTIVITIES SANCTIONS
https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financial-sanctions/faqs/1029?s=02
Press conference by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg following the extraordinary Summit of NATO Heads of State and Government
Allies are also equipping Ukraine with significant military supplies. Including anti-tank and air defence systems, and drones. Which are proving highly effective. As well as substantial financial and humanitarian aid…Today, Allied leaders called on China to refrain from supporting Russia’s war effort. China must not provide economic or military support for the Russian invasion. Instead, Beijing should use its significant influence on Russia. And promote an immediate, peaceful resolution…
https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/opinions_193613.htm
Sky News’ @haynesdeborah: The 30 member states also confirmed the establishment of 4 new battlegroups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania. This is on top of enlarged battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland in response to Russia threat
Fox’s @JacquiHeinrich: Pooled press attempts to ask President Biden a question as he walks to G7 leaders photo op with Japanese PM. White House official swats press away, saying “no no no no no”
@nytimes: Ukraine destroyed a Russian ship at a port under Russian occupation, the country’s military said. The port of Berdyansk, which Russia captured in late February, offered Moscow a way to reinforce and resupply its forces.
US, allies working to provide anti-ship missiles to Ukraine
https://thehill.com/policy/international/599548-us-allies-working-to-provide-anti-ship-missiles-to-ukraine
Japan, Russia Trade Barbs in Wake of Ukraine War
The Russian statement also indicated that Moscow will withdraw from the framework of joint economic activities on the Northern Territories, known in Russia as the Southern Kurils. Moscow also announced it will halt the visa-free exchange program for former islanders, which began in 1992.
The Soviet Union occupied the disputed islands, located north of Hokkaido and south of the Kamchatka Peninsula, at the end of World War II. To date, the islands are under Russian administration…
https://www.caixinglobal.com/2022-03-24/japan-russia-trade-barbs-in-wake-of-ukraine-war-101860768.html
The Red Hot Housing Market: the Role of Policy and Implications for Housing Affordability
Governor Christopher J. Waller
As a member of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), I watch real estate trends pretty closely because they have a bearing on our pursuit of maximum employment and price stability…Both house prices and rents are up significantly across the nation, while vacancy rates for rented and owner-occupied homes are down…
Rents have risen 6.5 percent since January 2020, according to the prices tracked under the Consumer Price Index (CPI)… Meanwhile, measures of market rent have increased a lot more than 6.5 percent over the last two years. For example, CoreLogic’s single family rent index rose 12 percent over the 12 months through December, and RealPage’s measure of asking rent for units in multifamily buildings rose 15 percent over the 12 months through February. Based on various measures of asking rents, some recent research suggests that the rate of rent inflation in the CPI will double in 2022. If so, rent as a component of inflation will accelerate, which has implications for monetary policy…
As housing costs continue to increase, housing will likely become an ever-larger share of household budgets. This is not a recent development. In 1972-1973, the average household spent 24 percent of expenditures on rent or imputed rent. This share rose to 27 percent in the late 1980s, and in 2019 that was up to 35 percent. No doubt the share in 2022 will be larger still. With housing costs gaining an ever-larger weight in the inflation Americans experience, I will be looking even more closely at real estate to judge the appropriate stance of monetary policy.
https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/waller20220324a.htm?s=02
@inflation_guy: 10y breakevens above 3% for the first time ever. Congratulations Fed…you got the fire lit. Probably time to stop squirting lighter fluid. https://t.co/0aTBhJY0mB
US Durable Goods Orders for February unexpectedly declined 2.2%; -0.3% was consensus. Ex-Transport Orders fell 0.6%; +0.6% was expected. Nondefense, ex-Air (Core) Orders declined 0.3%; +0.5% was consensus. Core Orders are used to tabulate GDP. So, economists will reduce their Q1 GDP estimates.
Shipments grew 0.5%; +1.0% was expected. The Durable Goods Orders decline was the largest drop since the Covid Panic of March 2020.
U.S. weekly jobless claims lowest since 1969; continuing claims shrink https://t.co/XZcEOlmAHw
The buy stocks/sell bonds asset allocation appeared again on Thursday. Bonds traded higher when Asia opened but progressively declined until hitting a bottom when the US repo market opened at 7:00 ET. USMs (June 30-year futures contract) hit a low of -1 10/32, a decline of 1 26/32 from their high.
The Big Guy’s staged press conference from NATO did not go well. Because it’s his nature, lies flowed.
@Breaking911: Pres. Biden says he’s ‘been given a list’ of reporters to call on at NATO Summit
https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1507049990455234561
Biden presser highlights
“NATO has never, never been more united than it is today.”
“The most important thing is for us to stay unified, and focus on what a brute this guy [Putin] is.”
“I’ve been to many, many war zones.”
“I’ve been dealing with foreign policy longer than anybody that’s involved with this process right now.”
If Russia uses chemical weapons: “The nature of the response would depend on the nature of the use.”
“I made no threats, but I made it clear to him (Xi) to make sure he understood the consequences of him helping Russia… I made no threats. But I pointed out the number of American and foreign corporations who left Russia as a consequence of their barbaric behavior.”
“I believe China understands its economic future is more tied to the west than Russia.”
“Yes, we did talk about food shortages, and it’s gonna be real…”
Joe said Russia should be removed from G20, and Ukraine should be added.
@RichardGrenell: Yikes. Joe Biden messages that Ukraine could give up territory to make peace with Russia. This tacit approval is a green light.
@KLF Oct 19, 2020: The @debates commission changed topics last minute and took out Foreign Policy out of this week’s presidential debate. Why? Fmr Defense Sec Gates: Biden “has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and nat security issue over the past 4 decades.”
Biden snaps at CBS reporter over sanctions, Russian deterrence: ‘You’re playing a game with me’
Biden has a history of losing his temper or mocking reporters at press conferences
“Sir, deterrence didn’t work. What makes you think Vladimir Putin will alter course based on the action you’ve taken today?” Ruffini asked. “Let’s get something straight. You remember if you covered me from the very beginning, I did not say that, in fact, the sanctions would deter him. Sanctions never deter. You keep talking about that. Sanctions never deter,” Biden answered…
Vice President Kamala Harris stated on Feb. 20 that the purpose of sanctions has “always been and continues to be deterrence.” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki also stated one day later that “deterrence is part of our objective.”… https://www.foxnews.com/media/biden-snaps-cbs-reporter-playing-game
@CurtisHouck: @MajorCBS Garrett with an immediate fact-check of Biden claiming no one ever said sanctions were a deterrent: “History will record…several administration officials representing the President of the United States, Joseph Biden, said, in fact, sanctions might deter…invasion.” https://t.co/FDx1VNx6Qe
@RNCResearch: Today Biden again said that sanctions would not “deter” Putin from invading Ukraine. His administration said the EXACT OPPOSITE for weeks. ROLL THE TAPE!
https://twitter.com/RNCResearch/status/1507060079882870797
@ArthurSchwartz: Biden says that he expected China to provide assistance to Russia in their invasion of Ukraine. If true, why did he share intelligence about Russian military movements with the Chinese?
@townhallcom: While in Brussels, Joe Biden attacks Donald Trump by repeating the “very fine people” lie, saying that was the moment he decided to run for president. https://t.co/MjmYuqisUs
Biden says he’d be ‘very fortunate’ to face Trump in 2024 and Euro allies think he’s ‘up to the job’ https://trib.al/DuC78Wa
Russia warns it will ‘SMASH’ Poland if it tries to intervene in Ukraine war https://t.co/d9GsBtyMTS
Positive aspects of previous session
Stocks rebounded from Wednesday’s decline; someone wants to drive ESMs and US stocks higher
| Most Americans (56% to 36%; 6% too tough) think Biden hasn’t been ‘tough enough’ on Russia: poll Twenty-six percent of all Americans believe that he can effectively handle a crisis. Only 2% of Republicans and 13% of independents have confidence in Biden’s ability to deal with a critical situation, compared to 49% of Democrats in the AP-NORC poll… https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/polling/most-americans-think-biden-hasnt-been-tough-enough-russia-poll ‘Collapse of support’: AOC says Biden is in real danger among Dem voters https://trib.al/UyXujWU Hunter Biden Bio Firm Partnered with Ukrainian Researchers ‘Isolating Deadly Pathogens’ Using Funds from Obama’s Defense Department. The U.S. President’s son was instrumental in funding a firm conducting pathogen and anthrax research in Ukrainian biolabs. https://thenationalpulse.com/2022/03/24/biden-linked-company-partnered-with-ukraine-biolabs/ Russia accuses Hunter Biden of financing biolabs in Ukraine https://insiderpaper.com/russia-accuses-hunter-biden-of-financing-biolabs-in-ukraine/ @vtchakarova: China urges the US to give a convincing account of its biological military activities in Ukraine and around the world as soon as possible, Xinhua reports Putin sends in ‘execution squads’ to kill own troops if they try to flee Ukraine war The shocking claims come after a string of reports of incredibly low morale amongst Russian troops… https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/putin-sends-execution-squads-kill-26534705 WaPo: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark A. Milley have been unable to reach their Russian counterparts for the last month. The calls have been rejected & U.S. officials don’t know why the Russians are refusing to speak with their U.S. counterparts. @anders_aslund: That the Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the Russian chief of general staff General Valeriy Gerasimov have not been seen since March 11… @terischultz: NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander has activated the alliance’s chemical, biological and radiological “defense elements” out of concern that a possible chemical attack by Russia may spill over Ukraine’s border. This is the 1st time NATO has activated its “chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense elements,” as announced today, signaling heightened concern of a chemical attack. This is both to “support Ukraine and to defend ourselves,” says NATO chief Stoltenberg. Obama Administration’s Botched ‘Russia Reset’ Enriched Political Class and Set the Stage for Chaos in Ukraine – The catastrophe in Ukraine can be laid partly at the feet of Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama, whose Russia policy in the last decade appeased a dangerous American adversary while enriching Obama, Biden, Clinton and their cronies… https://thedrilldown.com/newsroom/botched-reset-enriched-political-class-set-stage-for-ukraine-chaos European MP Calls Justin Trudeau a Dictator During Public Speech in Front of the Canadian Prime Minister – “…. Canada, once a symbol of the modern world, has become a symbol of civil rights violations under your quasi-liberal boot in recent months. We watched how you trample women with horses, how you block the bank accounts of single parents so that they can’t even pay their children’s education and medicine, that they can’t pay utilities, mortgages for their homes…” https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2022/03/23/european-mp-calls-justin-trudeau-a-dictator-during-public-speech-in-front-of-the-canadian-prime-minister/#more-230533 While most of the world is transfixed on the Ukraine-Russia War, North Korea, which has been shooting rockets off regularly over the past few weeks, launched an ICBM that hit an altitude of 6k kilometers. Biden faces worsening North Korea threat with fewer options https://t.co/Jn4PtjBr3J Kim Jong-un says North Korea will prepare for a long-term confrontation with the U.S. (Yonhap) (With the Ukraine-Russia War flaring and a mushrooming No. Korea crisis, will Joe head to Delaware?) White House Adviser Deese: Should See More U.S. Oil Production – BBG (You can’t make this up!) The Fed Balance Sheet: +$8.168B to a new all-time high of $8.962474 TRILLION. Today – Someone is determined to push stocks higher. We don’t know who is doing the deed or why. But in an economic war, one’s financial system is a matter of national security. If the recent determined buying is related to Q1 rebalancing and/or Q1 performance gaming, look for a peak on April 1. ESMs are -4.75 at 20:05 ET. Bonds are -17/32; WTI Oil is -.53. Expected economic data: Feb Pending Home Sales 1.0% m/m; March UM Sentiment 59.7, Current Conditions 67.6, Expectations 54.4, 1-year Inflation 5.4%; Fed Gov. Waller 9:10 ET, NY Fed Pres Williams on Monetary Policy 0:00 ET, Richmond Fed Pres Barkin on Containing Inflation 11:30 ET S&P 500 Index 50-day MA: 4420; 100-day MA: 4547; 150-day MA: 4518; 200-day MA: 4476 DJIA 50-day MA: 34,410; 100-day MA: 35,120; 150-day MA: 35,062; 200-day MA: 34,975 S&P 500 Index – Trender trading model and MACD for key time frames Monthly: Trender is positive; MACD is negative – a close below 4153.02 triggers a sell signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4547.45 triggers a buy signal Daily: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 4332.45 triggers a sell signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 4470.66 triggers a sell signal Trump suing Hillary Clinton, Democrats over Russia collusion narrative https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/all-things-trump/trump-sued-hillary-clinton-democrats-over-russia-collusion There is a long list of defendants in Trump’s lawsuit filing. https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flsd.610157/gov.uscourts.flsd.610157.1.0.pdf Kamala Harris’ staffers can’t quit their jobs fast enough 10 key officials in the veep’s office have quit in just 14 months https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/mar/23/kamala-harris-staffers-cant-quit-their-jobs-fast-e/ The vice president’s new spokeswoman appeared to scrub more than half her Twitter posts, but some swipes at Biden remain up. https://fxn.ws/3iwM0wn Jenny Cudd, the Texas florist who wanted a ‘revolution’ on Jan. 6, sentenced to 2 months probation U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden criticized the Justice Department for what he called a “disproportionate” recommendation of 75 days in jail. Before delivering his sentence, McFadden said he didn’t believe in “aggregate justice” and that he found the DOJ’s sentencing recommendation for Cudd “disproportionate” from others with similar conduct. “It does feel like the government had had two different standards here, and I can’t abide by that,” he said… https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/national/capitol-riots/jenny-cudd-the-texas-florist-who-wanted-a-revolution-on-jan-6-sentenced-to-2-months-probation-midland-trump-marina-medvin/65-9fee23ff-84ef-4b4b-b263-82a3685a1f6e @chicagotribune: Greater Chicago lost more than 91,000 people from 2020 to 2021 as the pandemic slowed growth in the nation’s biggest cities and intensified population trends of migration to the South and West, according to new data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. @greg_price11: What I am about to tell you is not a joke: The Philadelphia City Council spent this morning debating a resolution to urge the White House to establish a no fly zone over Ukraine. Philly set records for violent crime in 2021, and the city council is busy debating foreign policy. Mitch McConnell Stuns America with Announcement on KBJ Vote: He Will Not Support Biden’s Supreme Court Nominee https://beckernews.com/mitch-mcconnell-stuns-america-with-announcement-on-kbj-vote-44493/ GOP Sen. @SenTomCotton: The Washington Post confirms that the defendant Judge Brown Jackson sentenced to just 3 months—even though guidelines called for 8-10 years—continued to offend after being released. If he had been sentenced appropriately, this would not have happened. https://t.co/wlryPjtwvX @TommyPigott: @TomCottonAR confronted Jackson on a child predator she gave a lenient sentence to who violated the terms of his supervised release. Jackson said she did not remember. However, she signed the paperwork and in 2021 said “I remember the [case] well.” @bonchieredstate: Democrats and the media have made the charge of “racism” completely meaningless in their rush to appropriate oppression for political gain. No one even flinches at the accusation anymore. Army approves reduced physical fitness standards for women and older soldiers http://hill.cm/fAkYs2C |
Let us close with this offering courtesy of Greg Hunter https://usawatchdog.com/bidens-food-shortage-inflation-everywhere-vax-aids/ Biden’s Food Shortage, Inflation Everywhere, Vax = AIDS By Greg Hunter On March 25, 2022 In By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (WNW 521 3.25.22) Biden is going to own a lot of screwups, and you can add another to a long list of hardships heaped on Americans—food shortages. The food shortages are compliments of the Biden/Obama policies of war and sanctions against Russia. Russia is a big producer of wheat, oil and fertilizer, among other things, and all are being sanctioned. Up, up and away go prices, and according to Biden at the emergency NATO summit, this inflationary hardship and food shortages for all Americans and billions more around the world are necessary to punish Russia for invading Ukraine. Russia’s side of the story is 180 degrees different.Looks like Russia is already planning on circumventing the sanctions put on them that have cut them off from the SWIFT (dollar) payment system. It’s reported, Russia will be accepting Bitcoin, gold and rubles for its goods. You think this will be a boost for the U.S. dollar or another nail in its coffin? Putin says hand me another nail, please.Looks like the evidence is piling up that if you are double vaxed and boosted you are probably going to get acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, commonly referred to as AIDS. The one drug used to fight the spike protein in the vax producing AIDS is none other than Ivermectin. The Powers That Be are still trashing Ivermectin and restricting it from the public. If these people are ever charged and go trial, will this be called murder?Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog.com as he talks about these stories and more in the Weekly News Wrap-Up for 3.2https://usawatchdog.com/bidens-food-shortage-inflation-everywhere-vax-aids/ (To Donate to USAWatchdog.com Click Here)After the Interview:Renowned top trends researcher and publisher of “The Trends Journal” Gerald Celente will be the guest for the Saturday Night Post. He says he has plenty to talk about. |
Well that is all for today.
Sorry that I was not very thorough today as I spent most of today at the hospital
I will be having surgery for a hip replacement on Tuesday, so I will not give a commentary on that
day, but hopefully I will commence again on Wednesday
so I will see you Monday
h.
harveyorganblog.com 
Hi Harvey,
I imagine that many of your readers share my wish that you have a speedy recovery from your upcoming hip replacement surgery.
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