by harveyorgan · in Uncategorized · Leave a comment·Editi

GOLD PRICE CLOSED: DOWN $23.80 TO $1957.50

SILVER PRICE CLOSED: DOWN $0.23 AT $23.51

Access prices: closes 4: 15 PM

Gold ACCESS CLOSE 1957.50

Silver ACCESS CLOSE: 23.49

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Bitcoin morning price:, $27,383 UP 59 Dollars

Bitcoin: afternoon price: $26,703 DOWN 621 dollars

Platinum price closing $1053.05 DOWN $22.20

Palladium price; $1463.80 DOWN $28.20

“Our system is so stinkin’ corrupt that we owe Sodom and Gomorrah an apology.” … Trader Dan Norcini in 2009

GO GATA!

END

Due to the huge rise in the dollar, we must look at gold and silver in currencies other than the dollar to understand where we are heading

I will now provide gold in Canadian dollars, British pounds and Euros/4: 15 PM ACCESS

CANADIAN GOLD: $2,642.40 DOWN 24.00 CDN dollars per oz (ALL TIME HIGH 2,775.35)

BRITISH GOLD: 1577/40 DOWN 10.60 pounds per oz//(ALL TIME HIGH//CLOSING///1630.29)

EURO GOLD: 1816,80 DOWN 12.63 euros per oz //(ALL TIME HIGH/CLOSING//1861.21)//

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EXCHANGE: COMEX

EXCHANGE: COMEX
CONTRACT: MAY 2023 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES
SETTLEMENT: 1,980.700000000 USD
INTENT DATE: 05/17/2023 DELIVERY DATE: 05/19/2023
FIRM ORG FIRM NAME ISSUED STOPPED

118 C MACQUARIE FUT 23
363 H WELLS FARGO SEC 7
435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 1
657 C MORGAN STANLEY 1
661 C JP MORGAN 45 4
737 C ADVANTAGE 1
800 C MAREX SPEC 1
905 C ADM 7

TOTAL: 45 45

JPMorgan stopped 4/45 contracts

FOR MAY:

GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR MAY/2023. CONTRACT: 45 NOTICES FOR 4500 OZ or 0.1399 TONNES

total notices so far: 5918 contracts for 591800 oz (18.407 tonnes)

FOR MAY:

SILVER NOTICES: 250 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 1,250,000 OZ/

total number of notices filed so far this month : 2413 for 12,065,000 oz

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END

GLD

WITH GOLD DOWN $23.50..

INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD

/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:///A DEPOSIT OF 2.02 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//

INVENTORY RESTS AT 936.96 TONNES

Silver//

WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER DOWN 23 CENTS AT THE SLV//

HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 919,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV/; : INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.

CLOSING INVENTORY: 468.529 MILLION OZ

Let us have a look at the data for today

SILVER//OUTLINE

SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A VERY STRONG SIZED 835 CONTRACTS TO 139,304 AND FURTHER FROM THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THIS STRONG SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED DESPITE OUR $0.02 GAIN IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON WEDNESDAY. THIS AGAIN HAS ALL THE HALLMARKS OF TRADE AT SETTLEMENT (TAS) MANIPULATION WHICH CRAIG HEMKE HAS POINTED OUT HAPPENS IN FULL FORCE DURING MID CYCLE IN THE DELIVERY MONTH. THUS WE HAVE TWO VEHICLES THE CROOKS USE FOR MANIPULATION AND BOTH ARE SPREADERS: 1) AT MONTH’S END/SPREADERS COMEX AND 2/ TAS SPREADERS, MID MONTH. TOTAL TAS ISSUED ON WEDNESDAY: A STRONG 599 CONTRACTS. THE CROOKS LIQUIDATED MOST LIKELY THE REMAINDER OF THE SHORT END OF THE SPREAD TRADE MANIPULATING THE PRICE OF SILVER.

WE HAVE THIS YEAR SET ANOTHER RECORD LOW AT 117,395 CONTRACTS ///MARCH 29.2023. OUR BANKERS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT ROSE BY $0.02). BUT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING SOME SPEC LONGS AS WE HAD A STRONG LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 810 CONTRACTS ( MOST OF THIS LOSS WITH HIGH PROBABILITY WAS DUE TO TAS LIQUIDATION). WE HAD 0 CRIMINAL NOTICES FILED IN THE CATEGORY OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK TRANSFER FOR 0 MILLION OZ// ( THE TOTAL ISSUED IN THIS CATEGORY SO FAR THIS MONTH TOTAL 4.250 MILLION OZ.). WE HAVE NOW RETURNED TO OUR USUAL AND CUSTOMARY SCENARIO: BANKERS SHORT AND SPECS LONG WITH MANIPULATION NOW MID MONTH (TAS), AND FINAL WEEK (COMEX SPREADERS).

WE MUST HAVE HAD:

A TINY ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS( 25 CONTRACTS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 13.105 MILLION OZ(FIRST DAY NOTICE) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 50,000 OZ (QUEUE JUMP RAISES THE AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING)+0 EXCHANGE FOR RISK// TOTAL 4.25 MILLION OZ OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR THE MONTH(RAISES THE AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING):THUS TOTAL OF 17.180 MILLION OZ OF STANDING FOR DELIVERY V) HUGE SIZED COMEX OI LOSS/ TINY SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/VI) PROBABLE: LARGE NUMBER OF SHORT T.A.S. CONTRACT LIQUIDATION MANIPULATING THE PRICE DOWN.

I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL -removed 63 CONTRACTS

HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS MAY. ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF MAY:

TOTAL CONTRACTS for 14 days, total 9939 contracts: OR 49.695 MILLION OZ . (709 CONTRACTS PER DAY)

TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 49.695 MILLION OZ

LAST 23 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

YEAR 2022:

JAN 2022-DEC 2022

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

TOTALS YR 2022: 1135.767 MILLION OZ (1.1356 BILLION OZ)

JAN 2023/// 53.070 MILLION OZ //FINAL

FEB: 2023: 100.105 MILLION OZ/FINAL//MUCH STRONGER ISSUANCE VS THE LATTER TWO MONTHS.

MARCH 2023: 112.58 MILLION OZ//FINAL//STRONG ISSUANCE

APRIL 118.035 MILLION OZ(SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN THAN LAST MONTH)

MAY 49.695 MILLION OZ/INITIAL (MUCH SMALLER THIS MONTH)

RESULT: WE HAD A HUGE SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 835 CONTRACTS DESPITE OUR $0.02 GAIN IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//WEDNESDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A TINY SIZED EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 25 ISSUED FOR JULY 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 MAY OF 13.105 MILLION OZ//FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 50,000 OZ (INCREASES THE AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING) +// + 0.0 MILLION NEW EXCHANGE FOR RISK TODAY (INCREASES THE AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING) //TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK MONTH= 4.25 MILLION//NEW TOTALS 12.93 MILLION OZ + 4.25 MILLION = 17.180 MILLION OZ// .. WE HAVE A VERY STRONG SIZED LOSS OF 810 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES AS WE HAD CONSIDERABLE TAS LIQUIDATION. THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY: A STRONG 599!!

WE HAD 250 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 1,250,000 OZ

THE SILVER COMEX IS NOW BEING ATTACKED FOR METAL BY LONDONERS ET AL.

GOLD//OUTLINE

IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST FELL BY AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED 22,576 CONTRACTS TO 499,439 AND FURTHER FROM 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 -183 CONTRACTS

WE HAD A MONSTER SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI ( 22,393 CONTRACTS) WITH OUR $8.25 LOSS IN PRICE. WE ALSO HAD A STRONG INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR MAY. AT 3.5085 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE // PLUS 100 OZ E.F.P. JUMP TO LONDON :(QUEUE JUMPING = EXERCISING LONDON BASED EFP’S, ATTACHED TO COMEX CONTRACTS ) (EFP is the transfer of COMEX contracts immediately to London for potential gold deliveries originating from London)/+ /A HUGE ISSUANCE OF 1186 T.A.S. CONTRACTS//CONSIDERABLE (AND PROBABLE FINAL) LIQUIDATION OF TAS TODAY////YET ALL OF..THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR HUGE $8.25 LOSS IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S TRADING.WE HAD A MONSTER SIZED LOSS OF 17,225 OI CONTRACTS (53.57 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES.

E.F.P. ISSUANCE

THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A STRONG SIZED 5351 CONTRACTS:

The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 499,439

IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A HUGE SIZED DECREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 17,225 CONTRACTS WITH 22,576 CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX//TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): 1136 CONTRACTS) AND 5351 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 17,225 CONTRACTS OR 53.57 TONNES.

CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES

WE HAD A STRONG SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (5351 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE MONSTER SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI (22,576) //TOTAL LOSS IN THE TWO EXCHANGES 17,225 CONTRACTS. WE HAVE ( 1) NOW RETURNED TO OUR NORMAL FORMAT OF BANKERS GOING SHORT AND SPECULATORS GOING LONG ,2.) GOOD INITIAL STANDING AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR MAY AT 3.5085 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S E.F.P. JUMP TO LONDON OF 100 OZ // NEW STANDING: 18.768 TONNES // ///3) SOME LONG LIQUIDATION//4) HUGE SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST LOSS/ 5) STRONG ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///6: T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 1186 CONTRACTS AFTER WHICH THEY UNLOADED CONSIDERABLE T.A.S. CONTRACTS.)

HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023 INCLUDING TODAY

MAY

ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF MAY :

TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 42,448 CONTRACTS OR 4,244,800 OZ OR 132.03 TONNES IN 14 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 3032 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 14 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES 132.03 TONNES

TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2022, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES

THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 132.03/3550 x 100% TONNES 3.71% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL PRODUCTION

ACCUMULATION OF GOLD EFP’S YEAR 2021 TO 2023

JANUARY/2021: 265.26 TONNES (RAPIDLY INCREASING AGAIN)

FEB : 171.24 TONNES ( DEFINITELY SLOWING DOWN AGAIN)..

MARCH:. 276.50 TONNES (STRONG AGAIN/

APRIL: 189..44 TONNES ( DRAMATICALLY SLOWING DOWN AGAIN//GOLD IN BACKWARDATION)

MAY: 250.15 TONNES (NOW DRAMATICALLY INCREASING AGAIN)

JUNE: 247.54 TONNES (FINAL)

JULY: 188.73 TONNES FINAL

AUGUST: 217.89 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE.

SEPT 142.12 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE ( LOW ISSUANCE)_

OCT: 141.13 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE (LOW ISSUANCE)

NOV: 312.46 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE//NEW RECORD!! (INCREASING DRAMATICALLY)//SIGN OF REAL STRESS//SURPASSING THE MARCH 2021 RECORD OF 276.50 TONNES OF EFP

DEC. 175.62 TONNES//FINAL ISSUANCE//

TOTALS: 2,578.08 TONNES/2021

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

TOTAL: 2,847,25 TONNES/2022

JAN 2023: 228.49 TONNES FINAL//HUGE AMOUNT OF EFP’S ISSUED THIS MONTH!!

FEB: 151.61 TONNES/FINAL

MARCH: 280.09 TONNES/INITIAL (ANOTHER STRONG MONTH FOR EFP ISSUANCE)

APRIL: 197.42 TONNES ( MUCH SMALLER THAN LAST MONTH)

MAY: 132.03 TONNES (HEADING FOR ANOTHER SMALLER MONTH)

SPREADING OPERATIONS

(/NOW SWITCHING TO GOLD) FOR NEWCOMERS, HERE ARE THE DETAILS

SPREADING LIQUIDATION HAS NOW COMMENCED AS WE HEAD TOWARDS THE NEW ACTIVE FRONT MONTH OF JUNE. WE ARE NOW INTO THE SPREADING OPERATION OF GOLD

HERE IS A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF HOW THE CROOKS FLEECE UNSUSPECTING LONGS IN THE SPREADING ENDEAVOUR ;MODUS OPERANDI OF THE CORRUPT BANKERS AS TO HOW THEY HANDLE THEIR SPREAD OPEN INTERESTS:HERE IS HOW THE CROOKS USED SPREADING AS WE ARE NOW INTO THE NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF MAY HEADING TOWARDS THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF JUNE., 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 (JUNE), 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.

The crooks also use the spread in the TAS account (trade at settlement). They buy the spot TAS (e.g. June) and sell the future TAS two months out (e.g. August). Then they unload the front month so the price of gold/silver falls. This occurs in the middle of the front delivery month cycle.

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 VERY STRONG SIZED 835 CONTRACTS OI TO 139,367 AND CLOSER TO 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. HOWEVER WE HAVE SET A NEW RECORD LOW OF 117,395 CONTRACTS MARCH 27/2022

EFP ISSUANCE 25 CONTRACTS

OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:

JULY 25 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 25 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 772 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 25 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,

WE OBTAIN A VERY STRONG SIZED LOSS OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 810 CONTRACTS

THUS IN OUNCES, THE GOOD LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTAL 4.05 MILLION OZ

OCCURRED DESPITE OUR $0.02 GAIN IN PRICE …..

END

OUTLINE FOR TODAY’S COMMENTARY

1a/COMEX GOLD AND SILVER REPORT

(report Harvey)

b, ) Gold/silver trading overnight Europe,//GOLD COMMENTARIES

(Peter Schiff)

c) Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens

ii a) Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries

b. Other gold/silver commentaries

c. Commodity commentaries//

d)/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC

2.ASIAN AFFAIRS//

THURSDAY MORNING//WEDNESDAY NIGHT

SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 13.09 PTS OR 0.40% //Hang Seng CLOSED UP 166.68 POINTS OR 0.85% /The Nikkei closed UP 480.34 OR 1.60% //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.51 % /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN 7.0268 /OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN DOWN TO 7.0440 /Oil UP TO 72.76 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT AT 76.71 / 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 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

9. USA

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1. COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS

GOLD

LET US BEGIN:

THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST FELL BY AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED 22,576 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 499,256 WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $8.25 ON WEDNESDAY,

EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE

WE ARE NOW IN THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF MAY… THE CME REPORTS THAT THE BANKERS ISSUED A GOOD SIZED TRANSFER THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE AS THESE LONGS RECEIVED A DELIVERABLE LONDON FORWARD TOGETHER WITH A FIAT BONUS.,

THAT IS 5351 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: : JUNE 5351 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:

TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 5351 CONTRACTS

ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE LOST THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A VERY MONSTER SIZED TOTAL OF 17,225 CONTRACTS IN THAT 5351 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED LOSS OF 22,576 COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS GIGANTIC SIZED LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $8.25. AS PER OUR NEWBIE TRADE AT SETTLEMENT (TAS) MANIPULATION OPERATION (WHICH CRAIG HEMKE HAS POINTED OUT HAPPENS DURING MID MONTH IN THE DELIVERY CYCLE),THE CME REPORTS THAT THE TOTAL T.A.S. ISSUANCE THIS MORNING WAS A STRONG 1186 CONTRACTS. THE SHORT SIDE WAS LIQUIDATED TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY AND AGAIN TODAY WHICH OF COURSE MANIPULATED THE PRICE OF GOLD SOUTHBOUND. (THE LONGS WILL BE LIQUIDATED TWO MONTHS HENCE)

// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING: MAY (18.768) ( NON ACTIVE MONTH)

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

Dec. 64.541 tonnes

(TOTAL YEAR 656.076 TONNES)

2003:

JAN/2023: 20.559 tonnes

FEB 2023: 47.744 tonnes

MAR: 19.0637 TONNES

APRIL: 75.676 tonnes

MAY: 18.768 TONNES

THE SPECS/HFT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT FELL $8.25) //// AND WERE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING SOME SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE HAD OUR MONSTER SIZED LOSS OF 17,225 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES BUT I SUSPECT THAT MOST OF THAT LOSS WAS DUE TO LIQUIDATION OF THE TAS.

WE HAVE LOST A TOTAL OI OF 53.57 PAPER TONNES OF TOTAL OI FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR MAY. (3.5085 TONNES) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S E.F.P. JUMP TO LONDON OF 100 oz (0.00311 TONNES)//NEW STANDING 18.768 TONNES ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $8.25

WE HAD +REMOVED 183 CONTRACTS TO THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST AFTER TRADING ENDED LAST NIGHT

NET LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 17,225 CONTRACTS OR 1,722,500 OZ OR 53.57 TONNES.

Estimated gold comex today 247,018// fair

final gold volumes/yesterday 248,226// FAIR

//MAY 18/ MAY 2023 CONTRACT

Gold	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory in oz*	nil
Withdrawals from Customer* Inventory in oz*	nil OZ .
Deposit to the Dealer* Inventory in oz*	NIL
Deposits to the Customer* Inventory, in oz*	10,165.388 oz Delaware
No of oz served (contracts) today	45 notice(s) 4500 OZ 0.1399 TONNES
No of oz to be served (notices)	116 contracts 11600 oz 0.368 TONNES
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month	5918 notices 591,800 OZ 18.407 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*	x

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 oz

Adjustments; 1

dealer to customer: Manfra: 4822.60 oz

CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR MAY.

For the front month of MAY we have an oi of 161 contracts having LOST 4 contracts. We had 3 contracts filed

on WEDNESDAY, so we LOST 1 contract or an additional 100 oz (0.00311 tonnes) will NOT stand for gold in this non active delivery month of May as this guy was EFP’d to London hoping for a future delivery

June LOST A HUGE 21,965 contracts DOWN to 204,393 contracts. (FROM WHICH A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT WAS DUE TO TAS LIQUIDATION)

July added 94 contracts to stand at 1864 contracts.

AUGUST lost 991 contracts down to 238,437 contracts (SMALLER ROLL //CONFIRMS TAS LIQUIDATION)

We had 45 contracts filed for today representing 4500 oz

Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer account and 45 notices were issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 45 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 4 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 MAY /2023. contract month,

we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (5,918 x 100 oz ), to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAY (161 CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today 45 x 100 oz per contract equals 603,400 OZ OR 18.768 TONNES the number of TONNES standing in this NON- active month of May.

thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the MAY contract month: No of notices filed so far (5,918 x 100 oz) x 161 OI for the front month minus the number of notices served upon today (45)x 100 oz} which equals 603,400 oz standing OR 18.768 TONNES

TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING: 18.768 TONNES WHICH IS HUGE FOR A NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

COMEX GOLD INVENTORIES/CLASSIFICATION

NEW PLEDGED GOLD:

241,794.285 oz NOW PLEDGED /HSBC 5.94 TONNES

204,937.290 PLEDGED MANFRA 3.08 TONNES

83,657.582 PLEDGED JPMorgan no 1 1.690 tonnes

265,999.054, oz JPM No 2

1,152,376.639 oz pledged Brinks/

Manfra: 33,758.550 oz

Delaware: 193.721 oz

International Delaware:: 11,188.542 o

total pledged gold: 1,666,085.702 OZ 51.822 tonnes

TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED: 22,592,641.413 OZ

TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD: 12,396,452.124 (385,58 tonnes)..

TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 10,196,159.289 O Z

REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 10,730.367 OZ (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD) 333.75 tonnes//

END

SILVER/COMEX

MAY 18//2023// THE MAY 2023 SILVER CONTRACT

Silver	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory*	NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory	179,674,221 oz Brinks Delaware .
Deposits to the Dealer* Inventory*	nil oz
Deposits to the Customer Inventory	1,202,775.640 oz JPMorgan CNT
No of oz served today (contracts)	250 CONTRACT(S) (1,250,000 OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)	174 contracts (870,000 oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)	2413 Contracts (12,065,000 oz)
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Dealers* inventory this month*	NIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Customer* inventory this month*

i) 0 dealer deposit

total dealer deposits: 0

total: nil oz

i) We had 0 dealer withdrawal

total dealer withdrawals: oz

We have 2 deposits into the customer account

i) Into JPMorgan: 601,934.700 oz

ii) Into CNT: 600,840.940

Total deposits: 1,202,775.640 oz

JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 141.326 million oz/274.121 million =51.45% of comex .//dropping fast

Comex withdrawals 2

i) Out of Brinks: 169,641.100 oz

ii) Out of Delaware 10,033.121 oz

Total withdrawal: 178,674.221 oz

adjustments: 0

TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 29.747 MILLION OZ (declining rapidly).TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 271.911 million oz

we have now seen the movement of the registered silver comex into the 29 million column:

CALCULATION OF SILVER OZ STANDING FOR MAY

silver open interest data:

FRONT MONTH OF MAY /2023 OI: 424 CONTRACTS HAVING GAINED 11 CONTRACT(S). WE HAD 0 CONTRACTS FILED ON WEDNESDAY, SO WE GAINED 11 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 55,000 OZ WILL STAND FOR DELIVERY ON THIS SIDE OF THE POND

JUNE HAD A 13 CONTRACT GAIN TO 1073

JULY HAD A9522 CONTRACT LOSS TO 114,555 CONTRACTS

TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 250 for 1,250,000 oz

Comex volumes// est. volume today 46,880 poor

Comex volume: confirmed yesterday: 51,609 fair

To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in MAY. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 2413 x 5,000 oz = 12,065,000 oz

to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAY(424) and the number of notices served upon today 250 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.

Thus the standings for silver for the MAY/2023 contract month: 2413 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of May (424) – number of notices served upon today (250 )x 500 oz of silver standing for the MAY contract month equates to 12.935 million oz + THE CRIMINAL 0 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK TODAY//NEW TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK: 4.250//NEW TOTAL 17.185 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

END

GLD AND SLV INVENTORY LEVELS

MAY 18/WITH GOLD DOWN $23.80 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.02 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 936.96 TONNES

MAY 17/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.25 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF .87 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 934.94 TONNES

MAY 16/WITH GOLD DOWN 28.05 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.57 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 934,07

MAY 15/WITH GOLD UP $2.85 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.64 TONNES

MAY 12/WITH GOLD DOWN $.40 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.89 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.84 TONNES

MAY 11/WITH GOLD DOWN $15.15 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 934.95 TONNES

MAY 10/WITH GOLD DOWN $5.00 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.70 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 934.95 TONNES

MAY 9/WITH GOLD UP $9.70 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A MONSTER DEPOSIT OF 5.88 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.64 TONNES

MAY 8/WITH GOLD UP $8.70 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.73 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 931.77 TONNES

MAY 5/WITH GOLD DOWN $30.30 TODAY:HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: AS DEPOSIT OF 1.74 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.04 TONNES

MAY 4/WITH GOLD UP $19.00 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 928.30 TONNES

MAY 3/WITH GOLD UP $13.90 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 3.47 TONNES INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 928.30 TONNES

MAY 2/WITH GOLD UP $32.70 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.45 TONNES FORM THE GLD/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 924.83 TONNES

MAY 1/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.85 TODAY:NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.28 TONNES

APRIL 28/WITH GOLD UP $1.45 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.76 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.28 TONNES

APRIL 27/WITH GOLD UP $4.00 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.04 TONNES/

APRIL 26/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.45 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.61 TONNES FROM THE GLD.//INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.04 TONNES

APRIL 25/WITH GOLD UP $4.90 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF .86 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 927.43 TONNES

APRIL 24/WITH GOLD UP $9.45 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.57 TONNES

APRIL 21/WITH GOLD DOWN $27.80 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.57 TONNES

APRIL 20/WITH GOLD UP $12.70: HUGE CHANGES TODAY IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF .87 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.57 TONNES

APRIL 19//WITH GOLD DOWN $12.00 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 925.70 TONNES

APRIL 18/WITH GOLD UP $12.15 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.03 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 925.70 TONNES/

APRIL 17/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.15 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.89 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 927.72 TONNES

APRIL 14/WITH GOLD DOWN $38.90 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.47 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.61 TONNES

APRIL 13/WITH GOLD UP$31.70 TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 3.17 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 934.08 TONNES

APRIL 11/WITH GOLD UP $14.30 TODAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 903.91 TONNES

APRIL 10/WITH GOLD DOWN $21.40 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.91 TONNES

APRIL 6//WITH GOLD DOWN $9.15 TODAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.91

APRIL 5//WITH GOLD UP 0 TODAY:NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.04

APRIL 4/WITH GOLD UP $36.30 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 2.02 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.04 TONNES

APRIL 3/WITH GOLD UP $14.20 TODAY;NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RESTS AT 928.02 TONNES

GLD INVENTORY: 936.96 TONNES

Now the SLV Inventory/( vehicle is a fraud as there is no physical metal behind them

MAY 18/WITH SILVER DOWN 23 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 919,000 OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.529 MILLION OZ/

MAY 17/WITH SILVER DOWN 2 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 469.448 MILLION OZ//

MAY 16/WITH SILVER DOWN 34 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF .643 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 469.448 MILLION OZ.

MAY 15/WITH SILVER UP 13 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 470.091 MILLION OZ/

MAY 12/WITH SILVER DOWN $.26 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 3,123 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 470.091 MILLION OZ./

MAY 11/WITH SILVER DOWN $1.18 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 466.968 MILLION OZ

MAY 10/WITH SILVER DOWN 23 CENTS TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 1.286 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 466.968 MILLION OZ//

MAY 9/WITH SILVER UP 7 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A TINY DEPOSIT OF .08 MILLION OZ OF SILVER INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 465.682 MILLION OZ//

MAY 8/WITH SILVER DOWN 7 CENTS: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.194 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 465.602 MILLION OZ//

MAY 5/WITH SILVER DOWN 31 CENTS TODAY; SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 368,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 466.876 MILLION OZ//

MAY 4/WITH SILVER UP 53 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A SMALL DEPOSIT OF .174 MILLION OZ INTO SLV.//INVENTORY RESTS AT 467.174 MILLION OZ//

MAY 3/WITH SILVER UP 11 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.194 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 467.070 MILLION OZ//

MAY 2/WITH SILVER UP 37 CENTS TODAY;NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.264 MILLION OZ//

MAY 1/WITH SILVER DOWN ONE CENT TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 918,000 OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.264 MILLION OZ

APRIL 28/WITH SILVER UP 1 CENT TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 469.482 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 27/WITH SILVER UP 16 CENTS TODAY:HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.103 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 469.182 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 26/WITH SILVER UP 10 CENTS TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.102 MILLION OZ FORM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 470.285 MILLION OZ

APRIL 25/WITH SILVER DOWN 34 CENTS TODAY: THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!!! HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 7.304 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 471.387 MILLION OZ.

APRIL 24/WITH SILVER UP 22 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 464.083 MILLION OZ/

APRIL 21/WITH SILVER DOWN 29 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 919,000 OZ FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 464.083 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 20/WITH SILVER UP 2 CENTS TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.021 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 465.002 MILLION OZ/

APRIL 19/WITH SILVER UP 11 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 467.023 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 18/WITH SILVER UP 18 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.757 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 467.023 MILLION OZ

APRIL 17/WITH SILVER DOWN 33 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.194 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 469.780 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 14/WITH SILVER DOWN 48 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 470.974 MILLION OZ/

APRIL 13/WITH SILVER UP HUGELY BY 48 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 2.389 MILLION OZ OF SILVER INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 470.974 MILLION OZ

APRIL 11/WITH SILVER UP 27 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.585 MILLION OZ

APRIL 10/WITH SILVER DOWN 17 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.585 MILLION OZ

APRIL 6/WITH SILVER UP 2 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV; A DEPOSIT OF 4.643 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 468.585 MILLION OZ//

APRIL 5/WITH SILVER DOWN 4 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 463.942 MILLION OZ

APRIL 4/WITH GOLD UP $1.11 TODAY CRIMINAL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.47 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 463,942 MILLION OZ

APRIL 1/WITH SILVER DOWN 14 CENTS TODAY; NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//INVENTORY RESTS AT 465.412

CLOSING INVENTORY 468.529 MILLION OZ//

PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER STORIES

1:Peter Schiff

end

2 Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens//JAMES RICKARDS//JOHN RUBINO

end

3,Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries

end

4. OTHER GOLD/SILVER RELATED COMMENTARIES/

END

5.IMPORTANT COMMENTARIES ON COMMODITIES: EGGS

Epic Collapse Of Egg Prices Shown In One Chart

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 07:45 AM

Throughout most of 2022, consumers were left aghast in supermarkets at the soaring cost of eggs. However, since the end of December, prices have crashed, providing much-needed relief to cash-strapped consumers battered by two years of negative real wage growth.

We first identified the reversal in egg prices in a Feb. 8 note titled “We’ve Got Great News: Wholesale Egg Prices “Collapse””. This was followed by “Egg Prices Finally Fall After Months Of Non-Stop Price Spikes” in March and “Eggflation Ends With Cal-Maine Shares Down The Most Since 2008″ in April.

Now new data from Urner Barry, a market research firm that tracks wholesale food prices, shows its Urner Barry Egg Index continues to plunge. Since peaking at $4.65 per dozen on Dec. 19, wholesale prices are now at .49.

Karyn Rispoli, a senior egg market analyst at Urner Barry, told CNN that wholesale prices began tumbling in late March as prices just hit annual lows earlier this month and have stayed there.

“While the egg market in 2022 was dominated by the bird flu, the market this year has been dominated by its absence,” Rispoli said.

Last year, the worst bird flu in years decimated the US’ egg-laying hen population, thus reducing egg supplies. In addition, farmers were grappling with soaring feed, diesel, and fertilizer costs.

Last month, egg producer Cal-Maine Foods recorded the largest monthly equity decline since 2008 as collapsing poultry prices depressed earnings.

“When considering what’s currently playing out for eggs, we think it is best for us move to the sidelines on Cal-Maine as we think risk/reward is now more balanced,” Stephens research analysts wrote in a note to clients.

Even though supply is coming online while bird flu appears to be under control — demand at supermarkets has yet to return.

USDA figures show there were 314 million egg-laying hens in the US in April, up from 308 million in December but still lower than 328 million in December 2021.

Data from NIQ, which tracks retail sales, shows for the four weeks ending on Apr. 22, retail egg sales in the US slid 4% compared with the same period a year before. Consumers are still budget conscious at a time retail egg prices remain high but have come off peaks. It might take a couple more months for egg demand to return.

END

end

5 B GLOBAL COMMODITIES ISSUES/FOOD IN GENERAL

6.CRYPTOCURRENCY COMMENTARIES/

END

1.YOUR EARLY CURRENCY VALUES/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGS// THURSDAY MORNING.7:30 AM

ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED DOWN AT 7.0268

OFFSHORE YUAN: 7.0440

SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 13.09 PTS OR 0.40%

HANG SENG CLOSED UP 166.68 PTS OR 0.85%

2. Nikkei closed UP 480.34 PTS OR 1.60%

3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL GREEN

USA dollar INDEX UP TO 102.99 EURO FALLS TO 1.0814 DOWN 29 BASIS PTS

3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +.383 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 137.82 /JAPANESE YEN FALLING 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 DOWN /JAPANESE Yen DOWN CHINESE YUAN: DOWN// OFF- SHORE: DOWN

3f Japan is to buy INFINITE 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 UP TO +2.413***/Italian 10 Yr bond yield RISES to 4.279*** /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD RISES TO 3.481…** DANGEROUS//

3i Greek 10 year bond yield RISES TO 3.991

3j Gold at $1967.10 silver at: 23.48 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00

3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble DOWN 0 AND 10 /100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 79,96//

3m oil into the 72 dollar handle for WTI and 76 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 137.82 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER BREAKING .54%, FALLS TO .362% STILL ON CENTRAL BANK (JAPAN) INTERVENTION

30 SNB (Swiss National Bank) still intervening again in the markets driving down the FRANC. It is not working: USA/SF this 0.9001 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF 0.9735 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: 3.607 UP 3 BASIS PTS…

USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 3.890 UP 1 BASIS PTS/

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.1755 UP 2 BASIS PTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 19.79…

GREAT BRITAIN/10 YEAR YIELD: UP 2 BASIS PTS AT 3.949 UP 11 BASIS PTS

end

2. Overnight: Newsquawk and Zero hedge:

2. a)FIRST, ZEROHEDGE (PRE USA OPENING// MORNING

US Futures, Global Markets Rise On Continued Debt Ceiling Optimism

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 08:10 AM

Futures are slightly higher following yesterday’s strong session driven by what the narrative says is debt ceiling deal optimism after US President Biden said he was confident the US would avoid a default, although how rising stocks – which eases pressure for a debt deal – makes a deal more likely is beyond us. S&P futures were up 0.2%, pointing to a second day of gains for the index, and US regional lenders kept up their momentum in premarket trading, with Western Alliance Bancorp adding 2% and PacWest Bancorp up 6%; longer-dated bond yields are up 1-2bps, with the 10Y TSY trading at 3.60%. USD strength continues despite many investors indicating potential weakness into the x-date; commodities are weaker across all three siloes after the Black Sea Grain Initiative was extended by 2 months, reducing near-term inflation risk. Biden says another debt ceiling update will come Sunday after positive momentum in negotiations. Today, we receive WMT earnings which beat beat on revenue, earnings and comps, pushing the stock higher and a further read on the consumer plus jobless data.

In premarket trading, Walmart shares rose as much as 2.7% after the retailer boosted its adjusted earnings per share forecast for the full year. Peer Target, which maintained its year forecast on Wednesday, is also trading higher after the report. Cisco Systems shares fall as much as 3.9% in premarket trading on Thursday, after the largest network-gear maker said orders declined in the past quarter. Analysts noted that product orders slowed faster than anticipated, but remained positive about the company’s backlog driving growth. Here are some other notable premarket movers:

Alibaba shares fell as much as 2.4% before paring losses after the Chinese e-commerce firm reported quarterly sales that missed analyst estimates, dragged down by a weaker-than-expected core China commerce unit.
Bath & Body Works gains 9.5% after stronger-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results prompt the retailer to increase its earnings per share forecast for the year.
Boot Barn shares tumble 16% after the cowboy-boot seller reported fourth-quarter net sales that missed estimates and provided a forecast for the year that failed to match expectations. The results left analysts disappointed, with Citi highlighting a sizable miss in same store sales and Piper Sandler noting that the FY24 EPS guidance had been impacted by investments in new stores and a new distribution center.
Canada Goose shares climb as much as 14% after the pricey parka maker reported fourth-quarter results that topped analysts’ estimates, and boosted its 2024 revenue guidance.
Micron rises as much as 2.4% in premarket trading following news, citing people familiar with the matter, that Japan is poised to provide about ¥200 billion ($1.5 billion) in incentives to help the semiconductor company make next-generation memory chips in the country.
WeWork shares rise as much as 10% in US premarket trading, before paring the gain to 3.6%, following a record plunge for shares in the co-working company on Wednesday after the sudden departure of its CEO.
Take-Two Interactive Software shares rise as much as 11% in premarket trading, putting it on course to hit a year-high if gains hold, after the video-game company reported its fourth-quarter results and hinted at a release date for the next version of its popular Grand Theft Auto franchise. Analysts were positive as they speculated that GTA VI is among several games in the pipeline.
Western Alliance and PacWest Bancorp advance in US premarket trading, set to continue Wednesday’s strong gains after Western Alliance Bancorp said deposits had grown by more than $2 billion since the quarter’s end.
StoneCo drops 2.1% in US premarket trading after the company’s first-quarter payment volumes fell short of Wall Street estimates despite an increase over the same period a year earlier, and software revenue showed signs of weakness.
10x Genomics said it won an injunction in its patent litigation against NanoString Technologies and NanoString Technologies Germany. NanoString (NSTG US) shares fell 7% in US postmarket trading.
Snowflake has been in advanced talks to acquire search startup Neeva, the Information reports, citing unidentified people who do business with Snowflake.Shares of Snowflake rose 2.9% in postmarket trading following the report

The recent market upside reflects both the progress in Washington and some good news out of embattled US regional lenders. Bank stocks rebounded this week after Western Alliance reported an increase in deposits, easing concern that the industy will succumb to losses on bond investments and a flight by depositors. Taken together, they’re keeping hopes alive that the US will avert a recession and giving way to soft-landing bets after one of the most aggressive Fed tightening cycles in history.

“If the headwinds of banking crisis and debt ceiling recede and consumers stays reasonably resilient, the recession risk may recede,” said Roger Lee, head of UK equity strategy at Investec Bank Plc. Bets on a relief rally were reflected in the VIX which fell below 17 to close at the lowest level since the start of the month.

President Joe Biden expressed confidence there will be no US default, and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said reaching an agreement this week is “doable.” JPMorgan chief Jamie Dimon said the US government “probably” will not default on its debt after he and other bank leaders met in Washington to discuss the debt limit.

Investor attention later turns to initial US jobless claims data, which could provide clues on what the Federal Reserve intends to do next in its monetary policy tightening campaign. Earnings due from Walmart Inc. will provide insights on the state of the economy and the American consumer.

European stocks are firmly in the green following gains on Wall Street on Wednesday and Asia overnight after US President Biden said he was confident the US would avoid a default. The Stoxx 600 is up 0.5% with autos, tech and banks the strongest-performing sectors while utilities and miners fall; markets in Nordic countries and Switzerland are closed for holidays Thursday. Here are the most notable European movers:

Aston Martin Lagonda shares jump as much as 25% after China’s Geely commits £234 million to become the third-largest shareholder in the British luxury carmaker.
Genuit rises as much as 6.5% after the plastic-piping system manufacturer says it now expects full-year operating profit to be slightly ahead of current consensus for the year. That prompts analysts to raise their estimates.
Petrofac shares rise as much as 12% after a joint venture led by the oil services company alongside China Huanqiu Contracting & Engineering Corporation was conditionally awarded a $1.5b petrochemical EPC contract by Sonatrach subsidiary STEP Polymers.
ConvaTec shares gain as much as 3.3% after the wound care and ostomy products firm raised its organic growth guidance, offsetting a small miss for the first four months of the year.
Vistry shares rise as much as 4.2%, hitting the highest since August, after the UK homebuilder raised its guidance and analysts highlighted how its model — split between building and partnerships — is proving a unique differentiator to its competitors.
EasyJet shares fluctuated in a narrow range in early trading after the low-cost airline’s FY results, with analysts saying there were scant surprises given the group issued a trading update in April, though the tone of the statement remains positive.
BT shares fall by as much as 10%, their biggest decline since November, after the UK telecom operator retained capital spending at a high level to aid its fiber buildout, a move that came at a cost of a lower-than- expected cash flow target.
Burberry shares drop as much as 6.2%, the most since March 13, after the British luxury goods company reported results. Morgan Stanley said the fiscal 2024 profitability forecast suggests Ebit will be slightly below consensus estimates, while RBC said the pace of recovery in the Asia-Pacific region might not be as strong as market expectations.
International Distributions Services falls as much as 5.5% after the Royal Mail owner’s downbeat outlook overshadows slightly better-than-expected full-year earnings.
Future plc shares slump as much as 19%, dropping to the lowest level since April 2020, after the international multimedia company issued a profit warning for the full year.

A gauge of Asian stocks headed for its biggest gain since March, with benchmarks in Australia, Hong Kong and South Korea advancing. Japan’s Topix index climbed around 1% to set a fresh 33-year high. Gains in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. ahead of its earnings release spurred tech stocks higher in both Hong Kong and Japan. Chipmakers were among best performers on the Nikkei 225 on government plans to boost the country’s domestic semiconductor sector. ASX 200 was led by outperformance in tech and strength in the financial and commodity-related sectors but with advances contained after disappointing jobs data which showed a surprise contraction in Employment Change and an uptick in the Unemployment Rate.

Nikkei 225, which just surpassed 30,000 yesterday, surged more at the open amid reports of potential Japanese subsidies for chipmakers following PM Kishida’s meeting with foreign chip executives. However, the index then stalled just short of its best levels in over three decades and after weaker-than-expected trade data.

Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were positive amid the broad risk appetite but with further upside somewhat limited by the disappointment from Tencent’s earnings which posted a 27% rise in net profit but missed against expectations, while it was also reported that Montana became the first US state to ban TikTok which will take effect from January next year.

In India, key stock gauges in India fell for the third straight day as ITC and State Bank of India retreated after their earnings. The S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.2% to 61,431.74 in Mumbai, while the NSE Nifty 50 Index declined 0.3% to 18,129.95. Indian market underperformed their Asian peers as the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index climbed 0.7% for the day. ITC and SBI were among the top two contributors to Sensex’s decline. Indian stocks have seen profit booking in the last three sessions after nearing their record highs earlier as concerns persist over valuations and recovery in rural demand. Out of 30 shares in the Sensex index, 10 rose, while 20 fell

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose for a third day as much as 0.4% to 1,237.32, its highest since late March; the US currency climbed to a six-month high of 137.94 yen, while the euro slumped to 1.0806, its weakest since early April. Across FX trading, the Norwegian krone and Swedish krona are the weakest currencies. In China, the yuan fell for a third day, dropping further past the key 7 per dollar level, even after the PBOC set a stronger-than-expected currency fixing; USD/CNH rose 0.5% to 7.0433; USD/CNY gained 0.5% to 7.0277. Positive dollar momentum continues after US President Joe Biden expressed confidence that negotiators would reach an agreement to avoid a catastrophic default, seeking to reassure markets before he departs on a trip to Japan

In rates, treasuries extended Wednesday’s losses, with yields cheaper by 1.5bp to 3bp across the curve, as optimism about a US debt-ceiling resolution lifts S&P 500 futures to weekly highs. Losses led by long-end of the curve into early US session; 2s10s, 5s30s spreads unwind a portion of Wednesday’s flattening move, widening 1.5bp and 0.5bp on the day. The yield on the two-year Treasury edged up around 1 basis point to 4.17%, matching a three-week high hit the previous day; yields on longer-dated maturities rise around 2 basis points, slightly steepening the yield curve. 10-year yields sit around 3.60%, cheaper by 3bp vs prior day’s close whille German and UK 10-year borrowing costs rise by 6bps and 4bps respectively. The IG issuance slate is empty so far; ten companies priced almost $9b Wednesday, taking weekly total above $57b, on pace to be the second busiest week of the year so far. Traders reduced bets for the possibility of Fed rate cuts in the coming months; pricing suggests around 30 basis points of cuts by November, and 52 basis points by December, down from around 60 basis points on Wednesday.

In commodities, Crude futures decline with WTI falling 0.5% to trade near $72.50. Spot gold drops 0.3% to around $1,976. Bitcoin rises 0.1%. Bitcoin was incrementally firmer though ranges are very slim with specifics limited ahead of a busy US session; currently, BTC is just shy of USD 27.5k.

To the day ahead now, and data releases from the US include the weekly initial jobless claims, existing home sales for April, the Conference Board’s leading index for April, and the Philadelphia Fed’s business outlook for May. Otherwise from central banks, we’ll hear from the Fed’s Jefferson, Barr and Logan, ECB Vice President de Guindos and the ECB’s Muller, along with BoE Governor Bailey and the BoE’s Broadbent, Ramsden and Pill. Finally, earnings releases include Walmart.

Market Snapshot

S&P 500 futures up 0.2% to 4,178.00
MXAP up 0.7% to 162.21
MXAPJ up 0.5% to 513.62
Nikkei up 1.6% to 30,573.93
Topix up 1.1% to 2,157.85
Hang Seng Index up 0.9% to 19,727.25
Shanghai Composite up 0.4% to 3,297.32
Sensex up 0.1% to 61,639.27
Australia S&P/ASX 200 up 0.5% to 7,236.78
Kospi up 0.8% to 2,515.40
STOXX Europe 600 up 0.6% to 466.69
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.40%
Euro down 0.2% to $1.0815
Brent Futures down 0.4% to $76.64/bbl
Gold spot down 0.4% to $1,974.48
U.S. Dollar Index up 0.23% to 103.12

Top Overnight News

China’s fiscal revenue rose 11.9% in the first four months of 2023 from the same period a year earlier, accelerating sharply from a 0.5% rise in January-March, official data showed, as the economy stages a gradual but uneven post-COVID recovery. Fiscal revenue totaled 8.32 trillion yuan ($1.20 trillion)in the first four months while fiscal expenditure grew 6.8% to 8.64 trillion yuan, the ministry said in a statement on Thursday. RTRS
China’s embrace of artificial intelligence for warfare has touched off alarm bells everywhere from Silicon Valley to the Pentagon. Former Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt is among those raising concerns, and he testified at a House hearing about China Wednesday evening as head of an initiative that’s focused on speeding the US defense establishment’s adoption of AI. BBG
Australia employment unexpectedly dipped in April after two months of outsized gains, and the jobless rate also ticked up in a sign the red-hot labor market might be cooling, bolstering the case for a pause in interest rate hikes next month. RTRS
Seven of the world’s largest semiconductor makers have set out plans to increase manufacturing and deepen tech partnerships in Japan as western allies step up efforts to reshape the global chip supply chain amid rising tensions with China. At an unprecedented meeting in Tokyo with Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida, the heads of chipmakers including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and Intel and Micron of the US described plans that could transform Japan’s prospects of re-emerging as a semiconductor powerhouse. FT
Russia acknowledges it has “problems” with oil/gas revenues slumping given Western sanctions and restrictions (energy revenue fell by more than 50% in Q1 Y/Y). FT
Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit charging that the financial institution facilitated Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring, said lawyers who sued the bank on behalf of alleged victims. WSJ
A fresh push by Britain and the Netherlands to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter planes has exposed the latest fault line among Western allies who have wrangled repeatedly over sending powerful weapons of war, once again pitting a reluctant United States against some of its closest European partners. NYT
Holders of the Credit Suisse debt wiped out in March forced the regulator to release the order that justified it. A Swiss court told Finma to release the decree that let Credit Suisse wipe out about $17 billion of AT1 notes, documents show. CDS tied to CS subordinated debt are down after a panel ruled the wipe-out won’t trigger a payout. One-year CDS were indicated at 392 bps, according to CMAI data, down about 390 bps from yesterday. BBG
US commercial real estate prices fell in the first quarter for the first time in more than a decade, according to Moody’s Analytics, heightening the risk of more financial stress in the banking industry. The less than 1% decline was led by drops in multifamily residences and office buildings, data culled by Moody’s from courthouse records of transactions showed. BBG
Foreign sales accounted for 29% of the $16 trillion of aggregate S&P 500 revenues in 2022, unchanged from 2021. The largest regional non-US exposures were Asia Pacific (9%, $1.3 trillion) and Europe (6%, $919 billion). Based on company filings, just 2% percent of S&P 500 revenues ($378 billion) were explicitly derived from Greater China. Only one sector generates more than half of its revenues overseas: Information Technology (60%). The 1% YTD weakening of the trade-weighted US dollar has supported the stock performance of international-facing US companies, but stocks have outpaced their typical relationship with the currency. GIR

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were higher as the region took its cue from the momentum on Wall Street where stocks rallied amid optimism amongst regional banks and debt ceiling talks, although some of the gains were capped as participants digested soft data releases. ASX 200 was led by outperformance in tech and strength in the financial and commodity-related sectors but with advances contained after disappointing jobs data which showed a surprise contraction in Employment Change and an uptick in the Unemployment Rate. Nikkei 225 surged at the open amid reports of potential Japanese subsidies for chipmakers following PM Kishida’s meeting with foreign chip executives. However, the index then stalled just short of its best levels in over three decades and after weaker-than-expected trade data. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were positive amid the broad risk appetite but with further upside somewhat limited by the disappointment from Tencent’s earnings which posted a 27% rise in net profit but missed against expectations, while it was also reported that Montana became the first US state to ban TikTok which will take effect from January next year.

Top Asian News

China’s ambassador to Australia said China will resume imports of Australian timber from today and that it is in communication with Australia for a convenient time regarding a PM visit, according to Reuters.
Montana’s Governor signed the bill to ban TikTok which prohibits mobile application stores from offering TikTok within the state effective January 2024, while TikTok commented that the Montana law infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana, according to Reuters.
New Zealand Budget forecasts 2023/24 GDP at 1.0% (prev. -0.3%) and sees the unemployment rate at 5.0% (prev. 5.5%), while the Treasury no longer expects the country to move into a recession, according to Reuters.

European bourses are firmer across the board, Euro Stoxx 50 +1.1%, following Wednesday’s firmer Wall St. action and a relatively solid APAC lead; within Europe specifically, action is slightly limited by partial Ascension Day closures. Sectors are mostly positive with Autos/Parts outperforming amid Volkswagen strength while Real Estate & Basic Resources lag. Stateside, futures post upside of circa. 0.2%; though, ultimately, the sideways action continues as we await WMT and more substantive debt updates.

Top European News

UK PM Sunak is to agree on a historic deal on security with Japan amid rising tensions with China and will sign the ‘Hiroshima Accord’ on Thursday ahead of the G7 meeting, according to The Telegraph. Furthermore, it was noted that the UK is to step up defence cooperation with Japan to uphold stability in Indo-Pacific with the Hiroshima Accord to include doubling the UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises and committing to deploy a carrier strike group to the Indo-Pacific in 2025, while the UK and Japan will launch a semiconductor partnership with commitments to pursue cooperation, skills exchange & bolstering supply chain resilience, according to a statement.
UK PM Sunak considers following the US lead on Chinese investment curbs, according to the FT.
Germany is reportedly proposing forcing EU firms to include “no Russia clauses” when some high-tech goods are sold to certain nations, via Politico citing a paper.
ECB’s de Guindos says there is still scope to keep raising interest rates, though most of tightening has already been done.
ECB’s Muller says it is premature to expect the ECB to cut rates in early 2024
BoE Governor Bailey says he does not envisage BoE balance sheet returning to where it was before the financial crisis; Deputy Governor Ramsden says QT has some effect on the economy, but fairly small; reiterates QT will be gradual and predictable, there’s potential for QT sales number to go up, but does not see it going down. Broadbent says they received reports that GBP 100bln p.a. of QT may disrupt market liquidity, thus BoE decided on GBP 80bln p.a.

DXY inches further above 103.000 to 103.170 as Yuan extends to the downside through key chart levels (50% Fibs).
Aussie also undermined by weaker than forecast jobs data as AUD/USD retreats towards sub-0.6650 midweek lows.
Euro relying on option expiries to hold above 1.08000 and Yen on psychological support to keep afloat of 138.00.
Pound on backfoot after just below 1.2500 as BoE members deliver QE testimony in Parliament.
Kiwi retains 0.6200+ status after improved NZ budget balances and economic forecasts.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 6.9967 vs exp. 6.9985 (prev. 6.9748)

Fixed Income

Debt descending further on Ascension Day as props in futures and resistance in yields are breached.
Bunds down to 134.58 from 135.44 and 10 year cash probing 2.40%, Gilts near base of 99.65-100.11 range and T-note closer to 114-13 than 114-24 ahead of US data, Fed speakers and 10 year TIPS auction.

Commodities

WTI and Brent front-month futures are softer intraday following some overnight consolidation after yesterday’s risk-led rally.
Spot gold bears the brunt of a firmer Dollar and broader risk appetite.
Base metals are trading off a similar theme, with modest pressure emanating from the firmer Dollar.
Qatar Energy set July Al-Shaheen crude term price at a premium of USD 1.03/bbl above Dubai quotes, according to traders.
Russia’s Kremlin confirms the extension of the Black Sea grain deal by two months.

Geopolitics

Air raid alerts were declared throughout Ukrainian territory. It was later reported that Kyiv’s mayor Klitschko noted explosions in the city and that a fire broke out in the east of the city from falling debris, while he added that an air attack was continuing on Kyiv, according to Reuters.
China’s Foreign Ministry said China’s special envoy of Eurasian affairs visited Ukraine on May 16th-17th and met with Ukrainian President Zelensky. China’s Foreign Ministry said there is no panacea for resolving the crisis and all parties need to create conditions for peace to stop the war, while it added that China and Ukraine agreed should work together to continue mutual respect and sincere treatment, as well as keep mutually beneficial cooperation moving forward, according to Reuters.

US Event Calendar

08:30: May Initial Jobless Claims, est. 252,000, prior 264,000
08:30: May Continuing Claims, est. 1.82m, prior 1.81m
08:30: May Philadelphia Fed Business Outl, est. -20.0, prior -31.3
10:00: April Existing Home Sales MoM, est. -3.2%, prior -2.4%
10:00: April Leading Index, est. -0.6%, prior -1.2%

Central Bank Speakers

09:05: Fed’s Jefferson Gives Speech on Economic Outlook
09:30: Fed’s Barr Testifies Before Senate Banking Committee
10:00: Fed’s Logan Speaks at Texas Bankers Association Convention

DB’s Henry Allen concludes the overnight wrap

Risk appetite returned to markets over the last 24 hours as investors grew more optimistic that a resolution would be reached on the US debt ceiling. We didn’t actually get much in the way of concrete developments, but negotiations are continuing and the mood was lifted by the fact that all the major players reiterated they want to avoid a default, which helped to reassure market participants. In turn, that meant the S&P 500 (+1.19%) put in its best performance in nearly two weeks, whilst other risk assets like oil and HY credit outperformed as well.

In terms of the latest, President Biden gave a brief press conference yesterday, where he said “I’m confident that we’ll get the agreement on the budget and that America will not default”. Not long afterwards, Republican House Speaker McCarthy then added that reaching a deal this week was “doable”, so at least in principle, the main participants in the negotiation are indicating a deal can be reached. Biden is now travelling to the G7 leaders’ summit over the weekend in Japan, but he said that he’d stay in contact with the negotiators and Speaker McCarthy, and that he’d also hold a press conference on Sunday. He also noted that he did not expect a deal to be reached before his return. Biden has already cancelled his subsequent visits to Papua New Guinea and Australia to get back to the US early, which indicates how this is the main focus for the administration at the moment.

With the more encouraging news on the debt ceiling, the S&P 500 advanced by +1.19%, with the gains driven by the more cyclical sectors such as banks (+4.5%), autos (+4.0%), semiconductors (+2.4%), and Transports (+2.2%). Meanwhile the only subindustries that were lower on the day were defensives like utilities (-0.4%), household products (-0.3%), Pharma (-0.3%), and Food & Beverage (-0.2%). Similar to previous days, megacap tech stocks outperformed and the latest rise in the FANG+ index (+1.28%) takes its YTD gains up to +48.09% now. Looking at a longer horizon it’s striking how much equities have been in a holding pattern over the last couple of weeks. To put yesterday’s equity move in context, the S&P 500 had moved by less than 0.7% in either direction over each of the previous 7 sessions, and if yesterday had seen an 8th that would have been the longest run of such small moves since November 2021.

On the rates side, the more positive news of the last 24 hours meant that investors grew more sceptical that the Fed would be pivoting towards rate cuts this year. For instance, the rate priced in for the December meeting rose a further +5.4bps yesterday to 4.538%. And there’ve even been a few noises about another rate hike at the next meeting in June. We should stress this isn’t the consensus view, but at one point intraday, futures went as far as pricing in a 30% chance of a June hike, which is the highest since the Fed’s most recent decision a couple of weeks ago. By the end of the session that was back down to 20%, so it’ll be interesting to hear from various Fed speakers over the next couple of days to see what their views on the matter are.

These shifting expectations about rate hikes led to a selloff among US Treasuries, and several milestones were set across a range of maturities. At the very front-end, the 3-month T-bill yield (+7.7bps) closed at a post-2001 high of 5.22%. And looking further out, the 10yr yield was up +3.0bps on the day to 3.564%, whilst the 30yr yield (+1.2bps) even hit its highest level since the SVB collapse in early March, with an increase to 3.854%. Otherwise, sentiment was further bolstered by the latest data on US housing, with fresh signs that US housing starts were stabilising after their decline in 2022. For instance, they rose to an annualised rate of 1.401m in April (vs. 1.400m expected), which in turn prompted the Atlanta Fed to raise their GDPNow estimate for Q2 up to an annualised rate of +2.9%.

Back in Europe it was a much quieter day, and the STOXX 600 (-0.15%) ended the day slightly lower. For sovereign bonds there was a better performance however, and yields on 10yr bunds (-1.7bps), OATs (-1.8bps) and BTPs (-3.8bps) all moved lower. The main outlier were UK gilts, with 10yr yields up +2.1bps following a speech from BoE Governor Bailey in which he said that “the unwinding of second-round effects may take longer than it did for them to emerge”, and that the MPC would “adjust Bank Rate as necessary” to get inflation back to target.

Overnight in Asia, the main equity indices have followed the pattern from Wall Street as investors grow hopeful that a resolution on the debt ceiling will be reached. That’s supported a rally across the region, with gains for the Nikkei (+1.53%), the Hang Seng (+1.11%), the Shanghai Comp (+0.78%), the KOSPI (+0.59%) and the CSI 300 (+0.38%). For the Nikkei, that marks its 6th consecutive advance, and takes its YTD gains up to +17.07%. It also leaves the index less than half a per cent away from surpassing its recent closing peak in September 2021, which would take it up to its highest closing level since 1990. Looking forward however, that momentum doesn’t seem to be carrying over elsewhere, with futures on the S&P 500 posting a modest -0.06% decline.

Elsewhere overnight, we’ve also had some fairly soft employment data from Australia, where the economy shed -4.3k jobs in April (vs. +25.0k expected). That meant the unemployment rate ticked up to 3.7%, which has dampened expectations that the RBA will continue hiking at their next meeting. Separately, Japanese trade data showed that imports fell -2.3% on a year-on-year basis in April (vs. -0.6% expected), marking the first decline since January 2021. Export growth was also a bit weaker than consensus at +2.6% (vs. +3.0% expected).

2 b) NOW NEWSQUAWK (EUROPE/REPORT)/ASIA REPORT

APAC continues US stock rally after debt ceiling optimism; IJC & CB speak ahead – Newsquawk Europe Market Open

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 01:17 AM

APAC stocks were higher as the region took its cue from the momentum on Wall Street, although some of the gains were capped as participants digested soft data releases.
US House Speaker McCarthy said he is optimistic about the ability to work together and said a debt ceiling deal by Sunday is doable.
European equity futures are indicative of a higher open with the Euro Stoxx 50 +0.7% after the cash market closed up 0.2% yesterday.
DXY sits just below 103, EUR/USD bounced off its 6-week low, AUD pressured by disappointing jobs data.
Looking ahead, highlights include US IJC, Philadelphia Fed, Existing Home Sales, Speeches from Fed’s Jefferson, Barr & Logan, ECB’s Lagarde & de Guindos, BoE’s Bailey, Pill, Broadbent, Ramsden & Tenreyro, Supply from Spain, Earnings from BT, IDS & Walmart, Ascension Day Holiday (Limited Closures).

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US TRADE

EQUITIES

US stocks rallied with risk appetite underpinned amid optimism around debt ceiling negotiations and after more promising consumer earnings reports, while regional banks were underpinned after a reassuring update from Western Alliance (WAL) which reported growth in its deposits.
SPX +1.19% at 4,159, NDX +1.22% at 13,589, DJI +1.24% at 33,420, RUT +2.21% at 1,774.
Click here for a detailed summary.

NOTABLE HEADLINES

US House Speaker McCarthy said he is optimistic about the ability to work together and said a debt ceiling deal by Sunday is doable.
Some Senate Democrats are circulating a letter urging President Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to lift the debt ceiling and avert a default on his own, without an act of Congress, according to NBC.
US Deputy Treasury Secretary Adeyemo met with CEOs and executives convened by the Bank Policy Institute to discuss President Biden’s economic priorities and Adeyemo underscored the urgent need for Congress to raise or suspend the debt, according to Reuters.

APAC TRADE

EQUITIES

APAC stocks were higher as the region took its cue from the momentum on Wall Street where stocks rallied amid optimism amongst regional banks and debt ceiling talks, although some of the gains were capped as participants digested soft data releases.
ASX 200 was led by outperformance in tech and strength in the financial and commodity-related sectors but with advances contained after disappointing jobs data which showed a surprise contraction in Employment Change and an uptick in the Unemployment Rate.
Nikkei 225 surged at the open amid reports of potential Japanese subsidies for chipmakers following PM Kishida’s meeting with foreign chip executives. However, the index then stalled just short of its best levels in over three decades and after weaker-than-expected trade data.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were positive amid the broad risk appetite but with further upside somewhat limited by the disappointment from Tencent’s earnings which posted a 27% rise in net profit but missed against expectations, while it was also reported that Montana became the first US state to ban TikTok which will take effect from January next year.
US equity futures were uneventful and took a breather following yesterday’s rally.
European equity futures are indicative of a higher open with the Euro Stoxx 50 +0.7% after the cash market closed up 0.2% yesterday.

FX

DXY traded rangebound just below the 103 mark with price action quiet after the prior day’s gains which were facilitated by the upside in short-term US yields and amid some optimism regarding the debt ceiling talks.
EUR/USD was contained but off a six-week low after making a trough at 1.0810 yesterday.
GBP/USD lacked firm direction after yesterday’s fluctuations and failed incursion into the 1.2500 territory.
USD/JPY held on to recent gains after the yen faced headwinds from yields and lack of haven demand.
Antipodeans were mixed with AUD/USD pressured by disappointing jobs data, while NZD/USD was kept afloat after the mostly improved Budget Balance and economic forecasts.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 6.9967 vs exp. 6.9985 (prev. 6.9748)

FIXED INCOME

10yr UST futures nursed losses after having bear-flattened as stocks surged on debt ceiling optimism.
Bund futures remained lacklustre following yesterday’s price fluctuations and hawkish ECB rhetoric.
10yr JGB futures were pressured after the subdued performance in global counterparts and despite the BoJ’s presence in the market for JPY 1.6tln of JGBs on top of its daily fixed-rate operations.

COMMODITIES

Crude futures took a breather and slightly eased back following yesterday’s risk-induced rally.
Qatar Energy set July Al-Shaheen crude term price at a premium of USD 1.03/bbl above Dubai quotes, according to traders.
Spot gold traded sideways beneath the USD 2,000/oz level amid a steady dollar and lack of haven demand.
Copper futures held on to the prior day’s spoils but with price action flat overnight despite the constructive risk tone.

CRYPTO

Bitcoin traded rangebound after the recent choppy performance around the USD 27,000 level.

NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES

China’s ambassador to Australia said China will resume imports of Australian timber from today and that it is in communication with Australia for a convenient time regarding a PM visit, according to Reuters.
Montana’s Governor signed the bill to ban TikTok which prohibits mobile application stores from offering TikTok within the state effective January 2024, while TikTok commented that the Montana law infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana, according to Reuters.
New Zealand Budget forecasts 2023/24 GDP at 1.0% (prev. -0.3%) and sees the unemployment rate at 5.0% (prev. 5.5%), while the Treasury no longer expects the country to move into a recession, according to Reuters.

DATA RECAP

Japanese Trade Balance (JPY)(Apr) -432.4B vs. Exp. -613.8B (Prev. -754.5B, Rev. -755.1B)
Japanese Exports YY (Apr) 2.6% vs. Exp. 3.0% (Prev. 4.3%)
Japanese Imports YY (Apr) -2.3% vs. Exp. -0.3% (Prev. 7.3%)
Australian Employment (Apr) -4.3k vs. Exp. 25.0k (Prev. 53.0k)
Australian Unemployment Rate (Apr) 3.7% vs. Exp. 3.5% (Prev. 3.5%)
Australian Consumer Inflation Expectations (May) 5.2% (Prev. 4.6%)
New Zealand Operating Balance Before Gains and Losses (NZD) -6.96B (Prev. -3.63B)
New Zealand Net Debt Forecast (NZD) 38.5% (Prev. 39.2%)
New Zealand Budget Balance (NZD) -22.43B (Prev. -25.36B)

GEOPOLITICS

Air raid alerts were declared throughout Ukrainian territory. It was later reported that Kyiv’s mayor Klitschko noted explosions in the city and that a fire broke out in the east of the city from falling debris, while he added that an air attack was continuing on Kyiv, according to Reuters.
China’s Foreign Ministry said China’s special envoy of Eurasian affairs visited Ukraine on May 16th-17th and met with Ukrainian President Zelensky. China’s Foreign Ministry said there is no panacea for resolving the crisis and all parties need to create conditions for peace to stop the war, while it added that China and Ukraine agreed should work together to continue mutual respect and sincere treatment, as well as keep mutually beneficial cooperation moving forward, according to Reuters.

UK/EU

UK PM Sunak is to agree on a historic deal on security with Japan amid rising tensions with China and will sign the ‘Hiroshima Accord’ on Thursday ahead of the G7 meeting, according to The Telegraph. Furthermore, it was noted that the UK is to step up defence cooperation with Japan to uphold stability in Indo-Pacific with the Hiroshima Accord to include doubling the UK troop numbers in upcoming joint exercises and committing to deploy a carrier strike group to the Indo-Pacific in 2025, while the UK and Japan will launch a semiconductor partnership with commitments to pursue cooperation, skills exchange & bolstering supply chain resilience, according to a statement.
UK PM Sunak considers following the US lead on Chinese investment curbs, according to the FT.

2 c. ASIAN AFFAIRS

ASIAN AND AUSTRALIAN CLOSINGS//EUROPE OPENING TRADING:

THURSDAY MORNING/WEDNESDAY NIGHT

2 d./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA/

///NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA/

2e) JAPAN

JAPAN

Mitsubishi Among More Than A Dozen Companies Investing $73.6 Million In Japanese Fusion Energy Startup

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 04:15 AM

16 companies in Japan, including Mitsubishi Corp., Kansai Electric Power Co. and one government affiliated fund, are readying a $73.6 million investment in a startup working to commercialize fusion power.

Tokyo-based Kyoto Fusioneering was founded in 2019 by researchers from Kyoto University, according to Nikkei, who calls the company “the most successful startup in Japan working with fusion-related technology.”

The ultimate goal is to move toward implementing and developing fusion, which makes heat by combining hydrogen atoms to make helium. Fuels that can be used for fusion can be drawn from seawater and are “practically inexhaustible”, the report says.

This means that if fusion can be perfected, it could be a large step to moving the planet to a carbon-free future. The startup uses “plasma-heating equipment called gyrotrons” which help create nuclear fusion reactions.

Kyoto Fusioneering is seen as the world leader in the development of gyrotrons.

Nikkei notes that Mitsui & Co., J-Power, Inpex and 10 other companies, including MUFG Bank and JIC Venture Growth Investments, a government-affiliated fund have also all invested with the company.

Funds from the investment are going to be put toward “enabling stable operation of a fusion reactor”, with goals of having a small scale reactor built in Japan by 2024. The company also plans on bolstering its engineers and furthering testing on its gyrotrons to see if they can perform over extended periods.

The company hopes to be the first to commercialize such a process, the report says. Recall, the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory in the U.S. said in 2022 that they had also succeeded in creating a fusion reaction that produced more energy than it consumed, the report says.

Even U.S. companies like Microsoft are already starting to secure contracts with fusion energy companies for power. Microsoft’s contract is with a company called Helion Energy and starts in 2028.

END

3 CHINA /

CHINA//

END

4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDAVIAN AFFAIRS

SWEDEN/EU

Interesting..

Sweden Must Prepare To Leave The EU, Says Influential Sweden Democrats Party Leader

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 02:00 AM

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

Jimmie Åkesson of the Sweden Democrats claims that only by making the necessary preparations for Swexit can the government maximize its bargaining power in Brussels…

Sweden must fully prepare to leave the European Union in order to maximize its negotiating position with the bloc, stated Jimmie Åkesson, leader of the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats party.

In an article published by Svenska Dagbladet on Monday, Åkesson and his co-author, Swedish MEP Charlie Weimers, expressed their desire for Sweden to “maximize its influence” in the European Union, outlining three measures the Swedish government must take.

First, the government should seek to make constitutional changes in order to introduce a “referendum lock,” which would enshrine into law the requirement of a public vote before any further powers can be transferred from Stockholm to Brussels.

It is a mechanism previously adopted by both Britain and Denmark, and the Sweden Democrats leader believes it will provide a necessary safeguard against any attempted power-grab by Brussels.

“Only the knowledge that every decision on the transfer of power must be submitted to the citizens would slow down the worst abuses from Brussels,” the pair wrote.

Second, the Swedish government should make the necessary preparations to leave the European Union to ensure it is ready should the decision ever be taken to do so and to legitimize any threat to withdraw in future negotiations with the bloc.

“In order for preparedness to be credible, it is necessary that we remove the writings in the constitution that state that Sweden is a member of the EU.

“In addition, we should train a cadre of civil servants with the expertise to negotiate trade agreements and other things that we have delegated to the EU and study how Brexit could have been implemented better. The better we are prepared to leave, the more we will gain in future negotiations,” Åkesson and Weimers added.

The Sweden Democrats leader also wants an investigation to be launched into how the negative aspects of Sweden’s EU membership can be mitigated.

The right-wing party is currently an informal partner of the Swedish government. While it wasn’t offered the opportunity to help form Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s administration, it is a signatory to the four-party coalition Tidö Agreement in which the coalition parties agreed to adopt a more restrictive immigration policy in return for Sweden Democrats’ support.

Åkesson’s party has long been in favor of Sweden’s withdrawal from the European Union, but accepts this is not a majority view among the Swedish electorate at present. The party officially dropped its support for Swexit in 2018 in a bid to garner more electoral support and subsequently achieved 20.5 percent of the vote in last year’s general election.

END

END

5 RUSSIA//UKRAINE AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

UKRAINE//RUSSIA

Updates on Bakhmut..

the city is basically destroyed and uninhabitable!!

(zerohedge)

Russia Seeks To Overwhelm Ukraine’s Anti-Air Defenses, Both Sides Claim Gains In Bakhmut

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2023 – 05:20 PM

There’s been further contradictory reporting regarding the situation in Bakhmut, with Ukraine currently claiming a significant advance around the strategic city in Donetsk oblast, while Russia’s Wagner said its fighters had made gains.

“Today Wagner’s units advanced 200 meters and occupied an area of 113,000 m2. Only 1.46 square kilometres remain under enemy control in Bakhmout,” Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin said. New drone footage is also circulating which purports to show “the last remaining Ukrainian-held area in Bakhmut”…

“The pincers are closing,” Prigozhin also previously said in a video message.

The New York Times this week is offering an account which somewhat contradicts this: “Moscow’s troops still hold most of Bakhmut itself, Ukraine’s recent gains around the city are not large, and there is no guarantee that they will last. But for the first time in months, Ukrainian soldiers are on the offensive and the momentum in the longest and bloodiest battle of the war appears to have shifted their way — at least for now.”

The Russian side has long reported that it holds at least 90% to 95% of the strategic city, but it’s clearly been a slow grind. Some Ukrainian sources have suggested that Bakhmut is all about Kiev luring Russia into expending as much artillery ammunition and troops as possible as casualties mount.

Kiev is even claiming major new gains there: “In recent days, our troops have liberated about 20 square kilometres north and south” of Bakhmut, according to Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Ganna Maliar on Wednesday. With journalists being far from the front lines, and certainly not embedded in an urban warfare environment, there’s little which can be objectively verified of all this.

What is clear is that the city is utterly destroyed and uninhabitable…

In the rest of Ukraine, Russian aerial attacks have continued at a sustained heavy pace. CNN has cited US defense officials to say Russia is trying to “overwhelm” the country’s anti-air defenses:

Russia has been expending more munitions than usual in an attempt to overwhelm and confuse Ukrainian air defenses, according to a US official familiar with the matter. Russia has launched the larger aerial attacks from several directions at once, the official said, targeting command and control centers in Kyiv and other high-value locations, as well as the Patriot missile systems that provide Ukraine with a long-range air defense option.

Russia may have begun the expanded attacks in an attempt to force Ukraine to delay its highly-anticipated counter-offensive, the official said. But Ukraine has been able to withstand the attacks, intercepting a high percentage of the incoming missiles and drones with the layered air defenses provided by Western nations.

This comes as there’s been some level of confirmation from the US that Russia struck Patriot systems the day prior.

Meanwhile, places as far south as Odessa are getting hammered on Wednesday…

There are still questions over whether Ukraine’s much-touted spring counteroffensive has actually begun.

National security advisor Jake Sullivan said Wednesday, “Whether a counter-offensive has begun is up to the one who conducts it, and I will not proclaim it. I will let the Ukrainians characterize what they are doing.” He merely said that “intense military activity continues” – in a press briefing.

END

RUSSIA/IRAN/

First Russian bank opens in Iran — RT Business News

Leaving the West. With China following suit and India rumored to follow integration without Western banking is moving on.

https://www.rt.com/business/576437-vtb-bank-russia-iran/

end

RUSSIA//UKRAINE/

In Russia’s 9th Large Missile Attack Wave This Month, Ukraine Claims Majority Intercepted

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 11:10 AM

As we detailed previously, a large wave of Russian missiles targeted cities across Ukraine Wednesday night, it what appears an ongoing attempt to overwhelm Ukraine’s anti-air defenses.

By Thursday morning it was confirmed that at least 30 cruise missile were launched against Ukraine in the overnight hours, resulting in one person killed and at least two wounded. But Ukrainian authorities are once again claiming to have shot down the vast majority of inbound missiles, with Ukraine’s air force saying in a statement that 29 out of 30 of the missiles were intercepted.

BBC and others have tallied that this is the ninth large wave of missile attacks launched by Russia this month alone. But the report notes that Ukraine has also been shooting down more, also just after deploying US Patriot missile systems – at least one of which has already been struck by the Russians.

“So far in May, Russia has carried out four mass launches – two them between 16 and 18 May alone – compared to one each in April and March, and two in February,” BBC details. “The last time Russia attacked with such intensity was in the period after New Year, when four attacks took place in quick succession between 31 December and 26 January.”

Unconfirmed videos which circulated widely on social media showed a large-scale overnight attack in progress, including on targets as far south as Odessa on the Black Sea.

But naturally, statements put out by Russia’s defense ministry contradict the Ukrainian claim of the majority of missiles shot down:

Russian forces hit Kiev’s large foreign equipment and armament depots and army reserves with seaborne and air-launched precision weapons, destroying substantial weapon and ammunition stockpiles during the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Thursday.

“Last night, Russian forces delivered multiple strikes by seaborne and air-launched long-range high-precision weapons against large foreign armament and equipment depots and enemy reserves. The goal of the strikes was achieved. All the designated targets were hit. The strikes destroyed considerable stockpiles of the Ukrainian army’s armaments and ammunition and thwarted the advance of reserves to the areas of combat operations,” the spokesman said.

Russia has appeared to particularly going after foreign arms shipments of late. For example a weekend direct hit on what’s reported to have been an arms depot close to Khmelnytskyi led to speculation that radioactive dust may have been released due to the possible presence of UK-supplied depleted uranium shells.

As for the ongoing fight for Bakhmut, Ukrainian officials have belatedly admitted that Russia is making progress in the town this week.

“Ukraine said Tuesday it had pushed Russian forces from the flanks of Bakhmut but conceded that Moscow’s forces were pushing deeper inside the embattled town,” according to The Moscow Times, following days of conflicting narratives on the battlefield situation.

END

Ukraine’s Suicidal Offensive is Bleeding Out While the CIA Loses Its Mind | The Gateway Pundit | by Larry Johnson

Sooner or later Ukraine will run out of men, not just to die but to bury the dead.
Now with Uranium dust scattered in Western Ukraine and well into Poland who will cry for the agony of that long term disaster. Meanwhile the circus of Zelensky and his wife troll all willing nations to meet with them for donations.
What a disaster not just for Ukraine and its citizens but teh Western world paying the price of throwing good money after a flawed cause.

Ukraine’s Suicidal Offensive is Bleeding Out While the CIA Loses Its Mind

END

RUSSIA/CHINA/UKRAINE

Ukraine will not cede one inch of territory to the Russians on any settlement:

(zerohedge)

Ukraine Tells China Envoy It Will Not Cede Territory Or Accept ‘Freeze’

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 01:45 PM

This week Ukraine’s foreign minister met with China’s special envoy to Kyiv, Li Hui, to discuss Beijing’s as well as Ukraine’s respective peace plans. FM Dmytro Kuleba emphasized in the meeting that Ukraine would not accept any scenario which results in ceding territory to the Russians.

“Ukraine does not accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict,” Kuleba said, reiterating Zelensky’s longtime demand that Russian forces must withdraw from all Ukrainian territory before peace talks can begin. Peace depends on “respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” he stressed.

The Ukrainian top diplomat did underscore that China has played an important role in seeking to uphold nuclear safety amid the war, as well as its support of the UN/Turkey-backed Black Sea grain deal, which has just been extended for another two months.

But it remains that China has never explicitly condemned the Russian invasion, with President Xi Jinping having never denounced the war, only referring to it as a “crisis”.

Li’s trip to meet with Ukrainian government representatives as the war drags on comes three weeks after China’s Xi spoke by phone with Zelensky for the first time. Beijing has said the trip’s purpose is to “communicate with all parties on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis.”

But Ukrainian officials have expressed caution, saying their country doesn’t need “mediation for the sake of mediation.” A senior Ukrainian official told AFP this week: “Ending the war with a compromise at the expense of Ukraine will not work.”

A follow-up statement by China’s foreign ministry commenting on Wednesday’s meetings said–

“There is no remedy to resolve the crisis,” Wang told reporters at a daily briefing. “All parties should create favorable conditions and accumulate mutual trust for the political settlement.”

One international publication has labeled China’s stance as one of ‘Pro-Russian neutrality’, with an analyst explaining:

“China doesn’t need a pompous truce,” Sinologist Petro Shevchenko, of the Jilin University in the Chinese city of Changchun, told Al Jazeera. “In principle, it will make do with a freeze of some kind, when Ukraine doesn’t declare the war’s end.”

Beijing has said Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” should be maintained – and in February proposed a 12-point peace plan that was met with scepticism by Western powers. While it called for dialogue and denounced the possibility of a nuclear escalation, the plan also lambasted Western sanctions on Moscow and did not urge Russia to withdraw troops.

To convince Kyiv, Beijing “will resort to economic statecraft, economic tools” that may include a contribution to Ukraine’s post-war restoration and better access to China’s market for Ukrainian food producers, Shevchenko said.

Ukraine fears that China’s goal may be to allow the Russian side more time to regroup and replenish its arsenal with any kind of ‘freeze’ in the war. Xi and China remain Putin’s most powerful “friend” and strategic ally, and this worries Kiev in terms of China’s ultimate intentions.

As for China, it remains sensitive to comparisons invoking the Ukraine conflict and Taiwan. But like with Ukraine, Washington has sought to arm Taiwan to the teeth in order to help repel any potential future PLA invasion.

6.Global Issues//COVID ISSUES/VACCINE ISSUES/

GLOBAL ISSUES

end

Vaccine issues/COVID 19 issues

Leaked Pentagon Report Forensically Dismantles Fauci-Led Natural Origin Study

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2023 – 09:40 PM

Authored by Hans Mahncke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Researchers at the Department of Defense wrote a devastating takedown of the Proximal Origin study, which was used by Dr. Anthony Fauci as proof that the COVID-19 virus had come from nature.

The takedown, dated May 26, 2020, was written in the form of a working paper called “Critical analysis of Andersen et al. The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2.” It was authored by Commander Jean-Paul Chretien, a Navy doctor working at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and Dr. Robert Cutlip, a research scientist at the Defense Intelligence Agency. The paper came to light on May 15, when it was leaked to the public via virus origins search group DRASTIC (Decentralized Radical Autonomous Search Team Investigating COVID-19).

The working paper forensically dismantles the natural origin case made in Proximal Origin and concludes, “The arguments that Andersen et al. use to support a natural-origin scenario for SARS-CoV-2 are based not on scientific analysis, but on unwarranted assumptions.”

The existence of this internal Pentagon paper is crucial, as it proves that government officials were well aware in the early months of the pandemic that there was no evidence in support of a natural origin of the COVID-19 virus. Additionally, given the crushing discrediting of Proximal Origin, Pentagon officials would also have been aware of Fauci’s efforts to seed a false narrative about the origin of COVID-19.

Proximal Origin was initially conceived by Fauci during a secret teleconference held on Feb. 1, 2020. The ostensible purpose of the teleconference was to deflect attention from a possible lab origin of COVID-19 and to shift the focus to a natural origin theory. Fauci directed a number of scientists, led by Kristian Andersen of Scripps Research and Robert Garry of Tulane Medical School, to pen a study that could be used to discredit the lab leak theory. Despite being directly involved in the inception of the paper, as well as in shaping its arguments, Fauci’s role was concealed from the public. Fauci later bestowed Andersen and Garry with lavish taxpayer-funded grants.

The defects in Proximal Origin were immediately noticed by reviewers at science journal Nature. This fact only became known late last year from emails obtained via the Freedom of Information Act by independent journalist Jimmy Tobias. However, with the help of Jeremy Farrar, who now is the chief scientist of the World Health Organization and who had helped Fauci shape the natural origin narrative, Proximal Origin was accepted for publication in Nature Medicine on March 17, 2020. It boldly concluded that no “laboratory-based scenario is plausible.”

On April 17, 2020, President Donald Trump confirmed that the COVID-19 pandemic likely started in a Wuhan laboratory in China. On the same day, while attending a White House press conference, Fauci categorically dismissed the possibility of a lab origin of COVID-19, citing Proximal Origin as corroboration. Fauci feigned independence, telling reporters that he could not recall the names of the authors. What was not known at the time was that Fauci not only knew the authors well, but had personally led the effort to have Proximal Origin written.

Proximal Origin became the media’s go-to natural origin authority, repeating Fauci’s claim that the paper provided dispositive proof that COVID-19 had come out of nature. It also became the most-read article on COVID-19 and one of the most cited academic papers of all time.

Yet, while the public was being told by Fauci and the media that Proximal Origin had settled the origin debate, Pentagon researchers came to a very different conclusion.

Chretien and Cutlip found that COVID-19’s features, which Proximal Origin ascribed to natural evolution, were actually “consistent with another scenario: that SARS-CoV-2 was developed in a laboratory, by methods that leading coronavirus researchers commonly use to investigate how the viruses infect cells and cause disease, assess the potential for animal coronaviruses to jump to humans, and develop drugs and vaccines.”

Zachary Stieber of EPOCH IMO has been one of the only ‘true’ COVID Freedom Fighter reporters (I know him, no stooge water-carrier); reported on CELL publication (April 2023) Benn et al. who are WRONG

Benn et al. pooled mRNA technology & adenoviral vector data; their conclusions are WRONG as i) event numbers are too small to be interpretable ii) Pfizer hid data iii) RRR used & NOT ARR iv) FRAGILITY

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERMAY 17

SOURCE:

https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(23)00810-6

END

Why were deaths so much higher in January 2021 relative to each of the next five months in USA? CDC data. The COVID mRNA technology shots (and DNA platform) were rolled out in December 2020 & can it

be that the vaccine was linked to the surge in deaths? And still continues today?

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERMAY 18

END

Fentanyl-rainbow fentanyl-xylazine (tranq) fuels the overdose crisis in America; ‘No child should be dying’: Fentanyl-related deaths among kids rising, Yale study says; parents be warned about infants

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERMAY 18

‘Fentanyl-related deaths among children increased more than 30-fold between 2013 and 2021, illustrating the opioid crisis’ unrelenting impact across the United States, according to a study by the Yale School of Medicine.

Between 1999 and 2021, 37.5% of all fatal pediatric opioid poisonings were caused by fentanyl, according to the study published Monday in the Journal of the American Medical Assn. The drug is now the primary agent noted in the pediatric opioid crisis, said Julie Gaither, the study’s author and an assistant professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at Yale.

The study tracked data for more than two decades of opioid deaths among people under 20 and found that 5,194 children and teens have died from fentanyl.’

In 2021, nearly 70,000 U.S. adults fatally overdosed on fentanyl, the biggest spike in overdose deaths in the country’s history. That same year, there were 1,557 pediatric deaths from fentanyl, and 40 infants and 93 children between the ages of 1 and 4 died because of the opioid, according to the study.

“No child should be dying from an opioid,” Gaither said. “It is not just a crisis that is affecting the adult population. It is something that’s affecting everyone in this country, the most vulnerable, even infants.”’

Candy-colored fentanyl pills inside three plastic bags

END

DR PANDA

END

SLAY NEWS

The latest reports from Slay News

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Video Exposes Dark Secrets of Biden’s Open Border Agenda A new video filmed near Yuma, Arizona has exposed the dark secrets of Democrat President Joe Biden’s open border agenda that the corporate media refuses to report on.READ MORE

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EVOL NEWS

VACCINE IMPACT

The United States of America: Largest Sponsor of State Terrorism in the World

May 17, 2023 8:33 pm

A new report has been published this past week that details the United States torture program used primarily by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) called “enhanced interrogation techniques” (EITs) used at Guantanamo Bay and other black sites. The report contains drawings of Zayn al-Abidin Muhammad Husayn aka Abu Zubaydah, a Saudi Arabian man who was the first prisoner brought to Guantanamo from Pakistan and tortured using EITs. The CIA and FBI now admit that Mr. Zubaydah was the wrong guy they were after, and allegedly even knew that before they tortured him, but did so anyway so they could develop their torture techniques. The report was published by Mark Denbeaux, a professor at Seton Hall Law School, and Dr. Jess Ghannam, clinical professor of Psychiatry and Global Health Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, and Mr. Zubaydah himself and his drawings of many of the tortures used in EITs. WARNING! THE DRAWINGS ARE EXTREMELY GRAPHIC AND HORRIFYING. CHILDREN SHOULD NOT BE PRESENT IF YOU CHOOSE TO READ THE REPORT. The report notes that Zubaydah’s drawings “viscerally convey the brutal reality the CIA sought to hide with its calculated destruction of video recordings of torture conducted by its agents,” and “dovetail with the recent accounts of Dr. James Mitchell, a chief architect of the torture regime, who both wrote a book on EITs and testified in hearings on Guantánamo.” “These sources, together with the report of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, provide the most complete—and compelling—account to date of America’s torture program” in the years after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, the publication states. This is just further evidence that the United States of America, particularly the CIA, is the largest supporter of State terrorism in the world, and not Middle Eastern Muslim countries who are constantly portrayed as terrorists in the U.S. media and entertainment industry.

MICHAEL EVERY

MICHAEL EVERY/RABOBANK//

“Did You Know That Most Financial Press Headlines Are Often Wrong”

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 10:41 AM

By Michael Every of Rabobank

Right In The Goolsbees

Let me ‘shock’ you: financial press headlines are often wrong in multiple ways. The sin can be one of omission, in that they don’t cover key stories (like the Hunter Biden laptop, or the Durham report’s evisceration of Russiagate). Other times they cover stories that aren’t happening as portrayed (like the politicized intelligence-agency rebuttal of that laptop story, or Russiagate). But most often it’s erroneous post hoc ergo propter hoc: X happened because of Y. And these aren’t silly errors, but shilly ones.

Bloomberg says US stocks rallied yesterday because debt ceiling fears receded. Maybe. Yet on FinTwit there is a strong view that the actual driver was neck-deep 0DTE options trading, again. That isn’t as good a story if you want to be bullish stocks: “Equities rise on further premium-collection options strategy akin to CDS before the GFC: Investopedia notes their expiry can be extremely lucrative or costly as stakes are high at this late stage, and a lot can happen in a day.” That’s less likely to keep bums on seats and assets under management (AUM) growing.

Did you also know that most analysis of reported central bank speech is based on bullet point quotes of only a few words rather than the entire interview/speech? That’s partly because there are so many of them, and partly due to our ADHD environment, where what we take as talent today would merely be holding the paint brush or chisel for past Michelangelos. I sometimes insist on watching an entire interview or reading a whole speech for nuance and context, but I fall into the same trap too due to time pressures. For example, yesterday I quoted Fed Vice-Chair Goolsbee sounding hawkish (“services inflation is more persistent than previously thought, and he wasn’t sure if the Fed had restrained the economy sufficiently yet“). However, that didn’t represent his entire thinking given Goolsbee also noted that “Mocking immaculate disinflation is a mistake because there was a large component that was immaculate inflation.” In which case let me take the time to engage in something I do thoroughly and regularly: said mockery.

“Immaculate disinflation” is stupid. We might get disinflation in some sectors for a while, but if so it’s going to be painful, alongside a biting recession that you have to be a first-order thinker not to see would trigger a fiscal response, restarting the inflation cycle.

“Immaculate inflation” is as stupid. Only a central banker thinking rates didn’t need to rise in 2021 as there was no inflation pressure despite fracturing supply chains, Covid labor shocks, and fiscal-transfer demand shocks first in goods, then in services, could come up with it. Said inflation is as “immaculate” as one looks after a weekender at a muddy Glastonbury hanging with the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers at a 24/7 psychedelic dance tent.

Linking bad reporting, snapshots, and central banking, yesterday’s Financial Times said ‘Bank of England governor admits UK economy suffering from wage price spiral’. That would be a devastating official assessment. Our views of the US from Philip Marey, the Eurozone from Elwin de Groot and Bas van Geffen, the UK from Stefan Koopman, and Australia from Ben Picton are of real risks of wage-price spirals, and hence rates being higher for longer, but none are making that claim in full – yet. Indeed, as Stefan noted in response to the FT, Bloomberg covered the BOE speech better in talking of “a risk of inflation persistence,” as a spiral means each curve should be above/wider than the one before, which is not happening – yet.

Yet smacking central-bank doves, immaculately, right in the Goolsbees, IMF no.2 Gopinath says she sees “sizeable risks” inflation will remain high or accelerate globally, most so in emerging economies. She said markets were probably “too optimistic” about what it would take to bring down inflation because “price pressures seem entrenched,” and stressed “central banks must remain resolute in keeping policies tight and recognize that insufficient monetary tightening now may necessitate even more painful actions down the road,” as the lessons of the 1970s still apply today. As such, this is getting reported much, even as bullet points.

That’s as Australian 12-month consumer inflation expectations came in at 5.2%, up from 4.6% and 5.0% a year ago. Yet jobs data were -4.3K vs. an expected +25K, with part-time +22.8K, boom time, and full-time -27.1K, bust time; or just bad data time. In terms of capping wage pressures, the 400,000 new workers, 1.5% of the population and 2.9% of the labour force, arriving in Australia this year might help. But they will also lift already sky-high rents even further as higher rates see housing construction stop; and higher rents mean higher wage claims and/or higher inflation; or no spending on anything else at all. That’s bowling the RBA a Goolsbee.

Related to the inflation/deflation debate, geopolitics still lurks. Markets are happy to cover it when it means deflation, e.g., when Turkey, not Russia, says the Black Sea Grain Deal is to be extended by Russia, and wheat prices drop 4.5%.

However, I doubt many morning notes will include The Economist story ‘Henry Kissinger explains how to avoid world war three’, where the centenarian says, “Both sides have convinced themselves that the other represents a strategic danger….We are on the path to great-power confrontation,” and the solution is that “America and China must learn to live together. They have less than ten years”. How?! And what does that imply for assets with a 10-year plus maturity?

At least it incentivises zero-day-to-expiry equities option trading, because frankly who knows how long we’ve got.

end

7//OIL ISSUES//NATURAL GAS ISSUES/USA AND GLOBE

Is The US Preparing To Punish OPEC?

EXCELLENT COMMENTARY!

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 11:31 AM

Authored by James Durso via OilPrice.com,

U.S. consumers are showing significantly less concern about the U.S. energy situation than they did one year ago.
The U.S. House of Representatives may once again consider a piece of legislation to pressure the OPEC oil producers’ group to stop making output cuts.
The bill may be retaliation against the Arab OPEC countries, and a warning to others, for normalizing ties with Iran and Syria.

In early May, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary was reportedly considering a bill to pressure the OPEC oil producers’ group to stop making output cuts by revoking the sovereign immunity that has protected OPEC+ members and their national oil companies from lawsuits over price collusion. (The committee previously passed the bill in 2018, 2019 and 2021.)

The OPEC Basket Price has hovered in the mid $70s, not historically high, though U.S. politicians like to talk down the price of gasoline before the summer driving season begins. (Saudi Arabia needs a price of $80.90 USD to balance its budget, and fund the diversification of its economy.)

Gasoline prices are higher than during the Trump administration, but the Gallup polling organization reported in April 2023, “Americans show significantly less concern about the U.S. energy situation now than they did a year ago.”

If American consumers aren’t up in arms over gasoline prices, and the recent OPEC production cuts have failed to stop the slump in crude oil prices, why might OPEC be a target now?

One reason may be the good news out of the Middle East:

a rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia (with Chinese mediation);
Egypt and Iran starting to normalize ties (with mediation by Iraq);
Syria rejoining the Arab league;
the United Arab Emirates and Iran in talks to promote ties,
and the possibility for energy cooperation between Iraq and Iran.

The bill may be retaliation against the Arab OPEC countries, and a warning to others, for normalizing ties with Iran and Syria, under the color of protecting U.S. consumers. It also avoids a discussion about the Biden administration policy of limiting oil and natural gas production, though lately the administration has approved limited drilling in federal lands.

And not to be outdone, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers just announced the “Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act of 2023,” that would counter foreign governments’ outreach to Syria and allow for additional sanctions on anyone doing business with the Assad government.

The losers? Israel which probably can’t depend on the Arabs to form a bloc to back an attack on Iran’s nuclear research facilities; and the U.S., which is seeing its influence diminish as OPEC members in the Middle East start to normalize with the hated governments in Tehran and Damascus, and welcome China’s mediation of negotiations between Tehran and Riyadh, and Russia’s facilitation of talks between Saudi Arabia and Syria, and Syria and Turkey. (The worst-case scenario for Tel Aviv and Washington is Chinese participation in talks between Israel and the Palestinians.)

Normalization of relations between the Arab OPEC states and Iran and Syria would lower tensions in the region, which is not in Washington’s interest as big customers like the Saudis and Emiratis might scale back purchases of weapons intended to counter Iran. Tensions also keep the U.S. busy in the neighborhood to “ensure stability,” though U.S. actions in Iraq and Libya (and its supporting role in Yemen) guaranteed the opposite. And tension in the region makes it easy for Israel’s Shabbos goy in the U.S. to scotch any attempts to pressure Israel and the Palestinians to get peace talks going “or else,” especially if the Pals invite the Chinese into the process.

The U.S. may be failing to heed that the Middle East OPEC states, most run by kings or emirs, must pay attention to public sentiment – one secret of successfully ruling without elections. Though Iran is not popular with the publics in Arab OPEC countries, closer relations might result in less tension and more people-to-people ties and economic opportunity that will promote stability, which is more important than democracy for the Arab Spring generation according to a recent region-wide poll.

The 2022 Arab Youth Survey also found, “Nearly three-fourths (73%) want to see the US disengage from the region. China, Turkey and Russia are now seen as the region’s strongest allies” and “the default position of looking to the West in times of crisis is being eroded by new allegiances to China, Russia and Turkey.”

This sentiment may see other Arab states, i.e., Saudi Arabia, not rushing to join American projects such as the Abraham Accords, which Israel still hopes will be a detour around peace talks with the Palestinians, and instead favor homegrown initiatives to stabilize the region.

Thus, Washington’s attack on the economic engine of the Middle East, petroleum, and use of sanctions to halt attempts to end conflict and alienation between the OPEC Arabs and Iran and Syria. It is important that peace not break out as that would depress weapon sales, increase regional economic diversification and integration and reduce the need for Washington’s “solutions,” and introduce to the region new economic and political players, such as China and Turkey.

Washington has a lot of power and can force events in the short term, but it has already lost the hearts and minds of Middle Eastern youth who, since 2001, have matured with the U.S. continuously engaged in combat operations in their lands – and all for nothing. For the future, it would be wise for Washington to remember the Cold War policy that understood that civil rights and economic opportunity for all Americans was the nation’s best weapon in the war of ideas with Communism. It worked against the Reds then and it will work against the Islamists now and, if America wants to be part of the future of the region it should stop being an example of the worst kind.

END

8. EMERGING MARKETS//AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND ISSUES

END

YOUR EARLY CURRENCY/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN CLOSING MARKETS AND EUROPEAN BOURSE OPENING AND CLOSING/ INTEREST RATE SETTINGS THURSDAY MORNING 7;30AM//OPENING AND CLOSINGS

EURO VS USA DOLLAR:1.0814 DOWN 0.0029

USA/ YEN 137.82 UP 0.216 NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT .50% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//

GBP/USA 1.2443 DOWN 0.0039

USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3465 DOWN .00102 (CDN DOLLAR UP 2 BASIS PTS)

Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED UP 13.09 PTS OR 0.40%

Hang Seng CLOSED UP 166.68 PTS OR 0.85%

AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP .51% // EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL GREEN

Trading from Europe and ASIA

I) EUROPEAN BOURSES ALL GREEN

2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG CLOSED UP 166,68 PTS OR 0.85 %

/SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 13.09 PTS OR 0.40%

AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.51%

(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 480.34 PTS OR 1.60%

INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE RED

Gold very early morning trading: 1973,80

silver:$23.56

USA dollar index early THURSDAY morning: 102.99 UP 26 BASIS POINTS FROM WEDNESDAY’s close.

THURSDAY MORNING NUMBERS ENDS

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And now your closing THURSDAY NUMBERS 11: 00 AM

Portuguese 10 year bond yield: 3.237% UP 11 in basis point(s) yield

JAPANESE BOND YIELD: +0.388 % UP 2 AND 5//100 BASIS POINTS /JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/

SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.508 UP 12 in basis points yield

ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD 4.2306 UP 8 points in basis points yield ./ THE ECB IS QE’ ING ITALIAN BONDS (BUYING ITALIAN BONDS/SELLING GERMAN BUNDS)

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.413 UP 8 BASIS PTS

END

IMPORTANT CURRENCY CLOSES FOR THURSDAY

Closing currency crosses for day /USA DOLLAR INDEX/USA 10 YR BOND YIELD/1:00 PM

Euro/USA 1.0771 DOWN 0.0067 or 67 basis points

USA/Japan: 138.56 UP 0.958 OR YEN DOWN 96 basis points/

Great Britain/USA 1.2409 DOWN .0073 OR 73 BASIS POINTS //

Canadian dollar DOWN .0036 OR 36 BASIS pts to 1.3502

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The USA/Yuan, CNY: closed ON SHORE (CLOSED DOWN.(7.0413)

THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. 7.0591

TURKISH LIRA: 19.80 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WISH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.

the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.388…VERY DANGEROUS

Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 7 in basis points from WEDNESDAY at 3.644% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic

USA 30 yr bond yield 3.907 UP 7 IN BASIS POINTS

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.2306% UP 10 in basis points.

USA dollar index, 103.40 UP 66 in basis points ON THE DAY/12.00 PM

Your 12:00 AM bourses for Europe and the Dow along with the USA dollar index closing and interest rates THURSDAY: 12:00 PM

London: CLOSED UP 20.91 points or 0.27%

German Dax : CLOSED UP 217,93 PTS OR 1.37%

Paris CAC CLOSED UP 46.50 PTS OR 0.63%

Spain IBEX UP 15.40 PTS OR 0.67%

Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 107.62 PTS OR 0.40%

WTI Oil price 72.24 12: EST

Brent Oil: 76.03 12:00 EST

USA /RUSSIAN /// AT: 80.41/ ROUBLE DOWN 0 AND 55//100 RUBLES/DOLLAR

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.413 UP 10 BASIS PTS

UK 10 YR YIELD: 3.989 UP 15 BASIS PTS

CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM

Euro vs USA: 1.0772 DOWN 0.0066 OR 66 BASIS POINTS

British Pound: 1.2409 DOWN .0073 or 73 basis pts

BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.0020% UP 12 BASIS PTS

USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 138.65 UP 1.048 //YEN DOWN 105 BASIS PTS//

USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3504 UP .0037 CDN dollar, DOWN 37 basis pts)

West Texas intermediate oil: 71.99

Brent OIL: 75.87

USA 10 yr bond yield UP 7 BASIS pts to 3.654%

USA 30 yr bond yield UP 3 BASIS PTS to 3.903%

USA 2 YR BOND: UP 12 PTS AT 4.2645%

USA dollar index: 103.40 UP 66 BASIS POINTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 19.80

USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 80.23 DOWN 0 AND 36/100 roubles

DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 115.14 PTS OR 0.34%

NASDAQ 100 UP 245.35 PTS OR 1.81%

VOLATILITY INDEX: 16.18 DOWN 0.69 PTS (4.09)%

GLD: $181.84 DOWN 2.39 OR 1.30%

SLV/ $21.56 DOWN 0.26 OR 1.19%

end

USA AFFAIRS

1 a) USA TRADING TODAY IN GRAPH FORM

Hawkish FedSpeak Batters Bonds & Bullion; Tech Melt-Up Accelerates

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 04:01 PM

‘Positive’ jobless claims data (which simply unwound last week’s farce in MA) and ‘not pretty’ existing home sales data were dominated today by some notably more-hawkish-than-recent-norms FedSpeak to start the day:

Dallas Fed’s Logan: “The data in coming weeks could yet show that it is appropriate to skip a meeting…”

“As of today, though, we aren’t there yet… We haven’t yet made the progress we need to make. And it’s a long way from here to 2% inflation.”

Fed Gov Jefferson: “Inflation is too high, and we have not yet made sufficient progress on reducing it,” he said.

“Outside of energy and food, the progress on inflation remains a challenge… a year is not a long enough period for demand to feel the full effect of higher interest rates.”

St.Louis Fed’s Bullard warned that “it may warrant taking out some insurance by raising rates somewhat more to make sure that we really do get inflation under control…”

“Our main risk is that inflation doesn’t go down or even turns around and goes higher, as it did in the 1970s.”

So, a pause at best, more hikes possible, no signs of cuts at all, and the curve is adjusting that way…

Source: Bloomberg

Rate-change expectations continued to trend hawkishly higher (removing more cut expectations)…

Source: Bloomberg

Overall, Treasury yields soared higher with the short-end monkeyhammered (2Y +12bps, 30Y +5bps)…

Source: Bloomberg

And the yield curve flattened (inverted) further, shouting recession…

Source: Bloomberg

In fact, as Goldman notes, the 2y and 3y segments of the money market curves price substantially higher probability of recession compared to all four cycles since 1990…

…and then the rate-cuts?

Tech stocks saw more panic/safe-haven/momo/AI-fomo flows today with Nasdaq handily outperforming while The Dow and Small Caps underperformed and the S&P danced in the middle. The last two hours saw everything melt-up…

NVDA continued its melt up (another upgrade), rallying 5% today (AI God mode)…

As we reflected earlier, for NVDA to grow into its market cap, not only does AI have to put everyone out of work by 2030 but humans will be daytrading in zoos entertaining the algos…

NFLX also surged after reports that its ad-supported subs had hit 5 million…

Regional bank stocks bobbed and weaved between gains and losses…

The Dow is unch YTD, Nasdaq is not…

Source: Bloomberg

After all that, The Nasdaq is outperforming The Dow by an entire bull market…

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1659272523832336385&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fmarkets%2Ftech-turbocharged-hawkish-fedspeak-batters-bonds-bullion-banks&sessionId=8204a2ab08969fa1c7ea91c276fa7db2cd0e5a00&siteScreenName=zerohedge&theme=light&widgetsVersion=aaf4084522e3a%3A1674595607486&width=550px

Tech valuations are at extreme levels relative to the broad market now…

Source: Bloomberg

The equal-weighted S&P is unchanged YTD…

Source: Bloomberg

The dollar continued to rise tick for tick with the Sept Fed rate expectation (implying only marginal gains from here for the dollar)…

Source: Bloomberg

Bitcoin was rug-pulled again at $27,000…

Source: Bloomberg

Gold extended its losses after breaking $2000

Oil prices dipped lower again today with WTI back at a $71 handle

Finally, Goldman points out The Confusing Triangle: the dollar, tech stocks and real rates into a recession.

The dollar rallies (fact) on higher real rates (check) OR rising risk aversion (not present), tech rallies (fact) on lower real rates (not present) OR higher risk appetite due to US exceptionalism (check).

Source: Bloomberg

One of these would be wrong if real rates and US exceptionalism are equally weighted but it is hard to say which one as both are expensive and due for a meaningful correction given the probability of recession.

Goldman suggests that given that equities are at odds with oil in terms of pricing the probability of an adverse growth outcome, we would think that in the past week or so the dollar is right and equities aren’t.

b) THIS MORNING TRADING //

Stocks & Bonds Tumble On Comments By Fed’s Logan

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 09:01 AM

Another day, another hawk… and this time the market seems to be starting to believe it…

“After raising the target range for the federal funds rate at each of the last 10 FOMC meetings, we have made some progress,” Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan said in prepared remarks for a speech to bankers in San Antonio. “The data in coming weeks could yet show that it is appropriate to skip a meeting. As of today, though, we aren’t there yet.”

“We haven’t yet made the progress we need to make. And it’s a long way from here to 2% inflation,” Logan said, referring to the Fed’s longer-run goal.

The response was quick with futures hitting the lows of the day, extending losses after the ‘good’ initial claims data…

And Treasury yields spiking with the short-end underperforming…

With 2Y yield up at a key resistance level…

And expectations for Fed rate changes continued to trend hawkishly…

Not what the market wanted to believe…

II) USA DATA/

Initial jobless claims dip

Initial Jobless Claims Dipped Last Week After MA Fraud Fix

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 08:35 AM

After the prior week’s jump in jobless claims (which was later excused by Massachusetts explaining their data was all fraudulent), last week saw initial claims drop notably to 242k (lower than the 251k exp).

Source: Bloomberg

And sure enough the decline was all Massachusetts…

After last week’s surge…

The 4-week (smoothed) average of initial claims remains at its highest since Nov 2021…

Source: Bloomberg

Additionally, continuing claims dipped back below 1.8 million for the first time since the first week of March.

It seems the transmission mechanism of The Fed’s policy tightening continues to be broken…or uneven.

Finally, bear in mind that the claims data has just had another major revision as COVID manipulations are removed…

In other words, who knows what the real data actually looked like for the last three years.

end

Strong indicator that the economy is crumbling

(zerohedge)

US Leading Economic Indicators Tumble For 13th Straight Month, “Weaknesses Were Widespread”

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 10:29 AM

The Conference Board’s Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) continued its decline in April, dropping 0.6% MoM (in line with the 0.6% decline expected).

The biggest positive contributor to the leading index was stock prices at 0.16
The biggest negative contributor was average consumer expectations at -0.26

This is the 13th straight monthly decline in the LEI (and 14th month of 16) – the longest streak of declines since ‘Lehman’ (22 straight months of declines from June 2007 to April 2008)

“The LEI for the US declined for the thirteenth consecutive month in April, signaling a worsening economic outlook,” said Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, Senior Manager, Business Cycle Indicators, at The Conference Board.

“Weaknesses among underlying components were widespread—but less so than in March’s reading, which resulted in a smaller decline.

Only stock prices and manufacturers’ new orders for both capital and consumer goods improved in April.

Importantly, the LEI continues to warn of an economic downturn this year.

The Conference Board forecasts a contraction of economic activity starting in Q2 leading to a mild recession by mid-2023.”

Despite ‘soft landing’ hype, the LEI is showing no signs at all of ‘recovering’, hitting its lowest since Dec 2017 (outside of COVID)

And on a year-over-year basis, the LEI is down 8.09% – close to its biggest YoY drop since 2008 (Lehman) outside of the COVID lockdown-enforced collapse…

Not a good sign for GDP…

The trajectory of the US LEI continues to signal a recession over the next 12 months

Is this the cleanest view of The Fed’s tightening impact on the US economy?

end

Another good indicator of USA economic problems: 9th straight month of declining activity for Philly Fed

Survey:

(Market Watch)

Philadelphia Fed’s factory gauge shows ninth straight month of declining activity in May

May 18, 2023 at 8:42 a.m. ET

MarketWatch

Headline index rises to negative 10.4 from 31.3 in April

The numbers: The Philadelphia Federal Reserve said Thursday its gauge of regional business activity rose to negative 10.4 in May from negative 31.3 in the prior month. Any reading below zero indicates deteriorating conditions. This is the ninth straight negative reading and the eleventh in the last twelve months.

Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal expected a negative 20 reading in May.

Key details: The barometer on new orders increased 13.8 points but remained at negative 8.9 in May. The shipments index rose slightly to negative 4.7. The measure on six- month business outlook worsened to negative 10.3 in May from negative 1.5 in the prior month.

Big picture: The continued contraction in activity is a sign that U.S. manufacturing continues to struggle.

The Philadelphia Fed index is closely followed to give economists an advance signal of factory conditions across the country.

The national ISM manufacturing index has been in contractionary territory for six months.

Earlier this week, the similar Empire State survey released by the New York Fed showed manufacturing activity plummeted 42.6 points to negative 31.8 in May.

-END-

III) USA ECONOMIC STORIES

Bud light sales crash again and getting much worse in this latest week since the Dylan Mulvaney fiasco

(zerohedge)

Bud Light Sales Crash “Getting Much Worse” In Latest Week Since Dylan Mulvaney Fiasco

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 07:20 AM

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The latest industry figures show that Bud Light’s sales slump deepened into May as the fallout from the brand’s engagement with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney continues to hammer Bud Light’s bottom line.

Sales volumes of Bud Light fell by 23.6 percent in the week ended on May 6, according to retail scanner numbers cited by Beer Business Daily that are based on Nielsen IQ data.

That’s a drop from the 23.3 percent slide Bud Light suffered in the final week of April.

“Trends aren’t getting much worse, but certainly not getting any better either,” Beer Business Daily said in a commentary on the data, which represented a further decline from the 23.3 percent sales drop Bud Light suffered in the last week of April.

Meanwhile, sales volumes for Anheuser-Busch, the company that makes Bud Light, fell 9.7 percent in the first week of May, a slight improvement over the 11.4 percent drop the week prior, the industry data showed.

Anheuser-Busch did not immediately return a request for comment.

Mulvaney Controversy

The controversy that has hit Bud Light’s bottom line was sparked by the promotion of the brand by Mulvaney, a male who identifies as a woman.

A number of prominent conservative figures have called for a boycott over Mulvaney’s marketing engagement with Bud Light, which involved a custom-made beer can featuring Mulvaney’s face emblazoned on it.

Mulvaney, who has over 10 million followers on TikTok, posted a series of videos advertising Bud Light and showing off the personalized can.

The social media influencer rose to fame for chronicling a transition he dubbed “365 Days of Girlhood.”

“This month I celebrated my day 365 of womanhood and Bud Light sent me possibly the best gift ever—a can with my face on it,” Mulvaney said on April Fool’s Day.

Mulvaney’s engagement with Bud Light sparked outrage among many conservatives, some of whom accused the brand of promoting a transgender agenda and called for a boycott.

Singer Kid Rock used Bud Light cans as target practice to express his anger at the promotional campaign, while Florida governor Ron DeSantis said he would be boycotting Bud Light.

Former President Donald Trump also weighed in on the controversy, suggesting boycotts can be an effective way to send a message to brands whose critics say are pushing a leftist agenda.

“It’s time to beat the Radical Left at their own game,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social earlier in May. “Money does talk—Anheuser-Busch now understands that.”

‘Bud Light Crisis’

Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris told the Financial Times in a recent interview that the boycott was driven by “misinformation and confusion” circulating on social media.

Doukeris insisted that Mulvaney’s involvement wasn’t part of an official Bud Light marketing campaign.

“It was one post. It was not an advertisement,” Doukeris told the outlet.

The Anheuser-Busch chief said that viral videos of billboards with images of the Bud Light can with Mulvaney’s face on it inserted “electronically” had been circulated on social media and viewed by millions of people.

“It was just like pure social media creation,” Doukeris said, insisting that it “had nothing to do with Bud Light.”

Doukeris said it was never Bud Light’s intention to mass-produce cans with Mulvaney’s likeness on them for sale to the broader public.

New York Town Declares State Of Emergency Banning Hotels, Facilities From Housing Immigrants

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 09:50 AM

Authored by Katabella Roberts via The Epoch Times,

Riverhead in Suffolk County, New York, declared a state of emergency on May 16 in an effort to prevent an influx of illegal immigrants from being sent to the small town following the expiration of Title 42.

Riverhead Supervisor Yvette Aguiar signed the emergency declaration after reports emerged that officials from New York City were arranging to transport immigrants to a number of hotels and motels in the town.

According to a statement from Aguiar’s office, the order was signed “based on information received and in response to reports that the New York City Department of Homeless Services has, or will be arranging for the transportation and relocation of undocumented migrants and/or asylum seekers to hotels or motels within the Town of Riverhead.”

Aguiar told News 12 Long Island that New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, had recently sent out an advisory to all housing facilities in Suffolk County stating that the city would pay for the housing of immigrants for 12 months if the facilities agreed to accommodate them.

The advisory reportedly stated that the city would sign a contract with the facilities that agreed to house the immigrants.

Aguiar told the publication that three facilities in the small town of roughly 33,539 people had agreed to house immigrants and offered to sign the contract.

In response, Aguiar—who previously worked as a detective sergeant for the NYPD Counter Terrorism Division—declared a state of emergency to stave off what she anticipates would be thousands of immigrants heading to the small town, leaving it overburdened.

‘Already Overwhelmed’

“It’s going to tax our schools that are already overwhelmed, it’ll probably increase the crime rate because these individuals are going to be hungry in the street and they need shelter,” Aguiar told News 12 Long Island.

“It’s going to tax police; it’s going to tax the hospitals. The infrastructure component, we don’t have it.”

Under Aguiar’s state of emergency, all facilities across the town including hotels, motels, bed-and-breakfast facilities, homeless shelters, and lodgings are banned from accepting immigrants.

Facilities that violate the order will be “dealt with in the courts,” Aguiar told News 12.

Separately, Aguiar told Patch that, compared to surrounding townships on the East End and throughout Suffolk County, “Riverhead has done more than its share when it comes to housing the homeless, providing services, and offering affordable housing and our resources.”

“Taxpayers simply cannot withstand further demand on our public services,” she said, adding that the health and safety of Riverhead residents is her top priority.

Aguiar also took aim at the Biden administration for failing to anticipate the huge volume of immigrants that would overwhelm the southern border when Title 42—which allowed Border Patrol agents to turn illegal immigrants back to Mexico immediately over public health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic—expired.

She said the federal government has “failed to defend the sovereignty of the nation, resulting in thousands of migrants and asylum seekers crossing the U.S. border virtually unchecked.”

Adams to Send Migrants From NYC

“There is nothing humanitarian about a sanctuary city sending busloads of people to a rural town that does not have the infrastructure to care for them, especially since social services funding is not available to undocumented individuals,” Aguiar added.

The state of emergency in Riverhead comes after Adams reportedly held a call with more than 100 state leaders on May 11 seeking support from officials to help house thousands of immigrants that were expected to flood the southern border after Title 42 expired.

In the past week alone, some 4,300 illegal immigrants have arrived in New York City, according to New York City Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. That brings the total number of immigrants currently in the city’s care to over 41,500.

However, multiple counties across the state, already struggling with limited resources, are pushing back against housing immigrants.

Earlier this month, Rockland and Orange counties filed a lawsuit against the Adams administration to stop him from transferring the illegal immigrants to their jurisdictions.

Meanwhile, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman told a press conference Monday that the county will not participate in any sanctuary programs, adding that it is not the responsibility of local government.

“It is the responsibility of the federal government to have a national policy,” he said.

“To invite people in who are undocumented, not knowing who they are or why they are here, I think is very faulty and something we do not endorse in Nassau.”

The Epoch Times has contacted New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s office for comment.

END

As interest rates rise, so does home sales decline. It is now accelerating

(zerohedge)

US Existing Home Sales Decline Re-Accelerates As Rates Rebound

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 10:10 AM

After February’s ridiculous pumpfest, US existing home sales have continued to trend lower with March down down and now April dropping 3.4% MoM (worse than the 3.2% drop expected)…

Source: Bloomberg

Existing home sales are down 14 of the 15 months, leaving them down just over 23% YoY.

“Home sales are bouncing back and forth but remain above recent cyclical lows,” Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said in a statement.

“The combination of job gains, limited inventory and fluctuating mortgage rates over the last several months have created an environment of push-pull housing demand.”

This should surprise no one given that mortgage rates rebounded higher…

Source: Bloomberg

The median selling price of a previously owned home fell 1.7% from a year ago, the biggest drop since 2012, to $388,800. However, prices rose in the Northeast and Midwest.

“Even in markets with lower prices, primarily the expensive West region, multiple-offer situations have returned in the spring buying season,” Yun said.

The number of homes for sale rose to 1.04 million, up 1% from a year ago. Still, inventory was nearly double that in April 2019. At the current sales pace, it would take 2.9 months to sell all the properties on the market. Realtors see anything below five months of supply as indicative of a tight market.

end

PORTLAND

Total Insanity: Portland wants to now re fund the policy after defunding it last year

(zerohedge)

Portland Wants To Re-Fund Its Police

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2023 – 01:25 PM

Authored by Michael Letts via AmericanThinker.com,

Portland, OR was one of the leading voices in the “Defund the Police” movement in the wake of George Floyd’s death. Politicians gave into the demands of like-minded rioters and activists and began cutting the budget of the city’s Bureau of Police.

On its face, this should have been seen as a bad decision since the very people making the demands were rioting and damaging private and public property.

So, at a time when a greater police presence was needed, city government cut back on police.

The politicians gave into the demands of criminals and expected them to… what? Go home? Play nice?

Defunding the police has just emboldened the criminals wherever it was tried, endangering lives and driving away people and business.

Now, with the damage done and its tax base shrinking, Portland has realized it needs police. Unfortunately, now, it is more burdensome to fund them and harder to attract officers to a city where they know the government doesn’t want them. Gee, if only they had maintained their police force and supported them when they had the chance, they might not find themselves in the predicament they do.

The city recently launched new task force focused on cracking down on retail and vehicle theft to halt the city’s rampant crime. To do this, they are working to hire more DAs and investigators, which means they are putting more money toward policing after cutting the budget by $15 million.

It’s about time.

Portland residents are three times more likely to be a victim of property crime than the average U.S. citizen, according to Neighborhood Scout. The city had more than 63,000 property thefts last year, according to police statistics. The 11,000 or so vehicles that were stolen last year set a new record in the city.

And it’s the residents who are suffering. That is, if you can find a Portland resident. Those who can are leaving the city, not wanting to risk their lives for city living, and they are taking businesses with them. “Since the pandemic, public data found that over 2,600 businesses filed changes of address with the US Postal Service after leaving their downtown Portland zip codes,” according to the Daily Mail UK.

This will only exacerbate the problems the city government has in trying to pay for needed services when their tax base is shrinking. But they did it to themselves.

While all this has been happening, police officers have been retiring early, quitting, or transferring to municipalities that appreciate them. Rather than prosecute the criminals who are caught, liberal prosecutors are not following through and taking cases to court. This allows the accused to walk free and believe they are immune to prosecution.

While it would be nice to believe that the Portland City Council got the message that it needs to control crime, it’s not likely. It’s also not likely that its efforts will bear much fruit. Defunding was done dramatically in a large amount and the result was a large increase in crime. Refunding in dribbles is likely to only produce minimal results.

The council needs to send a message to residents, businesses, and criminals that is clear and unmistakable.

Re-fund the police even more than they were cut and voice their support for the police.

Do that, and only if everyone believes it (which requires support through actions) can the Portland government or any other municipal government that defunded police begin to rebuild.

USA COVID//

END

SWAMP STORIES

What took them so long?

(zerohedge)

Marjorie Taylor Greene Introduces Articles Of Impeachment Against FBI Director Chris Wray

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2023 – 09:00 PM

Authored by Joseph Lord via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has introduced articles of impeachment against Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray.

“Director Wray has failed to uphold his oath and has instead overseen a denigration of the principles of our democratic republic by utilizing the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a Federal police force to punish or intimidate anyone who questions or opposes the current regime,” Greene wrote in the articles of impeachment.

The presidential appointee and his agency have come under fire recently as reports surface alleging widespread violations of Americans’ constitutionally-protected civil liberties, targeting of political enemies, and other allegations of partisan or illegal behavior.

In a statement announcing her filing of the articles, Greene wrote: “Under [Wray’s] watch, the FBI has intimidated, harassed, & entrapped Americans who have been deemed enemies of the Biden regime. Wray has turned the FBI into Joe Biden and [Attorney General] Merrick Garland’s personal police force.”

She accused Wray of using “Soviet-style tactics” to target normal Americans who disagreed with President Joe Biden’s policies.

In the articles of impeachment, Greene wrote: “Rather than adhering to an oath he took to defend and secure our country and uphold the Constitution when he was sworn in as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on August 2, 2017, Director Wray has willingly refused to ensure that the laws passed by Congress and signed by the President are faithfully executed.”

Allegations of Misconduct

For instance, she cited whistleblower allegations claiming that the FBI had created a “threat tag” to target pro-life individuals and organizations in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the federal right to abortion.

In September 2022, the FBI raided the home of Matthew Houck, a pro-life Catholic, for having obstructed access to an abortion provider.

Other whistleblower claims backed by leaked documents reveal that the FBI has also targeted so-called “radical-traditionalist Catholics,” dubbing them “RTCs.” The leaked documents accused traditional and Latin Mass Catholic communities of being a harbor for “white supremacism” and indicated that the FBI intended to place informants in these churches.

In 2021, a required public audit found the FBI had abused the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to carry out more than 3.3 million illegal queries of American citizens.

In another case, the FBI has allegedly aided and abetted criminal behavior. As many as 12 FBI agents allegedly participated in a 2021 plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, masterminding and encouraging men to carry out the plan.

The FBI came under even more scrutiny in the wake of the agency mounting a raid on the home of President Donald Trump, an unprecedented move. The raid allegedly was due to Trump’s possession of classified documents.

Subsequent findings have revealed that Biden has also allegedly mishandled classified documents, but no similar actions have been taken against him, Greene noted.

“Not only has Director Wray persecuted political opponents in an unprecedented and partisan way, but he has also overseen his agency take actions to shield and protect the current President and his family. A senior FBI official left the agency under a cloud of accusations that he shielded a laptop belonging to the President’s son, Robert Hunter Biden, from a criminal probe,” Greene said, citing allegations that the FBI sought to cover up the story about Hunter Biden’s laptop.

end

House Republican Submits Resolution To Expel ‘Liar’ Adam Schiff From Congress

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2023 – 08:40 PM

After Rep. Adam Schiff relentlessly peddled the Russiagate hoax and claimed without proof that there was “more than circumstantial evidence” that Donald Trump colluded with Russia in 2016, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) has introduced a House resolution to expel Schiff from Congress after the Durham report concluded that there was no collusion.

“Knowingly using your position on House Intel to push a lie that ripped apart our country, cost taxpayers millions of dollars, and authorized spying on a US President and then proceeding to double down on the lie within days of the Durham report coming out makes you unfit for office,” wrote Luna in a late Wednesday tweet, adding “Ethics should investigate.”

Following the Durham report, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy raised the question of whether Schiff “should even be in Congress.”

Schiff notably doubled down on his claims Tuesday, tweeting that the Durham investigation was “flawed from the start.”

“This is an investigation that started in a flawed manner, it was conducted in a flawed manner, and its conclusion is a flawed conclusion,” he told MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell on Tuesday, adding that Durham’s conclusions add “very little” to the Horowitz report, and do not prove a “deep state conspiracy.”

He added that Durham’s investigation was a “wasted effort,” and “four years of undermining the department [of justice] and a political prosecution.”

The former the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee was booted by McCarthy and replaced by Rep. James Himes (D-CT). He has since announced a bid to replace incumbent Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).

In 2017, Schiff told Meet the Press regarding Trump-Russia evidence; “I don’t want to go into specifics, but I will say that there is evidence that is not circumstantial. But as I’ve said all along, there’s plenty of evidence of collusion.”

Wall Street Journal editorial board member William McGurn says that the Durham probe was a “damning account of the corruption of the FBI and its accomplices.”

Anchor Trace Gallagher noted the editorial board also claimed the FBI knew the discredited “dossier” compiled by ex-MI6 spy Christopher Steele “came from Clinton and was phony to begin with.”

McGurn said it is no surprise Democrats like Schiff, as well as those interviewed on Capitol Hill by Fox News Digital on Tuesday, are dismissing the Durham report.

“The Russia collusion story was the gaslighting of America. It was outrageous, the falsehoods, and it involved the highest levels of law enforcement and intelligence on that part,” McGurn said.

He said that Barr seemingly ignored his own personal differences with Trump to clearly state Tuesday that the former president has been vindicated and that the Russia probe was untoward. –Fox News

“Only Adam Schiff there in those clips talked about the collusion. I mean, Durham said the FBI opened the investigation without any evidence. He also found bias in the FBI, and he found double standards [in] how they treated the Hillary Clinton campaign,” said McGurn, adding “And the problem is so many people in Washington were implicated in this hoax that they don’t want the same thing. Their strategy now is to pretend it didn’t happen and not discuss it.”

end

THE KING REPORT

The King Report May 18, 2023 Issue 6993

Independent View of the News

Xi may be pleased! Biden triggers cancellation of ‘Quad’ summit to tackle Chinese aggression by dropping out of meeting in Australia to deal with debt crisis in DC
    President Joe Biden threw two summits into chaos on Tuesday with his plans to return to the United States immediately after the G7 meeting – a decision that resulted in Australia canceling a meeting of the Quad leaders… Biden will now have to spend much of his time at the G7 reassuring leaders the United States is a reliable partner…
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12092293/Biden-triggers-cancellation-Quad-summit-tackle-Chinese-aggression.html

Reuters: Biden’s Papua New Guinea no-show deals blow to US credibility in Pacific, analysts say http://reut.rs/3WjLBRa

Yesterday before the NYSE opening: “I think at the end of the day we do not have a debt default,” House Speaker McCarthy tells @SquawkCNBC. https://t.co/rLVLEkitFL

Yuan Slides Past Seven in New Warning Sign for China’s EconomyCurrency is being pressured by prospect of rate cuts: MaybankPBOC’s level of concern may not be 7, but 7.3, Nomura saysThe yuan slid past the key level of 7 per dollar for the first time this year in a further sign the recovery of the world’s second-largest economy from its Covid restrictions is grinding to a halt.
   The currency weakened past the key threshold in both onshore and offshore trading after data this week showed factory output, retail sales and fixed-asset investment all grew at a slower pace in April than economists forecast. The nation’s benchmark stock gauges are trailing their major Asian peers this quarter, while sovereign bonds have rallied on expectations of more easing.… https://finance.yahoo.com/news/yuan-weakens-toward-key-psychological-002056792.html

Target Keeps Outlook While Warning of Weakening Sales Trend
Theft is driving 2023 headwind set to worsen by $500 million
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-05-17/target-warns-of-short-term-slowdown-on-softening-sales-trends#xj4y7vzkg

ESMs and stocks rallied on Weird Wednesday upward bias and optimism that a budget deal with a debt ceiling increase would materialize soon. Once again, Fangs led the rally, which is an expiry week staple.

ESMs rallied from the Nikkei open until 23:00 ET. They then declined until they hit the daily low of 4122.00 at 3:30 ET. Someone then aggressively bought ESMs, driving them to 4144.75 at 9:27 ET.

Alas, sellers appeared on the NYSE open, ESMs sank to 4125.75 by 10:00 ET. But it was Weird Wednesday, the day that often contains the peak intensity of the expiry week manipulation. So, the usual suspects manically bought ESMs and trading sardines. ESMs hit a new daily high of 4148.25 at 11:16 ET. Alas, European traders decided to take profits before the 11:30 ET European close.

ESMs sank to 4131.75. But it was Weird Wednesday, and various classes of speculators wanted and needed ESMs and trading sardines to rally. So, someone juiced ESMs to 4147.75 by 11:44 ET. At 12:22 ET, the manipulation for Weird Wednesday went postal. ESMs went vertical to 4175.75 in an hour. This is what passes for high finance and the greatest capital market in the world these days.

Some pundits believe the midday vertical rally was due to Speaker McCarthy asserting that a deal was ‘doable by Sunday.’ If this is so, why did bonds decline to new session lows after the remark?

USMs traded similarly to ESMs except their rally was weaker and after a 7-minute modest rally at 13:00 ET, USMs turned negative after 9:41 ET and continued to fall until

ESMs eventually hit a peak of 4179.00 at 13:49 ET. After a 15-handle retreat, the last-hour manipulation commenced at precisely 15:00 ET. A 10-handle ESM spike ended at 15:18 ET. After a 10-handle retreat, a final manipulation commenced at 15:38 ET. Another 10-handle rally appeared but ESM then retreated.

Once again, government economic statisticians sharply revised lower previous economic data. March Housing Starts were revised to 1.371m from 1.42m. March Permits were revised to 1.437m from 1.413m. April Housing Starts are 1.401m; 1.4m expected. Permits are 1.416m; 1.43m consensus.

20 AI stocks expected to post the highest compound annual sales growth through 2025
AI is “the next new thing” in tech, but unlike other investment fads, this one seems likely to have staying power as it transforms many industries… (Remember when ‘cloud’ was the next new thing?)
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/20-ai-stocks-expected-to-post-the-highest-compound-annual-sales-growth-through-2025-17f4f293

Steve Cohen Is ‘Pretty Bullish’ on Markets Thanks to AI
Cohen, 66, said the burgeoning field of AI will likely create new jobs… The billionaire added that he’s worried about the “types of jobs that will be displaced,” but more broadly, he expects profit margins to improve, which would reduce pressure on the Federal Reserve to curb inflation with additional interest rate hikes… https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/steve-cohen-is-pretty-bullish-on-markets-thanks-to-ai/ar-AA1bjkiW

AI will reduce jobs in the net and exacerbate the US’s concentration of wealth & income problem. This, of course, will lead to unrest and induce a political solution. Wouldn’t it be ironic if AI reduced the need for money managers and hedge funds?

@TheRabbitHole84: “The U.S. birth rate has fallen by 20% since 2007. This decline cannot be explained by demographic, economic, or policy changes.”
https://twitter.com/TheRabbitHole84/status/1658603697709133826
    @elonmusk Replying to @TheRabbitHole84: It’s a major problem!

Who will foot the bill for the USA’s various entitlement Ponzi Schemes?

Biden refuses to accept work requirements for Medicaid in GOP debt ceiling talks
Biden said he ‘voted years ago’ for work requirements but is now opposing the new Republican plan for Medicaid https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-refuses-accept-work-requirements-medicaid-gop-debt-ceiling-talks

McCarthy rebrands looming debt ceiling breach: ‘Biden default’
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mccarthy-rebrands-looming-debt-ceiling-deadline-biden-default

Positive aspects of previous session
The Weird Wednesday rally/manipulation occurred. Why don’t more experts acknowledge this dynamic?
Fangs rallied sharply, a staple of the expiry week manipulation – abetted by AI hype

Negative aspects of previous session
Bonds declined despite the equity rally that was purportedly due to debt deal optimism
Oil, gasoline, and copper soared, which was overlooked or ignored by most market experts

Ambiguous aspects of previous session
Will a robust equity rally induce the Fed to hike rates again?

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]: 4145.69
Previous session High/Low: 4164.67; 4113.62

Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine no longer available in U.S., CDC says

FDA puts strict limits on Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine   May 6, 2022
Because of the risk of a rare and dangerous clotting condition called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) after receiving the vaccine…
https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/05/health/fda-johnson-johnson-vaccine-eua/index.html

Biden vetoes bipartisan bill protecting US solar panel makers from Chinese competition https://t.co/601VZgnpdv (10% for The Big Guy – the grift that keeps on giving to China!)

American depression levels hit all-time high: poll
The rate of Americans who report that they were depressed at some point in their lives is at 29%
https://www.foxnews.com/health/american-depression-levels-hit-all-time-high-poll

Today – After the successful Weird Wednesday manipulation and optimism about a US debt deal, bulls and expiry manipulators will try to force stuff higher and squeeze expiry May call options. Markets remain very thin, so a determined few can create manipulate ESMs and stocks.

ESMs are -2.75 at 20:05 ET.  AI madness has Nvidia up 106% YTD!

Expected econ data: Initial Jobless Claims 253k, Continuing Claims 1.819m; May Phil Fed Business Outlook -20.0; April Existing Home Sales 4.3m; April LEI -0.6%; Fed VCEO Jefferson 9:05 ET; Fed VCEO for Supervision Barr at Senate Banking Com 90:30 ET, Dallas Fed Pres Logan 10:00 ET

Expected Retailer earnings: WMT 1.31, BBWI .26, ROST 1.06,

S&P 500 Index 50-day MA: 4064; 100-day MA: 4029; 150-day MA: 3979; 200-day MA: 3975
DJIA 50-day MA: 33,155; 100-day MA: 33,342; 150-day MA: 33,164; 200-day MA: 32,762
(Green is positive slope; Red is negative slope)

S&P 500 Index – Trender trading model and MACD for key time frames
Monthly: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4514.50 triggers a buy signal
Weekly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 3919.40 triggers a sell signal
Daily: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4184.25 triggers a buy signal
Hourly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 4129.71 triggers a sell signal

Ex-DNI @RichardGrenell: If you aren’t watching what is unfolding in Arizona then you shouldn’t be talking about election integrity. Hamadeh’s legal team has hundreds of affidavits from people who voted – but their vote wasn’t counted. He’s only 280 down in Hobbs count. 9k votes found – and uncounted.

EXCLUSIVE J6 FOOTAGE | Defense Attorney Exposes THE EXACT MOMENT the Government Waged Attack – When the police started shooting people in the face and throwing flash grenades at the unarmed crowd, everything changed on January 6. The government opened fire escalating the protest. Only one side was armed using deadly: The police. The crowd became livid as they watched cops shooting deadly rubber bullets, tear gas at civilians and flash bangs or “sting balls” at their heads…
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/05/exclusive-j6-footage-defense-attorney-exposes-the-exact-moment-the-government-waged-terror-attack-ill-tell-you-exactly-where-sht-went-crazy-with-video-proof-must-see/

‘Betrayal’: FBI Agents Working on Russia Probe Say Leaders Concealed Intelligence on Hillary’s Role – Order not to put anything in writing “was the most inappropriate operational or professional statement he had ever heard at the FBI,” FBI lawyer said…
https://www.dailywire.com/news/betrayal-fbi-agents-working-on-russia-probe-say-leaders-concealed-intelligence-on-hillarys-role?s=02

Catholic Father Testifies That FBI Thugs Pointed M-16s At His Kids on Their Doorstep
While giving testimony during Tuesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing, Mark Houck, a devoted Catholic father of seven, recounted a harrowing experience involving federal agents and a subsequent legal battle that put his family’s well-being at risk… Houck, who has been actively involved in pro-life work in Philadelphia for the past two decades, detailed the events leading up to the confrontation…
https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/watch-catholic-father-testifies-that-fbi-thugs-pointed-m-16s-at-his-kids-on-their-doorstep-mace/

Marjorie Taylor Greene introduces articles of impeachment against FBI Director Christopher Wray  https://www.foxnews.com/politics/marjorie-taylor-greene-introduces-articles-impeachment-fbi-director-wray

Marjorie Taylor Greene Introduces Articles of Impeachment Against U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland   https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/05/breaking-impeachment-week-marjorie-taylor-greene-introduces-against-u-s-attorney-general-merrick-garland/

Karine Jean-Pierre ends press briefing after being pressed on Durham report: ‘Fled the podium’ https://t.co/A8tHzvEo5H

@bennyjohnson: Douglass Mackey is going to jail because his memes supposedly “influenced the election.” How many people will go to jail due to the revelations of the Durham Report that show our Intel agencies interfered in our election? — Zero. Tells you everything you need to know.

@CollinRugg: Senator Lindsey Graham is so upset at the FBI for working with the Clinton campaign and DNC to interfere in an election that he wants them to… wait for it… apologize! “I’m hoping that somebody at the FBI will call up the people involved and say, I wasn’t responsible for it, but I’m sorry it happened to you, this is not the FBI I want. I would like Garland to call people up and say, this is not the DOJ we want, and we’re sorry.” This is why the Republican Party is a joke and will always be a joke.
When someone commits borderline treason they want apologies, not prison time.
https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/1658847672231501825

GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna Submits House Resolution to Expel Serial Liar Rep. Adam Schiff from Congress  https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/05/breaking-gop-representative-anna-paulina-luna-submits-house-resolution-to-expel-serial-liar-rep-adam-schiff-from-congress/

Democrat Lawmakers Reintroduce Bill to Pack the U.S. Supreme Court, Add Four More Liberal Judges – The bill was introduced by Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Cori Bush (D-Mo.), and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). “Republicans have hijacked the confirmation process and stolen the Supreme Court majority—all to appeal to far-right judicial activists who for years have wanted to wield the gavel to roll back fundamental rights,” said Senator Markey in a press release… https://t.co/45OCgE3lQE

NYC business officials scouring real estate listings to house growing number of migrants https://t.co/uXzHBZANEX

Democratic NYC Mayor Eric Adams has plans to convert up to 20 gymnasiums linked to public schools into makeshift shelters for Illegal Aliens arriving in the city. https://t.co/4kYCZnElCm

CNN: US attorney in Massachusetts leaked sensitive information to journalist to influence political campaign and lied under oath, federal reports say
https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/17/politics/rachael-rollins-doj-report-leak/index.html

Massachusetts US attorney to resign amid Justice Dept ethics probe
Rollins… is a prominent figure in the “progressive prosecutor” movement that supports policies designed to eliminate racial disparities in the justice system… The inspector general’s investigation began at the urging of Republican Senator Tom Cotton after the Boston Herald photographed Rollins arriving in a government vehicle at the house in Andover, Massachusetts where the Democratic fundraising event was held… Cotton was one of the leading Senate Republicans to oppose her nomination by President Joe Biden. Rollins was narrowly confirmed by the Senate in December 2021 after Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking vote …
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/massachusetts-us-attorney-resign-after-becoming-mired-justice-dept-ethics-probe-2023-05-16/

GOP Sen. @TomCottonAR: Disgraced Soros prosecutor Rachael Rollins repeatedly lied under oath to cover up her crimes. Career officials said her actions were among the “most egregious” they have ever seen. Yet Biden’s DOJ refuses to prosecute her because she’s an ideological ally. (SC letter to Biden at link) https://twitter.com/TomCottonAR/status/1658905126185181202

Virginia suspect with untreated schizophrenia charged in baseball attack on congressional staffers https://t.co/11ICHpRY7x

Man Who Assaulted Congressional Staffers Had Previously Been Let off by Soros-Funded Prosecutor – He had previously attacked two police officers in January of 2022, stealing one of the officer’s stun guns before being arrested. Despite facing charges including resisting arrest and assault on law enforcement, the charges against Pham were dropped by Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano (D-Va.)…
https://amgreatness.com/2023/05/17/man-who-assaulted-congressional-staffers-had-previously-been-let-off-by-soros-funded-prosecutor/

@shellenberger: The Wash. Post says anti-Semitism increased on Twitter since @elonmusk
took over, but there’s no evidence it has. The Post cites a study that counted tweets simply critical of @georgesoros as “anti-Semitic.” In truth, media elites are “attacking Twitter for not complying.”
    @elonmusk Replying to @shellenberger and @georgesoros: True

(Chgo Mayor) Johnson allies push $12 billion new tax package, including wealth and income taxes
Allies of Mayor Brandon Johnson today are rolling out a $12 billion financial proposal that doubles down on controversial tax-hike ideas pitched by Johnson during his campaign and adds a few more — including enactment of a city wealth tax and income tax, deep cuts in police spending…
The first is a move to impose a city income tax of 3.5% on any household with income above $100,000 a year… https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics/brandon-johnson-allies-new-tax-package-including-wealth-income-tax

Chicago Ald. Raymond Lopez @RLopez15thWard: $12 BILLION in NEW TAXES
300% increase on jet fuel tax; $163M real estate transfer tax increases; $33/employee tax; 3.5% city income tax on $100K+ earners;13% digital ad revenue tax; Wealth asset tax; Empty apartment tax; Financial transaction tax

Black Communist Leader Exposes the Truth of Racial Divide
Manning Johnson, a black man born in 1908, joined the Communist Party USA in 1930, where he served as a national organizer for the Trade Unity League… Johnson left the Communist Party in 1939…
   Johnson saw that the Communists were using black Americans as pawns in their hope that a “bloody racial conflict would split America.”…
   In 1958, he published Color, Communism, and Common Sense detailing the Communist Party’s tactics for infiltrating the African-American community and inciting racial division in the United States, paving the way for a Communist takeover in America…
    Johnson shares that the goal of Communist agents in the early 20th century was to cripple the black community in America and incite racial division. This division would consequently weaken the nation as a whole and provide the opportunity for Communists to gain power… Despite how they portrayed themselves, the Communists never did anything to advance the well-being of the black population…
    Johnson goes on to share how the communists would highlight racial division and emphasize incidents of racist violence while downplaying racial progress to cultivate a victimhood mentality among blacks in America…  https://wallbuilders.com/black-communist-leader-exposes-the-truth/

COLOR, COMMUNISM, AND COMMON SENSE BY MANNING JOHNSON (1958)
This explosive exposé of the Communist plan to use the negro race to sow division, foment race wars, and ultimately bring about a socialist, totalitarian state, was written by an American negro communist who defected from the party when he realized its cynical exploitation of negroes was destroying the social fabric of black communities and harming his own people. Manning Johnson, who “died unexpectedly” soon after his book was published, understood the risks of defecting from and denouncing communism, was an American hero…
https://www.heritage-history.com/site/hclass/secret_societies/ebooks/pdf/johnson_color.pdf

GREG HUNTER

I will see you on FRIDAY

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USA EXISTING HOME SALES IMPLODE – altnews.org · May 19, 2023 - 9:05 am · Reply→

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