JAN 15/GOLD CLOSED UP $7.55 TO $2054.80//SILVER CLOSED UP 6 CENTS TO $23.23//PLATINUM WAS UP 75 CENTS TO $914.95 WHILE PALLADIUM WAS DOWN $12.00//IMPORTANT GOLD COMMENTARIES TODAY FROM ANDREW MAGUIRE, ALASDAIR MACLEOD AND EGON VON GREYEREZ//ISRAEL VS HAMAS//WEST BANK VS ISRAEL UPDATES//HOUTHIS VS THE BEST//COVID UPDATES/VACCINE INJURY, MARK CRISPIN MILLLER/DR PAUL ALEXANDER/SLAY NEWS ETC//SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT..

January 15, 2024 · by · in Uncategorized · Leave a comment

SOME OF THE DATA TODAY IS CME CORRUPTED

GOLD PRICE CLOSED: up $7.55   TO $2054.80

SILVER PRICE CLOSED: up 6 cents  AT $23.23

Access prices: closes 4: 15 PM

Gold ACCESS CLOSED 2044.55

Silver ACCESS CLOSED: 2315

Bitcoin morning price:, 42,648  DOWN 1222 DOLLARS

Bitcoin: afternoon price: $42880 DOWN 990 dollars

Platinum price closing  $914.20 UP  $0.75

Palladium price;     $986.10 down $12.00

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: $2,759,75 UP 23,20 CDN dollars per oz( * NEW ALL TIME HIGH 2,795.90 CDN DOLLARS PER OZ//DEC 1 272023)

*BRITISH GOLD: 1614.17 UP 7.39 pounds per oz// *(NEW ALL TIME HIGH//CLOSING///1655.17 BRITISH POUNDS/OZ) OCT 2/2023

*EURO GOLD: 1876,12 UP 5.19 euros per oz //* (ALL TIME CLOSING HIGH: 1903.75 EUROS PER OZ//DEC 1.2023)

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EXCHANGE: COMEX

EXCHANGE: COMEX
CONTRACT: JANUARY 2024 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES
SETTLEMENT: 2,046.700000000 USD
INTENT DATE: 01/12/2024 DELIVERY DATE: 01/17/2024
FIRM ORG FIRM NAME ISSUED STOPPED

190 H BMO CAPITAL 9
363 H WELLS FARGO SEC 119
435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 15
624 H BOFA SECURITIES 176
657 C MORGAN STANLEY 6
661 C JP MORGAN 16
737 C ADVANTAGE 2 9
905 C ADM 4

TOTAL: 178 178

 JPMorgan stopped 40/75 contracts.

FOR JAN.:

GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR JAN/2024. CONTRACT:  178 NOTICES FOR 17,800 OZ  or  0.5536 TONNES

total notices so far: 3451 contracts for 345,100  oz (10.734 tonnes)


FOR  JANUARY:

SILVER NOTICES  4 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 20,000 OZ/

total number of notices filed so far this month : 765  for 3,825,000 oz

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END

BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE FRAUDULENT VEHICLES

GLD

WITH GOLD UP $7.55

INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL  (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD/ : /NO CHANGES AT THE GLD:

INVENTORY RESTS AT 863.84 TONNES

SLV//

WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER UP 6  CENTS  AT  THE SLV//

NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV

INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.

CLOSING INVENTORY: 433.500 MILLION OZ

Let us have a look at the data for today

SILVER//OUTLINE

SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED 1540 CONTRACTS TO 132,548 AND FURTHER FROM  THE  RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020 AND THIS HUMONGOUS SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED DESPITE OUR HUGE GAIN OF  $0.62  IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON FRIDAY. WE HAD ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION, AND MASSIVE SPEC SHORT COVERING. WE HAD CONSIDERABLE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION AT THE COMEX SESSION.  WE HAD A HUGE 1768 T.A.S ISSUANCE AND 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 FRIDAY NIGHT: 1768 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 WITH THE HELP OF SPECULATORS AND HIGH FREQUENCY TRADERS WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT ROSE BY $0.62), AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SILVER LONGS. HOWEVER WE HAD A MASSIVE SPEC SILVER SHORT COVERING  AS WE HAD A MEGA GIGANTIC SIZED LOSS OF 1315  OI CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. 

WE  MUST HAVE HAD:

A FAIR SIZED 225 ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS) iiii) AN  INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 6.650 MILLION OZ (FIRST DAY NOTICE)    FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S  20,000 OZ QUEUE. JUMP NEW TOTALS 6.460 MILLION OZ//

//NEW STANDING FOR SILVER IS THUS 6.460 MILLION OZ 

//MEGA GIGANTIC  SIZED COMEX OI LOSS/FAIR SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/ VI)   HUGE  SIZED NUMBER OF  T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE 1768 CONTRACTS)/

 I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL -REMOVED XXX CONTRACTS //

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

TOTAL CONTRACTS for 10 days, total 8165 contracts:   OR 40.825 MILLION OZ  (817 CONTRACTS PER DAY)

TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR:  40.825 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: 171.43 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH IS GOING TO BE HUGE //2ND HIGHEST ON RECORD

SEPT: 72.705 MILLION OZ (SMALLER THIS MONTH)

OCT: 97.455 MILLION OZ

NOV.  50.050 MILLION OZ 

DEC. 66.140 MILLION OZ//

TOTAL 2023: 1,104.10 MILLION OZ/

JAN ’24 : 40.825 MILLION OZ//WILL BE A VERY STRONG MONTH FOR ISSUANCE

RESULT: WE HAD A MEGA GIGANTIC SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 1540  CONTRACTS DESPITE OUR HUGE GAIN IN PRICE OF SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//FRIDAY.,.  THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A FAIR EFP ISSUANCE  CONTRACTS: 225  ISSUED FOR FEB AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH  EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX  TO LONDON  AS FORWARDS.  WE HAVE A GOOD INITIAL SILVER OZ STANDING FOR JAN. OF  6.665 MILLION  OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 20,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW TOTAL 5.460 MILLION OZ TO WHICH WE ADD  EX. FOR RISK ISSUANCE/PRIOR FOR 1.0 MILLION OZ //NEW TOTALS;  6.460 MILLION OZ/

NEW STANDING  6.460 million OZ   /// WE HAVE A  GIGANTIC SIZED LOSS OF 1315 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES DESPITE THE HUGE GAIN IN PRICE. THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY:  A HUGE SIZED 1768 CONTRACTS//HUGE FRONT END OF THE TAS CONTRACTS WERE LIQUIDATED   DURING THE  FRIDAY  COMEX SESSION/RAID// WITH MAMMOTH SHORT COVERINGS FROM OUR SPEC SHORTS.  THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE FRIDAY NIGHT  (1768) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE//PROBABLY TODAY., .

WE HAD 4 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 20,000  OZ

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

GOLD//OUTLINE

IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST ROSE BY A MEGA GIGANTIC  SIZED 20,090 CONTRACTS  TO 498,334 AND CLOSER TO THE RECORD (SET JAN 24/2020) AT 799,733  AND  PREVIOUS TO THAT: (SET JAN 6/2020) AT 797,110.

THE DIFFERENTIAL FROM PRELIMINARY OI TO FINAL OI IN GOLD TODAY:  – removed XXX CONTRACTS

WE HAD AN ATMOSPHERIC  SIZED INCREASE  IN COMEX OI ( 22,199 CONTRACTS) WITH OUR  $31.65 GAIN IN PRICE//FRIDAY. WE ALSO HAD A RATHER STRONG INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR JAN. AT 8.214 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE  FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 37200 OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW STANDING: 11.5169 TONNES // ALL OF THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $31.65 GAIN IN PRICE  WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY’S TRADING. WE HAD AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED GAIN  OF 22199 OI CONTRACTS (69.048) PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES.

E.F.P. ISSUANCE

THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A FAIR SIZED 2109 CONTRACTS:

The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 498,334

IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A HUMONGOUS SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 22,199 CONTRACTS  WITH 20,090  CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A FAIR SIZED 2109 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS  TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 22,199 CONTRACTS.. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED):  A MEGA MEGA MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED 34,364 CONTRACTS. (  THE 5TH CONSECUTIVE MEGA ISSUANCE FOR T.A.S. //. GREATER THAN 30,000 ISSUANCE)

CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES

WE HAD A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (2109 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE  HUMONGOUS SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI (20,090) //TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 22,199 CONTRACTS. WE HAVE ( 1) NOW RETURNED TO OUR FORMER FORMAT OF BANKERS GOING LONG AND SPECULATORS GOING SHORT  ,2.) STRONG INITIAL STANDING AT THE GOLD COMEX FOR JAN AT 8.214 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 37,200 OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW STANDING 11.5769 TONNES.  / 3) ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION AND  HUGE TAS LIQUIDATION WITH MAJOR SHORT COVERINGS//    4)  HUGE SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST GAIN/ 5)    FAIR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///6:  HUMONGOUS T.A.S.  ISSUANCE: 34,364 CONTRACTS

HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023-2024 INCLUDING TODAY

JAN.

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

TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 34,440 CONTRACTS OR 3,444,000 OZ OR 107.12 TONNES IN 10 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 3440  EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE  SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS :  THIS MONTH IN 10 TRADING DAY(S) IN  TONNES  107.12 TONNES

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

THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS  107.12/3550 x 100% TONNES  3.01% 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:  195.28 TONNES (A STRONGER MONTH)//FINAL

SEPT: 254.709 TONNES (WILL BE LARGER THAN LAST MONTH AND A STRONG MONTH)

OCT. 248.09 TONNES. LIKE SILVER, THIS MONTH IS GOING TO BE A STRONG E.F.P. ISSUANCE.

NOV.   239.16 TONNES//WILL BE STRONG THIS MONTH,

DEC. 213.704 TONNES. A STRONG MONTH//

TOTAL FOR YEAR 2023: 2,569.57 TONNES VS  2578 TONNES LAST YEAR

JAN ’24:     107.12 TONNES (WILL EQUAL LAST MONTH’S ISSUANCE OR A LITTLE GREATER)

SPREADING OPERATIONS

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

SPREADING LIQUIDATION HAS NOW COMMENCED   AS WE HEAD TOWARDS THE  NEW  ACTIVE FRONT MONTH OF FEB. WE ARE NOW INTO THE SPREADING OPERATION OF  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 NOV HEADING TOWARDS THE  ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF FEB., FOR  GOLD: AND MARCH FOR SILVER

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 (FEB), 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 1540  CONTRACTS OI  TO  132,548 AND CLOSER TO THE 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  225  CONTRACTS

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

MARCH  225  and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE:  225  CONTRACTS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON.  IF WE TAKE THE  COMEX OI LOSS  OF 1540 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 225  OI TRANSFERRED TO LONDON THROUGH EFP’S,

WE OBTAIN A HUGE +++ SIZED LOSS OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 1315 CONTRACTS

THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS  ON THE TWO EXCHANGES  TOTAL 6.575 MILLION OZ 

OCCURRED DESPITE OUR $.62 GAIN IN PRICE …..

END

OUTLINE FOR TODAY’S COMMENTARY

1a/COMEX GOLD AND SILVER REPORT

(report Harvey)

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

(Peter Schiff)

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

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

b. Other gold/silver commentaries

c. Commodity commentaries//

d)/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC

2.ASIAN AFFAIRS//

MONDAY MORNING/FRIDAY  NIGHT

SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR 0.15%  //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 28.25 PTS OR 0.17%          /The Nikkei CLOSED UP 324.68 OR 0.91%  //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED DOWN 0.01%    /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN AT 7.1747   /OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN CLOSED DOWN TO 7.1830 /Oil DOWN TO 71.77 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT  UP AT 77.72/ Stocks in Europe OPENED   ALL RED// ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN  TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE WEAKER

A)NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA

outline

b) REPORT ON JAPAN/
OUTLINE

3  CHINA
OUTLINE

4/EUROPEAN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE

5. RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
OUTLINE

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

7. OIL ISSUES
OUTLINE

8 EMERGING MARKET ISSUES
9. USA

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

GOLD

 LET US BEGIN:

THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST ROSE  BY A HUMONGOUS SIZED  20,090 CONTRACTS  TO 498,334 WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $31.65 WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY TRADING. WE MUST HAVE HAD ZERO LONG SPEC LIQUIDATIONS IN THE  COMEX SESSION WITH MAJOR SPEC SHORT COVERINGS. 

EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE

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

THAT IS 2109  EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: :  FEB 2109 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:

TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 2109 CONTRACTS

ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE LOST THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: AN ATMOSPHERIC SIZED TOTAL OF 22,199  CONTRACTS IN THAT 2109 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS FORWARDS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A HUMONGOUS SIZED  20,090 COMEX  CONTRACTS..AND  THIS HUGE GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $31.65 FRIDAY 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 FRIDAY NIGHT WAS A MEGA MEGA GIGANTIC SIZED   34,364 CONTRACTS. (SO MUCH FOR LAW AND ORDER AT THE COMEX). THROUGHOUT THE PAST SEVERAL 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/T.A.S. SPREAD WHICH WILL BE LIQUIDATED IN DAYS HENCE//. 

// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING:   JAN  (11.5769 TONNES)  ( NON  ACTIVE MONTH)

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: 38.855 TONNES(INCLUDING .6842 EXCHANGE FOR RISK)

SEPT: 15.281 TONNES FINAL

OCT.    35.869 TONNES + 1.665 EXCHANGE FOR RISK =37.0355 tonnes

NOV: 18.7122 TONNES + 16.2505 EX. FOR RISK   = 34.9627 TONNES

DEC. 47.073 + 4.634 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK =  51.707TONNES

TOTAL 2023 YEAR : 436.546 TONNES

JAN ’24.      11.5769 TONNES

THE SPECS/HFT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT GAINED $31.65) //// AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SPECULATOR LONGS AS  WE HAD A HUGE SIZED GAIN  OF 22,199 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE HAD A HUGE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION ON THE FRONT END OF FRIDAY’S TRADING .   THE T.A.S. ISSUED ON FRIDAY NIGHT, WILL BE “PUT INTO THE BANK” TO BE USED AT A LATER DATE AT THE COLLUSIVE CHOOSING OF OUR BANKERS. WE ALSO EXPERIENCED   CONSIDERABLE SPECULATOR SHORT COVERING 

WE HAVE GAINED A TOTAL OI OF 69.048 PAPER TONNES FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL  GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR JAN. (8,214 TONNES) ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S  37,200 OZ QUEUE JUMP (1.157 TONNES): NEW TOTAL STANDING 11.5769 TONNES/ ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR GAIN  IN PRICE  TO THE TUNE OF $31.65  

WE HAD – REMOVED  XX CONTRACTS  TO THE  COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST (CROOKS)

NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 22,199 CONTRACTS OR 2,219,900 OZ OR 69.048 TONNES.

Estimated gold volume today:// 297,232 good //t.a.s. induced. 

final gold volumes/yesterday  376,136/ strong t.a.s. induced

//speculators have left the gold arena

JAN 15  INITIAL

/ /// THE JAN  2024 GOLD CONTRACT

GoldOunces
Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory in oz
 nil
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory in oz



3536.410 OZ
BRINKs
110 kilobars




















 




















   






 







 




.

 








 









 
Deposit to the Dealer Inventory in oz
nil oz






 
Deposits to the Customer Inventory, in oznil oz
No of oz served (contracts) today178  notice(s)
17800 OZ
0.5538 TONNES
No of oz to be served (notices)  271  contracts 
  27100 oz
0.8429 TONNES

 
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month3451  notices
345,100 oz
10.734 TONNES
Total accumulative withdrawals of gold from the Dealers inventory this monthNIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of gold from the Customer inventory this monthx

0 dealer deposit:

total dealer deposits:  nil oz

total customer withdrawals: 1

i)Brinks: 3536.610 oz

(110 kilobars)

total withdrawals 3536.610 oz

we had  0 deposits

total deposits NIL oz

Adjustments; 1// CUSTOMER to dealer

i) Malca 10,513.377oz

ii) int. delaware 96.45 oz (3 kilobars)//dealer to customer

CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR JAN.

For the front month of JANUARY we have an oi of 449  contracts having GAINED 297 contracts.  We had 75 notices served on Friday, so we gained 372 contracts or an additional 37,200 oz will stand for delivery at the comex  

FEB LOST ONLY 10,799 CONTRACTS FALLING TO 242,492

March GAINED 9 contracts to stand at 342.

APRIL GAINED 26,357 CONTRACTS RISING TO 190,754.

We had  178 contracts filed for today representing  17800    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  178   contract(s) of which 0   notices were stopped (received) by  j.P. Morgan dealer and 16 notice(s) was (were) stopped  ( received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account   and 0 notice(s) received (stopped) by the squid  (Goldman Sachs)

To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for the JAN. /2023. contract month, we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (3451 x 100 oz ), to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of  JAN. (449  CONTRACTS)  minus the number of notices served upon today  178 x 100 oz per contract equals  372,200 OZ  OR 11.5769 TONNES 

thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the JAN. contract month:  No of notices filed so far (3451) x 100 oz +  (449) {OI for the front month} minus the number of notices served upon today (178)  x 100 oz) which equals  372,200 oz standing OR 11.5769 TONNES 

TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING FOR JAN: 11.5769 TONNES WHICH IS GREAT FOR AN INACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH IN THE CALENDAR.  

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: 1,488,572,003   46.30 tonnes

TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED GOLD:  20,025,614.310 OZ  

TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD 9,237,397.739  (287,32  tonnes).

TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 10,788,216.571 OZ  

REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 7,748,825 oz (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD) 241.02 tonnes

END

SILVER/COMEX

JAN 15/INITIAL

//2024// THE JAN 2023 SILVER CONTRACT//INITIAL

SilverOunces
Withdrawals from Dealers InventoryNIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory626,568.780 oz

Brinks
CNT
Loomis








































































.














































 










 
Deposits to the Dealer Inventorynil OZ





 
Deposits to the Customer Inventorynil oz













 











































 











 
No of oz served today (contracts)4 CONTRACT(S)  
 (20,000 OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)327 contracts 
(1,635,000 oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts) 765 Contracts
 (3,825,000 oz)
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Dealers inventory this monthNIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Customer inventory this month

i)  0 dealer  deposit

total dealer deposit: nil 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: 132.534  million oz/280.456 million  or 47.50%

Comex withdrawals: 3

i0 Out of Brinks 322,209.620 oz

ii) Out of CNT: 4011.93 oz

iii) Out of Loomis: 300,347.230 oz

total deposit: 626,568.780 oz

one adjustment customer to dealer: Manfra 298.268.410 oz

TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 42.810 MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 280.456 million oz

CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR DECEMBER:

silver open interest data:

FRONT MONTH OF JAN. /2023 OI: 331  CONTRACTS HAVING LOST 62  CONTRACT(S).  WE HAD 67 NOTICES SERVED ON FRIDAY, SO WE GAINED 5  CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 25,000 OZ WILL  STAND FOR DELIVERY AT THE COMEX 

FEB GAINED 98 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 808

MARCH LOST 2203 CONTRACTS TO 102,811

TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 4 for 20,000  oz

Comex volumes// est. volume today  72,328// good

Comex volume: confirmed yesterday 85,821 excellent//t.a.s.induced

To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in JAN. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 765 x  5,000 oz = 3,825,000 oz 

to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of JAN. (331) and the number of notices served upon today  4 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.

Thus the  standings for silver for the DEC/2023 contract month:  765 (notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of JAN. (331) – number of notices served upon today (4 )x 500 oz of silver standing for the JAN  contract month equates to 5.460 MILLION OZ.  to which we add our  exchange for RISK of 1.0 million oz//new total 6.460 million oz/  

 New total standing: 6.460 million oz.

There are 42,456 million oz of 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//

BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE MASSIVE FRAUDS!

JAN 15/WITH GOLD UP $7.55  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD;//://INVENTORY RESTS AT 864.99 TONNES

JAN 12/WITH GOLD UP $31.65  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD; A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 4.61 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//://INVENTORY RESTS AT 864.99 TONNES

JAN 11/WITH GOLD DOWN $7.40  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD; A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 4.61 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//://INVENTORY RESTS AT 864.99 TONNES

JAN 10/WITH GOLD DOWN $4.80  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD://INVENTORY RESTS AT 869.60 TONNES

JAN 9/WITH GOLD UP $0.95  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD://INVENTORY RESTS AT 869.60 TONNES

JAN 8/WITH GOLD DOWN $16.85  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.61 TONNES FROM THE GLD. INVENTORY RESTS AT 869.60 TONNES

JAN 5/WITH GOLD UP $0.80  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 874.21 TONNES

JAN 4/WITH GOLD UP $7.60  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 874.21 TONNES

JAN 3/WITH GOLD DOWN $29.40  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.90 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 874.21 TONNES

JAN 2/WITH GOLD UP $1.50  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 879.11 TONNES

DEC 29/WITH GOLD DOWN $10.25  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.16 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 880.55 TONNES

DEC 28/WITH GOLD DOWN $8.35  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.45 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 881.71 TONNES

DEC 27/WITH GOLD UP $23.25  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.01 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 880.26 TONNES

DEC 26/WITH GOLD UP $1.25  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:/. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.25 TONNES

DEC 22/WITH GOLD UP $17,85  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:/. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.25 TONNES

DEC 21/WITH GOLD UP $5.10  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:A DEPOSIT .58 TONNES OF 2.02 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.25 TONNES

DEC 20/WITH GOLD DOWN $3.60  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.02 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 877.67 TONNES

DEC19/WITH GOLD UP $12.15  TODAY: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:. // INVENTORY RESTS AT 879.69 TONNES

DEC18/WITH GOLD UP $5.50  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:. /A DEPOSIT OF 173 TONNES INTO THE GLD// INVENTORY RESTS AT 879.69 TONNES

DEC14/WITH GOLD UP $47.35  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:. /A DEPOSIT OF 2.42 TONNES FROM THE GLD// INVENTORY RESTS AT 877.96 TONNES

DEC13/WITH GOLD UP $3.90  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:. /A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.89 TONNES FROM THE GLD// INVENTORY RESTS AT 875,65 TONNES

DEC12/WITH GOLD DOWN $0.60  TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:. /A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.01 TONNES FROM THE GLD// INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.54 TONNES

GLD INVENTORY: 864.99 TONNES

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

JAN 15/WITH SILVER UP $0.06 TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: // //INVENTORY RESTS AT 433.500 MILLION OZ

JAN 12/WITH SILVER UP $0.62 TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: // //INVENTORY RESTS AT 433.500 MILLION OZ

JAN 11/WITH SILVER DOWN 34 CENTS TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: // //INVENTORY RESTS AT 433.912 MILLION OZ

JAN 10/WITH SILVER DOWN 3 CENTS TODAY SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 450,000 OZ FROM THE SLV// //INVENTORY RESTS AT 433.912 MILLION OZ

JAN 9/WITH SILVER DOWN 20 CENTS TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV //INVENTORY RESTS AT 434.370 MILLION OZ

JAN 8/WITH SILVER DOWN 8 CENTS TODAY HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 1,602,000 OZ INTO THE SLV//:././/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 434.370 MILLION OZ

JAN 5/WITH SILVER UP 20 CENTS TODAY HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 916,000 OZ INTO THE SLV//:././/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 435.972 MILLION OZ

JAN 4/WITH SILVER UP 5 CENTS TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/:././/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 435.056 MILLION OZ

JAN 3/WITH SILVER DOWN 78 CENTS TODAY HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWALOF 2.294 MILLION OZ OZ FROM THE SLV././/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 435.056 MILLION OZ

JAN 2/WITH SILVER DOWN 9 CENTS TODAY HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWALOF 915,000 OZ FORM THE SLV././/////INVENTORY RESTS AT 437.35 MILLION OZ

DEC  29/WITH SILVER DOWN 29 CENTS TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: //////INVENTORY RESTS AT 438.265 MILLION OZ

DEC  28/WITH SILVER DOWN 25 CENTS TODAY NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: //////INVENTORY RESTS AT 438.265 MILLION OZ

DEC  27/WITH SILVER UP 20 CENTS TODAY:HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.374 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 438.265 MILLION OZ

THIS IS THE 3RD STRAIGHT DAY THAT THE SLV HAS ENGAGED IN WITHDRAWALS

DEC  26/WITH SILVER DOWN 14 CENTS TODAY:HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.465 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 439.639 MILLION OZ

DEC  22/WITH SILVER UP 0 CENTS TODAY:HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.289 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 441.104 MILLION OZ

DEC  21/WITH SILVER DOWN 2 CENTS TODAY:NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 443.393 MILLION OZ

DEC  20/WITH SILVER UP 28 CENTS TODAY:NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//////INVENTORY RESTS AT 443.393 MILLION OZ

DEC  19/WITH SILVER UP 27 CENTS TODAY:BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 2.747 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 443.393 MILLION OZ

DEC  18/WITH SILVER DOWN 9 CENTS TODAY:BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.794 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 440.646 MILLION OZ

DEC  14/WITH SILVER DOWN 8 CENTS TODAY:BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 3.00000 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 441.470 MILLION OZ

DEC  13/WITH SILVER DOWN 8 CENTS TODAY:BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A DEPOSIT OF 10.326 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 444.470 MILLION OZ

DEC  12/WITH SILVER DOWN 5 CENTS TODAY:BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/: A WITHDRAWAL OF 594,000 OZ FROM THE SLV////INVENTORY RESTS AT 434.144 MILLION OZ

CLOSING INVENTORY 433.500 MILLION OZ//

PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES

1:Peter Schiff/Mike Maharrey

END

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

Mathew Piepenburg…

END

3. CHRIS POWELL//GATA GOLD COMMENTARIES:

Egon von Greyerz

A must read..

 CATCH THE GOLDWAGON OR LOSE YOUR FORTUNE

Egon von Greyerz
January 14, 2024

With the US shooting itself in the foot again, we are now certain that this is the final farewell to the bankrupt dollar based monetary system.

More about this follows but, in the meantime, an extremely important warning: 

If you have never been a goldbug, this is the time to become one. 

I decided 25 years ago that the destiny of the world economy and the financial system necessitated the best form of wealth preservation that money could buy. 

And physical gold performs that role beautifully just as it has done for several thousands of years as every currency or fiat monetary system has collapsed without fail throughout history. 

Thus, at the beginning of this century we told our investor friends and ourselves to buy gold for up to 50% of investable liquid asset. 

So at $300 we acquired important amounts of gold and have never looked back. We have of course never sold any gold but only added since. 

I have never called myself a goldbug, just someone who wanted to protect assets against the risk of the destruction of the financial system including all currencies. But now is really the time to become a real gold bug. 

So, today just over 20 years later, gold is up 7 – 8X in most Western currencies and multiples of that in weaker economies like Argentina, Venezuela, Turkey etc.

The total mismanagement of the US financial system has led to the dollar losing 98% of it’s value since Nixon closed the gold window in 1971. Most other currencies have followed the dollar down at varying speeds. 

But now comes the really exiting phase of this race to the bottom. 

We have only 2% left for the dollar based currency system goes to ZERO. 

As Voltaire said in 1728, “Paper money always returns to its intrinsic value – ZERO.

What we must remember is that the dollar doesn’t just have a further 2% to fall to reach zero. Because to reach zero, it will next fall 100% from where it is today. 

I know the sceptics will say that this is not possible. But these sceptics don’t know their history. Since fiat currencies’ record is perfect, no one must believe that because we live today, it is different to a 5,000 year faultless record of success, or shall we call it failure, of currencies always reaching zero. 

THE US CONTINUES TO SHOOT ITSELF IN THE FOOT

How many times can you shoot yourself in the foot and still walk upright with pride?

Well, the US government certainly has wounded itself mortally with both feet being so full of holes that there is hardly any space left for another hole. 

So, the latest hole in the US dollar foot is a proposal to steal $300 billion of Russian reserves and use the funds for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

A deadline has been set for the G7 nations to come up with the detailed proposal by 24 February. 

The proposal has obviously come from the US backed by its faithful lapdog the UK. 

Now don’t get me wrong, I really like the US and also the UK and their people but that doesn’t mean that I concur with the idiotic decisions taken by their governments without the consent of their people. 

So will 2024 be the year which, when all the evils which the West has created, erupt in the most violent chain of events political, civil wars, geopolitical, more war, terrorism, economic collapse including the fall of the monetary system. 

Well the ingredients are certainly present to create a picture similar to The Triumph of Death painting by Bruegel.  

We obviously hope that this is not where the world is heading but all the ingredients are sadly in place for the start of a series of events which will be both unpredictable and uncontrollable. “The Financial System has reached the End”

MOST MAJOR WARS SINCE WWII HAVE BEEN INSTIGATED BY THE US

As Merkel admitted, since the Minsk agreement in 2014, it was always the intention of the US to push Ukraine into a conflict with Russia. 

This war is still going on with more than 500,000 having been killed. (Since propaganda from both sides is a major part of a war, we will never know the correct figure.) 

It will obviously be very tempting for the G7 to use the $ 300 billion funds blocked stolen, for the war since many countries’ parliaments are becoming reluctant to fund this war. 

So is the US and its allies going to set a precedent that should also apply for other wars?

Since the US initiated the attacks on Vietnam, Iraq, Libya, Syria and many other countries, should not the US foreign reserves be applied for the reconstruction of all these nations? 

But as always, it is one rule for the mighty US and another rule for its enemies. 

As Bush Jr said, “Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists.”

THE LAST PHASE OF THE DOLLAR DEBASEMENT NEXT

This very final phase of the dollar debasement to zero really started on June 29, 2022 when the US decided to seize all Russian financial assets. 

That action was the nail in the coffin (as well as the shot in the foot) of the Petrodollar system. This has been in place since 1973 to support the dollar with a payment system for black gold since yellow gold was no longer supporting the dollar. 

To seize a major sovereign state’s (Russia’s) assets can never end well. And then to give those assets to an enemy of that state (Ukraine) is guaranteed to seal the fate of the dollar dominant currency system and its backers. 

An economically weak EU gave its support with the Brexit UK always obeying its US master’s. 

A historical post mortem of this total submission to the command of the US will clearly conclude that it was totally disastrous for the German economy as well as the rest of Europe. But sadly weak leaders always make disastrous decisions. 

And as the West has a massive surplus of weak leaders, it is running from one crisis to the next.

Is Treasury Secretary Yellen blind to what is happening to her economy or is she just giving the world the propaganda lies that all politicians must do to buy votes?

This is what Yellen said to House Financial Services Committee in August 2023:

“The dollar plays the role it does in the world financial system for very good reasons that no other country is able to replicate, including China. We have deep liquid open financial markets, strong rule of law and an absence of capital controls that no country is able to replicate….. But the dollar is far and away the dominant reserve asset.”  – 

“Deep liquid financial markets” means “we” have until now been able to create unlimited amounts of worthless fiat money. “Strong rule of law” means that whoever totally obeys the US increasingly totalitarian system, like for example the Patriot Act, is protected by the law. And as regards capital controls, FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) that the US forced upon the world’s finical system in 2014 has led to a total US control of the global financial system.  

And as regards “the dollar is far and away the dominant reserve asset”, not for long Mrs Yellen. 

Has Janet heard of de-dollarisation, has she heard go the BRICS and has she understood that the runaway debts and deficits are destroying the fabric of the US economy and financial system?

Yes of course she knows all of this and she also knows that she can’t do anything about it except to print more money. So her principal role is to keep the pretences up and hope that the system will not collapse on her watch. And then hopefully she canunscathed pass the baton to the next treasury secretary so that he/she can get the blame. 

BRICS

The BRICS already has 10 members, India, China, Brazil, Russia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, Egypt and Ethiopia. 

In addition, another 30 countries want to join including for example Venezuela. 

The BRICS produce just under 50% of global oil. 

But if we look at oil reserves, the existing BRICS plus aspiring members like Venezuela, have over 20X the oil reserves of the US. 

PEAK ENERGY

Another major economic crisis for the world is the contracting energy system.

The world economy is driven by energy which means fossil fuels. Without sufficient energy the living standards would decline fatally. Currently fossil fuels account for 83% of the world’s energy. The heavy dependence on fossil fuels is unlikely to change in the next few decades.

 And as I have always believed, even electric vehicles are no longer the holy grail that world governments are trying to push onto consumers. There are just too many problems such as cost of buying and cost of repairs, range and questionable CO2 benefits. Also environmentally EVs are a disaster since batteries have a short life and cannot be recycled. 

But that’s not the only problem. For the first 60-70,000 miles an EV produces more CO2 than an ordinary vehicle.

Stocks are building up of unsold EVs, exacerbated by companies like Hertz selling off 20,000 vehicles. 

Also, to produce ONE battery takes 250 tons of rock and minerals. The effect is 10-20 tons of CO2 from mining and manufacturing even before the vehicle has been driven 1 metre. 

In addition, car batteries cannot be recycled but go to landfill which has major environmental implications. 

And as concerns renewable energy, it is unlikely to replace fossil fuels for a very, very long time even if this is a politically uncomfortable view for the climate control activists. What very few realise is that most renewable energy sources are very costly and also all dependent on fossil fuels whether it is electric cars, wind turbines or solar panels.

As the graph shows, the energy derived from fossil fuels has declined for the last few years. This trend will accelerate over the next 20+ years as the availability of fossil fuels decline and the cost increases. The economic cost of producing energy has gone up 5X since 1980.

What very few people realise is that the world’s prosperity does not improve with more debt but with more and cheaper energy.

But sadly, as the graph above shows, energy production is going to decline for at least 20 years.

Less energy means lower prosperity for the world. And remember that this is in addition to a major decline in prosperity due to the implosion of the financial system and asset values.

The graph above shows that energy from fossil fuels will decline by 18% between 2021 and 2040. But although Wind & Solar will proportionally increase, it will in no way compensate for the fall in fossil fuels. For renewable energy to make up the difference, it would need to increase by 900% with an investment exceeding $100 trillion.  This is highly unlikely since the production of Wind & Solar are heavily dependent on fossil fuels.

Another major problem is that there is no efficient method for storing Renewable energy.

Let’s just take the example of getting enough energy from batteries. The world’s largest battery factory is the Tesla Giga factory. The annual total output from this factory would produce 3 minutes of the annual US electricity demand. Even with 1,000 years of battery production, the batteries from this factory would produce only 2 days of US electricity demand.

So batteries will most probably not be a viable source of energy for decades especially since they need fossil fuels to be produced and charged.

Nuclear energy is the best available option today. But the time and cost of producing nuclear means that it will not be a viable alternative for decades. Also, many countries have stopped nuclear energy for political reasons. The graph above shows that nuclear and hydro will only increase very marginally in the next 20 years.

Of course the world wants to achieve cleaner and more efficient energy. But today we don’t have the means to produce this energy in quantity from anything but fossil fuels.

So stopping or reducing the production of fossil fuels, which is the desire of many politicians and climate activists, is guaranteed to substantially exacerbate the decline of the world economy.

We might get cleaner air but many would have to enjoy it in caves with little food or other necessities and conveniences that we have today.

So what is clear is that the world is not prepared for even the best scenario energy case which entails a major decline in the standard to living in the next 20-30 years at least.

IMMINENT DECLINE OF THE WORLD ECONOMY

The above explanation, of the world economy as an energy driven system, is important to grasp in order to understand the effect of the declining energy production. This decline together with the increased energy cost of producing energy will exacerbate the decline of the world economy. 

To add to this longer term energy crisis which very few people discuss or fathom, the world is facing the end of the current monetary system.

Yes, the BRICS countries will over time assume the mantle of the waning Western empire. 

But it won’t happen overnight, especially since the world’s second biggest economy, China, also has a debt problem almost as big as the US one.

Just look at the growth of China’s money supply in this century. No country has survived such an explosion of money supply without serious consequences.

The advantage that China has is that their financial and currency system is principally domestic and can therefore be resolved “in-house”.

JUMP ON THE GOLD WAGON

No one can forecast with certainty when an event will take place.

But what we can determine with great certainty is that the risk is imminent for the world economy and the Western monetary system to go through an uncontrollable  reset of proportions never seen before in history. 

What we also feel certain about is that the gold price very soon will reflect the major problems that the world economy is facing. 

In this century, gold has performed very strongly against all currencies as the table below shows. 

All major central banks will do all they can to support the gold price. 

The BRICS and other Eastern countries will accelerate their already substantial purchases of gold. And the West, led by the US will accelerate the debt creation and spend unfathomable amounts in futile attempts to save their collapsing economies. 

In June 2016 I advised investors to jump on the Goldwagon when gold was $1,300. https://goldswitzerland.com/get-on-the-goldwagon-to-10000/

Today with gold at $2,050 gold is still very cheap and anyone with some savings, small to very big, must now jump on the goldwagon and buy as much physical gold (and a bit of silver) as you can afford and then some more. 

Owning gold will not solve all our problems, but it will at least give us a very important nest egg and protection against the coming financial debacle that will hit the world. 

END

3. CHRIS POWELL//GATA GOLD COMMENTARIES:

END

4. OTHER GOLD/SILVER //COMMENTARIES//PODCASTS

YOu must listen to this podcast from Andrew Maguire/live from the vault:

and

 this one from  Alasdair Macloed/Kingworldnews

special thanks to G for sending this to us;

WEEKLY WRAP with Alasdair Macleod on gold, red sea and the debauchment of all currencies.

WEEKLY WRAP with Alasdair Macleod

G/

END

4. OTHER GOLD/SILVER //COMMENTARIES//PODCASTS

end

5 a. IMPORTANT COMMENTARIES ON COMMODITIES /lithium

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

END

6.CRYPTOCURRENCY//DIGITAL CURRENCY// COMMENTARIES/

end

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

ONSHORE YUAN:   CLOSED DOWN AT 7.1678

OFFSHORE YUAN: DOWN TO 7.1830

SHANGHAI CLOSED  DOWN 4.67 PTS OR 0.16%

HANG SENG CLOSED DOWN 57.46 PTS OR 0.35%

2. Nikkei closed UP 527.25 PTS OR 1.56%  

3. Europe stocks   SO FAR:   ALL GREEN 

USA dollar INDEX UP  TO  102.28 EURO FALLS TO 1.0941 DOWN 41 BASIS PTS

3b Japan 10 YR bond yield:FALLS TO. +.584 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 145.48/JAPANESE YEN NOW RISING AS WELL AS LONG TERM 10  YR. YIELDS RISING //EVENTUALLY THIS WILL BREAK THE JAPANESE CENTRAL BANK

3c Nikkei now  ABOVE 17,000

3d USA/Yen rate now well ABOVE the important 120 barrier this morning

3e Gold UP /JAPANESE Yen DOWN  CHINESE ONSHORE YUAN: DOWN//  OFFSHORE: DOWN

3f Japan is to buy INFINITE  TRILLION YEN worth of BONDS. Japan’s GDP equals 5 trillion USA

Japan to buy 100% of all new Japanese debt and NOW they will have OVER 50% of all Japanese debt.

3g Oil UP for WTI and  UP  FOR Brent this morning

3h European bond buying continues to push yields lower on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund DOWN TO +2.1785***/Italian 10 Yr bond yield DOWN to 3.783** /SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD UP TO 3.132…**

3i Greek 10 year bond yield UP TO 3.236

3j Gold at $2053.50 silver at: 23.21 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $30.00

3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble UP 0 AND 15 /100        roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 88.47//

3m oil into the 74  dollar handle for WTI and 80  handle for Brent/

3n Higher foreign deposits moving out of China//  huge risk of outflows and a currency depreciation. This can spell financial disaster for the rest of the world/

JAPAN ON JAN 29.2016 CONTINUES NIRP. THIS MORNING RAISES AMOUNT OF BONDS THAT THEY WILL PURCHASE UP TO .5% ON THE 10 YR BOND///YEN TRADES TO 145,48//  10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 0.584% 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 0.8541 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF:   0.9345 well above the floor set by the Swiss Finance Minister. Thomas Jordan, chief of the Swiss National Bank continues to purchase euros trying to lower value of the Swiss Franc.

USA 10 YR BOND YIELD: 4.004 UP 3 BASIS PTS…

USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.205  UP 3 BASIS PTS/

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD:  4.270 UP 1 BASIS PTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 30.10…(TURKEY SET TO BLOW UP FINANCIALLY)

GREAT BRITAIN/10 YEAR YIELD: UP 1  BASIS PTS AT 3.8545

end

2.a  Overnight:  Newsquawk and Zero hedge.

Futures Dip As Doubts Emerge About March Rate Cut, US Markets Closed For Holiday

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 08:26 AM

US equity futures were steady on Monday as investors were displeased by hawkish comments from ECB’s Holzmann , who said there may not be any rate cuts this year which pushed European stocks to session lows, while also bracing for more earnings later this week. With cash stock markets closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and global liquidity especially thin, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were down about 0.1% and unchanged, respectively, as 8:00 a.m. ET, after both underlying benchmarks gained last week as the earnings season kicked off.

Treasury cash markets are also closed on Monday, although TSY futures suggested yields are higher by about 4bps to 3.98%; the Bloomberg dollar index edged higher following weekend news that a government shutdown had been delayed until March

The market is taking a breather after it rallied in nine of the past 10 weeks, with the S&P trading near its all-time high on optimism that the Federal Reserve could start cutting interest rates as soon as March (although over the weekend Morgan Stanley warned this is unlikely as “it would take either some serious stress in financial markets or notable downside surprises to inflation, jobs, or both to get a rate cut in March“). But data released last week showed US headline inflation re-accelerated in December, boosting warnings that funding costs may stay higher for longer.

“Markets could be jumping the gun when it comes to the likelihood of March rate cuts,” said Michael Hewson, chief analyst  at CMC Markets in London.

European stocks fell as economic data from Germany underscored the ugly backdrop for corporate profits ahead of a raft of speeches by policy makers at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week. The Stoxx Europe 600 index dropped  0.3%, trading at session lows and extending a lackluster start to the year after a 13% rise in 2023. Consumer goods and carmakers led the decline after Germany’s economy dodged a recession, though the latest data showed it contracted for the first time since the pandemic last year. Germany’s 10-year yield rose about five basis points as bonds across the euro region fell as the ECB’s Holzmann.

“Today’s data could encourage the ECB to speed up monetary easing but we’re now getting at the stage when bad economic news no longer translates into good news for equity markets,” said Benoit Péloille, chief investment officer at Natixis Wealth Management. In the US, market pricing for as many as six quarter-point rate cuts “can be a stretch; bad economic news will start to hurt,” he said.

Among individual stock moves in Europe, Dassault Aviation SA slumped after the French aircraft maker reported a decline in 2023 jet orders. Delivery Hero SE and Just Eat Takeaway.com NV dropped after BNP Paribas Exane analysts recommended steering clear of Europe’s food delivery sector. Volvo Car AB extended a decline sparked Friday when it said it’s temporarily halting some production due to shipping delays caused by Red Sea attacks.

Earlier in the session, the MSCI Asia Pacific share index climbed for a third session. Stocks advanced in Taiwan after the Democratic Progressive Party won the presidential election and the more China-friendly Kuomintang gained too few seats to control the assembly. Meanwhile, the gong show that is China continued, with the CSI 300 Index swinging between gains and losses amid speculation officials may lower the required reserve ratio after the People’s Bank of China unexpectedly left the rate on its one-year policy loans at 2.5% Monday. That was contrary to expectations among economists that it would trim the so-called medium-term lending facility by 10 basis points.

“Rate cuts are likely still on the cards, but China looks to be taking a more measured approach to policy easing,” said Marvin Chen, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence in Hong Kong. Well they better be because otherwise Beijing is looking at a mass revolt of a population facing a grim and recessionary economy and imploding capital markets.

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rises 0.2%. The kiwi is the weakest of the G-10 currencies, falling 0.8% versus the greenback. The yen drops 0.6%.

In rates, bunds fall as economists still doubt the ECB will cut interest rates as much as market pricing currently suggests. German 10-year yields rise 3bp to 2.21%.

In commodities, oil prices decline, with WTI falling 0.8% to trade near $72.10, as the risk that air strikes by the US and allies against the Houthis would ignite a wider conflict and disrupt crude flows from the Middle East was balanced by soft fundamentals. Spot gold adds 0.2%.

The US is closed for the MLK day holiday today, and there are no official data releases. Looking at the week ahead, along with more US earnings reports, investors this week will be focused on inflation readings in Germany and the UK, as well as a swath of political leaders and officials including Chinese Premier Li Qiang attending the annual WEF. A speech by Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, after officials last week attempted to temper any expectation of a looming rate cut, will also be closely watched.

Top Overnight News

  • Japan’s two-year government bond yield declined below zero for the first time since July as global yields have fallen on expectations that major central banks from the Federal Reserve to European Central Bank will start cutting benchmark interest rates this year
  • China’s central bank held a key interest rate steady on Monday while still pumping more cash into the financial system, bucking expectations that it would cut borrowing costs to support the economy
  • The US economy is set for an unexpected fiscal boost if lawmakers back a potential deal for $70 billion worth of tax breaks for businesses and families
  • Oil steadied as the risk that airstrikes by the US and allies against the Houthis would ignite a wider conflict and disrupt crude flows from the Middle East was balanced by softening fundamentals.
  • Global shipping rates are surging as tensions rise in the Red Sea, after the US and UK conducted air-strikes against the Iran-backed Houthi militants in retaliation for their attacks on merchant ships.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were mostly rangebound after the lack of significant catalysts over the weekend and with global markets set for a quietened session on Monday owing to the extended weekend stateside.  ASX 200 lacked direction as strength in energy and telecoms offset the weakness in miners and defensives. Nikkei 225 continued on its upward trend and briefly reclaimed the 36,000 level for the first time since 1990. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were choppy after the PBoC refrained from cutting its 1-year MLF rate.

Top Asian News

  • PBoC injected CNY 995bln (exp. 900bln) in 1-year MLF loans with the rate kept at 2.50% (exp. 10bps cut).
  • China’s military, AI institutes and universities have over the past year bought small batches of Nvidia (NVDA) chips banned by the US from export to China, according to a Reuters review of tender documents.
  • US Secretary of State Blinken had constructive discussions on a range of issues with a Chinese minister on Friday which included areas of potential cooperation and areas of differences, while Blinken emphasised the importance of resolving cases of American citizens wrongfully detained or subject to exit bans in China and raised US concerns about human rights abuses, according to Reuters.
  • Taiwan ruling DPP’s William Lai won the presidential election with around 40% of votes which represents an unprecedented third consecutive presidential term for the DPP, although the party did not win a parliamentary majority. Furthermore, President-elect Lai said he can resume healthy and orderly exchanges with China and will use dialogue to replace confrontation, according to Reuters.
  • US Secretary of State Blinken said the US is committed to maintaining cross-strait peace and stability, and peaceful resolution of differences, while he added the US will work with Taiwan to further a longstanding unofficial relationship, consistent with the US one-China policy, according to Reuters.
  • China’s Foreign Ministry said US Secretary of State Blinken’s statement on the Taiwan election sent a seriously incorrect signal to Taiwan’s independence separatist forces and seriously violated US promises that it would only maintain cultural, economic and other non-official ties with Taiwan, according to Reuters.

The Stoxx Europe 600 extends earlier losses to fall as much as 0.4%, with autos and banks driving weakness. Among cyclical sectors: banks -0.8%, autos -0.7% and retail -0.7% the laggards; travel +0.7% is a rare bright spot. US futures slightly weaker, with S&P 500 contracts down 0.1%, Nasdaq 100 futures little changed; cash trading closed for a holiday

Top European News

  • ECB’s Lane said they will have key data by June to decide on rates and that changing rates too fast can be harmful, while he added that once the ECB begins lowering rates, this would not be by a single decision of a rate cut and there would likely be a sequence of rate cuts, according to an interview with Corriere Della Serra.

Geopolitics: Middle East

  • Israeli PM Netanyahu reiterated that no one will stop Israel from fighting in Gaza until victory and they will not end the war without closing the hole on the border with Egypt, while he added they must close Gaza’s border with Egypt and are considering several ways to do this, according to Reuters.
  • Israeli military chief said it will consider letting Palestinians displaced from north Gaza to return when there is no danger to them, according to Reuters.
  • Hamas armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida said any talks before stopping Israeli aggression are worthless and the fate of many hostages has become unknown, while the spokesman added many have been killed and blamed their fate on Israel. Furthermore, the spokesman said they have been told by several parties on resistance fronts that they will expand their strikes in the coming days, while it was also reported that Hamas aired a video showing three Israeli hostages appealing to be freed and Hamas said the fate of hostages will be disclosed on Monday, according to Reuters.
  • US President Biden and other senior US officials are reportedly becoming increasingly frustrated with Israeli PM Netanyahu and his rejection of most of the administration’s recent requests related to Gaza, according to four US officials with direct knowledge of the matter cited by Axios.
  • White House’s Kirby said a lower intensity phase of operations in the Israel-Hamas war is approaching soon.
  • US military announced US forces conducted a strike against a Houthi radar site in Yemen and said strikes are designed to degrade the Houthi’s ability to attack maritime vessels, while a Houthi spokesman said US strikes on Yemen including the latest one on a military base in Sanaa are ineffective, according to Reuters.
  • US President Biden said the US delivered a private message to Iran about Houthi attacks and the US is confident that it is well prepared. It was separately reported that Iranian President Raisi condemned US air strikes on Yemen and said that Washington’s move revealed its true nature which is aggressive and against human rights, according to Reuters and IRNA.
  • Egypt and China are closely following up on developments in the Red Sea and expressed concern over the expansion of the conflict in the region, while they emphasised the importance of uniting international and regional efforts to stop the attack on Gaza, according to a joint statement.
  • Lebanon’s Hezbollah head said it is wrong and ignorant if US President Biden thinks the Yemenis will stop confronting the Israelis in the Red Sea, while he added that what the Americans did in the Red Sea will harm all maritime navigation, according to Reuters.
  • US Central Command said an anti-ship cruise missile was fired on Sunday from the Iranian-backed Houthi military area of Yemen towards USS Laboon operating in the Red Sea, while the missile was shot by a US fighter aircraft and there were no injuries or damage.
  • Iraqi armed factions said they attacked three American bases in Iraq and Syria, according to Al Arabiya.
  • Turkey’s military said it launched air strikes against Kurdish militant positions in Northern Syria and Iraq which destroyed 24 militant targets, according to Reuters.

Geopolitics: Other

  • Ukraine promoted a peace plan at Davos on Sunday ahead of the World Economic Forum although China decided not to attend and Russia was not invited to the meeting, according to FT.
  • North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile which landed outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone, while North Korea said that it successfully launched a mid- to long-range solid fuel ballistic missile which was equipped with a hypersonic manoeuvring unit and that the launch did not pose a threat to countries around it, according to Yonhap.
  • North Korea’s Foreign Minister travelled to Russia and led a delegation which left Pyongyang on Sunday, according to KCNA.

FX

  • DXY remained within a tight range of between 102.30-102.55 amid the US holiday closure.
  • EUR/USD traded indecisively around 1.0950 after last week’s whipsawing and lack of pertinent drivers.
  • GBP/USD price action was limited following a very quiet weekend of newsflow from the UK.
  • USD/JPY was marginally higher and reclaimed the 145.00 status amid outperformance in Japanese stocks.
  • Antipodeans were mixed on cross-related flows and after the PBoC disappointed calls for a MLF rate cut.
  • PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1084 vs exp. 7.1684 (prev. 7.1050)

Fixed Income

  • 10yr UST futures were lacklustre and traded rangebound with US cash markets to remain closed on Monday.
  • Bund futures traded uneventfully in the absence of any major pertinent catalysts for Europe over the weekend.
  • 10yr JGB futures extend on recent gains amid the presence of the BoJ in the market for almost JPY 1.2tln of JGBs, while 2-year JGB bond yields briefly returned to negative territory and printed its lowest since July 2023.

Commodities

  • Crude futures were rangebound as demand-related woes offset the geopolitical risk premium.
  • Iraq set February Basrah medium crude OSP to Asia at minus USD 0.80/bbl to Oman/Dubai average and to Europe at minus USD 5.15/bbl vs dated Brent, while it set the price to North and South America at minus USD 1.00/bbl vs ASCI, according to SOMO.
  • Iraq’s Oil Minister said the oil market suffers from many challenges that affect its stability and that OPEC+ is working to limit these factors by taking the measures necessary, according to Reuters.
  • Qatar appears to have halted sending LNG tankers through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait after US-led airstrikes on Houthi targets raised risks in the key waterway, according to Bloomberg.
  • Spot gold edged marginal gains amid an uneventful dollar and with US participants on an extended weekend.
  • Copper futures nursed some of last week’s losses but with the rebound capped by PBoC-related disappointment.

DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

It’s a US holiday today (Martin Luther King Day), so it will be a very quiet start to the week. My wife was away at a spa weekend so I’m worn out from shouting at the kids non-stop for 2 days so its a shame I’m not in the US for a break. Although it’ll be quiet, we do have the Iowa Caucus during what is a brutally cold spell in the state with -25C forecast for the vote tonight that traditionally kick-starts the election campaign. The key things to watch are whether Donald Trump can get above the psychological 50% share of the Republican vote (the level recent polls suggest he’s hovering around in the State), and/or how close either Ron DeSantis or Nikki Haley can get to him. While there is clearly a long way to go until November, this will give us some early idea of how successful and deep into the primaries Donald Trump’s opposition for the nomination might go.

Staying with politics, on Saturday, Lai Ching-te of the incumbent DPP won the presidential election in Taiwan, as expected, with 40.1% of the vote, ahead of KMT’s Hou Yu-ih. Attention is likely to turn to the risks of increased tensions between Taiwan and mainland China, with Bejing’s officials having referred to Lai as a “troublemaker” and “separatist” ahead of the election. So far there hasn’t been any escalating rhetoric from the winning party or from China so markets will probably see the immediate tail risk as reduced although this is something that probably bubbles under the surface for a long time ahead. For more information on the context of what is at stake, Marion Laboure and Cassidy Ainsworth-Grace published a presentation pack on the election and surrounding issues last week. See the full report here . The other geopolitics to watch out for are those around the US/UK strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen towards the end of last week.

In terms of the rest of the week ahead, the highlight is likely to be US December retail sales on Wednesday which will have a impact on Q4 GDP forecasts and momentum into Q1. Housing starts and permits (Thursday) and existing home sales (Friday) will also sharpen those forecasts. The latest UoM consumer survey is out Friday, including the latest inflation expectations series which has moved markets in recent months. Our economists point out that in a week of lots of Fed speak, Waller tomorrow (11am EST) might be the most important as his dovish shift in November helped spark the momentum towards the Fed’s dovish pivot. Earnings season will also slowly build in the US too this week. In addition, US lawmakers will vote after today’s holiday on yet another stopgap spending bill to avert a partial government shutdown this Saturday. It seems they are pushing this into March. So no doubt we’ll be in a similar position again then.

In Europe, UK labour market indicators (tomorrow), inflation data (Wednesday) and retail sales (Friday) will be of interest, especially the CPI data. Over in the continent, notable indicators will include industrial production for the Eurozone today and the ZEW survey for Germany tomorrow. Davos also kicks off today so expect lots of headlines and Canada Goose jackets on your business TV screens.

Moving on to Asia, the focus in Japan will be on the national CPI release on Thursday and China’s Q4 GDP and December economic activity indicators on Wednesday. Check out the full week ahead calendar at the end as usual with key data, speaker and earnings releases flagged.

Asian equity markets are mostly trading higher this morning with the Nikkei (+1.16%) again leading gains, while Chinese stocks are recovering from earlier losses with the CSI (+0.17%) and the Shanghai Composite (+0.36%) moving higher even after the PBOC left its medium-term policy loans rate unchanged (more on this below). Elsewhere, the KOSPI (-0.07%) is swinging between gains and losses with the Hang Seng (-0.15%) seeing minor losses. US stock futures are flat with cash Treasury trading closed due to today’s holiday.

Coming back to China, the PBOC defied market expectations for a cut as it held the rate on some 995 billion yuan ($139 billion) worth of one-year medium-term lending facility (MLF) loans intact at 2.50%. The MLF was last cut in August 2023, from 2.65%.

Recapping last week now. Despite the upside surprise to the CPI on Thursday, investors grew increasing confident that the Fed is likely to cut rates soon, with the CPI details suggesting more moderate PCE inflation, the Fed’s preferred gauge. This momentum continued on Friday after data showed a greater-than-expected decline in the PPI. US December PPI fell -0.1% (vs 0.1%) month-on-month and rose 1.0% in year-on-year terms (vs 1.3% expected). With some measures in the PPI, like healthcare and portfolio management, also captured in the core PCE, a weaker PPI therefore implies a softer core PCE print and greater justification for the Fed to cut rates. Off the back of this, investors raised their expectations of a 25bps Fed cut by March, rising from 78% to 83% on Friday, up from 63% at the start of the week. And 168bps of cuts are now priced it by end-2024, 30bps more than a week earlier. So that’s nearly seven 25bps cuts now expected by the market from the Fed this year.

With the soft producer price data reinforcing Fed cut bets, 10yr Treasury yields declined by -2.6bps on Friday, and -10.6bps on the week to 3.94%. The short-end outperformed, as 2yr yields fell -10.2bps to 4.15% (-23.7bps week-on-week), their lowest level since last May. The bond rally was driven by real rates, with the 10yr real yield down -15.7bps and the 2yr -32.2bps on the week. By contrast, 10yr breakevens (+4.1bps Friday and +5.1bps over the week), reached their highest level since November at 2.28%. Over in Europe, 10yr bund yields fell -5.0bps on Friday but rose +2.8bps in weekly terms.

Equities fluctuated on Friday but rallied over the week, supported by the rates rally. The S&P 500 gained +1.84% last week (+0.08% Friday), ending the week just 0.3% below its record high at the start of 2022. Soft earnings releases by several US banks on Friday drove the S&P 500 Banks index down -1.27% on Friday, and -3.37% in weekly terms. The tech-heavy NASDAQ outperformed, up +3.09% over the week (+0.02% on Friday) in its largest weekly move up since the start of November. Gains were largely driven by the tech giants, as the Magnificent Seven index of megacap stocks rose +4.25% (-0.16% on Friday). In Europe, the STOXX 600 jumped +0.84% on Friday but traded near flat (+0.08%) on the week.

Lastly in commodities, geopolitical risks returned to the fore after the US and UK launched air strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. With risks escalating for Red Sea commercial shipping, Danish fuel-tanker company, Torm, announced its intention to pause transits through the Southern Red Sea on Friday. These developments drove Brent Crude prices above $80/bbl in early trading on Friday, before finishing the day at $78.29/bbl (+1.14% on the day). That said, they were down slightly (-0.60%) on the week after an earlier decline on news of Saudi Arabia lowering its selling price. WTI crude similarly rose +0.92% on Friday to $72.68/bbl but was down -1.53% on the week. Rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East also saw gold rally +1.72% on Friday (+0.18% on the week)

2 B) NOW NEWSQUAWK (EUROPE/REPORT)

Futures Dip As Doubts Emerge About March Rate Cut, US Markets Closed For Holiday

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 08:26 AM

US equity futures were steady on Monday as investors were displeased by hawkish comments from ECB’s Holzmann , who said there may not be any rate cuts this year which pushed European stocks to session lows, while also bracing for more earnings later this week. With cash stock markets closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and global liquidity especially thin, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were down about 0.1% and unchanged, respectively, as 8:00 a.m. ET, after both underlying benchmarks gained last week as the earnings season kicked off.

Treasury cash markets are also closed on Monday, although TSY futures suggested yields are higher by about 4bps to 3.98%; the Bloomberg dollar index edged higher following weekend news that a government shutdown had been delayed until March

The market is taking a breather after it rallied in nine of the past 10 weeks, with the S&P trading near its all-time high on optimism that the Federal Reserve could start cutting interest rates as soon as March (although over the weekend Morgan Stanley warned this is unlikely as “it would take either some serious stress in financial markets or notable downside surprises to inflation, jobs, or both to get a rate cut in March“). But data released last week showed US headline inflation re-accelerated in December, boosting warnings that funding costs may stay higher for longer.

“Markets could be jumping the gun when it comes to the likelihood of March rate cuts,” said Michael Hewson, chief analyst  at CMC Markets in London.

European stocks fell as economic data from Germany underscored the ugly backdrop for corporate profits ahead of a raft of speeches by policy makers at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week. The Stoxx Europe 600 index dropped  0.3%, trading at session lows and extending a lackluster start to the year after a 13% rise in 2023. Consumer goods and carmakers led the decline after Germany’s economy dodged a recession, though the latest data showed it contracted for the first time since the pandemic last year. Germany’s 10-year yield rose about five basis points as bonds across the euro region fell as the ECB’s Holzmann.

“Today’s data could encourage the ECB to speed up monetary easing but we’re now getting at the stage when bad economic news no longer translates into good news for equity markets,” said Benoit Péloille, chief investment officer at Natixis Wealth Management. In the US, market pricing for as many as six quarter-point rate cuts “can be a stretch; bad economic news will start to hurt,” he said.

Among individual stock moves in Europe, Dassault Aviation SA slumped after the French aircraft maker reported a decline in 2023 jet orders. Delivery Hero SE and Just Eat Takeaway.com NV dropped after BNP Paribas Exane analysts recommended steering clear of Europe’s food delivery sector. Volvo Car AB extended a decline sparked Friday when it said it’s temporarily halting some production due to shipping delays caused by Red Sea attacks.

Earlier in the session, the MSCI Asia Pacific share index climbed for a third session. Stocks advanced in Taiwan after the Democratic Progressive Party won the presidential election and the more China-friendly Kuomintang gained too few seats to control the assembly. Meanwhile, the gong show that is China continued, with the CSI 300 Index swinging between gains and losses amid speculation officials may lower the required reserve ratio after the People’s Bank of China unexpectedly left the rate on its one-year policy loans at 2.5% Monday. That was contrary to expectations among economists that it would trim the so-called medium-term lending facility by 10 basis points.

“Rate cuts are likely still on the cards, but China looks to be taking a more measured approach to policy easing,” said Marvin Chen, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence in Hong Kong. Well they better be because otherwise Beijing is looking at a mass revolt of a population facing a grim and recessionary economy and imploding capital markets.

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rises 0.2%. The kiwi is the weakest of the G-10 currencies, falling 0.8% versus the greenback. The yen drops 0.6%.

In rates, bunds fall as economists still doubt the ECB will cut interest rates as much as market pricing currently suggests. German 10-year yields rise 3bp to 2.21%.

In commodities, oil prices decline, with WTI falling 0.8% to trade near $72.10, as the risk that air strikes by the US and allies against the Houthis would ignite a wider conflict and disrupt crude flows from the Middle East was balanced by soft fundamentals. Spot gold adds 0.2%.

The US is closed for the MLK day holiday today, and there are no official data releases. Looking at the week ahead, along with more US earnings reports, investors this week will be focused on inflation readings in Germany and the UK, as well as a swath of political leaders and officials including Chinese Premier Li Qiang attending the annual WEF. A speech by Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, after officials last week attempted to temper any expectation of a looming rate cut, will also be closely watched.

Top Overnight News

  • Japan’s two-year government bond yield declined below zero for the first time since July as global yields have fallen on expectations that major central banks from the Federal Reserve to European Central Bank will start cutting benchmark interest rates this year
  • China’s central bank held a key interest rate steady on Monday while still pumping more cash into the financial system, bucking expectations that it would cut borrowing costs to support the economy
  • The US economy is set for an unexpected fiscal boost if lawmakers back a potential deal for $70 billion worth of tax breaks for businesses and families
  • Oil steadied as the risk that airstrikes by the US and allies against the Houthis would ignite a wider conflict and disrupt crude flows from the Middle East was balanced by softening fundamentals.
  • Global shipping rates are surging as tensions rise in the Red Sea, after the US and UK conducted air-strikes against the Iran-backed Houthi militants in retaliation for their attacks on merchant ships.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were mostly rangebound after the lack of significant catalysts over the weekend and with global markets set for a quietened session on Monday owing to the extended weekend stateside.  ASX 200 lacked direction as strength in energy and telecoms offset the weakness in miners and defensives. Nikkei 225 continued on its upward trend and briefly reclaimed the 36,000 level for the first time since 1990. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were choppy after the PBoC refrained from cutting its 1-year MLF rate.

Top Asian News

  • PBoC injected CNY 995bln (exp. 900bln) in 1-year MLF loans with the rate kept at 2.50% (exp. 10bps cut).
  • China’s military, AI institutes and universities have over the past year bought small batches of Nvidia (NVDA) chips banned by the US from export to China, according to a Reuters review of tender documents.
  • US Secretary of State Blinken had constructive discussions on a range of issues with a Chinese minister on Friday which included areas of potential cooperation and areas of differences, while Blinken emphasised the importance of resolving cases of American citizens wrongfully detained or subject to exit bans in China and raised US concerns about human rights abuses, according to Reuters.
  • Taiwan ruling DPP’s William Lai won the presidential election with around 40% of votes which represents an unprecedented third consecutive presidential term for the DPP, although the party did not win a parliamentary majority. Furthermore, President-elect Lai said he can resume healthy and orderly exchanges with China and will use dialogue to replace confrontation, according to Reuters.
  • US Secretary of State Blinken said the US is committed to maintaining cross-strait peace and stability, and peaceful resolution of differences, while he added the US will work with Taiwan to further a longstanding unofficial relationship, consistent with the US one-China policy, according to Reuters.
  • China’s Foreign Ministry said US Secretary of State Blinken’s statement on the Taiwan election sent a seriously incorrect signal to Taiwan’s independence separatist forces and seriously violated US promises that it would only maintain cultural, economic and other non-official ties with Taiwan, according to Reuters.

The Stoxx Europe 600 extends earlier losses to fall as much as 0.4%, with autos and banks driving weakness. Among cyclical sectors: banks -0.8%, autos -0.7% and retail -0.7% the laggards; travel +0.7% is a rare bright spot. US futures slightly weaker, with S&P 500 contracts down 0.1%, Nasdaq 100 futures little changed; cash trading closed for a holiday

Top European News

  • ECB’s Lane said they will have key data by June to decide on rates and that changing rates too fast can be harmful, while he added that once the ECB begins lowering rates, this would not be by a single decision of a rate cut and there would likely be a sequence of rate cuts, according to an interview with Corriere Della Serra.

Geopolitics: Middle East

  • Israeli PM Netanyahu reiterated that no one will stop Israel from fighting in Gaza until victory and they will not end the war without closing the hole on the border with Egypt, while he added they must close Gaza’s border with Egypt and are considering several ways to do this, according to Reuters.
  • Israeli military chief said it will consider letting Palestinians displaced from north Gaza to return when there is no danger to them, according to Reuters.
  • Hamas armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida said any talks before stopping Israeli aggression are worthless and the fate of many hostages has become unknown, while the spokesman added many have been killed and blamed their fate on Israel. Furthermore, the spokesman said they have been told by several parties on resistance fronts that they will expand their strikes in the coming days, while it was also reported that Hamas aired a video showing three Israeli hostages appealing to be freed and Hamas said the fate of hostages will be disclosed on Monday, according to Reuters.
  • US President Biden and other senior US officials are reportedly becoming increasingly frustrated with Israeli PM Netanyahu and his rejection of most of the administration’s recent requests related to Gaza, according to four US officials with direct knowledge of the matter cited by Axios.
  • White House’s Kirby said a lower intensity phase of operations in the Israel-Hamas war is approaching soon.
  • US military announced US forces conducted a strike against a Houthi radar site in Yemen and said strikes are designed to degrade the Houthi’s ability to attack maritime vessels, while a Houthi spokesman said US strikes on Yemen including the latest one on a military base in Sanaa are ineffective, according to Reuters.
  • US President Biden said the US delivered a private message to Iran about Houthi attacks and the US is confident that it is well prepared. It was separately reported that Iranian President Raisi condemned US air strikes on Yemen and said that Washington’s move revealed its true nature which is aggressive and against human rights, according to Reuters and IRNA.
  • Egypt and China are closely following up on developments in the Red Sea and expressed concern over the expansion of the conflict in the region, while they emphasised the importance of uniting international and regional efforts to stop the attack on Gaza, according to a joint statement.
  • Lebanon’s Hezbollah head said it is wrong and ignorant if US President Biden thinks the Yemenis will stop confronting the Israelis in the Red Sea, while he added that what the Americans did in the Red Sea will harm all maritime navigation, according to Reuters.
  • US Central Command said an anti-ship cruise missile was fired on Sunday from the Iranian-backed Houthi military area of Yemen towards USS Laboon operating in the Red Sea, while the missile was shot by a US fighter aircraft and there were no injuries or damage.
  • Iraqi armed factions said they attacked three American bases in Iraq and Syria, according to Al Arabiya.
  • Turkey’s military said it launched air strikes against Kurdish militant positions in Northern Syria and Iraq which destroyed 24 militant targets, according to Reuters.

Geopolitics: Other

  • Ukraine promoted a peace plan at Davos on Sunday ahead of the World Economic Forum although China decided not to attend and Russia was not invited to the meeting, according to FT.
  • North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile which landed outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone, while North Korea said that it successfully launched a mid- to long-range solid fuel ballistic missile which was equipped with a hypersonic manoeuvring unit and that the launch did not pose a threat to countries around it, according to Yonhap.
  • North Korea’s Foreign Minister travelled to Russia and led a delegation which left Pyongyang on Sunday, according to KCNA.

FX

  • DXY remained within a tight range of between 102.30-102.55 amid the US holiday closure.
  • EUR/USD traded indecisively around 1.0950 after last week’s whipsawing and lack of pertinent drivers.
  • GBP/USD price action was limited following a very quiet weekend of newsflow from the UK.
  • USD/JPY was marginally higher and reclaimed the 145.00 status amid outperformance in Japanese stocks.
  • Antipodeans were mixed on cross-related flows and after the PBoC disappointed calls for a MLF rate cut.
  • PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1084 vs exp. 7.1684 (prev. 7.1050)

Fixed Income

  • 10yr UST futures were lacklustre and traded rangebound with US cash markets to remain closed on Monday.
  • Bund futures traded uneventfully in the absence of any major pertinent catalysts for Europe over the weekend.
  • 10yr JGB futures extend on recent gains amid the presence of the BoJ in the market for almost JPY 1.2tln of JGBs, while 2-year JGB bond yields briefly returned to negative territory and printed its lowest since July 2023.

Commodities

  • Crude futures were rangebound as demand-related woes offset the geopolitical risk premium.
  • Iraq set February Basrah medium crude OSP to Asia at minus USD 0.80/bbl to Oman/Dubai average and to Europe at minus USD 5.15/bbl vs dated Brent, while it set the price to North and South America at minus USD 1.00/bbl vs ASCI, according to SOMO.
  • Iraq’s Oil Minister said the oil market suffers from many challenges that affect its stability and that OPEC+ is working to limit these factors by taking the measures necessary, according to Reuters.
  • Qatar appears to have halted sending LNG tankers through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait after US-led airstrikes on Houthi targets raised risks in the key waterway, according to Bloomberg.
  • Spot gold edged marginal gains amid an uneventful dollar and with US participants on an extended weekend.
  • Copper futures nursed some of last week’s losses but with the rebound capped by PBoC-related disappointment.

DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

It’s a US holiday today (Martin Luther King Day), so it will be a very quiet start to the week. My wife was away at a spa weekend so I’m worn out from shouting at the kids non-stop for 2 days so its a shame I’m not in the US for a break. Although it’ll be quiet, we do have the Iowa Caucus during what is a brutally cold spell in the state with -25C forecast for the vote tonight that traditionally kick-starts the election campaign. The key things to watch are whether Donald Trump can get above the psychological 50% share of the Republican vote (the level recent polls suggest he’s hovering around in the State), and/or how close either Ron DeSantis or Nikki Haley can get to him. While there is clearly a long way to go until November, this will give us some early idea of how successful and deep into the primaries Donald Trump’s opposition for the nomination might go.

Staying with politics, on Saturday, Lai Ching-te of the incumbent DPP won the presidential election in Taiwan, as expected, with 40.1% of the vote, ahead of KMT’s Hou Yu-ih. Attention is likely to turn to the risks of increased tensions between Taiwan and mainland China, with Bejing’s officials having referred to Lai as a “troublemaker” and “separatist” ahead of the election. So far there hasn’t been any escalating rhetoric from the winning party or from China so markets will probably see the immediate tail risk as reduced although this is something that probably bubbles under the surface for a long time ahead. For more information on the context of what is at stake, Marion Laboure and Cassidy Ainsworth-Grace published a presentation pack on the election and surrounding issues last week. See the full report here . The other geopolitics to watch out for are those around the US/UK strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen towards the end of last week.

In terms of the rest of the week ahead, the highlight is likely to be US December retail sales on Wednesday which will have a impact on Q4 GDP forecasts and momentum into Q1. Housing starts and permits (Thursday) and existing home sales (Friday) will also sharpen those forecasts. The latest UoM consumer survey is out Friday, including the latest inflation expectations series which has moved markets in recent months. Our economists point out that in a week of lots of Fed speak, Waller tomorrow (11am EST) might be the most important as his dovish shift in November helped spark the momentum towards the Fed’s dovish pivot. Earnings season will also slowly build in the US too this week. In addition, US lawmakers will vote after today’s holiday on yet another stopgap spending bill to avert a partial government shutdown this Saturday. It seems they are pushing this into March. So no doubt we’ll be in a similar position again then.

In Europe, UK labour market indicators (tomorrow), inflation data (Wednesday) and retail sales (Friday) will be of interest, especially the CPI data. Over in the continent, notable indicators will include industrial production for the Eurozone today and the ZEW survey for Germany tomorrow. Davos also kicks off today so expect lots of headlines and Canada Goose jackets on your business TV screens.

Moving on to Asia, the focus in Japan will be on the national CPI release on Thursday and China’s Q4 GDP and December economic activity indicators on Wednesday. Check out the full week ahead calendar at the end as usual with key data, speaker and earnings releases flagged.

Asian equity markets are mostly trading higher this morning with the Nikkei (+1.16%) again leading gains, while Chinese stocks are recovering from earlier losses with the CSI (+0.17%) and the Shanghai Composite (+0.36%) moving higher even after the PBOC left its medium-term policy loans rate unchanged (more on this below). Elsewhere, the KOSPI (-0.07%) is swinging between gains and losses with the Hang Seng (-0.15%) seeing minor losses. US stock futures are flat with cash Treasury trading closed due to today’s holiday.

Coming back to China, the PBOC defied market expectations for a cut as it held the rate on some 995 billion yuan ($139 billion) worth of one-year medium-term lending facility (MLF) loans intact at 2.50%. The MLF was last cut in August 2023, from 2.65%.

Recapping last week now. Despite the upside surprise to the CPI on Thursday, investors grew increasing confident that the Fed is likely to cut rates soon, with the CPI details suggesting more moderate PCE inflation, the Fed’s preferred gauge. This momentum continued on Friday after data showed a greater-than-expected decline in the PPI. US December PPI fell -0.1% (vs 0.1%) month-on-month and rose 1.0% in year-on-year terms (vs 1.3% expected). With some measures in the PPI, like healthcare and portfolio management, also captured in the core PCE, a weaker PPI therefore implies a softer core PCE print and greater justification for the Fed to cut rates. Off the back of this, investors raised their expectations of a 25bps Fed cut by March, rising from 78% to 83% on Friday, up from 63% at the start of the week. And 168bps of cuts are now priced it by end-2024, 30bps more than a week earlier. So that’s nearly seven 25bps cuts now expected by the market from the Fed this year.

With the soft producer price data reinforcing Fed cut bets, 10yr Treasury yields declined by -2.6bps on Friday, and -10.6bps on the week to 3.94%. The short-end outperformed, as 2yr yields fell -10.2bps to 4.15% (-23.7bps week-on-week), their lowest level since last May. The bond rally was driven by real rates, with the 10yr real yield down -15.7bps and the 2yr -32.2bps on the week. By contrast, 10yr breakevens (+4.1bps Friday and +5.1bps over the week), reached their highest level since November at 2.28%. Over in Europe, 10yr bund yields fell -5.0bps on Friday but rose +2.8bps in weekly terms.

Equities fluctuated on Friday but rallied over the week, supported by the rates rally. The S&P 500 gained +1.84% last week (+0.08% Friday), ending the week just 0.3% below its record high at the start of 2022. Soft earnings releases by several US banks on Friday drove the S&P 500 Banks index down -1.27% on Friday, and -3.37% in weekly terms. The tech-heavy NASDAQ outperformed, up +3.09% over the week (+0.02% on Friday) in its largest weekly move up since the start of November. Gains were largely driven by the tech giants, as the Magnificent Seven index of megacap stocks rose +4.25% (-0.16% on Friday). In Europe, the STOXX 600 jumped +0.84% on Friday but traded near flat (+0.08%) on the week.

Lastly in commodities, geopolitical risks returned to the fore after the US and UK launched air strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. With risks escalating for Red Sea commercial shipping, Danish fuel-tanker company, Torm, announced its intention to pause transits through the Southern Red Sea on Friday. These developments drove Brent Crude prices above $80/bbl in early trading on Friday, before finishing the day at $78.29/bbl (+1.14% on the day). That said, they were down slightly (-0.60%) on the week after an earlier decline on news of Saudi Arabia lowering its selling price. WTI crude similarly rose +0.92% on Friday to $72.68/bbl but was down -1.53% on the week. Rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East also saw gold rally +1.72% on Friday (+0.18% on the week)

2C ASIA AFFAIRS

MONDAY MORNING/SUNDAY  NIGHT

SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 4.67 PTS OR 0.16%  //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 57,46 PTS OR 0.35%          /The Nikkei CLOSED UP 527.25 OR 1.56%  //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED DOWN 0.08%    /Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN AT 7.1678   /OFFSHORE CHINESE YUAN CLOSED DOWN TO 7.1830 /Oil UP TO 74.63 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT  UP AT 80.02/ Stocks in Europe OPENED   ALL GREEN// ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN  TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE WEAKER

2 d./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA/

NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA

END

2e) JAPAN

JAPAN

3 CHINA/USA

2 B) NOW NEWSQUAWK (EUROPE/REPORT)

2 d./NORTH KOREA/ SOUTH KOREA/

NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA

END

2e) JAPAN

JAPAN

3 CHINA

CHINA/USA

How on earth did Biden allow China to buy this technology from the USA?

(zerohedge)

Kyle Bass Blasts US Gov’t For Giving China ‘Micro Nuclear Battery’ Tech

SUNDAY, JAN 14, 2024 – 01:25 PM

Dallas-based hedge fund manager Kyle Bass blasted the US Department of Energy in a post on social media X for transferring nuclear battery technology to China. 

“What’s going on in the US Department of Energy? Why did we hand this technology over to the Chinese Government?” Bass wrote on X while commenting on Hu Xijin’s, the editor-in-chief of Chinese state media Global Times, post. 

Bass pointed out, “The Chinese company didn’t steal this technology. It was given to them — by the US Department of Energy. First in 2017, as part of a sublicense.” 

“In 2021, as part of a license transfer. An investigation by NPR and the Northwest News Network found the federal agency allowed the technology and jobs to move overseas, violating its own licensing rules while failing to intervene on behalf of US workers multiple times,” the China Hawk hedge fund manager continued. 

The Chinese company in focus is “Betavolt,” It recently announced it had created an “atomic energy battery that mainly uses nickel-63 as the energy source and diamond semiconductor as the energy converter.” 

According to tech blog Tom’s Hardware, Betavolt’s nuclear battery will have a lifespan of 50 years and will target aerospace, AI devices, medical, MEMS systems, intelligent sensors, small drones, and robots. 

This means that charging a smartphone may become obsolete in the future. 

If Bass’ claims are correct, why did DoE allow China to obtain such a game-changing technology? 

CHINA/TAIWAN

Taiwan elects William Lai as President in a huge snub to mainland  China.  This will up the ante on Taiwan

(zerohedge)

Taiwan Elects William Lai President In Snub To China, Beijing Responds By Stressing ‘Inevitable Reunification’

SATURDAY, JAN 13, 2024 – 11:05 AM

William Lai Ching-te from the governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has emerged victorious in Saturday’s historic Taiwan presidential election, and Beijing is not happy, having immediately issued a rebuke after having urged the populace not the vote for him, saying the outcome “will not impede the inevitable trend of China’s reunification.”

Beijing further claimed that DPP doesn’t represent the mainstream public opinion on the island, despite that Lai, who serves as the current vice president, has just taken over 40% of votes cast – according to partial early results – in the three-way race with Hou Yu-ih from the conservative Kuomintang (KMT) and former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je from the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). It was comfortable victory and resounding message to China.

In his victory speech Lai said, “I want to thank the Taiwanese people for writing a new chapter in our democracy.” And then he issued words widely seen as a direct jab at China: “We are telling the international community that between democracy and authoritarianism, we will stand on the side of democracy,” he declared.

But he also expressed hope that his administration will establish “healthy and orderly” based on parity and mutual respect. This was quickly met with Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Chen Binhua saying in a strong and terse statement that “Taiwan is China’s Taiwan,” according Xinhua.

Per Taiwan media, all polling stations have reported: 

  • TPP’s Ko Wen-je and Wu Hsin-ying 3,690,466 (26.46%)
  • DPP’s Lai Ching-te and Hsiao Bi-khim 5,586,019 (40.05%)
  • KMT’s Hou Yu-ih and Jaw Shaw-kong 4,671,021 (33.49%)

Turnout was strong, as expected given the shadow of Xi’s China is looming large over the comparatively tiny democratic island:

Lai, along with his running mate Hsiao Bi-khim – Taiwan’s former representative to the United States – won a total of more than 5.5 million votes. Taiwan’s electoral system is based on first-past-the-post voting, awarding the victory to the presidential-VP pairing with the highest percentage of votes. 

Turnout on the self-ruled island was put at more than 70 percent with some 19.5 million Taiwanese eligible to vote. 

Days before Saturday’s election, Liu Jianchao, head of international liaison for China’s ruling Communist Party, had a rare meeting and candid discussion with representatives of Biden’s national security council on Washington, both sides confirmed. This came just days ahead of presidential elections in Taiwan, which has temporarily grabbed the world’s attention as other global flashpoints sow unpredictability – specifically Ukraine, Gaza, and the Red Sea. Beijing is said to have relayed to the White House its ‘red line’ concerning Taiwan and “the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea.”

A Chinese readout of the meeting, wherein the US side was led by US deputy national security adviser Jonathan Finer, affirmed that Liu “stated China’s positions on issues like Taiwan and the South China Sea.” Important also concerning the timing is that he’s highest-ranking Chinese official to visit the US since the Xi-Biden summit. 

Per Finer and the US delegation, they talked about “challenges in the Middle East, Russia’s war against Ukraine, and cross-strait issues.”

Prior to this, just weeks ago, China warned of further trade sanctions on Taiwan in the event the ruling party “stubbornly” commits to supporting independence. Spokesman for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Chen Binhua had addressed a message to the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), saying “If the DPP authorities are determined to persevere, continue to stubbornly adhere to their Taiwan independence position, and refuse to repent, we support the relevant departments taking further measures in accordance with the regulations.”

On December 27 Chinese leader Xi Jinping issued a rare, ultra-blunt warning against anyone “making Taiwan secede from China by any means,” given he said of the self-ruled island that “China’s complete reunification is an inevitable trend” and that reunification is “what the people desire.” He further urged that the Chinese Communist Party must set its sights of a grander policy of “resolving the Taiwan question in the new era.”

These somewhat fiery words from Xi loomed in the backdrop when Liu was in Washington this past week. The high-ranking diplomat presented similar words of warning to an event hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations wherein he again underscored the red line: “For China, the Taiwan question is at the very core of the core interests. It’s the red line that must never be crossed,” Liu said.

The Foreign Ministry then followed the next day (Thurs) by directly warning Washington that it must avoid sending the “wrong signals” to Taiwan. “We urge the US side … to stop interfering in the local elections in Taiwan in whatever ways, and stop sending wrong signals to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” a spokesperson said.

According to a backgrounder from Nikkei: 

Taiwan’s president is its head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The president and the vice president are directly elected together.

The unicameral legislature, known as the Legislative Yuan, has 113 lawmakers. Seventy-three will be elected under a first-past-the-post system in single-member districts, 34 by party-list proportional representation voting, and six by single non-transferable votes in multimember districts exclusively for Indigenous people.

Presidents are in charge of defense and foreign affairs, including relations with China and the U.S., and appoint the premier, who forms his or her cabinet to run the government. In practice, the premier has much less political power than the president. Parliamentarians in the Legislative Yuan pass laws and decide on budgets, including defense allocations.

Whoever wins on Saturday will succeed current President Tsai Ing-wen on May 20. They will serve until May 2028.

As for what we can expect in the coming months and in this year, Foreign Policy’s 5 Predictions for China in 2024 laid out the below analysis of an expected “Taiwan Mini-crisis” sparked by election [emphasis ZH]…

“Taiwan holds a presidential election on Jan. 13, and the year could start with a small crisis in the straits. Current Taiwanese Vice President Lai Ching-te, who serves under President Tsai Ing-wen and is a member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), holds a narrow lead in the polls. His election would ire Beijing; he is an advocate for a more independent Taiwan and strongly opposed to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Although Lai has said he won’t call for formal Taiwanese independence or drop the Republic of China name—a red line for Beijing—he has also said that Taiwan’s sovereignty is “a fact” and reminded his fellow candidates that by Beijing’s standards, they are all pro-independence.

A Lai victory would likely prompt aggressive moves from Beijing, including naval maneuvers and airspace intrusions. Reports last week about comments made by Xi  to U.S. President Joe Biden about reunification with Taiwan when they met in November stirred some panic in Washington, but an invasion remains highly unlikely. It would be risky and difficult, especially when China is struggling with other crises.

Even a victory for Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang (KMT) on Jan. 13 may cause some problems. The KMT is more pro-China than the DPP, but it would hardly hand the keys to the island over to Beijing. Chinese officials might overestimate the significance of a KMT election win, seeing it as a sign of China’s influence in Taiwan. Although 17 percent of Taiwanese voters said in a recent survey that China is their main concern, more than twice that number picked the economy.”

end

4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDINAVIAN AFFAIRS

UK/RUSSIA/UKRAINE

If British troops enters the Ukraine war it would be a declaration of war states Medvedex

(zerohedge)

British Troops In Ukraine Would Be ‘Declaration Of War’ Risking Nuclear Response: Medvedev 

SATURDAY, JAN 13, 2024 – 07:35 AM

Reacting to the ‘unprecedented’ military aid package just reached between Kiev and the United Kingdom, and with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in the Ukrainian capital, the Kremlin has issued an urgent warning saying that any deployment of British troops to Ukraine as a “declaration of war.” 

The alarming and blistering words came from former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev upon Sunak’s arrival in Kiev for the unveiling of the $3+ billion defense aid package. The new security agreement has outraged Moscow.

While there’s been nothing in the official security deal which indicates UK troop deployment inside the war-ravaged country, apparently things like deepened intelligence-sharing has been enough to raise Kremlin suspicions of Western ‘boots in the ground’ escalation. 

The deal “formalizes a range of support the UK has been and will continue to provide for Ukraine’s security, including intelligence sharing, cyber security, medical and military training, and defense industrial cooperation,” Downing Street had announced. 

Medvedev posted his response to social media. Importantly, he currently serves as deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, and he said: 

“What does this mean? It means only one thing – they risk running into the action of paragraph 19 of the fundamentals of Russia’s state policy in the field of nuclear deterrence,” Medvedev wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

“This should be remembered,” Medvedev said.

According to more of the context from Reuters, he said that “some Ukrainian military commanders were considering hitting missile launch sites inside Russia with Western-supplied long-range missiles.”

The follows the Russian Defense Ministry having previously claimed UK troops already have a presence on the ground in Ukraine, certainly at least in an ‘advisory’ role.

While ultimately only President Putin is the final decision-maker on deployment of Russian nukes, Medvedev’s threat was ominous and gained the West’s attention at a moment of multiple conflict flashpoints across the globe chiefly because of the following: 

Paragraph nineteen of Russia’s 2020 nuclear doctrine sets out the conditions under which a Russian president would consider using a nuclear weapon: broadly as a response to an attack using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction, or to the use of conventional weapons against Russia “when the very existence of the state is put under threat.”

Medvedev made specific mention of point “g” of paragraph nineteen which deals with the nuclear response to a conventional weapons attack.

Throughout the nearly two-year long war, former president Medvedev has been an outspoken hawk, engaging in nuclear saber-rattling on repeat occasions, especially when there’s an escalation perceived from Ukraine or its Western backers. Russia had previously positioned tactical nukes inside Belarus, which the West has seen as a significant escalation.

END

FRANCE/HOUTHIS

The French navy plows through million dollar missiles to shoot down cheap drones

(zerohedge)

French Navy Plows Through Million Dollar Missiles To Defeat Cheap Houthi Drones

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 04:35 AM

A key reason that Yemen’s Houthis are unlikely to halt their attacks on Red Sea shipping as well as Western warships parked there is because immense pressure on the global transit waterway can be kept up, while it costs little to persist with such launches.

Many of the Houthis drones which are capable of reaching vessels far off the Yemeni coast have been estimated at not more than $20,000. Some of them are as low as a few thousand dollars to build. They can easily be intercepted by US and UK coalition warships, but at an immense cost for these Western militaries. 

Anti-air missiles fired from coalition ships are commonly estimated at over $1 million each. This means the Houthis can keep the attacks coming, and on the cheap while watching Western warships blow through expensive arsenals.

This trend has been highlighted in a recent DefenseNews report which explored the high cost to the French navy of defeating the low-tech Houthi drones: 

France’s maritime commander for the Indian Ocean defended the use of million-euro missiles to down drones used by Yemen’s Houthi rebels to attack shipping in the Red Sea, citing the value of the lives and assets protected, and the sophistication of the threat.

The Languedoc frigate patrolling in the southern Red Sea in December shot down multiple drones using Aster 15 missiles, at a cost that defense analysts estimate at around €1 million (U.S. $1.1 million) per missile. The British Royal Navy’s HMS Diamond has also used the missiles to fend of drone attacks in the area.

The report further underscored that “The economic calculus of ultra-capable interceptors, designed to counter expensive expensive anti-ship missiles or manned aircraft, quickly loses its appeal against drones costing thousands of dollars, analysts have warned.”

Still, commanders in the coalition are defending using these ultra-expensive missiles, saying all of this should be weighed in light of the necessary act of protecting valuable shipping lanes for Western economies.

Likely, the more sophisticated drones within the Houthi arsenal come directly from Iran. Tehran also has an interest in seeing Western navies bogged down in the Red Sea, and all the while they can use proxies to do it.

US officials have lately accused the Iranians of directly assisting the Houthis with targeting in the Red Sea. There’s at least one Iranian surveillance ship believed to be patrolling these waters at the moment. The situation is a ‘win-win’ for both the Houthis and Iranians, even after the recent rounds of Western airstrikes on Yemen.

END

5 RUSSIA//UKRAINE AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS

ISRAEL/HAMAS

Israel can’t end war without sealing Philadelphi Corridor – Netanyahu

“We cannot end the war without sealing this breach,” Netanyahu said, because otherwise “we will eli

By TOVAH LAZAROFF

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Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024 (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)
Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S OFFICE)

The Gaza Strip buffer zone along the Egyptian border known as the Philadelphi Corridor must be sealed to prevent arms smuggling, but no operational decision has been taken as to the best way to do so, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

“We cannot end the war without sealing this breach,” he said, because otherwise “we will eliminate Hamas, we will demilitarize Gaza” only to have arms flow back in through this southern breach.

He spoke about the corridor during a Saturday night press conference, hours after The Wall Street Journal reported that the IDF was planning a military operation near Egypt’s border with Gaza to seize control of that corridor.

Israel had controlled the small 14-kilometer corridor under terms set out by the 1979 peace treaty with Egypt, but it left that buffer zone area when it withdrew from Gaza in 2005.Israelis protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the current Israeli government, in Tel Aviv, January 13, 2024 (credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/FLASH90)Enlrage imageIsraelis protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the current Israeli government, in Tel Aviv, January 13, 2024 (credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/FLASH90)

Hamas built tunnels underneath Rafah crossing

Egypt maintains a crossing with Gaza at Rafah, but Hamas has built tunnels underneath that area to smuggle weapons into the Strip.

“There are several options” as to how to seal the breaches in that area, “but no decision has been taken, save for one, it has to be blocked,” he said.Go to the full article >>END

IDF looks to launch massive attack to seize Gaza’s border with Egypt – WSJ

The IDF operation would “likely involve removing Palestinian officials from a key crossing point and stationing Israeli forces,” the Wall Street Journal reported.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFFJANUARY 13, 2024 16:43Updated: JANUARY 13, 2024 22:45

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Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024 (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)
Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S OFFICE)

Israel has informed Egypt of its plans to launch a military operation aimed at retaking control of the key Philadelphi corridor in the southern Gaza Strip, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

Citing both current and former Israeli and Egyptian officials, the report noted that the IDF operation would “likely involve removing Palestinian officials from a key crossing point and stationing Israeli forces along a stretch of land from Gaza’s southeastern corner abutting both Israel and Egypt toward the Mediterranean Sea about 12 kilometers (8 miles) to the northwest,” as per the WSJ.

Any attack in the politically sensitive area of Rafah and the Philadelphi corridor would be highly charged because it borders Egypt and has diplomatic implications for Israel’s relations both with Cairo and globally.

The Jerusalem Post reported last month that the IDF had steered clear of Rafah so far because of those sensitivities.

Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)
Israeli forces operating in the Gaza Strip on January 13, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S OFFICE)

Egypt rejected Israeli proposal for oversight on buffer zone

Earlier this week, it was reported that Egypt has rejected a proposal by Israel for greater Israeli oversight over the buffer zone on the Egypt-Gaza border and is prioritizing efforts to broker a ceasefire before working on post-war arrangements.

The Egyptian sources said that during those talks Israel had approached Egypt about securing the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow buffer zone along the border, as part of Israeli plans to prevent future attacks.

Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.

LEBANON/ISRAEL

Hezbollah fires missiles at Israel, IDF responds with artillery, air force

The IDF stated that air force jets struck targets in the area of the Lebanese towns of Labbouneh, Ramyeh, and Ayta ash Shab, destroying several Hezbollah infrastructure facilities.

By SAM HALPERNJANUARY 12, 2024 16:17Updated: JANUARY 13, 2024 00:22

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An F-35 Adir from the 140th squadron takes part in an Israeli air force air show during the graduation ceremony for soldiers who have completed the IAF Flight Course, at the Hatzerim Air Base in the Negev desert, June 29, 2023. (photo credit: OFER ZIDON/FLASH90)
An F-35 Adir from the 140th squadron takes part in an Israeli air force air show during the graduation ceremony for soldiers who have completed the IAF Flight Course, at the Hatzerim Air Base in the Negev desert, June 29, 2023.(photo credit: OFER ZIDON/FLASH90)

After two anti-tank missiles were fired from Lebanon at northern Israel on Friday, the IDF responded with artillery fire directed at the sources of the missile launches, Israeli media reported.

The anti-tank missiles were reportedly fired at the area of Malkiya in the Upper Galilee. A rocket alarm sounded in Hanita, an Israeli community directly adjacent to the Lebanon border.

The Lebanon-based, Iranian-backed terror organization Hezbollah subsequently claimed responsibility for the attack on Telegram, naming Hanita as one of several Israeli targets under fire.

Shortly thereafter, the Israeli media outlet Walla, reported that Israeli air force aircraft struck targets in southern Lebanon.

Smoke rises during an exchange of fire between the IDF and terrorists from the Hezbollah organization on the border between Israel and Lebanon, January 8, 2024. (credit: AYAL MARGOLIN/FLASH90)
Smoke rises during an exchange of fire between the IDF and terrorists from the Hezbollah organization on the border between Israel and Lebanon, January 8, 2024. (credit: AYAL MARGOLIN/FLASH90)

IDF confirms strikes

Later on Friday evening, the IDF stated that air force jets struck targets in the area of the Lebanese towns of Labbouneh, Ramyeh, and Ayta ash Shab, destroying several Hezbollah infrastructure facilities.

The IDF also confirmed the earlier reports of missiles launched at northern Israel as well as the Israeli responses to the attacks.

END

ISRAEL/LEBANON

IDF eliminates terrorists who infiltrated over Lebanese border

Throughout the day on Saturday, Hezbollah took responsibility for eight separate attacks along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

By YONAH JEREMY BOB, TZVI JOFFRE

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IDF activity in the North (IDF Spokesperson Unit)

The IDF eliminated three Hamas-affiliated terrorists who tried to infiltrate into Israel from Lebanon in the Mount Dov area early Sunday morning, according to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.

Hezbollah has attacked and destroyed significant aspects of the IDF’s surveillance capabilities during the ongoing conflict since October, and there was an extremely misty and opaque haze in the area at the time, including heavy rain.

Akk of this, plus the many large boulders in the area, made it much more difficult to detect the penetration in advance, which enabled the Hamas forces to penetrate a couple hundred meters into the Mount Dov area, though still not close to any Israeli residential areas.

What helped locate the terrorists?

Two factors helped the IDF track and locate the Hamas terrorists.

First, one of the lookout posts saw suspicious movements in real time and radioed that information to Battalion 1706.

Second, Battalion 1706 in the area had a mix of static defense forces, along with patrol forces which were already moving around, and this allowed them to arrive more quickly in a spot where they could intercept the Hamas terrorists’ according to their predicted trajectory.Weapons found on scene (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)Enlrage imageWeapons found on scene (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)

The terrorists were very well-armed with anti-tank missiles, grenades, and significant amounts of ammunition for their Kalashnikov rifles.

Although the IDF forces killed the three Hamas forces, the attackers managed to wound five IDF soldiers, two moderately, and three lightly, when they engaged them with grenades.

The IDF also carried out artillery and mortar fire toward Lebanon during the incident, with Lebanese media reporting over 60 projectiles were fired toward the Shebaa Farms area of Lebanon in the incident.

Initial reports said that the IDF had killed four invaders, but once the sun rose, the weather cleared, and the IDF was able to inspect the site of the battle, they found three dead Hamas bodies.

IDF estimates are that the Hamas terrorists hoped to sneak up on an Israeli installation to destroy it.

Throughout the day on Saturday, Hezbollah took responsibility for eight separate attacks along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

Halevi warns ‘Hezbollah may turn all of Lebanon into a combat zone’

IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi warned on Saturday night that “Hezbollah has chosen to act as a ‘Hamas shield’ under Iran’s command, and we are exacting an ever-increasing price from it.”

“Those who condition an end of clashes in the north with an end to the fighting in the Gaza Strip will pay increasing prices. So it was, so it will be in the future,” added Halevi.

“The security reality in the north is already taking shape these days. We are keeping the Radwan terrorists away from the border and damaging Hezbollah’s capabilities that it has built up over the years. We operate freely in Lebanon’s airspace and attack any threat we detect.”

“The southern Lebanon region is a combat zone, and it will remain so, as long as Hezbollah operates from it. Hezbollah may turn the entire country of Lebanon into a combat zone, this will have a heavy price,” warned the chief of staff. “We are prepared for war even today, and are constantly improving our capabilities. We are committed to changing the security situation in such a way that will allow the residents to return to their homes in complete safety – in the north and the south.”Go to the full article >>

WEST BANK/ISRAEL/FRIDAY NIGHT

Three terrorists eliminated after shooting attack on Israeli West Bank settlement

One resident of the community reportedly received a gunshot wound to the leg.

By SAM HALPERNJANUARY 12, 2024 20:23Updated: JANUARY 12, 2024 23:31

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MDA on the scene after a terrorist attack occurred in the West Bank settlement of Adora. January 12, 2024. (photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X)
MDA on the scene after a terrorist attack occurred in the West Bank settlement of Adora. January 12, 2024.(photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X)

Terrorists carried out a shooting attack in the West Bank Israeli settlement of Adora on Friday evening, Israeli sources reported. The report followed an alert regarding a possible terrorist infiltration into the community.

The Home Front Command subsequently issued orders that residents of the community take shelter in buildings, lock the doors, and close the windows.

Residents were warned not to exit any buildings until the event had concluded. Traffic in the area has been prohibited until further notice.

Resident shot in the leg

Reports said that terrorists entered the community and attacked an IDF soldier on patrol, and Maariv reported that one resident received a gunshot wound to the leg.

Israeli security personnel reportedly quickly arrived on the scene thereafter, and the Judea and Samaria Update Center stated that a large force was on its way to the site.

Israeli soldiers on the scene after a terrorist attack in the West Bank settlement of Adora. January 12, 2024. (credit: SCREENSHOT/X)
Israeli soldiers on the scene after a terrorist attack in the West Bank settlement of Adora. January 12, 2024. (credit: SCREENSHOT/X)

Israel’s emergency medical service, Magen David Adom, confirmed that the wounded individual, a 34-year-old male, was suffering from light to moderate wounds and was fully conscious after being shot in the leg.

The man was evacuated to a hospital for further treatment.Advertisement

A subsequent statement from the IDF reported that after the terrorists infiltrated the community, they fired at IDF troops on patrol at the scene.

Three terrorists eliminated

The IDF immediately launched a pursuit and conducted thorough searches of the area. Over the course of the searches, three terrorists were identified and eliminated by the Israeli security personnel.

Reports said that the terrorists got stuck between the perimeter fence of the area and were unable to cross it. M16 weapons, an axe, knives, and Molotov cocktails were found on the terrorists.

The IDF added that continued searches for additional terrorists are underway.

END

/USA//IRAQ/IRANIAN BACKED MILITANTS

Houthis//USA/Gr Britain/friday night

US officials confirm fresh attack on Houthis in Yemen

By REUTERS

The US military is carrying out an additional strike against the Houthis in Yemen, a day after launching a wave of attacks on nearly 30 locations in the country to degrade the Iran-backed rebel group’s ability to strike Red Sea shipping, two US officials tell Reuters.

The officials, who speak on condition of anonymity, declined to provide further details.

According to two US officials who speak anonymously to The Associated Press to discuss an operation that hadn’t yet been publicly announced, the strike targeted a Houthi-controlled site in Yemen that they have determined was putting commercial vessels in the Red Sea at risk.

The first day of strikes on Friday hit 28 locations and struck more than 60 targets. However, the US determined the additional location, a radar site, still presented a threat to maritime traffic, one official says.

end

Did Secretary of State Blinken Tip Off Yemen to US Bombings?

By Larry JohnsonJan. 12, 2024 8:45 am297 CommentsTelegram

Yemen’s Taiz Airport

Besides discussing the latest escalation in Yemen, with the U.S. and U.K. carrying out airstrikes against targets in a Yemeni port city Al-Hudaydah and Sana’a, I am posting today’s intel roundtable with Ray McGovern and Judge Napolitano as well as my chat with Ania K.

I recall my boss at State Counter Terrorism — retired USMC Colonel Dick Gannon — saying, “You can’t fix stupid.” The U.S. and U.K. airstrikes on Yemen are absolutely stupid and is likely to ignite a spiral of violence that will leave Americans and Brits dead. The cable news shows absolutely love this story. They get to show video footage of F-18s zooming off the deck of a carrier and pictures of boiling clouds of black smoke risking above the cities of Sana’a and Al-Hudaydah (see above).

But what does this accomplish? From a military standpoint, it is unlikely that these bombings destroyed or damaged any Houthi rocket/drone/missile warehouses. Why? Because Antony Blinken briefed the leaders of Turkey, Greece, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on the U.S. plan to hit Yemen. What are the odds that at least one senior person in the know passed that info along to folks in Yemen? I put it at 100%.

So what? That gave Yemen time to disperse its assets or hide them in a secure location. I wonder if Shakespeare had Joe Biden in mind when he penned this observation in Macbeth:

Life’s but a walking shadow; a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

This bombing is unlikely to achieve any meaningful degrading of Yemeni missile and drone capabilities, but it will rally more of the global Arab and muslim street to the side of the Houthis. It also raises the risk that the Houthis, who up until now had only targeted ships linked to Israel, will expand targets to include U.S. and U.K. vessels.

Important to remember that the U.S. and U.K. ships can only spend a limited time in the Red Sea before they have to set sail for a port, such as Dubai, where the destroyers can replace the empty VLS missile tubes. I think it also is likely that U.S. and U.K. embassies, consulates will be attacked and that commercial enterprises viewed as U.S. or U.K. will be targeted. Nabil Khoury, a former deputy chief of the US mission in Yemen, appeared on Al Jazeera and observed, “the attacks on Yemen are a “failure of American diplomacy.” He also noted that as a result of these actions:

the US and UK bombing of Houthi targets in Yemen, the Biden administration effectively became “a direct participant in the war in Gaza,” Khoury told Al Jazeera. “The situation can only get worse from here,” he said. “I think this is a serious mistake. I think more effort should have been made to contain the Houthis… If the US and Britain think this will silence the Houthis, I think they have something else in mind.”

I agree with Mr. Khoury. Punching Yemen in the nose is not a knock out blow. Moreover, the Houthis have 9 years of war experience under their belts. They ain’t afraid to fight Washington and London from the relative secure confines of Yemen. Keep your eye on USCENTCOM — the U.S. miitary element responsible for military operations in the Middle East. CENTCOM normally conducts regular exercises for its own forces and with the forces of friendly nations. If the exercises currently on the calendar are executed then that is a signal that the CENTCOM commander does not expect much fallout from these strikes. However, if CENTCOM moves to cancel exercises then that signals the U.S. military is buckling up for an extended conflict.

And that raises a more serious and significant question — how does the U.S. sustain naval combat operations when it is already running low on inventories of missiles? When the U.S. and U.K. warships run out of missiles and bombs — and they will run out if Yemen is able to launch sustained drone and missile attacks for two weeks without pause — the American and British naval forces will be compelled to withdraw in order to rearm. This will be perceived in Yemen and other sympathetic nations as a retreat. The ball is now in Yemen’s court. What will be their next volley?

There also is an interesting legal question about the legitimacy of Biden ordering this strike. It does not fall under the Authorization for Use of Military Force (aka AUMF) issued in 2001 in the wake of the 9-11 attacks. Although Donald Trump as President designated the Houthis as a terror group, which could be argued falls under the 2001 AUMF, Joe Biden de-listed the Houtis. Therefore, under what legal authority did Biden commit and act of war against Yemen without Congressional approval? There are several members of the President’s own party raising hell about this tonight.

END

SUNDAY

US strikes Houthi radar site in Yemen, US military says

By REUTERSJANUARY 13, 2024 03:36Updated: JANUARY 13, 2024 05:48

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US forces conducted a strike against a Houthi radar site in Yemen, the American military said late on Friday, adding the latest action aimed at degrading the Houthi movement’s ability to attack maritime vessels.

“This strike was conducted by the USS Carney (DDG 64) using Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles and was a follow-on action on a specific military target associated with strikes taken on Jan. 12 designed to degrade the Houthi’s ability to attack maritime vessels, including commercial vessels,” the US Central Command said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.

The latest strike occurred early on Saturday local time in Yemen.

END


US-led strikes said to have damaged 20-30% of Houthi offensive capabilities

US-led strikes on the Houthis destroyed around a quarter of the Iran-backed terror group’s missile and drone-launching capabilities, according to a New York Times report.

Citing two US officials, the newspaper says 20-30% of the Houthis offensive capabilities were destroyed or damaged in the attacks, but that many of their weapon platforms are mobile and can be moved around.

The officials also say it’s been difficult to locate Houthi targets afters years in which the US and allied intelligence agencies did not make it a priority to gather such information.

end

MONDAY


THIS IS NOT GOOD! Houthi militants attack USA container ship with ballistic missiles right after Biden attack on Yemen. The USA has no choice but to bomb Iran

(zerohedge)

Houthi Militants Attack US Container Ship With Ballistic Missiles Days After Biden Attack On Yemen

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 03:00 PM

So much for the billions in taxpayer funds spent on Operation “Prosperity Guardian“, the Biden admin’s brilliant plan to “protect” shipping through the Red Sea against Houthi attacks.

On Monday, Houthi militants struck another US-owned container ship with an anti-ship ballistic missile, underscoring how catastrophic Biden’s attempt to protect one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes has been, and that the world’s most important trade artery remains too risky for navigation despite explicit US guarantees for safe passage.

The Gibraltar Eagle, a Marshall Islands-flagged, U.S.-owned and operated container ship, was struck at about 4 p.m. local time in the Gulf of Aden, US Central Command said on X. Nobody was injured, the vessel avoided significant damage and was able continue its journey, it said.

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Eagle Bulk Shipping, operator of Gibraltar Eagle, confirmed the ship was hit by a projectile and suffered limited damage to a cargo hold before sailing away from the area. It was carrying steel products.

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The strike underscores warnings from the US, reported by a top industry trade group, that ships should steer clear of the Red Sea. Pete Buttigieg’s Department of Transportation also issued a warning to US merchant ships Monday telling them to avoid the area until further notice, thus confirming that Prosperity Guardian has been a total multi-billion dollar flop.

 2024-001B-Red Sea and Gulf of Aden-Potential Retaliatory Attacks by Houthi Forces

There continues to be a high degree of risk to commercial vessels transiting the Southern Red Sea between 12N and 16N. While the decision to transit remains at the discretion of individual vessels and companies, it is recommended that U.S. flag and U.S. owned commercial vessels remain North of 18N in the Red Sea or East of 46E in the Gulf of Aden until further notice. Additional updates will be provided when available. This alert will not automatically expire and will be updated or cancelled as needed. Any questions regarding this alert should be directed to U.S. Naval Forces NCAGS at +973-1785-0033 (Primary/Watch Desk), +973-3940-4523 (Alternate), m-ba-navcent-ncags@us.navy.mil

The latest attack on a US-owned and operated ship comes just days after US and UK forces had theatrically bombed targets in Yemen following months of attacks on commercial ships by Houthi militants, who had been targeting vessels with any kind of connection with Israel. The Houthis warned of reprisals against US and UK ships for the bombing, and sure enough, they did just that. Meanwhile, the Biden admin is keeping it “retaliatory” attacks to the barest optical minimum as it is terrified that if it strikes too hard at Iranian targets, some or all of Iran’s precious 4mmb/d in oil would be pulled from the market, leading to an explosion in oil prices and devastation for Biden in the Nov elections.

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The DOT’s navigation warning, posted on LinkedIn by the world’s largest international shipping association Bimco, cited advice from the US Naval Forces Central Command. It warned the current instability could yet last for “some time.”

“Coalition forces and Bimco continue to recommend shipping companies to consider avoiding shipping operations in the area,” the trade group said, crushing any credibility the Biden admin may have had of preserving stability in the Red Sea, and making a mockery of US attempts to contain the Houthi rebels.

The maritime industry had already been warned on Friday to stay away from the region, but initial guidance suggested the pause might only last for three days. That was echoed by the Department of Transportation’s own 72-hour warning on Friday, which became on indefinite one on Monday. Unfortunately, due to the sheer incompetence of the US military, which is more concerned with being inclusive and equitably accepting of overweight trannies with blue hair than actually being in fighting shape, what was a 3-day lockdown is now indefinite.

The attacks are driving up shipping costs as vessels avoiding the area are forced to sail thousands of miles further around Africa instead. That’s raised the specter of a renewed wave of inflation and means delays to the delivery of every thing from commodities to manufactured goods.

Gas tankers from Qatar are among the latest vessels that have seemingly been forced the long way around but numerous shipowners have heeded the warnings. On Friday, multiple tanker companies said they were pausing transits through a stretch of water that’s vital for the shipment of everything from oil to manufactured goods.

end

Western Brands Boycott Calls Intensify After US Jets Bomb Yemen

SATURDAY, JAN 13, 2024 – 08:25 PM

Social media users are pressing ahead for continued boycotts of Western brands as the US and its allies pound Yemen with air strikes and missiles to neutralize Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

“Boycott these brands that support the invasion of Yemen,” X user Naila Ayad said in a post viewed more than 1.6 million times. 

And this. 

Let’s not forget. 

One X user pointed out, “None of these brands have anything to with Yemen and the US didn’t invade Yemen, also why is their idea of a boycott just targeting snacks.” 

“Actually, boycotting these brands will improve your health, too,” another X user said. 

These calls come as boycotts across the Middle East have battered Western brands following the deadly Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7. 

McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski wrote a LinkedIn post earlier this month that explained the Middle East boycotts have had a “meaningful business impact.” He said the boycotts were “due to the war and associated misinformation.” 

“I also recognize that several markets in the Middle East and some outside the region are experiencing a meaningful business impact due to the war and associated misinformation that is affecting brands like McDonald’s. This is disheartening and ill-founded. In every country where we operate, including in Muslim countries, McDonald’s is proudly represented by local owner operators who work tirelessly to serve and support their communities while employing thousands of their fellow citizens. That local community connection is the genius of the McDonald’s System.” 

Last week, Papa John’s International Inc. blamed “lower-than-anticipated net unit openings” on “unanticipated international restaurant closures in the fourth quarter including 10 UK franchised restaurants; 12 international units that were re-classified as closed locations in the fourth quarter through a review of temporary restaurant closures; restaurant openings moved into 2024; and restaurant opening delays due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.” 

It’s not just McDonald’s. Reuters said other Western brands, such as Starbucks and KFC, have been boycotted. 

It remains to be seen if boycotts will intensify since the US bombing campaign in Yemen began on Wednesday. 

Lt Richard Hecht

.END

ISRAEL VS HAMAS

RUSSIA/UKRAINE

AUTHOR GONZOLO LIRA MURDERED

 Tucker Carlson on X: “Gonzalo Lira, Sr. says his son has died at 55 in a Ukrainian prison, where he was being held for the crime of criticizing the Zelensky and Biden governments. Gonzalo Lira was an American citizen, but the Biden administration clearly supported his imprisonment and torture. Several…” / X

Journalist Gonzalo Lira Reported Dead In Ukrainian Custody According To Father

FRIDAY, JAN 12, 2024 – 05:20 PM

Journalist Gonzalo Lira has died while in Ukrainian custody, according to his father.

“Gonzalo Lira, Sr. says his son has died at 55 in a Ukrainian prison, where he was being held for the crime of criticizing the Zelensky and Biden governments,” wrote Tucker Carlson on X. “Gonzalo Lira was an American citizen, but the Biden administration clearly supported his imprisonment and torture.”

In May, Lira was arrested by Ukrainian authorities because he “publicly justified” the Russian invasion, according to a press release by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

The statement from Kiev said that Lira “has the citizenship of one of the countries of Latin America” but omitted that he is also California-born U.S. citizen, as ZeroHedge contributor Space Worm reported at the time.

Following his release, Lira said he was tortured in a Ukrainian prison, explaining that “two thugs held my head and used a toothpick to scratch the whites of my left eye, while asking me if I could still read if I had just one.” Lira informed followers that he was making a mad-dash via motorcycle towards the Hungarian border:

According to journalist Alex Rubernstein, Lira said that he had double pneumonia (both lungs), which was ignored by the Ukrainian prison holding him.

“I have had double pneumonia (both lungs) as well as pneumothorax and a very severe case of edema (swelling of the body). All this started in mid-October, but was ignored by the prison. They only admitted I had pneumonia at a Dec. 22 hearing,” reads the letter. “I am about to have a procedure to reduce the edema pressure in my lungs, which is causing me extreme shortness of breath, to the point of passing out after minimal activity, or even just talking for 2 minutes.”

In response to Lira’s reported death, his father allegedly wrote: “I cannot accept the way my son has died. He was tortured, extorted, incommunicado for 8 months and 11 days and the US Embassy did nothing to help my son. The responsibility of this tragedy is the dictator Zelensky with the concurrence of a senile American President, Joe Biden.”

We’re sure this asshole is happy.

END

ROBERT H:

The march to war becomes unstoppable

Zelensky now has Sunak’s security “defense agreement,” which provides security guarantees/assurances to Kyiv and is obviously a precursor to the official involvement of NATO, which has already trained  over 500,000 dead Ukrainian soldiers. Sunak has committed the British to a formal involvement, meaning boots on the ground if the Russians takes Donbass-Zaporizia. No doubt this is already foreseen. He has now redrawn the border of Ukraine like Khruschev did and has declared Kharkiv, Nikolaev, and Odessa-Transnistria Ukrainian territory. Who has asked the British citizens for permission to die fighting Russia? This is mindless action of folly. Just like their recent attempt to sent in Minesweepers into the Black Sea which was blocked by Turkey from occurring. 
Worse he has set Britain back a bunch by proving it too is a tool of a war mongering crowd in America. It was bad enough to see Latvia decide to spend billions it does not have to help perhaps the most corrupt so called country called Ukraine fight Russia. Even Poland seems to be in the grip of war insanity.
War kills both soldiers and innocent civilians caught in the path of death. For anyone who has not ancestors who experienced this;  this is not a memory you want to make. The reason for this mindless pursuit of war is simply that the debt based spending of Western governments is not sustainable. The hourglass is running out. Thus the plan to create war is to default on all government debt. This is not a new idea and has been done before. There is precious real capital left as wealth has been wasted. 
Capital, real capital is sensitive to war and does not wait for destruction of assets to run. One has to connect the dots to see the big picture of how this is connected and how it accelerates. When you see nations like Saudi Arabian and the UA, Iran join the BRICS we see a choice just like Britain and Latvia have chosen a side. Capital will not flow into these nations because of geopolitical risk caused by war nor will real capital buy such country debt. This will accelerate the problem of new debt being wanted or even capital to roll over of old debt. Businesses will in turn find harder to secure capital. Snail paced reaction will prove fatal. Because already one can see how capital flows are being restricted and redirection is occurring as a result of change. The West will see less capital reaching its shores in the future. Time waits for no one, and capital is fleet of foot to change. 
The West has already proved itself incapable of moving to a war level of production while Russia has turned on a full scale war machine of manufacturing while securing a higher level of exports than it had before the conflict started. And since the Ukraine is a Western trained fiasco,  it questions the real ability to understand modern Warfare to win. Just like one can question Western competitive ability in CHIP advancement and production. Just look at the latest in Chinese phone technology.
We are watching a slow crawl of destruction of our Western World as the outcome is clear. Because if a million or so Ukrainians dying for Neocon ambitions is fruitless. Then the involvement of nations like Britain is equally flawed and will result in British citizens dying in vain. And that is not to say that Brits have not already died as so called Advisors unreported.  Russia will not fall to kneel to a Western boot. It will die to protect itself and has say as much. WWII should have put any notion of the will of Russians to fight for their land to rest. 
Both Capital and businesses will adapt to these signpost’s of change and it will be those without sight that will be caught napping. Because liquidity in banks will suffer as moral suasion will be used to advance debt spending. Safe harbor will be sought in capital location and purpose and become more scarce. 
As for Ukrainians trying to escape safe harbors will become more scarce. Poland already is allowing Ukrainian recruitment goons to serve men and boys their draft notices. This is sure to be followed by others. And Americans will be not be exempted because once the Brits go in the Americans are sure to follow. 
Before the end of this year we are bound to see changes not expected as there will be real reactions and decision made as such actions occur. Every step has a reaction of equal force and it will be no different now as we are truly on a path of escalation to WWIII. And it is likely that not all nations will fall under the spell of destruction. Even within NATO there is discourse and this too will grow, especially as economies decline in countries like Germany. 
Sadly, it seems society is committed and bound to commit the mistakes taught by history never learnt.end

GLOBAL VACCINE/COVID ISSUES

Crooked Fauci comes clean on the distancing fiasco

(Tucker /EpochTimes)

“It Just Sort Of Appeared” – Fauci Comes Clean Over ‘Science-less’ Six-Foot-Distancing Rule

SATURDAY, JAN 13, 2024 – 10:10 PM

Authored by Jeffrey Tucker via The Epoch Times,

You still bump into the stickers from time to time: “Six Feet of Distance.” It’s weird and anachronistic at this point. No one pays any attention anymore. Still it would be nice to know where this came from. Oddly, we don’t really know.

Anthony Fauci was asked this question this week in U.S. House hearings on the COVID response.

Incredibly, he didn’t really know how this came about.

“It just sort of appeared,” he told the subcommittee, which was an unusual answer since he otherwise said 100 times that he could not remember anything. Here, however, he admits there was never any science behind it.

That’s extremely peculiar.

This rule governed all social interaction for two years and more.

It wrecked every manner of things, made people feel diseased and isolated, made meetings impossible, and gave rise to a whole ritual of interaction that was utterly alien to the normal human way, including elbow bumps and water-gun baptisms.

It was why schools were so delayed in reopening. They could not guarantee that students would stay apart. It’s why airports were so crowded. Everyone was trying to avoid everyone else. It’s why park benches were roped off, why restroom stalls were operating at 50 percent, and why you could not hold weddings and funerals. This stuff was enforced at all levels of society.

And yet here is the “nation’s leading infectious disease scientist” who took charge of the pandemic response saying that he has no idea where this idea came from.

Back in March 2021, the New York Times, of all egregious venues, got curious about this too. Reporter Emily Anthes asked around the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about the mandate and the science behind it.

She quotes Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health.

“It never struck me that six feet was particularly sensical in the context of mitigation. I wish the C.D.C. would just come out and say this is not a major issue.”

She wrote that the origin of the six-foot distancing recommendation is something of a mystery.

“It’s almost like it was pulled out of thin air,” said Linsey Marr, an expert on viral transmission at Virginia Tech University.

The journal Clinical and Infectious Diseases even did a large study comparing six feet and three feet of distance. It was published in March 2021. The authors found no statistically significant difference in infection rates. None. They concluded:

“Lower physical distancing requirements can be adopted in school settings with masking mandates without negatively affecting student or staff safety.”

Nothing happened. We were stuck with six feet.

Once it became an enforced ritual, nothing mattered.

Now we know that not even Anthony Fauci knows where it came from.

But come on. Someone had to order this. Who did it? Some low-level bureaucrat? Someone yet unnamed? Whoever it is knows who he or she is. Lots of people know. But no one is speaking up. It seems like there should be a way to get to the bottom of this.

Most likely, it resulted from nothing but irrational germophobia and a made-up way to satiate that impulse. But consider this: one person’s personal eccentricity thus became a rule for the whole nation and world, without a single study to say nothing of a vote or opinion poll. It was just cray cray on mega-steroids, and yet some vendors became very rich printing signs and stickers for millions of businesses, churches, airports, and schools around the country.

It probably happened like the sudden mask mandate in St. Louis, Missouri, last week. Some low-level bureaucrat said it should be done and it was done. There was outrage all around, which is very good news. Beautifully, the whole thing was repealed in 24 hours, and the person who caused all this to happen was ridiculed and denounced. How dare she presume to tell everyone else what to do?

Well, that kind of thing ruled us for two years and longer, just bureaucrats making stuff up. Some of it was impractical but it was also very expensive and damaging. For example, the Plexiglas that suddenly went up everywhere actually trapped pathogens into smaller spaces and inhibited ventilation, in contradiction to their other mandates. Arguably, this mandate made the spread worse. It certainly didn’t mitigate the virus.

It seems as if all these edicts were sort of busy work to keep us alarmed and occupied with stupid antics until the virus arrived. That’s why Fauci didn’t care about them. It’s why the CDC wasn’t particularly interested in the supposed science behind any of this stuff. There never was any science. It was nothing but the imposition of irrational capers on the population to mark time until the great shot arrived. To top it off, the shot didn’t work!

Looking back—and many people don’t want to look back because it is too painful—it seems as if the whole of the public was sold a bill of goods in the name of science. It was baloney no matter which way you slice it. Some of us knew it at the time and called it out. We were denounced, attacked, and censored for saying so.

Is it any wonder that government, media, and science generally are in complete disrepute today, across the whole population and all over the world?

This is why there needs to be some discovery and accountability. We need to know where this stuff came from.

It didn’t come from the air or clouds. It was a decision made by human beings, somewhere and based on something. We should know what it is.

If Fauci doesn’t know, who does? The CDC has had three heads during this time: Robert Redfield, Rochelle Walensky, and now Mandy Cohen. They should tell all they know. If they don’t know, they should name the names of others who they think might have done this. Then Congress should ask those people and get them to say who they think it is. We should do this with every single idiotic protocol issued during that period, whether six feet, masks, sanitizer, one-way grocery isles, church closures, Plexiglas, and anything else.

The deeper truth is that the entire paradigm is drawn from the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) response to SARS-1 in 2003, which was then embraced by the World Health Organization (WHO).

That’s its real origin: it is a communist tactic of political control using infectious disease as the excuse.

This stuff traumatized the nation and the world. It broke everything. Now we have doors flying off airplanes only to find out later that the manufacturer had to lay off lots of mechanics during lockdowns. We have political upheaval in Ecuador, which had very hard lockdowns that demoralized everyone. We have huge absenteeism in public schools everywhere because the kids can no longer be bothered to go to class. We have a massive shortage of actual workers who know how to do stuff because they gave up and retired.

The lockdowns and everything associated with them utterly broke the world. The COVID response set the whole of the civilized world on fire. At the very least, we are owed an explanation for all this, starting with six feet of distance. If we cannot get to the bottom of where this came from, there’s no hope for sorting out the rest of the rigamarole. The investigations have to start somewhere. They should not stop for at least 5–10 years!

END

OTHER MEDICAL VACCINE INJURY/CANCER REPORTS

end

MARK CRISPIN MILLER

Sec. Lloyd Austin battling prostate cancer; Michael Strahan’s daughter has a brain tumor; BBC’s Glenn Campbell has a brain tumor; Kathy Brown has lung cancer; Lindsay Lohan’s dad has skin cancer

“YouTuber Brian Barczyk enters hospice for pancreatic cancer”; CBS TV host suffers a “hypoxic brain injury”

MARK CRISPIN MILLERJAN 15
 
READ IN APP
 

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin remains in hospital – Pentagon

January 13, 2024

The US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin remains in hospital in “good condition” following treatment for prostate cancer, the Pentagon has said.

News from Underground by Mark Crispin Miller is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

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In a statement, it said Mr Austin had resumed some of his duties and is in “contact with his senior staff”.

It added that there was no specific date for his release from hospital.

Mr Austin, 70, was admitted to an intensive care unit on 1 January due to complications from a late-December surgery.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67972147.amp

White House: Secretary Austin’s doctors think he may need additional care

January 14, 2024

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said on Sunday Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s doctor’s [sic] think he may still need some additional care.

“We’ll see, you know, when he can be released, but obviously they still feel like he may need some additional care…part of that is just physical therapy,” Kirby told CBS’s ‘Face the Nation.’

Kirby said “there is routine regular communication” between President Joe Biden and Austin and that the secretary remains “actively involved and engaged” from the hospital.

https://www.aol.com/white-house-secretary-austins-doctors-165952104.html

Michael Strahan’s teenage daughter breaks down as she shares cancer diagnosis

January 11, 2024

Michael Strahan’s teenage daughter broke down in tears as she shared that she has been diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer.

Isabella, 19, revealed that she had emergency surgery after doctors found a tumour bigger than a golf ball a the back of her brain.

She spoke to Good Morning America on Thursday (11 January) alongside her father as she shared how the diagnosis has made her feel.

“I’m very excited for this whole process to wrap but you just have to keep living every day through the whole thing,” she said.

https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/lifestyle/michael-strahan-daughter-cancer-diagnosis-b2477258.html

BBC’s Glenn Campbell: My brain cancer diagnosis was a total shock

January 13, 2024

It was a beautiful day for a summer cycle through East Lothian. The sort of day where nothing could go wrong.

Until it did.

I was moving fast down a steep hill heading towards the village of Gifford for breakfast when I took a tumble.

The road surface was broken and I clipped a rough edge and skidded.

There was a split second of clarity. I could see exactly what was about to happen and that I was powerless to prevent it. The bike went one way and I went the other.

I fell hard, bounced and rolled across the tarmac. I came to a halt face down on the road, too injured to move to safety….

Within a couple of days an MRI scan revealed a tumour on the right hand side of my brain. It was pressing on the part that controls movement on the left hand side of my body.

Tumours always seem to be compared in size to pieces of fruit. It is not uncommon to hear about someone having a tumour as big as a peach.

Mine was much smaller. Perhaps more akin to a large grape – but no less devastating for what it represents.

It’s a real shock to be told that you have a serious life-limiting condition.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-67925522.amp

Fundraiser Launched for Kathy Brown After Stage 4 Cancer Diagnosis

January 11, 2024

Kathy Brown was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer late last year, and the dance music community is rallying around her to show their support.

The house music scene was rocked late last year when Kathy Brown, a legendary vocalist who became renowned for tracks like “Joy,” “Turn Me Out (Turn to Sugar),” and “Strings of Life (Stronger on My Own),” was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer which has since spread to her brain. An emergency operation was conducted, and the celebrated artist is currently undergoing radiotherapy and immunotherapy, but financial challenges have begun to surface.

https://edmidentity.com/2024/01/11/kathy-brown-cancer-fundraise

‘This is goodbye’: YouTuber Brian Barczyk enters hospice for pancreatic cancer

January 9, 2024

Longtime fans of reptile enthusiast Brian Barczyk are heartbroken after the YouTuber posted a goodbye video as he enters hospice care.

The owner of The Reptarian in Utica, Michigan, posted the 16-minute video titled “This Is Goodbye” on Friday after a nearly year-long battle with pancreatic cancer. Barczyk, 54, thanked those who visited his reptile zoo, as well as his over five million subscribers.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/01/09/brian-barczyk-goodbye-video-hospice-pancreatic-cancer/72168560007/

Michael Lohan, Father of Actress Lindsay Lohan, Has ‘Aggressive’ Skin Cancer Lesion Removed from His Hand: ‘Just Looked Like a Little Mole’

January 11, 2024

Michael Lohan, father of Mean Girls star Lindsay Lohan, just had a very aggressive skin cancer lesion removed from his hand and shared about the experience with SurvivorNet, explaining how important it is to act fast when something is amiss with your health.

https://www.survivornet.com/articles/michael-lohan-father-of-actress-lindsay-lohan-has-aggressive-skin-cancer-lesion-removed-from-his-hand-just-looked-like-a-little-mole/

CBS TV Host Suffers Brain Injury

January 14, 2024

author

Clarke Finney Romo on Instagram: “Invading your space like, “Take me to your leader” 👽🖖🏽”

JANUARY 15, 2024

We here at PopCulture.com are sending our best wishes to Clarke Finney, one of the personalities of CBS affiliate KENS5. Finney, who also goes by her full name Clarke Finney Romo, recently suffered a brain injury and revealed her condition via social media on Monday. She described the injury as “hypoxic,” meaning it involved oxygen being cut off from that part of the body.

“Hey guys, I hope you’ve missed me on tv and I want y’all to know I’ve missed you too,” Finney wrote onFacebook. “In October I had a medical emergency which caused me to have a hypoxic brain injury. I am currently re-learning everything but one thing I haven’t forgotten is how much I love you guys. I miss serving my community and I cant wait to see you all when I fully recover. 

“I hope that you understand how much I love you, and how important being a journalist is to me. I would like to say thank you to everyone who has prayed for me, and a very special thank you to the amazing medical staff and therapists who have taken great care of me. Once I fully recover, I look forward to getting back to what I love, and it starts with loving you.”

https://popculture.com/tv-shows/news/cbs-kens-5-clarke-finney-tv-host-suffers-brain-injury

end

DR PAUL ALEXANDER

231 Current and Former U.S. Service Members Demand Military Leaders Be Court-Martialed Over Forced COVID Vaccines: “Service Members Were Significantly Harmed by These Actions” (Jim Hoft, Gateway P)

A significant portion of declaration criticizes the implementation of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate within the military. The authors accuse military leaders of ‘breaking laws, trampling constitution

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERJAN 15
 
READ IN APP
 

Posted on Gateway Pundit:

231 Current and Former U.S. Service Members Demand Military Leaders Be Court-Martialed Over Forced COVID Vaccines: “Service Members Were Significantly Harmed by These Actions”

end

United Airlines covering up catastrophic plane accident (near destruction with hard landing July 29th); airline insider anonymously tells Ashley St. Clair disturbing DEI ‘hire’ information: Who was

flying aircraft? Was United co-pilot a former flight attendant FIRED & rehired through United’s DEI program despite being on list to not return to United? Person failed multiple & simulator trainings?

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERJAN 12
 
READ IN APP
 

LIONESS OF JUDAH MINISTRY excellent substack, very troubling airline industry insider information.

Conservative Influencer Asks United Airlines One Tough Question, and the Answer Could Blow Up US Aviation…

An anonymous source from the airline industry reportedly approached conservative pundit Ashley St. Clair with some unsettling information.

Exposing The Darkness

Conservative Influencer Asks United Airlines One Tough Question, and the Answer Could Blow Up US Aviation…

Exposing The Darkness is a reader-supported publication. To support my work, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. One-time or recurring donations can be made through Ko-Fi…

Read more

end

“COVID Was a Government DEEPSTATE PCR-Manufactured Fraud” – Says Dr Paul Alexander. BY PATRICIA HARRITY; “I Agree with Yeadon, I agree With Rancourt,” says Dr Alexander, “There NEVER Was a Pandemic.

never, & not even an emergency! COVID was a government DEEPSTATE PCR-manufactured fraud of a 0.05% IFR rate event, from lockdown to the fraud ineffective and deadly mRNA technology gene based mRNA vax

DR. PAUL ALEXANDERJAN 14
 
READ IN APP
 
“COVID Was a Government DEEPSTATE PCR-Manufactured Fraud” – Says Dr Paul Alexander.

END

SLAY NEWS

The latest reports from Slay News
America Suffering ‘Autism Tsunami,’ Top Study WarnsA peer-reviewed study has warned of a crisis unfolding in America that scientists have described as an “autism tsunami.”READ MORE
Bill Gates: AI Will Save ‘Democracy,’ Make ‘Humans Get Along with Each Other’ & ‘Be Less Polarized’Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has suggested that he hopes artificial intelligence (AI) will dictate how “humans” behave toward one another.READ MORE
Ramaswamy Accuses Google of Trying to ‘Rig an Election’ with ‘Big Tech Censorship’Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has accused Big Tech giant Google of attempting to “rig an election.”READ MORE
WHO Packs Global Family Health Policy Committee with More Activists & Transgenders than Medical ProfessionalsThe globalist World Health Organization (WHO) has established a 21-member family health committee that will set global healthcare policy guidelines on raising children.READ MORE
Jeffrey Epstein’s Brother Accuses Bill Barr of ‘Cover-Up,’ Claims Suicide Narrative Was FakedMark Epsetin has gone scorched earth and accused former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr of covering up the death of his brother.READ MORE
Good Guy with Gun Stops Armed Jewelry Robbers in Liberal California CityA good guy with a gun sent armed robbers “scrambling” for their lives after they targeted the local jewelry store where he works in liberal Oakland, California.READ MORE
Georgia Prosecutor Fani Willis Coordinated with Anti-Trump Jan 6 CommitteeGeorgia’s Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis consulted with the Democrats’ January 6 Committee in the early days of her “investigation” into President Donald Trump, a new report has revealed. READ MORE
Trump Warns of ‘Dangerous’ Propaganda Efforts after Fake AI Images of Him on Epstein’s Plane Went ViralPresident Donald Trump has issued a warning about the “very dangerous” impact of artificial intelligence-generated propaganda after fake AI images of him went viral on social media recently.READ MORE
Jack Smith Targeted with ‘Swatting’ Call to Elicit Armed Police Response at His HomeSpecial Counsel Jack Smith was reportedly targeted by a “swatting” call to trigger an emergency response from armed law enforcement at his home.READ MORE
Rocker Ozzy Osbourne Looks ‘Frail’ in Rare Public OutingLegendary Black Sabbath rocker Ozzy Osbourne has raised concerns about his health after he was recently spotted in a rare public outing. READ MORE
College Professor Fired for Refusing to Boost Grades of Students That Found Classes ‘Too Difficult’A Georgia college professor says he was fired for refusing to boost the grades of students who complained his classes were “too difficult.”READ MORE
Trump Slams Judge Engoron to His Face in Court after Being Blocked from SpeakingPresident Donald Trump reportedly unloaded on radical Judge Arthur Engoron during the final day in court for Democrat New York Attorney General Letitia James’s politically motivated civil “fraud” trial against the 45th POTUS.READ MORE
Trump’s NY ‘Fraud’ Trial Judge Engoron Receives Bomb Threat at HomeArthur Engoron, the radical judge overseeing President Donald Trump’s politically motivated civil “fraud” trial in New York, has received a bomb threat at home, according to reports.READ MORE
The latest reports from Slay NewsTop Cardiologist Testifies: Heart Failure Soaring Among VaxxedOne of the world’s leading cardiologists has just given an explosive testimony before lawmakers on Capitol Hill, revealing the devastating side effects of Covid mRNA shots.READ MOREPfizer Invests Billions in Treatments for Coming ‘Heart Failure Pandemic’Pfizer is investing billions of dollars in treatments to prepare for a looming “heart failure pandemic.”READ MOREJerry Nadler Backs Open Border: ‘We Need’ ‘Many Illegal Immigrants’ as American Population Is ‘Shrinking’Democrat Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) made his case for keeping the border open during a congressional hearing, arguing that America needs “many illegal immigrants.”READ MORESan Francisco School District Pushes Anti-Israel Propaganda onto StudentsThe San Francisco Unified School District is pushing radical propaganda that teaches students about “Israeli terrorism,” according to a new report.READ MOREBiden Wipes Out Even More Student DebtDemocrat President Joe Biden has wiped even more student debts for millions of college-educated voters ahead of the looming 2024 election.READ MOREMarjorie Taylor Greene Demands Criminal Investigation of Fulton County DA Fani Willis amid Misconduct AllegationsRepublican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) has issued a fiery response after misconduct allegations emerged against Georgia’s anti-Trump Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. As Slay News reported, bombshell allegations of potentially criminal impropriety and misconduct were leveled against Willis by one of President Donald Trump’s co-defendants in the Democrat prosecutor’s election-related criminal racketeering conspiracy prosecution. Greene is now calling …READ MORENewt Gingrich: Elise Stefanik Should Be on Trump’s ‘Short List’ for VP PickRepublican former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has weighed in on who he believes would be suitable as President Donald Trump’s running mate for the 2024 election.READ MORELGBTQ Pride Leader Sean Gravells Arrested for Horrific CrimesPolice have arrested a prominent LGBTQ leader on several charges related to horrific crimes against children, prosecutors have revealed.READ MOREOregon Supreme Court Nukes Case Seeking to Remove Trump from 2024 BallotsThe Oregon Supreme Court has refused to hear a case that seeks to remove President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 presidential election.READ MOREBiden Plows $700,000 Taxpayer Cash into Program to Stop ‘Transgender Boys’ Getting PregnantDemocrat President Joe Biden’s administration has invested a whopping $700,000 in taxpayer money on a program that claims to help prevent “transgender boys” from getting pregnant.READ MORENYC Mayor Adams: Forcing Students Out of High School to Make Way for Illegals Was ‘the Right Thing’ to DoDemocrat Mayor Eric Adams has defended New York City’s decision to force students into remote learning to use their high school building to house 2,000 illegal migrants.READ MORE

EVOL NEWS

Pfizer to Make Billions from Treating ‘Heart Failure Pandemic’READ MORE… LATEST NEWS:WEF Calls Secretive Meeting to Prepare for ‘Disease X’Read more…Computer mouse controlled by your tongue? 11 of the life-changing…Read more…WATCH: Jill Biden Claims “What They Are Doing to Hunter is Cruel”Read more…US retaliates against Iranian-backed Houthi militants in YemenRead more…Ex-Michigan St. coach Tucker has appeal deniedRead more…Trump prosecutor Nathan Wade steps out after bombshell Fani Willis…Read more…JUST IN: Hunter Biden Pleads Not Guilty To Federal Tax Charges, Gets Trial DateRead more…Harvard Sued For Discriminating Against Jewish Student’s Civil RightsRead more…

NEWS ADDICT

LATEST REPORTS FOR NEWS JUNKIESWEF Calls Secretive Meeting to Prepare for ‘Disease X’The World Economic Forum (WEF) has called on globalist elites to gather for a secretive meeting to discuss plans to prepare for the looming “Disease X.”READ THE FULL REPORTPfizer to Make Billions from Treating ‘Heart Failure Pandemic’Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has just invested billions of dollars into treatments for a looming “heart failure pandemic.”READ THE FULL REPORTGeraldo Tries to Drum Up Drama with Bill O’Reilly after His Recent Statement on Progressives: ‘Think My Old Friend Is Throwing Me under the Bus?’Recently, former Fox News star Bill O’Reilly spoke on his new network/show about his further move away from leftists.READ THE FULL REPORTJill Biden Complains American People Don’t See ‘How Hard Joe Biden Works Every Single Day’During an interview with MSNBC that aired on Thursday morning, Jill Biden claimed that the American people don’t see “how hard Joe Biden works every single day.”READ THE FULL REPORTVIEW MORE NEWS

LATEST REPORTS FOR NEWS JUNKIES

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

END

7//OIL ISSUES//NATURAL GAS ISSUES//ELECTRICAL GRID ISSUES// RENEWABLE ENERGY ISSUES//USA AND GLOBE

Polar vortex blankets USA” sends power prices soaring

(zerohedge)

Polar Blast Sends Power Prices Soaring, Spot NatGas Ripping, And Risk Of “Freeze-Offs”

SATURDAY, JAN 13, 2024 – 12:15 PM

The polar vortex split has spread dangerously cold air across the Pacific Northwest to the Midwest and is expected to reach the eastern half of the United States this weekend and into next week. Power grid operators are on high alert and have prepared generators before heating demand surges. There is also a major threat of freeze-offs that could curtail oil and gas production. 

Around 0700 ET, the average temperature across Montana was -30F, and about a quarter of the Lower 48 recorded temperatures below zero, according to Ryan Maue, a meteorologist and former NOAA chief scientist. 

“That cold air is slowly but surely plunging into the Plains and Great Lakes,” Maue said. 

The Arctic blast has sent next-day power prices at the Mid Columbia hub in the Pacific Northwest to a record high of $1,075 per megawatt hour, according to Reuters, citing LSEG data. The grid’s average power prices range from $81 in 2023 to $52 between 2018 and 2022.  

“Generator owners must take extra care to maintain equipment so that it doesn’t freeze in the cold … particularly as natural gas pipelines may become constrained as the cold spell progresses,” PJM Interconnection wrote in a press release.

PJM is the largest grid operator in the US and supplies power to 13 states, from Illinois to New Jersey. It recently warned that state and federal decarbonization policies had caused reliability concerns in extreme weather conditions. 

Other grid operators, including Southwest Power Pool and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, have issued weather alerts as the cold blast begins this weekend. 

According to Bloomberg data, Lower 48 average temperatures have already plunged and will stay well below a 30-year trend for at least the next ten days. 

According to Bloomberg, cold weather has skyrocketed spot prices at the US Henry Hub in Louisiana by 300% to as high as $17 per million British thermal units. That compared to $3.31 for the Feb NatGas contract on Friday. 

The catalyst for soaring spot prices is the mounting risk of so-called freeze-offs, which can bring NatGas production offline, thus curbing supplies. 

X user Celsius Energy expects “NatGas production freeze-offs will ramp up. Output will fall to 101.4 BCF, up just +0.8 BCF vs last year & 5 BCF below record highs. Most of these losses are from the Rockies. Look for further losses as arctic air reaches Texas & the Appalachians.:

More signs of freeze-offs. 

On Thursday, Goldman analysts Daniel Moreno and Samantha Dart said the 23% year-to-date gains for NatGas prices have largely been due to “forecasts for much-colder-than-average temperatures in the second half of January.” 

US natural gas prices have gained 23% year-to-date to $3.10/mmBtu on the back of forecasts for much-colder-than average temperatures in the second half of January. Importantly, freezing temperatures are expected in several producing regions over the next ten days, implying interruptions to production due to freeze-offs.

However, the analysts pointed out: “Once we move past this spell of cold weather, we expect market focus to return to managing oversupply. We estimate this will require prices to realize somewhat lower than current forwards to incentivize more coal-to-gas switching and disincentivize production. Accordingly, we maintain our Sum24 forecast of $2.55/mmBtu vs. current forwards at $2.77/mmBtu.” 

To sum up, early impacts of the polar vortex split are increased power prices on grids due to a surge in heating demand and early reports of freeze-offs of NatGas equipment and or pipelines that curtail production and send spot prices higher. 

end

Qatar Pauses LNG Shipments In Red Sea After US Bombs Houthis

BY TYLER DURDEN

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 09:50 AM

The US and British bombing campaigns of Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen marks a significant intensification of the Middle East crisis. This development comes as the region is already dealing with heightened tensions due to the three-month war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, suggesting a move towards a broader regional conflict. 

Shipping disruptions across the Red Sea threaten global trade after major shippers, such as Maersk and others, have rerouted vessels to the Cape of Good Hope following a series of drone and missile attacks on commercial vessels by Houthi rebels. The attacks and resulting supply chain disruptions are what forced the US and allies last week to launch bombing raids on Houthi targets. 

With US and UK navies in the Red Sea advising commercial vessels to avoid the area, another top shipper has abandoned the critical waterway: The world’s second-largest LNG exporter, QatarEnergy, according to Reuters. 

LSEG shiptracking data showed that Qatar’s Al Ghariya, Al Huwaila and Al Nuaman vessels had loaded LNG at Ras Laffan and were heading to the Suez Canal before stopping off in Oman on Jan. 14. The Al Rekayyat, which was sailing back to Qatar, stopped along its route on Jan. 13 in the Red Sea.

“It is a pause to get security advice, if passing (through the) Red Sea remains unsafe we will go via the Cape,” the source told Reuters on Monday regarding QatarEnergy. -Reuters 

Qatar is a major supplier of liquefied natural gas to Europe after the US, and disruptions in shipments, or at least delays, due reouting efforts around the Cape of Good Hope might threaten the continent’s energy security. 

The good news for now is Europe’s natural gas inventories are about 79.74%, well above a ten-year average due to the warm start of the Northern Hemisphere winter. However, if cold weather persists… 

Front-month European benchmark gas prices on the Dutch TTF hub slid as much as 8.5% on Monday below 30 euros per megawatt-hour (MWh) on lower demand as supply concerns fade.

Possible delays or disruptions of LNG shipments from Qatar are not a concern to European traders (well, not yet). 

END

8. EMERGING MARKETS//AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND ISSUES//

ECUADOR/

END

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

EURO VS USA DOLLAR:  1.0949 UP  .0005 

USA/ YEN 145.86 UP 1.33  NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.00% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN  STILL FALLS//

GBP/USA 1.2728 UP  .0016

USA/CAN DOLLAR:  1.3417 UP .0020 (CDN DOLLAR DOWN 20 BASIS PTS)

 Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR  0.15%

 Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 28.20 PTS OR 0.17% 

AUSTRALIA CLOSED DOWN  0.01%   // EUROPEAN BOURSE:     ALL RED 

Trading from Europe and ASIA

I) EUROPEAN BOURSES:    ALL RED 

2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG DOWN 28.25 PTS OR 0.17%

/SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR 0.15%

AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED DOWN .01% 

(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 324.68 OR 0.91% 

INDIA’S SENSEX  IN THE GREEN

Gold very early morning trading: 2051.75

silver:$23.27

USA dollar index early MONDAY  morning: 102.32  UP 16 BASIS POINTS FROM FRIDAY’s CLOSE.

MONDAY  MORNING NUMBERS ENDS

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

And now your closing MONDAY NUMBERS 1: 30 AM

Portuguese 10 year bond yield: 2.935%  UP 6  in basis point(s) yield

JAPANESE BOND YIELD: +0.562% UP 1 AND  2//100   BASIS POINTS /JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/

SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.145 UP 7  in basis points yield

ITALIAN 10 YR BOND YIELD 3.7777 UP 5 points in basis points yield ./ THE ECB IS QE’ ING ITALIAN BONDS (BUYING ITALIAN BONDS/SELLING GERMAN BUNDS)

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.1975  UP 5 BASIS PTS

END

IMPORTANT CURRENCY CLOSES FOR  MONDAY  

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

Euro/USA 1.0952 UP  0.0007 or 7  basis points

USA/Japan: 145.77 UP 1.246 OR YEN DOWN 125 basis points/

Great Britain/USA 1.2729 DOWN .0015  OR 15  BASIS POINTS //

Canadian dollar DOWN .0041 OR 41 BASIS pts  to 1.3435

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The USA/Yuan,  CNY: closed    ON SHORE  CLOSED    (DOWN) …7.1717

THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE:    (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. (7.1822)

TURKISH LIRA:  30.01 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//ON DEATH WATCH

the 10 yr Japanese bond yield  at +0.562…VERY DANGEROUS

Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 2 in basis points from FRIDAY at  3.976% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%) very problematic

 USA 30 yr bond yield  4.175 DOWN 1  in basis points   ON THE DAY/12.00 PM

USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.1346  UP 1 BASIS PTS.

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

London: CLOSED DOWN 13.71 PTS OR .32%

German Dax :  CLOSED DOWN 82.34PTS OR 0.77%

Paris CAC CLOSED DOWN 53.46 PTS OR 0.72%

Spain IBEX CLOSED DOWN 17.90 PTS OR 0.08%

Italian MIB: CLOSED DOWN 142.89 PTS OR 0.47%

WTI Oil price  72.47   12: EST

Brent Oil:  78.14  12:00 EST

USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE ///   AT:  87.60;   ROUBLE UP 0 AND  81//100      

GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.1975 UP 6  BASIS PTS

UK 10 YR YIELD: 3.835 UP 4  BASIS PTS

CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM

Euro vs USA: 1.0951  UP .0006   0.0006   OR 6 BASIS POINTS

British Pound: 1.2727 DOWN .0016   or 16 basis pts

BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD:  3.8350%  UP 1 BASIS PTS//

JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: 0.558%

USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 145.80 UP 1.260//YEN DOWN 126  BASIS PTS//

USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3428 UP 0.0034 CDN dollar DOWN 34   basis pts)

West Texas intermediate oil: 72.50

Brent OIL:  78.07

USA 10 yr bond yield UP 2  BASIS pts to 3.976%  

USA 30 yr bond yield DOWN 3 BASIS PTS to 4.175%

USA 2 YR BOND: UP 1 PTS AT  4.146%

USA dollar index: 102.33 UP 17  BASIS POINTS

USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 30.10 (GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/

USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE:  87.60 UP 0  AND  88/100 roubles

GOLD  2054.75 3:30 PM

SILVER: 23.20 3:30 PM

DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: DOWN 118.04 PTS OR 0.31%

NASDAQ UP 12,02 PTS OR 0.07%

VOLATILITY INDEX: 13.25 UP .81 PTS 1.52%

GLD: $189.71 UP 1.84 OR 1/84%

SLV/ $21.19 UP .37 OR 1.78%

end

USA AFFAIRS

TODAY’S TRADING IN GRAPH FORM

END

MORNING  TRADING//

end

AFTERNOON TRADING

II USA DATA

END

III  USA ECONOMIC COMMENTARIES

Deposit flight from large banks//loan volumes shrink and trouble brewing for small banks

(zerohedge)

2024 Starts With Deposit Flight From Large Banks, Loan Volumes Shrink; But Trouble Is Brewing For Small Banks

FRIDAY, JAN 12, 2024 – 04:40 PM

Bank reserves at The Fed rose considerably last week expanding The Fed’s balance sheet by the most since the SVB crisis last March – as usage of The Fed’s BTFP bank-bailout facility pushed to a new record high (amid increasing arbitrage flows).

But, after four straight weeks of inflows, seasonally-adjusted bank deposits saw $23.3BN outflows in the first week of 2024…

Source: Bloomberg

And, on a non-seasonally-adjusted basis, deposits also saw an outflow (-$33.7BN) after five weeks in a row of inflows (NSA)…

Source: Bloomberg

Which means that while money-market funds hit a new record high, bank deposits did pull back a little (despite the drain in RRP filling the liquidity gap)…

Source: Bloomberg

Excluding foreign bank flows, domestic banks saw deposit outflows of just over $40BN (SA and NSA) – the first in 5 weeks…

Source: Bloomberg

Large banks dominated that deposit outflow (Large -$39.9BN, Small -$347MN)…

Source: Bloomberg

On the other side of the ledger, Large bank loan volumes tumbled (-$16.6BN) for the 5th week in row (small bank loan volume rose $4.3BN)…

Source: Bloomberg

The Fed’s reverse repo facility is draining fast (faster each week), getting closer and closer to zero…

Source: Bloomberg

…at which point reserves get yanked, which mean huge deposit flight.

And the embarrassing surge in usage of The Fed’s BTFP for free-money-arbitrage…

Source: Bloomberg

…will make it hard for The Fed to defend leaving the facility open after March when its “temporary” nature is supposed to expire.

“In justifying the generous terms of the original program, the Fed cited the ‘unusual and exigent’ market conditions facing the banking industry following last spring’s deposit runs,” Wrightson ICAP economist Lou Crandall wrote in a note to clients.

“It would be difficult to defend a renewal in today’s more normal environment.”

Which meansy, as we pointed out earlier in the week, “March will be lit”…

Because without the help of The Fed’s BTFP, the regional banking crisis is back bigly (red line), and large bank cash needs a home – green line – like picking up a small bank from the FDIC…

Source: Bloomberg

And now you know why The Fed will cut rates in March – no matter what jobs or inflation is doing.

end

This is big!! Powell’s mouthpiece says it is all over and confirm imminent end of QT

(zerohedge)

“It’s All Over”: Powell’s WSJ Mouthpiece And JPMorgan Confirm Imminent End Of QT

BY TYLER DURDEN

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 02:00 PM

On December 13 the financial world was stunned when, just two weeks after Jerome Powell had said he it was “premature” to speculate on rate cuts, the Federal Reserve did a shocking U-turn and pivoted dovishly, ending the Fed’s hiking cycle with inflation still running at double the Fed’s target of 2%, and said that it had in fact discussed the start of rate cuts, contrary to what Powell said just two weeks earlier.

Or rather, we should say “the financial world that had not read Zero Hedge was stunned” because just one week ahead of the Fed’s December FOMC meeting, we correctly predicted the Fed’s pivot due to one simple reason: as we laid out in “The Canary Just Died: Sudden Spike In SOFR Hints At Mounting Reserve Shortage, Early Restart Of QE“, the Fed no longer had a choice and was forced to pursue a dovish pivot because the liquidity in the all-important systemic and interbank plumbing had hit dangerously low levels, resulting in the highest SOFR print on record, and the biggest spike since the last time there was a repo market crisis in March 2020.

As we said at the time, “the spike caught almost everyone by surprise, even such Fed-watching luminaries as BofA’s Marc Cabana because it was with “no new UST settlements, lower repo volumes, and lower sponsored bi-lateral volumes.”  And yet, the spike was clearly there and ominously it was consistent “with the slow theme of less cash & more collateral in the system” – i.e., growing reserve scarcity –  and “may have been exacerbated by elevated dealer inventories, bi-lateral borrowing need, and limited excess cash to backstop repo.”

And the punchline: “If funding pressure persists, it risks Fed re-assessment of ample banking system reserves & potential early end to QT“, and depending on how bad the funding shortage gets, an early restart of QE.

One week later, the Fed capitulated on tight monetary policy and ushered in the era of rate cuts, just as we said it would. But more importantly, one month later it was Dallas Fed president (and former head of the NY Fed’s plunge protection team) Lorie Logan who said the quiet part out loud when she confirmed our “canary in the coalmine” note, namely that the Fed’s QT is effectively over due to the sudden, unexpected slide in systemic liquidity, primarily due to the rapid drain in the reverse repo facility which now has just $600 million left and is set to be fully drained some time in March…

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… and that by extension, another round of QE may be on deck.

Of course, it’s one thing for a regional Fed president to opine on such things, it’s something entirely different for Powell’s preferred media leak conduit to confirm it, and yet this morning that’s precisely what happened when Nick Timiraos, aka Nikileaks, aka Powell’s favorite media mouthpiece confirmed that QT’s days are now numbered writing that “Fed officials are to start deliberations on slowing, though not ending, that so-called quantitative tightening as soon as their policy meeting this month. It could have important implications for financial markets.“

If that wasn’t enough, Nikileaks also confirms our suspicion about the driver behind said QT runoff: the financial plumbing is starting to clog up:

But whereas the Fed expects to cut short-term interest rates this year because inflation has fallen, its rationale for tapering bond runoff is different: to prevent disruption to an obscure yet critical corner of the financial markets.

Five years ago, balance-sheet runoff sparked upheaval in those markets, forcing a messy U-turn. Officials are determined not to do that again.

Several officials at the Fed’s policy meeting last month suggested beginning formal conversations soon, so as to communicate their plans to the public well before any changes take effect, according to minutes of the meeting. Officials have indicated that changes aren’t imminent and that they are focusing on slowing—not ending—the program.

As we first explained almost two months ago, the reason for the Fed’s panic is that the central bank wants to avoid the same repo market cataclysm that market both the liquidity drain in Sept 2019 and the violent eruption in basis trades that sparked bond market contagion in March 2020; here is Timiraos confirming as much:

… in September 2019, a sharp, unexpected spike in a key overnight lending rate suggested reserves had windled to the point they were either too scarce or difficult to redistribute across the financial system. The Fed began buying Treasury bills to add reserves back to the system and avoid further instability.

In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic created a huge dash for dollars. To prevent markets from seizing up, the Fed resumed buying huge quantities of securities. It stopped buying in March 2022 and three months later set the process into reverse, once again shrinking the portfolio.

… which brings us to today, when the Fed did the math and realized that doing $60BN in QT per month once the reverse repo is fully drained will crash the market:

Policymakers have several reasons to consider slowing runoff. First, the Fed is shrinking its Treasury holdings by $60 billion a month—twice as fast it did five years ago. Continuing to run at this rate raises the risk that the Fed drains reserves so quickly that money-market rates jump as banks struggle to redistribute a dwindling supply of reserves.

Slowing the pace of the runoff later this year might allow the Fed to continue the program for longer than otherwise by “reducing the likelihood that we’d have to stop prematurely,” Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan said in a recent speech.

And by “stop prematurely” she of course means suffering a market crash in an election year, one which would drag the economy into a recession in days. And we all know by now (thanks to former NY president Bill Dudley) that is unacceptable, especially when the alternative is a Trump presidency.

Timiraos also confirms that we were right in cautioning that it’s all about the accelerating rate of decline in the reverse repo facility (see “How Treasury Averted A Bond Market “Earthquake” In The Last Second: What Everyone Missed In The TBAC’s Remarkable Refunding Presentation“):

there are signs that the cash surplus in money markets is rapidly diminishing. The Fed allows money-market firms and others to park extra cash that would otherwise end up in reserves in an overnight reverse repurchase facility. The facility has shrunk by around $1 trillion since late August to around $680 billion. Logan endorsed slowing runoff once that facility is nearly drained of cash because, after that, forecasting demand for bank reserves will be more uncertain.

This “faster-than-expected decline” in the overnight reverse repurchase facility’s balances is spurring the Fed’s movement toward contingency planning around how to slow runoff:

“It has been a surprise to everyone that overnight reverse repurchase balances have fallen this quickly and that reserves have actually increased over this period,” said Brian Sack, who managed the Fed’s Plunge Protection Team at the New York Fed from 2009 to 2012.

Actually Brian, you and others may have been surprised, but it certainly wasn’t “everyone”: we’ve been warning this would happen since the start of the year, and most recently one week before the Fed’s pivot.

There is another reason why the December SOFR spike freaked out the Fed: whereas previously the central bank was wrong repeatedly in estimating what level of reserves would be seen as “ample” by the market, this time around, officials told TImiraos they are going to rely more on market signals in identifying the right level of reserves.

“Last time, we had lots of estimates of where we thought that terminal level of reserves was, and our estimates were too low,” Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said in an October interview. “At the end of the day, the market will dictate where we are.”

Indeed it will, and that’s precisely why our premium subscribers were fully aware that the “canary in the liquidity coalmine” died at the start of December, and the Fed’s dovish pivot, the end of QT, and the coming QE are now logically following just as we said they would.

And just in case Timiraos’ conveying Powell’s message that QT is effectively done wasn’t enough, here is JPM’s head of fixed income strategy with a note overnight admitting the same

This is how JPM sees the wind down of QT: “We now expect that the FOMC will have the outline of a timeline at the January meeting, communicated mid-February minutes to that meeting. We expect that this plan will be formally agreed to at the mid-March meeting and will be implemented beginning in April” at which point the monthly cap on the runoff of Treasury securities to be reduced to $30bn/mo, from $60bn/mo (full note available to professional subscribers in the usual place).

Bottom line: after several years of tightening, 2024 is when the liquidity floodgate reopen and not only does the Fed start to cut rates aggressively, but with QT tapering, we fully expect the next QE to be launched in the near future, sending the dollar into its next, and possibly final, reserve currency death spiral as printer goes BRRRR.

IIIB USA COMMENTARIES RE ISRAEL/HAMAS WAR/ and  PERVASIVE ANTISEMITISM/WOKISM

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FREIGHT ISSUES/USA

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VICTOR DAVIS HANSON

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SWAMP STORIES

Illinois Governor Complains About Migrant Buses – Blames Republicans For Border Crisis

MONDAY, JAN 15, 2024 – 09:00 AM

As the mass invasion of illegal immigrants grows under the Biden Administration, Democrat politicians are suddenly suffering from a convenient case of amnesia.  They have forgotten all about the fact that they invited this invasion by creating “sanctuary cities” designed to thwart any attempt by immigration officials to arrest migrants and send them back to their country of origin.  Not only that, but they also seem to have forgotten that they incentivized illegal immigration by offering subsidies and welfare handouts to non-citizens.  

There is only one group of people that has been fighting to keep the US borders wide open, and that is the political left.  But now that we’re entering an election year Democrats are trying to rewrite history again, claiming they are the good guys and conservatives are the villains.

This is Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s argument in a recent interview where he claims that Republicans are the party that “wants to take your freedoms away” and that Republicans are responsible for the immigration crisis because they “refuse to come to the table” to make a deal with Democrats on reforms.

Pritzker launches into his well rehearsed propaganda spiel with a number of lies (perhaps the most egregious being that the Dems “defend freedom” after they spent the last few years trying to erase a number of constitutional rights in the name of covid).  But his most interesting exposition comes at the end of the interview when asked about the effects of the migrant crisis on Illinois and cities like Chicago.

Pritzker laments the Texas strategy of busing migrants to blue states and cities, pretending as if he doesn’t understand why they are being specifically targeted.  They are being targeted because a point is being made – If the political left is going to push policies that entice illegal immigrants to come here, then leftists should be the people that suffer the consequences.  Democrats barely acknowledged the existence of the immigration crisis until it was shipped to their doorstep, and now they cry victim.  

It would appear Governor Greg Abbott’s tactics are working.  Even Pritzker acknowledges that Joe Biden needs to do more to stop the flow of immigrants.    

The notion that leftists have been seeking to resolve the migrant issue is also a bizarre claim.  The Biden Administration has made it clear that they intend to obstruct any state effort to stop illegal immigrants from crossing into the US.  They have torn down border walls, cut down fences, sued Texas for staging buoy fences in the Rio Grande and deployed National Guardsmen with the mission of helping migrants into the country instead of stopping them.    

When Democrats make the argument that they want to fix the problem what they are usually referring to is “reform” legislation that gives sweeping amnesty or fast citizenship to illegals already in the US.  In other words, they suggest the solution is to reward illegal immigrants with citizenship while defending the border becomes a secondary issue.  In some cases, they assert that they will not support measures to protect the border unless Republicans accept amnesty. 

In other words, Democrats are holding the security of the country hostage until conservatives give them the means to expand their voting constituency – “Give us the migrant vote, give us a super-majority, or we will let the borders remain open indefinitely and blame you for the disaster that follows.”

It’s a racket akin to mobster intimidation.     

There are numerous logical reasons why Republicans should refuse to negotiate on the border.  First, the security of the country should not be subject to negotiation.  The law requires the government to defend our borders, and if they refuse as a means to leverage more power from the people then they are in dereliction of duty and should be removed.  

Second, giving amnesty to millions of illegals does not solve the threat of mass immigration.  In fact, it makes the threat worse because it encourages more migrants to cross the border in the assumption that they too will one day simply be made citizens by default and without any merit.  

Third, the US economy does not have the resources to sustain the tens of millions of illegals that are already here, let alone the millions that will try to get into the country before the next election.  Blue city infrastructures are being crushed by the presence of mere thousands.  The solution is to send them back to where they came from, not give them the ability to stay here forever.

Fourth, giving citizenship to millions of people coming primarily from more socialist countries will negatively change the cultural landscape of America for many generations to come.  If you thought the Democrats were emboldened to erase constitutional protections during the covid panic, just think of what they will do when they have almost 17 million new voters at their disposal who have no concept of individual freedom and no understanding of constitutional restrictions on government power. 

THE KING REPORT

GREG HUNTER INTERVIEWING CRAIG HEMKE

0% Interest Rates Coming Back When System Implodes – Craig Hemke

By Greg Hunter On January 13, 2024 In Market Analysis17 Comments

0% Interest Rates Coming Back When System Implodes – Craig Hemke

By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (Saturday night Post)

Financial writer, market analyst and precious metals expert Craig Hemke says the variables are so numerous it is nearly impossible to predict exactly what is going to happen in 2024.  One thing is for sure, the variables are all bad.  There is the exploding federal debt, now at $34 trillion.  The federal government is on track to increase the debt by a whopping $2 trillion in one year!!!  There are growing global war possibilities in the Middle East, Tiawan and Ukraine.  Low unemployment numbers coming out of the BLS are lies hiding a sick economy.  Commercial real estate is a tanking mess.  Unrealized losses are in the hundreds of billions of dollars sitting at the banks.  There is a growing liquidity crisis brewing.  CV19 deaths and injuries are exploding with no end in sight.  The Southern border is wide open to terrorists wanting to harm America, according to the FBI.  This is just the short list of very real potential disasters that could easily strike.  Keep in mind, every single one of these could all happen during 2024.  Hemke says, “It’s not fixable.  It’s just not fixable.  It’s such a joke to hear from the politicians that you are going to get this election year.  They will say, ‘We have to have a balanced budget. . . . We have to get the federal budget deficit back to pre-Covid levels.’  Yeah, right.  Good luck.  That’s not going to happen.”

When does it all crash to the ground?  Hemke says, “I don’t know.  It’s arbitrary.  Remember the Jenga game where you stack those cubes and you start pulling them out?  You don’t know what will be the last cube you pull out that will topple the whole thing.  It’s the same thing.  What will be the last trillion dollars that will topple the whole thing.  There also may be a confluence of things . . . . like nations saying to the US, ‘the heck with you and your dollar.’  Then we have all these dollars that come home, and we have all these dollars swimming around, and the whole thing implodes so quickly. . . . The parallels in the US in the 2020’s compared to Weimar, Germany in the 1920’s are remarkable, and not just monetarily, also societal and political.  The similarities are incredible.”

Hemke has a dark prediction if we get a full-blown war, which is looking like it’s on the way now.  Hemke predicts, “The Fed cuts rates to 0% again.  If we have a full-blown war and we have terror attacks all over the country that is grinding the US economy to a halt, they will have emergency action. . . . Remember when things were going down in Covid and in March 2020, here comes the Fed with . . .all these programs.  They lowered the Fed Funds Rate to 0%.  They started all this new QE, and the markets just shot up.  Gold was up $100 a day for two days in a row.  .. .    That’s exactly what they will do.  The economy will be seizing up, and we will be back to where we were at the beginning of Covid.

There is much more in the 47-minute interview.

Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog.com as he goes One-on-One with Craig Hemke of the popular website TFMetalsReport.com 1.13.24.

(To Donate to USAWatchdog.com Click Here)

0% Interest Rates Coming Back When System Implodes – Craig Hemke

After the Interview:

 There is some free information on TFMetalsReport.com including Craig Hemke’s 2024 forecast that is free.

If you want to subscribe, use the promo code “2024” and get your first month for $5.  This offer is for monthly subscriptions only.

SEE YOU ON TUESDAY

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