Shanghai Gold Benchmark Price

USD oz AM1963.25

PM1965.74

Historical SGE Fix

New York price at the time: $1917.00

premium $48.00

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Bitcoin morning price:, $26,131 UP 75 Dollars

Bitcoin: afternoon price: $26,000 DOWN 56 dollars

Platinum price closing $946.40 UP $6.10

Palladium price; $1228.95 DOWN $7.75

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: $2,603.44 DOWN .80 CDN dollars per oz (ALL TIME HIGH 2,775.35)

BRITISH GOLD: 1520.56 DOWN .80 pounds per oz//(ALL TIME HIGH//CLOSING///1630.29)

EURO GOLD: 1772.54 DOWN 1.50 euros per oz //(ALL TIME HIGH/CLOSING//1861.21)//

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EXCHANGE: COMEX

CONTRACT: AUGUST 2023 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES
SETTLEMENT: 1,918.200000000 USD
INTENT DATE: 08/24/2023 DELIVERY DATE: 08/28/2023
FIRM ORG FIRM NAME ISSUED STOPPED

152 C DORMAN TRADING 12
435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 302
624 H BOFA SECURITIES 310
657 C MORGAN STANLEY 2
905 C ADM 2

TOTAL: 314 314
MONTH TO DATE: 11,873

JPMorgan stopped 0 /319 contracts.

FOR AUGUST:

GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR AUGUST/2023. CONTRACT: 314 NOTICES FOR 31,400 OZ or 0.9766 TONNES

total notices so far: 11,873 contracts for 1,187,300 oz (36.930 tonnes)

FOR AUGUST:

SILVER NOTICES: 1 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 5,000 OZ/

total number of notices filed so far this month : 952 for 4,760,000 oz

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END

GLD

WITH GOLD DOWN $6.05

INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF .87 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/

INVENTORY RESTS AT 884.04 TONNES

Silver//

WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER UP 1 CENT AT THE SLV// HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.751 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV// OZ OF SILVER FROM THE SLV//

INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.

CLOSING INVENTORY: 446.145 MILLION OZ

Let us have a look at the data for today

SILVER//OUTLINE

SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A HUGE SIZED 2651 CONTRACTS TO 136,150 AND FURTHER FROM THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THIS HUGE SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR $0.16 LOSS IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON THURSDAY. TAS ISSUANCE WAS A HUGE SIZED 1485 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: 1485 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 SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT FELL BY $0.16). AND WERE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OF A FEW SILVER CONTRACTS AS WE HAD A STRONG SIZED LOSS OF 751 CONTRACTS ON BOTH EXCHANGES ALONG WITH SOME T.A.S.LIQUIDATION THROUGHOUT THE COMEX SESSION.

WE MUST HAVE HAD:

A HUMONGOUS ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS( 1900 CONTRACTS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 3.105 MILLION OZ (FIRST DAY NOTICE) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 5,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING REMAINS AT 4.760 MILLION OZ + OUR NEW CRIMINAL 0 CONTRACTS OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR NIL OZ + EXCHANGE FOR RISK//PRIOR = 8.88 MILLION OZ/// N: THUS NEW STANDING FOR SILVER IN OZ: 4.760 MILLION OZ + 8.88 MILLION EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 13.640 MILLION OZ/// // // HUGE SIZED COMEX OI LOSS/ HUGE SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/VI) MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE (1485 CONTRACTS)/

I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL -359 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 19 days, total 28,367 contracts: OR 141,835 MILLION OZ (1493 CONTRACTS PER DAY)

TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 141.835 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: 141.835 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH IS GOING TO BE VERY STRONG

RESULT: WE HAD A HUGE SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 2651 CONTRACTS WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $0.16 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//THURSDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A HUGE EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 1900 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 5000 OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW STANDING 4.760 MILLION OZ+ 8.88 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK// NEW TOTALS STANDING FOR SILVER: 13.64 MILLION OZ//// WE HAVE A SMALL LOSS OF 392 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES. THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY: A GIGANTIC 1485 CONTRACTS//SOME FRONT END OF THE TAS CONTRACTS WERE LIQUIDATED DURING THE THURSDAY COMEX SESSION . THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE THURSDAY NIGHT (1485) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE., .

WE HAD 1 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 5,000 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 SMALL SIZED 407 CONTRACTS TO 435,344 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: 1376 CONTRACTS

WE HAD A SMALL SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI ( 407 CONTRACTS) WITH OUR $0.65 GAIN 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 31,400 OZ QUEUE JUMP + PRIOR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = (.684 TONNES) //NEW STANDING 37.440 TONNES + .684 EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 38.124/ + /A FAIR (AND CRIMINAL) ISSUANCE OF 654 T.A.S. CONTRACTS /// ALL OF..THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $0.65 GAIN IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO THURSDAY’S TRADING.WE HAD A FAIR SIZED GAIN OF 2491 OI CONTRACTS (7.748 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES.

E.F.P. ISSUANCE

THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A FAIR SIZED 2898 CONTRACTS:

The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 436,720

IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A FAIR SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 2491 CONTRACTS WITH 407 CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A FAIR 2898 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 2491 CONTRACTS OR 7.748 TONNES. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A SMALL 654 CONTRACTS)

CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES

WE HAD A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (2898 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE SMALL SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI (407) //TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 2491 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 31,400 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING 37,440 TONNES + .684 TONNES (EXCHANGE FOR RISK//PRIOR) NEW TOTALS: 38.124 TONNES/// 3) ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION WITH SOME TAS LIQUIDATION DURING THE COMEX SESSION //4) SMALL SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST LOSS/ 5) FAIR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///6: SMALL T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 654 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: 55,134 CONTRACTS OR 5,513,400 OZ OR 171.48 TONNES IN 19 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 2902 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 19 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES 171.48 TONNES

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

THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 171.48/3550 x 100% TONNES 4.84% 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: 171.48 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 GIGANTIC SIZED 2651 CONTRACTS OI TO 136,150 AND FURTHER FROM OUR COMEX HIGH RECORD //244,710(SET FEB 25/2020). THE LAST RECORDS WERE SET IN AUG.2018 AT 244,196 WITH A SILVER PRICE OF $14.78/(AUGUST 22/2018)..THE PREVIOUS RECORD TO THAT WAS SET ON APRIL 9/2018 AT 243,411 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS WITH THE SILVER PRICE AT THAT DAY: $16.53). AND PREVIOUS TO THAT, THE RECORD WAS ESTABLISHED AT: 234,787 CONTRACTS, SET ON APRIL 21.2017 OVER 5 YEARS AGO. HOWEVER WE HAVE NOW SET A NEW RECORD LOW OF 114,102 CONTRACTS JULY 3.2023

EFP ISSUANCE A HUMONGOUS 1900 CONTRACTS

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

SEPT 1900 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 1900 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 2651 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 1900 OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,

WE OBTAIN A STRONG LOSS OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 751 CONTRACTS

THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTAL 3.755 MILLION OZ

OCCURRED DESPITE OUR $0.16 LOSS 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 18.17 PTS OR 0.59% //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 255.79 PTS OR 1.40% /The Nikkei CLOSED DOWN 662.93 PTS OR 2.05% //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED DOWN .92 % /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN 7.2828 /OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN DOWN TO 7.2928 /Oil UP TO 80.12 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP AT 84.33 / Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN// ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE WEAKER

a)NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA

outline

b) REPORT ON JAPAN/

OUTLINE

3 CHINA

OUTLINE

4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS

OUTLINE

5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

OUTLINE

6.Global Issues//COVID ISSUES/VACCINE ISSUES

OUTLINE

7. OIL ISSUES

OUTLINE

8 EMERGING MARKET ISSUES

9. USA

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

GOLD

LET US BEGIN:

THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A SMALL SIZED 407 CONTRACTS UP TO 435,344 WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.65 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 2898 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: : DEC 2898 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:

TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 2898 CONTRACTS

ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE GAINED THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A FAIR TOTAL OF 2491 CONTRACTS IN THAT 2898 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A SMALL SIZED LOSS OF 407 COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.65//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 SMALL 664 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 (38,124) ( 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: 38.440 TONNES (INCLUDING .6842 EXCHANGE FOR RISK)

THE SPECS/HFT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT GAINED $0.65) //// AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE HAD A FAIR GAIN OF 2491 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE HAD SOME 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 7.748 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 31,400 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING ADVANCES QUITE A BIT TO 37.440 TONNES + .6842 (PRIOR EXCHANGE FOR RISK) //NEW TOTAL 38.124 TONNES // ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $0.65.

WE HAD – REMOVED 1376 CONTRACTS TO THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST

NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 2491 CONTRACTS OR 249,100 OZ OR 7.748 TONNES.

Estimated gold volume today:// 163,899 awful

final gold volumes/yesterday 147,225 awful//speculators have left the gold arena

//AUGUST 25/ FOR THE AUGUST 2023 GOLD CONTRACT

Gold	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory in oz*	nil
Withdrawals from Customer* Inventory in oz*	12,603.309 OZ Manfra 392 KILOBARS .
Deposit to the Dealer* Inventory in oz*	nil
Deposits to the Customer* Inventory, in oz*	nil
No of oz served (contracts) today	314 notice(s) 31,400 OZ 0.9766 TONNES
No of oz to be served (notices)	164 contracts 16,400 oz 0.510 TONNES
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month	11,873 notices 1,187,300 OZ 36,9300 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 Manfra 12,603.309 oz (392 kilobars)

total withdrawals 12,603.309 oz

Adjustments; dealer to customer: 96,549.453 oz (3003 kilobars)

CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR AUGUST.

For the front month of AUGUST we have an oi of 478 contracts having LOST 5 contracts. We had 319 contracts filed

on Thursday, so we gained 314 contracts or an additional 31400 oz will stand at the comex,

Sept GAINED 517 contracts to 4030.

Oct GAINED 595 contracts to 32,599 contracts.

We had 314 contracts filed for today representing 31400 oz

Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer account and 0 notices were issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 314 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 (11,873 x 100 oz ), to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of AUGUST (438 CONTRACT) minus the number of notices served upon today 314 x 100 oz per contract equals 1,203,700 OZ OR 37.440 TONNES the number of TONNES standing in this active month of AUGUST. + .684 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK/prior = 38.124 tonnes

thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the AUGUST contract month: No of notices filed so far (11,873) x 100 oz + (438) {OI for the front month} minus the number of notices served upon today (314) x 100 oz) which equals 1,203,700 oz standing OR 37.440 TONNES + .684 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK/prior = 38.124 TONNES

TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING: 38.124 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: 2,071,097.121 OZ 64.41 tonnes

TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED: 21,608,596.142 OZ

TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD: 10,907,962,556 (339.28 tonnes)..

TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 10,700,633.586 OZ

REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 8,836,865 OZ (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD) 274.86 tonnes//dropping like a stone

END

SILVER/COMEX

AUGUST 25

//2023// THE AUGUST 2023 SILVER CONTRACT

Silver	Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers* Inventory*	NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory	938,933.795 oz Brinks CNT Delaware HSBC Loomis .
Deposits to the Dealer* Inventory*	577,377.460 oz Brinks
Deposits to the Customer Inventory	nil
No of oz served today (contracts)	1 CONTRACT(S) (5,000 OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)	0 contracts (NIL oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)	952 Contracts (4,760,000 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: 1

i) Into Brinks: 577,377.460 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/276.160 million =50.36% of comex .//

Comex withdrawals 5

i) Out of Brinks 128,911.500 oz

ii) Out of CNT: 5028.210 oz

iii) Out of Delaware 4057.025 oz

iv) Out of HSBC 600,692.440 oz

v) Out of Loomis 200,244.600 oz

total: 938,933.795 oz

adjustments: 1 and a doozy: JPMorgan customer to dealer; 7,419,135.200 oz

TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 35.601 MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 276.160 million oz

CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR JULY:

silver open interest data:

FRONT MONTH OF AUGUST /2023 OI: 1 CONTRACTS HAVING GAINED 1 CONTRACT(S). WE HAD

0 NOTICES FILED ON THURSDAY SO WE GAINED 1 CONTRACT OR AN ADDITIONAL 5,000 OZ WILL STAND IN THIS NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF AUGUST.

SEPT HAS A LOSS OF 11,363 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 27,720

OCT GAINED 26 CONTRACT TO STAND AT 638.

TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 1 for 5,000 oz

Comex volumes// est. volume today 85,357 very strong

Comex volume: confirmed yesterday: 110,309 huge

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 952 x 5,000 oz = 4,760,000 oz

to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of AUGUST (1) and the number of notices served upon today 1x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.

Thus the standings for silver for the AUGUST/2023 contract month: 952 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of AUGUST (1) – number of notices served upon today (1 )x 500 oz of silver standing for the AUGUST contract month equates to 4.760 million oz.+ 0.0 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUED TODAY+ 8.80 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK PRIOR//NEW TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK: 8.88 MILLION OZ//NEW SILVER STANDING: 13.64 MILLION oz.

There are 35.601 million oz of registered silver.

Thus if we take today’s standing at 13.64 and add last month’s 30.9 million oz we have 44.540 million oz against only 35.601 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 25/WITH GOLD DOWN $6.05 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF .87 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 884.04 TONNES

AUGUST 24/WITH GOLD UP $0.65 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD //INVENTORY RESTS AT 884.91 TONNES

AUGUST 23/WITH GOLD UP $21.35 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.32 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 884.91 TONNES

AUGUST 22/WITH GOLD UP $2.95 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.87 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 889.23 TONNES

AUGUST 21/WITH GOLD UP $7.15 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 2.60 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: //: /// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 890.10 TONNES

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

GLD INVENTORY: 884.04 TONNES

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

AUGUST 25/WITH SILVER UP ONE CENT TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.751 MILLION OZ OZ FROM THE SLV// /.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 446.145 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 24/WITH SILVER DOWN 16 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.651 MILLION OZ OZ FROM THE SLV// /.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 448.896 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 23/WITH SILVER UP 94 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 826,000 OZ FROM THE SLV// /.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 450.547 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 22/WITH SILVER UP 12 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: /.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.373 MILLION OZ

AUGUST 21/WITH SILVER UP 59 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 917,0000 OZ FROM THE SLV//.////INVENTORY RESTS AT 451.373 MILLION OZ

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/

CLOSING INVENTORY 446.145 MILLION OZ//

PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES

1:Peter Schiff/Mike Maharrey

Good commentary from Mike Maharrey on credit card debt

(Mike Maharrey)

More Americans Are Having A Hard Time Paying Their Big Credit Card Bills

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 07:20 AM

Authored by Michael Maharrey via SchiffGold.com,

Since price inflation took off in the wake of pandemic-era stimulus, Americans have blown through their savings and run up their credit cards to make ends meet. Now they’re starting to have a hard time paying those credit card bills.

The number of Americans rolling credit card debt from month to month is now higher than the number of people paying their bills in full for the first time ever.

Americans are buried under more than $1 trillion in credit card debt. Credit card balances increased by $45 billion between April and June alone. Meanwhile, credit card interest rates have climbed to 20.6%. With both balances and interest expenses rising, more and more people are struggling to pay the bills.

According to a JD Power survey, 51% of US credit cardholders now carry revolving debt. To put that into perspective, from 2018 to 2022, the percentage of those rolling over balances ranged from 40% to 50%.

The average balance on a credit card was $2,573 in June. That represents a 6.5% increase from a year ago.

What we have not seen in the past is there are more revolvers than transactors,” JD Power managing director of payments intelligence John Cabell told Yahoo Finance. “It’s inflation, it’s savings dwindling, we’re also seeing rising interest rates, which makes it harder to pay off that balance because it’s getting bigger.”

The rising number of delinquent accounts also indicates people are having a hard time keeping up with credit card payments. The number of accounts past due by one cycle has increased 42.6% over the last two years. Delinquencies have crept up to the highest level since 2017.

The pandemic-era savings cushions are gone, the economy is shaky and consumers are leaning more heavily than ever on their credit cards to cover day-to-day expenses,” Cabell said. “Consumers are using their cards for a lot of everyday purchases. Grocery shopping is the lead purchase type that consumers say they are making.”

This raises an important question: what happens when consumers max out their credit cards?

There is some indication we may be close to that point.

In June, credit card spending suddenly fell off a cliff. According to the latest Federal Reserve data, revolving credit, primarily reflecting credit card debt, shrank by $600 million in June, a -0.6% decrease.

The big drop in credit card spending isn’t good news for the US economy. An ING economist called declining credit card spending “a troubling sign” given that consumer spending makes up two-thirds of the US economy.

With savings exhausted and credit cards maxed out, consumers have little choice but to stop spending.

This undercuts the notion that the Fed can slay price inflation while simultaneously bringing the economy to a “soft landing.”

The bottom line is that Americans turned to credit cards because they didn’t have any other way to make ends meet. People don’t run up their Visa balance month after month to buy groceries when they are in “very strong” financial shape.

The stimulus checks are long gone. Savings are being depleted. The average person had no choice but to pull out the plastic if they wanted to maintain their standard of living. Of course, this wasn’t a sustainable trajectory. A credit card has this inconvenient thing called a limit. We might be close to hitting it.

end

Ron Paul and Schiff gold on the growing national debt

(Ron Paul/SchiffGold)

Ron Paul: Growing National Debt Menaces Our Prosperity & Our Liberty

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 06:30 AM

Via SchiffGold.com,

The national debt has climbed to a staggering $32.7 trillion. In just the first two months after Congress reached a deal and suspended the debt ceiling for two years, the national debt surged by $1.2 trillion.

And there is no end in sight.

The US government continues to run massive deficits month after month. In fact, the federal government is running budget shortfalls you would expect to see during a deep recession. With two months left, the fiscal 2023 budget deficit has already eclipsed the massive 2022 shortfall.

You might be thinking that with the spending cuts in the Fiscal Responsibility Act, Congress fixed this problem. But we live in an upside-down world where spending cuts mean spending keeps going up.

And we are on the cusp of another budget battle that will almost certainly mean even more spending coming down the pike.

Most people just shrug at these numbers, but as Ron Paul explains, the growing debt menaces both our prosperity and our liberty.

The following was originally published by the Ron Paul Institute. The opinions expressed are Ron Paul’s and do not necessarily reflect those of Peter Schiff or SchiffGold.

Congress’ top priority this fall will be passing legislation funding the government and avoiding a “shutdown.” As of this writing, it appears unlikely that the Republican-controlled House will be able to make a deal with President Biden and the Senate Democrats on a long-term spending bill. Instead, they will likely pass a short-term funding bill to give themselves more time to reach an agreement on a longer-term bill.

Any bipartisan agreement is unlikely to reduce government spending or begin to pay down, or stop the growth of, the over $32 trillion national debt, which the Congressional Budget Office projects will grow by at least $115 trillion over the next thirty years. Instead, Congress and the administration will continue to pretend they are addressing the spending problem by “reducing the projected rate of spending growth,” and other gimmicks.

The sad fact is both parties, along with a majority of the American people, are addicted to welfare-warfare spending. What little resistance there is to big government within the Republican party is likely to be further weakened by the rise of a new form of “conservatism” that advocates the use of government power—including deficit spending and increasing the federal debt — to advance conservative political and social goals.

The failure to take seriously the threat to the American economy caused by reckless federal spending is illustrated by the reactions to the credit rating agency Fitch’s downgrade of the US government’s credit rating. Instead of treating it as a wake-up call, government officials like current Treasury Secretary (and former Federal Reserve Chair) Janet Yellen dismissed the downgrade as “arbitrary and based on outdated data.”

One reason Yellen and others may be so blasé about the federal debt is that they believe the Federal Reserve will bail the government out by holding interest rates low enough to keep the federal government’s interest payments to manageable levels.

This is why, even though the Fed has been raising interest rates, the rates remain well below what they would likely be in a free market. However, the Fed knows it cannot go back to keeping rates at or below zero without causing price inflation.

Therefore the Fed will likely continue to raise rates for the next several months. The Fed will likely pause its rate increase next year in the hope of boosting economic activity to help President Biden’s reelection campaign. Former President Trump gave Powell an additional incentive to keep rates low next year by promising not to re-appoint him if he returns to the Oval Office.

Despite the Fed’s repeated interest rate increases, Americans are paying an average of $709 more per month for basic living expenses than they were two years ago. This is why credit card debt is over one trillion dollars. Adding more in private and public debt will increase pressure on the Fed to “do the impossible” – keep interest rates relatively low without creating price inflation. Eventually, the Fed-created debt-based economy will collapse as the dollar loses its reserve currency status. This will increase political divisions and may even lead to political violence.

Those of us who know the truth must make preparations to ensure the safety of ourselves and our loved ones and do all we can to spread the ideas of liberty. Creating a critical mass of people to reject the false promises of the welfare-warfare state is the only way to regain liberty without first suffering political and economic upheaval.

end

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

JOHN RUBINO..

The big news: Saudi Arabia and UAE joining the BRICS. This would kill the dollar

(John Rubino)

BRICS Summit Ends With a Bang — And a Tease

Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Iran join the bloc. So much for the Petrodollar

JOHN RUBINOAUG 24

READ IN APP

In a nice bit of misdirection, the BRICS countries distracted the West with hints of a “gold-backed currency” at their August 22 – 24 meeting. Then, while everyone was looking over there, they did something potentially even bigger by admitting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as members, with Iran, Argentina, Egypt, and Ethiopia scheduled for the following year.

Along the way, they of course threatened to bypass the dollar by cutting more bi-lateral trade deals:

“The objective, irreversible process of de-dollarization of our economic ties is gaining momentum, and efforts are being made to work out effective mechanisms for mutual settlements and monetary and financial control,” Putin said. “As a result, the share of the dollar in export-import transactions within the BRICS is declining: last year it amounted to only 28.7 percent.”

The former president of Nigeria reportedly got a standing ovation for this:

I want to buy from India. Why should I use dollars? It’s a payment and settlement system that will allow me to buy whatever I want to buy in India, whatever I want to buy in Brazil, without looking for dollars.

And they tossed off another currency tease:

“The creation of a currency for commercial transactions and investments between BRICS members improves our payment conditions and reduces our vulnerabilities,” said Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has been the most vocal proponent of the common currency project among the five leaders.

Going forward, the one BRICS certainty is that the world’s second and third-largest oil producers (Saudi Arabia and Russia) will be operating at least partially outside the dollar-centric financial system and within an aspirationally dollar-free system.

In purchasing power parity terms, the BRICS now account for a bigger share of global GDP than the G7 countries.

Geographically, they control a big part of the total landmass:

They also represent a significant share of the world’s population (led by people who are, for now, mostly unfamiliar to Westerners):

Meanwhile, the 2024 BRICS chairmanship will pass to Russia, which guarantees a lot of trash-talk before, during, and after the next meeting.

International bank ING was quick to post an analysis of the “Saudi surprise”. Here’s an excerpt:

BRICS expansion: The Saudi surprise adds momentum to the de-dollarisation debate

The big surprise from the BRICS summit in South Africa is that Saudi Arabia has been invited to join the group of major emerging countries. And that’s adding fresh impetus to the de-dollarisation debate, which is a potential challenge to the dominance of the US dollar in global trade

Accelerated expansion

We knew that the expansion of the BRICS grouping was top of the agenda at this 15th BRICS summit in South Africa. We had thought that the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Bangladesh would be invited to join given they were already part of the BRICS’s New Development Bank. In the end, it was not only the UAE and Egypt invited to join, but also Saudi Arabia, Iran, Argentina and Ethiopia.

The biggest surprise is Saudi Arabia. It had been rumoured that the country wanted to enter the group, but the geo-political situation – given tense relations with the West – raised doubts about whether Saudi Arabia would formalise political and economic ties with the BRICS.

Together with fellow oil and gas exporters Iran and the UAE, the admission of Saudi Arabia to the BRICS grouping will inevitably focus debate on the use of non-dollar currencies in trade. As an aside, at this conference, Brazil proposed to Argentina that Brazil would guarantee Argentine payments for Brazilian exports in renminbi. This is perhaps a reflection of Argentina’s ability to tap renminbi swap lines and expose the scarcity of dollars. Additionally, Argentina remains in dire financial straits as it struggles to source hard currency to service largely dollar-denominated debt.

Saudi switch to non-dollar invoicing?

The recently-announced news that a handful of countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran have been invited to join BRICS increases the energy dominance of the group, specifically when it comes to crude oil. As it stands, BRICS members make up around 20% of global oil output. The addition of Saudi, the UAE and Iran would see the BRICS group make up almost 42% of global crude oil output.

As for Saudi Arabia, it is the largest crude oil exporter. In 2022, the Kingdom exported around 7.3m b/d of crude oil, which makes up a little more than 17% of global crude oil exports. The bulk of these exports (76%) go to Asia, of which 35% go to BRICS members China and India.

Therefore, given the ambitions of the BRICS to de-dollarise, there certainly will be increased speculation that this latest move could see Saudi Arabia increasingly switching to non-dollar-denominated currencies for oil trade. To some, it might make sense that Saudi Arabia starts accepting the Chinese yuan and Indian rupee from China and India for its crude oil. And there has been plenty of noise and reportedly discussions between Saudi Arabia and China on the matter. However, up until now, it does not appear as though the Saudis have been willing. The fact that the Saudi riyal is pegged to the US dollar might mean that the Saudis are reluctant to start making the shift.

However, where we have seen a shift is obviously in relation to Iran. Given sanctions, any buyers of its crude will be paying in non-dollar currencies. China is the largest buyer of Iranian oil at the moment and is reportedly paying in yuan.

Some thoughts

None of this should come as a surprise. Numerous mistakes by the West — led by the US — have led countries with half the global population and 40+% of GDP to want out of the current system. Our two biggest mistakes are:

Accumulating insane amounts of debt that can only be resolved through a brutal financial crisis and global currency reset. What sane developing country would volunteer for such a thing?
Weaponizing the world’s reserve currency and related systems to the point that emerging nations see themselves as either current or future victims of US predation. Again, who wants to sit around waiting for the inevitable sanctions/asset theft/CIA coup?

The BRICS are, in short, a threat made in the USA. But today it went global.

END

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

Why the dollar scheme ends and the new BRICS currency will begin shortly.

(Ambrose Evans Pritchard)

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: The BRICs currency ignores the traumatic lessons of the half-baked euro

Submitted by admin on Thu, 2023-08-24 19:45Section: Daily Dispatches

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
The Telegraph, London
Thursday, August 24, 2023

Dollar hegemony has become a curse for the global economy. It serves the interests of no country, least of all the United States itself.

The frenetic monetary lurches of the U.S. Federal Reserve are transmitted worldwide in disruptive cycles of dollar liquidity, and amplified through the $12 trillion market for offshore dollar loans and a vast nexus of debt contracts linked to U.S. borrowing costs.

When the Fed giveth by means of zero rates and money creation (QE), it floods the international system with cheap funding and sets off destabilising credit booms.

When the Fed taketh by driving real rates through the roof and destroying money (QT), it drains global liquidity and tortures dollar debtors everywhere. It overwhelms other central banks trying to navigate the reefs — even in Europe or China — and imposes a de-facto monetary policy on countries whether they want it or not.

The effects can be violently pro-cyclical and malign. Ultimately it “blows back” into the U.S. economy. That is the risk we face now as the Fed pushes half the world into a credit crunch by the most aggressive monetary tightening in 40 years.

We badly need other currencies to step up to the plate. None is fit for purpose. As the saying goes, Europe is a museum; Japan is a nursing home; and China is a prison. …

… For the remainder of the analysis:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/08/24/brics-currency-ignores-traumatic-lessons-half-baked-euro/

END

Another metal trader gets dinged with rocks instead of nickel

(Bloomberg)

Another metals trader says it has been hit by a nickel fraud

Submitted by admin on Thu, 2023-08-24 10:27Section: Daily Dispatches

By Archie Hunter, Alfred Cang, and Jonathan Browning
Bloomberg News
Thursday, August 24, 2023

Another trading house has been stung after buying a cargo supposedly containing nickel that turned out to be full of near-worthless rubble.

The latest example, detailed in lawsuits in London and Singapore, is separate from the $600 million alleged fraud against Trafigura Group that shocked the trading industry earlier this year, but it involves several of the same companies.

The revelation that the problem of non-existent nickel is more widespread will be another blow to confidence in the scandal-prone metals trading industry.

The Trafigura case has spawned several lawsuits, while in March the London Metal Exchange discovered that 54 tons of “nickel” held at a warehouse in Rotterdam and owned by JPMorgan Chase & Co. was actually just bags of stones. …

… For the remainder of the report:

https://tinyurl.com/ycykvnak

END

4, OTHER IMPORTANT GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES

Live from the vault: Episode 137

No Coincidence – Indonesian VP Endorses Sharia Gold Launch During BRICS Summit

Episode 137

1 day ago

No Coincidence – Indonesian VP Endorses Sharia Gold Launch During BRICS Summit

In this week’s episode of Live from the Vault, Andrew Maguire covers the latest developments on the intensifying paper versus physical battle and the ongoing central bank gold-buying sprees as Kinesis powers gold adoption in Indonesia.

The precious metals expert and whistleblower provides an update for silver stackers before revealing the global ramifications of the BRICS summit and their upcoming commodity-backed currency poised to compete with the US dollar.

END

5 a. IMPORTANT COMMENTARIES ON COMMODITIES:

end

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

END

6.CRYPTOCURRENCY//DIGITAL CURRENCY// COMMENTARIES/

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 7.2828

OFFSHORE YUAN: UP TO 7.2928

SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 18.17 PTS OR 0.59%

HANG SENG CLOSED DOWN 255.79 PTS OR 1.40%

2. Nikkei closed DOWN 662.93 OR 2.05%

3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL GREEN

USA dollar INDEX UP TO 103.98 EURO RISES TO 1.0803 UP 5 BASIS PTS

3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +.650 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 146.01/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 DOWN 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 UP TO +2.5619***/Italian 10 Yr bond yield UP to 4.235*** /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD RISES TO 3.590…**

3i Greek 10 year bond yield RISES TO 3.842

3j Gold at $1918.60 silver at: 24.22 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00

3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble DOWN 0 AND 22 /100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 94.65//

3m oil into the 80 dollar handle for WTI and 84 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 146.01// 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 0.650% 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 0.8856 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF 0.9568well 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: 4.252 UP 2 BASIS PTS…

USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.313 UP 2 BASIS PTS/

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 5.031 UP 3 BASIS PTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 26.46…(TURKEY SET TO BLOW UP FINANCIALLY)

GREAT BRITAIN/10 YEAR YIELD: UP 8 BASIS PTS AT 4.511

end

2.a Overnight: Newsquawk and Zero hedge:

Futures Climb Tentatively Ahead Of Powell’s J-Hole Speech

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 08:12 AM

Futures are slightly higher ahead of today’s Jackson Hole main event, with tech flat following yesterday’s violent Nvidia “sell the news” dump even as yields ticked modestly higher again. At 8:00 am, S&P futures were higher by 0.3% on the day, trading just around 4,400 and paring a portion of Thursday’s session losses while Nasdaq 100 futures are flat after the index sank more than 2% yesterday. Europe’s Stoxx 50 rises 0.6%, extending its first weekly advance in four as commodity shares led gains as oil and iron ore prices climbed; Asian equities slumped Friday, paring their first weekly gain since July, as Chinese stocks slid and technology shares were sold off. Quality is leading, Growth is lagging; Cyclicals flat vs. Defensives.

Powell kicks off 10:05 am ET and this year’s theme “structural changes in the global economy” appears to have roiled bond markets with some thinking >5% Fed Funds is the new normal or perhaps a higher inflation target. The bond market reaction may result in lower yields as we turn the page to Sept as JPM does not think Powell tips his hand on future policy at this event. Treasury yields ticked higher, with two-year notes holding above 5%. The dollar was little changed; commodities are mixed with Energy leading and metals lagging.

In premarket trading, Digital World Acquisition Corp. the special-purpose acquisition company that’s seeking to take Donald Trump’s media company public, falls 4.4% after the former President posted his own mug shot in a return to Elon Musk’s X. Affirm Holdings jumped 7.5% after fourth-quarter revenue at the financial technology company beat expectations, helped by an increase in transactions on its platforms. Here are some other notable premarket movers:

Ardelyx rises 2.8% after the biotech was upgraded to overweight from neutral at Cantor Fitzgerald, saying that the Street is underappreciating the peak sales potential of Xphozah, Ardelyx’s flagship drug.
Clarivate Plc dips 1.8% after RBC Capital Markets downgraded the information services company to sector perform from outperform.
Domo (DOMO) tumbles 33% after the application software company cut its full-year forecast. Cowen cut its rating on the firm in the wake of the report, citing the significantly lower guidance.
Hawaiian Electric (HE) sinks 21% as the utility’s woes deepened following the wildfires in Maui, suspending its dividend while S&P cut its credit rating.
Marvell Technology (MRVL) falls 3.1% after the semiconductor company gave a forecast for the current quarter that was largely line with Wall Street estimates. Analysts noted that its AI business was continuing to grow while KeyBanc said its networking and consumer segments were still weak.
Olaplex (OLPX) drops 5.0% as Piper Sandler cuts its recommendation on the hair-care company to underweight from neutral, citing margin pressures.

Equities have struggled for direction this week, gaining strongly one day only to wipe out the advance the next, as the focus swung from Nvidia earnings to the trajectory of interest rates. As previewed yesterday, Powell, who is scheduled to deliver a speech at 10:05 a.m. Washington time, will likely outline how officials will assess whether rates should go higher and determine when it’s time to start cutting them.

“There could be another phase of uncertainty and a broad-based selloff is possible depending on the magnitude of the hawkishness” at Jackson Hole, said Carlos von Hardenberg, portfolio manager at Mobius Capital Partners. “But the market is differentiating relatively radically between companies that are in the pole position to show very strong earnings growth in the near and medium term.”

The effects of higher-for-longer interest rates will overshadow the buzz around artificial intelligence, spelling trouble for tech stocks, according to Bank of America Corp. strategists. On Thursday, even a blowout sales forecast from Nvidia wasn’t enough to stem the Nasdaq 100’s slump amid a rise in bond yields.

Elsewhere, China eased its mortgage policies further in a push to support its economy, although the boost to stocks on the mainland from the news proved to last just a few minutes.

Europe’s Stoxx 600 is up 0.3% and set to log its first weekly rise in four. Mining, retail and energy stocks are leading gains while health care creates a drag. Here are the biggest European movers:

Tesco shares gain as much as 1.9%, among the top performers in the FTSE 100 Index, after Barclays lifted its price target on the UK grocer and said there’s scope for a guidance boost.
JCDecaux shares gain as much as 4.5%, the most since May, after Deutsche Bank raises the advertising company to buy from hold, saying risks related to the firm’s China exposure may have been priced in.
Aston Martin shares rise as much as 5.7% after Jefferies raised its recommendation on the luxury sports carmaker to buy from hold, saying it sees scope for the company to build on the re-positioning begun by Chairman Lawrence Stroll.
European tech stocks miss out on any artificial intelligence buzz generated by Nvidia’s blowout sales forecasts, as they languish on the fringes of the global AI race.
Watches of Switzerland plunges as much as 29%, the most on record, after Rolex said it plans to buy luxury retailer Bucherer.
CMC Markets shares drop as much as 20% at the open to their lowest level in nearly four years after the online trading platform said in a trading update that its annual net operating income would be lower than last year due to “subdued” market conditions.

Earlier in the session, Asian equities slumped paring their first weekly gain since July, as Chinese stocks slid and technology shares were sold off on risk aversion ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined as much as 1.2%, trimming its advance for the week to 0.6%, with chipmakers TSMC and Samsung among the biggest drags. A gauge off Chinese technology stocks in Hong Kong slumped more than 2% after Meituan warned of slower orders, while NetEase dropped on a revenue miss as the widespread tech selling clouded over their earnings results, while losses in the mainland were limited following a firm liquidity injection by the PBoC and after the securities regulator met with financial industry firms and urged longer-term funds to help steady the stock market.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by as much as 2% after it gapped below 32,000 with tech stocks hit by the broad sector recoil.
ASX 200 was pressured by heavy losses in tech and the commodity sectors, while consumer stocks showed some resilience after stronger earnings from Wesfarmers.
Indian markets closed at their lowest level since June 30 on Friday, marking their fifth straight week of losses, on broad risk aversion ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech. The S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.6% to 64,886.51 in Mumbai, while the NSE Nifty 50 Index declined by the same magnitude.

Risk appetite in Asia remains fragile amid concerns on China’s economy and expectations of higher-for-longer US interest rates. After a tech-led rally Thursday on Nvidia’s strong results, investor attention has shifted to the Jackson Hole Symposium where Powell’s speech may provide clues on the Fed’s policy path.

In FX, the greenback is supported with the Dollar Index rising 0.2% to its highest since the start of June.

The euro extends recent losses and heads for its sixth weekly decline. EUR/USD drops as much as 0.4% to 1.0766, breaches 200-DMA support on an intraday basis; technically, there is little support until 1.0635, the May lows
USD/JPY pares a 0.3% advance to trade 0.1% higher on the day at 146.04; the pair heads for its fourth weekly advance for the first time since Feb.
GBP/USD down 0.3% to 1.2560, lowest since June 13; the pound was sold for dollars by momentum funds as concerns of a hawkish Powell spurred broad greenback strength, according to traders

In rates, treasuries were slightly cheaper across the curve, following losses seen in core European rates over the early London session. 10-year TSY yields are around 4.245%, cheaper by 1bp on the day with bunds and gilts lagging by additional 3bp and 1.5bp in the sector; belly slightly lags on the Treasuries curve, flattening 5s30s spread by 1.2bp vs. Thursday close. Treasury futures are near lows of the day, adding to losses seen Thursday although price action broadly remains within Wednesday’s session range. US session focus is on Jackson Hole economic policy symposium, where Fed Chair Powell is expected to speak at 10:05am New York. Investors will be focused on Fed speakers at Jackson Hole and the FOMC’s view on the long-term neutral interest rate, which has been in focus extensively this week

In commodities, iron ore was set for its biggest weekly gain since June ahead of China’s traditional peak season for construction activity from next month. Oil trimmed a weekly loss.

Bitcoin is contained in narrow parameters with specific catalysts light as we await Central Bank impetus from the ECB and Fed. JPM sees limited downside for crypto markets in the near term, via CoinDesk.

To the day ahead now, and there are several central bank speakers today, including Fed Chair Powell, the Fed’s Harker, Mester and Goolsbee, along with ECB President Lagarde. Data releases include the Germany’s Ifo business climate indicator for August, and in the US we’ll get the University of Michigan’s final consumer sentiment index for August.

Market Snapshot

S&P 500 futures up 0.2% to 4,396.25
STOXX Europe 600 up 0.3% to 452.93
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.55%
Euro down 0.3% to $1.0782
MXAP down 1.3% to 158.38
MXAPJ down 1.2% to 498.03
Nikkei down 2.1% to 31,624.28
Topix down 0.9% to 2,266.40
Hang Seng Index down 1.4% to 17,956.38
Shanghai Composite down 0.6% to 3,064.08
Sensex down 0.4% to 64,978.04
Australia S&P/ASX 200 down 0.9% to 7,115.18
Kospi down 0.7% to 2,519.14
Brent Futures up 1.1% to $84.27/bbl
Gold spot down 0.2% to $1,913.99
U.S. Dollar Index up 0.20% to 104.20

Top Overnight News from Bloomberg

An abstract interest-rate metric is dominating discussions across trading desks ahead of the Jackson Hole symposium, with investors wondering if Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will weigh in, and bracing for further declines in US Treasuries if he does.
European Central Bank Governing Council member Joachim Nagel said that he’s not convinced inflation is under control enough for a halt in interest rate hikes, with his decision hinging on additional data in the coming weeks.
Business confidence in Germany took another hit in August, despite the economy just exiting a recession in the second quarter.
The yen has eclipsed bond market liquidity as a potential catalyst for a further adjustment to the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy.
American politicians are keener than ever to juice the economy with government cash, a shift that’s already helping to drive up borrowing costs and looks likely to keep them high long after the inflation emergency is over.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks traded lower following the weak handover from global counterparts after the Nvidia-related euphoria wore off and with markets bracing for Fed Chair Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole. ASX 200 was pressured by heavy losses in tech and the commodity sectors, while consumer stocks showed some resilience after stronger earnings from Wesfarmers. Nikkei 225 fell by as much as 2% after it gapped below 32,000 with tech stocks hit by the broad sector recoil. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp declined with NetEase and Meituan among the worst performers in Hong Kong as the widespread tech selling clouded over their earnings results, while losses in the mainland were limited following a firm liquidity injection by the PBoC and after the securities regulator met with financial industry firms and urged longer-term funds to help steady the stock market.

Top Asian News

PBoC was said to ask some banks to limit southbound bond connect investments with the guidance said to be aimed at outflows and limiting yuan offshore supply, according to Reuters sources.
China reportedly plans to cut stamp duty on domestic stock trading by up to 50%, via Reuters citing sources; could be announced as soon as Friday.
China is issuing nationwide guidance on the easing of mortgage rules; issuing detailed rules for conditions to qualify for first-home mortgage rates.
Reuters polls shows 55% of economists say the BoJ will not start unwinding ultra-easy policy until at least July 2024, while 73% of economists think BoJ will end YCC control in 2024 (prev. 50%) and 41% expect BoJ to end NIRP in 2024 (prev. 54%)

European bourses are modestly firmer, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.4%, with the overall tone a tentative one ahead of Jackson Hole. Limited equity reaction was seen to German Ifo, GDP revisions or an ECB sources piece that had a dovish headline message. Sectors are primarily in the green with outperformance in Energy and Basic Resources while Health Care languishes in the red. Stateside, futures are more contained than their above peers but retain a similar positive skew, ES +0.2% as attention turns to Chair Powell.

Top European News

ECB’s Nagel it is much too early to think about a rate-hike pause, while he stated they have to be stubborn on policy and more stubborn than inflation, according to an interview with Bloomberg TV.
ECB’s Vujcic said the Eurozone economy is basically stagnating and inflation has most likely peaked, while he added that it is to be seen whether rates are restrictive enough, according to an interview on Bloomberg TV.
Momentum is growing for a pause in ECB rate hikes as recession fears increase, debate still open, via Reuters citing sources; Policymakers agree that any decision to pause would need to make clear the job is not done and future hikes could still be needed. Several of the sources said they saw chances evenly split between hike/pause, smaller number saw a pause as more likely. Re. August Flash PMIs, several policymakers cautioned against reading too much into such surveys as there is a growing gap between hard data and sentiment readings. All sources agreed that even in the scenario of a pause, ECB would need to make clear its job was not done and more policy tightening could still be needed. Those arguing for tightening want solid evidence that inflation is heading back to target without the risk of getting stuck above 2%, say a meaningful decline in underlying inflation would be needed for a pause.
UK Ofgem Energy Price Cap (GBP): 1923 (prev. 2074), -7.3% for dual-fuel households, for the October-December. The first time the average energy bill has gone below 2k since April 2022.

Greenback elevated before Fed Chair Powell emerges from Jackson Hole with the DXY holding above 104.000.
Euro lags after losing 200 DMA and 1.0800+ status vs Dollar even before dovish-leaning ECB sources and downbeat German Ifo survey.
Yen back below 146.00 as yields remain lofty and Tokyo CPI metrics come in mostly softer than expected.
Kiwi faces stronger AUD/NZD headwinds as Aussie derives support from base metals.
NZD/USD towards the bottom of the 0.5928-0.5895 range and AUD/USD vice-versa between 0.6427-03 parameters.
Pound flounders sub-1.2600 against Buck irrespective of improvement in UK consumer confidence per GfK.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1883 vs exp. 7.2923 (prev. 7.1886)

Fixed Income

Deeper retreat in debt before Fed Chair Powell and ECB President Lagarde deliver remarks at the JH symposium.
Bunds back down towards 132.20 low from 132.57 peak set post-ECB sources and Ifo survey.
Gilts and T-note both depressed within 94.48-24 and 109-20/12+ respective ranges.
BTPs remain under par and sub-115.00 in the wake of a mixed 2-year Italian auction.

Commodities

Crude benchmarks are trending higher despite the modest USD upside and tentative tone overall, action which comes in relatively limited specific fundamentals as we await developments around Australian LNG.
Currently, the benchmarks are towards session highs with WTI Oct’23 above USD 80.00/bbl and Brent Oct’23 around USD 84.50/bbl.
Spot gold is little changed given the incrementally firmer USD and tentative tone overall while spot silver has resumed its advance with technicals assisting.
Base metals benefit from the latest support measures out of China, targeting the property sector.
Offshore Alliance members at Woodside Energy (WDS AT) endorsed the in-principle agreement.
Chevron (CVX) says it has not received any notice of intent to strike from Australian LNG unions.
China’s Industry Ministry said it aims to increase the output of 10 non-ferrous metals by 5% in 2023-2024 and will promote companies cooperating in overseas iron ore exploration, especially in neighbouring countries.
Trader sources cited by Reuters suggest rising prices of a popular Russian crude sold in China are set to peak soon as independent refiners are likely to switch to cheaper Iranian crude as Iran boosts exports to four-and-a-half-year highs.

Geopolitics

White House said US President Biden and Ukrainian President Zelensky discussed the start of training Ukrainian fighter pilots and the expedited approval of other nations to transfer their F-16s, according to Reuters.
Russian military said it intercepted a Ukrainian S-200 missile over Russian territory, while the Russian Defence Ministry said a Ukrainian attack on Crimea involving 42 drones was thwarted, according to Reuters and AFP.
Taiwan Defence Ministry said 13 Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s ‘response zone’ and 5 Chinese naval ships engaged in combat readiness patrols on Friday morning, according to Reuters.

US Event Calendar

10:00: Aug. U. of Mich. Sentiment, est. 71.2, prior 71.2
- Current Conditions, prior 77.4
- Expectations, prior 67.3
- 1 Yr Inflation, est. 3.3%, prior 3.3%
- 5-10 Yr Inflation, est. 2.9%, prior 2.9%
11:00: Aug. Kansas City Fed Services Activ, prior -1

Central Banks

10:05: Fed’s Powell Speaks at Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium
11:00: Fed’s Harker Interview With Bloomberg TV
11:30: Fed’s Mester Speaks on CNBC
11:30: Fed’s Harker Interview With Yahoo Finance Live
12:30: Fed’s Goolsbee Speaks on CNBC
14:00: Fed’s Goolsbee Speaks on Bloomberg TV
14:30: Fed’s Mester Speaks on Bloomberg TV

DB’s Henry Allen concludes the overnight wrap

Markets lost significant ground over the last 24 hours, with equities and bonds paring back Wednesday’s gains after strong data and comments from central bankers saw investors price in more rate hikes. That left the S&P 500 down -1.35%, whilst the NASDAQ fell by an even-larger -1.87%, despite the positive earnings release from Nvidia after the previous day’s close. One of the main catalysts for this were the US weekly jobless claims, which fell to 230k (vs. 240k expected) in the week ending August 19. That was beneath every economist’s expectation on Bloomberg, and the fact it hit a 3-week low created some optimism that the economy might not be as weak as the flash PMIs had suggested earlier in the week.

With the data still pointing in different directions, all attention today will now be on the gathering of central bankers at Jackson Hole for the annual economic symposium. This year’s theme is focusing on “Structural Shifts in the Global Economy”, and the big highlight today will be Fed Chair Powell’s speech at 15:05 London time, where we simply have the title “Economic Outlook”.

Recent years have seen Chair Powell use the conference to address important themes. Last year we had a fairly short and direct message on the importance of price stability, which left little doubt about the Fed’s resolve to get inflation back down. And back in 2021, there was a much more dovish message that leaned into the view that above-target inflation would prove temporary. According to our US economists, they don’t expect Powell to send strong signals this year about the near-term policy path. Their view is that the data dependence message at the last FOMC meeting was clear, and it’s too early to abandon that approach. But it’ll be interesting to see if we get any more insight into Powell’s inflation views, and whether he sticks to the view that getting inflation back to target will require economic weakness, including via a higher unemployment rate.

Ahead of Powell’s speech, there were some interesting developments in market pricing yesterday. In particular, futures now suggest that another Fed rate hike to the 5.5-5.75% range is more likely than not for the first time since SVB’s collapse, with the chance of another hike by the November meeting at 53% by the close, and up again to 55% this morning. Clearly we’ve got another jobs report and CPI print ahead of the next meeting, but the moves suggest that markets are coming round to the Fed’s most recent dot plot from June, which suggested there’d still be one more rate hike from here.

The prospect of another hike meant that Treasuries sold off again, and the 3m T-bill yield (+2.8bps) hit a fresh post-2001 high of 5.464%. There was also an increase in yields further out the curve, with the 2yr yield up +5.6bps to 5.02%, and the 10yr yield up +4.5bps to 4.24%. Not all officials seemed to agree with that, with Philadelphia Fed President Harker (a voter this year) saying that “I think that we’ve probably done enough”, and that “I’m in the camp of, let the restrictive stance work for a while, let’s just let this play out for a while, and that should bring inflation down”. On other hand, Boston Fed President Collins sounded more open to further hikes, commenting that “We may need additional increments, and we may be very near a place where we can hold for a substantial amount of time”.

That fresh rise in bond yields meant that the initial equity rally quickly petered out yesterday, and the S&P 500 was down -1.35% by the close, marking its worst day in over 3 weeks. Tech stocks led the moves lower, as the FANG+ Index fell by -3.04%. Nvidia had traded as much as +6.7% higher at the open after reporting very strong results after the previous day’s close, but gave up these gains to close up by a mere +0.10%. Earlier in the day, European equities saw more moderate losses, and the STOXX 600 (-0.41%) fell back after a run of 3 successive gains.

Speaking of Europe, market attention will also be on Jackson Hole this evening, since ECB President Lagarde is due to give a speech there at 20:00 London time. Since the flash PMIs on Wednesday, investors have become more sceptical that the ECB will keep hiking rates, with just a 32.5% chance of a September hike currently priced. The PMIs pointed to growing economic weakness, with the composite PMI for the Euro Area at its lowest level since November 2020, but Euro Area inflation still remains at more than double the ECB’s target, so there’s lots of points for all sides of the debate.

Similar to Powell in the US, our European economists do not expect Lagarde to give any strong near term signal, but are watchful of hints on how the ECB’s reaction function may evolve as it finds itself at or close to the terminal rate but seeks to avoid an easing in financial conditions. Ahead of Lagarde’s speech today, we heard from Centeno, one of the ECB doves, who said that “we have to be cautious (at the September meeting) because downside risks… have materialized”. This is one of the most dovish ECB comments of the summer though he added that “it was probably too soon to call it a done deal” when it comes to a September pause. On the other hand, Bundesbank President Nagel said that for him it was “much too early to think about a pause” European sovereign bonds were mostly steady yesterday, with yields on 10yr bunds (-0.5bps), OATs (-0.3bps) and BTPs (+0.7bps) seeing little movement in either direction.

Overnight in Asia, the equity declines have continued across the entire region. The Nikkei (-1.84%) is leading the moves, bringing an end to its run of 4 consecutive gains, while the Hang Seng (-1.03%), the KOSPI (-0.72%), the CSI (-0.49%) and Shanghai Composite (-0.45%) have also lost ground. Looking forward, US equity futures have stabilised overnight, with those on the S&P 500 (+0.06%) marginally higher after the previous day’s losses. Otherwise, the US Dollar has continued to strengthen ahead of Chair Powell’s speech, and the dollar index is now on track to close at its highest level since May 31, having risen for 6 consecutive weeks now.

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

EUROPE/ASIA.

Equities & USD modestly firmer with markets tentative pre-Jackson Hole – Newsquawk US Market Open

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 06:11 AM

European bourses and US futures are modestly firmer but the overall tone is tentative pre-Jackson Hole
USD is bid but rangebound pre-Powell while EUR lags after dovish-leaning ECB sources, AUD outperforms as base metals lift
Core benchmarks continue to pullback with Bunds entirely paring knee-jerk upside to sources
ECB sources report momentum is growing for a pause as recession fears increase, via Reuters
Crude benchmarks are grinding higher awaiting LNG updates while base metals derive upside from Chinese property support
Looking ahead, highlights include US UoM Survey. Jackson Hole: Fed’s Powell, Mester, Harker, Goolsbee & ECB’s Lagarde

More Newsquawk in 3 steps:

1. Subscribe to the free premarket movers reports

2. Listen to this report in the market open podcast (available on Apple and Spotify)

3. Trial Newsquawk’s premium real-time audio news squawk box for 7 days

EUROPEAN TRADE

EQUITIES

European bourses are modestly firmer, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.4%, with the overall tone a tentative one ahead of Jackson Hole.
Limited equity reaction was seen to German Ifo, GDP revisions or an ECB sources piece that had a dovish headline message.
Sectors are primarily in the green with outperformance in Energy and Basic Resources while Health Care languishes in the red.
Stateside, futures are more contained than their above peers but retain a similar positive skew, ES +0.2% as attention turns to Chair Powell.
Click here for more detail.
Click here and here for a recap of the main European equity updates.

FX

Greenback elevated before Fed Chair Powell emerges from Jackson Hole with the DXY holding above 104.000.
Euro lags after losing 200 DMA and 1.0800+ status vs Dollar even before dovish-leaning ECB sources and downbeat German Ifo survey.
Yen back below 146.00 as yields remain lofty and Tokyo CPI metrics come in mostly softer than expected.
Kiwi faces stronger AUD/NZD headwinds as Aussie derives support from base metals.
NZD/USD towards the bottom of the 0.5928-0.5895 range and AUD/USD vice-versa between 0.6427-03 parameters.
Pound flounders sub-1.2600 against Buck irrespective of improvement in UK consumer confidence per GfK.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1883 vs exp. 7.2923 (prev. 7.1886)
Click here for more detail.
Click here for the Option Expires for the NY Cut.

FIXED INCOME

Deeper retreat in debt before Fed Chair Powell and ECB President Lagarde deliver remarks at the JH symposium.
Bunds back down towards 132.20 low from 132.57 peak set post-ECB sources and Ifo survey.
Gilts and T-note both depressed within 94.48-24 and 109-20/12+ respective ranges.
BTPs remain under par and sub-115.00 in the wake of a mixed 2-year Italian auction.
Click here for more detail.

COMMODITIES

Crude benchmarks are trending higher despite the modest USD upside and tentative tone overall, action which comes in relatively limited specific fundamentals as we await developments around Australian LNG.
Currently, the benchmarks are towards session highs with WTI Oct’23 above USD 80.00/bbl and Brent Oct’23 around USD 84.50/bbl.
Spot gold is little changed given the incrementally firmer USD and tentative tone overall while spot silver has resumed its advance with technicals assisting.
Base metals benefit from the latest support measures out of China, targeting the property sector.
Offshore Alliance members at Woodside Energy (WDS AT) endorsed the in-principle agreement.
Chevron (CVX) says it has not received any notice of intent to strike from Australian LNG unions.
China’s Industry Ministry said it aims to increase the output of 10 non-ferrous metals by 5% in 2023-2024 and will promote companies cooperating in overseas iron ore exploration, especially in neighbouring countries.
Trader sources cited by Reuters suggest rising prices of a popular Russian crude sold in China are set to peak soon as independent refiners are likely to switch to cheaper Iranian crude as Iran boosts exports to four-and-a-half-year highs.
Click here for more detail.

NOTABLE US HEADLINES

Former US President Trump was booked on election subversion charges at the Fulton County, Georgia jail and was released on a USD 200k bond.
India is considering a new policy to reduce EV import taxes for companies also producing locally, according to Reuters sources; after Tesla (TSLA) pushed for a policy change.
Click here for the US Early Morning Note.

NOTABLE EUROPEAN HEADLINES

ECB’s Nagel it is much too early to think about a rate-hike pause, while he stated they have to be stubborn on policy and more stubborn than inflation, according to an interview with Bloomberg TV.
ECB’s Vujcic said the Eurozone economy is basically stagnating and inflation has most likely peaked, while he added that it is to be seen whether rates are restrictive enough, according to an interview on Bloomberg TV.
Momentum is growing for a pause in ECB rate hikes as recession fears increase, debate still open, via Reuters citing sources; Policymakers agree that any decision to pause would need to make clear the job is not done and future hikes could still be needed. Several of the sources said they saw chances evenly split between hike/pause, smaller number saw a pause as more likely. Re. August Flash PMIs, several policymakers cautioned against reading too much into such surveys as there is a growing gap between hard data and sentiment readings. All sources agreed that even in the scenario of a pause, ECB would need to make clear its job was not done and more policy tightening could still be needed. Those arguing for tightening want solid evidence that inflation is heading back to target without the risk of getting stuck above 2%, say a meaningful decline in underlying inflation would be needed for a pause.
UK Ofgem Energy Price Cap (GBP): 1923 (prev. 2074), -7.3% for dual-fuel households, for the October-December. The first time the average energy bill has gone below 2k since April 2022.

NOTABLE EUROPEAN DATA

German GDP Detailed QQ SA (Q2 2023) 0.0% vs. Exp. 0.0% (Prev. 0.0%); YY NSA (Q2 2023) -0.6% vs. Exp. -0.6% (Prev. -0.6%)
German Ifo Business Climate New (Aug) 85.7 vs. Exp. 86.7 (Prev. 87.3, Rev. 87.4); Current Conditions 89 vs. Exp. 90 (Prev. 91.3, Rev. 91.4); Expectations 82.6 vs. Exp. 83.8 (Prev. 83.5, Rev. 83.6)
UK GfK Consumer Confidence (Aug) -25 vs. Exp. -29 (Prev. -30)

GEOPOLITICS

White House said US President Biden and Ukrainian President Zelensky discussed the start of training Ukrainian fighter pilots and the expedited approval of other nations to transfer their F-16s, according to Reuters.
Russian military said it intercepted a Ukrainian S-200 missile over Russian territory, while the Russian Defence Ministry said a Ukrainian attack on Crimea involving 42 drones was thwarted, according to Reuters and AFP.
Taiwan Defence Ministry said 13 Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s ‘response zone’ and 5 Chinese naval ships engaged in combat readiness patrols on Friday morning, according to Reuters.

CRYPTO

In a similar vein to the above price action, BTC is contained in narrow parameters with specific catalysts light as we await Central Bank impetus from the ECB and Fed.
JPM sees limited downside for crypto markets in the near term, via CoinDesk.

APAC TRADE

APAC stocks traded lower following the weak handover from global counterparts after the Nvidia-related euphoria wore off and with markets bracing for Fed Chair Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole.
ASX 200 was pressured by heavy losses in tech and the commodity sectors, while consumer stocks showed some resilience after stronger earnings from Wesfarmers.
Nikkei 225 fell by as much as 2% after it gapped below 32,000 with tech stocks hit by the broad sector recoil.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp declined with NetEase and Meituan among the worst performers in Hong Kong as the widespread tech selling clouded over their earnings results, while losses in the mainland were limited following a firm liquidity injection by the PBoC and after the securities regulator met with financial industry firms and urged longer-term funds to help steady the stock market.

NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES

PBoC was said to ask some banks to limit southbound bond connect investments with the guidance said to be aimed at outflows and limiting yuan offshore supply, according to Reuters sources.
China reportedly plans to cut stamp duty on domestic stock trading by up to 50%, via Reuters citing sources; could be announced as soon as Friday.
China is issuing nationwide guidance on the easing of mortgage rules; issuing detailed rules for conditions to qualify for first-home mortgage rates.
Reuters polls shows 55% of economists say the BoJ will not start unwinding ultra-easy policy until at least July 2024, while 73% of economists think BoJ will end YCC control in 2024 (prev. 50%) and 41% expect BoJ to end NIRP in 2024 (prev. 54%)

DATA RECAP

Tokyo CPI YY (Aug) 2.9% vs. Exp. 3.0% (Prev. 3.2%); Ex. Fresh Food YY (Aug) 2.8% vs. Exp. 2.9% (Prev. 3.0%); Ex. Fresh Food & Energy YY (Aug) 4.0% vs. Exp. 4.0% (Prev. 4.0%)
Japanese Services PPI YY (Jul) 1.7% vs Exp. 1.3% (Prev. 1.2%)

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/TAIWAN/USA

USA approves $500 million arms sale to Taiwan much to the anger of Beijing

(Dave DeCamp/Antiwar.com)

US Approves $500 Million Arms Sale To Taiwan

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 05:40 PM

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

The State Department on Wednesday approved a potential $500 million arms sale to Taiwan for infrared search and track systems for the island’s F-16 fighter jets.

The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the sale is to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office, Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the US, as Washington and Taipei don’t have formal diplomatic relations. The principal contractor for the deal is Lockheed Martin.File image: Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon

The State Department’s approval begins a period where Congress could block the potential deal, but there is widespread bipartisan support for arming Taiwan and virtually no opposition.

The approval came almost a month after the Biden administration provided Taiwan with $345 million in military aid using the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), which allows the US to send weapons straight from Pentagon stockpiles, the primary way the US has been arming Ukraine.

Using the PDA to arm Taiwan is unprecedented as the US has sold weapons to Taiwan since Washington severed diplomatic relations with Taipei in 1979 but has never financed the purchases or provided arms free of charge. China issued several stern rebukes to the new form of US support for Taiwan.

The deal approved on Tuesday will also draw a rebuke from Beijing as China opposes all US arms sales to Taiwan. In 1982, the US and China issued a third joint communiqué on their freshly normalized ties regarding US arms sales to Taiwan.

The communiqué said that the US government intended “gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan, leading, over a period of time, to a final resolution.” But US officials at the time made clear they were leaving the commitment open to their own interpretation.

On the same day the communiqué was issued, President Reagan said in an internal memo that “the US willingness to reduce its arms sales to Taiwan is conditioned absolutely upon the continued commitment of China to the peaceful solution of the Taiwan-PRC [People’s Republic of China] differences. It should be clearly understood that the linkage between these two matters is a permanent imperative of US foreign policy.”

In recent years, China has increased military pressure on Taiwan, but the activity has primarily been a response to the US increasing its diplomatic and military support for Taiwan, which Beijing views as a violation of the conditions of the US-China normalization.

end

“Nothing’s Working” – China’s Latest ‘Stimulus’-Driven-Rally Lasted Just 30 Mins

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 01:25 PM

China’s problems are growing… and their ability to ‘fix’ it seems to be fading fast.

Having strong-armed funds into ‘not selling’ stock last week, then strongly-suggesting that companies escalate their share buyback programs (and then bullying banks into buying yuan to support the currency against the green back), and then clearly stepping with a ‘National Team’ panic bid (that didn’t work) Beijing was faced with the reality that nothing was working with Chinese stocks tumbling still.

Most problematically, the half-lifes of these interventions is shrinking rapidly…

And as Bloomberg reports, overnight saw the shortest duration of post-stimulus gains yet…

The Friday afternoon unveiling of property stimulus measures sparked an initial flurry of buying, with China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index reversing losses to climb as much as 0.3%.

But the gauge resumed declines after about 10 minutes, and within 30 minutes, CSI 300 had hit fresh session lows…

“The market is less sensitive to news at this current stage,” said Li Fuwen, a fund manager at Guangdong Value Forest Private Securities Investment Management.

“What’s key right now is letting that downward momentum run out organically as polices have already turned supportive but it will take time for the shorts to be exhausted.”

Overseas funds, which have been fleeing the mainland market, were sellers again on Friday.

They offloaded the equivalent of $10.7 billion in a 13-day run of withdrawals through Wednesday, the longest stretch since Bloomberg began tracking the data in 2016.

So, China has already resorted to its ‘plunge protectors’ and failed and now sees its ‘targeted’ stimulus measures doing nothing. With capital outflows soaring, one wonders just how far and fast Beijing is willing to go.

END

4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDAVIAN AFFAIRS

People sleeping outdoors on the rise again in the uK

(zerohedge)

Sleeping Rough In London On The Rise Again

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 05:45 AM

More than 10,000 people slept rough in London between April 2022 and March 2023, marking a 21 percent increase from the previous year, according to data from London’s Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN).

The news comes as the deadline for the UK Conservative government’s pledge to end rough sleeping in England by 2024 looms near.

Statista’s Anna Fleck reports that a total of 10,053 people were counted sleeping rough between 2022/23, up from the 8,329 people in 2021/22. The latest figure is 54 percent higher than the figure of 6,508 people seen sleeping rough a decade ago, in 2013/14. As the following chart shows, the number has risen year-on-year, with only 2017/18, and 2021/22 as exceptions, the latter of which is likely at least in part due to resources having been allocated temporarily during the pandemic.

Infographic: Rough Sleeping in London is Rising Again | Statista

You will find more infographics at Statista

But with those Covid-19 emergency provisions phasing out, as well as the cost of living crisis placing more people under more pressure, these figures have surged once more, with CHAIN finding that the number of people spotted sleeping rough for the first time has increased by 26 percent from 5,091 in 2021/22 to 6,391 in 2022/23.

The report’s data also serves to highlight vulnerable groups lacking sufficient support or access to support in society. For example, nearly a third (29 percent) had been in prison historically, while 8 percent had been in care at some point in their life.

The nationalities of people sleeping rough in London remained diverse in 2022/23. After the UK (48.6 percent of the people counted), the most counted nationals were people from Romania (11.7 percent of total), Poland (6.3 percent), India (2.9 percent) and Eritrea (2.9 percent).

While CHAIN’s figures are considered more accurate than several other sources due to the fact they are based on the number of rough sleepers over time rather than on a single night, it is worth noting that rough sleeping is only one form of homelessness, and so these figures are reflective of just one part of an even larger issue. According to a report by the Museum of Homelessness charity, homelessness includes those living in temporary accommodation (an estimated 35.5 percent of the population experiencing homelessness), rough sleepers accommodation (24.4 percent), supported accommodation (13.8 percent), street homeless (10.6 percent), B&B or hotel (4.4 percent), emergency accommodation (4.3 percent), or ‘other’ accommodation types (6.9 percent).

END

Huge backlog of asylum seekers hits a record 175,000 as they await decisions on entry into the uK

(Remix)

Britain’s Asylum Backlog Hits Record 175,000 As Applications Last Year Reached Two-Decade High

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 02:00 AM

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

There are more than 175,000 people living in Britain awaiting a decision on their asylum applications, the highest figure reported since records began in 2010, Home Office data published on Thursday showed.

The asylum backlog had extended to 175,457 individuals awaiting an initial decision by the end of June this year, up 44 percent from June 2022.

Similarly, the number of asylum applications submitted this year reached a two-decade high, with 78,768 applications relating to 97,390 people, up 19 percent from the previous year.

“This is higher than at the time of the European migration crisis (in 2016) and is the highest number of applications for two decades,” the Home Office stated.

The most common nationality of applicants was Albanian with 11,790 applications, followed by Afghans with 9,964 applications, double the number received from the country in the previous year.

A total of 71 percent of all decisions made in the year to June granted refugee status or humanitarian protection, more than double the percentage granted prior to the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to clear the legacy asylum backlog — i.e., asylum applications made up to June last year — by the end of this year, but Home Office officials have only cleared an average of 2,061 cases a month.

With another 67,870 cases remaining, the government faces the seemingly impossible task of processing over 11,000 cases every month for the rest of the year to meet its target.

Irregular immigration into Britain has also skyrocketed this year, with 52,530 migrants detected entering the U.K. without permission in the year ending June 2023, up 17 percent from the previous year. A total of 85 percent of these arrived via small boats across the English Channel.

The vast majority of these are being accommodated in hotels across the country, with an estimated cost of £6 million per day to U.K. taxpayers. A total of 47,518 migrants were being housed in hotels in March 2023, rising to 50,546 by June despite the government making pledges to reduce this figure.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/britains-asylum-backlog-hits-record-175000-applications-last-year-reached-two-decade-high

According to the Home Office data, the government’s annual spending on asylum has almost doubled from £2.12 billion in 2021-2022 to £3.97 billion in 2022-2023.

“The Tories have failed us all on immigration,” conservative broadcaster Nigel Farage posted in response to the figures, while Labour’s Shadow Immigration Minister Stephen Kinnock said the statistics “set out in stark terms the complete chaos the Tories have created in the immigration and asylum system.

“Only 1 percent of last year’s 45,000 small boats cases have received a decision, and the number of failed asylum seekers being returned is also down a whopping 70 percent since 2010. This is a disastrous record for the prime minister and home secretary,” he added.

Despite Labour’s protestations, the party has regularly refused to commit to reducing immigration levels should they come to power as expected at the next general election.

end

5 RUSSIA//UKRAINE AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

RUSSIA/UKRAINE//CRIMEA

Ukrainian forces supposedly attempted to land in an amphibious operation in Crimea.

If so, Russia will not be happy

(zerohedge)

Ukraine Claims Amphibious Landing On Crimea In ‘Special Operation’

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 07:45 AM

Ukrainian forces just supposedly attempted one of the riskiest infiltration moves on Russian territory yet, announcing on Thursday a ‘successful’ amphibious operation in Crimea. The defense ministry’s Main Directorate of Intelligence (HUR) said on Thursday – on the occasion of Ukraine’s independence day – that special operatives conduced an amphibious landing of the Crimean peninsula under cover of night.

Unverified reports online say there were Russian casualties, while conflicting claims say that the Ukrainians took on significant casualties. But Kiev is asserting that its forces suffered no casualties. Either way, the operation seemed more for PR and propaganda purposes, as Newsweek writes of the ultra risky endeavor:

“Crimea now cannot be called a safe haven,” Ivan Stupak—a former officer in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and now an adviser to the Ukrainian parliament’s national security, defense and intelligence committee—told Newsweek.

A Ukrainian intelligence (GUR) spokesman further described, “The units of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense landed as part of a special operation, [and] all tasks were completed.”

This reportedly happened at Crimea’s Cape Tarkhankut, where the day prior to the fresh announcement of the amphibious landing Ukraine reportedly destroyed a Russian S-400 anti-aircraft system.

There’s speculation that the special operation landing was directly tied to the destruction of the S-400. According to more details via Reuters:

Brief and dark video footage posted alongside the statement showed a small motorboat moving through water at night near a coastline. HUR said the landing point was on the western tip of Crimea, near the settlements of Olenivka and Mayak.

“Special units on watercraft landed on the shore in the area of the Olenivka and Mayak settlements,” HUR said in a statement.

It said “all goals” had been achieved and casualties inflicted on the enemy, but did not identify the goals.

This comes as Ukraine’s cross-border attacks on Russian territory have become almost daily, particularly drone assaults, but really nothing has changed on the battlefield in terms of the failing counteroffensive.

Many observers have noted that bolder, risker cross-border raids smack of desperation. One online commentator quipped that landing on Crimea was a “juvenile stunt” to “hoist a flag on a house for a photo op.”

There remain conflicting claims and counterclaims concerning the overnight amphibious landing, amid the continued fog of war.

END

I guess it is true: a large scale attack on Crimea

(zerohedge)

Large-Scale Attack On Crimea: Ukraine Sends 73 Drones In 24-Hour Period

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 11:25 AM

Ukraine forces have continued attacks on Crimea, on Friday unleashing the largest wave of drone attacks on the peninsula since the start of the war. It comes the same week Secretary Blinken reasserted that “Crimea is Ukraine”.

Russia’s military initially said it downed a barrage of 42 drones near Crimea. A defense ministry (MoD) statement nine drones were “destroyed… over the territory of the Republic of Crimea,” while 33 others “were suppressed by electronic warfare and crashed without reaching their targets.” The figure was later in the day revised upward to 73 Ukrainian drones launched over the prior 24-hour period.Image source: Baykar Technology

“Russian forces have downed 73 Ukrainian drones over the past 24 hours after a night of mass attacks centered on Crimea,” the MoD stated. “Explosions hit a Russian base in Crimea on Friday, according to reports, following Kyiv’s largest-ever drone attack on the peninsula.”

There was no mention of casualties or damage due to the large-scale drone attack. Multiple drones were observed destroyed over water off Crimea’s Cape Khersones, near the major naval port of Sevastopol.

“All forces and services are in a state of combat readiness,” Sevastopol Governor Mikhail Razvozhayev announced on Telegram. This week Ukraine touted that its forces destroyed a S-400 defense system in Crimea, and further that special operatives conducted an amphibious landing Wednesday night, and safely returned from the mission.

The Russian MoD describe a separate attack involving a Ukrainian missile fired toward Moscow. “The Russian defence ministry said a modified S-200 missile had been shot down over the Kaluga region, which borders the Moscow region,” Reuters said of the statement. “The city of Kaluga is less than 200 km (124 miles) from Moscow.”

The MoD noted, “The missile was detected and destroyed by air defences over the territory of the Kaluga region” – and further there were no casualties.

Drone attacks on central Moscow have now become weekly, but Ukraine’s counteroffensive is still stalled and failing – according to most battlefield accounts, which points to the growth of cross-border attacks being a sign of desperation.

Ukraine’s government might also be desperate enough to orchestrate an intentionally escalatory situation which would attempt “ensure” the West gets more directly dragged into the war.

This also at a moment Kiev officials continue to be frustrated at lack of air superiority, given the lag over the timeframe of receiving F-16 jets. Washington this week said it will allow a new training program of Ukrainian pilots on American soil, namely in Texas and Arizona, given a mere six Ukrainian pilots are said to be undergoing the Denmark-hosted program.

end

6.GLOBAL ISSUES//MEDICAL ISSUES

GLOBAL ISSUES//BRICS MEETING

END

GLOBAL VACCINE/COVID ISSUES

DR PAUL ALEXANDER

Did the mRNA technology COVID gene injection (Pfizer) kill Windham Rotunda, known as WWE star Bray Wyatt, suddenly at the tender age of 36? Will we know his vaccine status? Myocarditis status?

Did he take vaccine on top of past infection as this is a deadly combination?

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 25

READ IN APP

END

What? The CDC indicating that the New BA 2.86 COVID ‘Pirola’ Variant ‘(driven/caused by Darwinian selective pressure) May Be More Capable’ of Infecting Those ‘Who Have Received’ Vaccine? We knew this

years now! I called CDC, “CDC365” as it takes CDC one year to catch up to the science & it is because CDC’s scientists are dumb, have no understanding of immune priming, original antigenic sin, ADEI

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 25

READ IN APP

My mantra:

It’s the vaccine, you stupid, its the vaccine! It’s the spike protein, stupid, it’s the spike protein!

These egg-head specious CDC dimwits and dolts have no understanding of original antigenic sin, immune priming, immune prejudice or fixation, antibody-dependent enhancement of infection (ADEI) etc.? None!

CDC and FDA and NIH and Health Canada and PHAC ding dong scientists seems to not get that if you vaccinate with a vaccine spike (that will induce vaccinal antibodies) that mismatches the dominant circulating spike antigen (target) that there will be viral immune escape. Selection of the fittest ‘hardiest’ sub-variants that could overcome the sub-optimal immune pressure (wobby ‘baby’ population immune pressure via vaccine induced antibodes not yet arriving at maximal binding capacity, or ‘full affinity’ for the epitope binding sites). Moreover, Geert Vanden Bossche, McCullough, myself etc. have warned that the vaccine, repeated boosters etc. are causing the vaccinated to become infected and get severely ill and die.

See this prior substack I wrote on the seminal recent paper by Shrestha et al. on the Effectiveness of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Bivalent Vaccine; a potent Cleveland Clinic personnel study on the COVID gene injection (mRNA/DNA), the bivalent COVID-19 vaccine given to working-aged adults afforded modest protection overall against COVID-19, while the virus strains dominant in the community were those represented in the bi-valent vaccine. What did Shrestha find? That the more boosters you took, more likely you will be infected!

END

Why is the Heart Targeted for Damage by COVID-19 Vaccines? Dr. McCullough Handles Question from Vaccinologist Dr. Geert Vanden Bossche, both interviewed by the esteemed Del Bigtree Highwire; well done

Del; McCullough again reminds us that (this in backdrop of 2 Ironman participants who died recently) COVID-19 vaccine myocarditis can be fatal; safe to conclude that mRNA vaccine causes heart damage

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERAUG 24

READ IN APP

Start here:

‘We are besieged by reports of cardiac arrests in young persons on a daily basis. The world is becoming increasingly alarmed and asking why do the COVID-19 vaccines seem to target the heart?

This question was framed by Dr. Geert Vanden Bossche during our show on The Highwire hosted by Del Bigtree. Listen for my explanation which relates to the heart and more specifically to athletes who have increased myocardial blood flood and more vaccine deposition with each workout and competition.

COVID-19 vaccine myocarditis can be fatal. With each report of a young person who suddenly dies with no antecedent illness, unless we can confirm they are unvaccinated, it is a safe and conservative conclusion that one or more injections of the COVID-19 vaccine have caused heart damage and that provided the predisposition to fatal cardiac arrest.’

See McCullough’s excellent substack, support him!

Courageous Discourse™ with Dr. Peter McCullough & John Leake

Why is the Heart Targeted for Damage by COVID-19 Vaccines?

Watch now (4 mins) | By Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH We are besieged by reports of cardiac arrests in young persons on a daily basis. The world is becoming increasingly alarmed and asking why do the COVID-19 vaccines seem to target the heart? This question was framed by Dr. Geert Vanden Bossche during our show on The Highwire hosted by Del Bigtree. Listen for my explanatio…

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Trump and Tucker Carlson Shatter Records to Become Most-Watched Interview in History, Beat Oprah and Super Bowl President Donald Trump and former Fox News star Tucker Carlson shattered records last night with their interview on Elon Musk’s platform Twitter/X.READ MORE

Tucker Carlson Cuts Chris Wallace Down to Size during Trump Interview: ‘He’s a B*tchy Little Man’Ex-Fox News star Tucker Carlson dropped the hammer on former colleague Chris Wallace during his record-breaking interview with President Donald Trump on Twitter last night.READ MORE

Vivek Ramaswamy: ‘Climate Change Is a Hoax’Republican 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy declared during the first GOP primary debate that “climate change” is a “hoax.”READ MORE

Nikki Haley: ‘Biological Males Don’t Belong’ in Girls’ Locker Rooms Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley has declared that biological male transgender athletes have no place in female locker rooms.READ MORE

Ex-Congressman: Neither Biden Nor Harris Are Running in 2024 Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) has claimed that neither President Joe Biden nor Vice President Kamala Harris will be running on the Democrats’ 2024 ticket.READ MORE

Tucker Carlson Asks Trump Million-Dollar Question: ‘Do You Think They’ll Try to Kill You?’Leading independent news anchor Tucker Carlson has released a preview for his highly anticipated interview with President Donald Trump.READ MORE

FEMA Officials Staying at Taxpayer-Funded $1000-per-Night Luxury Hotels in Maui Officials with Democrat President Joe Biden’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are staying in taxpayer-funded luxury hotels in Hawaii amid recovery efforts following the devastating Maui wildfires, according to reports.READ MORE

Migrants Stunned as They Flood Open Southern Border: ‘It Was So Easy to Get into U.S’Migrants have been left stunned at the ease at which they have been able to casually make illegal crossings intoMigrants have been left stunned at the ease at which they have been able to casually make illegal crossings into the United States via the open Southern Border. the United States via the open Southern Border.READ MORE

EVOL NEWS

NEWS ADDICTS

LATEST REPORTS FOR NEWS JUNKIES

America to Be Placed in Lockdown Ahead of 2024 Election Democrats are planning to lock Americans up in their homes and shutter businesses across the country in the run-up to the critical 2024 election due to an emerging “highly-mutated” Covid variant, according to reports.READ THE FULL REPORT

USDA Caught Spiking ‘Organic’ Food Supply with mRNA Vaccines The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been caught secretly spiking America’s food supply with mRNA vaccines, according to a bombshell new report.READ THE FULL REPORT

Eric Holder: NC Republicans ‘Don’t Give a Damn’ About Democracy Because of Voter Fraud Prevention Measures Former Attorney General under Barack Obama Eric Holder claimed on Twitter/X that Republicans “don’t give a damn about American democracy.”READ THE FULL REPORT

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

end

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

ROBERT H:

Sprinter on X: “New composition of BRICS will control 80% of world oil production With the addition of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iran to the BRICS, the Union will be able to control the lion’s share of the world’s oil production. The same goes for the sharp GDP growth of the… https://t.co/gqVkGbZ7Ic” / X

Oil is the heart of business everywhere. What happens on January 1st if they decide to reprice oil in gold? The Saudis know and understand they have been screwed over by the US … will Federal Reserve dollars be as readily accepted? Will American originated dollars be accepted or discounted ?? Is time to restart domestic production to feed the needs of a ship of fools?
There are mass implications in the waning days of summer. And one can bet everyone is positioning
Syria will no doubt heat up as it is already heating up.

https://twitter.com/Sprinter99800/status/1694702478359445960

END

8. EMERGING MARKETS//AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND ISSUES

END

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

EURO VS USA DOLLAR: 1.0803 UP 0.0005

USA/ YEN 146.01 DOWN 0.039 NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.00% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//

GBP/USA 1.2612 UP 0.0020

USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3577 DOWN .0009 (CDN DOLLAR UP 9 BASIS PTS)

Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED DOWN 18.17 PTS OR 0.59%

Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 255.79 PTS OR 1.40%

AUSTRALIA CLOSED DOWN 0.92 % // EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL GREEN

Trading from Europe and ASIA

I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL GREEN

2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG DOWN 255.79 PTS OR 1.40%

/SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 18.17 PTS OR 0.59%

AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED DOWN 0.92%

(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED DOWN 666.93 PTS OR 2.05

INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE RED

Gold very early morning trading: 1916.70

silver:$24.18

USA dollar index early FRIDAY morning: 103.98 UP 6 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: 3.254% UP 4 in basis point(s) yield

JAPANESE BOND YIELD: +0.647% UP 0 AND 6//100 BASIS POINTS /JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/

SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.579 UP 3 in basis points yield

ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD 4.228 UP 4 points in basis points yield ./ THE ECB IS QE’ ING ITALIAN BONDS (BUYING ITALIAN BONDS/SELLING GERMAN BUNDS)

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.557 UP 3 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 1.0785 DOWN 0.0014 or 14 basis points

USA/Japan: 146.32 UP 0.272 OR YEN DOWN 27 basis points/

Great Britain/USA 1.2574 DOWN 0.0019 OR 19 BASIS POINTS //

Canadian dollar DOWN .0038 OR 38 BASIS pts to 1.3624

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The USA/Yuan, CNY: closed ON SHORE CLOSED (DOWN) …7.2905

THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. (7.2983)

TURKISH LIRA: 26.55 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//ON DEATH WATCH

the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.647…VERY DANGEROUS

Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 2 in basis points from THURSDAY at 4.242% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic

USA 30 yr bond yield 4.278 DOWN 1/2 in basis points ON THE DAY/12.00 PM

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 5.069 UP 3 BASIS PTS.

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 UP 11.09 POINTS or 0.15%

German Dax : CLOSED UP 17.63 PTS OR 0.11%

Paris CAC CLOSED UP 19.41 PTS OR 0.27%

Spain IBEX UP 16.30 PTS OR 0.17%

Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 146.07 PTS OR 0.82%

WTI Oil price 79.81 12: EST

Brent Oil: 84.81 12:00 EST

USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE /// AT: 95,33; ROUBLE DOWN 0 AND 46//100

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.557 UP 3 BASIS PTS

UK 10 YR YIELD: 4.482 UP 6 BASIS PTS

CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM

Euro vs USA: 1.0808 UP 0.0009 OR 9 BASIS POINTS

British Pound: 1.2594 UP .0002 or 2 basis pts

BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.478% DOWN 0 BASIS PTS//

JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: .650%

USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 146.34 UP 0.290 //YEN DOWN 29 BASIS PTS//

USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3595 UP .0008 CDN dollar, DOWN 8 basis pts)

West Texas intermediate oil: 80.21

Brent OIL: 84/74

USA 10 yr bond yield UP 1 BASIS pts to 4.240%

USA 30 yr bond yield UP 1 BASIS PTS to 4.295%

USA 2 YR BOND: UP 5 PTS AT 5.065%

USA dollar index: 104/03 UP 11 BASIS POINTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 26.55 (GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/

USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 95/42 DOWN 0 AND 55/100 roubles

GOLD 1913.74

SILVER: 24.24

DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 247,48 PTS OR 0.73%

NASDAQ 100 UP 125.38 PTS OR 0.85%

VOLATILITY INDEX: 15.71 DOWN 1.49 PTS (8.66)%

GLD: $177.62 DOWN 0.23 OR 0.13%

SLV/ $22.22 UP 0,11 OR 0.50%

end

USA AFFAIRS

USA TRADING IN GRAPH FORM:

Hawkish Powell & Horrible Data Spark Yield Curve & Crude Pain As Gold & Nasdaq Gain

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 04:00 PM

From a macro perspective, “bad data” dominated the week with the Citi macro surprise index tumbling most since April…

Source: Bloomberg

From a micro perspective, it was all about retailers (consumer credit challenges and shrink) and NVDA (keeping the dream alive for the AI bubble). Retail stock ended the week lower and while NVDA exploded higher on the earnings news, it collapsed back in the last two days, down over 10% from its highs…

Source: Bloomberg

Of course, Fed Chair Powell’s address today was a key event, but as Bloomberg’s Cameron Crise notes, while it was tilted hawkish, it really said nothing new…

The “TL;DR” summary of Jerome Powell’s speech more or less boils down to “we’ll hike again if we need to but won’t if we don’t.”

That’s not exactly ground-breaking stuff, which is one reason that the market response has been fairly muted relative to the anticipation of this speech.

Interestingly, despite the bad data, anticipation of Powell’s speech – and his actual speech – sent a hawkish shiver through short-term rate expectations (with a 25% chance now of a Sept hike and a 45% chance of a Nov hike)…

Source: Bloomberg

This is what that looks like for the curve…

Source: Bloomberg

Treasuries were very mixed this week with the long-end dramatically outperforming (2Y +10bps, 30Y -10bps)…

Source: Bloomberg

Which means the yield curve flattened dramatically, inverting deeper (back towards the July FOMC meeting reversal)…

Source: Bloomberg

The 2Y Yield surged back above 5.00%, rising to the July highs and reversing modestly…

Source: Bloomberg

Equities were also mixed with Nasdaq outperforming (along with the S&P) while The Dow was the ugliest horse in the glue factory, ending lower on the week with Small Caps down on the week…

The dollar ended the week marginally higher, bouncing back from Wednesdays plunge…

Source: Bloomberg

Crypto was volatile and mixed but while Ripple rallied and Solana sold off, Bitcoin and Ethereum ended the week practically unchanged…

Source: Bloomberg

Bitcoin glued around $26,000…

Source: Bloomberg

Spot Gold scrambled back above $1900, and held it even with today’s post-Powell puke…

Source: Bloomberg

Oil dropped on Powell’s speech (demand fears) and then accelerated lower on a Tansim tweet detailing the US-Iran deal (supply fears)… and then ripped bck into the green as everyone realized this is not new news.

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1695124604568674423&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fmarkets%2Fhawkish-powell-horrible-data-spark-yield-curve-pain-nasdaq-gains&sessionId=5c626246ce8509c56024d81b763fc934628f1fc4&siteScreenName=zerohedge&theme=light&widgetsVersion=aaf4084522e3a%3A1674595607486&width=550px

And this is probably nothing…

https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1695048151831318906&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fmarkets%2Fhawkish-powell-horrible-data-spark-yield-curve-pain-nasdaq-gains&sessionId=5c626246ce8509c56024d81b763fc934628f1fc4&siteScreenName=zerohedge&theme=light&widgetsVersion=aaf4084522e3a%3A1674595607486&width=550px

However, overall, WTI was lower on the week, but managed to get back above $80 by today’s close…

Finally, what happens next?

Source: Bloomberg

Could it really?

MORNING TRADING//POWELL JACKSON HOLE SPEECH

“A Long Way To Go” – Fed Chair Powell Delivers Hawkish J-Hole Speech

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 09:55 AM

Powell’s full speech is below but to summarize – “we ain’t done yet.”

Key points:

Economic uncertainty calls for agile monetary policy making.
Fed will decide next rate moves based on data.
Attentive to signs economy not cooling as expected.
Inflation remains too high.
Process of bringing inflation down still has a long way to go. even with more favorable recent readings.
Two months of good data are only the beginning of what we need to build confidence on inflation path.
Substantial further ground to cover to get back to price stability.
Need sustained progress on goods inflation.
Slowing rents points to slowdown in housing inflation.
Need some further progress on non-housing services inflation.
Policy is restrictive, but Fed cannot be certain what neutral rate level is.
Fed is mindful monetary policy faces risks on both sides.
Above trend growth could warrant more Fed rate rises.
Getting inflation back to 2% likely requires below trend growth.
Lowering inflation also likely to require softer labor markets.
Signs job market is not cooling could also require more Fed action.
Sees evidence inflation becoming more responsive to labor markets.
Sees July PCE at 3.3%. core at 4.3%..

Chair Powell said The Fed is prepared to raise interest rates further if needed and intends to keep borrowing costs high until inflation is on a convincing path toward the Fed’s 2% target.

“Although inflation has moved down from its peak – a welcome development – it remains too high,” Powell said in the text of a speech Friday at the US central bank’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

“We are prepared to raise rates further if appropriate, and intend to hold policy at a restrictive level until we are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward our objective.”

Powell further cautioned that the process “still has a long way to go, even with the more favorable recent readings.”

The Fed Chair explicitly noted the economy may not be cooling as fast as expected, saying recent readings on economic output and consumer spending have been strong.

“Additional evidence of persistently above-trend growth could put further progress on inflation at risk and could warrant further tightening of monetary policy,” Powell said.

Finally, Powell pushed back on speculation that the central bank could raise its inflation target, an idea that has been hotly debated mostly by academics in recent months.

“Two percent is and will remain our inflation target,” he said.

Powell’s conclusion was a carbon copy of FOMC presser uncertainty:

“As is often the case, we are navigating by the stars under cloudy skies. In such circumstances, risk-management considerations are critical. At upcoming meetings, we will assess our progress based on the totality of the data and the evolving outlook and risks. Based on this assessment, we will proceed carefully as we decide whether to tighten further or, instead, to hold the policy rate constant and await further data. Restoring price stability is essential to achieving both sides of our dual mandate. We will need price stability to achieve a sustained period of strong labor market conditions that benefit all.”

A hawkish address – but admittedly not as hawkish as last year – and the result: lower rate-hike expectations…

* * *

After last year’s brief (8 minutes) uber-hawkish speech, all eyes and ears are on Jackson Hole this morning as Fed Chair Powell delivers his between-FOMC-meetings speech.

Goldman sees a 55-70% chance that he is ‘hawkish’ – the Volcker scenario – reiterate a “job not done” message, indicating the need for an extended period of tighter monetary policy to achieve a decisive win against inflation, whatever it takes.

And a 30-45% chance of a dovish delivery – with Powell questioning the necessity of maintaining a 4% front-end real interest rate at the present time, and whether there is room to align with market expectations for 2024 by reducing front-end real rates by half.

One thing is for sure, markets will react one way or the other.

Watch Powell’s speech below (due to start at 10am ET)…

Read Powell’s full address below:

Good morning. At last year’s Jackson Hole symposium, I delivered a brief, direct message. My remarks this year will be a bit longer, but the message is the same: It is the Fed’s job to bring inflation down to our 2 percent goal, and we will do so. We have tightened policy significantly over the past year. Although inflation has moved down from its peak—a welcome development—it remains too high. We are prepared to raise rates further if appropriate, and intend to hold policy at a restrictive level until we are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward our objective.

Today I will review our progress so far and discuss the outlook and the uncertainties we face as we pursue our dual mandate goals. I will conclude with a summary of what this means for policy. Given how far we have come, at upcoming meetings we are in a position to proceed carefully as we assess the incoming data and the evolving outlook and risks.

The Decline in Inflation So Far
The ongoing episode of high inflation initially emerged from a collision between very strong demand and pandemic-constrained supply. By the time the Federal Open Market Committee raised the policy rate in March 2022, it was clear that bringing down inflation would depend on both the unwinding of the unprecedented pandemic-related demand and supply distortions and on our tightening of monetary policy, which would slow the growth of aggregate demand, allowing supply time to catch up. While these two forces are now working together to bring down inflation, the process still has a long way to go, even with the more favorable recent readings.

On a 12-month basis, U.S. total, or “headline,” PCE (personal consumption expenditures) inflation peaked at 7 percent in June 2022 and declined to 3.3 percent as of July, following a trajectory roughly in line with global trends (figure 1, panel A).1 The effects of Russia’s war against Ukraine have been a primary driver of the changes in headline inflation around the world since early 2022. Headline inflation is what households and businesses experience most directly, so this decline is very good news. But food and energy prices are influenced by global factors that remain volatile, and can provide a misleading signal of where inflation is headed. In my remaining comments, I will focus on core PCE inflation, which omits the food and energy components.

On a 12-month basis, core PCE inflation peaked at 5.4 percent in February 2022 and declined gradually to 4.3 percent in July (figure 1, panel B). The lower monthly readings for core inflation in June and July were welcome, but two months of good data are only the beginning of what it will take to build confidence that inflation is moving down sustainably toward our goal. We can’t yet know the extent to which these lower readings will continue or where underlying inflation will settle over coming quarters. Twelve-month core inflation is still elevated, and there is substantial further ground to cover to get back to price stability.

To understand the factors that will likely drive further progress, it is useful to separately examine the three broad components of core PCE inflation—inflation for goods, for housing services, and for all other services, sometimes referred to as nonhousing services (figure 2).

Core goods inflation has fallen sharply, particularly for durable goods, as both tighter monetary policy and the slow unwinding of supply and demand dislocations are bringing it down. The motor vehicle sector provides a good illustration. Earlier in the pandemic, demand for vehicles rose sharply, supported by low interest rates, fiscal transfers, curtailed spending on in-person services, and shifts in preference away from using public transportation and from living in cities. But because of a shortage of semiconductors, vehicle supply actually fell. Vehicle prices spiked, and a large pool of pent-up demand emerged. As the pandemic and its effects have waned, production and inventories have grown, and supply has improved. At the same time, higher interest rates have weighed on demand. Interest rates on auto loans have nearly doubled since early last year, and customers report feeling the effect of higher rates on affordability.2 On net, motor vehicle inflation has declined sharply because of the combined effects of these supply and demand factors.

Similar dynamics are playing out for core goods inflation overall. As they do, the effects of monetary restraint should show through more fully over time. Core goods prices fell the past two months, but on a 12-month basis, core goods inflation remains well above its pre-pandemic level. Sustained progress is needed, and restrictive monetary policy is called for to achieve that progress.

In the highly interest-sensitive housing sector, the effects of monetary policy became apparent soon after liftoff. Mortgage rates doubled over the course of 2022, causing housing starts and sales to fall and house price growth to plummet. Growth in market rents soon peaked and then steadily declined (figure 3).3

Measured housing services inflation lagged these changes, as is typical, but has recently begun to fall. This inflation metric reflects rents paid by all tenants, as well as estimates of the equivalent rents that could be earned from homes that are owner occupied.4 Because leases turn over slowly, it takes time for a decline in market rent growth to work its way into the overall inflation measure. The market rent slowdown has only recently begun to show through to that measure. The slowing growth in rents for new leases over roughly the past year can be thought of as “in the pipeline” and will affect measured housing services inflation over the coming year. Going forward, if market rent growth settles near pre-pandemic levels, housing services inflation should decline toward its pre-pandemic level as well. We will continue to watch the market rent data closely for a signal of the upside and downside risks to housing services inflation.

The final category, nonhousing services, accounts for over half of the core PCE index and includes a broad range of services, such as health care, food services, transportation, and accommodations. Twelve-month inflation in this sector has moved sideways since liftoff. Inflation measured over the past three and six months has declined, however, which is encouraging. Part of the reason for the modest decline of nonhousing services inflation so far is that many of these services were less affected by global supply chain bottlenecks and are generally thought to be less interest sensitive than other sectors such as housing or durable goods. Production of these services is also relatively labor intensive, and the labor market remains tight. Given the size of this sector, some further progress here will be essential to restoring price stability. Over time, restrictive monetary policy will help bring aggregate supply and demand back into better balance, reducing inflationary pressures in this key sector.

The Outlook
Turning to the outlook, although further unwinding of pandemic-related distortions should continue to put some downward pressure on inflation, restrictive monetary policy will likely play an increasingly important role. Getting inflation sustainably back down to 2 percent is expected to require a period of below-trend economic growth as well as some softening in labor market conditions.

Economic growth
Restrictive monetary policy has tightened financial conditions, supporting the expectation of below-trend growth.5 Since last year’s symposium, the two-year real yield is up about 250 basis points, and longer-term real yields are higher as well—by nearly 150 basis points.6 Beyond changes in interest rates, bank lending standards have tightened, and loan growth has slowed sharply.7 Such a tightening of broad financial conditions typically contributes to a slowing in the growth of economic activity, and there is evidence of that in this cycle as well. For example, growth in industrial production has slowed, and the amount spent on residential investment has declined in each of the past five quarters (figure 4).

But we are attentive to signs that the economy may not be cooling as expected. So far this year, GDP (gross domestic product) growth has come in above expectations and above its longer-run trend, and recent readings on consumer spending have been especially robust. In addition, after decelerating sharply over the past 18 months, the housing sector is showing signs of picking back up. Additional evidence of persistently above-trend growth could put further progress on inflation at risk and could warrant further tightening of monetary policy.

The labor market
The rebalancing of the labor market has continued over the past year but remains incomplete. Labor supply has improved, driven by stronger participation among workers aged 25 to 54 and by an increase in immigration back toward pre-pandemic levels. Indeed, the labor force participation rate of women in their prime working years reached an all-time high in June. Demand for labor has moderated as well. Job openings remain high but are trending lower. Payroll job growth has slowed significantly. Total hours worked has been flat over the past six months, and the average workweek has declined to the lower end of its pre-pandemic range, reflecting a gradual normalization in labor market conditions (figure 5).

This rebalancing has eased wage pressures. Wage growth across a range of measures continues to slow, albeit gradually (figure 6). While nominal wage growth must ultimately slow to a rate that is consistent with 2 percent inflation, what matters for households is real wage growth. Even as nominal wage growth has slowed, real wage growth has been increasing as inflation has fallen.

We expect this labor market rebalancing to continue. Evidence that the tightness in the labor market is no longer easing could also call for a monetary policy response.

Uncertainty and Risk Management along the Path Forward
Two percent is and will remain our inflation target. We are committed to achieving and sustaining a stance of monetary policy that is sufficiently restrictive to bring inflation down to that level over time. It is challenging, of course, to know in real time when such a stance has been achieved. There are some challenges that are common to all tightening cycles. For example, real interest rates are now positive and well above mainstream estimates of the neutral policy rate. We see the current stance of policy as restrictive, putting downward pressure on economic activity, hiring, and inflation. But we cannot identify with certainty the neutral rate of interest, and thus there is always uncertainty about the precise level of monetary policy restraint.

That assessment is further complicated by uncertainty about the duration of the lags with which monetary tightening affects economic activity and especially inflation. Since the symposium a year ago, the Committee has raised the policy rate by 300 basis points, including 100 basis points over the past seven months. And we have substantially reduced the size of our securities holdings. The wide range of estimates of these lags suggests that there may be significant further drag in the pipeline.

Beyond these traditional sources of policy uncertainty, the supply and demand dislocations unique to this cycle raise further complications through their effects on inflation and labor market dynamics. For example, so far, job openings have declined substantially without increasing unemployment—a highly welcome but historically unusual result that appears to reflect large excess demand for labor. In addition, there is evidence that inflation has become more responsive to labor market tightness than was the case in recent decades.8 These changing dynamics may or may not persist, and this uncertainty underscores the need for agile policymaking.

These uncertainties, both old and new, complicate our task of balancing the risk of tightening monetary policy too much against the risk of tightening too little. Doing too little could allow above-target inflation to become entrenched and ultimately require monetary policy to wring more persistent inflation from the economy at a high cost to employment. Doing too much could also do unnecessary harm to the economy.

Conclusion
As is often the case, we are navigating by the stars under cloudy skies. In such circumstances, risk-management considerations are critical. At upcoming meetings, we will assess our progress based on the totality of the data and the evolving outlook and risks. Based on this assessment, we will proceed carefully as we decide whether to tighten further or, instead, to hold the policy rate constant and await further data. Restoring price stability is essential to achieving both sides of our dual mandate. We will need price stability to achieve a sustained period of strong labor market conditions that benefit all.

We will keep at it until the job is done.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/watch-live-fed-chair-powell-delivers-jackson-hole-speech

II) USA DATA/

UMich Inflation Expectations Jumped In August, Sentiment Slipped

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 10:07 AM

The final print for August’s University of Michigan sentiment survey was expected to confirm the preliminary data’s rise in confidence driven by a decline in inflation expectations.

However, instead the final print saw inflation expectations increasing intra-month and sentiment declining.

Year-ahead inflation expectations edged up from 3.4% last month to 3.5% this month (up signifcantly from the 3.3% preliminary print). Long-run inflation expectations came in at 3.0% for the third consecutive month, but up from the 2.9% preliminary print.

Source: Bloomberg

After rising sharply for the past several months, the final print for August’s UMich headline sentiment data declined…

Source: Bloomberg

While buying conditions for durables and expectations over living conditions both improved, the long-run economic outlook fell back about 12% this month but remains higher than just two months ago.

Finally, UMich notes that consumers perceive that the rapid improvements in the economy from the past three months have moderated, particularly with inflation, and they are tentative about the outlook ahead.

end

III) USA ECONOMIC STORIES

This is very important: inflation in necessities has skyrocketed in the past few years

(zerohedge)

Forget CPI: Inflation In Necessities Has Skyrocketed Since 2020

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 05:20 PM

When mainstream economists and politicians cite “improvements” to the inflation problem in the US in recent months, what they are commonly referencing are changes to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). However, the CPI is not a measure of total inflation, rather, it is a median snapshot of prices at a particular point and time. True inflation is cumulative – A 10% increase one year and a 5% increase the next year is not a win, it means that you are now paying 15% more on average for everything you buy in the span of only two years.

When CPI falls this does not mean that prices on goods and services are going down, it only indicates that prices are rising slower than they were the month or the year before.

Another misconception about CPI is that it measures the inflation rate accurately for regular consumers on common purchases. In reality, the CPI represents mean average price rate increase for a vast basket of goods; over 94,000 items and services with over 200 separate categories. Most of these items and services you will never use or rarely purchase in the span of a year. In other words, inflation declines in uncommon goods can dilute the numbers, making it seem like inflation is dropping while prices on daily necessities continue to spike.

The CPI is weighted according to consumer spending patterns, which is where the calculations can be “adjusted” to a certain extent in an arbitrary manner. Then there is outright government manipulation through various means. As we witnessed recently with the Biden Administration’s claims that “Bidenomics” has defeated the inflation threat, what these reports don’t mention is that Biden has been dumping US strategic oil reserves on the market for the past year. And since energy prices effect the inflation of so many other categories, Biden has artificially manipulated the CPI down using one key resource.

Now that his ability to dump oil reserves has ended, CPI will rise once again along with energy prices.

The point is, it’s impossible to get a sense of the real damage from inflation without looking at the cumulative inflation in necessities (the goods and services that people are required to purchase on a regular basis to live day to day). If we throw out the CPI distraction and look at common necessities since 2020, the economic picture is far more bleak.

Overall food prices have soared by 25%-30% in only three years (again, this means that you are now paying 30% more this year for food than you were paying at the beginning of 2020). Chicken is up from $3 per pound to $4 per pound. Beef is up from $3.50 to $6 per pound. Corn is up from $3.50 per pound to $4.70 per pound. Wheat is up from $5 per pound to $7 per pound. In 2019 the average American household was spending $8100 on food annually; with a 30% increase, in 2023 Americans will be spending at least $10,500 per household.

By the end of 2019, the average rental price of a single family home was around $1450 per month. This year the price is around $2000 per month. At the beginning of 2020, the median cost of a home was $320,000; by 2023 the price skyrocketed to an average of $416,000.

For gasoline, the price in early 2020 was around $2.50 per gallon. The price has fluctuated dramatically due to Biden’s manipulation of the market using strategic reserves, but still remains high today at $3.80 per gallon.

The cost of electricity has risen swiftly, holding steady around .13 cents per kilowatt hour for a decade, then spiking to at least .17 cents per kilowatt hour by 2023.

Remember, most of these costs are static and are difficult to reduce through household spending cuts. These are not items that are easily removed from a monthly budget and the expenditures add up to considerable pressure on consumer accounts. This is probably why around 74% of the public in polls say that the economy is getting worse, not better. It’s because government statistics are not highlighting the true inflationary crisis.

When we look at the cumulative climb of prices in necessities since before the inflation crisis officially began, the truth is that Americans now have to increase their wages by at least 25%-30% on average to maintain the same standard of living they had three years ago. This is a disaster not seen since the stagflationary event of the 1970s and early 1980s. If you have a strange feeling like your bank account is being rapidly drained in recent months, that’s because it is.

END

Corporate America panics as student loans chatter hits record and will play a big roll in earnings with less spending

(zerohedge)

Corporate America Panics As ‘Student Loan’ Chatter Hits Record On Earnings Calls

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 06:00 PM

Corporate America is panicking this earnings season as the prospect of more than 40 million Americans carrying student debt will have to start making payments in October after a three-year-long payment forbearance that had artificially boosted disposable incomes by tens of billions of dollars.

Using the ‘Document Search’ function on Bloomberg, the phrase “student loan” in all second-quarter earnings calls soared to a record high of 151 mentions.

During earnings calls, companies in the financials, consumer discretionary, and consumer staples sectors had the most mentions. Consequently, these sectors are poised to face the greatest exposure when consumer spending decreases.

In June, Barclays economist Adirenne Yih wrote in a note to clients (available to pro subscribers in the usual place), explaining the restart of student loan payments would be a $15.8 billion monthly headwind — or a $190 billion per year — to the US economy as the average student debt holder sees an incremental monthly payment of — $390 beginning this fall.

With the return of these payments for 40 million Americans, the threat of consumer spending sliding is high. We’ve asked: Student Loan Repayments – Will It Start The Recession?

… and comes as the latest revolving credit (i.e., credit card debt) data shows consumers are nearing a breaking point as the spending binge wanes with interest rates at 22-year highs.

Analytics company Earnest Insights wrote in a note that Frontier Airlines, Pleoton, and Old Navy will be some of the hardest-hit companies come October.

Student loan payers who suspended payments during Covid will have to resume those payments come October. That cohort of shoppers made up more than 10% of spending at several national brands in 2022 (above the dotted line). Their spending also outperformed non-borrowers at several brands (left of the solid line), suggesting that their lack of payments may have buoyed their spending in recent years. That leaves dozens of national brands that benefited meaningfully from the pause in student loans, and that may be more exposed to that shopper base as payments resume.

Within Travel, Frontier Airlines was the most sensitive to the Covid-Suspended cohort in 2022, with 11% share and 2 points of outspending from the cohort. In contrast, Alaska Airlines and United Airlines both had 7% share and 10 points of under-spending. Airbnb had a high 11% share from the cohort but with 4 points of underspending.

Within the Home sector, Peloton was most sensitive, with 13% share and 11 points of outspending from the Covid-Suspended cohort; Sherwin Williams had 6% share and 10 points of under-spending. IKEA, Ashley, HomeGoods, Wayfair, and Lowe’s all had 10%+ share from the cohort but the cohort also underspent Non-Borrowers by ~5 points.

Most Apparel and Department Stores had over 10% share from the Covid-Suspended cohort: Old Navy had the highest share at 14%; Nordstrom Full Price had the lowest share at 8%. Old Navy and Burlington each had 3 points of outspending from the cohort, while most others saw minimal to underspending.

Earnest shows companies in the top left quadrant are most exposed to the student loan-paying cohort.

Company execs have already warned investors what’s about the incoming spending cliff:

Target’s CFO Michael Fiddelke

“The upcoming resumption of student loan repayments will put additional pressure on the already strained budgets of tens of millions of households … We remain cautious in our planning.”

Levi’s CEO Chip Bergh

“It’s not going to help us … The consumer is already under pressure and this is just going to ratchet that up even further.”

Macy’s CFO Adrian Mitchell

“The expiration of student loan forgiveness beginning in October, higher interest rate levels, and lower new job creation are all new pressures on the consumer.”

A looming consumer spending cliff has corporate America in a panic. This seems deflationary.

end

President Biden’s SAVE College Debt Repayment Plan Puts The Motivations In The Wrong Places

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 10:25 AM

Authored by Dave Arnott via The Mises Institute,

Imagine fathers at the little league baseball fence. The first brags, “My son is batting 200!” You should be thinking, “That’s not very good.” The second intones, “Oh yea, well my son is batting 175!” “Hold it,” you’re thinking, “this is going backwards.” And your suspicions are confirmed when the third yells out, even louder, “Here comes my son, batting 150!”

As all three dads high-five each other, you look at the name on the uniforms and it reads “Bidenomics.” You think – like Alice – you’ve fallen down a rabbit hole into Wonderland, but soon you realize, this is the economic world the progressives intended. Losers are applauded, the winners chided, and covetousness is the over-arching narrative.

The new Biden plan to reduce student loan payments will be based on income with some payments being zero.

It’s called SAVE for “Saving on a Valuable Education.”

Who saves? Well, like most socialist plans, this one puts the motivations in all the wrong places by encouraging lower incomes, just as the little league ads were encouraging lower batting averages.

Atlas Shrugged

In Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand explains how rich folks “shrugged” when taxes got too high. It’s actually an effective explanation of the Laffer Curve, by Arthur Laffer, which shows that at higher levels of taxation, people reduce their contribution. We all “shrug” at some level of taxation. The Biden SAVE plan encourages college graduates to “shrug” as soon as they graduate. Don’t go for a higher paying job, go for the lower one.

Just a few months ago Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was fined $750,000 by the NBA for purposely losing games. He was encouraged to “shrug” so his team could get a higher draft pick at the end of the season. The Biden SAVE plan does the same thing: It encourages students to lose, by taking lower-paying jobs.

I’ve been told that the poverty mindset goes something like this: “I’m never going to get ahead, so why try?” They think they will always be poor. The Biden plan appeals to those emotions.

The Government has no money!

The money paid for student loans was taken from a productive source and given to an unproductive source. Think about it: If the unproductive source was productive, it would have been supported by the market, and wouldn’t need government help in the first place. This is what government always does. The government only taxes productive sectors of the economy. And it only gives to unproductive sectors. The Biden student loan scheme is simply another example.

Julia and Joe

The Obama administration famously produced an animated video titled The Life of Julia. It explained how she went through life, moving from one government support program to another. My prediction is that the recent Biden student repayment scheme will produce “Julias and Joes.”

You think people won’t “game” the system? I can hear it now, a conversation taking place in the bowels of a university, where they are calculating the highest loan amounts, relative to the lowest repayment schedules, which creates the biggest government payment for tuition. I would think that the university folks making the calculations are calling these students “Julias” and “Joes,” (Biden). When you simply insert this chapter into the Julia video and determine how long the person must work before they can start claiming unemployment, or disability insurance, or social security, or some other government program, you begin to see how the SAVE plan fits into the broader socialist scheme.

Pay=Worth

The Biden plan is called “The SAVE plan” for “Saving on a Valuable Education.” However, if the education were valuable, it would reflect higher, not lower income after graduation. So, the program is mis-titled in the first place. But we should be accustomed to this administration’s use of what George Orwell called “Newspeak” in the dystopian totalitarian state that he described in 1984.

In economic terms, what a person is paid reflects the value they create in a supply and demand market. Construction workers are paid more than elementary teachers because they create more value, according to the market. Burisma pay Hunter Biden $83,000 a month, because he created $83,000 a month in value for access to his father. Simple as that.

However, via the new student-debt plan, President Biden wants US workers to deliver less value to the workplace. I don’t have to explain what that does to GDP and the general wealth of the nation. We all get poorer.

Bring back manufacturing?

Oh, now it’s making sense to me. President Biden wants to bring manufacturing back to the US. He intends to do it by lowering Americans wages below those of the Chinese workers. Brilliant!

When my colleagues hear the phrase, When Helping Hurts, they know it’s from the very good book by Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett by that name. There also is a series of videos from the Acton Institute titled Poverty Cure, which explains how simply giving money does not cure poverty. Acton’s latest video on this topic is titled Poverty Inc. It explains how resources that were intended to alleviate poverty have created an industry that supports poverty. President Biden’s SAVE scheme is part of that industry.

end

get a load of this!

(Mish Shedlock)

Truckers Are Accepting Rates 15-25% Below Their Costs

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 02:25 PM

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

A friend of mine in the shipping business has comments on a trucking article he sent. Let’s tune in…

Truck image courtesy of Produce News

Truck Rates Abysmal, But Some lanes Active

Produce News reports Truck Rates Aby sma l, But Some lanes Active

Two transportation brokers report that truck rates are extremely low without a lot of hope of overall improvement on the horizon. On the other hand, a San Joaquin Valley grape shipper said his rates have been climbing as he recently secured a load to Texas that was about 15 percent higher in mid-August than it was earlier in the month.

“Trucking is not a way to get rich right now,” said Mark Durfee, general manager of Giltner Logistics, based in Twin Falls, ID. “There are no earth-shattering rates out there. Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah are soft. The Southeast is soft. The Midwest is soft. You tell your California grape shipper to give me a call. I’ll find him a truck.”

Durfee added that “Southern California and Arizona are just wastelands right now if you are on the spot market. The rates are horrible.”

Yet Jared Lane, CEO of Grapeco Farms, based in Delano, CA, insists his rates have been climbing and as California grape shipments are expected to continue to increase for at least another month. He said truckers have the upper hand. “The rates are not as high as they were a couple of years ago, but they are increasing. The rate (to his Texas buyer) was $4,600 last week and this week it was $5,200,” he said on Aug. 16.

“Both statements can be true,” said John Stenderup, vice president of sales and marketing for Vektor Logistics, based in Monterey, CA. “This market is so incredibly depressed right now. We’re getting winter rates in the middle of summer, but there are still some lanes that can demand a higher rate.”

“The temperature-controlled space, which includes produce haulers, only represents about 15 percent of the overall (transportation) market,” Stenderup said. “Produce haulers have always been pretty resilient. There is a lot of seasonality in the produce space with truckers having to go in and out of the market as their normal traffic pattern.”

Consequently, he said these independent owner-operators tend to keep a watchful eye on their own costs and don’t get overextended. He expects they will be there when the market goes up.

“It’s not a matter of if, but when,” Stenderup said. “There will be an upcycle. “Right now, truckers are taking rates 15 to 25 percent below their costs. That can’t last forever. Rates will climb again and be in the $3 to $4 per mile range.”

Anecdotes From a Shipping Contact

Brad, who sent me the above article, offered his observations.

Normally it takes us 4-5 days to book a truck for direct shipments. Right now we’re able to get a truck within 24 hours. A couple weeks ago we had one in one hour, a full trucks, not LTL (Less Than Truckload).

Prices are down now 25-35 percent from a year ago or so. Prices are up a bit the last few weeks, mostly from Yellow/Holland shuttering.

RV trailers are also in the basement.

My contact friend ships liquid consumable chemicals to greenhouse and nursery operations for water treatment.

There will be an increase in shipping but will that happen before an industry shakedown with a huge number of bankruptcies? Before a full blown recession?

What will increase the demand for goods with housing in the gutter?

Existing-Home Sales Dip 2.2 Percent in July, Down 16 of Last 18 Months

Existing-home sales data from the NAR via St. Louis Fed

Existing Home Sales Long Term

Existing-home sales chart courtesy of Trading Economics.

On August 22, I noted Existing-Ho me S ales Dip 2.2 Percent in July, Down 16 of Last 18 Months

Transaction Crash

Existing home sales have crashed to a level seen in the mid 1990s. Prices have not crashed but transactions have. Crashes are rare, but we are in one now, from a transaction perspective.

Many people on Twitter tell me there is no housing crash. The above chart proves otherwise. What they really mean is there is no housing price crash.

In many ways, a transaction crash alone is worse.

On a full blown price crash, the Fed would be more prone to cut rates. Instead, interest rates are more likely to stay high, perhaps even rise.

If people are not buying houses, they are not buying as much furniture, landscaping, paint, appliances, cabinets, and lawn mowers, etc., to the same extent if housing was strong.

This means truckers are not shipping as much goods as they would be otherwise.

As long as housing is in the gutter, demand for goods and services related to housing will remain in the gutter and so will demand for shipping those items.

Subscribe to MishTalk Email Alerts.

end

Wage pressure is beginning to show in the uSA

“Almost Time To Rage”: United Auto Workers Vote To Authorize Strikes At GM, Ford, Stellantis

FRIDAY, AUG 25, 2023 – 03:25 PM

The UPS and the Teamsters Union deal has likely emboldened unionized workers nationwide to threaten companies with strikes for higher wages and better benefits. The latest is United Auto Workers members voted in favor of union leaders reserving the right to strike if no labor contract is agreed upon with the Detroit Three automakers (Stellantis NV, General Motors Co., and Ford Motor Co) in mid-September.

On Friday, UAW President Shawn Fain told members, “97% of you voted to authorize a strike because you know that we do have the power, that we are united and we’re not afraid. And we’re gonna win. The Big Three’s race to the bottom ends on Sept. 14.”

“Our goal is not to strike. I want to make that very clear. Our goal is to bargain good agreements for our members,” Fain said during the Facebook Live event. “But all we’ve tried to do with this is prepare everybody in the event that we have to take action to get a fair and just contract.”

Fain dismissed extending the existing contract, drawing a hard line in the sand for Detroit Three’s auto executives. While contract extensions generally serve as a lifeline during union and company negotiations, he effectively shut that down.

“We have a lot of options that we’re looking at but extensions on the contract is not one of them,” Fain continued.

He said, “We’ve been clear” to Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis about “what our priorities are,” such as a 46% wage increase, reinstating traditional pensions, and trimming the workweek down from 40 to 32 hours.

Union members practiced picketing earlier this week. One member warned: “We’re ready to strike. We’re tired.”

“‘None of us want to go on a strike it’s a scary place to be. But if we don’t fight now we’re not gonna have another opportunity to fight this for generations.’ Region 9 Director Dan Vicente said.”

… and this.

The Detroit-based union has 150,000 workers, and we noted weeks ago, “Automakers have historically resisted significant pay increases, especially this unusually large one.”

USA// COVID//VACCINE/

SWAMP STORIES

Trump booked in Georgia

(zerohedge)

“Election Interference”: Trump Returns To Twitter After Georgia Booking

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 10:25 PM

Update (2145ET): After more than two-and-a-half years without tweeting, Trump has finally returned to the platform following Thursday’s booking in Georgia.

Meanwhile, Trump’s already selling t-shirts with the mugshot. Great job Fani, you may have just cost Biden the election.

And the meme magicians are already at it…

* * *

Update (2025ET): After about 20 minutes to take a mugshot Trump left the Fulton County jail.

“It’s election interference. … I want to thank you for being here. We did nothing wrong at all. And we have every right, every single right to challenge an election that we think is dishonest. So we think it’s very dishonest,” he told reporters at Atlanta’s airport, before leaving.

#BREAKING: Trump speaks with the press before departing from Georgia calling this a very sad day for America pic.twitter.com/yniKO5zlMk— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) August 25, 2023

* * *

Former President Donald Trump surrendered at the Fulton County jail on Thursday on state charges that he conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

According to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, Trump is 6’3″ and 215 lbs (which he was allowed to pre-report to ‘speed up the process,’ so who knows).

https://t.co/bgUgGFbnc7— Merissa_Hansen (@merissahansen17) August 24, 2023

We are watching the republic die before our eyes pic.twitter.com/9dBMP3KYqb— Jack Poso (@JackPosobiec) August 24, 2023

BREAKING: President Trump has arrived at the Fulton County Jail. pic.twitter.com/VVyL0nESus— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) August 24, 2023

Donald J. Trump
Height: 6’ 3”
Weight: 215 pic.twitter.com/sYNXyJu8QO— Anna Bower (@AnnaBower) August 24, 2023

Watch Live:

Meanwhile, Trump supporters have been waiting for hours outside the jail:

‘Blacks for Trump’ group outside the Fulton County Jail ahead of Trump’s surrender in Atlanta today pic.twitter.com/bG1PIpMY8P— Brendan Gutenschwager (@BGOnTheScene) August 24, 2023

‘Blacks for Trump’ group shares why they are supporting Trump outside the Fulton County Jail pic.twitter.com/Ox3AtyeLSy— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) August 24, 2023

MUST WATCH: #FultonCounty Sheriff’s officers are violating the First Amendment right of Trump supporters and the media who showed up to the Fulton County Jail today ahead of President Trump’s arrest.

Officers with black masks and guns placed barricades up in the location where… pic.twitter.com/1KoxBdc3OI— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) August 24, 2023

Trump and 18 other people were indicted last week after being accused by Fulton County DA Fani Willis of participating in a scheme to flip the results of the election – many of whom have already turned themselves in, including Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis on Wednesday and John Eastman and Mark Meadows on Tuesday.

Mark Meadows mugshot: pic.twitter.com/wL8a5HsUtW— Will Steakin (@wsteaks) August 24, 2023

As the Washington Times reports;

the scene outside the jail was anything but normal Thursday.

It included supporters of the former president such as Cliff MacMorris, 66, from Naples, Florida, who held a flag that read, “Trump Won Save America.”

He and his wife, Georgine, spent the night in Atlanta.

“You don’t have the right to persecute somebody unjustly,” Cliff MacMorris said.

His wife said the indictments against the former president were politically motivated because of the four years of “prosperity, safety, freedom” that Trump achieved in the White House.

“They must be worried about him for some reason,” she said.

Sharon Anderson, 67, from east Tennessee, was outside the jail for a second straight day. She had spent the night in a car with the air conditioning running.

“I’m here to support Donald J. Trump. I want him to see some of the millions that show up at the polls for him.”

Trump faces 13 separate counts in Georgia, including a racketeering charge and several fraud and false statement count. Trump had until Friday to turn himself in.

END

Another Dept of Justice weaponization: this is totally idiotic as the Justice dept sues Spacex for not hiring refugees and foreigners

Give me a break

(zerohedge)

“Yet Another Case Of Weaponization”: Musk Responds After DOJ Sues SpaceX For Not Hiring Refugees

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 09:55 PM

On Wednesday, Elon Musk threatened to sue organizations funded by left-wing financier George Soros for falsely claiming “hate incidents” are on the rise, in order to justify censorship. Less than a day later, Biden’s ‘not weaponized’ DOJ slapped SpaceX with a lawsuit for not hiring asylum seekers and refugees.

According to the lawsuit – which has been brewing since 2020, the DOJ found that “SpaceX failed to fairly consider or hire asylees and refugees because of their citizenship status and imposed what amounted to a ban on their hire regardless of their qualification, in violation of federal law,” according to Kristen Clarke, assistant AG of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.SpaceX headquarters in Los Angeles, California.

“SpaceX recruiters and high-level officials took actions that actively discouraged asylees and refugees from seeking work opportunities at the company,” according to the complaint.

According to data SpaceX provided, the DOJ said that over a nearly four period and across more than 10,000 hires, the company “hired only one individual who was an asylee and identified as such in his application.”

That lone hire came about four months after the DOJ notified SpaceX of its investigation.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment. The suit was filed in the Executive Office for Immigration Review, a division of the DOJ that adjudicates immigration cases. –CNBC

SpaceX and other rocket companies have for years asserted that its hiring practices were dictated by the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR) law, which regulates the export of regulated technologies, such as rocket parts. An “export” is deemed to have occurred if technology is disclosed to a foreigner, even in the U.S.

Musk responded Thursday night, tweeting “SpaceX was told repeatedly that hiring anyone who was not a permanent resident of the United States would violate international arms trafficking law, which would be a criminal offense,” adding “This is yet another case of weaponization of the DOJ for political purposes.”

The Biden administration’s lawsuit seeks to win “fair consideration and back pay for asylees and refugees who were deterred or denied employment at SpaceX due to the alleged discrimination,” along with civil penalties and policy changes from the company.

Will the DOJ go after Northrop, Lockheed and Boeing for the same thing?

Read the lawsuit below:https://www.zerohedge.com/political/less-day-after-musk-sues-soros-doj-sues-spacex-not-hiring-refugees

end

Victor Davis Hanson on the Biden crime family.

(Victor Davis Hanson)

Victor Davis Hanson: The Biden Clan’s Con Is Coming To An End

THURSDAY, AUG 24, 2023 – 04:20 PM

Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness,

Despite years of Biden family and media disinformation, we are finally learning that Joe Biden really did fire Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin for looking into state corruption involving the oil company Burisma and Hunter Biden—and ultimately Joe Biden himself.

As Vice President, Biden, in his own words, bragged that he had threatened to cancel the deliverance of American foreign aid to Ukraine unless Shokin was dismissed.

So what is the Congress to do now—un-impeach and exonerate an innocent impeached Donald Trump, and instead impeach a guilty Biden for essentially the same allegations?

After all, the Left redefined the impeachment bar in 2019 as leveraging foreign aid to Ukraine to benefit one’s political career.

And that is exactly what Joe Biden did to ensure his son could continue to raise millions for the Biden family with foreign governments, while being shielded from political consequences.

An impeached Trump also was accused of using the power of government to go after his likely 2020 presidential rival by suggesting that Joe Biden and his family were corrupt, and should be investigated by Ukrainian officials for fraud and bribery.

Despite Joe Biden’s denials, Trump was right: there was plenty of evidence to link Ukrainian unwarranted payoffs going into Biden family coffers.

So Trump in 2019 had good reasons to ensure that none of the Bidens were still burrowed deeply into the Ukrainian payoff machine.

In contrast, Joe Biden had far less grounds to unleash the full powers of government against his probable 2024 rival ex-president Trump.

Special Prosecutor Jack Smith is not charging Trump with bribery of the Biden sort. He does not allege that Trump gave special foreign policy preferences for those foreigners who paid his family for such services.

Instead, Smith argues that Trump unlawfully took out classified presidential papers—although Joe Biden did nearly the same.

Biden kept quiet about his vast removal of classified documents for over a decade. Not until Trump was being investigated did Biden suddenly notify the government of his illegal removals.

In contrast, a combative and boisterous Trump fought openly and constantly with federal archivists over which of his papers at his Mar-a-Lago estate were truly classified.

Prosecutorial leaks floated all sorts of unproven nefarious agendas that had prompted Trump’s disputes over his presidential papers.

But no one to this day has seriously asked why senator and then Vice President Biden secretly and weirdly removed and kept such sensitive material for years.

Recent reports allege that Hunter Biden may have been treated with kid gloves by prosecutors, partly because Hunter’s lawyers had threatened otherwise to call Joe Biden to the stand as a favorable witness.

Government prosecutors under pressure from the White House apparently balked at the nightmare of a befuddled president of the United States testifying under oath about the supposed innocence of the very guilty Hunter Biden.

In truth, the former drug addict Hunter has played lots of such strange games with his own family.

In his laptop communications, Hunter whined that no one in the family appreciated his hard work at family grifting.

He sounded petulant that his father forced him to fork over half his income to the Joe and Jill Biden household.

At time of universal scrutiny of Hunter, the last thing any sane first son might do would be to hawk his own childish paintings at exorbitant prices to those wishing to buy influence with his father the president.

In effect, Hunter was almost daring the White House to stop his blatant grifting artistry.

Instead, the Bidens moved Hunter into the White House, apparently to keep him under closer watch.

Hunter is still out of control. He could take the family down with him unless President Biden continues to shield him from prosecution.

Ironically, the double standard used by Biden and the media to hound Trump has only raised new questions of fairness.

Why had the Biden family—with its far greater legal exposure—never faced such serial indictments?

A Republican House of Representatives had ended prior Democratic protection given the Bidens.

And the Ukraine war has again turned attention to the Biden-Burisma connection and Hunter’s shaking down of Ukrainian officials.

Finally, Joe Biden can no longer work a full day. He mutters. He stumbles. He serially lies.

He hijacks solemn occasions commemorating national tragedies by trying to one up the grieving with his own self-absorbed stories—most of them irrelevant and narcissistic half-truths.

If a cognitively and criminally challenged Biden cannot finish his term, we will finally learn the full story of 15 years of Biden family corruption.

The Bidens will lose the only impediment—Joe Biden’s political machinations—left in the way of an honest, full-blown felony investigation into what is likely the most corrupt presidential family in American history.

end

THE KING REPORT

The King Report August 25, 2023 Issue 7062

Independent View of the News

Nvidia traded as high as 520.00 on Wednesday and hit 512.45 at 8:02 ET. Yesterday it opened at 502.66 and then slid to 474.70 by 11:07 ET. It closed at 471.63 (+0.47 for the day). Our warning about a replay of the action into and after the Nvidia new chip presentation in July appears to be credible.

Philadelphia Fed President reiterated his belief that the Fed has “probably done enough” on rate hikes. Harker also said he isn’t concerned about rising long rates. Bond and note yields are screaming that the Fed has not been restrictive enough on rates and/or reserves. Harker voiced no concern about bond yields, or inflation, to support his dovish bias. Ergo, the Fed is not as ‘data driven’ in its policy decisions as it proclaims or pretends to be.

S&P Global: US economy close to stalling in August as flash PMI falls to 50.4 (51.5 exp.)
Softer demand conditions were evidenced by the first decrease in new orders since February. Manufacturers saw new orders fall at a quicker pace, while service providers saw the fastest drop in new business since the start of the year. Sustained pressure from inflation and high interest rates were often linked to the decline… (What say you, Mr. Harker, about this?!)  Service providers reined in hiring activity as employment in the sector was broadly unchanged on the month… (Posted on Wednesday)
https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/mi/research-analysis/us-economy-close-to-stalling-in-august-as-flash-pmi-falls-to-50.4-Aug2023.html

The Atlanta Fed is now forecasting Q3 GDP at 5.9%. Good thing, the Fed has “probably done enough.”
https://www.atlantafed.org/cqer/research/gdpnow

Boston Fed Pres Susan Collins Says US May Need More Hikes; Peak Rate Near – BBG 11:56 ET

@YahooFinance: “I do think it’s extremely likely that we will need to hold [rates] for a substantial amount of time,” Boston Fed President Susan Collins tells @Jenniferisms at Jackson Hole.
https://twitter.com/YahooFinance/status/1694736069349052717

Government Spending Could Keep Fed from Cutting Anytime Soon: DJ 12:40 ET (Echoes our view)
Higher government spending will keep inflation hot and prevent the Fed from cutting rates, maybe for years, Macro Intelligence 2 Julian Brigden says. “I think we are in a structurally higher fiscal spending environment” due to multiple wars and climate change, resulting in “structurally higher inflation.”…

Nvidia, as noted above, tumbled after the NYSE opening. This crushed Fangs, which had soared in after-hours trading on Wednesday in concert with Nvidia. With beaucoup traders of various sizes and scopes eager to dump trading sardines and ESUs, US equities sank.

‘If you’re in a poker game and after 30 minutes you cannot ascertain the patsy, you’re the pasty.’
“Never give a sucker an even break.” — W.C. Fields
“There a sucker born every minute.” — P.T. Barnum
“No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.” — H. L. Mencken
“Lord, what fools these mortals be!” Puck, in A Midsummer Night’s Dream

ESUs hit a bottom of 4407.00 (4485.50 high 3:06 ET on European buying) at 11:58 ET. After a rally to 4424.25 at 12:40 ET, ESUs rolled over. ESUs plodded lower until they broke down near 15:30 ET. ESUs and stocks made daily lows at the close. USUs were -15/32 at the time.
Initial Jobless Claims fell to 230k from 240k despite a large increase in Hawaii. 240k was expected. Continuing Claims dropped to 1.702m from 1.722m. 17.05m was consensus.

July Durable Goods -5.2% m/m for July; -4.0% was expected; prior revised to 4.4% from 4.6%
Ex-Transports 0.5% m/m; 0.2% expected; prior revised to 0.2% from 0.5% (Biden adjusted again!)
Nondefense Ex-Air Orders 0.1% as expected; prior revised to -0.4% from 0.1%
Nondefense Ex-Air Shipments -0.2%, 0.1% expected; prior revised to -0.1% from 0.1%

Chicago Fed National Activity Index 0.12 for July; -0.22 consensus
KC Fed Manufacturing Activity for August 0, -10.0 expected

Positive aspects of previous session
Perhaps a few traders learned a lesson or two due to Nvidia

Negative aspects of previous session
Bonds declined moderately despite the US equity tumble
The NY Fang+ Index sank 3.04%
Apple declined 2.62%; its chart looks awful (198.23 top 7/19, 171.96 low on 8/18)
The US 30-year mortgage rate hit 7.23%, highest since May 2001
The Freddie Mac 15-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Average is 6.55%

Ambiguous aspects of previous session
What will Powell say? Will there be a relief rally after Powell’s remarks?

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

Pivot Point for S&P 500 Index [above/below indicates daily trend to traders]: 4403.39
Previous session S&P 500 Index High/Low: 4458.30; 4375.55

Biden’s food stamp expansion linked to 15% jump in grocery prices, study says
It went from $4.5 billion in 2019 to $11 billion in 2022, the study said… https://t.co/3U2qMxml6f

@CollinRugg: The Biden Department of ‘Justice’ is suing Elon Musk’s SpaceX for refusing to hire refugees and asylum seekers… “The lawsuit alleges that, from at least September 2018 to May 2022, SpaceX routinely discouraged asylees and refugees from applying and refused to hire or consider them, because of their citizenship status, in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act,” the Justice Department said. “Our investigation found that SpaceX failed to fairly consider or hire asylees and refugees because of their citizenship status and imposed what amounted to a ban on their hire regardless of their qualification, in violation of federal law,” US Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said.
Our selective justice system strikes again.

Fed Balance Sheet: -$6.66B; Reserves at Fed: -$59.182B   https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/20230824/

Today – Powell speaks at the Jackson Hole Symposium at 10:05 ET. Our best guess is that Powell will reiterate what he said at his presser after the last (7/26) FOMC Meeting: Inflation still too high; labor market still too tight; services inflation is vexing; economy has slowed due to higher rates but no recession; coming economic data will determine rate policy at September 20 FOMC.

Today is the penultimate summer Friday. The usual suspects want to push stocks higher. Thursday’s sharp decline increases the odds of a relief rally after Powell speaks. ESUs are +4.50 at 20:15 ET.

Expected econ data: Aug UM Sentiment 71.2; Phil Fed Pres Harker on BBG TV 11:00 ET and Yahoo Finance at 11:30 ET, Chicago Fed Pres Goolsbee on CNBC 12:30 ET and on BBG TV at 13:00 ET, Cleveland Fed Pres Mester on BBG TV at 14:30 ET

S&P 500 Index 50-day MA: 4459; 100-day MA: 4311; 150-day MA: 4214; 200-day MA: 4142
DJIA 50-day MA: 34,656; 100-day MA: 35,103; 150-day MA: 33,780; 200-day MA: 33,728
(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 negative – a close above 4618.60 triggers a buy signal
Daily: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4456.52 triggers a buy signal
Hourly: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 4408.99 triggers a buy signal

Daily Mail: EXCLUSIVE: Delaware prosecutor Alexander Mackler who worked with investigator probing Hunter Biden’s shady overseas dealings was so chummy with president he used his secret email address under the name ‘Robin Ware’
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12434041/Prosecutor-Alexander-Mackler-secret-email-address-Joe-Biden-Robin-Ware.html

WaPo columnist changes his mind, calls for Joe Biden to be fully investigated over Hunter’s business dealings – In his latest column, (Henry) Olsen wrote that he originally “long dismissed” stories regarding Hunter Biden, but “recent revelations” changed his mind… (‘They’ want Joe gone!)
https://t.co/5Lr4PIBP6V

Will Joe Biden Ever Stop Lying? – John Kass
National media has been too busy kissing Joe’s behind to call out his many lies. They protect him from reality until even they must admit that the old man is wandering around with no clothes…
    Of course, he wouldn’t do this if the media wouldn’t let him off the hook for his lies, which the left-wing corporate media has been doing for years now. The same media that peeled Presidents George Bush and Donald Trump and canonized the sainted Barack Obama for everything have forgiven China Joe for all his sins… The Democrat Washington Media Complex… has been covering for Joe Biden for years and years. Otherwise, how could an infamous plagiarist continue on in politics for half a century?
    Left wing corporate media covered for Biden Inc… Now you see media edging away from Joe, not completely, but enough. They know what’s going on. They know he’s ill. And they don’t want it to splash up on them. But too late… A man who has been taught that his lies are just fine.
    What kind of a man lies like this, who uses pseudonyms to do business, who needs shell companies to do business and keep it secret from the people, even while trumpeting himself as a transparent man?…
https://johnkassnews.com/will-joe-biden-ever-stop-lying/

Turley: Why the House Has No Alternative to an Impeachment Inquiry into President Biden
The case for an inquiry came from a most unlikely source: Attorney General Merrick Garland.
The debacle in the Hunter Biden investigation has left most objective legal analysts in disbelief, with one CNN analyst calling it an “unholy mess.”… Garland, however, has effectively forced their hands…
https://themessenger.com/opinion/why-the-house-has-no-alternative-to-an-impeachment-inquiry-into-president-biden

Jim Jordan launches probe into Fulton County’s 2020 election case against Trump – Jordan asked Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to turn over all documents related to the case.
https://justthenews.com/government/congress/jim-jordan-launches-probe-fulton-countys-2020-election-case-against-trump

First 2024 Republican debate live updates: Republican voters care most about inflation, immigration, debt: poll https://trib.al/6UIjJ9f

A CBS Poll showed GOP voters wanted GOP Debate candidates to articulate policies to: Lower Inflation (86%), Reduce Violent Crime (83%), and Stop Illegal Immigration (81%).
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-poll-indictments-2023-08-20/

@TuckerCarlson: Ep. 19 Debate Night with Donald J Trump (243.5 million views as of 20:15 ET!)
https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1694513603251241143

@seanmdav: According to Mediaite, 12.8 million people watched the Trump-less GOP debate on Fox News last night. The first GOP primary debate in 2015, also hosted by Fox, had 24 million viewers. Tucker’s interview with Trump has been viewed 237 million times so far. (Sounds like mucho bots!)
https://www.mediaite.com/daily-ratings/breaking-fox-news-republican-debate-scores-whopping-12-8-million-viewers-even-without-trump/

WaPo Snap Poll: DeSantis Won the Debate
“29 percent of Republican voters who watched the debate saying he performed best.”…
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/wapo-snap-poll-desantis-won-the-debate/

@IAPolls2022: Considering voting for each candidate among R’s, who watched the debate (before and after the debate) • DeSantis: 63% ➡ 68% (+5)
• Trump: 66% ➡ 61% (-5)
• Haley: 30% ➡ 47% (+17)
• Ramaswamy: 41% ➡ 46% (+5)
• Scott: 41% ➡43% (+2)
• Pence: 21% ➡24% (+3)

Our ‘2-cents worth’ GOP Debate NotesPence and Christie battled to see who could be the most obnoxious and unlikable candidate. Surprisingly, Pence won. The ex-VP also came across as a stiff and smug blowhard.Haley is a younger Hilary Clinton: war hawk, globalist; eagerly plays the gender card Asa Hutchinson looked creepy, and appeared to be indifferent. He will soon be gone.Gov. Burgum came off like a well-meaning, but tedious, civics teacher. He will soon be gone.Ramaswamy performed like an infomercial host that overindulged on an energy drink. Vivek stridently pandered to Trump and DJT supporters. And he got caught plagiarizing Obama: “A skinny guy with a funny last name.”  https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1694742534587658275DeSantis did the best; but he doesn’t have ‘IT’ – the pizzazz, charisma, geniality.Most candidates spewed platitudes and dog whistle phrases but few offered reasonable solutions.
Of course, The Cult of Trump, particularly his social media stooges, excoriated DeSantis.

@TheBabylonBee: Republicans Debate to See Who’s Going to Lose To Biden in a Landslide Mail-In Vote in Middle of Night

@TheBabylonBee: Trump Charged with Questioning Election Results While Not Being a Democrat

@TheBabylonBee: CDC Announces Deadly New ‘Electionyearicron’ Covid Variant
CDC director Bob Cohen spoke with reporters Wednesday to announce the new variant. “‘Electionyearicron’ is thought to be the most disruptive variant yet, and will be here all through 2024 until approximately November sixth,” said Mr. Cohen. “So everyone, stay home and get ready to vote by mail!“…  https://babylonbee.com/news/cdc-announces-deadly-new-electionyearicron-covid-variant

GREG HUNTER

Moronic & Demonic Indictment, BRICS in Business, CV19 Horror Returns

Moronic & Demonic Indictment, BRICS in Business, CV19 Horror Returns

By Greg Hunter On August 25, 2023 In Weekly News Wrap-Ups5 Comments

By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (WNW 596 8.25.23)

It’s Donald Trump’s fourth indictment for more made-up crimes and political persecution that no other American President in history has had to endure. This time it is a host of Georgia RICO charges, but in reality, it is making the 1st Amendment a crime. How dare anyone complain about an election that was obviously stolen in 2020. The Deep State is trying any desperate act to stop Trump from running in 2024. The charges filed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis are moronic and demonic at the same time. DA Willis has turned her office into a cartoon. Legal experts say this is a weak case at best but anything to tie Donald Trump up as the Fulton County DA wants a court date for Donald Trump just before the 2024 election. That’s not political, is it?

The BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) met this week and brought some new blood into the group. Six countries in all were welcomed aboard, and that includes oil producer Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE). Is this a clear sign the so-called petro dollar is coming to an end as oil will be priced in currencies other than the U.S. dollar? Yes, is the short answer, and big inflation is the long-term result in America.

They’re back! All the awful lies and rules to control the public using the fear button called Covid 19. The CDC says there is a new CV19 variant, and, yes, even the vaccinated are at risk. What they don’t say is the CV19 vaxed are at more risk because the CV19 bioweapon vax destroys and depreciates the immune system of the people scared into taking it. Are the lockdowns and commands to be vaxed with a new round of injections going to be resisted this time? Let’s hope so.

There is much more in the 49-minute newscast.

Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog.com as he talks about these stories and more in the Weekly News Wrap-Up for 8.25.23.

(https://usawatchdog.com/moronic-demonic-indictment-brics-in-business-cv19-horror-returns/)

After the Wrap-Up:

Financial writer John Rubino will be the guest for the Saturday Night Post. He will give you the latest on what the BRICS meeting is doing for the U.S. dollar. Spoiler alert: it’s not good

SEE YOU MONDAY