JAN 3/2023//HAPPY NEW YEAR: GOLD CLOSED UP $20.00 TO $1840.20//SILVER CLOSED UP 24 CENTS TO $24.06//PLATINUM CONTINUES TO GAIN ON PALLADIUM WITH PLATINUM UP $19.65 TO $1086.10 AND PALLADIUM DOWN $85.55 TO $1704.70// WE WILL NO DOUBT HAVE ANOTHER CRYPTO SCANDAL WITH RESPECT TO GENESIS: A MUST READ!!/HUGE NUMBER OF COVID UPDATES: RE CHINA AS MANY NATIONS REFUSE TO ACCEPT ANY CHINESE NATIONAL INTO THEIR COUNTRY//NFL FOOTBALLER HAS A CARDIAC ARREST ON THE PLAYING FIELD: 50% OF AMERICANS NOW BELIEVE THAT COVID VACCINES ARE THE CAUSE OF SUDDEN DEATH//DR PAUL ALEXANDER//VACCINE IMPACT//SLAY NEWS//XBB 1.5 VIRUS GAINING STRENGTH AS IT BYPASSES VACCINES: THIS VARIANT IS MORE LETHAL THAN THE LATEST OMICRON//UPDATES ON UKRAINE VS RUSSIA: MIKE WHITNEY A MUST READ////MIGRANT FUELLED CHAOS IN GERMANY ON NEW YEARS EVE//ALSO KEVIN WALLIEN A MUST READ!//ISRAEL STRIKES DAMASCUS AIRPORT AGAIN//SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT//
118 C MACQUARIE FUT 64 435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 5 657 C MORGAN STANLEY 6 737 C ADVANTAGE 74 11 800 C MAREX SPEC 12 10 905 C ADM 2
TOTAL: 92 92 MONTH TO DATE: 671
JPM received 0/92 contracts (stopped)
DONATE
Click here if you wish to send a donation. I sincerely appreciate it as this site takes a lot of preparation.
GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR JAN/2023. CONTRACT: 92 NOTICES FOR 9200 OZ or 0.2861 TONNES
total notices so far: 671 contracts for 67100 oz (2.087 tonnes)
SILVER NOTICES: 0 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR NIL OZ/
total number of notices filed so far this month 668 for 3,340,000 oz
END
GLD
WITH GOLD UP $20.00//STRANGE???
INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD//BIG CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: /////SMALL CHANGES IN GLD INVENTORY: /A WITHDRAWAL OF .87 TONNES FROM THE GLD
INVENTORY RESTS AT 917.64 TONNES
Silver//SLV
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER UP 24 CENTS
AT THE SLV// :/HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.2 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//
INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV
CLOSING INVENTORY: 509.05 MILLION OZ (THIS IS ALSO A CRIME SCENE@!!!!
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A GOOD SIZED 510 CONTRACTS TO 129,722 AND FURTHER FROM THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THE LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR $0.21 LOSS IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON FRIDAY. OUR SHORTERS/HFT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT FELL BY $0.21 BUT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY APPRECIABLE SPEC LONGS, AS WE HAD A TINY LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 34 CONTRACTS. AS WELL WE HAD 0 EXCHANGE FOR RISK TRANSFER ( 0 CONTRACTS). WE HAD CONSIDERABLE SPEC SHORT COVERINGS AS THEY ARE NOW AWARE OF THEIR FOLLY . WE ALSO HAD ALSO MINOR SHORT ADDITIONS DESPITE THE DROP IN PRICE OF SILVER. // OUR BANKERS CONTINUE TO BE PURCHASERS OF NET COMEX LONGS. BUT THEY ALSO SUPPLIED THE NECESSARY SHORT CONTRACTS>>> SOME INCREASE OF NEWBIE SPEC LONGS ADDING TO THEIR POSITIONS CAUSING ADDITIONAL MISERY TO OUR SHORTERS.
WE MUST HAVE HAD: A GOOD ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 4,055. MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S E.F. P. JUMP TO LONDON OF 580,000 OZ // V) GOOD SIZED COMEX OI LOSS/ GOOD EFP ISSUANCE/
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL – 76
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS JAN. ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF DEC:
TOTAL CONTRACTS for 1 days, total 400 contracts: OR 2.000 MILLION OZ PER DAY. (400 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 2.00 MILLION OZ
.
LAST 17 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: 207.430 MILLION OZ//A NEW RECORD FOR EFP ISSUANCE
APRIL: 114.52 MILLION OZ FINAL//LOW ISSUANCE
MAY: 105.635 MILLION OZ//
JUNE: 94.470 MILLION OZ
JULY : 87.110 MILLION OZ
AUGUST: 65.025 MILLION OZ
SEPT. 74.025 MILLION OZ///FINAL
OCT. 29.017 MILLION OZ FINAL
NOV: 134.290 MILLION OZ//FINAL
DEC, 61.395 MILLION OZ FINAL
JAN 2023/2.00 MILLION OZ
RESULT: WE HAD A GOOD SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 510 WITH OUR $0.21 LOSS IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX// FRIDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A GOOD SIZED EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 400 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR MAR AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX TO LONDON AS FORWARDS./ WE HAVE A GOOD INITIAL SILVER OZ STANDING FOR JAN OF 4.055 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S EFP JUMP TO LONDON / //NEW STANDING LOWERS TO 3.340 MILLION OZ + EFR 0 = 3.340 MILLION OZ. .. WE HAVE A TINY SIZED LOSS OF 110 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES FOR 0.55 MILLION OZ.. THE SILVER SHORTS ARE NOW TRAPPED AS THEY ARE HAVING CONSIDERABLE DIFFICULTY IN COVERING THOSE SHORTS.
WE HAD 0 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR nil 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 FAIR SIZED 1676 CONTRACTS TO 442,189 AND CLOSER TO THE 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: REMOVED 230 CONTRACTS.
.
THE FAIR SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI (1899 CONTRACTS) CAME WITH OUR $0.80 GAIN IN PRICE. WE ALSO HAD A SMALL INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR JAN. AT 2.1710 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 138 CONTRACTS OR 13,800 OZ //(QUEUE JUMPING = EXERCISING LONDON BASED EFP’S ) (EFP is the transfer of contracts immediately to London for potential gold deliveries originating from London). NEW STANDING 2.230 TONNES
YET ALL OF..THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $0.80 GAIN IN PRICEWITH RESPECT TO THURSDAY’S TRADING
WE HAD A GOOD SIZED GAIN OF 3176 OI CONTRACTS (9.878 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES..
E.F.P. ISSUANCE
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A FAIR SIZED 1500 CONTRACTS:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 442,189
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A GOOD SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 3176 CONTRACTS WITH 1676 CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX AND 1500 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 3176 CONTRACTS OR 9.878 TONNES.
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (1500 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE FAIR SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI (1676) TOTAL GAIN IN THE TWO EXCHANGES 3176 CONTRACTS. WE NO DOUBT HAD 1) SMALL SPECULATOR SHORT COVERINGS // CONTINUED GOOD BANKER ADDITIONS BUT THEY ALSO SUPPLIED THE NECESSARY PAPER SHORT. WE HAD SOME SHORT SPEC ADDITIONS/// // SMALL NEWBIE SPEC ADDITIONS ,2.) SMALL INITIAL STANDING AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR JAN. AT 2.1710 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 13,800 OZ /NEW STANDING 2.230 TONNES///3) ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION //.,4) FAIR SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST GAIN 5) FAIR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER/
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023 INCLUDING TODAY
JAN
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF JAN :
1500 CONTRACTS OR 150,000 OZ OR 4.66 TONNES 1 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 1500 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 1 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES:4.66 TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2021, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 4.66/3550 x 100% TONNES 0.2239% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL PRODUCTION
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: 409.30 TONNES INITIAL( THIS IS NOW A RECORD EFP ISSUANCE FOR MARCH AND FOR ANY MONTH.
APRIL: 169.55 TONNES (FINAL VERY LOW ISSUANCE MONTH)
MAY: 247,44 TONNES FINAL//
JUNE: 238.13 TONNES FINAL
JULY: 378.43 TONNES FINAL
AUGUST: 180.81 TONNES FINAL
SEPT. 193.16 TONNES FINAL
OCT: 177.57 TONNES FINAL ( MUCH SMALLER THAN LAST MONTH)
NOV. 223.98 TONNES//FINAL ( MUCH LARGER THAN PREVIOUS MONTHS//comex running out of physical)
DEC: 185.59 tonnes // FINAL
JAN 2023″ 4.66 TONNES INITIAL
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 FEB. WE ARE NOW INTO THE SPREADING OPERATION OF BOTH 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 OCT HEADING TOWARDS THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF FEB., FOR BOTH 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 (NOV), 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, FELL BY A GOOD SIZED 510 CONTRACTS OI TO 129,722 AND FURTHER FROM OUR COMEX HIGH 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 5 YEARS AGO.
EFP ISSUANCE 400 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
MAR 400 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 400 CONTRACTS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON. IF WE TAKE THE COMEX OI LOSS OF 510 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 400 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,
WE OBTAIN A TINY LOSS OF 110 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES.
THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 0.55 MILLION OZ//
OCCURRED WITH OUR 21 CENT LOSS IN PRICE ….. OUR SPEC SHORTS HAVE NOWHERE TO HIDE!
4. Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
end
5. Other gold/silver commentaries
6. Commodity commentaries//CORN
Brazil’s First Corn Shipment To China Indicates Shifting Trade Flows Could Endanger US Dominance
FRIDAY, DEC 30, 2022 – 08:10 PM
Brazil, the world’s second-largest corn exporter, sent its first vessel carrying corn to China this month. Global trade flows are shifting away from the US, the largest exporter of corn, as China reduces its reliance on the Midwestern US farm belt.
Commodity traders have tracked the Star Iris, the bulk carrier hauling 68,000 metric tons of grain for Chinese trader Cofco Corp., which left Brazil late last month and just arrived in Singapore.
Bloomberg said Beijing decided to purchase Brazilian grains in May to “reduce dependence on the US and replace supplies from Ukraine cut off by the Russian invasion.”
Reuters recently quoted Brazil’s National Association of Grain Exporters as saying Brazilian corn exports could surge next year because of China.
There’s still a while until Brazil threatens the US dominance of the China ag market. More than 20 bulk carriers with US corn are currently en route to China. Still, Brazil’s first corn shipment to China might indicate global trade flows are shifting.
7/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC
3. ASIAN AFFAIRS
i)TUESDAY MORNING//MONDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 27.25 PTS OR 0.88% //Hang Sang CLOSED UP 363.86 PTS OR 1.84% /The Nikkei closed //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED DOWN 1.25% /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN TO 6.9099//OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN DOWN TO 6.9213// /Oil UP TO 79.18 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT AT 85.02 / Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE WEAKER
a)NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
outline
b) REPORT ON JAPAN/
OUTLINE
3 C CHINA
OUTLINE
4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE
5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE
6.Global Issues//COVID ISSUES/VACCINE 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 FAIR SIZED 1676 CONTRACTS UP TO 442,189 WITH OUR THE GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.80
EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
WE ARE NOW IN THE NON-ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF JAN… THE CME REPORTS THAT THE BANKERS ISSUED A FAIR SIZED TRANSFER THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE AS THESE LONGS RECEIVED A DELIVERABLE LONDON FORWARD TOGETHER WITH A FIAT BONUS.,
THAT IS 1500 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: ;: , . 0 FEB: 1500 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:
TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 1500 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 FAIR SIZED TOTAL OF 3176 CONTRACTS IN THAT 1500 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A FAIR SIZED COMEX OI GAIN OF 1899 CONTRACTS..AND THIS FAIR SIZED GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.80. WE ARE WITNESSING SOME SPEC SHORTS ADDITIONS TO THEIR SHORTFALL WITH ZERO SPEC SHORT LIQUIDATIONS. BANKERS CONTINUE AS NET BUYERS OF COMEX GOLD CONTRACTS AS THEY HAVE BEEN NET LONG FOR THE PAST FEW MONTHS. WE ALSO HAD STRONG NEWBIE SPECS ADDITIONS
// WE HAVE A SMALL AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING Jan (2.1710)
TONNES),
HERE ARE THE AMOUNTS THAT STOOD FOR DELIVERY IN THE PRECEDING 12 MONTHS OF 2021-2022:
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 YEAR 2021 (JAN- DEC): 601.213 TONNES
YEAR 2022:
JANUARY 2022 17.79 TONNES
FEB 2022: 59.023 TONNES
MARCH: 36.678 TONNES
APRIL: 85.340 TONNES FINAL.
MAY: 20.11 TONNES FINAL
JUNE: 74.933 TONNES FINAL
JULY 29.987 TONNES FINAL
AUGUST:104.979 TONNES//FINAL
SEPT. 38.1158 TONNES
OCT: 77.390 TONNES/ FINAL
NOV 27.110 TONNES/FINAL (TOTAL SO FAR THIS YEAR 591.535 TONNES)
Dec. 64.541 tonnes
JAN/2023:2.1710 tonnes
THE SPECS/HFT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT ROSE $0.80) //// AND WERE ALSO UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE HAD A FAIR GAIN OF 3399 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES // WE HAVE GAINED A TOTAL OI OF 9.878 PAPER TONNES OF TOTAL OI FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR JAN. (2.1710 TONNES) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 138 CONTRACTS OR .4299 TONNES…THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR RISE IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $0.80.
WE HAD – 230 CONTRACTS COMEX TRADES REMOVED FROM OPEN INTEREST AFTER TRADING ENDED LAST NIGHT
NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 3176 CONTRACTS OR 317600 OZ OR 9.878 TONNES
Estimated gold comex today 216,227// fair//
final gold volumes/yesterday 114,818/ awful
INITIAL STANDINGS FOR JAN 2023 COMEX GOLD //JAN 3//
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month
671 notices 67100 2.087 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
i)Dealer deposits: 0
total dealer deposit: nil oz
No dealer withdrawals
Customer deposits: 0
total deposits: nil oz
customer withdrawals: 0
Total withdrawals: nil
total in tonnes: 0.00 tonnes
Adjustments: 0
CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR JANUARY.
For the front month of JANUARY we have an oi of 138 contracts having LOST 560 contracts
We had 698 notices served on Friday, so we gained 138 contracts or an additional 13,800 oz will stand for delivery in this
very non active delivery month of January. (queue jump)
February LOST 537 contacts to 363,587
March gained 31 contracts to stand at 31.
April gained 2255 contracts up to 47,920.
We had 92 notice(s) filed today for 9200 oz
Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer account and 0 notices were issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 92 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 0 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 JAN. /2022. contract month,
we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (671 x 100 oz , to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of (JAN. 138 CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today 92 x 100 oz per contract equals 69,800 OZ OR 2.230 TONNES the number of TONNES standing in this non active month of January.
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the JAN contract month:
No of notices filed so far (671 x 100 oz+ (138 OI for the front month minus the number of notices served upon today (92} x 100 oz} which equals 69,800 oz standing OR 2.230 TONNES in this NON active delivery month of JAN..
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING: 2.230 TONNES (A POOR STANDING//COMEX RUNNING OUT OF PHYSICAL TO SERVE UPON OUR LONGS.
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in JANUARY. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 668 x 5,000 oz = 3,340,000 oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of JAN(27) and the number of notices served upon today 0 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.
Thus the standings for silver for the JAN./2022 contract month: 668 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of JAN (27 – number of notices served upon today (0) x 500 oz of silver standing for the JAN. contract month equates 3.475
million 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
JAN 3/WITH GOLD UP $20.00 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:STRANGE: A WITHDRAWAL OF .87 TONNES FORM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 917.64 TONNES
DEC 30/WITH GOLD UP $.80 TODAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 918.51 TONNES
DEC 29//WITH GOLD UP $8.35 TODAY:; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 918.51 TONNES
DEC 28/WITH GOLD DOWN $6.80 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 5.50 TONNES INTO THE GLD..//INVENTORY REST S AT 918.51 TONNES
DEC 27/WITH GOLD UP $18.15 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF .87 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.01 TONNES
DEC 23/WITH GOLD UP $19,15 TODAY: NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.88 TONNES/
DEC 22/WITH GOLD DOWN $29.35 TODAY: NO CHANGE IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.88 TONNES
DEC 21/WITH GOLD FLAT TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.74 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.88 TONNES
DEC 20/WITH GOLD UP $27.05: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.73 TONNES INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.14 TONNES
DEC 19/WITH GOLD DOWN $2.10: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD> A BIG WITHDRAWAL OF 3.47 TONNES FROM THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 910.41 TONNES
DEC 16/WITH GOLD UP $12.45: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.32 TONNES INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.88 TONNES
DEC 15//WITH GOLD DOWN $31.00: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.16 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 911.56 TONNES
DEC 14/WITH GOLD DOWN $6.20: BIG CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.32 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.72 TONNES
DEC 13/WITH GOLD UP $32.75: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.32 TONNES INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 910.41
DEC 12/WITH GOLD DOWN $17.60: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 908.09 TONNES
DEC 9/WITH GOLD UP $8.90//NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 908.09 TONNES
Dec 8/WITH GOLD UP $4.05, OVER THE PAST 3 WEEKS WE LOST 2.04 TONNES//INVENTORY RESTS AT 908.09 TONNES
NOV 14/WITH GOLD UP $7.30: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.45 TONNES FROM THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 910.12 TONNES
NOV 11/WITH GOLD UP $15.25//BIG CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 3.19 TONNES INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 911.57 TONNES
NOV 10/WITH GOLD UP $40.75: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 908.38 TONNES
NOV 9/WITH GOLD DOWN $2.00: BIG CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.89 TONNES INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 908.38 TONNES
GLD INVENTORY: 917.64 TONNES
Now the SLV Inventory/( vehicle is a fraud as there is no physical metal behind them
JAN 3/WITH SILVER UP 24 CENTS TODAY: BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: STRANGE: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.2 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 507.85 MILLION OZ/
DEC 30/WITH SILVER DOWN 21 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 509.050 MILLION OZ
DEC 29/ WITH SILVER UP $0.63 TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 509.050 MILLION OZ
DEC 28//WITH SILVER DOWN 46 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 1.715 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV///..INVENTORY RESTS AT 509.050 MILLION OZ
DEC 27/WITH SILVER UP 34 CENTS TODAY; SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/A WITHDRAWAL OF 550,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 507.350 MILLION OZ//
DEC 23/WITH SILVER UP 29 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY REST AT507.900 MILLION O//
DEC 22/WITH SILVER DOWN 53 CENTS TODAY;NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 507.90 MILLION OZ//
DEC 21/WITH SILVER DOWN 9 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.0 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 507.90 MILLION OZ//
DEC 20/WITH SILVER UP 105 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:: A DEPOSIT OF 700,000 OZ INTO THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 509.90 MILLION OZ//
DEC 19/WITH SILVER DOWN 13 CENTS: BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 1.05 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 509.20 MILLION OZ//
DEC 16/WITH SILVER UP 2 CENTS; HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.85 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 508.15 MILLION OZ//
DEC 15/WITH SILVER DOWN 78 CENTS: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF EXACTLY 2.00 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 510.000 MILLION OZ
DEC 14/WITH SILVER UP 7 CENTS: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.7 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 512.000 MILLION OZ//
DEC 13/WITH SILVER UP 59 CENTS: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 600,000 OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 513.900 MILLION OZ//
DEC 12/WITH SILVER DOWN 33 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 514.500 MILLION OZ//
DEC 9/WITH SILVER RISING 77 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.2 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 514.500 MILLION OZ.
DEC 8/WITH SILVER RISING 34 CENTS TODAY: OVER THE PAST 3 WEEKS, WE HAVE GAINED A STRONG: 44.777 MILLION OZ/INVENTORY RESTS AT 516.700 MILION OZ.
NOV 14/WITH SILVER UP 41 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 471.923 MILLION OZ//
NOV 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 2 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 553,000 OZ FROM THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 471.923 MILLION OZ//
NOV 10/WITH SILVER UP 39 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV; A DEPOSIT OF 368,000 OZ INTO THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 472.476 MILLION OZ//
NOV 9/WITH SILVER DOWN 10 CENTS: BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/; A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.821 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 472.108 MILLION OZ//
CLOSING INVENTORY 507.85 MILLION OZ//
PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER STORIES
1:Peter Schiff
end
2 Lawrie Williams//Pam and Russ Martens/Jim Rickards/Mathew Piepenburg/Von Greyerz//Rickards:
END
3. Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries//
“Big, Big, Big Things Happening” in Gold and Silver – Yearly Wrap Up with Eric Sprott January 02, 2023
Craig Hemke – TF Metals Report
It’s been a year of good news and bad news: the bottom dropped out of the mining shares, but gold is even on the year while silver is up. Will this surprising trend continue into the new year? Host Craig Hemke sits down with special guest Eric Sprott to break down the biggest gold and silver news of 2022.
0:00 – Intro 1:40 – What do you do? What is “The Mining Stock Journal” 3:45 – FOMC rate hike 8:55 – Fraudulent schemes in Crypto space 11:00 – With the crypto schemes exposed, would there be a rally for traditional money 13:00 – Decline in Physical demand 15:30 – What to expect out of metals shares in 2023 22:36 – Outro
In the midst of all this incredible political and economic chaos, I was tasked with packing up my mother’s things to prepare for her move to assisted living. It’s a gravely emotional experience for anyone, as I’m sure you know.
I adore that woman. It’s hard to see her get old. Also, that house contained 100 years or more of family history. All this stuff takes up space. With everyone on the move, it’s hard to find a good home for things anymore. We had to make some hard choices.
Anyway, along the way, I opened a small safe and found a lockbox, and opened it. It was my father’s collection of coins. What was in there hadn’t been seen by anyone for perhaps 25 years (he died rather young).
It was startling and amazing to see. It was like finding buried treasure. There were coins from all over the world, gold, and silver. I’m not sure that I knew that he was a collector.
There were all the usual gold and silver bullion coins from all lands, all worth the price of their metal content. All are vastly up in value from when he bought them. There were also hundreds of silver dimes. And there were plenty of numismatics too and because I don’t know my way around this world, I’ll let the experts determine their value.
Good as Gold
I won’t tell you the total value for reasons of privacy but I will say that he made a very good investment. Stocks are fun and swing this way and that but these coins are stable, true, and always faithful. Dad knew that. He was right.
And thumbing through the collection always reminded me of his personal values. Yes, he was old-fashioned, you could say. He rallied around faith, family, honesty, hard work, productivity, great art, hard history, big books, deep learning, prayer, community service, and caring for others, all those things.
He was not only an astute investor. He was a compassionate and caring man. I recall walking with him on a hot windy day in the Texas mountains of the Southwest when a man of Mexican heritage passed us by and then stopped. “Dr. Tucker! You taught me to read! God bless you! God bless you!” My father smiled and shook his hand and we walked on.
I asked Dad what that was about. He said he once taught a class in English language for immigrant adults and that must have been a student. “Part of your job?” I asked. Dad said no, just as community service.
Okay, that was Dad. Talented. Dedicated. Humble too.
The Meaning of Coins
Back to the coins. They embody firmness of value. You can tell the history of the world through coins. There is an element of tragedy here, looking through coins from a time when money was sound, government was small, and Americans believed in liberty and independence.
The Constitution was taken seriously: gold and silver were minted as money.
The coinage suggested that too. The dimes were silver. The nickels were larger because they had less silver and more…nickel. Dollars were silver from the old Spanish world Thaler. The half dollar was…half a dollar. What does this suggest?
It suggests that government did not create money; it inherited it from the long history of commercial enterprise, dating even back to the late middle ages.
Then there is the gold. Dad must have loved the American Eagle coin because it suggested hope. Instead of banning gold ownership, the U.S. Treasury was now minting it for the people to own. He could not buy enough. But he also loved gold coins from all over the world. I found memos alongside some, in which he explained why he liked this one or that.
Truth in Coinage
These coins symbolize hope even today, a look back and a reminder that such times did exist. It is not in our imagination. Citizens used to carry truth and honesty in their pockets! Trade was calculated in something unchanging and valuable independent of government control.
A government that mints and distributes sound money trusts its people with their own lives. They also make inflation as we know it essentially impossible.
The Fed is a good printer. It is a terrible alchemist. So if you want to get rid of inflation once and for all, there is a way. Get rid of the Fed and make the dollar good as gold again. Make the dimes silver. Forget this embarrassing baloney-sandwich stuff we use today.
Let’s get back to truth. Not lies, like the Inflation Reduction Act or whatever they call it.
What are the chances? Almost none, sadly. The government is in too much debt and the people are too dependent on inflationary meddling. Leviathan would be impossible under a sound money regime. And tragically today so much of American life is about the perpetuation of Leviathan.
People everywhere are asking what they should do with their money because there seems to be few ways of making it without losing it. That’s how inflation works. You have to earn a high return above the inflation rate to feel good. It’s a rat race, even if it is a necessary one. But you know what’s not a rat race? Getting a safe, a cotton bag, and filling it with coins, a bit at a time.
Keep them for years, decades, and generations.
Preserving Value
It’s a truism in the investment world that you buy gold and silver not for its short-term return but for long-term security.
What does this mean?
Thousands of years of history have taught us the value of precious metals. No amount of crypto tokens, much less meta worlds of NFTs, are going to change that, as fun as they might be.
Gold keeps its value. But more than that, it symbolizes what it means to keep our values, as people, as societies, and as nations. They are physical objects but more than that, they embody a philosophy of living.
Think about this.
One day your children or grandchildren will be rifling through your stuff and they might come across your collection of gold and silver. Do you think their esteem for you will rise? Absolutely it will. It shows that you thought about the very long-term, not just the next investment cycle or election but lifetimes and generations.
And you know what I’m going to do with my Dad’s collection? So long as I don’t need to use them, I will keep them the same way he did. It’s my connection to him, his values, and also to a world that might seem long gone but did in fact exist. It’s an ideal. And we all need ideals. Ideals can be abstract but they can also be physical. That’s what these coins mean to me.
In a world of fleeting values and ceaseless and often pointless change, here we have something that we can both believe in and own. It’s real wealth, wealth for the ages, stuff we can carry in our pockets.
Now we carry “smartphones” that have become spying devices for government.
It was an emotional day. Mostly I will never forget the smile on my mother’s face when she saw all of this for the first time in decades. She remembered what a great man he was and how much she loved him.
A must read…
5. Commodity commentaries//
END
6/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC
No question about this one, we will have another FTX on our hands
(zerohedge)
2023 Starts Off With A Bang: Winklevoss Slams Barry Silbert’s Genesis, Accuses Of Commingling Funds
MONDAY, JAN 02, 2023 – 03:25 PM
If anyone expected that the bursting of the crypto bubble and the resulting unprecedented tidal wave of failure and fraud would somehow be confined to 2022 we have some bad news.
As if the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire wasn’t bad enough, its fallout just got much messier after digital-asset entrepreneur and Facebook billionaire, Cameron Winklevoss, accused fellow crypto businessman Barry Silbert of “bad faith stall tactics” and the commingling of funds within his conglomerate that Winklevoss says have left $900 million in customer assets needlessly in limbo since FTX’s meltdown.
First, some background: in early November, shortly after FTX imploded, Gemini Trust which was founded by the Winklevoss twins, paused redemptions on a lending product called Earn, which offered investors the potential to generate as much as 8% in interest on their digital coins. It did so by lending them out to Genesis Global Capital, one of the companies owned by Silbert’s Digital Currency Group. The Earn halt came after Genesis suspended both redemptions and new loan originations at its lending unit because of its exposure to FTX. Genesis has told clients that it could take “weeks” to find a path forward, and that bankruptcy may be one possibility.
Which brings us to today: this morning, facing pressure of his own from angry customers locked out of their Gemini accounts and a lawsuit alleging fraud, Cameron Winklevoss published an open letter saying he had provided Silbert with multiple proposals to resolve the issue, including as recently as Dec. 25. He told Silbert “this mess is entirely of your own making,” citing some $1.675 billion owed to Genesis by DCG, which it used for other business purposes within Silbert’s conglomerate. “This is money that Genesis owes to Earn users and other creditors.”
“It’s not lost on us that you’ve been working desperately to try and firewall DCG from the problems that you created at Genesis,” Winklevoss added, strongly hinting that the relationship between DCG and Genesis is similar to that between FTX and Alameda. And in case that wasn’t clear, the next sentence strikes it home: “You should dispense with this fiction because we all know what you know — that DCG and Genesis are beyond commingled.”
An Open Letter to Barry Silbert
Barry — today marks 47 days since Genesis halted withdrawals. I am writing on behalf of more than 340,000 Earn users who are looking for answers. These users aren’t just numbers on a spreadsheet, they are real people. A single mom who lent her son’s education money to you. A father who lent his son’s bar mitzvah money to you. A husband and wife who lent their life savings to you. A school teacher who lent his children’s college funds to you. A policeman, and so many more. All together, these people entrusted more than $900 million of their assets to you. They deserve concrete answers and we are here to get them.
For the past six weeks, we have done everything we can to engage with you in a good faith and collaborative manner in order to reach a consensual resolution for you to pay back the $900 million that you owe, while helping you preserve your business. We appreciate that there are startup costs to any restructuring, and at times things don’t go as fast as we would all like. However, it is now becoming clear that you have been engaging in bad faith stall tactics.
For example, on December 2nd we expressed our belief “that getting everyone in a room together as soon as possible will be the most productive path towards reaching a resolution.” You agreed, but stated you would only do so after there was a proposal on the table. On December 17th, a proposal was delivered to you. On December 25th, Christmas Day, an updated version of this proposal was delivered to you. Despite this, you continue to refuse to get into a room with us to hash out a resolution. In addition, you continue to refuse to agree to a timeline with key milestones. Every time we ask you for tangible engagement, you hide behind lawyers, investment bankers, and process. After six weeks, your behavior is not only completely unacceptable, it is unconscionable.
The idea in your head that you can quietly hide in your ivory tower and that this will all just magically go away, or that this is someone else’s problem, is pure fantasy. To be clear, this mess is entirely of your own making. Digital Currency Group (DCG) — of which you are the founder and CEO — owes Genesis (its wholly owned subsidiary) ~$1.675 billion. This is money that Genesis owes to Earn users and other creditors. You took this money — the money of schoolteachers — to fuel greedy share buybacks, illiquid venture investments, and kamikaze Grayscale NAV trades that ballooned the fee-generating AUM of your Trust; all at the expense of creditors and all for your own personal gain. It is now time for you to take responsibility for this and do the right thing.
It’s not lost on us that you started your career as a bankruptcy restructuring associate. And it’s not lost on us that you’ve been working desperately to try and firewall DCG from the problems that you created at Genesis. You should dispense with this fiction because we all know what you know — that DCG and Genesis are beyond commingled. Everyone takes orders from you and always has. And anything you have done after the fact to pretend otherwise, won’t hold up. If instead, you had put all of this energy towards finding a resolution, we would have been done by now. Everyone would be in a better place, including you.
Earn users are tired. They’re scared. Many are now in dire straits. And yet despite all that they have had to endure, they have been remarkably patient and supportive. But there is only so much more they can take. They deserve a resolution for a recovery of the assets they lent to you and an end to this nightmare. To that end, and for the final time, we are asking you to publicly commit to working together to solve this problem by January 8th, 2023. We remain ready and willing to work with you, but time is running out.
Sincerely,
Cameron Winklevoss
Winklevoss claims the $1.675 billion borrowed by DCG from Genesis was used “to fuel greedy share buybacks, illiquid venture investments, and kamikaze Grayscale NAV trades,” referring to another of Silbert’s businesses, Grayscale Investments, whose largest vehicle is the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust. This came, he said, “all at the expense of creditors and all for your own personal gain.”
Winklevoss also asked Silbert to “publicly commit to working together to solve this problem,” which he says affects more than 340,000 Earn customers, by Jan. 8. He didn’t say what would happen if no agreement was reached by then.
Silbert prompted responded in kind, tweeting a refutation to several of Wilkevoss’s accusations, saying “DCG did not borrow $1.675 billion from Genesis” and “never missed an interest payment to Genesis and is current on all loans outstanding,” without providing more detail. Silbert also claimed DCG delivered a proposal for resolving the dispute to Genesis and Winklevoss’s advisers on Dec. 29, but had received no reply.
That would not be the last of it, and moments later, Cameron Winklevoss doubled down, urging Silbert to “stop trying to pretend that you and DCG are innocent bystanders and had nothing to do with creating this mess. It’s completely disingenuous. So how does DCG owe Genesis $1.675 billion if it didn’t borrow the money? Oh right, that promissory note…”
And then, in an apparent attempt to avoid the nuclear option and filing a notice of default against Genesis – an event that will likely lead to even more havoc and mayhem across the crypto community – WInklevoss tweeted “Will you, or will you not, commit to solving this by January 8th in a manner that treats the $1.1 billion promissory note as $1.1 billion?”
Previously Silbert’s DCG has been trying to emphasize that it’s separate from Genesis and insulated from its troubles. After Genesis suspended redemptions, DCG said in a tweet that “this temporary action has no impact on the business operations of DCG and our other wholly owned subsidiaries.”
Silbert, in a letter to shareholders last month, said that intercompany loans were made “in the ordinary course of business.” He noted that DCG has a liability of $575 million to Genesis. In the letter, he also described a $1.1 billion promissory note, due June 2032, which he said came about as the parent company stepped in to assume liabilities from Genesis related to the collapse of digital-assets hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.
As Bloomberg notes, Winklevoss’s aggressive stance comes as Gemini and its founders faces a lawsuit from investors who accuse the company of fraud, claiming the Earn product was in effect an interest-bearing account that it failed to register as a security.
As for the public spat between Winklevoss and Silbert, which is all too reminiscent of what happened between CZ and SBF in the days before the failure of FTX, as twitter user Jeremey Padawer summarizes “When these sorts of issues become public, almost every single time the worst is still to come… good luck crypto community.” Indeed.
And even Edward Snowden is bracing for what’s coming.
Crook!!
end
1. YOUR EARLY CURRENCY/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGS//TUESDAY MORNING.7:30 AM
ONSHORE YUAN: DOWN TO 6.9099
OFFSHORE YUAN: 6.9213
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 27.25 PTS OR 0.88%
HANG SENG CLOSED DOWN 363.80 PTS 1.84%
2. Nikkei closed
3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL GREEN
USA dollar INDEX UP TO 104.55 Euro FALLS TO 105.36 DOWN 140 BASIS PTS
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: FALLS TO. +.408!!!(Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese yen vs usa cross now at 130.92/JAPANESE YEN RISING AS WELL AS LONG TERM 10 YR. YIELDS RISING //EVENTUALLY THIS WILL BREAK THE JAPANESE CENTRAL BANK.
3c Nikkei now ABOVE 17,000
3d USA/Yen rate now well ABOVE the important 120 barrier this morning
3e Gold UP /JAPANESE Yen DOWN CHINESE YUAN: DOWN-// OFF- SHORE: DOWN
3f Japan is to buy the 9 TRILLION YEN’S worth of BONDS. Japan’s GDP equals 5 trillion usa
Japan to buy 100% of all new Japanese debt and NOW they will have OVER 50% of all Japanese debt.
3g Oil UP for WTI and UP FOR Brent this morning
3h European bond buying continues to push yields lower on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund DOWN TO +2.3765%***/Italian 10 Yr bond yield FALLS to 4.508%*** /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD FALLS TO 3.452…** DANGEROUS//
3i Greek 10 year bond yield RISES TO 4.611//
3j Gold at $1839.30//silver at: 24.30 7 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00
3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble DOWN 1 AND 32/100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 71.34//
3m oil into the 79 dollar handle for WTI and 85 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 CONTINUES NIRP. THIS MORNING RAISES AMOUNT OF BONDS THAT THEY WILL PURCHASE UP TO .5% ON THE 10 YR BOND///YEN TRADES TO 130.92
30 SNB (Swiss National Bank) still intervening again in the markets driving down the FRANC. It is not working: USA/SF this 0.9374–as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF 0.9873 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: 3.750% DOWN 8 BASIS PTS…GETTING DANGEROUS
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 3.856% DOWN 8 BASIS PTS//
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 18,74…
GREAT BRITAIN/10 YEAR YIELD: 3.24 % DOWN 5 BASIS PTS
end
i.b Overnight: Newsquawk and Zero hedge:
FIRST, ZEROHEDGE (PRE USA OPENING// MORNING
Futures Rise On First Trading Day Of 2023 But Far From Record High Hit Year Ago Today
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 08:05 AM
US stock futures rose on the first trading day of 2023, with some of the most beaten down and shorted stocks and sectors outperforming, as optimism crept – however briefly – into the market on the one-year anniversary of the S&P 500’s last record high. Contracts on the S&P 500 climbed as much as 1.1% before fading much of their earlier gains. One year ago, the S&P closed at 4,796.56: since Jan. 3, 2022, the US stock benchmark endured its biggest annual decline since the global financial crisis, ending the year down 19%. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.6% Tuesday. The dollar jumped as the euro tumbled, while Treasuries were headed for their strongest start to a year in more than two decades as investors scooped up government debt on wagers the Federal Reserve will further slow its pace of rate hikes.
Stocks that were among last year’s worst performers rise in the first US premarket trading session of the new year, with riskier names like meme stocks, cryptocurrency-related shares and electric- vehicle makers gaining amid a return in risk appetite and renewed optimism over China’s reopening. However, not all beaten down names jumped: Tesla fell 3.8% after the electric-car maker delivered fewer vehicles than expected. Analysts noted that the company is facing significant demand issues as it ramps up production capacity and offers hefty incentives in of its two biggest markets. Here are some other notable premarket movers:
Chinese stocks rose in US premarket trading amid signs that Covid infections in China may have peaked, boosting optimism over the nation’s reopening.
Gilead Sciences is downgraded to sector perform from outperform at RBC Capital Markets as the broker says it will take time to gain more definitive visibility on the next sets of potential drivers.
Mondelez International was downgraded to sector perform from outperform at RBC Capital Markets, with the brokerage saying that it is now difficult to justify further upside to EPS estimates as the macro environment weakens.
Stocks are set to gain at the open despite concern that the Fed’s interest rate increases will cause the economy to slow significantly in 2023, if not contract. The Big Short Michael Burry said on Twitter late Sunday that the US this year is likely to be “in recession by any definition”, in other words, Powell will be able to declare mission accomplished. Optimists are counting on inflation to slowly cool even as the labor market remains strong. Some pressure eased in the final months of 2022 as Fed officials pointed to a less-aggressive tightening path, while China’s exit from its Zero Covid policy also helped sentiment.
“The Fed has pushed up rates well into restrictive levels and has signaled a willingness to go further,” said Rajeev De Mello, a global macro portfolio manager at GAMA Asset Management, who’s cautious on US stocks. “I would become more comfortable with US equities when we are closer to a pause. Even after the 2022 decline, some US equities still trade at high valuations.”
“Hopes that supply chain issues in China will continue to ease, which could help bring down inflation, may be feeding into sentiment,” said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. Traders are “seizing onto glimmers of hope that once the winter waves die down, China’s recovery could be back on track.”
In Europe the Stoxx 50 rallied as much as 1.4% before fading some gains after a surprise drop in German unemployment signaled resilience in the region’s biggest economy; FTSE 100 outperforms, higher by 1.5% on the day. Travel and leisure and tech stocks led gains while defensive sectors including utilities and telecoms underperformed. Here are some of the biggest European movers:
UK stocks outperformed as the London Stock Exchange reopened following Monday’s New Year holiday. Domestic-focused shares, which slumped last year, rose, with homebuilders Barratt Developments and Persimmon up at least 4% and banks Lloyds and NatWest up at least 2%.
Travel stocks rose, with TUI up as much as 6.6% and carrier IAG up as much as 5.6%. Strong pricing power driven by the reopening of Asian and trans-Atlantic routes is one of the multiple catalysts that should benefit European long- haul carriers in 2023, according to Citigroup.
AstraZeneca and Novo Nordisk both rose more than 2% after JPMorgan said the firms were its most favored in the European pharma-biotech sector alongside Merck KGaA.
Brenntag shares rose as much as 6% after the German chemicals distributor said it was no longer proceeding with discussions to potentially acquire US rival Univar Solutions.
Zalando shares rose as much as 4.3%, touching the highest since June, after Hauck & Aufhaeuser predicted the company would remain a winning platform in European online fashion.
Aker Carbon Capture gained as much as 13% after it signed a Letter of Intent for the delivery of two Just Catch units for an undisclosed European customer.
Fresenius Medical Care fell as much as 5.2% after JPMorgan flagged “significant” risks to estimates for the dialysis provider in the near term in a review of the European medtech sector. The shares were also downgraded at Jefferies, while parent Fresenius SE was upgraded.
Gaztransport & Technigaz fell as much as 7.7% after the French maker of cargo containment systems for liquefied natural gas said it’s ceasing activities in Russia.
Earlier in the session, Asian stocks erased an initial decline, spurred by a rebound in Chinese equities as traders assessed peaks in China’s Covid-19 infections and the outlook for the economy. The MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index was 0.2% higher, reversing a drop of as much as 1.5% and poised for a third straight daily gain. Chinese stocks listed in Hong Kong had their best start to a year since 2018 as subway use recovered in nearly a dozen major cities. A decline earlier in the day in Chinese stocks was triggered by weak manufacturing for December as well as tourism data for the New Year holiday.
“While it is inevitable to see further surges and more widespread infections at the initial stage of opening, the outlook for the Chinese economy has brightened for 2023,” Saxo Capital Markets strategists wrote in a note. China’s renewed support for private enterprise and the property sector, and an improved credit impulse mean “Hong Kong and mainland Chinese equities have a more positive tendency,” they added. Korea’s Kospi gauge fell to a two-month low as local funds sold tech stocks such as Samsung amid worries about the earnings outlook. Japan and New Zealand were closed for a holiday. After a dismal 19% slide in 2022, strategists are expecting the MSCI Asia Pacific Index to outperform US peers this year with a stronger rebound in the second half. China’s full reopening, a pivot in Fed policy and an end to the chip downcycle are among the positive catalysts seen to outweigh a slowdown in global growth.
Indian stocks rose for a second straight session, helped by gains in lenders after most banks reported strong growth in credit offtake for the previous month. Gains in local shares tracked most Asian peers, with Chinese equities rallying as traders assess the outlook for economic recovery on signs of Covid peaking in some cities. The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.2% to 61,294.20 in Mumbai, while the NSE Nifty 50 Index was higher by a similar measure. Fifteen out of BSE Ltd.’s 20 sector sub-indexes advanced, led by consumer durables makers. Axis Bank and HDFC Bank were the key gainers among Sensex’s 30 companies, 17 of which ended higher, while the rest declined. Tata Consultancy Services led the gains in software companies. Reliance Industries fell after the Indian government revised windfall tax on domestic crude and diesel exports higher.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1.3% to close at 6,946.20, its lowest since Nov. 7. All sectors dropped on the benchmark’s first trading day of the year, with banks and miners contributing the most to its decline. In New Zealand, the market was closed for a holiday.
In FX, the Bloomberg dollar spot index rallied by as much as 0.9% as the greenback strengthened against all Group-of-10 peers save the Japanese yen. The JPY is the only G-10 currency that’s up against the dollar. NZD and AUD underperform. The yen briefly reversed gains against the dollar in early European trading before resuming its advance; the Japanese currency advanced to a six-month high in the Asian session after an initial bout of stop-loss selling through a key technical level was followed by momentum buying against the dollar and euro. Front-end volatility in the majors is better bid as the new year kicks off, with the yen being at the forefront of traders’ attention. The euro fell by as much as 1.3% to a three-week low of 1.0534 following some weaker than expected German inflation prints. The Australian and New Zealand dollars flipped to gains amid signs that Covid cases in major Chinese cities may have peaked. Positive comments toward Americans from China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang also lifted risk sentiment
In rates, Treasuries traded sharply higher, outperforming core European rates with yields as much as 11bp richer on the day across intermediates vs Friday’s closing levels. US 10-year yields around 3.765%, richer by 11bp on the day and outperforming bunds and gilts by 6bp and 3bp; belly-led gains richen 2s5s30s Treasuries fly by 4.2bp vs Friday’s close while 2s10s curve flattens ~4bp. Gilts and Treasuries yields across the curve decline, led by the 10-year yields, each down about 13bps. Comparative bunds underperform, declining some 8bps. There is no fresh catalyst for the first trading day of the year, as investors look to fade current rate-hike premium priced into front-end. In Europe, Treasury and bund curves bull-flattened while money markets eased Fed and ECB tightening wagers after German regional inflation figures signaled slowing inflation. Fed-dated swaps price Fed peak rate at around 4.95% by June meeting, down from 4.98% at Friday’s close.
In commodities, oil declined under pressure from a stronger dollar, reversing earlier gains. European gas prices slid as a warmer-than-expected start to winter across large parts of the world rapidly have eased fears of a natural gas crisis. Most base metals trade in the green. Spot gold rises roughly $12 to trade near $1,836/oz.
In crypto, bitcoin traded flat, just below $17K. Sam Bankman-Fried is expected on Tuesday to enter a plea of not guilty to criminal charges that he cheated investors and looted billions of dollars at his now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange, according to a source cited by Reuters.
Today’s calendar is relatively quiet with just S&P Global Manufacturing PMI and US Construction spending on deck.
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 futures up 1.1% to 3,902.00
MXAP up 0.6% to 156.64
MXAPJ up 0.3% to 507.14
Nikkei little changed at 26,094.50
Topix down 0.2% to 1,891.71
Hang Seng Index up 1.8% to 20,145.29
Shanghai Composite up 0.9% to 3,116.51
Sensex little changed at 61,227.58
Australia S&P/ASX 200 down 1.3% to 6,946.19
Kospi down 0.3% to 2,218.68
STOXX Europe 600 up 1.8% to 436.53
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.38%
Euro down 1.1% to $1.0549
Brent Futures up 0.5% to $86.30/bbl
Gold spot up 0.9% to $1,840.74
U.S. Dollar Index up 1.03% to 104.59
Top Overnight News from Bloomberg
German unemployment unexpectedly fell in December. Joblessness dropped by 13,000 in December, the Federal Labor Agency said in a statement on Tuesday. All 15 economists surveyed by Bloomberg anticipated an increase. The unemployment rate was 5.5%, also better than expected
British rail workers will walk off the job much of this week, paralyzing transport and adding to the troubles piling up for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government
A warmer-than-expected start to winter across large parts of the world is rapidly easing fears of a natural gas crisis that had been predicted to trigger outages and add to pressure on power bills
Nearly a dozen major Chinese cities are reporting a recovery in subway use, a sign that an ‘exit wave’ of Covid infections may have peaked in some urban areas
Official Chinese data over the weekend showed the decline in manufacturing worsened last month, while activity in the services sector plunged the most since February 2020. Separately, a private survey of businesses by China Beige Book International on Monday suggests the economy contracted in the fourth quarter from a year earlier
Turkey’s consumer prices rose an annual 64.3% in December, down from 84.4% the previous month, according to data released by state statistics agency TurkStat on Tuesday. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg was 66.7%
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
Stocks in Asia were a mixed bag (Japan and New Zealand are away from market). ASX (-1.3%) is the laggard whilst Chinese bourses are on a firmer footing (Shanghai Comp +0.8%, Hang Seng +2.1%). Weekend developments focused around China’s NBS PMIs, with the official NBS manufacturing PMI dropping to 47.0 (exp. 48.0) in December from 48.0 in November, the largest monthly decline since the start of the pandemic in February 2020, and remaining below the neutral 50-mark for the third consecutive month. Reuters notes that the data gives the first glimpse of the manufacturing sector after China removed its COVID restrictions in early December. Meanwhile, the Caixin version of the manufacturing PMI declined to 49.0 in December (exp. 48.8, prev. 49.4). EU Health Commissioner Kyriakides has reportedly contacted China offering variant-adapted EU vaccine donations alongside public health expertise, via FT citing sources which add China has not responded yet. IMF chief Georgieva said one-third of the global economy will be hit by recession this year, and 2023 will likely be tougher for the world economy than the previous 12 months.
Top Asian News
Evergrande Vows Debt Payment After Restructuring Delay
Samsung Veteran Sounds Alarm on Korea Losing Global Chip War
Copper Advances as Chinese Stimulus Eyed After Poor Factory Data
Garuda Shares Fall as Trading Resumes After Debt Restructuring
Marcos Seeks to Move China Ties to ‘Higher Gear’ in Trip
More Flight Delays as Philippine Airport Reels From Glitch
European bourses are firmer across the board, Euro Stoxx 50 +1.4%, as the region’s strong start to 2023 continues. Post-APAC individual developments have been somewhat limited and primarily focused on Chinese PMIs and USD action. Stateside, futures are firmer across the board with the ES back above 3900 ahead of the week’s risk events from Wednesday onwards. TikTok owner ByteDance has cut hundreds of jobs at multiple departments in China, according to SCMP sources; the job reductions came after the CEO told employees in December that the company needs to ‘get fit and beef up the muscle’ to streamline operations.
Top European News
European Stocks Extend Recovery on China as Traders Await Data
UK Stocks Outperform, Catching Up With Europe After Holiday
Genus, Scor, Aroundtown, Royal Unibrew Short Sellers Active
Bulgaria Starts New Bid to Form Coalition as Snap Elections Loom
FX
Dollar erases and reverses losses on positional, fundamental and technical grounds
DXY picks off late December peaks within 103.460-104.820 range, Yen retreats after testing multi-month peaks vs Buck in holiday-thinned trade overnight, USD/JPY back on 130.00 handle from circa 129.51 low
Kiwi and Aussie unable to evade Greenback revival with NZD/USD eyeing 0.6200 and AUD/USD probing 0.6700 vs 0.6360+ and 0.6830+ highs
Euro deflated by sub-consensus German state CPIs ahead of prelim. national data
EUR/USD towards bottom of 1.06830-1.0526 band and Pound unable to benefit from upward revision to final UK manufacturing PMI, Cable closer to 1.1900 than 1.2100
Fixed Income
Bunds boosted by softer than forecast German regional inflation reports as stops are triggered between 133.79-135.55 parameters
Gilts catch up and carry on after the extended UK New Year break as 10 year bond hits 101.66 from 99.97 low and 99.90 prior close
T-note climbs without cash-backing to 113-02 from 112-12+ ahead of final US manufacturing PMI and construction spending data
Commodities
Crude benchmarks have come under modest pressure as the European morning progresses, with the benchmarks currently lower by circa. USD -0.70/bbl having more than retracted a concerted bid that occurred around the European cash equity open.
Spot gold and silver are firmer despite the mentioned USD strength with Chinese data points perhaps proving favourable for the traditional haven. Albeit, the yellow metal has retreated from a USD 1850/oz peak.
Base metals are supported despite the China metrics as the overall tone remains constructive amid a relatively thin docket to start a particularly busy week.
Indian gov’t is reportedly considering selling 2.1mln/T of wheat, with a decision due in the next 10-days, via Reuters citing sources.
Chinese Foreign Ministry says some nations restrictions on Chinese travellers lack scientific basis and are unreasonable; will take corresponding measures accordingly.
US Event Calendar
09:45: Dec. S&P Global US Manufacturing PM, est. 46.2, prior 46.2
10:00: Nov. Construction Spending MoM, est. -0.4%, prior -0.3%
AND NOW NEWSQUAWK (EUROPE/REPORT)
Firmer start to the new year continues, despite soft Chinese NBS PMIs – Newsquawk US Market Open
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 06:34 AM
European bourses are firmer across the board, Euro Stoxx 50 +1.4%, as the region’s strong start to 2023 continues despite soft Chinese NBS PMIs
Stateside, futures are supported with the ES back above 3900 ahead of the week’s risk events from Wednesday onwards.
Dollar erases and reverses losses on positional, fundamental and technical grounds with EUR deflated by sub-consensus German state CPIs
Fixed income boosted by the German inflation metrics, with Gilts outperforming in catch-up trade
Crude benchmarks have come under modest pressure as the European morning progresses, having more than retracted a concerted bid that occurred around the European cash equity open.
Looking ahead, highlights include National German CPI, US Final MFG PMI & Construction Spending.
Or why not try Newsquawk’s squawk box free for 7 days?
EUROPEAN TRADE
EQUITIES
European bourses are firmer across the board, Euro Stoxx 50 +1.4%, as the region’s strong start to 2023 continues.
Post-APAC individual developments have been somewhat limited and primarily focused on Chinese PMIs and USD action.
Stateside, futures are firmer across the board with the ES back above 3900 ahead of the week’s risk events from Wednesday onwards.
TikTok owner ByteDance has cut hundreds of jobs at multiple departments in China, according to SCMP sources; the job reductions came after the CEO told employees in December that the company needs to ‘get fit and beef up the muscle’ to streamline operations.
Dollar erases and reverses losses on positional, fundamental and technical grounds
DXY picks off late December peaks within 103.460-104.820 range, Yen retreats after testing multi-month peaks vs Buck in holiday-thinned trade overnight, USD/JPY back on 130.00 handle from circa 129.51 low
Kiwi and Aussie unable to evade Greenback revival with NZD/USD eyeing 0.6200 and AUD/USD probing 0.6700 vs 0.6360+ and 0.6830+ highs
Euro deflated by sub-consensus German state CPIs ahead of prelim. national data
EUR/USD towards bottom of 1.06830-1.0526 band and Pound unable to benefit from upward revision to final UK manufacturing PMI, Cable closer to 1.1900 than 1.2100
Crude benchmarks have come under modest pressure as the European morning progresses, with the benchmarks currently lower by circa. USD -0.70/bbl having more than retracted a concerted bid that occurred around the European cash equity open.
Spot gold and silver are firmer despite the mentioned USD strength with Chinese data points perhaps proving favourable for the traditional haven. Albeit, the yellow metal has retreated from a USD 1850/oz peak.
Base metals are supported despite the China metrics as the overall tone remains constructive amid a relatively thin docket to start a particularly busy week.
Indian gov’t is reportedly considering selling 2.1mln/T of wheat, with a decision due in the next 10-days, via Reuters citing sources.
Chinese Foreign Ministry says some nations restrictions on Chinese travellers lack scientific basis and are unreasonable; will take corresponding measures accordingly.
German North Rhine-Westphalia State CPI YY (Dec) 8.7% (Prev. 10.4%); MM (Dec) -1.0% (Prev. -0.8%).
The subsequent State CPIs from Germany followed the trend of NRW, ahead of the mainland reading which is expected at 10.7% (prev. 11.3%) for the YY HICP figure.
UK S&P Global/CIPS Manufacturing PMI Final (Dec) 45.3 vs. Exp. 44.7 (Prev. 44.7).
Turkish CPI YY (Dec) 64.27% vs. Exp. 66.53% (Prev. 84.39%); MM (Dec) 1.18% vs. Exp. 2.58% (Prev. 2.88%)
CRYPTO
Sam Bankman-Fried is expected on Tuesday to enter a plea of not guilty to criminal charges that he cheated investors and looted billions of dollars at his now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange, according to a source cited by Reuters.
MACRO RECAP
Stocks in Asia were a mixed bag (Japan and New Zealand are away from market). ASX (-1.3%) is the laggard whilst Chinese bourses are on a firmer footing (Shanghai Comp +0.8%, Hang Seng +2.1%).
Weekend developments focused around China’s NBS PMIs, with the official NBS manufacturing PMI dropping to 47.0 (exp. 48.0) in December from 48.0 in November, the largest monthly decline since the start of the pandemic in February 2020, and remaining below the neutral 50-mark for the third consecutive month. Reuters notes that the data gives the first glimpse of the manufacturing sector after China removed its COVID restrictions in early December. Meanwhile, the Caixin version of the manufacturing PMI declined to 49.0 in December (exp. 48.8, prev. 49.4).
EU Health Commissioner Kyriakides has reportedly contacted China offering variant-adapted EU vaccine donations alongside public health expertise, via FT citing sources which add China has not responded yet. (FT)
IMF chief Georgieva said one-third of the global economy will be hit by recession this year, and 2023 will likely be tougher for the world economy than the previous 12 months.
1.c TUESDAY/ MONDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 27.25 PTS OR 0.88% //Hang Sang CLOSED UP 363.86 PTS OR 1.84% /The Nikkei closed //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED DOWN 1.25% /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN TO 6.9099//OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN DOWN TO 6.9213// /Oil UP TO 79.18 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT AT 85.02 / Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE WEAKER
2 a./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA/
///NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
end
2B JAPAN
Japan/China//Russia
Russia states that a peace treaty talks with Japan is impossible over missiles sent to the Kuril islands just north of Japan
(zerohedge)
Russia Says Peace Treaty Talks With Japan “Impossible” Over “Unfriendly” Ukraine Stance
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 12:08 PM
The Kremlin has announced that Japan’s “anti-Russian course” means that peace treaty talks remain “impossible” at this point, according to the words of a senior Russian foreign ministry official quoted in TASS.
“It is absolutely obvious that it is impossible to discuss the signing of such a document [a peace treaty] with a state that takes openly unfriendly positions and allows itself direct threats against our country,” the official said.Russian warships in a 2020 Navy Day parade, via Reuters.
The two countries have long been locked in a standoff regarding competing territorial claims over islands off northern Japan, disputed since the end of WWII, but which have come under increasing militarization by Russia.
For example, Russian forces have just in the last month deployed new missile defense systems in the disputed Kuril Islands, as part of what looks to be a semi-permanent forward positioning of troops, specifically a mobile coastal defense missiles system on a northernmost island in the chain, Paramushir.
Russia knows the island chain as the Kurils while Japan calls them the Northern Territories. Russia has long been denounced by Japan and its allies in the West for sending military assets there.
The Soviet Union had annexed the islands during the final days of WWII, and the status of ownership of the islands, which Russia de facto currently controls, is still unresolved and as a treaty regarding their status has been subjectof on-again, off-again negotiations with President Putin.
As for the fresh Kremlin statement on Japan’s “unfriendly positions” which make negotiations “impossible” – this appears a reference to Japan joining the Western initiative to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.Source: SCMP
Tokyo has also moved to cut its dependence on Russian oil and coal exports over the past months. In November Russia’s ambassador to Japan lashed out at both Tokyo and Washington while describing that “The unfriendly action from the Japanese side unfortunately worsened our relations greatly. And now the future of our relation is uncertain.”
end
3c CHINA /
CHINA//COVID/
An excellent commentary on how China changed from its zero COVID policy to a zero non covid poloicy
(Su/EpochTimes)
How China Changed Its Zero-COVID Policy To A ‘Zero Non-COVID’ Policy
“Zero non-COVID” is the name that people in China are calling the regime’s new pandemic management policy. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has aggressively pushed the whole country towards an all-COVID-positive state.
China’s annual rubber-stamp legislature is usually in session during the month of March. It is widely expected that the coming session will focus on saving China’s economy because it is on the edge of collapse after the three-year long zero-COVID policy.
Party leader Xi Jinping is clearly willing to pay any price to reopen the country.
Government employees of Chongqing City in Sichuan Province and Zhejiang Province received notices telling them return to their offices to work even if they have tested positive for COVID-19, as long as their symptoms are mild.
The total population of Chongqing City is more than 31 million, and Zhejiang province more than 57 million.
Rumors on the Chinese internet talked about local governments of Chongqing City and Zhejiang Province being criticized by Beijing because these regions were too slow to reach a high percentage of COVID positive patients.
A local official in Shanghai told The Epoch Times on Dec. 27 that his office had received instructions to do whatever it could to push the city into the COVID peak status.
“Let those who are supposed to become positive become positive, and let those who are supposed to die, die,” said Song Wen (pseudonym).
All state-owned media are mute about the current situation in the country, and reports from different government agencies are conflicting.
The Zhejiang Provincial government recorded one million new COVID cases on Dec. 25, while the Chinese national CDC only reported 2,983 new cases in the whole nation for the same day.
The regime announced that on Jan. 8, 2023, China will totally reopen travel in and out of the country, which has triggered concern in countries around the globe. Italian officials reported on Dec. 28 that 50 percent of passengers on two flights from China tested positive for COVID.
Chinese travelers leave the arrival hall of Rome Fiumicino International Airport, near Rome, after being tested for COVID-19 on Dec. 29, 2022. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP via Getty Images)
China, a country with a population of more than 1.4 billion, moved from the zero-COVID policy to a zero non-COVID policy within a month. The sudden change has left health experts worldwide feeling uncertain, because the explosion in COVID cases in China may lead to the whole world being exposed to new variants.
The Western media have widely attributed the sudden policy change to the late November White Paper protests against the zero-COVID policy in China. However, according to World Health Organization (WHO) emergencies chief Michael Ryan, the COVID spike in China was not due to the lifting of the government mandated restrictions.
Before the policy change, “the disease was spreading intensively because I believe the control measures in themselves were not stopping the disease. And I believe China decided strategically that was not the best option anymore,” Ryan said.
The regime’s change from Zero-COVID to a Zero non-COVID policy did not come without signs.
Starting in late September, many Chinese state-owned media openly discussed not overly enforcing the zero-COVID policy.
On Sept. 30, Xi Jinping and all top CCP leaders went to Tiananmen Square for a memorial service on Marty’s Day. Xi and others brought flowers to the People’s Heroes Monument, a stone that was erected to remember those who died for the Party in the past. The pictures of the service show hundreds of people at the event who are not wearing masks.
For a country that has been enforcing the mask wearing principle as a part of its zero-COVID policy, the event was the first clear sign of the regime’s impending policy change.
On Oct. 28, Xi said during his short stay in Henan Province: China’s socialist system was established with the sacrifice of human lives. He said that this sacrifice is also needed in the modern era. Xi visited the province after the CCP’s 20th Congress earlier in the month, in which he was re-elected to a third term as the head of the CCP.
On Nov. 24, a fire started in a high-rise apartment building in Urumqi City that caused many deaths and injuries because the fire escape was locked. The incident later caused widespread protests in many cities. On Dec. 7, Beijing officially lifted its three-year long zero-COVID policy.
It is obvious that the CCP started the policy change quietly as early as in late September. The widespread protests after the Urumqi fire on Nov. 24 became the perfect excuse for the regime to openly adopt a new policy.
The reason for the regime’s policy change is clear: to save the regime’s ruling power at the cost of Chinese people’s lives.
END
CHINA/COVID
This is very odd!! 19 senior experts with respect to academic bodies in China have died last month
They are old but statistically this is very odd
(zerohedge)
19 Senior Experts Of China’s Top Academic Bodies Died In December
Official reports avoid mentioning the cause of these deaths, in what appears to be an attempt to cover up deaths caused by COVID-19.
But Airfinity, a UK-based Health Data Agency, updated data on Dec. 30, saying that roughly 11,000 people in China are dying every day from COVID, bringing the total number of deaths from the disease to 110,000 in December.
According to obituaries published by China’s official media, in the 12 days from Dec.15 to Dec.26, 13 members of CAE passed away due to “illness.” They are fiber optic communication expert Zhao Zisen (91), environmental engineering and environmental water quality expert Tang Hongxiao (91), rare earth metal smelting and separation expert Zhang Guocheng (91), laser technology expert Zhao Yijun (92), inorganic non-metallic materials expert Gu Zhenan (86), civil engineering and structural mechanics expert Long Yuqiu (96), ecologists and foresters Li Wenhua (90), wildlife scientist Ma Jianzhang (86), pediatric surgery specialist Zhang Jinzhe (102), thermal impeller machinery expert Wang Zhongqi (90), architect and professor at Tsinghua University Guan Zhaoye (93), welding specialist for aerospace manufacturing engineering Guan Qiao (87), and petroleum engineering expert Li Qingzhong (92).
A total of six CAS members passed away on Dec. 6, 23, and 25, including Lu Qiang (86), a Chinese expert in automatic control and dynamics of electrical systems and professor at Tsinghua University; Zhang Youshang (97), a Chinese biochemist and molecular biologist; Jiang Hualiang (57), a former director of the Shanghai Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences; Wu Chengkang (93), a high-temperature gas dynamist; Tong Tanjun (88), a medical scientist; and Huang Kezhi (95), a physicist and a professor at Tsinghua University.
Political Factors Introduced to the Selection of Academicians
In 2022, at least 53 members of the CAS and CAE passed away according to incomplete statistics.
CAS and CAE, known as the Two Academies, accumulate scientists and experts that can serve the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and enjoy the privilege of lifetime membership. The selection system for academics inevitably reflects political factors.
Xie Yong, deputy editor-in-chief of Huanghe magazine in north China’s Shanxi Province, published an article in Modern China Study, an international journal, in 2022 discussing the differences between academician systems under CCP rule and under the Republic of China.
In 1948, before the CCP took power, the Republic of China’s way to select members of the Academia Sinica, the current national academy, was based on the sole principle of academic achievement.
Academicians were nominated by major universities, research institutions, professional societies, and respected celebrities of the academic community. Hence, the candidates were all first-class scholars at that time. Even Guo Moruo and Ma Yinchu, who were both pro-Communist in their political stance, were also elected as academicians, Xie said.
In contrast, CAS selecting methods in 1955, by then controlled by the CCP, included political considerations to the selection criteria. For academicians of Social Sciences, candidates were required to uphold socialism and the Communist Party.
At that time, all former members of the Academia Sinica who had not left the mainland in 1949, the year the CCP seized power, basically became members of CAS.
However, Hu Xianfu, a famous biologist at that time, was taken off the list because the CCP authorities thought that his academic views were anti-Soviet.
Hu then suffered physically and mentally during the Cultural Revolution, and finally passed away in 1968 at the age of 75 in a 10-square-meter (about 108 square feet) room.
During the Cultural Revolution, many academicians were branded as reactionary academic authorities and were severely criticized and even persecuted to death.
Other scholars and experts have not escaped various political campaigns and purges by the CCP. After the anti-rightist movement and the Great Leap Forward, 11 academicians were ranked as rightists and stripped of their titles as academic members.
4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS/UK AFFAIRS//
UK
UK announces COVID 19 restrictions on arrivals from China
(Zhang/EpochTimes)
UK Announces COVID-19 Restrictions On China Arrivals
The UK government has announced it will follow other countries by requiring travellers from China to provide a negative COVID-19 test from early next year.
From Jan. 5, people flying from mainland China to England will be asked to take a pre-departure test taken no more than two days prior to departure, the government announced on Dec. 30.
In addition, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will launch new surveillance measures on Jan. 8, which will see a sample of passengers arriving in England from mainland China tested for COVID-19 at the point of their arrival.
The government said the measures have been introduced “due to a lack of comprehensive health information shared by China.”
“If there are improvements in information sharing and greater transparency then temporary measures will be reviewed,” it added.
There are no direct flights from China to Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland, but the government said it would be working with the devolved administrations to ensure measures are implemented across the UK.
UK Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: “As COVID cases in China rise ahead of them reopening their borders next week, it is right for us to take a balanced and precautionary approach by announcing these temporary measures while we assess the data. This allows our world leading scientists at the UK Health Security Agency to gain rapid insight into potential new variants circulating in China.”
He reiterated the government’s position that “the best defence against the virus” remains the vaccine, and urged people to come forward for vaccines or boosters.
Monitoring New Variants
Under the new measures, passengers arriving at London Heathrow Airport will be invited to take part in the study and all positive samples will be sent for sequencing.
“This will further enhance the UK’s ability to identify any new variants which may be circulating in China that could evade the immune response of those already vaccinated or which have the potential to successfully outcompete other variants and spread internationally,” the government said.
Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical advisor at UKHSA, said: “The evidence suggests the recent rise in cases in China is due to low natural immunity and lower vaccine uptake including boosters rather than the emergence of new COVID-19 variants—unlike in the UK where vaccines are maintaining high population protection. But in order to improve our intelligence, we are enhancing our surveillance, in addition to our current routine testing protocol.
“COVID-19 cases continue to rise at home too and it remains important to try to stay at home if you are unwell, wash your hands regularly, try to keep rooms well ventilated, and remember the best protection is to get your booster jab if eligible.”
International Response
A growing list of nations has adopted entry curbs on visitors from China in response to the massive COVID-19 wave sweeping the country on the heels of the Chinese regime’s abrupt lifting of stringent zero-COVID restrictions earlier this month without adequate preparation.
In the first 20 days of December, 248 million people in China likely have become infected, according to an internal meeting memo of China’s top health body that leaked online. The number dwarfs the COVID-19 data and death tally officially released so far, which international experts and evidence on the ground show to be vastly disproportionate to the actual scale of the outbreak.
The U.S. government announced on Dec. 28 that, starting on Jan. 5, all travellers from China will be required to take a COVID-19 test no more than two days before travel and provide a negative test before getting on their flight.
U.S. officials said that the Chinese regime’s lack of transparency during the current outbreak was a key factor for the imposition of the new travel restrictions.
The U.S. entry curbs followed in the footsteps of China’s neighbouring nations and regions such as India, Malaysia, Japan, and Taiwan.
Italy, Spain, and France have also made COVID-19 testing mandatory for people arriving from China.
Italy urged the European Union to follow its lead and test travelers from China, but the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said on Dec. 29 that it considered “screenings and travel measures on travellers from China unjustified.”
Policy Reversal
The UK’s new COVID-19 border measures mark a screeching U-turn on the part of the government, which suggested just two days ago that travellers from China would not be screened for the virus.
A government spokesman said on Dec. 28 that there were “no plans to reintroduce COVID-19 testing or additional requirements for arrivals into the UK,” despite a growing list of nations having adopted entry curbs on visitors from China.
The policy reversal came after some senior Conservative MPs called for a more robust response from the government.
Lord Bethell, who was a health minister during the pandemic, urged ministers to follow the “sensible” approach of Italy by screening travellers for the virus on arrival.
Steve Brine, another former health minister, warned that the National Health Service (NHS) would not be able to cope if travellers from China brought over a new variant.
But Professor Andrew Pollard, chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said that screening China arrivals for COVID-19 is unlikely to prevent new variants from reaching the UK.
“Trying to ban a virus by adjusting what we do with travel has already been shown not to work very well,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme on Dec. 30.
“The important thing is that we have surveillance that when a virus is spreading within our population here in the UK or Europe we are able to pick that up and predict what might happen with the health systems and particularly the more vulnerable in the population.”
END
ITALY/EUROPE
The Meloni government is on a collision course with pro migration countries like Belgium, Germany and France
(Bault/Remix)
After 100,000 Migrants Arrive In 2022, Italy Set To Take Action Against NGO Ferry Boats
Meloni’s government will soon force NGO ships flying flags from countries like France, Germany and Norway to accept the migrants they pick up in the Mediterranean Sea
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni smile as she attends her year-end press conference in Rome, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
The threshold of 100,000 illegal migrants who arrived by sea in Italy this year was crossed on Dec. 21, and the number is not only a symbolic milestone but also serving as a call to action for Italy’s conservative government.
The figure of 100,000 can be compared with the 64,055 on the same date a year ago and the 33,867 arrivals by sea in 2020. This year’s number is the highest since 2017, the year when the left-wing government of Matteo Renzi finally decided to clamp down on the NGOs’ business of transferring illegal immigrants to Europe through passive and sometimes active cooperation with people smugglers, introducing stricter rules on how NGO ships were allowed to operate in the Mediterranean Sea.
Meloni’s government prepares to take action
Starting next year, however, Giorgia Meloni’s government will introduce stricter rules for NGO boats operating in the Mediterranean Sea to prevent them from coordinating their activities with people smugglers and from searching for would-be immigrants near the Libyan shore.
Italy’s council of ministers was to approve on Dec. 28 a draft security decree that will include a new Code of Conduct for those NGOs and accelerate the processing of asylum requests.
One of the big changes the new right-wing government in Rome plans to introduce is that migrants taken on board an NGO boat in an alleged search-and-rescue operation will be required to declare if they intend to file an asylum request once in Europe. If this is the case, the country under whose flag a given ship is sailing will be required to take in the asylum seekers and process their requests.
The new policy change may give governments in Germany, France and other nations second thoughts about funding migrant boats operating on the Mediterranean if they are the ones forced to take these migrants in.
A second major change is that after a search-and-rescue operation, an NGO ship will have to immediately ask for a safe port to disembark the rescued migrants and will have to sail towards their designated port, without waiting for days for further opportunities to “rescue” migrants.
This is meant to put an end to the practice of systematic searching for would-be illegal immigrants, sometimes in coordination with people smugglers, instead of conducting genuine search-and-rescue operations.
The NGOs that will violate the new rules will face administrative sanctions and can eventually have their ships seized by the Italian authorities in case of repeated violations.
The second part of the new “security decree,” which will have to be later approved by Italy’s parliament to become law and remain in effect, will provide for fast processing of asylum requests and more efficient repatriation procedures for those whose requests are rejected.
Vast majority are economic migrants
In 2016, 181,436 illegal immigrants entered Italy. Thanks to the new rules introduced by Interior Minister Marco Minniti in the summer of 2017 and a memorandum of cooperation that was then signed with the Libyan government in Tripoli, the number dropped that year to 119,310.
The lowest number —and the lowest death toll as well — was reached in 2019 after over a year with Matteo Salvini as Italy’s interior minister, with “only” 19,471 migrants arrivals by sea. However, that number included a significant rise observed from September to December, when Salvini’s League was replaced by the center-left Democratic Party as the 5-Star Movement’s coalition partner under Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.
Similarly to what was observed during the previous years, most of the migrants who have crossed the Mediterranean Sea on small fishing boats or bigger ships run by European NGOs this year did not escape war. Out of the 100,000 who had arrived from Jan. 1 to Dec. 21, some 86,000 were from countries at peace. Out of these, over 20,000 were from Egypt, and almost 18,000 were from Tunisia. Bangladesh came third with over 14,000 of its citizens among those who reached Italy through the Mediterranean Sea this year.
None of those countries are at war or known for persecuting their citizens, so it is clear most of those migrants have spent thousands of euros and risked their lives in the hope of a better standard of living in Europe.
It is also worth noting that out of those more than 100,000 new immigrants, over 30,000 have come from Tunisia using small boats and 73,173 sailed from the Libyan coast between Jan. 1 and Dec. 20, of whom 22,216 were turned back by Libyan coast guards. An additional 17,583 sailed from Turkey or Lebanon according to data from Italy’s interior ministry compiled by Il Giornale.
This year, there have been 15 ships active transporting migrants on the Mediterranean belonging to 12 different NGOs, of which only one is Italian. The biggest ships are run by the Franco-Swiss organization Doctors without Borders (MSF) and the “European” organization SOS Méditerranée whose headquarters are in France and which is financed in large part by French local authorities. Both the former’s Geo Barents ship (3,844 migrants disembarked in Italy this year, as of Dec. 20) and the latter’s Ocean Viking (2,387) fly the Norwegian flag. Germany’s Sea Watch came only third this year with its two ships having disembarked 1,825 migrants in Italy, but it will have a newer, bigger ship, the Sea Watch 5, to take even more migrants on board from next year on.
Can Meloni succeed?
The Meloni government’s efforts to control immigration by sea will depend much on bilateral agreements they manage to secure with the countries of origin of those migrants. In addition, it remains to be seen whether Meloni’s government will have the courage to keep migrants under surveillance in closed facilities until their asylum requests are processed and until they are sent back to their home country for those whose requests are rejected.
All of these actions would necessarily set Italy on a collision course with the pro-immigration European elites in Brussels, Paris, and Berlin.
END
GERMANY
Germany is fast catching up to Sweden with migrant problems
(Cody/Remix)
Migrant-Fueled New Year Mayhem Turns Berlin Into Warzone
German youth in migrant-heavy neighborhoods once again turned Berlin and other German cities into war zones on New Year’s Day, but this year, news reports indicate that attacks were especially brutal and targeted rescue services, including ambulance workers.
In Berlin, police and firefighters responded to 3,943 incidents, with 15 firefighters and 18 police officers injured. According to Bild newspaper, there were “particularly bad attacks in the hotspot neighborhoods of Kreuzberg and Neukölln with a high proportion of migrants.”
“There were dozens of attacks,” says Interior Senator Iris Spranger, of the Social Democrats (SPD).
In Kreuzberg, for example, after young men set fire to barricades, firefighters who arrived to extinguish the fire were attacked by 200 hooded men. In Neukölln, which is one of the most multicultural neighborhoods in Germany, 50 perpetrators fired rockets at emergency force services.
In one disturbing scene, a group of men were filmed attacking an ambulance, hurling objects inside the vehicle’s open rear doors.
Other videos show youths hurling rockets at ambulances as they attempt to drive down Berlin streets.
Many of the incidents were caught on film, with the clips featuring burning vehicles, fires in tall apartment blocks, and one police officer being struck by a rocket directly on his helmet, which then burst into flames. One officer and one firefighter suffered from severe injuries and remain hospitalized.
“Our vehicles were fired at with birdshot ammunition,” says Thomas Kirstein of the Berlin Fire Department. Police report that an “illegal bullet bomb” was thrown at a fully occupied police car. In another video, a man shoots out a police car window.
In the ensuing chaos, 103 people (98 men and five women) were arrested. The Berlin police wrote on Twitter, “The violence that our colleagues had to experience on New Year’s Eve is unbearable. It is a task for society as a whole to clearly counteract this. We thank you all for your commitment and wish the injured a speedy recovery.”
Another video showed migrant youth mocking a firefighter as he attempted to give an interview to news outlets.
The next morning, burned-out buses and automobiles could be seen across Berlin.
Georg Pazdersk, former AfD parliamentary group leader in the Berlin House of Representatives, wrote: “When are we finally going to admit that we have a huge problem with young male migrants from archaic societies who don’t want to integrate. Silencing the problem means continuing to promote it.”
Other cities, such as Duisburg, were hit with violence as well, including attacks on rescue services.
“One can only shake one’s head. The political leadership in Berlin takes no responsibility for this disaster. It has sympathy for people who break rules,” Neukölln’s former mayor, Social-Demcrat (SPD) Heinz Buschkowsky, told Bild.
“The lunatics are becoming are appearing more and more. Every festive event is a welcome occasion to attack the authorities…That’s the enemy, and they must be fought.”
“Even experienced emergency personnel are shocked by the extent of the brutality. This must finally come to an end. The state must no longer stand by while chaotic people repeatedly attack police officers and firefighters. These are not trivial offenses, they are crimes,” CDU Berlin chapter leader Kai Wegner told Bild.
Previous years also featured extreme violence, especially in Neukölln.
In a statement released by the AfD, the party wrote, “Anarchy reigned in Berlin on New Year’s Eve. It was a first foretaste of future everyday life in German cities because although the authorities and the press are adamantly silent when it comes to the specific naming of the perpetrators, the countless videos of that night speak volumes: They are young, violent men with a southern appearance who hardly speak German. And not only can they immigrate unhindered, they also get paid for a nice life by the traffic-light government with tax money.
The conclusion that is now being drawn from the riots is as typical as it is naïve: a ban on firecrackers and cameras on the rescue vehicles should fix it. As if the corresponding clientele would be impressed by these measures. There is only one effective remedy against such scenes: finally protect the borders and deport criminal migrants immediately,.”
In 2016, approximately 2,500 German women were raped and sexually assaulted by North African and Middle Eastern men in Cologne and other cities in an event that fueled the rise of the Alternative for Germany party and anti-immigration sentiment in Germany.
end
Germany
Do not read much into this number: seasonal adjustments
Still the rate is 9.6% year over year
(zerohedge)
German CPI Plunges Most Since 2015, But…
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 08:12 AM
Good news, right?
German inflation plunged more than expected in December (EU Harmonized -1.2% MoM vs -0.8% exp) – the biggest MoM drop since Jan 2015.
Obviously, there appears to be a great deal of seasonality in this monthly series.
This slowed the YoY rate of inflation to +9.6% (vs +10.2% exp)
Bloomberg reports that the decline to single digits in the main rate masks an increase in food costs across Germany at the end of 2022, aggravating a squeeze on the poorest families and stoking the risk of a wage-price spiral.
However, the Bundesbank predicts consumer inflation will remain above 7% in 2023 and has cautioned against misinterpreting single data reports as a shift in trend, citing a “great deal of uncertainty.”
Additionally, a strong labor market in Germany, where unemployment unexpectedly dropped in December, supports the ECB’s hawkish argument that extending an historic series of rate-hikes with at least two more half-point steps early this year.
END
Italy/Hungary/EU
Both Italy and Hungary are on Brussels case especially dealing with migrants and Russia
In reality, Budapest says out loud what Germany thinks, argues Polish MEP Ryszard Czarnecki…
However significant Viktor Orbán and Hungary may be, it is Germany whose voice is decisive inside the EU.
The fact that it is Orbán’s conciliatory statements on Russia that are highlighted rather than similar and even more far-reaching statements from Chancellor Scholz, French President Macron, Bulgarian President Radev, or Croatian President Milanovic, is enlightening.
Hungary, just as it has often been very critical of Brussels verbally but very pragmatic inside the European Council, has also verbally demonstrated its differences with Brussels regarding Russia while in the end always agreeing to sanctions imposed on that country.
In fact, Belgium was the last country to raise the veto, but since it is not governed by the right, no one complains.
Hungary has used every debate on sanctions to fight for its own interests, which has often weakened sanctions. However, very similar exceptions have been secured by Italy, which can, for instance, continue to export clothes and shoes to Russia, something Italy secured before Giorgia Meloni came to power flanked by Matteo Salvini and Silvio Berlusconi.
But it is the Meloni government that gets attacked in the Western media for what it might do in the future with regard to Russia, whereas all is quiet about what the previous left-leaning administration already did.
Orbán and Hungary are under the EU’s boot because the leftist majority always attacks the right, whereas it deliberately stays silent on the pro-Moscow policies that had been pursued by left and liberal-leaning governments.
It is hypocritical and an example of schizophrenia to criticize Hungary for sins that have been and still are being committed by Western governments.
end
5.UKRAINE RUSSIA//
RUSSIA/UKRAINE
Mike Whitney
a must read…Whitney explains perfectly what is going on in the Russian-Ukrainian war
“The Russians have decided there is no way to negotiate an end to this. No one will negotiate in good faith; therefore we must crush the enemy. And that’s what’s coming.” Colonel Douglas MacGregor (9:35 minute)
“Strictly speaking, we haven’t started anything yet.” Vladimir Putin
The war in Ukraine is not going to end in a negotiated settlement. The Russians have already made it clear that they don’t trust the United States, so they’re not going to waste their time in a pointless gabfest. What the Russians are going to do is pursue the only option that is available to them: They are going to obliterate the Ukrainian Army, reduce a large part of the country to rubble, and force the political leadership to comply with their security demands. It’s a bloody and wasteful course of action, but there’s really no other option. Putin is not going to allow NATO to place its hostile army and missile sites on Russia’s border. He’s going to defend his country as best as he can by proactively eliminating emerging threats in Ukraine. This is why Putin has called up an additional 300,000 reservists to serve in Ukraine; because the Russians are committed to defeating the Ukrainian army and bringing the war to a swift end. Here’s a brief recap from Colonel Douglas MacGregor:
Washington’s proxy war with Russia is the result of a carefully constructed plan to embroil Russia in conflict with its Ukrainian neighbor. From the moment that President Putin indicated that his government would not tolerate a NATO military presence on Russia’s doorstep in Ukraine, Washington sought to expedite Ukraine’s development into a regional military power hostile to Russia. The Maidan coup allowed Washington’s agents in Kiev to install a government that would cooperate with this project. PM Merkel’s recent admission that she and her European colleagues sought to exploit the Minsk Accords to buy time for the military building in Ukraine confirms the tragic truth of this matter.” (“US Colonel explains America’s role in provoking Russia-Ukraine conflict“, Lifesite)
This is an excellent summary of the events leading up to the present day although we should spend a bit more time on Angela Merkel’s comments. What Merkel actually said in her interview with Die Zeit was the following:
“The 2014 Minsk Agreement was an attempt to buy time for Ukraine. Ukraine used this time to become stronger, as you can see today.” According to the ex-Chancellor, “it was clear for everyone” that the conflict was suspended and the problem was not resolved, “but it was exactly what gave Ukraine the priceless time.” (Tass News Agency)
Merkel has been sharply criticized for admitting that she and the other western leaders deliberately deceived Russia about their true intentions vis a vis Minsk. The fact is, they had no intention of pressuring Ukraine to comply with the terms of the treaty and they knew it from the very beginning.What we know for a fact is that neither Merkel nor her allies were ever interested in peace. Second, we now know that they maintained the fraud for 7 years before she spilled the beans and admitted what they were really up-to. And finally, we now know from Merkel’s comments that Washington’s strategic objective was the opposite of the Minsk agreement. The real goal was to create a heavily-militarized Ukraine that would prosecute Washington’s proxy-war on Russia. That was the primary objective, war on Russia.
So, why would Putin even consider negotiating with people like that; people who just lied-to-his-face for 7 years while they flooded the country with weapons that would be used to kill Russian servicemen?
And what was the objective that compelled Merkel and her Washington colleagues to lie?
They wanted a war, which is the same reason why Boris Johnson put the kibosh on an agreement that Zelensky had negotiated with Moscow in March. Johnson sabotaged the deal because Washington wanted a war. It’s that simple.
But there is a price to pay for lying, and that price comes in the form of distrust, which is the pernicious erosion of confidence that makes it impossible to resolve issues of mutual concern. Russia’s deputy chair of the national Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, expressed his views on the matter just this week in the bitterest terms. He said:
The behavior of Washington and others this year “is the last warning to all nations: there can be no business with the Anglo-Saxon world [because] it is a thief, a swindler, a card-sharp that could do anything…. From now on we will do without them until a new generation of sensible politicians comes to power… There is nobody in the West we could deal with about anything for any reason.” (Ex-Russian President outlines timeline for reconciliation with the West, RT)
Of course, the Washington warhawks will not be bothered by the prospect of severed relations with Russia, in fact they probably welcome it. But the same cannot be said for Europe. Europe is going to regret that it tied itself to Washington’s anvil and threw itself into the sea. Sometime in the near future –when they finally realize that their economic survival is inextricably linked to access to cheap fossil fuel– EU leaders will change course and implement a policy that ensures their own prosperity. They will withdraw from NATO’s ‘forever war’ and join the ranks of civilized nations seeking a secure and economically-integrated future. We expect that even NordStream, which was destroyed in the greatest act of industrial sabotage in the modern era, will be reconnected establishing the main energy artery that binds Russia to the EU in the world’s biggest free trade zone. Eventually, common sense will prevail and Europe will emerge from the slump brought on by its alliance with Washington. But, first, the conflagration between Russia and the West must play out in Ukraine, and the “Guarantor of Global Security” must be replaced by the one nation willing to fight Goliath on his own terms in a winner-take-all contest. Ukraine is shaping up to be the decisive battle in the war against the “rules-based system”, a war in which the United States is going to use ‘every trick in the book’ to maintain its grip on power. Check out this short blurb from political analyst John Mearsheimer who explains the means by which the US has preserved its dominant role in the global order:
“You cannot underestimate how ruthless the United States is. This is all covered-up in the textbooks and the classes that we take growing up because it’s all part of nationalism. Nationalism is all about creating myths about how wonderful your country is. It’s America right or wrong; we never do anything wrong. (But) if you really look at the way the United States has operated over time, its’ really amazing how ruthless we’ve been. And the British, the same is true of them as well But we cover it up. So, I’m just saying, if you are Ukraine and you’re living next to a powerful state like Russia Or you’re Cuba and you’re living next to a powerful state like the United States, you should be very, very careful because this is like sleeping in bed with an elephant. If that elephant rolls over on top of you, you’re dead. You’ve got to be very careful. Am I happy about the fact that this is the way the world works? No, I’m not. But it is the way the world works for better or worse.” (John Mearsheimer, “How the World Works“, You Tube; 1 minute)
Bottom line: The prospects for peace in Ukraine are zilch. The US foreign policy establishment has decided that the only way it can reverse America’s accelerating decline is through direct military confrontation. The war is Ukraine is the first manifestation of that decision. On the other hand, Russia no longer puts any stock in negotiations with the West, because western leaders cannot be trusted to honor their commitments or fulfill their treaty obligations. The irreconcilable differences of the two main parties makes escalation inevitable. Absent a partner that can be trusted, Putin has just one option for resolving the conflict: Overwhelming military force. That’s why he called up 300,000 reservists to serve in Ukraine, and that’s why he’ll call up 300,000 more if they are needed. Putin realizes that the only way forward is by lowering-the-boom quickly and imposing his own settlement on the vanquished. This is exactly what Mearsheimer predicted just weeks ago when he said this:
“The Russians are not going to roll over and play dead. In fact, what the Russians are going to do is crush the Ukrainians. They are going to bring out the big guns. They are going to turn places like Kiev, and other cities in Ukraine into rubble. They’re going to do Fallujas, they’re going to do Mosuls, they’re going to do Groznys …. When a great power feels threatened…the Russians are going to pull out all stops in Ukraine to make sure they win. …You want to understand that what we are talking about doing here, is backing a nuclear-armed great power– that sees what’s happening as an existential threat– into a corner. This is really dangerous.” (John Mearsheimer, Twitter)
So, if we know that Russia is going to try to end the war by defeating the Ukrainian Army, then what should we expect in the near future?
That’s a question that has been answered by a number of analysts who have followed the war closely from the very beginning. We will provide a few paragraphs from each of them in a minute, but first, here’s a recap of the meetings that took place last week that suggest a major Russian offensive may be just weeks away. The excerpt is from an article at Consortium News by Patrick Lawrence:
Alexander Mercouris… recently listed the exceptional series of meetings Putin has held over the past couple of weeks with the entire…. military and national security establishment. In Moscow, the Russian leader met with all of his top military commanders and national security officials (including) Sergei Surovikan, the general he put in charge of the Ukrainian operation….
Putin subsequently flew to Minsk with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for exchanges with the Belarus political and military leadership. Then it was onward to meet with the leaders of the two republics, Donetsk and Lugansk, that were incorporated via referenda into the Russian Federation last autumn.
It is impossible to avoid concluding that these back-to-back meetings, barely covered in the Western press, portend a new, near- or medium-term military initiative in Ukraine. As Mercouris put it, “Something very big is on the way.”
Among the most interesting encounters in all of this took place in Beijing last week, when Dmitry Medvedev, currently deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council and long close to Putin, had talks with Xi Jinping….
At some point in the not-distant future, the war of hollow rhetoric in behalf of imperial hubris will weaken and drift toward collapse. This degree of Surreal detachment from reality simply cannot be sustained indefinitely — not in the face of a new Russian initiative, whatever the form it turns out to take.” (PATRICK LAWRENCE: “A War of Rhetoric & Reality“, Consortium News)
Is Lawrence, right? Is “something big on the way?
It certainly looks like it. In the space below I have transcribed quotes from recent videos with Colonel MacGregor and Alexander Mercouris, two of the best and most reliable analysts of the war in Ukraine. Both agree that a Russian “winter offensive” will take place in the near future, and both agree on the strategic objectives of the operation. Here’s a clip from MacGregor:
“The American people don’t really understand that the Ukrainian Army in the Donbas is on the verge of collapse. They’ve taken hundreds of thousands of casualties… (and) they’re closing in on one hundred and fifty thousand dead. The 93rd Ukrainian Army Brigade was just withdrawn from Bahkmut– which has been turned into a Ukrainian bloodbath by the Russians– and they left after suffering 70 percent casualties. For them, that means that out of 4,000 men… they pulled out with about 1,200 men. That is a catastrophe, but that is what’s really happening. And when the Russians finally launch their offensive, Americans are going to watch this entire house of cards collapse. Then the only question is, will someone finally stand up and put an end to this utterly false narrative.” (“Colonel Douglas MacGregor”, Real America, Rumble; 8:45 min)
And here’s more MacGregor:
It is looking more and more like the Russians would like to complete their task in Donbas first. They want to eliminate all the Ukrainian forces that are in the Donbas… Remember, this was always an economy-of-force measure. It was designed to grind up as many Ukrainians as possible at the lowest possible cost to the Russians. That’s what’s been going on in southern Ukraine (and) it continues. It has worked brilliantly. And Surovikin, the theatre commander, has said that will continue until he’s ready to launch his offensive. When the offensive is launched, it will be a very different battle. But the interesting thing is, that the Ukrainians have taken so many casualties in the South, we are beginning to hear reports that they are on the verge of collapse. And that’s why we’re hearing about teenage boys age 14 or 15 pressed into service. …and we’re getting videos from Ukrainian soldiers saying,”The people in Kiev had better hope that the Russians get to them before we do… because we’ll kill them.” They are talking about people in the government, because they see no evidence that Zelensky’s government …gives a damn about them. They are running out of food and clothes; they are freezing, they are taking heavy casualties, and they are being driven back.” (“Will Ukraine have enough Fire Power?”, Col MacGregor, Judging Freedom, You Tube; 17:35 min)
Both MacGregor and Mercouris appear to agree that the Russian strategy involves “grinding down” the enemy, (killing as many Ukrainian troops as possible) consolidating Russian gains while expanding their control over areas in the east and along the Black Sea, and, eventually, partitioning of Ukraine into 2 separate entities; a “dysfunctional rump state” in the west, and an industrialized, prosperous state in the east. Here’s Alexander Mercouris from a recent update on You Tube:
My strong impression is that ...the focus of the Russian winter offensive –which is indeed coming– will be on ending the battle in Donbas, breaking Ukrainian resistance in Donbas, clearing Ukrainian forces from the Donetsk People’s Republic. It does not look to me as if the Russians are planning some great advance on Kiev or on western Ukraine. That is not what these comments of General Gerasimov say. …the Russians are focusing on Donetsk… It’s ‘low risk’ but it is highly-effective. It is grinding down the Ukrainian Army exactly as General Surovikin said. It is weakening Ukraine’s future ability to continue the war and — at the same time– it fulfills Russia’s primary mission which, from the start, has been the liberation of Donbas.
Now, it is not going to end there. Other Russian officials have been saying that in 2023, we should see the recapture of Kherson region … and there will most surely be other Russian advances in other places. But the main battle was, and remains, Donbas. Once that battle is won, once Ukrainian resistance is broken, the Ukrainian army will be fatally weakened… which means that Ukraine will not only have lost its most heavily industrialized region, and its most heavily fortified zone. It will also mean the Russians will have unimpeded access all the way to the east bank of the Dnieper River. At that point, they will be in a position to cut Ukraine in half. This seems logical to me and it seems clearly to me that this is the Russian plan. They are not making a secret of it, but they are keeping people on-their-toes and guessing about the troops that are in Belarus. But I suspect the primary purpose of those forces is to pin Ukrainian soldiers down …around Kiev from a possible Russian offensive there, and to counter the very big buildup of Polish troops. So that is what Gerasimov has been saying.” (“Alexander Mercouris on Ukraine”, You Tube; 31:35 min)
While no one can predict the future with absolute certainly, it seems that both MacGregor and Mercouris have a good-enough grip on the facts that their scenario cannot be dismissed out-of-hand. In fact, the present trajectory of the conflict suggests that their predictions are probably “dead on”. In any event, we won’t have to wait long to find out. Temperatures are dropping fast across Ukraine which allows for the unencumbered movement of tanks and armored vehicles. Russia’s winter offensive is probably just weeks away.
end
Explosions in one of the 4 breakaway provinces Zaporizhia
Monday morning.
Breaking News 24/7 on Twitter: “#BREAKING: Explosions in occupied #Berdiansk, #Zaporizhia region. https://t.co/OSKUeoWTBV” / Twitter
This is not good: Russia continues to join forces with Tehran as they now supply 24 advanced Sukhol fighter jets
(zerohedge)
Russia To Supply Iran With 24 Advanced Sukhoi Fighter Jets
FRIDAY, DEC 30, 2022 – 09:00 PM
Starting a week ago reports began emerging in Middle East regional media, including in both Iranian and Israeli news sources, that Russia will soon provide Islamic Republic with dozens of Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets. Israeli reports are even citing “Western intelligence officials” in making the claim.
Iranian state Tasnimwrote days ago that “Iran will soon receive 24 of the fourth-generation twin-engine, super-maneuverable fighter jets that are primarily used for air superiority missions,” in what seems to be some level of confirmation.
The state-run outlet noted that Iran hasn’t been able to acquire any new aircraft from outside countries in years, and the last time jets were transferred from Russia was in the 1990’s.
The Times of Israel also recently reported the following, citing the country’s Channel 12 network:
The report by Channel 12 said the deal could include as many as 24 jets that were originally intended for Egypt, in a deal that the United States thwarted.
This left Moscow looking for a new potential buyer, which it has reportedly found in Tehran. The report comes after Iranian media said in September that Tehran was weighing such a purchase.
Intelligence indicated that Iranian pilots were already using the jets for training, the report said, without elaborating.
In all of these reports, the sourcing is anonymous and thus somewhat dubious, given also even Iranian state media is citing “reports say…”. However, the fact that state media is running headlines about acquiring the Sukhoi Su-35s is hugely significant nonetheless.
It could mean that Tehran and Moscow are at least in the early phases of negotiating such a transfer. This would indicate that their deepened military ties which has been on display throughout the Ukraine war, based largely on Iran controversially supplying its ‘Kamikaze’ drones which have been in use by the Russian army in Ukraine, is going the other way too as far as the defense supply chain.
On Thursday, Forbes asked the qestion: who will operate these sophisticated and advanced jets if they are acquired? Likely there would be a significant Russian-overseen training program…
The IRGC-AF has never operated more advanced aircraft than those vintage Soviet-era Su-22 Fitter or Su-25 Frogfoot attack planes — ex-Iraqi warplanes that fled from Operation Desert Storm to Iran in 1991, which Tehran promptly confiscated. The IRGC-AF returned the Su-25s to Iraq in mid-2014 to help Baghdad fend off the threat posed by the rampaging Islamic State (ISIS) group.
Forbes further reviews of Iran’s ageing air force planes: “Aside from procuring Chengdu F-7 fighters from China during the 1980s, post-1979 Iran only made one significant fighter procurement, in 1990 when it bought MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter jets and Su-24 Fencer bombers for the IRIAF from the Soviet Union.”
Thus any advanced fighter transfer could see the rare instance of Russian advisers training IRGC pilots. Meanwhile, the US and UK have continued to ratchet up sanctions on Iran’s defense manufacturing sector, especially in light of the drone supplies which appear to be ongoing in relation to the war in Ukraine.
end
UKRAINE/RUSSIA/USA/POLAND
Hal Turner Radio Show – 15,000 Active-Duty Troops from Poland on the front lines in Ukraine!
Robert Hryniak
Fri, Dec 30, 6:03 PM (15 hours ago)
to
Once this widens it will be difficult to put the war genie back in bottle. While hesitant to raze the Ukraine, Poland may well find itself an exception to be made a example of.
Sometimes one has to ponder stupidity and arrogance of governments. Recently, i wrote about the introduction of Penicillin ( a new radar system designed to ID and send coordinates to artillery in under 2 minutes for destruction) and now you are seeing the result. It is the same with all the money being sent to the Ukraine, which in part is laundered but none of it will ever be paid back as they simply will be a collapsed failed nation. Not that they are not a failed nation now. How does the wisdom of sending money into such a pit make sense? After all it is money being printed. Complete stupidity bound to hurt all who cast money away so easily, while their own citizens suffer. And you call this governance?
A crash dummy in charge of a ship of fools is bound to run aground. Do not think the 300 Russians killed in their beds today were not US targeted. We wait for the Russian response. There is no way the attack would have come otherwise and it makes for the greatest one day loss so far away from front lines.
Huge Death Toll After US-Supplied Himars Leveled Russian Barracks In Donetsk, Possibly Hundreds Killed
MONDAY, JAN 02, 2023 – 02:15 PM
Russian forces have just suffered what may be their single biggest loss of the war in an attack, after a Ukrainian strike killed multiple dozens, or possibly hundreds, of newly mobilized troops in the east of the country. Moscow is now pointing to a US role in the devastating attack.
The defense ministry confirmed that 63 Russian troops died in the blast, saying that a wave of HIMARS rockets delivering “high-explosive warheads” struck the facility that housed the troops.
A statement by top Russian commanders carried in state-run TASS reads: “The Kiev regime delivered a strike firing six projectiles from the US-made HIMARS multiple rocket launcher on a Russian unit near Makeyevka in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR). The attack left 63 Russian service members killed.”
Though only reveled for the first time Monday, the strike reportedly took place soon after midnight on Sunday, New Year’s Day. Some Russian sources are suggesting an ammunition depot was next to the targeted facility, which likely resulted in a deadlier, expanded blast.
Western media, including CNN and Reuters, have acknowledged being unable to independently verify the casualty numbers, however, some notable pro-Russian separatist officials have suggested it is more that the 63 dead officially cited by the Kremlin:
Igor Girkin, a former Federal Security Service officer who helped Russia annex the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and then organize pro-Russian separatist forces in eastern Ukraine, said on Monday that “the number of dead and wounded runs into many hundreds.”
That same official is one among several Russian military commentators who lashed out at top commanders for the apparent lack of protection for the hundreds of personnel staying in a small area. Russian sources say at least two of the inbound missiles among the six fired by the Ukrainians were shot down by anti-air defenses.
Girkinsaid on Telegram: “This is not the only such [extremely dense] deployment of personnel and equipment in the destruction zone of HIMARS missiles,” also in reference to reports of ammunition stored dangerously close.
Other pundits are saying troops’ use of cellular phones or other possible open source communications could have tipped off the Ukrainians as to the presence and location of the base, given the potential for intercepted signals…
Additionally, Reuters references the following source from the Russian side:
One Russian pro-war military blogger known as Rybar, who has more than one million subscribers on the Telegram messaging app, said more than 100 people had been wounded in the strike and that rubble was still being cleared.
Rybar said there had been about 600 people in the building, and that ammunition had been stored in the same facility.
And The Telegraph points out this could surpass the prior single most disastrous event from early on in the invasion:
Ukraine estimated the death toll at “about 400”, with some pro-Russian separatists in the region agreeing “hundreds” had died. The Kremlin, in a rare admission, said 63 men had been killed – far outweighing the official death toll from the sinking of the flagship Moskva.
Beyond the issue of the disputed death toll, another question is whether the Ukrainians had targeting assistance from US intelligence.
Interestingly, Ukraine’s defense ministry on the same day as the attack posted footage of what appears to beHimars system launching a strike in the dark.
In the past months, mainstream US press has increasingly acknowledged that the Ukrainians are receiving direct battlefield targeting help, based on the admissions of anonymous Pentagon and US intelligence officials.
However, there’s currently no confirmation or clear evidence that US-supplied HIMARS were indeed used, as the Russians allege. But the fact that the facility struck was significantly behind the front lines may point to a longer range weapon being used, such as has been supplied by Western powers. Ukraine also seems to now be openly boasting of its US-supplied capabilities in the wake of the mass casualty attack on Makiivka.
end
Is The United States Poised To Lose The Second Cold War? – A Son of the New American Revolution
Inbox
Robert Hryniak
Jan 1, 2023, 5:47 PM (17 hours ago)
to
Sometimes, one has to look far into the horizon to see what comes. Yes, the WEF is finished! History will write 2022 was their high point. Because with waning US hegemony the globalist plan to use America as the battering ram against Russia first and then China has shown itself to be a hollow threat. Unless the ship of fools led by crash dummy wants a nuclear exchange in which case they will lose regardless, and more than their heads. And the majority of the world will not wept. Countries like Switzerland have already awakened to the ills of unchecked immigration and have started to revolt by limiting such foolishness to the point of being willing to severe relationships and treaties. They will not be the last as nations seek to survive. Even in places like Florida, real money is starting to think about moving. When billionaires tell you they are leaving, and leaving behind their over priced mansions, one should take note. Yes, there will be a rest within the next decade as a new order comes into being as various players race for positions on the board from Indonesia to India to China and of course Russia. This in turn causes a fierce realignment of nations and interest. Already, it is clear that money is repositioning itself to ride out the storms coming because of the change of hegemony. The fact is that Western arms have failed to perform against Russia. And contrary to propaganda by western media the rest of the world sees through the fog being fed to the West. Choices are simple as to what train one wants to board just as it is practicable how the world will change as a result. As we enter this new year, forget the the past, keep the memories and plan for the future realities that will come even if we deny their occurrence.
Russian Military Says Victory “Inevitable” In New Year Message
SATURDAY, DEC 31, 2022 – 06:05 PM
A New Year message issued by the Russian defense ministry declared that it sees victory in Ukraine as “inevitable” – even after the Russian ground forces’ advance in the east in south has appeared stalled for months, and as aerial forces take aim at the national power grid across Ukrainian cities.
“In the coming year, I want to wish everyone good health, fortitude, reliable and devoted comrades… Our victory, like the New Year, is inevitable,” Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in a Saturday video address soon before Russia rings in the new year.Sputnik via AP
The military campaign is now it its 11th month, and will reach one full year on Feb.24. Shoigu explained that 2022 included times that “we all faced serious trials” and that the New Year has come during a “difficult military-political situation.”
“The outgoing year will forever enter the military chronicle of the Fatherland, filled with your immortal deeds, selfless courage and heroism in the fight against neo-Nazism and terrorism,” Shoigu said.
“We will always remember our comrades who sacrificed themselves while performing combat missions in the name of saving civilians from genocide and violence only for the right to speak Russian,” he added. In mentioning the “right to speak Russian” – he was referencing a crackdown on Russian culture and language, which has included recent moves to push forward new laws, by the Zelensky government which Moscow had complained about even before the war.
Two weeks ago, Russia admitted to just 5,937 military deaths in Ukraine, despite some Western estimates putting the figure as high as 100,000. Estimates of Ukrainian troop deaths are also difficult to assess accurately.
Recently, the US military said it estimates that some 200,000 have been killed on both sides. Citing the US Joint Chiefs chairman, a November report gave the following grim tally and breakdown:
The most senior US general estimates that around 100,000 Russian and 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or injured in the war in Ukraine.
Gen Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, also suggested that around 40,000 civilians had died after being caught up in the conflict.
The estimates are the highest offered yet by a Western official.
This past week, the United Nations updated its numbers of civilian casualties over the course of the war since Feb.2022. An OHCHR press release cited a total number of 17,831 civilian casualties in Ukraine, including 6,884 killed and 10,947 injured.
For now the conflict remains essentially stalemated, with Russia exercising clear air superiority given it has of late been ramping up airstrikes against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure – but with Ukraine forces receiving more and more powerful, longer-range weapons from the West. The US says Patriot anti-air missiles are en route, but these are expected to take six months minimum to go operational in the country.
END
RUSSIA/IRAN/TURKEY
Turkey signs an agreement with Syria to vacate Syria. It seems that Turkey will join forces with Russia and Iran.
This will be very troublesome for Israel
Kevin’s letter to me:
The 2022 Red Line Agreement – Turkey and NATO are like oil and water under the bridge
Inbox
Kevin Wallien
5:11 PM (22 minutes ago)
to me
Their seems to be a new Red Line Agreement in the works that will put the west in a true cold war unable to afford or access fuel. Turkey and NATO are like oil and water under the bridge.
Following the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907, in which the two great powers consisting of US and Russia, respective zones of influence in Iran were drawn, there were further efforts to settle the border issue to the satisfaction of both parties and to end the fighting between the Ottomans and the Iranians.
In July, 1913, Britain and Iran signed a new protocol giving the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (51% owned by British government) anchorage rights at new and enlarged anchorage facilities off Ḵorramšahr (Moḥammara), in the Šaṭṭ al-ʿArab aka the large oil field Masjed Soleiman, Iran. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) was a British company founded in 1909 following the discovery of a large oil field in Masjed Soleiman, Persia (Iran). The British government purchased 51% of the company in 1914, gaining a controlling number of shares, effectively nationalizing the company. Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) was the first company to extract petroleum from Iran and it was 51% owned by British Government.
But what of Turkey and its oil exploration and production Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) formed in 1912.
The TPC was formed as a joint venture between Royal Dutch/Shell, the Deutsche Bank, and the Turkish National Bank, in order to promote oil exploration and production within the Ottoman Empire. In March 1914, however, the British Government, which controlled the Turkish National Bank, managed to have its shares within the TPC transferred to the Anglo-Persian Oil Company. The following June, the Ottoman Grand Vizier promised an oil concession to the reconstituted TPC to develop oil fields within the Ottoman provinces of Baghdad and Mosul. Then the 1928 Group Agreement (better known as the “Red Line” Agreement) was a deal struck between several American, British, and French oil companies concerning the oil resources within territories that formerly comprised the Ottoman Empire within the Middle East. Coup d’état! Persian and Turkish Oil (in modern day Iraq) were now 95% controlled by British, American, France, and Dutch. On July 31, 1928, following the discovery of an immense oil field in Iraq and TPC negotiating regarding the division of crude oil output between the partners, representatives from the Anglo-Persian, Royal Dutch/Shell, the Compagnie Française des Pétroles (CFP, later Total), and the U.S. based Near East Development Corporation signed the Red Line Agreement in Ostend, Belgium. Under the terms of the agreement, each of the four parties received a 23.75% share of all the crude oil produced by TPC, which was allowed to operate anywhere in the Middle East between the Suez Canal and Iran, with the exception of Kuwait. Coup d’état! Persian and Turkish Oil (in modern day Iraq) were now 95% controlled by British, American, France, and Dutch. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/red-line
Fast forward to 2020 –
On 3 January 2020, Qasem Soleimani, an Iranian major general, was killed by a U.S. drone strike at Baghdad International Airport. The drone targeted and killed Soleimani while he was on his way to meet Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi in Baghdad. Soleimani was commander of the Quds Force, one of five branches of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and was considered the second most powerful person in Iran, subordinate to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. This couldn’t be a more belligerent message from the west that Iran’s oil and specifically the field in Masjed Soleiman (originally 51% owned by British government) was going to be taken back by the west at the end of the day.
Fast forward to December 31, 2022 – Türkiye agrees to withdraw troops from Syria following Moscow talks – media
Erdogan the conqueror soon to make Israel’s empire under BB Netanyahu go the way Alexander the Great’s empire went in 1453 as he teams up with Russia, Iran, and Syria.
end
ISRAEL/SYRIA
Netanyahu continues to throw his weight around as Israel strikes the Damascus airport. Syria’s economic sture is in chaos caused by USA sanctions and constant Israel bombing
(zerohedge)
Israeli Strikes Shut Down Damascus Airport Days After Netanyahu Govt Sworn In
MONDAY, JAN 02, 2023 – 09:55 AM
A major Israeli attack on the Syrian capital has killed two soldiers and wounded two others, and has put the country’s main international airport temporarily out of commission.
The early Monday morning attack reportedly involved Israeli jets firing two missiles at Damascus International Airport, causing significant enough to damage to force the airport’s closure while it undergoes repairs. The timing is interesting given the new Netanyahu government was just sworn-in at the end of last week, and is filled with hardline anti-Iran hawks who will likely escalate the proxy war across the region.Damascus airport, DW/picture alliance
“It caused material damage in a nearby area, the army said, without giving further details,” the Associated Press reports. “Syria’s Ministry of Transport said work to repair the damage began immediately and later Monday, some flights resumed while work in other parts of the airport continued.”
It’s the second time in a year that Damascus International Airport has suffered closure due to Israeli attack, and it’s unclear if Syria’s anti-air defense measures, part of which has been supplied by Russia, deployed in response.
The AP further reviews that typically the Israeli media and official explanation is ostensibly that Israel is targeting Iranian and Hezbollah arms shipments and personnel inside Syria.
“Israel has targeted airports and ports in government-held parts of Syria in an apparent attempt to prevent arms shipments from Iran to militant groups backed by Tehran, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah,” AP writes.
In the north, Israel has also targeted Aleppo International Airport in the recent past, with multiple strikes which had put it out of operation temporarily in September.
The United Nations has at times condemned the airport attacks, for example last June highlighting that airstrikes had forced the suspension of vital humanitarian aid deliveries. A statement had called the halted aid flights an “extremely serious” matter.
More broadly, the Syrian population continues to suffer the strangulation effects of US-led sanctions, with lack of fuel, heating gas, and food – and amid a collapsed post-war economy, a cratering currency and runaway inflation.
end
Lebanon/ISRAEL/HEZBOLLAH
Either COVID or a stroke
(zerohedge)
Flu Or Stroke? Hezbollah Leader’s Hospitalization Sets Off Intense Speculation
MONDAY, JAN 02, 2023 – 04:35 PM
Regional media is reporting that Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is in a Beirut hospital and said to be in serious condition, setting off intense speculation over the fate and future leadership of the powerful Lebanese Shia paramilitary group with ties to Iran.
Israeli media is claiming that Nasrallah suffered a stroke after an important Friday speech was unexpectedly canceled. Nasrallah is among the most powerful and prominent leaders in Lebanon and throughout the region, seen as head of an Iran-backed terror organization by Israel, the US, and much of the West. However, he’s hailed as a “hero” by many from Syria to Iraq to Iran as part of the ‘axis of resistance’.
For years, Israeli intelligence has sought to track his whereabouts in hopes of initiating a kill or capture mission, but the Hezbollah leader is known for his secrecy and ability to evade Israeli eavesdropping measures, and also rarely does in-person speeches – instead appearing to supporters via televised feed from secret locations.
As The Jerusalem Post notes, Hezbollah officials are denying that a stroke hospitalized Nasrallah, instead saying its a bad bout of the Flu. “The reports came after Nasrallah canceled a planned Friday speech, with the Lebanese terrorist organization announcing through its affiliated media he had fallen ill with influenza and was unable to speak well,” according to the report.
“Saudi journalist Hussein al-Gawi contradicted Hezbollah’s statement, claiming that Nasrallah indeed suffered a second stroke instead of falling ill as was reported,” Jerusalem Post continues. “The Hezbollah leader was reportedly hospitalized at the Great Prophet Hospital in Beirut.”
This led to reports that he’s unconscious and in intensive care, but this was shot down by his son as “untrue”.
Since emerging as head of Hezbollah in the early 1990’s, Nasrallah’s state of health has long been subject of intense speculation and rumors, especially when he abruptly cancels a speech or disappears from the public eye – much like the kind of close scrutiny that North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un receives.
It’s well know that Israeli and US intelligence closely monitors Hezbollah’s media arm for any indicators that would impact the military readiness and leadership of the organization. This is especially as Israel sees Hezbollah as its mostimmediate ‘enemy #1’ on the Jewish state’s northern border.
END
Morocco/China
Now Morocco bans all arrivals from China amid soaring COVID cases in China. China angry that many countries are banning Chinese form entering their countries
(zerohedge)
Morocco Bans All Arrivals From China Until Further Notice Amid Soaring COVID Cases
Morocco has imposed an entry ban on all travelers from China due to the soaring COVID-19 infection rate in the country following Beijing’s abrupt u-turn on its strict zero-COVID policy.
Morocco’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement that the entry ban would apply to all arrivals from China, regardless of their nationality, and will take effect from Jan. 3 until further notice.
“This exceptional measure in no way affects the sincere friendship between the two peoples nor the strategic partnership between the two countries to which the Kingdom remains firmly attached,” the ministry said.
The ban aims to prevent a new wave of contamination in the country, it stated, adding that Morocco “closely followed” the virus situation in China through regular and direct contact with the Chinese side.
Morocco also extended its state of emergency until Jan. 31 to allow local authorities to impose measures to tackle the virus spread. The African nation has continued to renew its state of emergency since adopting it in March 2020.
Morocco became the first nation to ban arrivals from China after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) lifted its zero-COVID policy last month.
Other countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia, have only imposed entry curbs on travelers arriving from China, such as requiring them to take COVID-19 tests before departure.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Dec. 28 mandated COVID testing for all visitors flying from China to the United States, citing the Chinese regime’s failure to provide “adequate and transparent epidemiological and viral genomic sequence data.”
The United States was among the first nations to bar entry of foreign nationals from China under the former Trump administration in January 2020 when the novel coronavirus began to emerge from China.
China’s COVID-19 Outbreak
The CCP abruptly eased its strict COVID-19 restrictions in December after historic discontent over the draconian curbs. But without adequate planning and measures for a graduated retreat from the policy, the health system was left ill-equipped for a rapid rise in cases among a population that had little natural immunity to the virus.
Frontline services in China quickly became overcrowded, pharmacy shelves stripped bare, and hospitals stretched. Law enforcement facilities and judiciary shuttered.
People wait for medical attention at the fever clinic area in Tongren Hospital in the Changning district in Shanghai, on Dec. 23, 2022. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)
As many as 37 million people per day were estimated to be contracting the virus in China, according to leaked minutes from a meeting of the country’s top health body confirmed by multiple news outlets.
The cumulative number of infections in the first 20 days of December likely reached 248 million—nearly 18 percent of the population—officials said during the National Health Commission’s internal meeting on Dec. 21, only 13 days after the regime rolled back some of its toughest anti-COVID measures.
The figure is exponentially higher than the regime’s official virus tally, and if accurate, it would mean that China’s outbreak is the largest in the world.
end
6/GLOBAL ISSUES//COVID ISSUES/VACCINE ISSUES
Vaccine//Covid issues: Injuries
Congress must investigate gain of function research
(zerohedge)
Congress Should Investigate ‘Gain-Of-Function’ Research
I fear that the investigations Republicans have promised in the House next year will be little more than another round of toxic partisan gamesmanship. But there is one investigation Congress should undertake, and that is into so-called “gain-of-function” research.
Before the pandemic, I suspect that most of you, like me, had never heard of gain-of-function research. What we learned during the pandemic is that scientists around the world routinely tinker with the genome of viruses to see how the induced changes will affect replication of the virus (contagiousness) and the effects it has on its host (lethality). Such research has apparently been going on for decades and is routinely funded by governments, including ours.
Within weeks of the COVID-19 virus emerging in China near the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), many began to question whether the virus had been created by gain-of-function research and somehow escaped from WIV’s labs. Recently analyzed Chinese documents from early in the pandemic seem to suggest the virus might have come from WIV. To many, the proposition that the novel coronavirus just happened to naturally occur a few hundred yards from the WIV facility seemed too much of a coincidence.
But in February 2020, barely three months after the virus’s genome had been sequenced, 27 scientists signed a statement in the medical journal The Lancet, unequivocally declaring that the virus had occurred naturally and that any suggestion to the contrary was quackery and a conspiracy theory. Their statement quickly became the accepted orthodoxy for much of the world’s scientific community and virtually all the mainstream media.
However, as time wore on, circumstances regarding the origin of that statement came under scrutiny. In a 2021 Vanity Fair article, investigative journalist Katherine Eban revealed that the statement was organized by a scientist named Peter Daszak. That statement concluded with a declaration from the scientists who signed it that “we have no competing interests.” However, Eban reported in a follow-up article that Daszak was the director of EcoHealth Alliance, which in 2014 had received a $3.7 million grant from the NIH for gain-of-function research and made a sub-grant for $600,000 – to the WIV.
I wrote to the email address reserved for the statement in the Lancet post, posing a number of questions about the circumstances around the creation of the letter and the “competing interests” statement. I also reached out to two of the scientists who signed the letter asking for an interview regarding the statement. I received no responses.
Questions about gain-of-function research predate COVID. In fact, there has been a robust debate over the potential risks and benefits that dates to, at least, 2011. In 2014, a group of 300 prominent scientists, led by Harvard’s highly regarded epidemiologist Marc Lipsitch, signed a statement raising alarms about risks associated with gain-of-function research.
The academic controversy caused the Obama administration to issue a moratorium on gain-of-function research, but it included a general exception for studies “urgently necessary to protect the public health or national security.” According to Eban’s reporting, the exception quickly became a glaring loophole that essentially rendered the rule useless: the controversial research mostly continued unabated.
The Trump administration scrapped the moratorium in favor of a complex review process. But that process was mostly conducted outside of the public’s view or even significant peer review, leaving many of the critics, including Lipsitch, still wary.
The debate over the origins of COVID still rages today and unfortunately has become politicized, with Democrats and Republicans generally lining up behind the natural and lab-leak theories, respectively. In August 2021, the National Intelligence Council issued an unclassified report in response to an order from President Biden to review the origin of the virus. The report stated that the intelligence community had not been able to reach a conclusion and that the origin would likely never be known without more cooperation from the Chinese government. Of course, the more time that passes the less likely it is that the mystery will ever be solved.
While we would all like to know how the pandemic started, the mere fact that it might have originated from gain-of-function research gone awry makes it imperative to conduct a detailed investigation of the risks and potential benefits of this kind of research. Of all the things we regulate, surely tinkering with viruses to make them more contagious and more lethal should be right at the top of the list. Congress needs to pass laws closely regulating what Rutgers professor Richard Ebright described to Katherine Eban as “looking for a gas leak with a lighted match” and not leave this up to executive orders.
Congress should also investigate what appears to have been a coordinated attempt to squelch any inquiry into the legitimate questions over COVID’s origins in the early days of the pandemic. For example, the signers of the Lancet statement should be subpoenaed and questioned about what was almost certainly a false certification of “no competing interests” by at least one of the signers. (The criticism regarding potential conflicts of interest is not just coming from the right: The uber-progressive Columbia professor Jeffrey Sachs disbanded a group he had established to study the origins of COVID, citing conflicts of interest. Interestingly, Daszak was part of the group Sachs disbanded.)
I don’t know whether House Republicans can conduct such hearings without turning them into a carnival sideshow. But hopefully they will rise above partisan instincts and deliver much-needed answers for the American people.
Bill King is a businessman and lawyer, and is a former opinion columnist and editorial board member at the Houston Chronicle. He has served in a number of appointed and elected positions, including mayor of his hometown. He writes on a wide range of public policy and political issues. Bill is the author of “Unapologetically Moderate” and currently serves as the co-chair of the Forward Party of Texas.
end
This study should explain the explosion in cancers worldwide:
special thanks to Robert H for sending this to us:
This is what happens when you vaccinate. Bills Hamlin collapses and receives CPR. Condition; critical
(zerohedge)
Monday Night Football Postponed After Bills’ Hamlin Collapses, Receives CPR On Field
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 06:55 AM
A disturbing scene played out in front of a nationwide television audience on Monday night, as Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed after a play and received CPR on the field.
The 24-year-old’s collapse happened with 5:58 to play in the first quarter. He’d just tackled Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins. Hamlin got up immediately, but then stood still for a moment before falling backward to the ground.
Things took an even more ominous turn when medical staff began performing CPR on Hamlin where he fell on the field. The entire Bills team surrounded him as lifesaving measures were administered for several minutes. Many players were clearly emotionally shaken by what they were witnessing.
An ambulance urgently backed onto the field before whisking Hamlin away to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center at 9:25 pm, some 16 minutes after his sudden collapse. Hamlin has reportedly been intubated and is listed in critical condition.
Extreme amount of urgency in treating injured Bills defensive player Damar Hamlin. Ambulance on the field at Paycor Stadium. pic.twitter.com/QLmmn3kqMg— Joe Danneman (@FOX19Joe) January 3, 2023
After Hamlin was driven away, Bills players continued kneeling together in a circle, before returning to the sideline. Bengals coach Zac Taylor then approached Bills coach Sean McDermott and began a discussion with game officials.
At roughly 10 pm, the NFL announced a full postponement of the game, which the Bengals were leading 7-3. “The NFL has been in constant communication with the NFL Players Association which is in agreement with postponing the game,” the league said in a brief statement.
Meanwhile, some on social media wondered, speculated and argued about the cause of Hamlin’s collapse…
This is a tragic and all too familiar sight right now: Athletes dropping suddenly.— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) January 3, 2023
As a physician I believe Damar Hamlin was likely suffering from commotio cordis where a blow to the chest at a precise moment in the electrical cycle stops the heart. Those trying to tie this to vaccine status to project their unscientific beliefs are terrible, horrible people. pic.twitter.com/H5KNnHPZMK— Chris Haddock (@drdawg1996) January 3, 2023
With only one week left in the NFL season, Monday night’s game was critical to both teams’ 2022 campaigns. The Bengals could have clinched the AFC North with a win. Meanwhile, if the Bills won Monday and again next week, they’d have locked up the AFC’s top seed and home field advantage throughout their playoff quest.
Fox Sports commentator Skip Bayless triggered a social media feeding frenzy with an innocuous tweet:
No doubt the NFL is considering postponing the rest of this game – but how? This late in the season, a game of this magnitude is crucial to the regular-season outcome … which suddenly seems so irrelevant.— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 3, 2023
Bayless is a sports journalist who merely commented on the scheduling conundrum facing the league — and he himself acknowledged that such considerations seem insignificant given what took place. Nonetheless, the innocent tweet gave countless people an excuse for low-IQ, sanctimonious, attention-seeking, phony outrage:
Will Skip Bayless be fired for this insensitive and disgusting tweet?! Will there be company and public wide outrage at the fact one of their employees just shrugged off another man’s life over a football game?! Or does he get a pass? Keep the energy consistent. What a guy smfh pic.twitter.com/iDwdC0ufog— Su’a (@iammsuzy) January 3, 2023
Others shared video of Hamlin, a McKees Rocks, PA native who played college football for Pittsburgh, at his annual toy drive:
Let’s celebrate Damar Hamlin rather than gawk at some creepy ESPN reporter’s tweet
‘Dying just before dawn’ we said its due to catecholamines, do not be surprised if this is due to the vaccine, damage to the myocardium & with the dopamine/epinephrine surge; heart cannot take stress
Dr. Oskoui suggested to be open to all possibilities here such that a damaged heart due to the vaccine could not withstand the hit it ordinarily could have. The hit causes a surge in adrenalin etc. that greatly stresses the heart muscle. With damaged myocardium and disturbed electrical signals, the heart can go into cardiac arrest.
In short, myocarditis is often silent (due to infection or COVID vaccine induced), and many who die suddenly die due to heart failure. The heart often during exercise can stop with the dopamine, norepinephrine surges.
We need more information, but there is a possibility that the heart myocardium due to vaccine he took is so very damaged that the hit deranged the electrical impulses in an already damaged heart and it stopped; yes, it can happen if you take a huge hit to the chest (even with padded protection and often to the left side of the chest just over the heart) and it is compounded by an already damaged heart. Yes, a blow to the chest can cause a dangerous heart rhythm and if the myocardium is already damaged e.g. due to myocarditis that was silent and undiagnosed and he exerted himself, one could suddenly die. The surge in dopamine and adrenaline chemicals can place stress on the heart but the heart muscle is damaged and not working as it should. An exercise bout and we argue, given the surge in catecholamines as you begin to wake after sleep, can cause sudden death. This is why we say so many deaths happen ‘in your sleep’ now post COVID gene injection.
God will smile on him if he survives and I pray. We pray. This tells you something now in your face, this vaccine was a death shot.
‘Commotio cordis (Latin, “agitation of the heart”) is an often lethal disruption of heart rhythm that occurs as a result of a blow to the area directly over the heart (the precordial region) at a critical time during the cycle of a heart beat, producing what is termed an R-on-T phenomenon that leads to the condition. It is a form of ventricular fibrillation (V-Fib), not mechanical damage to the heart muscle or surrounding organs, and not the result of heart disease. The survival rate is 58%, which is an increase in comparison to years 1993–2012, where only 34% victims survived. This increase is likely caused by the prompt CPR, access to defibrillation and higher public awareness of this condition.[1]
Commotio cordis occurs mostly in boys and young men (average age 15), usually during sports, most frequently baseball, often despite a chest protector. It is usually caused by a projectile, but can also be caused by the blow of an elbow or other body part. Being less developed, the thorax of an adolescent is likely more prone to this injury given the circumstances.’
It’s the vaccine, stupid, the vaccine is causing increased infectivity by the COVID virus, the gene injection mRNA/DNA is giving the virus infectious properties it did not prior have
It’s nothing but a cesspit of lies, people believed in the government, but were all lied to in Australia who have now been injured & many died due to the lockdown lunacy and the fraud COVID injection
that the virus has become largely resistant to the induced vaccinal antibodies (Ab) & the non-neutralizing Abs place sub-optimal immune pressure on the antigen while infection is high; drives variants
The pace at which XBB.1.5 is (has) supplanting (supplanted) BA.5 and BQ.1.1 etc. is staggering.
They have designed the roll-out, the vaccine, all of it to never end; Fauci, Bourla, Bancel, Francis Collins, Walensky, CDC, NIH, FDA et al., they all know that as long you mass vaccinate across all age-groups and keep injecting while there is massive circulating virus, using a gene injection (vaccine) that does not sterilize (neutralize) the virus (stop infection or transmission), then natural selection pressure will select for the fittest, most infectious variants that could overcome that sub-optimal pressure, become enriched in the environment, and go on to become the new dominant sub-variant, case in point, XBB.1.5. There will be viral immune escape, original antigenic sin, and antibody-dependent enhancement of infection (and/or disease), as well as now emerging indications of immune tolerance (based on IgG4 class switching).
This pandemic is designed to never end for 100 years. With this fraud gene injection ‘slow kill’ bioweapon. This gene injection behaves like a bioweapon. Either the injection must be stopped or the infectious pressure must be reduced. There is no end in sight once we keep injecting and it is the vaccine that is causing the variants to emerge. Not the virus. The vaccinal antibodies are giving the virus infectious properties it prior did not have. The result in the vaccinee is becoming infected, sick, and dying.
You want the variants to stop, then stop the COVID gene injection. Moreover, if you do not stop, there is the risk of a more virulent strain potentially emerging that could decimate humanity. Infectious and more virulent/lethal.
The virus muted to become even more evasive to our immune system and have a greater affinity to ACE2. These are the cells the spike protein binds to in our bodies. ACE2 receptors are found all over our body – in vital organs. XBB.1.5 is the most immune evasive variant to date.Upgrade to paidSingapore, a mostly vaccinated country, had an XBB variant outbreak in October.The rate at which XBB.1.5 has taken over the Northeast and (presumably soon) the rest of the country is extremely fast. Taking a look at all of the evidence leads me to believe this variant was formed as a result of the intense immune pressure by the virus to escape vaccine-induced antibodies. What we appear to have here is a direct result of vaccinating during a pandemic with a non sterilizing vaccine. We now have a virus that appears to possess greater antigenic escape and is more virulent.Over the course of natural viral evolution and mutation do you think the virus will try to overcome the many antibodies your body produces via natural infection or the same antibody, in millions of people, that the vaccine produces? Answer: The virus will select the easier route – the vaccine-induced antibodies.ShareEven though it seems this variant is more concerning for the vaccinated without prior natural infection, I advise everyone to keep their immune systems healthy! Especially during the winter months, you could be VITAMIN D DEFICIENT. Vitamin D is essential for the immune system to function properly along with Vitamin C and zinc. FLCCC has a decent COVID prevention protocol.No need to panic. I hope you will find this information informative and helpful.Thanks for reading!end
2years, to STOP the fraud ineffective, sub-optimal mRNA-DNA gene injection! Yes, mutations enable it to evade antibodies from prior infection & vaccines, because it’s selecting for infectious variants
‘It isn’t clear that XBB is any more lethal than other variants, but its mutations enable it to evade antibodies from prior infection and vaccines as well as existing monoclonal antibody treatments. Growing evidence also suggests that repeated vaccinations may make people more susceptible to XBB and could be fueling the virus’s rapid evolution.’Duh? Is the CDC, NIH, FDA, NIAID and these idiots so very idiotic? Bourla and Bancel? Or do they know the fraud they are pulling and assume we are that stupid. Which is it? For folk like me have been telling them all along the bogus junk illogical WRONG actions they are taken, led by GVB’s brilliance. None of this is new to us! Go back and read what we have been saying! Yes, we have written, I have written, we have said that strong research by Fantini et al. and Liu et al. indicates that the COVID gene injection is giving the virus infectious properties it did not prior have and causing the vaccinee to become infected, get ill, and many die! We have been saying this near 2 years now because we understood the role of mounting sub-optimal immune pressure, in concert with massive infectious pressure, when using a non-sterilizing, non-neutralizing (mismatched) vaccine as the COVID vaccine. We knew that selection pressure will select for more infectious variants and that the pandemic will not end. We knew the end would be infectious variant after infectious variant.Case in point, just quickly glance over this prior substack by me, look at the language and warning:Alexander COVID News-Dr. Paul Elias Alexander’s Newsletter
The pace at which XBB.1.5 is (has) supplanting (supplanted) BA.5 and BQ.1.1 etc. is staggering. Moreover, indications are that it is the vaccine that is driving the variants (Fantini et al., Liu et al.), not the virus. Yes, viruses mutate readily and spontaneously (due to the unstable genetic copying mechanism etc.) yet it is the added pressure by the v…
Do these sick ill respondents not understand that the COVID surgical masks and white cloth masks do not work and never ever worked! that they are also toxic and very harmful to children?
December 26th documents; 20% of post vaccine strokes were fatal in the 90 days following the vaccine roll-out; it was a brutal lie for FDA & media & Fauci & Walensky to say it was ‘safe & effective’
My office was on the 6th floor, OWS’s & Moderna’s & Moncef’s main operation was on the 7th, above my office; let me clear, the COVID pandemic response was a military one, lead by DoD
I asked the AI Chat Bot “What was the role of the DoD in covid-countermeasures?” Here is what it wrote: “The Department of Defense (DoD) played a significant role in the development of countermeasures against COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The DoD worked closely with other federal agencies, such as the Department of Health and Hum…
The latest reports from Slay Newsfrom Robert H on Klaus Schwab:Robert HryniakSun, Jan 1, 10:47 PM (13 hours ago)toThe WEF lost its’ potential when it became apparent America could not win against Russia. Even a nuclear exchange will not change the reality. However, this sad pretense of leadership will continue to force absurd policies and threats whenever they can until the day they too are history. Marxism is failure of ideology and this grand vision of a failed philosophy will also end in failure, simply because it failed to take into account human nature. The notion that you will own nothing and be happy is absurd. And to think that China and Russia will roll over for such failed philosophy is naive at best. As is the rank of followers who were conned or bought off to join in a senseless parade. The question will be how the public will hold this crowd to account?Klaus Schwab’s World Economic Forum: The New FascismFrank BergmanDecember 31, 2022 – 12:57 pm14 CommentsSince founding the World Economic Forum (WEF) in 1971, Klaus Schwab has grown his organization into arguably the most powerful entity in on the planet.Yet most of the world’s population has never even heard of Schwab or the WEF, despite the group’s influence over global nations’ elected leaders.Schwab, the WEF’s founder and sole chairman, is the original international man of mystery.Despite Schwab openly gloating that he has world leaders in his pockets, or that he instructs presidents and prime ministers on his agenda for their countries, very little is known about himBasic information is available — “He was born in Ravensburg, Germany in 1938 …” — but almost nothing about the man behind the facts.In his Leftist book titled Davos Man: How Billionaires Devoured the World, New York Times journalist Peter S. Goodman offers an insider’s perspective on the doings of the rich and famous at the WEF’s annual conference at Davos, Switzerland.Goodman has attended the event himself for the better part of a decade.And yet, in a book that is meant to be an exposé on Schwab and his WEF, Goodman tells us little about Schwab beyond anecdotes:“Schwab has frequently told his colleagues that he anticipates receiving a Nobel Peace Prize…. Like the people he gathers annually in the Alps, Schwab is an exemplar of the force of pious words as prophylactic against the consequences of unsavory deeds.”And criticisms are mostly petty in nature:“When a Forum employee who was late for a meeting once pulled into Schwab’s spot in the parking lot, aware that the boss was overseas, he caught wind of it, and insisted that she be fired …”It’s not that these stories are meaningless but Goodman’s central criticism is one of elitism and hypocrisy, and these illustrate his thesis.end
$3.5 Billion of FTX Customer Assets Being Held by Bahamas RegulatorsRegulators in the Bahamas are holding on to $3.5 billion worth of FTX assets that it claims are intended to be transferred to those who were monetarily affected by the crypto-fallout as customers of the company have filed a lawsuit to get their dues prioritized.READ MORE
Appeals Court: MAGA Hat Is Free SpeechThe 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled that wearing a “Make American Great Again” (MAGA) hat is protected as an expression of free speech rights.READ MORE
America’s Great Awakening? Half of Americans Now Think COVID-19 “Vaccines” to Blame for “Unexplained Deaths”
January 2, 2023 2:47 pm
A new Rasmussen Poll of Americans shows that the tide appears to be turning in public opinion regarding the cause of increased “sudden deaths,” with nearly half of Americans now stating that they believe the COVID-19 “vaccines” are responsible, and more than 25% saying that they believe they know someone who has died from the shots. In an interview published last month (December, 2022), former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, who now has her own show based out of Minnesota titled “Sideline Sanity,” interviewed two former professional athletes who attained stardom in their respective sports: John Stockton who is a Hall of Fame NBA guard who played for the Utah Jazz, and Ken Reuttgers, the former center who played for the Green Bay Packers championship teams. This is a great interview about how all three have endured ridicule and attacks for their stance on the COVID shots in the world of professional sports. Ken Reuttgers has been featured with Senator Ron Johnson in going public with his wife’s crippling COVID-19 “vaccine” injuries, which obviously means they were pro-vaccine before she suffered from the shot. John Stockton, on the other hand, makes it clear that “this is true with all vaccines” and that he knew about the danger of vaccines long before COVID hit, and was well prepared for the propaganda and fraud that unfolded with COVID. Stockton has kept a list of athletes who have dropped dead on the field after taking a COVID shot, and he said the total now is probably “in the thousands.” Michele Tafoya recalls how she simply asked a question on her Facebook Page one day, pointing to an article published that interviewed a credible medical doctor who explained that early treatment with existing drugs, like Hydroxychloroquine, was having great success in treating COVID patients. She simply asked: Why aren’t we listening to these doctors? She recounts how she was vilified on Facebook, even by close friends and family members, simply for asking a question, which prompted her to leave Facebook for a while. I think her most profound statement of the whole interview was: “We can’t forget what happened.”
Are FDIC Bankers Preparing for Bank Runs in the U.S.?
January 2, 2023 3:49 pm
While the news reported today by the Rasmussen Poll revealing that nearly half of Americans are now stating that they believe the COVID-19 “vaccines” are responsible for “sudden deaths,” and more than 25% saying that they believe they know someone who has died from the shots, is positive news at face value, it is also potentially bad news, because the Globalists know this also, and they know that they need to act quickly to cover up the impending financial collapse. I am republishing two articles that were just published regarding the potential imminent collapse of our financial system. In the first one, Jamie White of InforWars.com reports on a recent meeting of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) officials who seem to be preparing for this financial collapse and possible bank runs. He reports that the FDIC insures $9 TRILLION of bank deposits with only $125 billion worth of assets currently available. Keep in mind that we already saw one bank run in 2022 with the FTX blowup, where several cryptocurrency exchanges shut down and prevented people from withdrawing their funds. In the second article, Michael Bryant, writing for Off-Guardian, recaps how COVID-19 was a “global financial operation” that prevented the financial system from crashing starting in the 4th quarter of 2019. So something big appears to be coming here in 2023, which could be an expansion of war from the current conflicts happening around the globe right now, where they escalate to nuclear attacks, probably coordinated with bank failures.
Rabo: “Nobody Ever Got Fired For Hiking Rates When Inflation Is At 7%”
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 09:40 AM
By Bas van Geffen, senior macro strategist at Rabobank
On behalf of the entire RaboResearch team, happy New Year!
As Europeans return from their unseasonably warm Christmas and New Year’s celebrations, energy prices have eased further. Continuing its decline through the holiday season, the benchmark 1-month TTF gas contract is back at pre-war levels. We are now roughly halfway the heating season and European gas supplies still look sufficient, in part thanks to households’ energy savings
That said, industrial gas rationing also remains an important element of the lower energy use, and this may have to continue through 2023 as Europe starts this year without Russian supplies. Sadly, a lasting ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow still seems a distant prospect, let alone the restart of European gas imports from Russia. So despite the positive price signals, the energy crisis will continue to haunt the new year. Limited energy availability will also hamper Eurozone activity in the new year, and –in the worst case– could permanently force certain industrial sectors and processes off the continent.
But Europe isn’t the only country facing a downturn. In fact, recessions seem to be a safe bet. The IMF’s Georgieva opened the year with the uplifting message that one third of the world economy will face recession this year, although, she argues, the US may escape this fate owing to its strong labour market. Conversely, as our US strategist has been repeating at nauseam, we are still waiting for an NBER-approved recession in the country as the Fed keeps pressing the brakes on inflation.
Which brings us to the next key theme for 2023 – the risk of inflation persistence but also the risk of policy overshoots.
As President Lagarde welcomed Croatia as the twentieth member of the euro area, she warned that the ECB may have to follow the Fed on a similar path: “we know wages are increasing, probably at a faster pace than expected, but we must be wary that they do not start fuelling inflation.” This echoes the message of the December meeting and suggests that the ECB may have to hike rates higher than expected as long as the downturn remains too shallow to ease pressures in the labour market.
Labour shortages were a key theme last year, with more than 25% of European businesses and as much as 40% of German industry citing a shortage of staff as limiting their output in a December survey by the European Commission. With the difficulties of finding new personnel in the post-Covid reopening fresh in their memories, employers may be reluctant to lay off staff through a shallow recession. The PMI report released yesterday suggests as much: despite further declines in new orders, hiring activity continued – albeit at a slower pace. Such labour hoarding could fuel more wage pressures.
What’s more, structural shifts could potentially add to this labour scarcity. For, as much as some industries may be forced out of Europe, the recent experience with supply chain shocks also continues to drive companies to revisit their current infrastructures. It remains to be seen whether this leads to reshoring, or simply to re-offshoring to other parts of the globe. The latter certainly cannot be ruled out, particularly as tight labour markets and high wages may deter companies from producing in the West. Nonetheless, geopolitical risks and protectionism –including recent moves by the US to limit China’s access to semiconductor technology– could lead some production to be brought back home.
Yet, as central banks remain focused on the upside risks of inflation persistence, that also increases the risks of policy errors. It’s hard to argue with the reasoning of many central bankers that they now stand to lose more if entrenched inflation leads to a loss of credibility than they might lose if they err too much on the inflation-fighting side. To repeat one of my colleague’s quips last year, “nobody ever got fired for hiking rates when inflation is at 7%.” That thinking, however, does increase the risks of an accident. After all, it is hard –if not impossible– to determine when the central bank has done enough to avoid the risk that inflation expectations become de-anchored.
One case in point here is the gradual improvement in the availability of raw materials, and therefore, the easing of input prices. As S&P Global summarised in their Eurozone manufacturing PMI report yesterday, “the rate of input cost inflation was still sharp, but the weakest since November. Output charges were subsequently raised to a weaker extent […]”
Week ahead
As the first week of the year kicks off in earnest today, German inflation figures for December are in focus. These numbers may be somewhat hard to gauge, with headline inflation being affected by one-off energy subsidies. For the ECB, the development of the core HICP will therefore be a more important aspect of today’s release – and this core figure will probably show more persistence. Inflation data for the other major Eurozone countries will follow tomorrow (France) and Thursday (Italy).
The US calendar kicks off tomorrow with the ISM for December as well as the minutes of the December FOMC meeting. The non-farm payrolls will be released this Friday, as a next indicator of just how tight the US labour market remained through the end of 2022.
7,86651
end
7//OIL ISSUES//NATURAL GAS ISSUES/USA AND GLOBE
Warm weather allows for natural gas prices to fall
(zerohedge)
Global NatGas Prices Sink As Warm Weather Spreads
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 08:40 AM
US and European natural gas prices are sliding as warmer weather reduces demand for the heating fuel, and storage levels remain high. Risks of a global energy crisis are diminishing for now — well — that’s until the next cold blast strikes.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s latest 6-10 Day Temperature Outlook shows that nearly all Lower 48 will experience above-average weather.
NOAA’s 8-14 Day Temperature Outlook suggests the same.
Weather data via Bloomberg shows Lower 48 temperatures are expected to remain above a 30-year average through mid-month.
And this will reduce heating demand.
US NatGas storage entered into a drawing period in mid-Nov. and has been sliding since.
A weaker heating demand outlook has sent US NatGas prices down nearly 9% to $4.062 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange in early Tuesday trading. Prices are back to levels not seen since early February 2022.
Across the Atlantic, EU NatGas touched the lowest levels since the start of the Ukraine war.
“The risk of extreme market tightness that people were worried about before the winter started seems low now,” BloombergNEF’s Abhishek Rohatgi wrote.
Warmer weather in Europe has eased concerns about blackouts and rationing as stockpiles increase:
In fact, Europe has been able to add more gas into storage in the last few days amid a mix of curbed heating needs and typically lower consumption during the holiday season. -Bloomberg
EU NatGas storage increased last week.
Temperatures across Central EU are expected to hold above seasonal levels through at least the mid-month.
Sign of relief worldwide: NatGas prices slide in the US, EU, and Asia.
We noted days ago the risks of a collapsing polar vortex in the Arctic could send parts of the EU into a chill later this month. And it’s only a matter of time before cold weather returns to the US.
END
8.EMERGING MARKETS ISSUES//AUSTRALIA ISSUES.
END
Your early currency/gold and silver pricing/Asian and European bourse movements/ and interest rate settings TUESDAY morning 7:30 AM
EURO VS USA DOLLAR:1.0536 DOWN .01403
USA/ YEN 130.92 UP 0.148/NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT .50% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN RISES//
GBP/USA 1.1954 DOWN 0.01101
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED UP 27.25 PTS OR 0.88%
Hang Sang CLOSED UP 363.80 POINTS OR 1.84%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED DOWN 1/25% // EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL GREEN
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES ALL GREEN
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SANG CLOSED UP 363.80 PTS OR 1.84%
/SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 27.25 PTS OR 0.88%
AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED DOWN 1.25%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE GREEN
Gold very early morning trading: 1835.60
silver:$24/31
USA dollar index early TUESDAY morning: 104.55 UP 1,21 BASIS POINTS from FRIDAY’s close.
The USA/Yuan, CNY: closed ON SHORE (CLOSED ..(DOWN) AT 6.9116
THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. 6.9242
TURKISH LIRA: 18.73 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WISH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.
the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.408
Your closing 10 yr US bond yield DOWN 5 IN basis points from FRIDAY at 3.780% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic
USA 30 yr bond yield 3.885 DOWN 5 in basis points
Your closing USA dollar index, 104.45 UP 1.18 BASIS PTS ON THE DAY/1.00 PM/
Your closing bourses for Europe and the Dow along with the USA dollar index closing and interest rates TUESDAY: 12:00 PM
London: CLOSED UP 105.86 PTS OR 0.14%
German Dax : CLOSED UP 131.04 POINTS OR 0.93%
Paris CAC CLOSED UP 40.19 PTS OR 0.61%
Spain IBEX CLOSED UP 35.30 OR 0.42%
Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 290.08PTS OR 1.00%
WTI Oil price 78.22 12: EST
Brent Oil: 83.00 12:00 EST
USA /RUSSIAN /// UP TO: 71,14/ ROUBLE DOWN 1 AND 11/100 RUBLES/DOLLAR
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.375
UK 10 YR YIELD: 3.672 UP 1 BASIS PTS.
CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM
Euro vs USA: 1.0561 DOWN .01150 OR 115 BASIS POINTS
British Pound: 1.19780 DOWN .0085 or 85 basis pts
BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 3.6810% DOWN 1 BASIS PTS
USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 131.00 DOWN 1.917/YEN UP 192 BASIS PTS//
USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3660 UP .0103 (CDN dollar, DOWN 103 basis pts)
West Texas intermediate oil: 77.09
Brent OIL: 82.26
USA 10 yr bond yield DOWN 4 BASIS pts to 3.793%
USA 30 yr bond yield DOWN 5 BASIS PTS to 3.873%
USA dollar index:104.38 UP 1.11 BASIS POINTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 18.73
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 71.14 DOWN 1 AND 11/100 roubles
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: DOWN 10.88 PTS OR 0.03%
NASDAQ 100 DOWN 77.12 PTS OR 0.70%
VOLATILITY INDEX: 22.82 UP 01.15 PTS (5.31)%
GLD: $171,03 UP 1.39 OR 0.82%
SLV/ $22.05 UP $0.03 OR 0.14%
end)
USA trading day in Graph Form
Biden Bear Market Enters Year Two, Gold Hits 6-Month High
BY TYLER DURDEN
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 04:00 PM
New year, same shit… except bonds were aggressively bid this time as stocks were slammed on the first day of trading in 2023.
Former Fed Chair Alan Greenspan (yes, we were surprised he is still alive too) did not help by saying that recession is the most likely outcome here as the central bank tightens monetary policy to curb inflation.
While the last two monthly reports showed a deceleration in consumer-price increases, “I don’t think it will warrant a Fed reversal that is substantial enough to avoid at least a mild recession,” Greenspan said in a question-and-answer commentary on ACM’s website distributed Tuesday.
The risk of lowering rates too quickly is that inflation “could flare up again and we would be back at square one,” Greenspan said. That could damage the Fed’s credibility as the guarantor of stable prices, he said.
“For that reason alone, I do not expect the Federal Reserve to loosen prematurely unless they deem it absolutely necessary, for example, to prevent financial market malfunctioning,” he said.
Interestingly, the market’s expectations for The Fed’s terminal rate shifted hawkishly today while the expectations for subsequent rate-cuts was unchanged…
Source: Bloomberg
All of which sent stocks lower to start the year after an optimistic overnight session saw Nasdaq up over 1% at one point. The later afternoon saw a bid that lifted The Dow back near unchanged but overall, an inauspicious start to 2023 for the equity market…
NOTE that equities basically erased all of Friday’s ramp into OpEx today.
The S&P continues to trade in a relatively narrow range…
Tesla tumbled to fresh two-year lows today, down 15% at its worst…
…as ultra-short-dated puts dominated volumes in options land…
Source: Bloomberg
Apple drops below the $2 trillion market cap level, Amazon remains below $1 trillion, and Tesla is now at the same market cap as Nvidia…
Source: Bloomberg
Treasuries saw their strongest start to a year in more than two decades as investors scooped up government debt. The long-end dramatically outperformed (10Y -9bps, 2Y -2bps) but we do note that bonds were sold shortly after the US cash open after a strong bid from Europe…
Source: Bloomberg
The dollar surged higher today, testing last week’s highs before stalling
Source: Bloomberg
Bitcoin slipped lower with stocks today but remains higher on the year…barely…
Source: Bloomberg
Spot Gold hit $1850 today, the highest level for the barbarous relic since June 2022…
Source: Bloomberg
Oil prices plunged today (WTI down around 4%, trading with a $76 handle at its lows)…
NatGas puked even harder on the back of milder than expected temperatures in Europe…
Source: Bloomberg
Finally, year-two of the Biden bear market begins today (after stocks hit record highs exactly one year ago). The S&P is now down over 1% since Biden’s inauguration…
Source: Bloomberg
When will the payrolls prints start to reflect the awkward reality?
END
EARLY MORNING TRADING//
EARLY AFTERNOON TRADING
ii) USA DATA
USA manufacturing pMI weakest since the COVID lockdown. This is a strong indicator that the uSA is in a deep recession now
(zerohedge)
US Manufacturing PMI Weakest Since COVID-Lockdown Crisis Peak
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 09:50 AM
Following a further dip in China’s Manufacturing PMI overnight, the final print for S&P Global’s US Manufacturing PMI matched the flash print of 46.2 (down from the November 47.7 print)…
Source: Bloomberg
end
III) USA ECONOMIC STORIES.
With the new XBB1.5 virus hitting the uSA,as well as vaccine injuries, it looks like another 15 million Americans are set to lose medical coverage as the Public Hweath Emergency ends
(Spredeman/EpochTimes)
15 Million Americans Set To Lose Medical Coverage As Public Health Emergency Ends
There is an expectation that as of Jan. 11, 2023, an estimated 15 million Americans will begin to lose health coverage.
The reason is that after three years of a COVID-19 public health emergency, the shield of continuous coverage offered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) will end.
Once the state of emergency expires, regular income requirements and restrictions will apply. This will disqualify millions who’ve benefited from congressional legislation passed in 2020 preventing disenrollment for the duration of the COVID pandemic.
Health care administrators are already bracing for the fallout as the end looms large.
The administration of President Joe Biden has set a tentative termination date for Jan. 11, though many analysts believe it will be extended. That’s because White House officials promised a 60-day notice before making it official.
Even with an extension, it’s only delaying the inevitable, according to industry insiders. An avalanche of newly uninsured Americans will still tumble into the national health care system.
An estimated 15 million adults and children will be unenrolled once the health emergency ends, according to an analysis from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning Evaluation. Within that group, 8.2 million will no longer be eligible for Medicaid. Another 5.3 million children also won’t qualify for CHIP.
Barely a third of those in line to be ejected into the insurance marketplace will qualify for tax credits or other programs. That will leave millions in limbo, scrambling to find affordable insurance.
With such a high volume of newly uninsured patients, some analysts predict cost increases for doctor visits, especially in the emergency room.
Coverage Too Expensive
Others say it will contribute to America’s spiraling mental health crisis, which currently affects more than 50 million people.
“We talk about this at work a lot. From the human perspective, it’s not just CHIP and Medicaid, it’s also disability plans. That’s what we’re most worried about, disability and seniors,” Amanda Jones told The Epoch Times.
Jones is a senior health professional who has worked with U.S. government health-care programs for 14 years. She says it won’t be as simple as just rolling back into the program once the state of emergency expires.
Because for many using subsidized programs, other coverage is just too expensive. Those who don’t qualify for alternative, affordable care plans will likely just go without, according to Jones.
Affordable private coverage options can also vary drastically from state to state.
Slipping Through Cracks
One study in 2022 showed a staggering 112 million U.S. adults struggle to afford medical insurance. In the same report, 93 percent said they felt the benefits aren’t worth the high price tag.
The other part of the problem is coverage gaps. Even short breaks in coverage can create a bottleneck at the administrative level for many doctors and specialists.
“With a lapse in coverage, getting people back into their routine with their medical doctors is complicated,” Jones explained.
Another harsh reality is many will fall through the gap between income requirements and being able to afford private insurance. Those who slip through will be the most likely to forego coverage. This translates into a price hike in medical services in the long run. “Higher administrative costs in health care will get passed onto other customers. There will also be a lot more emergency room visits,” she said.
Jones also noted that a lot of current Medicaid and CHIP members wouldn’t lose total coverage, but a lot of their benefits. This is especially prevalent for those who rely on prescription medications and regular doctor visits.
Medicaid enrollment surged to record levels in 2021, topping 80 million members. Much of that is because many lost employment during the pandemic and lacked affordable coverage options.
After Congress passed legislation in March 2020 to protect insurance coverage, enrollment soared, because the main caveat for states to access the enhanced federal funding under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act was the prohibition on disenrolling people using Medicaid during the emergency.
Jones says Biden’s 60-day notice is a drop in the bucket. “Sixty days in the business world is like, a week. It’ll be a huge strain on care coordinators.”
With disabled people, seniors, and children set to feel the biggest impact, some industry workers say the U.S. mental health crisis will escalate.
“We have a lot of work ahead of us next year as we begin to get our country back on the right track,” Scalise wrote.
American voters have made their desire for change clear in the midterm election, Scalise said, noting frustration with soaring inflation, the rise in violent crime, and the crisis of illegal immigration.
“The last two years have been tough on hard-working families as they have grappled with drastic increases in the cost of living, safety concerns with violent crime skyrocketing in our communities, soaring gas and home heating prices, and a worsening crisis at our Southern border,” Scalise said.
The incoming Congress, he pledged, will work to fix these problems by passing bills that will improve the lives of “all Americans” with measures like getting tougher on crime by encouraging more prosecutions.
Republicans look to press what Scalise described as a “bold agenda” after winning enough seats in the midterms to retake the House and challenge the Democrats, who remain in control of the Senate and White House and so have the power to block legislation.
A review of the bills and resolutions Scalise has scheduled for the first two weeks of the new Congress—like defunding the IRS or restricting releases from the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve—suggests Republicans want to send a message to the Biden administration that the winds of change are about to blow harder.
Tough on China, Tough on Crime
The first bill, dubbed the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act (pdf), aims to revoke some of the additional IRS funding that Democrats passed as part of their Inflation Reduction Act that the agency plans to use for tax enforcement.
With the bill, Republicans are targeting what Scalise said was “tens of billions of dollars allocated to the IRS for 87,000 new IRS agents.” That figure is in dispute, with the Biden administration saying much of the money would go to non-enforcement staff like customer service.
Getting tougher on China is another immediate action item for the House Republicans, with a resolution (pdf) that seeks to establish a bipartisan Select Committee on the strategic competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The panel has long been a priority for Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who hopes to become House speaker and who recently announced Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) as his proposed chair of the committee.
Gallagher said in mid-December that he hopes for bipartisan cooperation on the committee, saying “our first priority right now is just getting the best team together,” noting that “a lot” of Democrats have reached out with interest in being on the panel.
“We want to make sure that we’re enhancing and elevating the discussion on China,” Gallagher said, noting that the top near-term priority is deterring Beijing from taking aggressive actions regarding Taiwan.
Other priorities of the panel, Gallagher said, is what he described as “economic statecraft” that would entail “smartly and selectively” decoupling from China.
“We don’t want American taxpayer dollars or retirement financial security subsidizing China’s military modernization or subsidizing genocide,” he said.
The third is ideological competition and human rights, he said, which would “shine a light on some of the malicious practices of the regime and the [Chinese Communist Party’s] abysmal human rights record.”
Domestic Energy, Border Security, Abortion
Another bill Scalise put forward is the Strategic Production Response Act (pdf), which would prohibit non-emergency drawdowns of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve without a parallel plan to boost energy production on federal lands.
Republicans have been highly critical of President Joe Biden for ordering the release of oil from the strategic reserve, arguing that it was a ploy to win votes ahead of the midterms by trying to lower pump prices.
Biden, for his part, has insisted the release was meant to stabilize global oil markets amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing energy price shock, as well as trying to lower prices for Americans amid decades-high inflation, of which a major component is the cost of energy.
Scalise has scheduled another related bill, called Protecting America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve from China Act (pdf), which would restrict the energy secretary from selling oil from the strategic reserve to China.
Another bill is the Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act (pdf), which would allow the public to see how many cases prosecutors are declining to prosecute, along with the number of criminals released onto the streets and the number of offenses committed by career criminals.
A related tough-on-crime resolution (pdf) seeks to express support for police while condemning efforts to defund or dismantle law enforcement agencies.
On border security, Scalise put forward a bill called the Border Safety and Security Act (pdf), which would give the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) the power to turn away people crossing the border illegally in order to gain “operational control” of the border.
Republicans have accused DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas of failing to ensure “operational control” of the border as illegal border crossings have surged.
Another related bill, called the Illegal Alien NICS Alert Act (pdf) would require the National Instant Criminal Background Check system (NICS) to notify U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and relevant local law enforcement if someone trying to buy a firearm is an illegal immigrant.
There are three abortion-related measures: two bills and a resolution.
This is troublesome: the powerful Blackstone group will receive a $4billion cash bailout in one of its components: BREITThe uSA economy is falling apart(zerohedge)
Blackstone’s BREIT Gets $4 Billion ‘Buffett-Style’ Bailout From University Of California
TUESDAY, JAN 03, 2023 – 10:20 AM
The $68 billion Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) will receive a $4 billion bailout cash infusion from the University of California. BREIT has been in turmoil for the last two months. Blackstone sent a letter to investment advisors and portfolio managers in late November to calm down wealthy clients after redemptions soared. The New York-based investment manager enforced a redemption cap of 2% of NAV that could be redeemed per month or 5% per calendar quarter to prevent further panic.
A statement from the Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents of the University of California (UC Investments) and Blackstone announced a long-term strategic venture in which UC Investments will invest $4 billion in BREIT Class I common shares.
Blackstone and UC Investments have also entered into a separate strategic agreement that provides for a waterfall structure concerning the total return to be received by UC Investments on its investment. Blackstone will contribute $1 billion of its current holdings in BREIT to support an 11.25% minimum annualized net return for UC Investments over a 6-year hold period.
Blackstone’s terms for UC Investments should be terrifying for all BREIT investors.
Sounds about right.
Yup.
The investment manager’s move to bring in the $150 billion endowment seems similar to the days when Warren Buffett would be the banker of last resort for companies. Buffett would receive a considerable bargain and favorable terms to infuse companies with much-needed cash.
And we bet they’re:
“We are extremely pleased to have the endorsement of UC Investments, one of the most sophisticated institutional investors globally,” Jon Gray, Blackstone’s president, said in the statement.
Even though redemptions were spurred by investors needing liquidity, the non-tradable BREIT had returned 8.4% through November of last year.
One money manager told us, “there is no doubt Blackstone needed a ‘name brand’ to placate nervous investors.”
USA ECONOMIC ISSUES// SUPPLY ISSUES//DERIVATIVES
Tesla down again
(zerohedge)
Tesla Tumble Reignites After Disappointing Deliveries
In a press release put out midday on Monday, Tesla announced it had delivered a record 405,278 vehicles for the Q4 2022 quarter.
The number marks a record for the company, but comes in below most Wall Street estimates, even some that were revised lower. Consensus estimates for deliveries stood at 420,760 into the report, according to Bloomberg.
“In 2022, vehicle deliveries grew 40% YoY to 1.31 million,” the company’s press release says.
This falls short of the 50% growth figure the company had once projected for the year.
Tesla commented:
“We continued to transition towards a more even regional mix of vehicle builds which again led to a further increase in cars in transit at the end of the quarter. Thank you to all of our customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and supporters who helped us achieve a great 2022 in light of significant COVID and supply chain related challenges throughout the year.”
It’s also the third straight quarter that deliveries have missed estimates.
TSLA shares are down 10%, erasing most of the gains from last week following Musk’s commitment to ‘no more sales’ until 2025…
Bloomberg reports that while Tesla stock just had its worst month, and its worst year, since its 2010 initial public offering, the stock is still not cheap.
It’s still worth more than its big rivals combined and has a higher valuation than most big tech companies.
The short-term outlook has been pressured by the surging cost of raw materials used in batteries, competition and Elon Musk’s distraction by the Twitter takeover.
“We believe that Tesla is facing a significant demand problem,” Toni Sacconaghi, a Bernstein analyst who also has the equivalent of a sell rating on the stock, wrote in a report Monday.
“We believe Tesla will need to either reduce its growth targets (and run its factories below capacity) or sustain and potentially increase recent price cuts globally, pressuring margins.”
Additionally, Bloomberg reported this weekend that Model 3 sedan and Model Y sport utility vehicle buyers will continue to get 10,000 yuan in incentives (about $1,450) if they take delivery by February 28, 2023, per Tesla’s website.
SWAMP STORIES
Figures!
Virgin Islands AG Fired Three Days After Suing JPMorgan Over Jeffrey Epstein
MONDAY, JAN 02, 2023 – 05:45 PM
As we noted last week, US Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George filed a lawsuit against JPMorgan for allegedly reaping financial benefits from Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation – less than a month after George secured a $105 million settlement with Epstein’s estate, which agreed to liquidate Epstein’s islands and cease all business operations in the region.
Three days later, George is now unemployed, after Governor Albert A. Bryan Jr. fired her for allegedly filing the suit against JPMorgan without his permission.
According to the complaint, for “Over more than a decade, JPMorgan clearly knew it was not complying with federal regulations in regard to Epstein-related accounts as evidenced by its too-little too-late efforts after Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges and shortly after his death, when JPMorgan belatedly complied with federal law.”
It goes much deeper than just the JPMorgan lawsuit…
The suit against JPMorgan Chase was not the whole scope of George’s pursuit of the remnants of Epstein’s network of conspirators. Although Little St. James (“Pedo Island”) and its adjacent island owned by the Epstein estate went up for sale in March 2022, action taken by George kept the premise of any sale from going through. Acting in her former capacity as US Virgin Island Attorney General, she placed criminal activity liens on the islands from a civil racketeering lawsuit. That lawsuit was filed in 2020 following Epstein’s “death” in August of 2019. The suit alleged that Little St. James Island was used as part of a network of shell companies that Epstein manipulated to conceal the activities of his human trafficking network.
However, that suit was settled between the Epstein estate and George’s office in early December 2022. Under the agreement, Epstein’s estate would pay over $105 million to the Government of the US Virgin Islands as restitution. In addition to that sum, the liens preventing the sale of Epstein’s islands become removed under the condition that half of the proceeds from the sale will also be given to the US Virgin Islands through a trust it has opened to allocate the money to fund government programs to fight sexual abuse on the archipelago. “This settlement restores the faith of the People of the Virgin Islands that its laws will be enforced, without fear or favor, against those who break them. We are sending a clear message that the Virgin Islands will not serve as a haven for human trafficking,” Attorney General George stated upon the announcement of the settlement in one of her last acts before being fired.
Despite the resolution of the US Virgin Islands’ direct case against the assets held by the Epstein estate, questions still linger about its operations in George’s jurisdiction. One of the most mysterious and perhaps most vital to examine of those shell companies, Southern Country International, was the first internationally operating bank to be opened in the US Virgin Islands by Epstein in 2014. The bank opened when John Percy de Jongh Jr. served as the governor of the territory. During his term, de Jongh appointed present-governor Albert A. Bryan Jr. into his administration as Commissioner of the US Virgin Islands Department of Labor. Despite not having much activity on its books, Southern Country International would renew its license with the US Virgin Islands five times before Epstein’s purported demise.
By the time Epstein died, his Virgin Islands based bank had less than $700,000 in assets. However, in December of 2019, months after his purported suicide, Epstein’s estate transferred a whopping $15.5 million into Southern Country International. In under a month, the bank’s assets diminished to less than $500,000. Mark Epstein, Jeffrey’s brother and executor of his estate, stated that the bank was used to pay existing debts of the assets he had control over. Though the bank was not explicitly referenced in the press release on the December settlement, that announcement does detail the Virgin Islands action against Southern Trust Company, a holding company which points to a larger scale of Epstein owned enterprises connected to Southern Country International. It is unclear how the allegations made in George’s lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase connect to the posthumous activity conducted by Epstein’s Virgin Islands banking operation.
Following her dismissal, Assistant Attorney General Carol Thomas-Jacobs has been named to an interim position to fill George’s vacated seat. She will inherit the office as it joins an on-going list of plaintiffs who have taken action against large scale banks relating to their accounts with Epstein. Just over a month before George’s filing, multiple class action suits were filed against JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank alleging each institution knowingly profited from Epstein’s criminal activity. Those suits coincided with another filed against Epstein associate Leon Black, the billionaire who previously served as CEO of Apollo Global Management before his relationship with the pedophile thrust him into the spotlight.
The civil suit against Black alleges that the disgraced financier raped the plaintiff in 2002 at a mansion owned by Epstein. A spokesman for Black told Forbes that the claims made against their client were “categorically” false. Their response to Forbes follows one of a similar like from Deutsche Bank who told the publication that the suit filed against them “lacks merit.” Despite the magnitude of these lawsuits, the gravity of George’s suit against JPMorgan Chase surely made the biggest splash in the once-stagnant waters of the cesspool of the Epstein debacle. However, the firing leaves little hope that the waves caused by her last act as Attorney General will wash any truth to shore.
end
DoJ is concealing documents that lay bare Hunter and Jim Biden’s payoffs with China and Russia | Daily Mail Online
Robert Hryniak
10:41 AM (25 minutes ago)
to
The disparaging disgrace of an OFFICE …. Why is there no account? Does anyone really think that a thinking person has any regard for a nation led by such a crook? Sadly, everyday Americans are being disadvantaged by an OFFICE that was thought to serve, and how not just America is being lost but the whole of the western world.
BOJ Buys Record Amount of Bonds to Defend Kuroda’s New TargetThis week’s purchases boosted December buying to ¥17 trillionThe BOJ on Friday offered to buy unlimited amounts of two-year bonds at a yield of 0.04%, and five-year debt at 0.24%, along with a total ¥700 billion of one-to-10 year bonds and ¥300 billion of 10-to-25 year debt. That’s in addition to daily operations to buy unlimited quantities of 10-year securities and futures-linked securities at 0.5%. The BOJ also said late Thursday it would provide banks with no-interest two-year loans next week… https://www.yahoo.com/now/boj-announces-unscheduled-bond-purchases-012655771.html
ESHs traded sideways, in moderately negative territory, during Asian trading on Friday. ESHs and stocks broke lower during the final hours of Nikkei and China trading. European stocks opened lower, and after a modest rally attempt rolled over. A bottom appeared at 4:02 ET. After a 16-handle ESH rally that produced a double top at 5:43 ET and 6:39 ET, ESHs and European stocks sank until the pre-NYSE rally appeared. ESHs spiked 16 handles higher from 9:31 ET to 9:34 ET. ESHs and stocks then rolled over.
The ESH decline accelerated at 9:39 ET. ESHs and stocks sank. By 9:49 ET, ESHs were 50 handles below their daily high. Traders then bought stuff for the expected bounce. A zig-zag rally for an hour produced a 24-handle ESH rally, which peaked at 10:49 ET.
ESHs and stocks declined until the European opening. The rebound rally was labored. When the afternoon arrived, ESHs and stocks tumbled to new lows. ESHs hit a new low of 3821.50 at 13:25 ET. It appeared that the scheme to manipulate stuff higher to embellish dreadful 2022 performance has commenced. After a 17-handle ESH surge in 10 minutes, ESHs retreated and then went inert.
When the final hour arrived on Friday, the manipulation to embellish 2022 performance began in earnest. ESHs spiked 22 handles higher by 15:15 ET. After a 15-minute retreat, ESHs and stocks plodded higher. 15 minutes before the close, someone forced ESHs 15 handles higher by 15:50 ET. Reports had $6B of stocks to buy on the close. Someone was serious about gaming 2022 performance. After a brief respite, ESHs rose another handle at the close.
USHs, which had traded as low as – 1 5/32, soared over a point from 1:30 ET to 12:57 ET. After hitting a peak of 125 11/32 (+5/32 for the day) at 12:57 ET, USHs sank to 124 24/32 at 13:49 ET. USHs, like ESHs at the time, then went inert. There was no late markup.
San Francisco Vacancy Rates Hit 27% In 2022. Vacancies jump up from 19% reported in 2021. https://t.co/DFv8wdiNe5
Item, 2022 performance, 2022 performance dollar adjusted for foreign indices & commodities
Global bonds
Global Primary Index 2022 performance and Currency 2022 performance, dollar adjusted
Positive aspects of previous session Desperate 2022 performance gaming greatly truncated a sharp morning equity decline Fangs and trading sardines had the biggest manipulations, but still finished a tad lower for the day
Negative aspects of previous session The BoJ intervened in Japanese bonds for the 3rd consecutive session on Friday Bonds declined sharply despite a spike substantially higher at midday The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 posted their largest annual losses since the 2008 Crisis
Ambiguous aspects of previous session Wil the usual big rally to start a year occur without a late December Santa Rally?
First Hour/Last Hour Action [S&P 500 Index]: 1st Hour from NYSE open: Down; Last Hour: Up
Pivot Point for S&P 500 Index [above/below indicates daily trend to traders]: 3826.56 Previous session High/Low: 38539.85; 3800.34
WSJ Editorial Board: The Trump Tax Return Precedent – Democrats shatter the privacy norm for no public benefit. House Democrats released Donald Trump’s tax returns to the public on Friday, four days before they lose their majority, and in the process did more harm to their reputation than to the former President’s. The dump is a violation of taxpayer privacy with no legislative purpose, and it could open an ugly new battlefield in American politics…https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-donald-trump-tax-dump-precedent-house-ways-and-means-richard-neal-kevin-brady-karen-mcafee-thomas-barthold-11672442080
@DrEliDavid: The Simpsons, November 21, 2010. Perfectly predicted Covid. “We’re here to come up with the next phony baloney crisis to put Americans back where they belong…” “I think we should go with a good old fashion public health scare.” “A new disease, no one is immune.” “The moral thing to do is release a virus into the public… So, we got our deadly disease.” “We do have something that we have been holding onto; but it hasn’t been tested.” “Don’t worry people, we haveenough of vaccine…” https://twitter.com/DrEliDavid/status/1608817879264395266
Why Spending Time with Kids Might Actually Help Protect You From COVID The August paper found that “exposure to young children was strongly associated with less severe COVID-19 illness.” In an analysis of the records of more than 3 million adults in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California health system, the authors found that “those without identifiable household exposure to children based on health insurance enrollment had a 27% higher rate of COVID-19 hospitalization and a 49% higher rate of COVID-19 hospitalization requiring ICU admission than those with young children.”… https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/12/spending-time-with-kids-might-help-protect-adults-from-covid.html
Twitter’s COVID-19 Censorship Led to Loss of Life, Says Former WH Adviser Dr. Scott Atlas “Dr. Fauci, Dr. Birx, etc., went to their friends in the media and undermined people like me. Who, in fact, were saying what was correct, what has been validated as being correct this entire time. But the reality is, yes, the censorship of science kills people. And it killed people during this pandemic… https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/twitters-covid-19-censorship-led-loss-life-says-former-white-house-adviser-dr-scott-atlas
@ianmSC: It’s worth repeating that the World Health Organization initially told the public that 3.4% of people that got COVID would die, and a new study just reported that the median fatality rate for people under 60 years old was actually 0.035%, meaning WHO was off by ~99%
GOP Sen. @TomCottonAR: Just when you think the agency couldn’t lose any more credibility, Biden’s CDC is urging schools to avoid the words “male” and “female” in sexual health education. With this type of politicization, parents are going to be rightfully skeptical of everything the CDC says. https://twitter.com/TomCottonAR/status/1609943079124963328
World Economic Forum cancels Twitter, directs followers to Chinese social media apps Through its founder Klaus Schwab and partner organizations, the WEF has a very cozy relationship with the Chinese government. Davos recently revealed that their China office now has 40 full time staffers… https://dossier.substack.com/p/world-economic-forum-cancels-twitter?s=02
China’s Xi says ‘light of hope in front of us’ on Covid President Xi Jinping said Saturday the “light of hope is right in front of us” as China faces an explosion of Covid-19 cases after an abrupt lifting of restrictions… “Epidemic prevention and control is entering a new phase… Everyone is working resolutely, and the light of hope is right in front of us,” Xi said… https://news.yahoo.com/chinas-xi-says-light-hope-124512919.html
@RNCResearch: Joe Biden, January 2022: The stock market “has hit record after record after record on my watch” The stock market just had its worst year since 2008. https://t.co/1Kw8wmGv32
@WallStreetSilv: We are repeating the 1970s. 1974 recession reduced CPI from ~11% to ~5% by 1976. The Fed declared victory, went back to easy money, inflation soared in the late 70s to over 13%...
NY Times Jan. 13, 2017: In the Shopping Cart of a Food Stamp Household: Lots of Soda PepsiCo lobbied the federal government to prevent restrictions on food stamp purchases in 2011, 2012 and 2013, according to the Center for Responsive Politics… Coca-Cola, Kraft Foods and the sugar industry lobbied against a Florida bill in 2012 that would have banned using food stamps to buy soda and junk food… https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/13/well/eat/food-stamp-snap-soda.html
@calleymeans: 40.2% (!) of Coca-Cola’s U.S. revenue comes from SNAP benefits (food stamps)… Here’s the math: $113 billion (spent on SNAP benefits) * 46.3% (Coke’s market share) * 10% (SNAP % spent on sugary drinks) = $5.23 billion of SNAP spent on Coke products. $5.23 billion / $13 billion (Coke’s total revenue) = 40.2%… https://twitter.com/calleymeans/status/1608618928561074177
@Jesse_Livermore: Surprised to see that McDonalds has no real organic sales growth over last 15 yrs. Actually, -2.24% annualized, despite stock returning more than 5x in real terms. Can confirm in 10-K. Nominal organic sales growth roughly zero since ’08, thus real growth ~= negative inflation. https://twitter.com/Jesse_Livermore/status/1608993691120861185
@nickgerli1: There’s too many Realtors. 1.6 Million currently registered with NAR. That’s higher than 2007 Bubble. 30% of Realtors will likely quit during this Housing Crash. Once that happens, you’ll know bottom is approaching. https://twitter.com/nickgerli1/status/1609251256517947393
Today – The first two days of the new year are usually strong up days. ‘Tis why ESHs opened at 3900.00 (+39.00) on Monday night. Traders expect organic buying on and near the NYSE opening and at the close due to start-of-the-year inflows into pensions and ETFs. Alas, sellers quickly appeared last night. ESHs tumbled to 3846.50 (-14.50) at 20:06 ET. The S&P 500 Index low on Friday was 3800.34; obviously, this level is important support. PS – The GOP takes control of the House today.
‘I Also Orchestrated It’: Uncharged J6 Witness Ray Epps Transcript Released Ray Epps, the uncharged man identified as a key instigator behind the January 6, 2020 Capitol Breach for telling people to storm the Capitol, said in a text message to his nephew that he “orchestrated” things, according to newly released witness transcripts from the January 6th Committee… But the night before, Epps was seen going around to various groups of Trump supporters, telling them they need to storm the capitol… Despite the admissions, the FBI never arrested Epps and he was not charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with any Jan. 6 crimes. The non-action has fueled a crop of theories that he might have been working for the FBI or another agency. Epps, 61, has repeatedly denied those suggestions through his attorney… https://www.zerohedge.com/political/i-also-orchestrated-it-uncharged-j6-witness-ray-epps-transcript-released
House Republicans Find Text and Email Evidence that Pelosi Staffers Secretly DECREASED Security at US Capitol for Jan 6 – While at Same Time Pelosi Was Organizing Film Crew that Day It was as if SHE KNEW something big was going to happen… https://t.co/iSEV37xFAh
Zelensky signs media regulation bill, leading to fears of possible censorship https://t.co/DyuDhtMHTS
Top school principal hides students’ academic awards in name of ‘equity’ For years, two administrators at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJ) have been withholding notifications of National Merit awards from the school’s families, most of them Asian, thus denying students the right to use those awards to boost their college admission prospects and earn scholarships. This episode has emerged amid the school district’s new strategy of “equal outcomes for every student, without exception.” School administrators, for instance, have implemented an “equitable grading” policy that eliminates zeros, gives students a grade of 50 percent just for showing up, and assigns a cryptic code of “NTI” for assignments not turned in. It’s a race to the bottom… But TJ School officials had decided to withhold announcement of the award. Indeed, it turns out that the principal, Ann Bonitatibus, and the director of student services, Brandon Kosatka, have been withholding this information from families and the public for years, affecting the lives of at least 1,200 students over the principal’s tenure of five years. Recognition by National Merit opens the door to millions of dollars in college scholarships and 800 Special Scholarships from corporate sponsors.. https://nypost.com/2022/12/23/top-school-principal-hides-academic-awards-in-name-of-equity/
Lt. Governor of Virginia – Winsome Earle-Sears @WinsomeSears: This is reprehensible. I have reached out to the Governor and Attorney General and asked for an investigation. Our children’s education is not a zero-sum game. We cannot punish success in order to have “equal outcomes at all costs”.
Beaucoup lawsuits for serious money will likely soon be filed against the school and its administrators.
Newsom signs controversial social media bill into California law A.B. 587 will require social media companies to publicly post their policies regarding hate speech, disinformation, harassment and extremism on their platforms and report data on their enforcement of the policies… The state’s attorney general’s office is also required “to make all terms of service reports submitted pursuant to those provisions available to the public in a searchable repository on its official internet website.”… The bill has also raised concerns from legal experts, citing the First Amendment and free speech as their main issues. “The bill is likely to be struck down as unconstitutional at substantial taxpayer expense. The censorial consequences should trigger the highest level of constitutional scrutiny, but the undue burdens and lack of consumer benefit ensures it won’t survive even lower levels of scrutiny,” Santa Clara University School of Law professor Eric Goldman wrote in a blog post. “As my blog post mentions, there are several other bases for constitutional challenges.” https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3642407-newsom-signs-controversial-social-media-bill-into-california-law/
@RetroCoast: New California law requires social media companies to report all complaints to the California Attorney General- who will then post them all online! If someone makes a complaint about you on Twitter it will automatically be reported to the AG
@SonofHas on Saturday afternoon: Still no statement from Biden on Benedict XVI’s death. You’d think our nominally Catholic president would have something to say about it. (Benedict was very conservative)
Pope Benedict XVI died early Saturday – about 10 years after he abdicated the papacy, purported for health reasons. It was the first papal abdication since 1415! Many people believe a coup occurred.
Catholics Ask Trump to Probe Soros-Obama-Clinton Conspiracy at Vatican January 28, 2017 Did billionaire speculator George Soros, President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, and Obama/Clinton adviser John Podesta conspire to overthrow the conservative Pope Benedict XVI and replace him with a radical, Pope Francis? Did they use America’s intelligence agencies, and our nation’s diplomatic machinery, political muscle, and financial power to coerce and blackmail “regime change” in the Roman Catholic Church?… “We were alarmed to discover,” their letter notes, “that, during the third year of the first term of the Obama administration your previous opponent, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and other government officials with whom she associated proposed a Catholic ‘revolution’in which the final demise of what was left of the Catholic Church in America would be realized.”… Podesta, a longtime Clinton adviser/confidante and hand-picked top activist for left-wing funder George Soros, revealed in a 2011 e-mail that he and other activists were working to effect a “Catholic Spring” revolution within the Catholic Church, an obvious reference to the disastrous “Arab Spring” coups organized that same year by the Obama-Clinton-Soros team that destabilized the Middle East and brought radical Islamist regimes and terrorist groups to power in the region. The Podesta e-mail is a response to another Soros-funded radical — Sandy Newman, founder of the “progressive” Voices for Progress. Newman had written to Podesta seeking advice on the best way to “plant the seeds of the revolution” in the Catholic Church, which he described as a “middle ages [sic] dictatorship.” The issue that appeared to be the cause of Newman’s e-mail was opposition by U.S. Catholic Bishops to the federally mandated contraceptive coverage in ObamaCare… https://thenewamerican.com/catholics-ask-trump-to-probe-soros-obama-clinton-conspiracy-at-vatican/
@Not_the_Bee on Monday: Last night, 60 Minutes promoted Paul Ehrlich, an anti-human climate scientist who has been wildly wrong on everything related to the climate for more than 50 years 60 Minutes mentions his work “The Population Bomb” from the 60s which included many predictions that have now been proven completely false. The entire premise of the book is that humanity was going to explode in population and the earth could not sustain the growth… This was in 1968 when the population was 3.5 billion. That number has risen to nearly 8 billion today. His mass starvation, end of civilization prediction has utterly failed. Starvation IMPROVED as the world became more populated… He is the king of the climate doom and gloomers, and he’s been nothing but wrong for 50 years. So, of course, the mainstream Left will promote him as a hero. https://t.co/47VySLgFpV
Why it isn’t mad to oppose the World Economic Forum Schwab believes that the world needs a ‘Great Reset.’ Covid, according to the WEF’s website explaining the global reboot awaiting the world, revealed all the ‘inconsistencies, inadequacies and contradictions of multiple systems – from health and financial to energy and education.’ The entire planet needs a new ‘social contract’ to reshape ‘the future state of global relations, the direction of national economies, the priorities of societies, the nature of business models, and the management of a global commons.’… It’s another thing for an outfit such as the WEF to decide that the time has come to rearrange the world from the top-down and remake the planet in a corporatist image. The ideal for which Schwab is aiming, judging from his speeches and writings, is something akin to a globalised EU, with its supranational and ingrained bureaucratic ways being transposed to an international level, and the levers of power vested in the hands of reliable Davos men and women… https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-davos-man-cometh/
Trump continues his self-immolation quest. Blaming pro-lifers after supporting the most extreme anti-abortion candidates in some Senate raises is the height of hypocrisy and projection.
Alleged Islamic extremist who attacked NYPD cops with machete was on FBI watchlist: sourceshttps://t.co/B7CdvhlJmr
@healthbyjames: Today AB-2098, the “physician misinformation bill” goes into effect as law in California. Physicians can no longer communicate nuanced risk about mRNA COVID vaccines to their patients without potentially having their licenses revoked. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText
“It is hard to imagine a more stupid or more dangerous way of making decisions than by putting those decisions in the hands of people who pay no price for being wrong.” — Thomas Sowell
#BREAKING: Explosions in occupied #Berdiansk, #Zaporizhia region. https://t.co/OSKUeoWTBV” / Twitter
Frank BergmanDecember 31, 2022 – 12:57 pm14 Comments
Since founding the World Economic Forum (WEF) in 1971, Klaus Schwab has grown his organization into arguably the most powerful entity in on the planet.Yet most of the world’s population has never even heard of Schwab or the WEF, despite the group’s influence over global nations’ elected leaders.Schwab, the WEF’s founder and sole chairman, is the original international man of mystery.Despite Schwab openly gloating that he has world leaders in his pockets, or that he instructs presidents and prime ministers on his agenda for their countries, very little is known about himBasic information is available — “He was born in Ravensburg, Germany in 1938 …” — but almost nothing about the man behind the facts.In his Leftist book titled Davos Man: How Billionaires Devoured the World, New York Times journalist Peter S. Goodman offers an insider’s perspective on the doings of the rich and famous at the WEF’s annual conference at Davos, Switzerland.Goodman has attended the event himself for the better part of a decade.And yet, in a book that is meant to be an exposé on Schwab and his WEF, Goodman tells us little about Schwab beyond anecdotes:“Schwab has frequently told his colleagues that he anticipates receiving a Nobel Peace Prize…. Like the people he gathers annually in the Alps, Schwab is an exemplar of the force of pious words as prophylactic against the consequences of unsavory deeds.”And criticisms are mostly petty in nature:“When a Forum employee who was late for a meeting once pulled into Schwab’s spot in the parking lot, aware that the boss was overseas, he caught wind of it, and insisted that she be fired …”It’s not that these stories are meaningless but Goodman’s central criticism is one of elitism and hypocrisy, and these illustrate his thesis.end
harveyorganblog.com 
