Shanghai Gold Benchmark Price

USD oz AM1940.24

PM1942.10

Historical SGE Fix

New York price at the time: 1892.00

premium $52,00

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Bitcoin morning price:, $28,533 DOWN 560 Dollars

Bitcoin: afternoon price: $26,097 DOWN 2996 dollars

Platinum price closing $912.40 UP $17.30

Palladium price; $1253.85 UP 35.80

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: $2,559.67 UP 1.12 CDN dollars per oz (ALL TIME HIGH 2,775.35)

BRITISH GOLD: 1483.17 UP .40 pounds per oz//(ALL TIME HIGH//CLOSING///1630.29)

EURO GOLD: 1737,89 UP .20 euros per oz //(ALL TIME HIGH/CLOSING//1861.21)//

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EXCHANGE: COMEX

EXCHANGE: COMEX
CONTRACT: AUGUST 2023 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES
SETTLEMENT: 1,884.100000000 USD
INTENT DATE: 08/17/2023 DELIVERY DATE: 08/21/2023
FIRM ORG FIRM NAME ISSUED STOPPED

435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 50
624 H BOFA SECURITIES 98
661 C JP MORGAN 46
737 C ADVANTAGE 7
905 C ADM 3
991 H CME 2

TOTAL: 103 103
MONTH TO DATE: 10,840

JPMorgan stopped 0 /103 contracts.

FOR AUGUST:

GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR AUGUST/2023. CONTRACT: 103 NOTICES FOR 10300 OZ or 0.3204 TONNES

total notices so far: 10,840 contracts for 1,084,000 oz (33.716 tonnes)

FOR AUGUST:

SILVER NOTICES: 20 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 100,000 OZ/

total number of notices filed so far this month : 950 for 4,750,000 oz

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END

GLD

WITH GOLD UP $1.15

INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD//HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 6.92 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD

INVENTORY RESTS AT 887.50 TONNES

Silver//

WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER UP 4 CENTS AT THE SLV// NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:

INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.

CLOSING INVENTORY: 452.290 MILLION OZ

Let us have a look at the data for today

SILVER//OUTLINE

SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A SMALL SIZED 266 CONTRACTS TO 137,140 AND CLOSER TO THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THIS TINY SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR $0.15 GAIN IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON THURSDAY. TAS ISSUANCE WAS A RATHER SMALLER SIZED 433 CONTRACTS. THESE WILL BE USED FOR MANIPULATION LATER THIS MONTH/AS WELL AS TODAY. CRAIG HEMKE HAS POINTED OUT THAT THE CROOKS USE THE MID MONTH FOR MANIPULATION AS THEY SELL THEIR BUY SIDE OF THE CALENDAR SPREAD FIRST AND THEN KEEP THE SELL SIDE TO LIQUIDATE AT A LATER DATE. 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 THURSDAY NIGHT: 433 CONTRACTS. DESPITE MANY COMPLAINTS THAT THE CROOKS HAVE VIOLATED POSITION LIMITS DUE TO THE FACT THAT THE TAS ISSUED HAVE A VALUE OF ZERO (AS TO POSITION LIMITS FOR OUR CROOKED BANKERS). THE PROBLEM OF COURSE IS THAT THE CROOKS DO NOT LIQUIDATE THE TAS TOGETHER BUT SELL THE BUY SIDE FIRST AND THEN LIQUIDATE THE SELL SIDE TWO MONTHS HENCE. IT IS OBVIOUS MANIPULATION TO THE HIGHEST DEGREE BUT IT NATURALLY FELL ON DEAF EARS WITH OUR REGULATORS (OCC) WHEN THEY RECEIVED OUR COMPLAINTS. IT THUS LOOKS LIKE THE FED (GOV’T) IS BEHIND ALL OF THESE TRADES.

WE HAVE NOW SET ANOTHER RECORD LOW AT 114,102 CONTRACTS ///JULY 3.2023// OUR BANKERS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT ROSE BY $0.15). AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OF ANY SILVER CONTRACTS AS WE HAD A TINY SIZED LOSS OF 41 CONTRACTS ON BOTH EXCHANGES ALONG WITH CONSIDERABLE T.A.S.LIQUIDATION THROUGHOUT THE COMEX SESSION.

WE MUST HAVE HAD:

A SMALL ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS( 225 CONTRACTS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 3.105 MILLION OZ (FIRST DAY NOTICE) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 105,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING RISES AT 4.650 MILLION OZ + OUR NEW CRIMINAL 200 CONTRACTS OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR 1.00 MILLION OZ + 1.45 MILLION OZ EX. FOR RISK/PRIOR//NEW TOTAL 2.45 MILLION OZ/// NEW TOTAL STANDING FOR SILVER: 7.025 MILLION OZ/// // // TINY SIZED COMEX OI LOSS/ SMALL SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/VI) SMALLER BUT STILL STRONG SIZED NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE (433 CONTRACTS)/200 EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUED FOR 1.0 MILLION OZ//

I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL -315 CONTRACTS

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

TOTAL CONTRACTS for 14 days, total 17,812 contracts: OR 89.069 MILLION OZ (1272 CONTRACTS PER DAY)

TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 89.069 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 2022: 207.140 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 66.120 MILLION OZ/INITIAL (MUCH SMALLER THIS MONTH)

JUNE: 110.395 MILLION OZ//MUCH LARGER THAN LAST MONTH

JULY 85.745 MILLION OZ (SMALLER THAN LAST MONTH)

AUGUST: 89.069 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH IS GOING TO BE VERY STRONG

RESULT: WE HAD A SMALL SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 266 CONTRACTS WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.15 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//THURSDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A SMALL EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 225 ISSUED FOR SEPT 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 AUGUST OF 3.105 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 105,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW STANDING 4.755 MILLION OZ+ 2.45 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK NEW TOTALS 7.025 MILLION OZ//// WE HAVE A SMALL SIZED LOSS OF 41 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES. THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY: A SMALLER BUT STILL STRONG 433 CONTRACTS//HUGE FRONT END OF THE TAS CONTRACTS WERE LIQUIDATED DURING THE THURSDAY COMEX SESSION . THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE THURSDAY NIGHT (433) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE., .

WE HAD 20 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 100,000 OZ

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

GOLD//OUTLINE

IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A FAIR SIZED 1688 CONTRACTS TO 433,060 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: 450 CONTRACTS

WE HAD A FAIR SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI ( 1688 CONTRACTS) WITH OUR $12.80 LOSS IN PRICE//THURSDAY. WE ALSO HAD A RATHER SMALL INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR AUGUST. AT 30.656 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 9800 OZ QUEUE JUMP + PRIOR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = (.684 TONNES) //NEW STANDING 33.869 TONNES + .684 EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 34.553/ + /A FAIR (AND CRIMINAL) ISSUANCE OF 1459 T.A.S. CONTRACTS /// ALL OF..THIS HAPPENED WITH A $12.80 LOSS IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO THURSDAY’S TRADING.WE HAD A FAIR SIZED GAIN OF 1482 OI CONTRACTS (4.609 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES.

E.F.P. ISSUANCE

THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A FAIR SIZED 3170 CONTRACTS:

The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 433,060

IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A FAIR SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 1482 CONTRACTS WITH 1688 CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A FAIR 3170 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 1482 CONTRACTS OR 4,609 TONNES. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A FAIR 1932 CONTRACTS)

CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES

WE HAD A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (3170 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE FAIR SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI (1688) //TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 1482 CONTRACTS. WE HAVE ( 1) NOW RETURNED TO OUR NORMAL FORMAT OF BANKERS GOING SHORT AND SPECULATORS GOING LONG ,2.) FAIR INITIAL STANDING AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR JULY AT 30.656 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 9800 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING 33.869 TONNES + .684 TONNES (EXCHANGE FOR RISK//PRIOR) NEW TOTALS: 34.553 TONNES/// 3) ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION WITH CONSIDERABLE TAS LIQUIDATION DURING THE COMEX SESSION //4) FAIR SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST LOSS/ 5) FAIR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///6: FAIR T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 1459 CONTRACTS

HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023 INCLUDING TODAY

AUGUST

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

TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 39,503 CONTRACTS OR 3,950,300 OZ OR 122.87 TONNES IN 14 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 2794 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 122.87 TONNES

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

THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 122.87/3550 x 100% TONNES 3.46% 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/2022: 409.30 TONNES //FINAL( 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

MAY: 236.67 TONNES (A VERY STRONG ISSUANCE FOR THIS MONTH)

JUNE: 172.667 TONNES (WEAKER ISSUANCE THIS MONTH)

JULY: 151.69 TONNES (WEAKER THAN LAST MONTH)

AUGUST: 122.87 TONNES (A STRONGER 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 SEPT. 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 (SEPT), 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 (i.e. unload the buy side first so the price of gold/silver falls. This occurs in the middle of the front delivery month cycle. They unload the sell side of the equation, two months down the road. The crooks violate position limits as the OCC refuse to hear our complaints.

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 SMALL SIZED 266 CONTRACTS OI TO 137,140 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 NOW SET A NEW RECORD LOW OF 114,102 CONTRACTS JULY 3.2023

EFP ISSUANCE A SMALL 225 CONTRACTS

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

SEPT 225 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 225 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 266 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 225 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,

WE OBTAIN A TINY SIZED LOSS OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 41 CONTRACTS

THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTAL 0.205 MILLION OZ

OCCURRED WITH OUR $0.15 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//

FRIDAY MORNING//THURSDAY NIGHT

SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 31.79 PTS OR 1.00% //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 375.78 PTS OR 2.05% /The Nikkei CLOSED DOWN 175.74 PTS OR 0.58% //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.02 % /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN 7.2917 /OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN UP TO 7.3100 /Oil UP TO 80.19 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP AT 83.75 / Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL RED// 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 A FAIR SIZED 1688 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 433,060 WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $12.80 ON THURSDAY.

EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE

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

THAT IS 3170 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: : DEC 3170 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:

TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 3170 CONTRACTS

ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE GAINED THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A FAIR SIZED TOTAL OF 1482 CONTRACTS IN THAT 3170 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A FAIR SIZED LOSS OF 1238 COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED DESPITE OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $12.80//THURSDAY COMEX. 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 FOR THURSDAY NIGHT WAS A FAIR 1459 CONTRACTS. THROUGHOUT THE PAST WEEKS, THE BANKERS SOLD OFF THE LONG SIDE OF THE SPREAD WHICH OF COURSE CONTINUES TO MANIPULATE THE PRICE OF GOLD SOUTHBOUND. (THEY KEEP THE SHORT SIDE OF THE CALENDAR SPREAD WHICH WILL BE LIQUIDATED TWO MONTHS HENCE)//

// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING: AUGUST (34.553) ( 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. 64.000 tonnes

(TOTAL YEAR 656.076 TONNES)

2023:

JAN/2023: 20.559 tonnes

FEB 2023: 47.744 tonnes

MAR: 19.0637 TONNES

APRIL: 75.676 tonnes

MAY: 19.094 TONNES + 1.244 tonnes of exchange for risk = 20.338

JUNE: 64.354 TONNES

JULY: 10.2861 TONNES

AUGUST: 34.553 TONNES (INCLUDING .6842 EXCHANGE FOR RISK)

THE SPECS/HFT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT LOST $12.80) //// BUT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SPECULATOR LONGS (IF ANY STILL EXIST) AS WE HAD A FAIR GAIN OF 1932 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE HAD CONSIDERABLE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION ON THE FRONT END OF YESTERDAY’S TRADING. THE T.A.S. ISSUED ON THURSDAY NIGHT WILL BE “PUT INTO THE BANK” TO BE USED AT A LATER DATE AT THE COLLUSIVE CHOOSING OF OUR BANKERS.

WE HAVE GAINED A TOTAL OI OF 6.009 PAPER TONNES FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR AUGUST. (30.656 TONNES) ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 9800 OZ QUEUEJUMP //NEW STANDING ADVANCES A BIT TO 33.869 TONNES + .6842 (PRIOR EXCHANGE FOR RISK) //NEW TOTAL 34.553 TONNES // ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $12.80.

WE HAD – REMOVED 450 CONTRACTS TO THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST

NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 1482 CONTRACTS OR 148200 OZ OR 4.609 TONNES.

Estimated gold volume today:// 112,035 awful

final gold volumes/yesterday 161,578 poor//speculators have left the gold arena

//AUGUST 18/ FOR THE AUGUST 2023 GOLD CONTRACT

Gold	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory in oz*	nil
Withdrawals from Customer* Inventory in oz*	33,389/246 OZ Brinks .
Deposit to the Dealer* Inventory in oz*	nil
Deposits to the Customer* Inventory, in oz*	nil OZ
No of oz served (contracts) today	103 notice(s) 10300 OZ 0.3204 TONNES
No of oz to be served (notices)	49 contracts 4900 oz 0.1524 TONNES
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month	10,840 notices 1,084,000 OZ 33.716 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

0 dealer deposit:

total dealer deposits: NIL oz

customer deposits: 0

total customer deposits: nil oz

we had 1 customer withdrawals

i) Out of Brinks 33,389.246 oz

total; 33,389.246 oz

Adjustments; 2 dealer to customer account

i) Out of Brinks 144,583.047 oz

ii) Out of Manfra: 32,215.302 oz

CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR AUGUST.

For the front month of AUGUST we have an oi of 152 contracts having GAINED 88 contracts. We had 10 contracts filed

on Thursday, so we gained 98 contracts or an additional 9800 oz will stand at the comex,

Sept gained 59 contracts to 2978.

Oct lost 46 contracts to 33,169 contracts.

We had 103 contracts filed for today representing 10,300 oz

Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer account and 46 notices were issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 103 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 0 notice(s) was (were) stopped received by J.P.Morgan//customer account and 0 notice(s) received (stopped) by the squid (Goldman Sachs)

To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for the AUGUST /2023. contract month,

we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (10,840 x 100 oz ), to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of AUGUST (152 CONTRACT) minus the number of notices served upon today 103 x 100 oz per contract equals 1,079,100 OZ OR 33.564 TONNES the number of TONNES standing in this active month of AUGUST. + .684 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK/prior = 34.248 tonnes

thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the AUGUST contract month: No of notices filed so far (10,840) x 100 oz + (152) {OI for the front month} minus the number of notices served upon today (103) x 100 oz) which equals 1,088,900 oz standing OR 33.869 TONNES + .684 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK/prior = 34.553 TONNES

TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING: 34.553 TONNES WHICH IS SMALL FOR AN 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 oz

total pledged gold: 2,101,333.235 OZ 65.36 tonnes

TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED: 21,798,795.501 OZ

TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD: 11,503,382.764 (357,80 tonnes)..

TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 10,295,412.733 O Z

REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 9,402,049 OZ (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD) 292.44 tonnes//dropping rapidly/

END

SILVER/COMEX

AUGUST 18

//2023// THE AUGUST 2023 SILVER CONTRACT

Silver	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory*	NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory	10,010.053 oz Brinks .
Deposits to the Dealer* Inventory*	nil oz
Deposits to the Customer Inventory	nil
No of oz served today (contracts)	20 CONTRACT(S) (100,000 OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)	1 contracts (5000 oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)	950 Contracts (4,750,000 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 deposit: 0 oz

i) We had 0 dealer withdrawal

total dealer withdrawals: 0 oz

We had 0 deposits customer account:

total customer deposits: nil oz

JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 139.276 million oz/279.699 million =49.69% of comex .//

Comex withdrawals 1

i) Out of Brinks: 10,010.053 oz

total: 10,001.053 oz

adjustments: 0

TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 27.604 MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 279.699 million oz

CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR JULY:

silver open interest data:

FRONT MONTH OF AUGUST /2023 OI: 21 CONTRACTS HAVING LOST 16 CONTRACT(S). WE HAD

5 NOTICES FILED ON THURSDAY SO WE GAINED 11 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 55,000 OZ WILL STAND IN THIS NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF AUGUST.

SEPT HAS A LOSS OF 3955 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 54,154

OCT GAINED 2 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 490.

TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 20 for 100,000 oz

Comex volumes// est. volume today 59,379 fair

Comex volume: confirmed yesterday: 79,385 good

To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in AUGUST. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 950 x 5,000 oz = 4,750,000 oz

to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of AUGUST (20) and the number of notices served upon today 20 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.

Thus the standings for silver for the AUGUST/2023 contract month: 950 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of AUGUST (21) – number of notices served upon today (21 )x 500 oz of silver standing for the AUGUST contract month equates to 4.755 million oz.+ 1.0 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUED TODAY+ 1.45 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK PRIOR//NEW TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK: 2.45 MILLION OZ//NEW SILVER STANDING: 7.205 MILLION oz.

There are 27.604 million oz of registered silver.

Thus if we take today’s standing at 7.025 and add last month’s 30.9 million oz we have 37.925 million oz against only 27.604 million registered silver.

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

AUGUST 18/WITH GOLD UP $1.15 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 6.92 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 887.50 TONNES

AUGUST 17/WITH GOLD DOWN $12.80 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 894.42 TONNES

AUGUST 16/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.00 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES FORM THE GLD//: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 894.42 TONNES

AUGUST 15/WITH GOLD DOWN $7,45 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.76 TONNES FORM THE GLD//: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 895.87 TONNES

AUGUST 14/WITH GOLD DOWN $2.10 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.75 TONNES FORM THE GLD//: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 899.63 TONNES

AUGUST 11/WITH GOLD DOWN $2.10 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF .31 TONNES FORM THE GLD//: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 903.31 TONNES

AUGUST 10/WITH GOLD DOWN $1.00 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 903.69 TONNES

AUGUST 9/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.75 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 903.69 TONNES

AUGUST 8/WITH GOLD DOWN $9.60 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.31 TONNES FORM THE GLD /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 903.69 TONNES

AUGUST 7/WITH GOLD DOWN $5.45 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 906.00 TONNES

AUGUST 4/WITH GOLD UP $7.25 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.18 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/// .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 906.00 TONNES

AUGUST 3/WITH GOLD DOWN $5.25 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD //: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 909.18 TONNES

AUGUST 2/WITH GOLD DOWN $3.45 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.75 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 909.18 TONNES

AUGUST 1/WITH GOLD DOWN $28.45 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.89 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.93 TONNES

JULY 31/WITH GOLD UP $9.50 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.89 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.93 TONNES

JULY 28/WITH GOLD UP $14.15 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 915,82 TONNES

JULY 27/WITH GOLD DOWN $21.80 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.74 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 917.26 TONNES

JULY 26/WITH GOLD UP $6.35 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 919.00 TONNES

JULY 25/WITH GOLD UP $2.45 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 919.00 TONNES

JULY 24/WITH GOLD DOWN $4.65 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 5.20 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 919.00 TONNES

JULY 21/WITH GOLD DOWN $3.80 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.80 TONNES

JULY 20/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.70 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.73 TONNES FROM THE GLD/ .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 913.80 TONNES

JULY 19/WITH GOLD UP $0.65 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF .86 TONNES FROM THE GLD/ .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.07 TONNES

JULY 18/WITH GOLD UP $23.45 TODAY:NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.93 TONNES

JULY 17/WITH GOLD DOWN $6.60 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.73 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 912.93 TONNES

JULY 14/WITH GOLD UP $0.75 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 914.66 TONNES

JULY 13/WITH GOLD UP $3.30 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.29 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 914.66 TONNES

JULY 12/WITH GOLD UP $24.50 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.31 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 914.95 TONNES

JULY 11/WITH GOLD UP $6.15 TODAY: BIG CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.0 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 915.26 TONNES

JULY 10 WITH GOLD DOWN $1.35 TODAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.60 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////INVENTORY RESTS AT 916.26 TONNES.

GLD INVENTORY: 887.50 TONNES

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

AUGUST 18/WITH SILVER UP 4 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.290 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 17/WITH SILVER UP 15 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.290 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 16/WITH SILVER DOWN 13 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.275 MILLION OZ INTOTHE SLV/: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.290 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 15/WITH SILVER DOWN 6 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.275 MILLION OZ INTOTHE SLV/: / .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.290 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 14/WITH SILVER DOWN 3 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 0.459 MILLION OZ INTOTHE SLV/: //////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.565 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 6 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 1.926 MILLION OZ INTOTHE SLV/: // OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.106 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 10/WITH SILVER UP 6 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 8,807 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV/: // OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 450.180 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 9/WITH SILVER DOWN 7 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 8,807 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV/: // OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 450.180 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 8/WITH SILVER DOWN 40 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: // OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 458.987 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 7/WITH SILVER DOWN 46 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: // OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 458.987 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 4/WITH SILVER UP 1 CENT TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.294 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV// OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 458.987 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 3/WITH SILVER DOWN 16 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 189,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.281 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 2/WITH SILVER DOWN 43 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 275,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.471 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 1/WITH SILVER DOWN 61 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 184,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.746 MILLION OZ

JULY 31/WITH SILVER UP 45 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 184,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.746 MILLION OZ

JULY 28/WITH SILVER UP 15 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 550,000 OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV// .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.930 MILLION OZ

JULY 27/WITH SILVER DOWN 59 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.480 MILLION OZ

JULY 26/WITH SILVER UP 15 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: .////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.480 MILLION OZ/

JULY 25/WITH SILVER UP 24 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A SMALL WITHDRAWAL OF 826,000 OZ FROM THE SLV..////INVENTORY RESTS AT 452.480 MILLION OZ/

JULY 24/WITH SILVER DOWN 23 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 453.306 MILLION OZ/

JULY 21/WITH SILVER DOWN 14 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.101 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 453.306 MILLION OZ/

JULY 20/WITH SILVER DOWN 38 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.468 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 454.107 MILLION OZ/

JULY 19/WITH SILVER UP 11 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 455.875 MILLION OZ/

JULY 18/WITH SILVER DOWN 19 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A ////INVENTORY RESTS AT 455.875 MILLION OZ/

JULY 17/WITH SILVER UP 25 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.856 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////////INVENTORY RESTS AT 455.875 MILLION OZ/

JULY 14/WITH SILVER UP 27 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.21 MILLION OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV////////INVENTORY RESTS AT 455.875 MILLION OZ/

JULY 13/WITH SILVER UP 64 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 462.941 MILLION OZ/

JULY 12/WITH SILVER UP $1.00 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.881 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 462.941 MILLION OZ/

JULY 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 5 CENTS TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF .020 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 464.822 MILLION OZ/

JULY 10/WITH SILVER UP 2 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.672 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV///INVENTORY RESTS AT 464.802 MILLION OZ

CLOSING INVENTORY 452.290 MILLION OZ//

PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES

1:Peter Schiff/Mike Maharrey

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 IMPORTANT GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES

Live from the vault

Andrew Maguire and Rob Kientz ep 136

“This is going to be worse than the Great Depression” Feat. Rob Kientz

end

5 a. IMPORTANT COMMENTARIES ON COMMODITIES:

end

5 B GLOBAL COMMODITY ISSUES/FOOD IN GENERAL//FREIGHT

END

6.CRYPTOCURRENCY//DIGITAL CURRENCY// COMMENTARIES/

Bitcoin flash crashes more than $2,000 with the report that Musk sold his stake

(zerohedge)

Bitcoin Flash Crashes More Than $2,000 Amid Stale Reports SpaceX Sold Its Stake

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 06:35 PM

Call it the Bloomberg jinx. One day after the billionaire failed presidential candidate and media mogul’s outlet published a report that “Bitcoin’s Extreme Volatility Vanishes Amid ‘Extreme Apathy and Exhaustion’,” bitcoin’s volatility has come back with a vengeance when what was already an ugly day – which saw bitcoin slump from above $29,000 on Wednesday evening to around $27,500 by Thursday afternoon – amid soaring nominal and real rates became a bloodbath when in the span of minutes, bitcoin tumbled another $2,000 to as low as $25,314 on a massive order dump which quickly took out all stops.

While it’s not clear what the immediate catalyst is, 2nd hand reports that Elon Musk’s SpaceX had sold out of its bitcoin stake began to circulate around the time of the liquidation…

… even though the original WSJ report hit three hours earlier, at 3:22pm ET…

… and basically confirmed what everyone already suspected based on what Tesla had done several weeks earlier:

The documents also show SpaceX wrote down the value of bitcoin it owns by a total of $373 million last year and in 2021 and has sold the cryptocurrency. Tesla has taken a similar approach with its bitcoin holdings. Musk has posted about cryptocurrencies frequently over the years.

Others, such as Michael Safai, partner at quantitative trading firm Dexterity Capital, speculated that the reason for the dump was more mundante: “There aren’t enough good headlines coming out of crypto to get people excited,” according to Sadai. “Conversely, rising interest rates and weakened risk appetite are pushing non-crypto-native traders towards safer assets.”

Shiliang Tang, CIO at crypto investment firm LedgerPrime, said that “there was optimism earlier in the week that a resolution to the Grayscale Bitcoin ETF would come this week but that passed with nothing coming out.”

“Furthermore traditional markets have been weak all week with SPX and tech selling off, 10-year rates reaching highs and the dollar catching a bid, and China credit and econ data weakness, all of which are negatives for risk assets.”

Not helping downbeat sentiment, around the time of the flash crash Coinbase announced that its systems are “experiencing issues and they are working on a fix” adding that “funds remain secure.”

Whatever the reason, the entire bitcoin spike since the mini Blackrock euphoria in mid-June has now been wiped out.

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

ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED DOWN TO 7.2917

OFFSHORE YUAN: DOWN TO 7.3100

SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 31.79 PTS OR 1.00%

HANG SENG CLOSED DOWN 375.75 PTS OR 2.05%

2. Nikkei closed DOWN 175.24 OR 0.55%

3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL RED

USA dollar INDEX DOWN TO 103.43 EURO FALLS TO 1.0864 DOWN 11 BASIS PTS

3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: FALLS TO. +.619 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 145.38/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 UP /JAPANESE Yen UP CHINESE ON SHORE 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 DOWN TO +2.6040***/Italian 10 Yr bond yield FALLS to 4.300*** /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD FALLS TO 3.648…**

3i Greek 10 year bond yield RISES TO 3.935

3j Gold at $1893.90 silver at: 22.71 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00

3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble UP 0 AND 2 /100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 93.75//

3m oil into the 80 dollar handle for WTI and 83 handle for Brent/

3n Higher foreign deposits moving out of China// 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 145.38// 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 0.619% 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 0.8805 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF 0.9567well 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: 4.2260 DOWN 8 BASIS PTS…

USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.345 DOWN 8 BASIS PTS/

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.908 DOWN 5 BASIS PTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 27.11…(TURKEY SET TO BLOW UP FINANCIALLY)

GREAT BRITAIN/10 YEAR YIELD: DOWN 3 BASIS PTS AT 4.7194

end

2.a Overnight: Newsquawk and Zero hedge:

Futures Tumble On OpEx Day As Global Markets Close Worst Weekly Rout Since March

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 08:16 AM

After another very weak session in the US which saw the S&P500 and Nasdaq close lower by -1.2% and -1.1% respectively, with the S&P dropping below 4,400 for the first time since June, today’s $2.2 trillion option expiration session has started on the back foot as stocks slumped putting MSCI’s global benchmark on track for the biggest weekly loss since the March bank crisis, as worries about China and higher global interest rates sapped sentiment.

Europe is red across the board and Asia was down again this morning heading for its 6th consecutive daily decline, with S&P futures trading near session lows down more than 0.5% at 7:45am ET, although there is some respite compared to yesterday’s losses as 10Y Treasury yields retreat mildly from their near 15Y highs this am (yields are modestly lower across the rest of the curve currently too); Nasdaq futures are down more than 0.7%. Treasuries are slightly higher, in line with bonds in Europe, as their declines in recent days take a pause. Iron ore prices are bouncing, oil is marginally lower, while bitcoin is nursing losses from the $2000 flash crash that came out of nowhere late on Thursday afternoon.

In premarket trading, Applied Materials rose 3.5% after the largest US maker of chipmaking machinery issued a bullish forecast for the current quarter. Bloomin’ Brands rose 6.3% after the Wall Street Journal reported that Starboard Value has built a stake of more than 5% in the restaurant chain operator. Here are some other notable premarket movers:

Cryptocurrency-exposed stocks fall after the Wall Street Journal reported that SpaceX has sold off its Bitcoin holdings. CleanSpark -8.4%, Hut 8 Mining -8.2% (HUT US), Stronghold Digital Mining -6.9%.
Farfetch Ltd. (FTCH) plummets 42% after the online luxury-fashion retailer cut full-year projections for gross merchandise value and adjusted Ebitda margin while reporting weaker-than-expected revenue for 2Q. Analysts flagged weakness in the US and China as well as integration issues at Reebok for the guidance cut.
Keysight Technologies falls 11% after the manufacturer of electronics test and measurement equipment forecast fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share that missed estimates.
BILL Holdings Inc. falls 6.2% after the application software company gave a full-year revenue forecast that was largely below analysts’ expectations. The company also reported fourth-quarter results that beat expectations.
Keysight Technologies drops 12% after the manufacturer of electronics test and measurement equipment forecast fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share that missed estimates. Analysts flagged a worsening demand outlook, while Barclays cut its rating on the stock to equal-weight, citing expectations of a lack of growth catalysts before the second half of 2024.
WeWork Inc. sinks 15% after the flexible office space firm said it will proceed with a 1-for-40 reverse stock split to regain compliance with listing requirements.
XPeng Inc. falls 7.7% after the Chinese electric vehicle company reported gross margin for the second quarter that missed the average analyst estimate.

With some $2.2 trillion in stock and index options expiring today and about to “unclench” even bigger market moves and volatility, in another sign of nervousness, the VIX climbed to 18, the highest level since May. Bank of America’s Michael Hartnett warned that stocks may drop another 4%, given China’s economic turmoil and jump in bond yields.

Meanwhile, as stocks extended their slump bond markets finally staged a rebound on speculation losses may be overdone. The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell five basis points, pulling back from levels that were approaching the highest since 2007. UK and German bonds also advanced. Still, even with today’s retreat in yields, investors are still contending with the risks of entrenched inflation and rates that have moved sharply higher in recent weeks. China’s property crisis and troubles in the shadow banking system have also added to the anxiety in markets and raised questions about possible spillover effects.

The rise in yields “has the ability to dent what has been a very resilient year for risky assets,” said Tim Graf, head of macro strategy for EMEA at State Street Global Markets. “We are in the seasonally weakest time of the year for equities.”

In bond markets, strategists pointed to dip buying as the catalyst for modest respite after days of losses. The yield on 10-year UK gilts fell six basis points to 4.68%. The global retreat in fixed-income was turbocharged by Wednesday’s publication of minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting that suggested officials are considering tighter policy, slamming hopes that the central bank was done raising rates. Now, investors are looking to next week’s gathering of policymakers at Jackson Hole in Wyoming to gauge Fed sentiment.

“Markets are being hit by a perfect storm amid surging rates, worsening data in China and poor summer liquidity,” Barclays’ Emmanuel Cau wrote.

Europe’s Stoxx 600 dropped 0.9% after the SX5E closed down by -1.3% with mining, retail and real estate leading declines. One of Tech sector’s bellwether stocks, Adyen, seeing €18bn wiped off its market value, post disappointing results. Here are the biggest European movers:

European chip-tool maker ASML gains as much as 1.2% after Applied Materials, the largest US maker of chipmaking machinery, gave a bullish forecast for the current quarter, indicating that an industry slump may be fading. Other stocks to watch include BE Semi, VAT Group, Aixtron.
Suse shares gain as much as 60% in Frankfurt after its majority holder EQT Marcel LUX III agreed to buy shares it doesn’t already own in the German software firm at a price of €16 per share, less an interim dividend payment.
Kojamo shares rise as much as 4.9%, recovering from the stock’s lowest closing price since Jan. 2019, as Nordea says the Finnish residential property company is well positioned to benefit from its ongoing projects and rights portfolio.
Adyen trades as much as 6.6% lower, adding to its record 39% drop on Thursday. A rout in the shares deepened as multiple analysts cut ratings or price targets based on lowered revenue growth estimates.
U-blox shares fall as much as 16%, the steepest drop since March 2021. The Swiss semiconductor company reduced full-year sales and margin guidance, citing currency headwinds and an inventory correction at its clients.
Shares exposed to French airports and infrastructure decline after Les Echos says France is pressing ahead with plans for higher taxes on airline tickets and operators of highways and airports. Toll-road operator Vinci, Aeroports de Paris, and LVMH all fall.
RS Group shares drop as much as 4.4%, hitting to the lowest intraday level since November 2020, after the distributor of industrial and electronics products was downgraded to neutral from buy at UBS, which sees a bigger profit unwind for the company.
European retail stocks lag behind all other sectors on Friday after UK retail sales fell more than expected in July, following a spell of cool and rainy weather that kept people out of shops. Inditex, H&M, Next are trading lower.

Earlier in the session, Asian stocks fell headed for their worst week in eight, as a selloff in China resumed despite further steps by policymakers to shore up the market, while worries about higher US interest rates kept traders on edge. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped as much as 0.4%, set for a sixth-straight day of losses. Technology shares including Alibaba, Tencent and TSMC were among the biggest drags on the benchmark. Most regional markets were down, including Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea.

No respite appears to be in sight on the China front this morning driving the entire region’s shares lower with the HSI (-1.44%), HSCEI (-2.32%) and HSTECH (-1.46%) indices currently the worst performing. (Nikkei -76bps, CSI 300 -60bps, Shanghai -37bps, Shenzhen -1.04%, ASX +9bps, KOSPI -63bps, Nifty -46bps, Taiex -82bps, STI -66bps).

The Hang Seng Index was set for the biggest weekly drop since June amid China’s ongoing housing crisis as well as a slumping yuan, which bodes ill for corporate earnings. The People’s Bank of China escalated its intervention after the currency fell to the weakest level since October. Confidence in Chinese assets is weak after a slew of disappointing data confirmed the nation’s economic downturn, while developers’ rising default concerns and a spiraling crisis in the shadow banking industry dealt a further blow to sentiment.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was choppy and briefly clawed back its opening losses as bargain buying kicked in and following the latest inflation data from Japan which printed in line with expectations. Australia’s ASX 200 was kept afloat but with price action rangebound amid a lack of pertinent catalysts and with gains in real estate and the commodity-related sectors counterbalanced by losses in tech, telecoms and consumer stocks.

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index is flat, though the greenback is poised for its fifth week of gains, the longest streak since May 2022. It fell as much as 0.2% earlier as the People’s Bank of China delivered its strongest ever push-back against a weaker yuan via its daily reference rate. The pound dropped as much as 0.3% against the US dollar after UK retail sales fell more than expected. The yen led gains among G10 currencies, rising as much as 0.5% against the dollar before paring gains

In rates, treasuries are in the green with the US 10-year yields falling 5bps to 4.23%. Treasuries richer across the curve, following wider gains for core European rates amid weakness in risk assets and curtailing this week’s global bond rout. Gains led by belly of the curve, sharply tightening 2s5s30s spread. There are few scheduled events Friday. Late Thursday it was announced that Fed Chair Powell will speak at the Jackson Hole economic policy symposium on Aug. 25 at 10:05am New York time. US yields richer by up to 6bp across belly of the curve, tightening 2s5s30s spread by 5bp on the day; 10-year yields around 4.22%, with bunds and gilts outperforming by 4.5bp and 2bp in the sector.

Crude futures decline, with WTI falling 0.4%. Spot gold adds 0.1%. Bitcoin traded around $26,000. Elon Musk’s SpaceX sold the cryptocurrency after writing down $373 million, according The Wall Street Journal reported.

To the day ahead now, and it’s a quiet one on the calendar. Data releases include UK retail sales for July, and the final Euro Area CPI reading for July. Meanwhile in the political sphere, US President Biden will be hosting Japanese PM Fumio Kishida and South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeo.

Market Snapshot

S&P 500 futures little changed at 4,381.00
MXAP down 0.7% to 157.71
MXAPJ down 0.9% to 496.71
Nikkei down 0.6% to 31,450.76
Topix down 0.7% to 2,237.29
Hang Seng Index down 2.1% to 17,950.85
Shanghai Composite down 1.0% to 3,131.95
Sensex down 0.2% to 65,045.49
Australia S&P/ASX 200 little changed at 7,148.06
Kospi down 0.6% to 2,504.50
STOXX Europe 600 down 0.8% to 447.58
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.63%
Euro little changed at $1.0876
Brent Futures up 0.2% to $84.29/bbl
Brent Futures up 0.2% to $84.29/bbl
Gold spot up 0.2% to $1,892.77
U.S. Dollar Index down 0.17% to 103.40

Top Overnight News from Bloomberg

China delivered its strongest ever pushback against a weaker yuan via its daily reference rate for the managed currency, as it sought to restore confidence to a market spooked by disappointing data and heightened credit risks.
Japan’s core consumer inflation slowed in July in line with the central bank’s view that upward pressure on prices is easing, but pockets of sticky price growth will keep monetary authorities on alert to upside risks.
UK retail sales fell more than expected in July after a spell of cool and rainy weather kept people out of shops at a moment consumers are becoming more cautious with spending.
China’s state-owned property developers are warning of widespread losses, fueling concerns that the housing crisis is expanding from the private sector to companies with government backing.
New Zealand’s central bank sees a risk that a strong housing recovery could keep inflation elevated for longer, underscoring policymakers’ decision this week to signal they’re in no rush to lower borrowing costs.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks traded mostly lower after the early reprieve from the recent global rout petered out. ASX 200 was kept afloat but with price action rangebound amid a lack of pertinent catalysts and with gains in real estate and the commodity-related sectors counterbalanced by losses in tech, telecoms and consumer stocks. Nikkei 225 was choppy and briefly clawed back its opening losses as bargain buying kicked in and following the latest inflation data from Japan which printed in line with expectations. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were subdued with pressure seen in tech names and as property concerns lingered after state-owned developers warned of widespread losses, while Evergrande Real Estate Group filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in New York to protect US assets as it works on a restructuring of debts. Participants also await the results of today’s Hang Seng index review, while the losses in the mainland were stemmed after the PBoC’s liquidity efforts resulted in the largest weekly net injection since March.

Top Asian News

China Evergrande (3333 HK) filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in New York to protect US assets as it works on a restructuring of debts, according to Bloomberg and Reuters.
China Evergrande (3333 HK) wishes to clarify pushing forward its offshore debt restructuring as planned; application is a normal procedure for offshore debt restructuring and does not involve bankruptcy petition, according to Reuters.
Chinese securities regulator says it will steadily defuse bond default risks at large property developers; Will step up communications between government bodies to study measures to boost the market, according to Reuters. China’s Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing stock exchanges on Friday announced that they will further lower the transaction fees by up to 50% starting from August 28, as a part of broader efforts to revitalize the Chinese stock market, according to Global Times.
China has reportedly urged buybacks at STAR bourse companies as the market tumbles, according to Bloomberg.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

European bourses are once again on the backfoot as the downtrend in the equity space continues. Selling pressure in stocks picked up after the open without much in the way of fresh drivers behind the move and as such, appears to be a case of “more of the same” with regards to price action. Sectors in Europe are lower across the board with underperformance in UK retail names following disappointing UK retail sales data. Elsewhere, other lagging sectors include Basic Resources and Consumer Products and Services. Stateside, equity futures are trading on the back foot as sentiment continues to slump, extending the downward price action seen yesterday. Some analysts note that the recent uptick in yields has made equities too expensive and this may have been weighing on the market.

Top European News

ECB is to write a letter to Italy to object the Italian government’s windfall tax on their profits, according to Corriere.

DXY is resilient after absorbing more pressure from China via various forms of intervention to prop up the Yuan, including the most heavily skewed PBoC midpoint fix for the CNY on record (1000+ pips above expectations in onshore terms), and the index withstood the Yen’s ongoing recovery amidst markedly softer US Treasury yields and ongoing risk aversion.
GBP reversed to the brink of 1.2700 again and was derailed by dire UK retail sales data, irrespective of the ONS blaming the weather or the fact that the weak consumption figures are highly unlikely to deter the BoE from a 25bps hike in September.
PBoC sets USD/CNY mid-point at 7.2006 vs exp. 7.3065 (prev. 7.2076)

Fixed Income

Bunds are leading the latest recovery rally in core debt, irrespective of the fact that Gilts may have more fundamental rationale given the magnitude of weakness in UK retail sales against consensus and outright terms.
T-note is hovering near the top of its 109-28+/14 overnight range and the curve is flatter with the 10-year yield back below the psychological 4.25% level.

Commodities

WTI and Brent front-month are choppy within tight ranges and moving between mild gains and mild losses. The crude complex is awaiting the next catalyst which in recent days has been the broader risk sentiment.
Spot gold is trading flat as the Dollar inches higher in European trade despite a lack of catalysts this morning, with the yellow metal around the USD 1,890/oz mark after printing a range of USD 1,885.9-1,903.43/oz yesterday.
Base metals are mixed but contained to tight ranges, with 3M LME copper finding resistance at USD 8,300/t before pulling back to the low-USD 8,200/t marks.
Iran set September Iranian light crude price to Asia at Oman/Dubai + USD 3.45/bbl, according to a Reuters source.
Australian union said protected industrial action ballots opened at Chevron’s Wheatstone downstream and Gorgon facilities in Australia and the protected industrial action ballot will open on Monday at the Wheatstone platform.
Australian LNG update: Based on industrial rules, the ballot for workers a Chevron’s (CVX) Gorgon and the Wheatstone downstream facility must close by Aug. 24. A separate ballot for the Wheatstone offshore platform workers must close by Aug. 28, according to Reuters.
Italian Energy Minister said Italy’s gas storage facility is 90% and they look forward to the winter with more confidence than 2022, via Il Messaggero.
Russian media suggests a fire broke out at a freight station in Novorossiysk and emergency services arrive at the site, according to Al Jazeera
NHC said Hurricane Hilary has reached Category 4 intensity, according to Reuters.

Geopolitics

Russia’s military said Ukraine attacked Russian warships near Crimea with an unmanned boat, while Russian warships destroyed the boat and repelled the attack, according to TASS and Reuters.
Russian air defences shot down a Ukrainian drone in Moscow, while reports also noted that a building was damaged by the Ukrainian drone attack, according to Reuters.
US approved sending F-16s to Ukraine from Denmark and Netherlands as soon as pilot training is completed.
Russian Defence Ministry said Russian and Chinese navy ships are jointly patrolling the Pacific Ocean and held an exercise in the East China Sea.
Japan Defence Ministry said China and Russia’s joint bomber flights, naval passage around Japan is serious concern for Japan’s security, according to Reuters.
Japan, US and Australia are to carry out joint Naval drills in the South China sea on August 23rd, according to Kyodo News.
Indian Trade Secretary said India plans to hold bilateral trade talks with the UK, EU and Canada on G20 sidelines, according to Reuters.

US Event Calendar

06:00: Bloomberg Aug. United States Economic Survey

DB’s Henry Allen concludes the overnight wrap

The relentless bond selloff continues to be the biggest story in markets right now, and yesterday saw yields hit multi-year highs across several countries. Lots of new milestones were reached, but the biggest was that the 10yr US Treasury yield rose another +2.4bps to 4.274%, which is its highest closing level since 2007. This morning yields have come down a bit once again, but yesterday’s moves meant the 10yr yield surpassed the 2008 closing peak of 4.267%, even with the rally towards the end of the session. There wasn’t a specific new catalyst driving this, yet the move remained global in scope, which reflects ongoing concerns about inflationary pressures, the prospect of more rate hikes still ahead, and even a focus on persistent budget deficits. This proved to be more bad news for equities too, and the S&P 500 (-0.77%) lost ground for a third day running as investors grappled with the prospect of rates remaining higher for longer again, along with ongoing concerns about China’s economy. It’s also the third day in a row that both bonds and equities have sold off together.

When it comes to the US, the data releases over the last 24 hours continued to paint a picture of economic resilience that contributed to that upward pressure on yields. For instance, the weekly jobless claims fell to 239k over the week ending August 12 (vs. 240k expected), and the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing business outlook survey for August surged up to 12.0 (vs. -10.4 expected), marking its highest level since April 2022. Some of the forward-looking indicators also pointed to strong price pressures ahead, with the future prices paid indicator for six months’ time up to a 14-month high of 53.0, whilst the future prices received indicator hit a 13-month high of 40.6.

With nothing putting the brakes on the current moves, yields on US Treasuries continued to climb higher. In fact, not only did the 10yr yield hit a post-2007 high, but the 30yr yield (+3.5bps) also broke through its closing peak from last October yesterday to hit a post-2011 high of 4.39%. Longer-dated real yields saw a pronounced move higher at the same time, and the 10yr real yield (+1.1bps) moved higher for a 7th consecutive session to hit another post-2009 high of 1.94%. The 30yr real yield (+2.1bps) also hit a post-2011 high of 2.06%. So a lot of new records across the board. These came despite a sizeable rally in the US afternoon, which saw yields 4-5bps lower across the curve. Indeed, the US 10yr yield had traded as high as 4.326% at its intraday high after the European close.

Over in Europe, gilts led the selloff once again, building on their existing underperformance so far this year. That saw the 10yr gilt yield (+10.0bps) hit a post-2008 high of 4.74%, and the 10yr real gilt yield (+8.0bps) hit its highest level since last year’s mini-budget turmoil, at 0.94%. Furthermore, the spread of 10yr gilt yields over 10yr bunds widened to 204bps, which is similarly the biggest since the mini-budget turmoil last year.

In the rest of Europe, yields on 10yr bunds (+6.0bps) moved up to 2.70%, marking their highest level since SVB’s collapse back in March, whilst those on 10yr OATs (+5.9bps) and BTPs (+6.3bps) also moved higher. That came amidst growing confidence that the ECB would deliver another rate hike by the end of the year. In fact, overnight index swaps this morning are now pricing in an 88% chance of another hike by the December meeting, up from 58% on 2 August. In the meantime, we did get a rate hike from the Norges Bank yesterday, who delivered a 25bp hike in their policy rate as expected.

With all those new records for sovereign bonds, equities had another rough session on both sides of the Atlantic. In the US, the S&P 500 was roughly unchanged for a good chunk of the day but sold off in the afternoon to close -0.77% lower. The megacap tech stocks struggled, with the FANG+ index down -1.56% to its lowest level in 2 months. It has now retreated by more than 10% from its all-time high on 18 July. There was a similar story for the Russell 2000 (-1.15%), which lost ground for a 4th consecutive session. Energy stocks were the only sector to post a gain (+1.22%) as WTI crude oil rebounded by +1.27% to $80.39/bl. Bank stocks also showed some stabilisation, with the KBW Bank Index near flat (-0.05%) after falling by -6.2% over the first three days of the week. In Europe, equities saw similar declines, which left the STOXX 600 (-0.90%) at a fresh 5-week low.

That downbeat tone has continued in Asia overnight, with all the major indices losing ground. The Hang Seng (-1.29%) has seen some of the biggest declines, and as it stands right now, the index is more than -20% beneath its recent peak in late January. Elsewhere in the region, we’ve seen losses for the KOSPI (-0.61%), the Nikkei (-0.55%), the CSI 300 (-0.32%) and the Shanghai Comp (-0.06%). In China, there was also some fresh support for the yuan, since the People’s Bank of China set their fixing at 7.2006 per dollar, which compared to the Bloomberg survey estimate of 7.3047, and was in fact the biggest gap relative to estimates since the poll began in 2018. Looking forward, futures are pointing to another negative start in Europe, with those on the STOXX 50 (-0.24%) and the DAX (-0.33%) edging lower. Meanwhile in the US, S&P 500 futures are unchanged right now.

The main data of note has been Japan’s CPI inflation overnight. However, the reading came in exactly in line with expectations, with headline CPI remaining at 3.3%. Another big milestone was that the services CPI hit 2.0% for the first time since 1998.

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

EUROPE/ASIA

Negative sentiment continues & Bunds bid; Earning from Estee Lauder due – Newsquawk US Market Open

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 06:12 AM

European bourses are once again on the backfoot as the downtrend in the equity space continues without much in the way of fresh drivers.
US equity futures are trading on the back foot as sentiment continues to slump, extending the downward price action seen yesterday.
In FX, DXY is resilient, JPY outperforms on yield dynamics, GBP lags following softer-than-expected UK retail sales, whilst the CNY saw the largest gap between the PBoC fixing and expectations.
Bunds are leading the latest recovery rally in core debt, T-note futures continue edging higher as US players enter the market.
Looking ahead, highlights include the Trilateral Summit hosting Japanese, South Korean, and US leaders. Earnings from Estee Lauder.

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EUROPEAN TRADE

EQUITIES

European bourses are once again on the backfoot as the downtrend in the equity space continues. Selling pressure in stocks picked up after the open without much in the way of fresh drivers behind the move and as such, appears to be a case of “more of the same” with regards to price action.
Sectors in Europe are lower across the board with underperformance in UK retail names following disappointing UK retail sales data. Elsewhere, other lagging sectors include Basic Resources and Consumer Products and Services.
Stateside, equity futures are trading on the back foot as sentiment continues to slump, extending the downward price action seen yesterday. Some analysts note that the recent uptick in yields has made equities too expensive and this may have been weighing on the market.
Click here for more detail.
Click here and here for a recap of the main European equity updates.

FX

DXY is resilient after absorbing more pressure from China via various forms of intervention to prop up the Yuan, including the most heavily skewed PBoC midpoint fix for the CNY on record (1000+ pips above expectations in onshore terms), and the index withstood the Yen’s ongoing recovery amidst markedly softer US Treasury yields and ongoing risk aversion.
GBP reversed to the brink of 1.2700 again and was derailed by dire UK retail sales data, irrespective of the ONS blaming the weather or the fact that the weak consumption figures are highly unlikely to deter the BoE from a 25bps hike in September.
PBoC sets USD/CNY mid-point at 7.2006 vs exp. 7.3065 (prev. 7.2076)
Click here for more detail.
Click here for the Option Expires for the NY Cut.

FIXED INCOME

Bunds are leading the latest recovery rally in core debt, irrespective of the fact that Gilts may have more fundamental rationale given the magnitude of weakness in UK retail sales against consensus and outright terms.
T-note is hovering near the top of its 109-28+/14 overnight range and the curve is flatter with the 10-year yield back below the psychological 4.25% level.
Click here for more detail.

COMMODITIES

WTI and Brent front-month are choppy within tight ranges and moving between mild gains and mild losses. The crude complex is awaiting the next catalyst which in recent days has been the broader risk sentiment.
Spot gold is trading flat as the Dollar inches higher in European trade despite a lack of catalysts this morning, with the yellow metal around the USD 1,890/oz mark after printing a range of USD 1,885.9-1,903.43/oz yesterday.
Base metals are mixed but contained to tight ranges, with 3M LME copper finding resistance at USD 8,300/t before pulling back to the low-USD 8,200/t marks.
Iran set September Iranian light crude price to Asia at Oman/Dubai + USD 3.45/bbl, according to a Reuters source.
Australian union said protected industrial action ballots opened at Chevron’s Wheatstone downstream and Gorgon facilities in Australia and the protected industrial action ballot will open on Monday at the Wheatstone platform.
Australian LNG update: Based on industrial rules, the ballot for workers a Chevron’s (CVX) Gorgon and the Wheatstone downstream facility must close by Aug. 24. A separate ballot for the Wheatstone offshore platform workers must close by Aug. 28, according to Reuters.
Italian Energy Minister said Italy’s gas storage facility is 90% and they look forward to the winter with more confidence than 2022, via Il Messaggero.
Russian media suggests a fire broke out at a freight station in Novorossiysk and emergency services arrive at the site, according to Al Jazeera
NHC said Hurricane Hilary has reached Category 4 intensity, according to Reuters.
Click here for more detail.

NOTABLE US HEADLINES

Fed Chair Powell is to speak at the Jackson Hole Symposium on August 25th at 10:05EDT/15:05BST.
Former President Trump said if he is re-elected to the White House in 2024, he would not reappoint Fed Chair Powell for another term, according to an interview on Fox Business News.

NOTABLE EUROPEAN HEADLINES

ECB is to write a letter to Italy to object the Italian government’s windfall tax on their profits, according to Corriere.

EUROPEAN DATA RECAP

UK Retail Sales YY* (Jul 2023) -3.2% vs. Exp. -2.1% (Prev. -1.0%)
UK Retail Sales MM* (Jul 2023) -1.2% vs. Exp. -0.5% (Prev. 0.7%)
UK Retail Sales Ex-Fuel YY* (Jul 2023) -3.4% vs. Exp. -2.2% (Prev. -0.9%)
UK Retail Sales Ex-Fuel MM* (Jul 2023) -1.4% vs. Exp. -0.7% (Prev. 0.8%)
EU HICP-X tobacco YY (Jul 2023) 5.3% (Prev. 5.5%)
EU HICP-X Tobacco MM (Jul 2023) -0.1% (Prev. 0.2%)
EU HICP-X F&E Final YY (Jul 2023) 6.6% vs. Exp. 6.6% (Prev. 6.6%)
EU HICP Final YY (Jul 2023) 5.3% vs. Exp. 5.3% (Prev. 5.3%)
EU HICP Final MM (Jul 2023) -0.1% vs. Exp. -0.1% (Prev. 0.3%)
EU HICP-X F,E,A&T Final YY (Jul 2023) 5.5% vs. Exp. 5.5% (Prev. 5.5%)
EU HICP-X F, E, A, T Final MM (Jul 2023) -0.1% vs. Exp. -0.1% (Prev. -0.1%)

GEOPOLITICS

Russia’s military said Ukraine attacked Russian warships near Crimea with an unmanned boat, while Russian warships destroyed the boat and repelled the attack, according to TASS and Reuters.
Russian air defences shot down a Ukrainian drone in Moscow, while reports also noted that a building was damaged by the Ukrainian drone attack, according to Reuters.
US approved sending F-16s to Ukraine from Denmark and Netherlands as soon as pilot training is completed.
Russian Defence Ministry said Russian and Chinese navy ships are jointly patrolling the Pacific Ocean and held an exercise in the East China Sea.
Japan Defence Ministry said China and Russia’s joint bomber flights, naval passage around Japan is serious concern for Japan’s security, according to Reuters.
Japan, US and Australia are to carry out joint Naval drills in the South China sea on August 23rd, according to Kyodo News.
Indian Trade Secretary said India plans to hold bilateral trade talks with the UK, EU and Canada on G20 sidelines, according to Reuters.

CRYPTO

Bitcoin remains subdued after slumping beneath the USD 27,000 level which some attributed to the circulation of a report that SpaceX wrote down the value of its Bitcoin holdings by USD 373 million and sold an unspecified amount.
US SEC is poised to allow the first ETF based on Ether futures, according to a Bloomberg reporter.

APAC TRADE

APAC stocks traded mostly lower after the early reprieve from the recent global rout petered out.
ASX 200 was kept afloat but with price action rangebound amid a lack of pertinent catalysts and with gains in real estate and the commodity-related sectors counterbalanced by losses in tech, telecoms and consumer stocks.
Nikkei 225 was choppy and briefly clawed back its opening losses as bargain buying kicked in and following the latest inflation data from Japan which printed in line with expectations.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were subdued with pressure seen in tech names and as property concerns lingered after state-owned developers warned of widespread losses, while Evergrande Real Estate Group filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in New York to protect US assets as it works on a restructuring of debts. Participants also await the results of today’s Hang Seng index review, while the losses in the mainland were stemmed after the PBoC’s liquidity efforts resulted in the largest weekly net injection since March.

NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES

China Evergrande (3333 HK) filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in New York to protect US assets as it works on a restructuring of debts, according to Bloomberg and Reuters.
China Evergrande (3333 HK) wishes to clarify pushing forward its offshore debt restructuring as planned; application is a normal procedure for offshore debt restructuring and does not involve bankruptcy petition, according to Reuters.
Chinese securities regulator says it will steadily defuse bond default risks at large property developers; Will step up communications between government bodies to study measures to boost the market, according to Reuters. China’s Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing stock exchanges on Friday announced that they will further lower the transaction fees by up to 50% starting from August 28, as a part of broader efforts to revitalize the Chinese stock market, according to Global Times.
China has reportedly urged buybacks at STAR bourse companies as the market tumbles, according to Bloomberg.

DATA RECAP

Japanese National CPI YY (Jul) 3.3% vs. Exp. 3.3% (Prev. 3.3%)
Japanese National CPI Ex. Fresh Food YY (Jul) 3.1% vs. Exp. 3.1% (Prev. 3.3%)
Japanese National CPI Ex. Fresh Food & Energy YY (Jul) 4.3% vs. Exp. 4.3% (Prev. 4.2%)

2 c. ASIAN AFFAIRS

ASIAN AND AUSTRALIAN CLOSINGS//EUROPE OPENING TRADING:

FRIDAY MORNING/THURSDAY NIGHT

2 d./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA/

////SOUTH KOREA/NORTH KOREA/

END

2e) JAPAN

JAPAN

3 CHINA /

CHINA/USA

VICTOR DAVIS HANSON//GREAT READ!

(Victor Davis Hanson)

Victor Davis Hanson: The Great China-American Abyss

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 11:00 PM

Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness,

Imagine if the United States treated China in the same way it does us?

What if American companies simply ignored Chinese copyrights and patents, and stole Chinese ideas, inventions, and intellectual property, as they pleased and with impunity?

What if the American government targeted Chinese industries by dumping competing American export products at below the cost of production—to bankrupt Chinese competitors and corner their markets?

What would the communist Chinese government do if a huge American spy balloon lazily traversed continental China—sending back to the United States photographic surveillance of Chinese military bases and installations?

How would China react to American stonewalling any explanation, much less refusing to apologize for such an American attack on Chinese sovereignty?

Envision a U.S. high-security virology lab in the Midwest, run by the Pentagon, allowing the escape of an engineered, gain-of-function deadly virus.

Instead of enlisting world cooperation to stop the spread of the virus, the American government would lie that it sprung up from a local bat or wild possum.

Washington would then make all its relevant military scientists disappear who were assigned to the lab, while ordering a complete media blackout.

America would forbid Chinese scientists from contacting their American counterparts involved in the lab, despite the deaths of more than 1 million Chinese from the American-manufactured disease.

And what if during the first days of the pandemic Washington had quietly prevented all foreign travel to the United States, while keeping open one-way direct flights from America to major Chinese cities?

How would Beijing respond if American biotech company warehouses were discovered in rural China with unsecured vials of deadly viruses and pathogens?

Would China be angered that it was never notified by an American company that it had left abandoned COVID and HIV viruses and malaria parasites in its facilities—along with rotting genetically engineered dead rats littering the floors with hundreds more lab animals abandoned in laboratory cages?

What would Chairman Xi Jinping have done if American-made fentanyl was shipped in massive quantities to nearby Tibet on the Chinese border? And what if it would be deliberately repackaged there as deceptive recreational drugs and smuggled into China, where it annually killed 100,000 Chinese youth, year after year?

What if 10,000 Americans this year illegally crossed the Indian border into China and disappeared into its interior?

What if an allied Asian nation—such as South Korea, Japan, or Taiwan—went nuclear. And what if, in North-Korean style, it serially blustered to send one of its nuclear missiles into the major cities of China?

What if almost monthly China discovered an American military operative teaching incognito at a major Chinese university or among the ranks of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army?

Would China object if an American femme fatale agent was sleeping with a high-ranking Chinese official of the Chinese communist politburo?

Or what if one of the chauffeurs of its top ranking Chinese officials was a nearly two-decade-long American agent?

What would be the Chinese reaction if there were 350,000 American students attending schools all over the Chinese nation, with perhaps 3,000-4,000 of them actively engaged in national security espionage on behalf of the United States?

These “what-ifs” could be expanded endlessly. But they reflect well enough the great asymmetry in the bizarre Chinese-American relationship.

Obviously, China would not tolerate America treating it as it does the Americans.

Why then does the imbalance continue?

Do naïve Americans believe that the more China is indulged, the more it will respond in kind to American magnanimity?

Does the United States believe that the more China is exposed to our supposedly radically democratic and free culture, the sooner it will become a good democratic citizen of the global community?

Are we afraid of China, because it has four times our population, and believes its economy and military will overtake ours in a decade?

Are we terrified that its ruthless Chinese government is completely amoral, utterly ruthless, and capable of anything?

Or are our political, cultural, and corporate elites so compromised by their lucrative Chinese investments and joint ventures, that they prioritize profits over their own country’s national security and self-interest?

And did the Biden family—including President Joe Biden himself—in the past receive millions of dollars from Chinese energy and investment interests?

Did Hunter Biden’s quid pro quo decade of grifting result in millions in Chinese money filling the Biden family coffers—all in exchange for the current Biden and past Obama administrations going soft on Chinese aggression?

No one seems able to explain the otherwise inexplicable.

But one way to get along with China, and to regain its respect is to deal with it exactly the way it deals with the United States.

Anything less, and America will continually be treated with even more Chinese contempt—and eventually extreme violence.

end

CHINA

FX outflows the largest since July 2022…citizens moving their cash offshore similar to what happened in 2015?

(zerohedge)

The Hits Just Keep On Coming: China Suffers Biggest FX Outflow Since July 2022

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 10:40 PM

And the hits just keep on coming for China.

With its economy on the verge of a Japanification vicious loop, where record debts, lead to distressed selling, repayment of debt, contraction in the money supply, falling asset prices, a wave of bankruptcies, surging unemployment, a slowing economy, spiking unemployment and a crisis of confidence, which then leads to money hoarding and deflation…

… not to mention a growing property crisis, shadow banking crisis, a youth unemployment crisis, a record collapse in foreign direct investment…

… China is now also facing a sudden surge in FX outflows: according to Goldman’s preferred gauge of FX flows, China’s net outflows were around $26bn in July, the fastest pace of outflows since September 2022, in contrast to US$6bn inflows in June. While there was net buying of equities in both Southbound and Northbound of the stock connect in July, and on net basis small inflows through the Stock Connect channel, the goods trade FX conversion ratio declined and related inflows slowed in July, while services trade deficit widened. In addition, cross-border RMB transfers showed net outflows in the month.

Here are the key points from the latest data:

1. In July, China experienced $25BN in net outflows via onshore outright spot transactions, and $14BN inflows via freshly entered and canceled forward transactions. Another SAFE dataset on “cross-border RMB flows” showed outflows of US$16bn in the month. Goldman’s preferred FX flow measure therefore suggests a total US$26BN outflows in July, in comparison with US$6BN inflows in June. This was the biggest net outflow since Sept 22.

2. The current account showed broadly balanced flows as goods trade related inflows declined meanwhile services trade related outflows rose: There was a net inflow of $18BN related to goods trade in July, lower than the $36bn in June. Goods trade surplus conversion ratio declined to 22% in July vs 50% in June on the back of continued currency depreciation. The services trade deficit was $11BN, more negative than US$8bn in June as outbound tourism continued to recover. The income and transfers account showed outflows of $6BN in July, smaller than $8BN in June.

3. SAFE stated that foreigners continued to buy RMB assets on a net basis in July. Stock Connect flows showed net buying of $7BN of equities through northbound and $2BN net buying through southbound, which implies $5BN inflows through the Stock Connect channel, vs $3BN inflows in June. Foreigners’ holding of RMB bonds data are not released yet though.

4. PBOC cut policy interest rates on August 15th, which added depreciation pressures on the currency. Promoting growth remains the priority, and the PBOC is expected to follow up with more measures to slow the depreciation trend in the next few weeks, such as more significant countercyclical factors in the daily CNY fixing, cutting FX deposit reserve requirement ratio, and/or adding FX forward sales reserve requirement.

With China’s currency the weakest it has ever been, and with FX outflows accelerating sharply, one can’t help but remember the panic observed after the August 2015 devaluation, which not only shocked global markets but woke bitcoin from its long slumber as billions in Chinese savings scrambled to the safety of offshore bank accounts via one of the few still open cracks in China’s great monetary firewall. How long until we get a rerun?

More in the full Goldman note available to pro subs.

END

Wednesday night China launched its war on Yuan bear with a 1000 basis point rise in its fix.

Last night it has no effect as the yuan fell again

(zerohedge)

China Launches War On Yuan Bears With 1000+ pip Fixing Gap Vs Estimates

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 11:20 PM

Earlier, when discussing China’s recent surge in FX outflows, we said that while promoting growth remains a priority for Beijing, the PBOC is expected to follow up with more measures to slow the depreciation trend in the yuan, such as more significant countercyclical factors in the daily CNY fixing, cutting FX deposit reserve requirement ratio, and/or adding FX forward sales reserve requirement.

Of course, China can just keep doing what it has been doing now for several weeks, but never to the extent it just moments ago when the PBOC delivered its strongest ever pushback against a weaker yuan via its daily reference rate, as it sought to restore some confidence in a Chinese market that has seen an unprecedented collapse in confidence – not to mention prices – spooked by disappointing (and disappearing) data and heightened credit risks.

The Chinese central bank set its yuan fixing at 7.2006 per dollar compared to the average estimate of 7.3047. The gap – an unprecedented 1,041 pips – was the largest gap to estimates since the poll was initiated in 2018.

The offshore yuan extended gains to 0.2% after the fixing…

… which was also set at a stronger level to the previous day for the first time in six sessions…

“At this juncture, the PBOC might want to put a stop in the trend,” of a weaker yuan, said Kiyong Seong, lead Asia macro strategist for Societe Generale SA. “On a temporary basis, it’s possible the actions by policy makers can discourage more bearish betting.”

As discussed earlier today, as part of China’s escalating support for the embattled yuan in recent days – which has so far failed to yield any notable results with the currency hitting an all time low yesterday…

… Beijing told state-owned banks to step up intervention, while the central bank said it will resolutely prevent excessive adjustment in the yuan.

That “request” came as the yuan touched on 7.35 per dollar, a level that Beijing has been paying close attention to as a line in the sand. The yuan traded around the 7.29 level offshore on Friday.

“Going ahead, further measures such as potential cut to the foreign-exchange reserve-requirement ratio following the PBOC’s pledge to prevent overshoooting may prompt yuan bears to trim their short position,” said Ken Cheung, FX strategist at Mizuho.

Still, as Bloomberg notes, the problem for China is that yuan bears had latched on to the fact that the fixing itself had been progressively weaker over the past weeks, regardless of its gap to estimates, and taken that as a sign the PBOC is ok with a slow depreciation in the currency. Of course, dismal economic data, plunging housing prices coupled with a spreading crisis in the property and shadow banking sector, and the biggest FX outflow in one year, have also hammered sentiment and led to further currency selling.

“The PBOC has persisted in setting the fixings much stronger than expected, with the largest counter-cyclical factor since late last year, but they have been allowing the yuan to adjust,” Australia & New Zealand Banking Group strategists including Mahjabeen Zaman wrote in a note Thursday. “This is a sign that the authorities are prioritizing the need to support growth at the expense of the currency.”

China’s currency has tumbled over 5% against the dollar this year amid a disappointing economic recovery and broad dollar strength. Adding insult to injury, while traditionally an FX decline of this magnitude would boost exports, those have also languished and in July plunged the most since the covid crash.

Meanwhile, an unexpected PBOC rate cut earlier this week to re-ignite growth have just intensified the focus on the widening US-China yield gap and added more pressure to the yuan.

“The authorities are preparing to draw a line in the sand and defend the currency from further weakness,” said Khoon Goh, head of Asia research at Australian & New Zealand Banking Group in Singapore. “But for a more sustained rebound in the yuan, we really need to see US 10-year bond yields come down from current high levels.”

And that, as we explained yesterday, is unlikely to happen as long as the Biden admin keeps putting seasonally adjusted lipstick on the pig that is the US economy at least until the Nov 2024 election. So to all the EMs and DMs out there, condolences: your economies are about to get it because Biden has to get reelected.

END

4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDAVIAN AFFAIRS

ITALY/MIGRANTS

Meloni under fire to curb illegal immigrant as it soars to new heights in Italy

(Remix)

Italian PM Meloni Under Fire As Illegal Immigration Soars To New Highs

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 02:00 AM

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is under pressure to deliver on her electoral pledge to curb illegal immigration after embarrassing figures published this week by her country’s interior ministry revealed more than 100,000 migrants have landed on Italian shores so far this year.

A total of 101,386 migrants landed on Italian islands or the mainland between Jan. 1 and Aug. 16, more than double the 48,000 who arrived in the same period last year, and almost triple the 34,556 landings recorded in 2021.

With migrant activity in the Mediterranean showing no sign of slowing down, the right-wing Italian government runs the very real risk of overseeing a record number of arrivals in a single year, surpassing the 180,000 arrivals recorded at the peak of the migrant crisis in 2016.

This is despite promises from Italian conservatives to install stricter border controls, block boat landings, and establish offshore reception centers to evaluate asylum applications.

The Italian government’s attempts to restrict the movement of NGO-operated rescue vessels in the Mediterranean have failed to stem the flow of illegal immigration into the country, and the Italian island of Lampedusa has once again been saturated with new arrivals.

Regional politicians are now sounding the alarm, including hardline President of Veneto Luca Zaia of the League party, who in a recent interview with local media called on just 10 percent of new arrivals to be allowed to stay in the country.

“I’m seeing worrying numbers. Veneto is already hosting 9,000 migrants… Italy cannot be the cushion of Europe and welcome all of Africa,” he warned.

Opposition lawmakers have sensed the opportunity to take the government to task on its immigration failures, following the Italian right’s years on the sidelines hurling insults at centrist and center-left administrations over their inability to tackle the issue.

“For years, Meloni and Salvini taunted us every summer for the number of migrant arrivals,” said former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

“Now that arrivals have doubled, they try to divert attention and pretend not to see,” added the president of the left-wing Five Star Movement.

“They’re always shouting ‘close the ports’ and ‘the gravy train for migrants is over’ and ‘Italians first,’ but the right is demonstrating a manifest failure in its management of immigration,” claimed Stefano Bonaccini, the governor of Emilia Romagna in the country’s north.

Meloni’s administration, despite pledging a hardline approach, has in reality advocated a far more internationalist approach to the migration issue than many expected. In a bid to distance herself from initial comparisons to far-right administrations from the 19th century, Meloni has opted to pursue European cooperation over nationalistic attitudes as much as possible.

Italy backed down from its opposition to the European Union’s proposed Migration Pact earlier this year and announced its intention to ease restrictions on legal migrants wishing to live and work in the country.

END

DENMARK/NETHERLANDS//UKRAINE

Denmark & Netherlands Receive Formal US Approval To Send F-16s To Ukraine

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 12:05 PM

Amid Ukraine’s continued impatience, the White House has finally issued formal approval for the shipment of Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands and Denmark to Ukraine, administration officials confirmed Thursday.

A letter sent from Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Dutch officials states, “I am writing to express the United States’ full support for both the transfer of F-16 fighter aircraft to Ukraine and for the training of Ukrainian pilots by qualified F-16 instructors.”

Blinken additionally said the approval would allow Ukraine to take “full advantage of its new capabilities as soon as the first set of pilots complete their training.”

But the slowness of the training program getting off the ground is precisely what has continued to frustration Kiev officials. Currently only six Ukrainian pilots are enrolled and training is not expected to be complete by next year, possibly even next summer – a full year from now.

On Wednesday a top Ukraine military official admitted Kiev has given up hope over ever seeing F-16 jets in battle by this year, which follows more optimistic statements from months ago suggesting Ukrainian forces would have them by close of 2023.

“It’s already obvious we won’t be able to defend Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets during this autumn and winter,” Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat remarked. “We had big hopes for this plane, that it will become part of air defense, able to protect us from Russia’s missiles and drones terrorism.”

In mid-July, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, “Most likely, the F-16s will arrive in Ukraine before the end of the year. However, we do not believe that F-16s alone can alter the situation on the battlefield.”

But among the expected holdups to the training program is that the pilots are required to take four months of English classes in the UK, followed by six months of combat training. The English classes focus on technical nomenclature related to the American fighter jet and its sophisticated systems.

President Putin and Kremlin officials have said West-supplied jets will “burn” just like other foreign equipment. They’ve also warned that NATO is “playing with fire” in approving them for the Ukrainians. But given the slowness of delivery, Washington might be prepping the jets and the training program more as part of Ukraine’s future post-war defense readiness.

5 RUSSIA//UKRAINE AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

RUSSIA/UKRAINE

He is perfectly correct

(DeCamp)

“I’ll Be Blunt, It’s Failed,” Says Congressional Ukraine Caucus Co-Chair On Offensive

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 01:05 PM

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), a co-chair of the congressional Ukraine Caucus, said this week that he’s not sure if the Ukraine war is “winnable” and called for the US to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to pursue peace talks.

Harris is also a member of the Freedom Caucus, which has many members who have opposed US support for Ukraine. But Harris has been a staunch supporter of the proxy war against Russia throughout the conflict.

“Is this more a stalemate? Should we be realistic about it? I think we probably should,” Harris said at a town hall on Tuesday night, according to POLITICO. Discussing the Ukrainian counteroffensive, Harris said, “I’ll be blunt, it’s failed.”

“I’m not sure it’s winnable anymore,” Harris added. His comments are a sign that the new $24 billion in spending on the Ukraine war that the White House has asked Congress to approve won’t receive as much support as previous packages.

When asked if he would support another tranche of spending on the war, Harris said:

“If there is humanitarian monies, nonmilitary monies, or military monies without an inspector general, I’m not supporting it.”

President Biden’s request includes economic and humanitarian assistance and no additional oversight for military aid.

“I think the time has come to realistically call for peace talks. I know President Zelensky doesn’t want it,” Harris said. “But President Zelensky, without our help, he would abjectly lose the war. And with our help, he’s not winning. It’s a stalemate now.”

Chief among his reasons for not supporting more spending on the Ukraine war was the cost. But Harris also cautioned against bringing Ukraine into NATO and starting “World War III.” Harris is in a position to influence spending as he is a member of the House Appropriations Committee.

END

First Ship To Use Ukraine’s Alternative NATO Grain Route Exits Black Sea

BY TYLER DURDEN

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 03:25 PM

The Hong Kong-flagged Joseph Schulte is the first vessel to have left Ukrainian ports which has successfully utilized a NATO-backed alternate corridor to exit the Black Sea in a direct challenge to Russian attempts at blocking Ukraine’s access to the Black Sea.

Maritime tracking sites show that it carefully avoided international waters currently patrolled by Russian warships, opting instead to stick to a western route in waters controlled by NATO members Romania and Bulgaria.

The vessel had been stuck at the port of Odessa throughout the entirety of the war up till this week, which means it moved nowhere for one-and-a-half years.

The US, Ukraine, and Romania have been in recent high-level security meetings in order to agree upon an alternative shipping route, after Russia has stepped up bombardment of Ukraine’s ports and grain silos, including along the Danube which separates Ukraine and Romania.

Regional media has indicated the Joseph Schulte will anchor at Ambarli to the south off Istanbul. Turkey is still hoping to revive the Black Sea Grain Initiative deal which Moscow recently failed to renew, and pulled out of. This means Turkish officials are unlikely to wholeheartedly support the US-NATO plan at establishing a Romania-Bulgaria route.

“Our efforts are focused on making the grain corridor deal active again,” an unnamed defense official told a Turkish broadcaster. “We are not working on other solutions.”

One potential key transit point for Ukrainian grain in the new plan is the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta. The country’s prime minister, Marcel Ciolacu, in a Friday statement expressed home that up to 60% of Ukrainian grain exports could pass through Romania – though admitted this is ambitious. The idea is that vessels would leave Ukrainian ports and enter Romanian ones and from there be shipped to outside destinations.

This week an unnamed US official told The Wall Street Journal that the Biden administration “is considering all potential options, including military solutions” to ensure the safety of ships entering Ukraine’s ports on the Danube. At the same time Russia has been relentless in its attacks as well as Black Sea patrols for ‘illicit’ ships.

6.GLOBAL ISSUES//MEDICAL ISSUES

Special thanks to Chris Powell for sending this to us:

Vaccinated Outbreak at CDC Conference Bigger Than Reported

By Zachary Stieber
The Epoch Times, New York
Thursday, August 17, 2023

https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/exclusive-vaccinated-outbreak-at-cdc-conference-bigger-than-reported-5461213

The COVID-19 outbreak among vaccinated people that broke out at a conference held in April by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was bigger than disclosed, according to files obtained by The Epoch Times.

After the outbreak took place, the CDC reported results from surveys sent to attendees.

While the CDC said that 181 respondents reported testing positive for COVID-19, that number was actually 183, according to the newly obtained files.

The public health agency also failed to disclose that hundreds of attendees didn’t get tested; some 601 attendees who responded to the survey said they didn’t get tested for COVID-19, the files show, including 34 who reported experiencing COVID-like symptoms, being ill, or both.

The CDC didn’t respond to a request for comment.

In a statement on the outbreak, which affected only vaccinated people, the CDC emphasized that no attendee reported being hospitalized.

“None of the 181 people who reported testing positive were hospitalized,” the agency said.

The agency didn’t mention that one of the vaccinated people suffered such severe symptoms that they went to the emergency room, according to the newly obtained files.

The agency had claimed that, despite the outbreak, the survey results emphasize “the importance of vaccination for protecting individuals against severe illness and death related to COVID-19.”

The CDC has recommended COVID-19 vaccination for virtually all people since late 2020, when the vaccines were first authorized. Some experts have said the risks appear to outweigh the benefits for certain or all populations, a number of doctors have said they themselves won’t get booster shots because of a lack of clinical trial evidence, and recent data indicate that the vaccines don’t protect for very long against severe illness.

The conference took place from April 24 to April 27 at a hotel in Atlanta, where the CDC is headquartered. About 1,800 people, including some CDC employees, attended the conference.

CDC officials created a survey and sent it to attendees for details on a COVID-19 outbreak that developed during the conference. More than 80 percent, or 1,443 attendees, responded.

All but eight people said they had received a COVID-19 vaccine.

The CDC confirmed previously that all respondents who reported testing positive had received a vaccine.

Attendees were also asked to report the level of health care they sought. Options included receiving antiviral medication, finding outpatient care, going to an emergency room, and being hospitalized. People could select more than one answer.

No attendees reported being hospitalized.

Forty-nine people said they found outpatient care or consulted with a medical professional remotely, and 53 said they took an antiviral medication.

Also, 278 people said that they became ill but chose not to seek any level of health care.

Many With Bivalent vaccine use

Many of the attendees had received a new COVID-19 vaccine, the files indicate. Of those responding, 958 said they’d received their most recent dose in September 2022 or later.

Updated COVID-19 vaccines were cleared without trial data in August 2022, recommended for nearly all Americans by the CDC, and rolled out in September 2022.

Authorities are poised to clear and recommend another batch of new vaccines this fall, according to the CDC.

The failure to report the emergency room visit and note that hundreds of attendees didn’t get tested fits the CDC’s pattern of misleading on so-called breakthrough cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, or metrics among the vaccinated.

The CDC’s now-former director, for instance, falsely said on television in the spring of 2021 that vaccinated people would not get sick or transmit COVID-19. The agency has acknowledged that data didn’t support those claims.

The CDC also changed how it counts breakthrough cases in early 2021, within months of recommending the vaccines, according to documents obtained by The Epoch Times. The change meant that cases among the vaccinated that happened within 14 days, before completion of a primary series, didn’t count as breakthrough cases.

Before making the change, top officials had discussed “vaccine failure,” or breakthrough cases.

The CDC stopped counting breakthrough cases in May 2021.

end

How Did Big Pharma Buy So Many Governments?

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 09:00 PM

Authored by Jeffrey Tucker via The Epoch Times,

Among the many alarming revelations from the “Facebook Files” is the discovery of a strange official policy that dominated the platform in the COVID-19 years.

“For content that doesn’t meet that threshold, we instituted borderline demotions,” the company wrote on July 16, 2021.

“For example, someone sharing negative side effect posts. Similarly, posts questioning whether you get a vaccine under a mandate, whether it’s government overreach. We demote those. That’s not false information but it leads to a vaccine-negative environment.”

This formerly trusted platform had become a major source of news for millions. Users believed it to be an authentic expression of what their friends were thinking and doing. It turns out that, regarding any injury caused by the vaccine, people were silenced. Meanwhile, major media was screaming at everyone that these shots are necessary, safe, and effective—none of which was true. But users didn’t know that this was occurring.

The policy was pushed by the federal government on all major social media platforms, which massively distorted public debate. Anyone who spoke about the downsides of the vaccine was treated as a crank and a public danger. All claims that contradicted the government and pharmaceutical line were demoted or deleted for creating a “vaccine-negative environment.”

I was personally denounced in many articles for raising questions about the shots.

It’s no wonder, then, why it has been so incredibly difficult to gain any real clarity about the risk profile of these shots. The age gradient of risk was widely obscured throughout the entire period, all in the interest of imposing universal lockdowns and then shots for everyone, even those who were at zero risk from the virus.

To this day, there’s no honest discussion of this topic in official circles. No major media or tech company has apologized. We only have the above policy documentation because the House of Representatives under Republican control forced Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to cough it up. Now, we know that the official policy of government and its allied tech companies was to keep the public in the dark.

The extent of the damage and death caused by the vaccine is left to independent researchers who are working from a tsunami of anecdotes and hard-to-find data. There’s a concerted effort to cover it all up, no doubt. It’s all done on behalf of the winning pharmaceutical companies and their deployment of a new platform technology for what they call vaccines, even though mRNA shots would never have been called that a few years ago.

Some people aren’t surprised by the power of this industry. I am. It’s all new to me. When the lockdowns came, my operating theory was that a bunch of scary intellectuals were using the social order as an experiment in pathogenic control, one destined to fail. I never imagined a larger agenda aside from an appalling exercise of power. I certainly never imagined that pharma was the hand in the glove.

When we first started hearing news of the coming antidote, I dismissed this possibility out of hand. I knew from my reading that vaccines were only workable for stable viruses with unchanging profiles. Smallpox, measles, mumps, polio, and others qualify. But a coronavirus is fast-mutating, especially because we knew that it spread widely because of a fairly low fatality rate.

Incredibly, I never imagined that a vaccine for such a virus would ever gain approval. My operating understanding of the Food and Drug Administration was that it was bureaucratically risk-averse. It was more inclined to refuse approval than to grant it prematurely. This was wrong. Using the excuse of emergency, and smearing and deprecating all therapeutics as a condition for emergency approval, it sailed through.

When uptake on the shots was low, the government went hardcore with mandates. Major cities actually segregated based on vaccine status. There were attempts to implement digital passports. These mostly flopped. People quit their jobs and moved to new cities, and vast numbers somehow managed to avoid the needle. Uptake was lower on the boosters and bivalents, which similarly sailed through the approval process.

How can we explain this?

The regulatory agencies get half or more of their own funding from pharmaceutical companies. Media broadcasts the propaganda because three-quarters or more of their advertising revenue comes from pharma. The development of the shots themselves benefitted from enormous government grants. The companies that are given approval are then given a complete patent monopoly on the drugs, so that they can take legal action against all attempts to reproduce them.

More than anything else, these vaccines benefit from protection from liability for any harm that they cause.

Just think about this.

Why would any government ever grant such an exclusion from liability?

It makes no sense. If the shots are safe, indemnification wouldn’t be necessary. If they aren’t safe, such indemnification would be grossly irresponsible.

Nonetheless, in 1986, lawmakers approved 42 U.S. Code § 300aa–22, “No vaccine manufacturer shall be liable in a civil action for damages arising from a vaccine-related injury or death associated with the administration of a vaccine after October 1, 1988, if the injury or death resulted from side effects that were unavoidable even though the vaccine was properly prepared and was accompanied by proper directions and warnings.”

The Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act of 2005 further codified this.

This was invoked in March 2020. The government might as well have announced to the country and the world: We’re coming to hurt you. It’s the very opposite of the Hippocratic Oath. Indeed, this case shows why such an oath was necessary in the first place.

Adding all of this together, you have a completely indefensible industrial monopoly in operation and fully out in the open.

These days, the FDA, having driven out anyone with integrity from its ranks, routinely approves drugs without proper successful trials. It seems to happen daily: RSV shots and an over-the-counter birth control pill are two recent cases. The new head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) introduced herself to the public with a big push for everyone to get the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, especially infants.

There’s simply no theory of political economy, medicine, political science, philosophy, or ethics—whether ancient or modern, left or right—that can justify such an absurdly dangerous system. It would be one thing if such an industrial monopoly made a mess of a single sector of life, but our times have revealed something much more shocking. Pharma has essentially bought most governments in the West and converted them into doing their bidding.

This is simply intolerable. I’ve just about had it with the claims that the adverse effects of these vaccines are rare. We don’t know that. In any case, “rare” has no firm definition. Plus, if I’m dead on the street from having been run over by a bus, it does me no good for bystanders to stand around proclaiming that my death is rare. Indeed for me, my chance of getting killed by a bus is ex post facto 100 percent.

What the vaccine-injured need is compassion, public attention, care, and compensation. It adds gross insult to injury to demote their plight as irrelevant because knowing about it contributes to a “vaccine-negative environment.” This isn’t the Soviet Union, and we don’t live in a country founded as a biomedical security state ruled by pharmaceutical monopolies using the people as guinea pigs in genetic experiments.

The whole machinery must come to an immediate end, starting with the end of indemnification against harm. It never should have been granted. Moderna and Pfizer are already facing dramatic declines in stock valuation after the discrediting of their shots. What would happen to their stocks if they bore some financial repercussions for the damages that they have caused?

Brownstone Institute is cooperating with The Epoch Times for a showing of the marvelous film “Unseen Crisis,” which is about vaccine injury. Finding a venue to host the film wasn’t easy. As soon as the “independent” theaters in town found out the subject, they figured out a way not to accept new showings. Fascinating.

The crisis is indeed unseen. It must be seen if we expect to regain our status as a civilized and self-governing people.

END

GLOBAL ECONOMIC ISSUES//

* * *

END

GLOBAL VACCINE/COVID ISSUES

ho were found dead in their beds, 3 & 4 days after receiving 2nd dose of Pfizer’s mRNA technology COVID vaccine; “Autopsy Histopathologic Cardiac Findings in 2

Adolescents Following 2nd COVID Vaccine Dose”; The myocardial injury seen in these postvaccine hearts…has an appearance most closely resembling a catecholamine-mediated stress (toxic) cardiomyopathy

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 17

READ IN APP

https://meridian.allenpress.com/aplm/article/146/8/925/477788/Autopsy-Histopathologic-Cardiac-Findings-in-2

end

‘IndiGo Pilot Dies At Nagpur Airport’s Boarding Gate Moments Before Flying Plane’; ssshhh, is this the mRNA technology COVID gene injection vaccine? cardiac arrest again! don’t say it ! The death

of the IndiGo pilot at Nagpur Airport is the second such incident involving an Indian pilot in two days after a Qatar Airways pilot suffered heart attack onboard a flight yesterday; mRNA vaccine?

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 18

READ IN APP

https://zeenews.india.com/aviation/indigo-pilot-dies-at-nagpur-airports-boarding-gate-moments-before-flying-plane-2650171.html

An IndiGo pilot died moments before flying an aircraft from the Nagpur Airport on Thursday, officials said. The 40-year-old pilot collapsed near a boarding gate at the Nagpur airport and was going to operate the airline’s Nagpur-Pune flight. Prima facie, he died due to “sudden cardiac arrest”, said KIMS-Kingsway Hospital where he was rushed, reported PTI. Aejaz Shami, spokesperson of the hospital, said the emergency team of the hospital gave him CPR but he did not respond.’

end

mRNA technology gene based COVID vaccine (injection) by Pfizer & Moderna is deadly, it functions akin to a biological weapon (some argue binary) & has wreaked death & destruction; no sane parent must

give their healthy child any of these COVID vaccines, no sane parent! No healthy child across near 3.5 years of this COVID pandemic fraud & lockdown lunacy, has gotten infected & died from COVID, NONE

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 18
end

MRI sheds light on COVID mRNA vaccine-associated heart muscle injury’; a similar injury pattern emerges in those who suffered heart damage after mRNA vaccine & in those who suffered it post virus

n=92 patients, 21 (22%) had myocarditis after COVID vaccination (mean age 31 years). 10 patients (11%) had myocarditis after COVID illness (mean age 51 years), and 61 (66%) had other myocarditis

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 17

READ IN APP

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220215102839.htm

‘For this retrospective study, the researchers analyzed data from 92 consecutive adult patients with myocarditis and abnormalities on cardiac MRI performed at a tertiary referral hospital between 2019 and 2021. Patients were classified into one of three groups: myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination, myocarditis following COVID-19 illness, and myocarditis not associated COVID-19 vaccination or illness.

Of the 92 patients, 21 (22%) had myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination (mean age 31 years). Ten patients (11%) had myocarditis following COVID-19 illness (mean age 51 years), and 61 (66%) had other myocarditis (mean age 44 years). Patients with myocarditis following vaccination were younger and more frequently male compared to the other groups.

‘Chest pain occurred in all 21 patients with vaccine-associated myocarditis. The pain started one to seven days after vaccination and lasted one to six days. Fourteen of the patients (67%) were admitted to hospital with a median length of stay of 3 days. No patients were admitted to the intensive care unit. Troponin levels were elevated in all patients admitted to hospital and substantially decreased in all by the time of discharge.’

end

SLAY NEWS

The latest reports from Slay News

Bill Gates Calls for AI Bots to Replace Human School Teachers Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has called for human teachers to be replaced with artificial intelligence-powered machines in schools across America, arguing that AI bots would make “great” educators.READ MORE

Leaked Photos Show Jan 6 Prisoner Tortured, Held in Horrific Conditions for Months New photos have been leaked from a Philadelphia prison, exposing the horrific conditions that a Jan. 6 prisoner is being subjected to.READ MORE

Comer Catches Joe Biden Using Pseudonym ‘Robert L. Peters,’ Demands Unredacted Documents House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) has caught Democrat President Joe Biden using a pseudonym to discuss his family’s influence-peddling business.READ MORE

Georgia State Senator Moves to Impeach Fani Willis: ‘I Am Officially Calling for an Emergency Session’Georgia State Sen. Colton Moore (R) has taken the first step toward impeaching Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for her actions against President Donald Trump.READ MORE

Lindsey Graham Checkmates Democrats: ‘Adam Schiff Will Be in Jail for 1,000 Years If That Becomes a Crime’Republican Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has checkmated the Democrats as they gloat over the indictments of President Donald Trump.READ MORE

Elon Musk Reminds Biden Who’s Boss: ‘SpaceX Is Tracking to Lift 80% of All Mass to Orbit’Elon Musk threw some subtle shade toward Joe Biden and reminded the Democrat president who’s boss in a post on his social media platform.READ MORE

Pilot of Plane Packed with 271 Passengers Dies Suddenly of Cardiac Arrest Mid Flight The pilot of a packed commercial airplane carrying 271 passengers died suddenly mid-flight, forcing the jet to make an emergency landing.READ MORE

Jonathan Turley Humiliates Rachel Maddow & Hillary Clinton: ‘Like the Open Ecstasy of a Thrill Kill’Legal scholar Jonathan Turley humiliated Rachel Maddow and Hillary Clinton for gloating over President Donald Trump’s multiple indictments.READ MORE

AOC Owed $50K in Student Loans While Demanding Taxpayer-Funded Debt ‘Cancellation’Radical Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has been one of the leading voices demanding the “cancellation” of student debts.READ MORE

Hawaii’s Democrat Governor Announces Plan to ‘Acquire Land’ Destroyed by Wildfires Hawaii’s Democrat Governor Josh Green has announced that his administration is planning to “acquire” the land that was ravaged by the recent wildfires.READ MORE

YouTube Launches New Policies to Censor ‘Medical Misinformation’Google-owned YouTube has launched new “medical misinformation” censorship policies, the video streaming platform has announced.READ MORE

San Francisco Workers Told to Work from Home Due to City’s Soaring Crime Federal workers in San Francisco have been urged to work from home due to the dangers posed by soaring crime in the Democrat-controlled California city.READ MORE

Alan Dershowitz Exposes Merrick Garland: ‘Hunter Biden Special Counsel Appointment Is Blatantly Illegal’Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz has slammed Attorney General Merrick Garland, accusing the top Biden administration official of violating the law when he appointed a special counsel to probe Hunter Biden.READ MORE

EVOL NEWS

JUST IN: North Carolina Legislature Overrides Governor’s Veto On Child Sex-Change BanREAD MORE…

LATEST NEWS:

Whistleblowers: Maui Wildfires Intentionally Spread to Usher In WEF AgendaRead more…‘Banana Republic’: Supercut Shows Leftist Politicians, Pundits Accusing Trump of Weaponizing DOJRead more…Steve Bannon: Fox News ‘All-In’ on Making Sure Trump Is Not President AgainRead more…Fulton County Indictment Amounts To ‘Seditious Conspiracy,’ Hageman SaysRead more…‘Bidenomics’ Fail: Even Democrats Believe President’s 2024 Defeat Would Boost the EconomyRead more…Trump Judge Threat Lady Is Drug & Mischief Serial Offender With ‘Terrorist Threat’ Charge from July.Read more…‘Sanctuary City’ Of Chicago Wants To Ship Illegals To Surrounding SuburbsRead more…San Francisco Workers Told to Work from Home Due to City’s Soaring CrimeRead more…

NEWS ADDICTS

Whistleblowers: Maui Wildfires Intentionally Spread to Usher In WEF Agenda Whistleblowers have spoken out to warn the public that the Maui wildfires in Maui were intentionally spread by authorities in order to use the Hawaii island as a test bed for ushering in the globalist agenda of the World Economic Forum (WEF).READ THE FULL REPORT

Fulton County Case Development Signals Potential Court Victory for Trump In an important development for former President Donald Trump’s Georgia election case, a federal judge has scheduled a hearing regarding former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’s appeal to transfer his case from Fulton County to a federal court.READ THE FULL REPORT

Fulton County DA Seeks Trump Trial Date for One Day Prior to ‘Super Tuesday’Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has proposed a March 4, 2024 state date for the trial of President Donald Trump.READ THE FULL REPORT

New Poll on ‘Bidenomics’ Shows Even Democrats Believe President’s 2024 Defeat Would Boost the Economy Despite President Joe Biden leaning heavily into a “Bidenomics” pitch for re-election, more voters think that Biden’s potential loss in 2024 could benefit the economy. Biden electioneered from the bully pulpit on Wednesday to claim, “America isn’t failing. America is winning.” Biden: “America isn’t failing. America is winning” pic.twitter.com/QCYLLRfclV — The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) August 16, 2023 He also claimed …READ THE FULL REPORT

Trump Defies RNC, Refuses to Sign ‘Beat Biden’ Loyalty Pledge The Republican National Committee (RNC) faces a dilemma with the upcoming GOP primary debate, as former President Trump has declined to sign its loyalty pledge. Trump revealed last week that he wouldn’t endorse the pledge, and an announcement about his attendance at the event is anticipated soon. RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is tasked with the delicate balance of accommodating Trump …READ THE FULL REPORT

end

MICHAEL EVERY/PHIL MAREY/OR OTHER EXECS //RABOBANK

end

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

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 FRIDAY MORNING 7;30AM//OPENING AND CLOSINGS

EURO VS USA DOLLAR: 1.0864 DOWN 0.0011

USA/ YEN 145.38 DOWN 0.378 NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.00% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//

GBP/USA 1.2705 DOWN 0.0021

USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3558 UP .0012 (CDN DOLLAR DOWN 12 BASIS PTS)

Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED DOWN 31.79 PTS OR 1.00%

Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 375.78 PTS OR 2.05%

AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP 0.02 % // EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL RED

Trading from Europe and ASIA

I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL RED

2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG DOWN 375.78 PTS OR 2.05%

/SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 31.79 PTS OR 1.00%

AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.02%

(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED DOWN 175.24 PTS OR 0.55

INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE RED

Gold very early morning trading: 1894.10

silver:$22.76

USA dollar index early FRIDAY morning: 103.43 UP 4 BASIS POINTS FROM THURSDAY’s CLOSE.

FRIDAY MORNING NUMBERS ENDS

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

And now your closing FRIDAY NUMBERS 11: 30 AM

Portuguese 10 year bond yield: 3.335% DOWN 8 in basis point(s) yield

JAPANESE BOND YIELD: +0.619% DOWN 2 AND 7//100 BASIS POINTS /JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/

SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.750 UP 6 in basis points yield

ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD 4.314 DOWN 7 points in basis points yield ./ THE ECB IS QE’ ING ITALIAN BONDS (BUYING ITALIAN BONDS/SELLING GERMAN BUNDS)

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.6055 DOWN 10 BASIS PTS

END

IMPORTANT CURRENCY CLOSES FOR FRIDAY

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

Euro/USA 1.0871 DOWN 0.0004 or 4 basis points

USA/Japan: 145.36 DOWN 0.349 OR YEN UP 35 basis points/

Great Britain/USA 1.2731 DOWN 0.0016 OR 16 BASIS POINTS //

Canadian dollar DOWN .0017 OR 17 BASIS pts to 1.3564

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The USA/Yuan, CNY: closed ON SHORE CLOSED (DOWN) …7.2868

THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. (7.3039)

TURKISH LIRA: 27.10 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//ON DEATH WATCH

the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.619…VERY DANGEROUS

Your closing 10 yr US bond yield DOWN 8 in basis points from THURSDAY at 4.231% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic

USA 30 yr bond yield 4.358 DOWN 7 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 FRIDAY: CLOSING TIME 12:00 PM

London: CLOSED DOWN 47.76 POINTS or 0.65%

German Dax : CLOSED DOWN 102.64 PTS OR 0.65%

Paris CAC CLOSED DOWN 27.63 PTS OR 0.38%

Spain IBEX DOWN 10.20 PTS OR 0.11%

Italian MIB: CLOSED DOWN 117,37 PTS OR 0.42%

WTI Oil price 80.82 12: EST

Brent Oil: 84.74 12:00 EST

USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE /// AT: 93.71; ROUBLE UP 0 AND 6//100

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.6055 DOWN 10 BASIS PTS

UK 10 YR YIELD: 4.7265 DOWN 5 BASIS PTS

CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM

Euro vs USA: 1.0874 DOWN 0.0004 OR 4 BASIS POINTS

British Pound: 1.2737 DOWN .0009 or 9 basis pts

BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.7195 % DOWN 8 BASIS PTS//

JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: .618%

USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 145,32 DOWN .392 //YEN UP 39 BASIS PTS//

USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3546 DOWN .0001 CDN dollar, UP 1 basis pts)

West Texas intermediate oil: 81.36

Brent OIL: 84.79

USA 10 yr bond yield DOWN 5 BASIS pts to 4.257%

USA 30 yr bond yield DOWN 4 BASIS PTS to 4.389%

USA 2 YR BOND:DOWN 1 PTS AT 4.938%

USA dollar index: 103.31 UP 2 BASIS POINTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 27.10 (GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/

USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 93.75 UP 0 AND 2/100 roubles

DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 27.05 PTS OR 0.08%

NASDAQ 100 DOWN 20.97 PTS OR 0 .16%

VOLATILITY INDEX: 17.20 DOWN 0.69 PTS (3.86)%

GLD: $175.33 UP 0.03 OR .017%

SLV/ $20.87 UP ,07 OR 0.34%

end

USA AFFAIRS

USA TRADING IN GRAPH FORM:

Worst Week For Stocks Since Banking Crisis; Bonds, Bitcoin, & Bullion Battered

BY TYLER DURDEN

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 04:00 PM

Aggressive interventions by Chinese authorities were a notable theme on the week (strong-arming funds not to sell stocks, tapping banks on the shoulder to buy yuan against the dollar, and making firms an offer they can’t refuse with regard share buybacks). However, Chinese stocks closed lower…

Source: Bloomberg

..and so did the offshore yuan…

Source: Bloomberg

So Mission Unaccomplished Beijing.

Interestingly, Goldman traders suggest that:

“to this point in the sequence, I’d argue the slowdown in China had been a net positive for US equities… with specific regard to the disinflationary impulse and the flow of capital...

…that said, coming out of a week that featured another disappointing set of data… and another dose of CNH weakness…

…it now feels like China growth fears can provoke a more global risk-off dynamic“

But, bear in mind that while the yuan has been spanked like a monkey against the dollar, it has actually rallied against the rest of its trading partners’ currencies…

Source: Bloomberg

And while Chinese data was a shitshow, US macro (hard and soft) surprised to the upside this week…

Source: Bloomberg

Which, combined with relatively hawkish Fed Minutes pushed rate expectations higher on the week (reducing expectation for cuts next year also)…

Source: Bloomberg

This prompted ‘risk-off’ as the S&P fell for the 3rd straight week, its longest weekly losing streak since Feb, and suffered its biggest weekly loss since the collapse of SVB in March. Small Caps were the ugliest horse in the glue factory…

All of the US Majors closed below their 50DMAs (note in upper right that Small Caps dropped to 100DMA and bounced)…

Regional bank stocks fell for the 3rd straight week…

The put/call ratio surged up to the highest since the SVB collapse…

Source: Bloomberg

Most notably it appears the $2.2 trillion OpEx was put-monetization day for all options players (including 0-DTEs)…

Source: SpotGamma

Treasury yields were all higher on the week with the long-end notably underperforming (30Y +12bps, 2Y +4bps)…

Source: Bloomberg

Which steepened (dis-inverted) the yield curve (2s10s) further (remember its the resteepening that is the real peril)…

Source: Bloomberg

Also of note is that the 2Y Yield ripped up to 5.00% once again… and failed…

Source: Bloomberg

The dollar rallied for the 5th straight week to its highest since early June, breaking back above its 200DMA….

Source: Bloomberg

Crypto was clubbed like a baby seal this week with three big legs lower…

Source: Bloomberg

Bitcoin plunged back to pre-BlackRock ETF headlines…

Source: Bloomberg

The intraday pattern of overnight strength and post-London-Fix weakness continued every day this week in Gold. Spot Gold is back below $1900…

Source: Bloomberg

Oil prices fell on the week – the first weekly loss since June – with WTI finding some support at $80…

Finally, next week brings NVDA’s “guidance heard around the world” on Wednesday and Jay Powell’s Jackson Hole speech on Friday, both of which could catalyze major moves in the market.

The S&P volatility term structure is starting to fear it…

Source: Bloomberg

And NVDA bulls ‘smell the fear’…

Source: Bloomberg

But could Powell really push us off the cliff?

Source: Bloomberg

Of course not, we have Bidenomics (oh, talking of which, there’s always the chance that the govt shuts down in a week or two – that would slow the flow of money).

b) THIS AFTERNOON TRADING//

II) USA DATA/

end

III) USA ECONOMIC STORIES

THURSDAY NIGHT

Banks use of emergency funds hits a new high at 1.07 billion dollars. The banks have only 7 months left before they need to find alternate sources of funds

(zerohedge)

Banks’ Usage Of Emergency Fed Funds Hits New Record High

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 04:43 PM

Money-market funds saw inflows for the 5th straight week (almost $40 billion this week) to a new record high of $5.57 trillion. That was the biggest weekly inflow in 6 weeks…

Source: Bloomberg

Both retail and institutional funds saw inflows ($15.6 BN and $24.1 BN respectively)…

Source: Bloomberg

The decoupling between money-market fund inflows and bank deposits continues…

Source: Bloomberg

After last week’s modest growth in The Fed’s balance sheet, it plunged by $62.5BN last week (the most since early April and second most since July 2020)

Source: Bloomberg

With regard to QT, The Fed sold down $42BN of its securities…

Source: Bloomberg

Usage of The Fed’s emergency bank lending facility (BTFP) rose by $378 million to a new record high of $107.2 BN…

Source: Bloomberg

The breakdown from The Fed’s H.4.1 table…

Total securities held fell by $42BN (dominated by TSY selling)
Discount Window increase $55MM to $1.966BN
BTFP new record $107.2BN, up $0.3BN
Other credit extensions (FDIC loans) down $3.8BN to $141.6BN

Is it time for US equity market caps to catch down to bank reserves at The Fed?

Source: Bloomberg

Finally, some food for thought, the last time yields were here and accelerating higher this fast, we saw the mini-banking crisis exposed a quarter later as reality hit…

Source: Bloomberg

Bearing in mind that in less than 7 months, the banks will have to fend on their own – absent the $100-billion-plus facility from The Fed – one wonders just where that magical balance sheet fix will come from? A collapse in yields as the economy enters depression? Or will The Fed just expand its balanced sheet again?

END

JPMorgan has now revisited its call that excess savings will run out by the end of the year: it nows states that by its calculation it has run out now!

(zerohedge)

It’s All Gone: All “Excess Savings” Have Now Been Exhausted, JPMorgan Calculates

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 11:25 AM

The continued strength of the US consumer amidst the worst inflationary backdrop in four decades, not to mention a recession in Europe and what is emerging as a full-blown depression in China, has surprised many, and been cited as one of the key drivers behind the ongoing resilience of the US economy & the SS&P500 bull market, not to mention the Fed hiking to nosebleed levels that are crushing America’s lower income households (since the top 1% are actually getting a lift courtesy of 5.5% rate on their trillions in cash savings).

We recently addressed the biggest driver of this perplexing consumer strength, which we identified as originating in the massive $1 trillion deficit-busting spending spree propping up “Bidenomics” (which bofa defined as the “era of fiscal excess”)…

… and which provides a sugar high today but assures even more pain down the line when this massive debt-funded spree comes home to roost in the form of interest spending which is about to surpass $1 trillion annually and leapfrog US defense spending.

There is another potent catalyst behind the resilient consumer and that too, it will comes as no surprise to anyone, is a legacy of government generosity: we are talking of course about the massive “excess pandemic savings” created in the aftermath of the covid crash, and which were direct government handouts to the US population amounting to over $2 trillion.

As everyone knows, this money is rapidly running out: last month JPM boss Jamie Dimon predicted that American households would exhaust their pandemic savings around the end of this year, paving the way for a slump in consumer spending and an economic slowdown (yesterday we reported that according to refined estimates from the San Fran Fed, these excess savings would be depleted much sooner – by the end of Q3 (or in about a month and a half tops).

Alas, today we come bearing bad news, because the same JPMorgan which one month ago expected excess savings would last until year-end (and keep consumption duly funded even as student loan repayments restart next month after a 3 year moratorium and slash discretionary spending by $16 billion per month) has made a major revision to its model and the bank now warns that the huge economic tailwind that was excess savings have now been exhausted from a 2021 high of $2.1tr as shown in the first chart below.

Needless to say, this means that the US consumer is now facing a spending cliff of epic proportions, because with excess savings now used up, and credit card usage just turning negative for the first time in years (as consumers realize that the happy days are over and the time to pay down credit card debt is here)…

… as well as the restart of student loan payments and a potential government shutdown on Sept 30, and all economic recovery bets are suddenly off just as it became hip and cool to predict that the US economy is cruising for an ultra smooth landing.

It’s not all bad news: on a more positive note, elevated levels of household liquidity across cash and cash-like assets (i.e. checking, savings, money market) have added resiliency to the US consumer, but even this adjusted excess household liquidity balance has also been getting depleted over the last ~18 months, and currently the JPM econ team estimates excess household liquidity adjusted for inflation at ~$1.4tr to fully drain by May’24 assuming a steady depletion rate.

And so, according to JPM’s increasingly worried economists, “the concern now is whether excess liquidity will even support above-trend consumption for that long” as allocation to liquid assets as a fraction of household financial assets is already slightly below its historical norm.

Finally, this excess liquidity is naturally heavily skewed towards the upper income cohorts and it may be overly optimistic to assume that US households will be willing to deploy all of this excess liquidity to fund above trend consumption (vs. saving).

Bottom line: while upper income households may continue to show resiliency (although if one listens to earnings reports from European luxury companies or something like a Farfetch, one would have serious doubts), JPM’s strategists are suddenly very worried that “lower income cohorts are increasingly coming under pressure with fewer offsets and with little sign of relief from the high cost of capital environment (e.g. revolving credit card balances keep moving higher, student debt payments kicking in).”

In short: Biden may want to enjoy the Bidenomics boost while it lasts, because as soon as next month it is about to come crashing down on his 80 year old head.

CHICAGO

Robberies and car thefts drive Chicago’s crime rates to new highs

(Dabrowski/Wirepoints)

Spree Of Robberies, Car Thefts Drive Chicago Crime To New Highs

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 05:00 PM

By Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner of Wirepoints

In the span of just two days in early August, a crew of armed robbers hit Chicago’s Logan Square 19 separate times. That crew helped spike robberies 49% in Chicago last month compared to the same period a year ago. In the South Loop, hundreds of youth mobbed, looted and trashed a 7-Eleven, resulting in 40 arrests, all part of an increase in Chicago “teen takeovers.” And car thefts, after jumping dramatically in 2022, are up yet again this year by more than 100 percent.

Chicago’s crime wave is still on the move nearly two-thirds of the way through 2023. The number of total major crimes committed in the city through July is 34 percent higher than the same period in 2022, which in turn was 33 percent higher than in 2021, according to the city’s crime data portal.

2023’s crimes are following the same path as in years past, but at a much higher level than before. Each month, about 1,600 more major crimes – including homicides, criminal sexual assaults, robberies, burglaries, major thefts, aggravated batteries and motor vehicle thefts – are committed in Chicago compared to 2022.

Media might celebrate the fact that murders are down slightly this year, but the news isn’t as good as it sounds. Murders are dropping much faster in the nation’s biggest cities. And even then, every one of the other six major crimes are up (burglaries, barely). Robberies are up 18%, Aggravated Batteries are up 9% and Theft Over $500 is up 10% – not to mention the 113% increase in car thefts.

A few months ago, Wirepoints warned that “deterrence” policies were needed immediately to bring crime down. Unfortunately, deterrence hasn’t happened. If anything, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s rhetoric has likely contributed to Chicago’s ongoing criminal activity. His “kids being silly” defense back in April and July’s “not baby Al Capones,” push back, coupled with his longer history of other criminal justice comments, are the opposite of the attitude Chicago needs.

Here are the latest facts about Chicago crime:

Robberies and motor vehicle thefts are large drivers of Chicago’s crime surge. The latest CPD Compstat data YTD through August 13 shows robberies are running 20 percent higher compared to last year and car-thefts are up by nearly 110 percent.

Robberies blew up in July and August due to a spree of activity by Chicago’s criminals, many of which made the news:

A criminal group committed 62 armed robberies across the city in early July. “The armed robberies have happened downtown, and on the North, Northwest and West sides. In each incident, police said the suspects got out of a car with guns and robbed their victims, sometimes stealing their cars and attacking them.”
Another group used a stolen car to commit a string of 8 robberies all on Aug. 13th. “In each incident, three to six men wearing dark colored clothing and black ski masks jumped out of a stolen car, displayed multiple firearms at victims, including rifles, stole their property and fled, according to Chicago police.”
The above-mentioned crimes in Logan Square, which was hit with 19 robberies in just two days. “In all of the robberies, two people in stolen Kias and Hyundais got out of their car armed with handguns and demanded the victims’ belongings. Victims were injured in more than one incident, police said.”

The city is suffering from an average of about 2,500 car thefts a month, far higher than during the same period last year. As mentioned above, it’s one of the major reasons for Chicago’s surge. However, the increase over 2022 is unlikely to last – at least on a monthly basis. The city’s jump in motor thefts began in July of last year, maxing out at nearly 3,200 thefts in October.

That’s likely cold comfort to the city’s victims, as car thefts in 2023 will still more than likely end up far higher than their 2022 total.

The decline in carjackings is not as positive as it seems. You’ll hear from plenty in the media that carjackings in Chicago are down. While that’s true, what the stories don’t mention is that the increase in motor vehicle theft has more than supplanted the drop in carjackings. Criminals began resorting less to carjackings in mid-2002 when they figured out it was infinitely easier to steal cars, in particular Kias and Hyundais. Those thefts have more than made up for the decline in carjackings, multiple times over.

Chicagoans this year have experienced 257 fewer carjackings compared to Jan.-Jul. of 2022, but car thefts in that same period are up by nearly 9,100. A total of 17,000 cars have already been stolen in Chicago so far this year, compared to 21,000 for all of last year.

Homicides are down, but other big cities are doing far better. The one major crime item to show a drop in Chicago is homicides, down 6 percent compared to last year, according to the CPD’s August 13 (Week 33) CompStat numbers. Chicago has suffered 389 murders vs. 416 during the same period in 2022.

Unfortunately, even that decline is tempered by the fact that the nation’s other major cities have seen their own murders drop much more than that. Los Angeles homicides are down 25% this year. Philadelphia’s are down 23%. Houston by 22%. And New York is down 12%.

Chicago’s murders – the actual number – still dwarf those of the other big cities. Unless Philly suffers from a massive increase in bloodshed, Chicago is guaranteed to lead the nation in the total number of homicides for the 12th year in a row.

For a full report of homicides by the nation’s largest 75 cities, see Chicago, New Orleans were the nation’s murder capitals in 2022 – A Wirepoints survey of America’s 75 largest cities

end

PROJECT VERITAS

Seems that they are toast: they just cannot function with O’Keefe

Project Veritas Implodes Six Months After Firing James O’Keefe

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 08:40 PM

Update: PV CEO Tom O’Hara is out, and George Skakel 2 is in. So while it appears that many of the staff have been let go, the organization is still operating.

* * *

Project Veritas has reportedly imploded roughly six months after bad actors infiltrated the undercover whistleblower organization and orchestrated the ouster of founder James O’Keefe.

Earlier Thursday, the Project Veritas X account tweeted: “SOS Hannah Giles just fired us all,” before it was quickly deleted.

Sources tell the Post Millennial, however, that they’ve indeed ‘all been fired.’

More details were provided by the Post Millennial:

Giles, who became notorious for starring in the ACORN video with founder and former CEO James O’Keefe, took over for O’Keefe after he was summarily pushed out by the board of directors. She took over as CEO only to destroy the company entirely.

“She came to all hands in April with her fat sidekick Ben Wetmore and all they did for 3 days was talk shit about James and relitigate all the terrible things he did to her/them 10-12 years ago. I knew right then her entire agenda was revenge,” a source said.

On-air talent Christian Hartsock, James Lalino were both laid off after Giles told staff that a restructuring would be underway. Kalen Eriksson, Jaime Phillips, Alyssa Dehen, were also fired. The terminations were done via a Zoom call with HR, with a few of those in the New York office. Giles did not make an appearance.

“She’s a lying sack of sh*t,” a source told The Post Millennial. “No one respected her anyway.”

On Monday, five people were fired according to the report – including a more recent hire, producer Pam Browne, who was brought in by O’Keefe last year. Others who were fired were allegedly done so in retaliation for their undercover work (!?). The remaining employees are ‘primarily admin,’ after around 20 people were fired on Thursday.

“Since James quit, the donations dried up…the donations never resumed,” one source told the Post Millennial, adding “The board were desperate to bring Hannah on board because they thought it would be cute but the problem is she’s a charlatan and a fraud. Everything she’s ever done has been a failure and she lied to everyone claiming she had all these donors she could bring in.”

James O’Keefe, meanwhile, can be found here at his new venture, O’Keefe Media Group (OMG).

Read the rest here…

end

Student loan repayments will exceed mortgage payments for some borrowers

(zerohedge)

Student Loan Payments To Exceed Mortgage For Some Borrowers

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 08:00 PM

Thanks to people locking in historically low mortgage rates during the pandemic, many US borrowers will pay more on their student loans than their mortgage after a three-year pandemic-era student loan pause ends next month, Bloomberg reports.

28-year-old Kentucky physical therapist Fikret Sabic, for example, will have to start making student loan payments of $1,130 per month to satisfy the student loan obligation. This is nearly $300 more than he and his wife Emina are paying on their mortgage.Fikret and Emina Sabic.Source: Fikret Sabic

In total, Sabic is carrying around $94,000 in student debt from his undergraduate biology degree and doctorate of physical therapy, both from Western Kentucky University.

The pandemic pause on student loan payments helped the couple buy a home in 2020 for $207,000 with a 3.25% interest rate, less than half what borrowing costs are now. Sabic knew debt payments would restart at some point, and he and Emina have been preparing their budget, but they still expect it to be difficult. -Bloomberg

“It really does slow down a lot of your life decisions when you have such a big burden monthly to have to pay,” said Sabic, who agreed to said burden and then bought a house. That said, borrowers can be cut a little slack when factoring in crippling inflation thanks to ‘Bidenomics.’

As Americans face the resumption of student loan payments, many will be cutting back on spending to make ends meet. Experts are predicting a wave of delinquencies hitting credit card, auto loans and student debt payments as people struggle to make ends meet.

While the average student loan payment before the pandemic was about $400, one in five borrowers will be paying more than $500 a month. Almost 7% of debt holders face bills of $1,000 or more. At the same time, about 23.7 million homes in the US have a mortgage payment of $1,000 or less, according to Black Knight. -Bloomberg

In Bloomberg‘s second example, Lexington, South Carolina attorney Chase Keibler and his wife Laura face $2,100 per month student loan payments next month – vs. just $1,850 for their mortgage. Chase has $75,000 in federal debt which he used to obtain an undergraduate degree in English from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and his law degree from the University of South Carolina. Laura has around $70,000 of debt, which is a mixture of public and private debt.

In July 2020, the couple paid $346,000 and locked in a 3.2% mortgage rate.

Now, they say the addition of their student loan obligations feels “daunting,” especially now that they’ve got two children under the age of two and Laura now a stay-at-home mom.

“I expected to have law school debt, but it’s an incredible amount of money that is guaranteed out every month for the foreseeable future,” said Keibler, who also signed on the dotted line and then bought a house and had two kids and agreed that his wife would leave the workforce to raise their children.Laura and Chase Keibler pictured with their two children.Source: Chase Keibler

More than rent too?

It’s not just homeowners – renters are about to feel the pain too. Bloomberg highlights the plight of one Molly McGhee, a 28-year-old novelist living in New York, whose student loan bill will exceed her rent.

The 28-year-old novelist has $120,000 in public and private loans from her undergrad degree at Champlain College in Vermont and her MFA in writing at Columbia, where she also works as an adjunct professor. She will soon pay $1,270 a month on her debt. That’s more than her $1,100 share of the $2,500 rent for an apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where she lives with her partner.

McGhee said she needed to get an MFA to be taken seriously in her field, but her paychecks haven’t made up for that investment. She and her partner are putting off goals like getting married because of the loans. -Bloomberg

“I’m finding myself at a juncture where I’m really considering having to move back home to Tennessee and get an office job somewhere where the cost of living is way less,” she said.

Would could imagine that taking on $120k of debt wouldn’t be tenable on a budding novelist’s salary in NYC.

end

MAUI

Maui’s Emergency Chief Resigns Amid Criticisms Over Wildfires Siren Failure

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 11:05 AM

Authored by Mimi Nguyen Ly via The Epoch Times,

A day after expressing no regrets for not sounding the sirens during Lahaina’s deadly wildfires, the head of the Maui Emergency Management Agency has stepped down.

The death toll from the fires that swept through Maui on Aug. 8 reached 111 on Thursday. They have become the deadliest fires in the United States in more than a century. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of people remain missing.

The cause of the wildfires across parts of Maui is under investigation. Lahaina, a historic town in western Maui that was home to more than 12,000 people, was worst hit, and has now been reduced to a barren wasteland.

Herman Andaya, who had been the Maui Emergency Management Agency administrator since 2017, resigned on Aug. 17 for “health reasons,” according to a Facebook post from Maui County. The resignation is effective immediately.

Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen said in a statement he will be “placing someone in this key position as quickly as possible” and hopes to make the announcement soon.

Burned cars and homes are seen a neighborhood that was destroyed by a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, are seen in an aerial view on Aug. 17, 2023. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The abrupt resignation comes after Mr. Andaya on Aug. 16 said he had no regrets in the decision not to sound sirens while wildfires engulfed Lahaina and several other areas on the island.

Hawaii boasts the largest system of outdoor alert sirens in the world, for a variety of dangers including wars, volcanoes, hurricanes, and wildfires.

Mr. Andaya asserted that the sirens are typically reserved for tsunami warnings, and had never been used in the situation of wildfires. He also explained that Hawaiians are trained to seek higher ground when the sirens are set off, and in this case, it would have likely prompted residents to move toward the approaching flames.

“We were afraid that people would have gone [toward the mountains or inland],” he said on Aug. 16.

“If that was the case then they would have gone into the fire.”

“I should also note that there are no sirens [on the mountainside] where the fire was spreading down,” Mr. Andaya asserted.

“So even if we sounded the siren, we would not have saved those people out there on the mountainside.”

Mr. Andaya on Wednesday vigorously defended his qualifications for his role as Maui’s emergency chief. He said that while he was not appointed to the position, he had been vetted, took a civil service exam, and was interviewed by seasoned emergency managers.

He also said he had previously been deputy director of the Maui County Department of Housing and Human Concerns and had been chief of staff for former Maui County Mayor Alan Arakawa for 11 years. During that time, he said, he often reported to “emergency operations centers” and participated in numerous trainings.

Mr. Arakawa, meanwhile, said he was disappointed by the resignation “because now we’re out one person who is really qualified.” The former Maui County mayor said that Mr. Andaya was vetted for the job by the county’s personnel service.

“He was trying to be strong and trying to do the job,” Mr. Arakawa said about the wildfire response. “He was very, very heartbroken about all the things that happened.”

A power pole, burned cars and homes in a neighborhood that was destroyed by a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, are seen on Aug. 17, 2023. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez said earlier on Aug. 17 in a statement that an outside organization will conduct “an impartial, independent” review of the government’s response and officials intend “to facilitate any necessary corrective action and to advance future emergency preparedness.” The investigation will likely take months, she added.

President Joe Biden vowed on Thursday the federal government would commit to helping the people of Maui recover, rebuild, and grieve.

In a brief video aired on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” President Biden said the federal government had already sent hundreds of emergency personnel, thousands of meals, and essential supplies such as cots and blankets to the devastated town.

“We will be with you for as long as it takes, I promise you,” he said.

He is due to visit the island to survey the damage and meet with survivors on Aug. 21.

Survivors who have been displaced are taking refuge in hotels that are prepared to provide shelter and various services for them, according to Brad Kieserman, vice president for disaster operations with the American Red Cross.

“We will be able to keep folks in hotels for as long as it takes to find housing for them,” Mr. Kieserman said at a media briefing.

“I am confident we’ll have plenty of rooms.”

Service providers at the hotels will offer meals, counseling, financial assistance, and other disaster aid.

Contracts with the hotels will last for at least seven months but could easily be extended, Mr. Kieserman said.

He noted that hotels are also available for eligible evacuees who have spent the last eight days sleeping in cars or camping in parking lots.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green has said at least 1,000 hotel rooms will be set aside. In addition, AirBnB said its nonprofit wing will provide properties for 1,000 people.

USA// COVID//VACCINE/

SWAMP STORIES

HUGE STORY!! sent yesterday but worth repeating if you missed this.

Joe Biden used a pseudonym Robert L Peters to hid his corruption with his son Hunter Biden

(zerohedge)

GOP Demands Biden Emails Using Pseudonym After Hunter CC’d On Ukraine Call

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 10:35 AM

House Republican investigators have asked the National Archives to hand over any unredacted records in which then-VP Joe Biden used a pseudonym.

Previously released emails retrieved from Hunter’s abandoned laptop reveal that Biden used a “Robert.L.Peters@pci.gov” email address while he was serving as Vice President of the United States. What’s more, that J. Biden aide John Flynn cc’d Hunter on 10 emails which contained Joe’s daily schedule between May 19 and June 15, 2016.

One of the emails details plans for a phone call with Ukraine’s former president, Petro Poroshenko. Flynn copied Hunter at his email address at Rosemont Seneca Partners – while Hunter was serving on the board of Ukrainian energy giant, Burisma, which was deemed to be corrupt by the Obama-Biden State Department.

“Boss–8:45am prep for 9am phone call with Pres Poroshenko. Then we’re off to Rhode Island for infrastructure event and then Wilmington for UDel commencement,” Flynn wrote. “Nate will have your draft remarks delivered later tonight or with your press clips in the morning.”

The House Oversight Committee request primarily is focused on Hunter’s $1 million per year position on the board of Ukrainian gas company Burisma, which hired the then-second son in early 2014 as his dad assumed control of the Obama administration’s Ukraine policy.

But the broad request for records involving the president’s pseudonyms could turn up a variety of content, including about other Biden family ventures in countries such as China. –NY Post

According to a letter from House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, “The Committee’s need for these Vice-Presidential records is specific and well- documented,” adding “The Committee seeks to craft legislative solutions aimed at deficiencies it has identified in the current legal framework regarding ethics laws and disclosure of financial interests related to the immediate family members of Vice Presidents and Presidents— deficiencies that may place American national security and interests at risk.”

“The Committee seeks unrestricted special access/ … These records have been redacted for public release pursuant to the PRA and FOIA. For example, an email bearing the subject “Friday Schedule Card,” is withheld in part under a “P6” and “b(6)” restrictions, denoting personal information regarding the subject under the PRA and FOIA respectively,” Comer wrote.

“Attached to this email, and made available on the NARA website, is a document that indicates at 9:00 a.m. on May 27, 2016, Vice President Biden took a call with the president of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko,” he added. “It is concerning to the Committee, however, that this document was sent to “Robert L. Peters”—a pseudonym the Committee has identified as then Vice- President Biden. Additionally, the Committee questions why the then-Vice President’s son, Hunter Biden—and only Hunter Biden—was copied on this email to then-Vice President Biden.”

As Just the News further notes, The letter requested special access to specific documents, including any:

“Document or communication in which a pseudonym for Vice President Joe Biden was included either as a sender, recipient, copied or was included in the contents of the document or communication, including but not limited to Robert Peters, Robin Ware, and JRB Ware;
“Document or communication in which Hunter Biden, Eric Schwerin, or Devon Archer was included either as a sender, recipient, copied, or was included in the contents of the document or communication; and
“Drafts from November 1, 2015 to December 9, 2015 of then-Vice President Biden’s speech delivered to the Ukrainian Rada on December 9, 2015.”

Democrats probably need another Trump indictment at this point.

end

Trump attorneys claim correctly that the Georgia case belongs in Federal court

(zerohedge)

Trump Attorneys Claim Georgia Case Belongs In Federal Court, Instead Filed In State ‘By Design’

FRIDAY, AUG 18, 2023 – 06:55 AM

Donald Trump’s attorney and total smokeshow Alina Habba says that the case should have been brought in federal court, and was instead brought in state court “by design.”

On Wednesday, Habba told Newsmax that Fulton County DA Fani Willis “did it on purpose so that if he is president, he can’t pardon himself if he’s convicted. … We will probably be asking for a removal to another venue and to move it to federal court.”

On Tuesday, Habba told Newsmaax that the case should receive a new venue.

“It should be moved to a federal court. Election claims and claims of somebody who was a president at the time should be viewed by a federal court. There’s presidential immunities at play here and this has no business being in a state court.”

Former Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, one of 19 defendants in the case, has already filed a motion to remove the case to federal court, with others expected to do the same.

Trump attorney Lindsey Halligan told the outlet … hang on, here’s a picture of her too:

…that Trump’s legal team will file a motion to remove the case to federal court.

“This case should be removed, this indictment is exactly the type of state interference in a federal official’s duty that the supremacy clause in the United States Constitution prohibits,” she said.

Trump and 18 other defendants were charged on Monday under the RICO statute with 161 counts of racketeering.

“If the case is removed to federal court there will not be cameras in the courtroom. Ms. Willis seems to want this case to be televised. I’m sure she’s very proud of herself, but let’s remember how easy it is to indict someone. This indictment does not mean a conviction. It’s not a crime to contest an election,” said Halligan.

“Legislative intent when drafting laws matters, and none of the laws President Trump is charged with in these four indictments were drafted with the intent to charge the offenses he is being charged with,” she continued, adding that the state court strategy may backfire.

“These prosecutors are going to keep going too far until they make a big mistake that exposes their motives. These judges want to take away President Trump’s right to attorney client privilege,” she said. “Well the pendulum will swing back to the prosecutors’ conversations with each other that they think are privileged will be exposed for everyone to see how politically motivated these indictments really are.”

END

TUCKER CARLSON

Vivek Ramaswamy Warns Tucker Carlson: This Country Is “On The Cusp Of Chaos… In A 1776 Moment”

THURSDAY, AUG 17, 2023 – 06:09 PM

Vivek Ramaswamy – the youngest Republican – sat down with Tucker Carlson in a wide-ranging interview this evening.

Ramaswamy talks about his controversial (for some) accusations that the government, the 9/11 Commission, and the FBI lied about certain events, leading to demands for accountability.

“It’s not okay for the government to lie to us. In a democracy, it’s poison and it corrodes the system that we revere: democracy.

But his main themes were on the public’s dwindling trust in the government, the need for hard truths, and historical shifts in power dynamics.

“We’re going to have a reckoning. I think that reckoning is likely going to be 2024.”

Our ‘establishments’ refuse to give us the truth, Ramaswamy says “we can handle the truth,” extending the analogy to a new American Revolution:

“we, the people live in a moment where the government believes that citizens of this nation cannot be trusted with the truth.”

Ramaswamy then tells Carlson:

“I think there is a bipartisan consensus in this country right now that we the people, we can’t handle the truth,”

“It’s like Jack Nicholson at the end of movie, right? You can’t handle the truth, you need me on that wall. My view, my basic view in this campaign is no, we don’t need you on that wall and yes, we can handle the truth.”

He goes on:

“I think we’re on the cusp of chaos, there is definitely something going on… we are in a fall of 1775, spring of 1776 moment…”

But warns “there’s a lot of ways that energy can go…”

“…there’s a dam that’s going to break and the river’s going to go somewhere… I hope it leads towards national revival rather than… other places where this could go.“

Ramaswamy emphasizes the importance of addressing defense vulnerabilities, both nuclear and cyber, and discusses China’s influence and the Taiwan issue (consummate the co-dependent relationship with China, aware that Xi is pushing for a deal where he gets to make our stuff – via Taiwan – and in return, gets our IP).

With regard to foreign relations: the Republican candidate raises concerns about driving Russia closer to China – due to the arming of Ukraine – which is perceived as a major military threat. Additionally, he points out America’s dependence on an island nation off China for its modern way of life and debates surrounding the Ukraine war and economic dependence on China.

(“I will not send our sons and daughters to die over somebody else’s nationalistic dispute in the Ukraine war,” the candidate said, suggesting instead to reopen economic ties, and commit to NATO constraint.

, Hunter Biden‘s business dealings, and what really happened on January 6th.

He will be about as popular among the deep state-ers as Trump.

Ramaswamy also told Carlson that the modern LGBTQ movement is a “religious cult,” making people justify their beliefs despite them disconnected from logic.

“These are cult-like belief systems. Right, because if it’s a religious cult, then you don’t have any obligation to logic if you’re subscribing to a religion,” he said.

“And the worst religions are the ones that fail to recognize themselves as religions … The most dangerous religions of all are those that claim to be secular but are actually religious in their conviction.”

Finally, Ramaswamy reflects on his campaign:

“I’d rather lose some election than to play some political snakes and ladders of what we’re supposed to say,” he said.

“And I think that that’s really one of the questions at issue today as it was in 1776. Do we believe that the public can be trusted with the truth? Whatever the truth is, just give me the hard truth.”

Watch the full: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/vivek-ramaswamy-warns-tucker-carlson-were-1776-moment-country

END

THE KING REPORT

The King Report August 18, 2023 Issue 7057

Independent View of the News

The US mini-banking crisis in March was caused by depositors realizing that they could get far higher interest payments from US T-Bills than banks – and fear that banks were sitting on gazillions in losses on US Treasuries, MBS, and other debt vehicles.

Banks, hedge funds, some big bond managers got jiggier on US Treasuries in March and April. A media-craving bond guru claimed then that the outlook for Treasuries hasn’t looked this good in 10 years. Alas, Treasuries peaked in early April. After a slow rollover, Treasuries broke down after May 15.

US Treasuries are now lower in price (higher in yields) than their worst levels in early March! Ergo, those institutions and hedge funds that doubled down on Treasuries have even worse losses now.

When will investors and Street bank analysts start lamenting about banks’ AFS holdings?

Leading index for economy falls for 16th month in a row — but still no U.S. recession
The leading economic index fell 0.4% in July and declined for the 16th month in a row, but other measures of the economy suggest a recession is far off. Economists… had forecast a 0.4% drop…
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/leading-index-for-u-s-economy-falls-for-the-16th-month-in-a-row-but-still-no-recession-88711abe

US Economic Indicators: Leading & Coincident Indicators –Yardeni Research (Great charts)
https://www.yardeni.com/pub/ecoindlei.pdf

Long-time readers might recall that two decades ago, we warned that the LEI was reconfigured with more emphasis on financial indicators.

A More Timely and Useful Index of Leading Indicators    February 2003
The Gain in Timeliness from the New Method
    In the old procedure, the index released during the current month (t) referred to the month (t-2). In the new procedure, implemented by The Conference Board since January 2001, the index released in the same month (t) refers to the month (t-1). This is a major advantage of greater timeliness…
    They emphasized the importance of selected financial indicators such as interest rate spreads and bond and stock price indexes as better predictors of business cycle turning points. At least in part to address these criticisms, in addition to the new index procedures, we evaluate the accuracy of LI, both the old and new leading indexes…
   The new procedure for calculating the U.S. Leading Index combines seven current financial and non-financial indicators with simple forecasts of three other indicators that are only available with lags…
    The old procedure for calculating the index left out the most recent financial data, which are likely to provide first signals of weakening and downturns in profits and early investment and credit commitments…  https://nces.ed.gov/FCSM/pdf/2003FCSM_McGuckin.pdf

After two decades of one of the greatest booms in financial assets, the Conference Board decides to change the LEI by implementing more financial data. The demise of the 40-year Grand Super Cycle bond bull market might induce a return to an LEI with less importance on financial components.

As expected, Walmart reported great Q2 results; WMT soared 3.3% (164.48) in pre-NYSE trading. But its CFO warned that the economic outlook is “uncertain.” Walmart was -1.7% (156.55) at 11:07 ET.
WMT Results: Adjusted EPS $1.84, $1.70 exp.; revenue $161.63B, +5.7% y/y, $159.72B expected
Total US comparable sales ex-gas +6.3%; 4.04% consensus; US E-Commerce sales +24%
Walmart-only US stores comparable sales ex-gas +6.4%; +4.29% expected
Sam’s Club US comparable sales ex-gas +5.5%; +5.58% consensus

Chinese asset manager Zhongzhi says it is in liquidity crisis
The liquidity stress facing Zhongzhi, which has sizable exposure to real estate, highlights the rippling effect of China’s property debt woes… It was not possible to determine whether the company is
insolvent before completion of auditing work, which began in July, the executives said…
https://www.reuters.com/article/china-property-debt-shadow-banking-idUSL1N39Y05U

China Told State Banks to Escalate Yuan Intervention (this week)
Authorities were also checking whether domestic companies helped accelerate yuan declines by conducting speculative trades against it… (Intimidation tactic)
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/china-told-state-banks-escalate-100048063.html

The FT: Global investors dump Chinese securities as state support hopes fade
https://www.ft.com/content/5b4e0042-49c0-463c-b679-e97de96de12d

USUs traded modestly higher during early Asian trading. They broke down near 20:00 ET and hit a low of 118 16/32 (-28/32) at 6:50 ET. USUs rallied after the US bond market opening at 7 ET, hitting a peak of 119 2/32 at 9:41 ET. After a retreat to the daily low, USUs traded sideways until they rallied moderately when stocks broke down after 13:15 ET.

ESUs traded four handles higher when the Nikkei opened. But, they quickly reversed, hitting a daily low of 4409.50 at 21:23 ET. ESUs rallied to 4424.00 at 00:14 ET. They declined moderately after the Nikkei closed. The decline ended when China closed at 2 ET.

The rally for the European open peaked 2 minutes after the 3 ET opening. There were too many Dumpers and not enough patsies. ESUs then plodded upward until they jumped when the rally for the NYSE opening began at 8:24 ET. Alas, ESUs hit a daily high of 4436.75 at 8:35 ET. They then rolled over until sellers got more aggressive about 7 minutes after the NYSE opening. Once again, there were too many Dumpers and too few patsies. Are the Dumpers becoming the patsies?

ESUs and stocks then vacillated in a modest range until a moderate Noon Balloon developed. At 13:15 ET, ESUs and stocks broke down. They tumbled and made new lows at 15:15 ET. ESUs bottomed at 4378.50. An A-B-C manipulation took ESUs to 4391.25 at 15:51 ET. ESUs sank to 4382.75 at the close.

@charliebilello: 3 years ago: 30-yr mortgage rate was 2.99% & median existing home price was $294k. Today: 30-yr mortgage rate is 7.09% & median home price is $410k. Result: $23k increase in down payment (20% down) and 122% increase in monthly payment (from $990 to $2,202). (Bidenomics!)

Rumor Has It: Is Shrinkflation Expanding Your Bill? (Bidenomics at work!)
In the case of things like cereal, the box actually gets bigger with less cereal inside. In other examples, the packaging may not change at all and only by reading the net weight of the item could you determine a change has taken place. For restaurants, they reduce the number of items in a meal deal or shrink the size food like chicken tenders or fries… (Will the BLS make a negative hedonic adjustment? LMAO!)
https://chainstoreguide.com/offthechain/2023/07/rumor-shrinkflation-expanding-bill/

Positive aspects of previous session
Gasoline declined; early equities losses were moderate

Negative aspects of previous session
Bonds declined again; stocks tumbled in the afternoon
Fangs got hammered because too many traders of all classes got long for expiration

Ambiguous aspects of previous session
Will equities get gammaed to death on the downside for today’s August expiration?

First Hour/Last Hour Action [S&P 500 Index]: 1st Hour from NYSE Open: Up; Last Hour: Down

Pivot Point for S&P 500 Index [above/below indicates daily trend to traders]: 4385.45
Previous session S&P 500 Index High/Low: 4421.17; 4364.33

@SpeakerMcCarthy: Washington has a spending problem. Republicans led the greatest spending cut in American history—and as we begin the appropriations process, we will keep fighting to save you your hard earned tax dollars. (This is why people despise the GOP Establishment. After caving to Biden on spending and debt, this blowhard is trying to gaslight voters into believing he is fiscally disciplined.)
    Actor @RealJamesWoods: You know, the Democrats may lie and cheat and steal as easily as breathing, but they know how to fight. All you lily-livered Republicans know how to do is talk. You’re never going to do anything, so for the love of God, just stop talking.

@BillGertz: China’s rapid expansion of nuclear forces — missiles, bombers, submarines — is continuing, Stratcom commander says. “We’re not seeing any indication that they’re slowing down,” Gen. Anthony Cotton says. https://t.co/ReAHOj4iBv

Fed Balance Sheet: -$62.514B, Treasuries -$42.295B, Accrued Interest -$15.335B Bank Reserves at the Fed: +$23.115B to $3.246 trillion   https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/20230817/

After the close: China Evergrande files for chapter 15 bankruptcy in US (NY) – court filing: Reuters

Today – It’s August options expiration and a summer Friday. We will reiterate this comment from yesterday’s missive: The probability of a gamma-induced downward spiral is high. The S&P 500 Index low on Wednesday was 4403.55. A significant breach of 4400 could ignite momentum selling and a downward squeeze on expiry August puts.

The S&P 500 Index closed on Thursday at 4370.36; 4360.00 is important support. There is no telling how August expiration will play out. However, the risk of stocks and bulls getting gammaed to death on the downside are higher than usual, especially with China property giant Evergrande’s bankruptcy.

ESUs are -1:75 at 20:20 ET; USUs are +12/32 and the Yen/$ is 145.77. Deere is expected to report 8.19. No impact economic data is scheduled. Japan July CPI 3.3% y/y, Food +8/8% y/y, Core 3.1% y/y

S&P 500 Index 50-day MA: 4449; 100-day MA: 4289; 150-day MA: 4197; 200-day MA: 4125
DJIA 50-day MA: 34,595; 100-day MA: 33,999; 150-day MA: 33,756; 200-day MA: 33,670
(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 positive – a close below 3752.81 triggers a sell signal
Weekly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 4372.50 triggers a sell signal
Daily: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4498.33 triggers a buy signal
Hourly: Trender and MACD negative – a close above 4411.11 triggers a buy signal

Biden probe shifts to National Archives with discovery of private emails from Joe to Hunter
House Oversight Committee requests records, including emails from private accounts of Joe Biden
    The demand came after the House Oversight Committee unearthed an email showing a White House staffer communicated plans for a phone call with Ukraine’s president to Joe Biden on a private email account in 2016 and copied Hunter Biden, an unusual backdoor for a sensitive conversation with a foreign leader… The email in question was quietly released in January as part of the Obama presidential archives. In it, a White House staffer writes Joe Biden on a personal pseudonym email account named Robert L. Peters about a planned call with then Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The staffer copied Hunter Biden’s email address at Rosemont Senaca Partners…
https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/biden-probe-shifts-national-archives-discovery-private-emails-joe

@WendellHusebo: @RepJamesComer Demands NARA Provide Records Pertaining to Joe Biden’s Pseudonym Email Address: “Robert L. Peters” – The address was used in a scheduling email on May, 26, 2016, about a call with the president of Ukraine The address appears 27x on the “laptop from hell,”… https://t.co/ZW9dOILrC1

@tristanleavitt: I bet a lot of Biden and Ukraine-related government records from this timeframe would be awfully interesting… “The Committee questions why the then-Vice President’s son, Hunter Biden—and only Hunter Biden—was copied on this email to then-Vice President Biden.”

The NY Post’s @mirandadevine: James Comer is relentless. The House Oversight Committee chairman is asking NARA to provide Joe Biden’s records from his VP days that “overlapped with his son’s activities in Ukraine”. He wants all unredacted communications in which Joe used a pseudonym; Hunter Biden, Eric Schwerin, or Devon Archer is copied; and all drafts of then-VP Biden’s speech to the Ukrainian parliament in December 2015.
    Biden “mixed official government duties with family’s influence peddling.” Comer was about to go to court to get all Joe and Hunter’s personal bank records when AG Garland pulled the Special Counsel trick. He’s still going.  https://twitter.com/mirandadevine/status/1692172476992667832

Weaponization Committee @Weaponization: Chairman @Jim_Jordan subpoenas Citibank amid investigation into major banks voluntarily sharing Americans’ private financial data with the FBI.
Read the full subpoena letter to Citibank:  https://twitter.com/Weaponization/status/1692280796843774378/photo/1

Top White House lawyer Stuart Delery stepping down as Biden investigations intensify https://t.co/Dt0DZXCTzx

@DC_Draino; The more McCarthy stalls on impeaching literally anyone, never mind Biden, Garland, or Mayorkas, the more credence I give to the theory I was told a couple months ago. Sequoia funds CCP military tech and is top donor to McCarthy/McConnell. McCarthy has pulled back GOP investigations of Sequoia by House Intel & Committee on CCP.  DOJ knows McCarthy has protected Sequoia and has promised to unleash hell on him and Sequoia if McCarthy tries to impeach Biden…

SCMP: Sequoia China, a firm Sequoia Capital formed in 2005 with Neil Shen Nanpeng, an entrepreneur and co-founder of Ctrip, is one of China’s top technology industry financiers…
https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3191521/sequoia-capital-led-venture-capitalists-globally-first

Actor @RealJamesWoods: He’s called “Biden’s son,” but she’s dismissed as “ex-stripper.” This is journalistic sexism at its lowest. Why couldn’t the headline just as easily read, “Ex-crack addict dragged into court by mother of his child?”  https://t.co/9Fyr2yiMoB

Sen. Colton Moore @realColtonMoore: As a Georgia State Senator, I am officially calling for an emergency session to review the actions of Fani Willis. America is under attack. I’m not going to sit back and watch as radical left prosecutors politically TARGET political opponents.
https://twitter.com/realColtonMoore/status/1692175623391957219

Congress probing whether Democrats improperly using nonprofits, foreign money to win elections
Rep. Claudia Tenney says Ways and Means panel to investigate whether tax law broken or foreign money being used to funnel cash into elections
https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/holdnew-york-rep-says-committee-will-be-investigating-if-democrats

@JMichaelWaller: FBI SWAT team guns down yet another American citizen in another early morning raid on the person’s home. Henderson, Tennessee. No details on nature of suspect or incident.
   FBI Statement: The FBI is reviewing an agent-involved shooting which occurred today at approximately 6:40 a.m. while FBI SWAT was conducting an arrest operation in Henderson, TN. The subject is deceased. The FBI takes all shooting incidents involving our agents or task force members seriously. In accordance with FBI policy, the shooting incident is under review by the FBI’s Inspection Division. As this is an ongoing matter we have no further details to provide… https://t.co/m9GUqiFOZp

Thief steals car from White Sox star’s girlfriend near Wrigley Field (used to be a nice area)
https://cwbchicago.com/2023/08/thief-steals-chicago-white-sox-girlfriends-bmw-near-wrigley-field.html

@CWBChicago: Chicago cops were eyewitnesses to an armed robbery in progress on the North Side early Wednesday. They chased the suspects briefly — until a CPD supervisor ordered them to stop the chase. The robbery crew went on to commit even more holdups.  https://t.co/H76W8MsJid

Spree of robberies, car thefts drive Chicago crime to new highs
The number of total major crimes committed in the city through July is 34 percent higher than the same period in 2022, which in turn was 33 percent higher than in 2021, according to the city’s crime data…
https://wirepoints.org/chicagos-crime-wave-continues-major-crimes-up-34-this-year-after-33-increase-last-year-wirepoints/

Lax policing and prosecution has unleashed an epidemic of crime across the USA. This will continue and probably escalate until there are negative consequences for criminal behavior. “That’s the fact, Jack!”

Walker Art Center (Minneapolis) holds ‘playful demon summoning session’ for families
The Walker Art Center has received millions of dollars in taxpayer funds through Minnesota’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund… “Demons have a bad reputation, but maybe we’re just not very good at getting to know them,” an event description reads… “using ancient Babylonian techniques,”…
https://alphanews.org/walker-art-center-holds-playful-demon-summoning-session-for-families/

Hawaii Fires: A State Official Refused to Release Water for West Maui Fires Until It Was Too Late
https://www.civilbeat.org/2023/08/a-state-official-refused-to-release-water-for-west-maui-fires-until-it-was-too-late/

GOP Prez candidate @VivekGRamaswamy: There’s a dark but hard TRUTH to the Maui catastrophe that has led to over 110 tragic deaths. As wildfires raged, desperate residents petitioned state officials to send more water for firefighting & to help protect their properties from fire. That request went unanswered for hours, withholding critical aid to islanders. Now we’re learning that the official who delayed the approval is an Obama Foundation “Asia Pacific Leader” & a climate activist who believes water should be “revered” first and foremost. The DEI agenda is literally costing people their lives. Hawaii’s Democrat governor, Josh Green, says there are people “fighting against the release of water to fight fires” & that it needs to be explored further. The No. 1 responsibility of government is to protect its citizens. The victims and their families deserve the TRUTH.

END

GREG HUNTER.

91 Trump Felonies, NATO Ukraine Disaster, Murdered Suddenly

91 Trump Felonies, NATO Ukraine Disaster, Murdered Suddenly

By Greg Hunter On August 18, 2023 In Weekly News Wrap-Ups23 Comments

By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (WNW 595 8.18.23)

There are now 4 separate cases and a total of 91 felonies charged to President Donald J. Trump. It has become a ridiculous cartoon prosecution of the former President that is anything but funny. It shows a complete desperation of the Deep State to stop Donald Trump and “We the People.”

This is an attack on the First Amendment that makes it illegal to contest and protest obvious election fraud. Meanwhile, the President that many say was cheated in has seen zero charges, even though House GOP members have released proof Joe Biden and family have gotten at least $20 million in illegal cash. It’s 91 to 0 and Biden is winning—so far.

From the beginning, I said the Ukraine war was going to be a disaster and the so-called sanctions were going to “backfire.” According to a new report, the U.S. has gotten nearly $6 trillion poorer and Russia has gotten about $600 billion richer. This has become a NATO Ukraine disaster, and now they are talking about giving land for peace. Can peace come before NATO starts a nuclear war? Let’s hope so.

Another week and more CV19 bioweapon/vax murders. These people are young and “died suddenly” for no apparent reason. You don’t die suddenly at 38 years old for some unexplained reason, but that is exactly what happened to Broadway star Chris Peluso. When is the mass awakening to the CV19 death and disability program going to happen? Not soon enough. We really should start calling this phenomenon “Murdered Suddenly.”

Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchgdog.com as he talks about these stories and more in the Weekly News Wrap-Up for 8.18.23.

(Tech Note: If you do not see the video, know it is there. Unplug your modem and plug it back in after 30 sec. This will clear codes that may be blocking you from seeing it. In addition, try different browsers. Also, turn off all ad blockers if you have them. All the above is a way Big Tech tries to censor people like USAWatchdog.com.)

(https://usawatchdog.com/91-trump-felonies-nato-ukraine-disaster-murdered-suddenly/)

After the Wrap-Up:

Dane Wigington, founder of GeoEngineeringWatch.org, will be on to explain why Hawaii and its fires are just the tip of the climate warfare iceberg. We the People are being attacked by the Deep State, and Wigington will explain it all.

SEE YOU MONDAY