JUNE 20/GOLD CLSOED UP $23.60 TO $2331.70//SILVER CLOSED UP $1.17 TO $30.71//PLATINUM CLOSED UP $4.05 TO$980.45//PALLADIUM UP $35.15 TO $928.50//GOLD COMMENTARY TONIGHT FROM ALASDAIR MACLEOD AND KOOS JANSEN//SWITZERLAND UNEXPECTEDLY CUTS ITS INTEREST RATE AGAIN//HOW MACRON’S IDIOTIC UKRAINE POLICIES HAVE LED TO HIS DOWNFALL/ISRAEL VS HAMAS/ISRAEL VS HEZBOLLAH//COVID UPDATES// VACCINE INJURY/DR PAUL ALEXANDER/SLAY NEWS ETC/JUNE TEENTH DAY CREATES HAVOC IN OAKLAND AND LOS ANGELES/SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TODAY//
435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 2 657 C MORGAN STANLEY 3 657 H MORGAN STANLEY 10 737 C ADVANTAGE 7 5 905 C ADM 3 991 H CME 10
TOTAL: 20 20 MONTH TO DATE: 30,141
JPMorgan stopped 0/20
FOR JUNE 2024
GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR JUNE/2024. CONTRACT: 20 NOTICES FOR 2000 OZ or 0.0622 TONNES
total notices so far: 30, 141 contracts for 3,014,100 Oz (93.751 tonnes)
FOR JUNE:
SILVER NOTICES: 55 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 275,000
OZ/
total number of notices filed so far this month :1315 for 6.575 million oz
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END
GLD/
BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE FRAUDULENT VEHICLES//THEY ARE NOW RAIDING GLD AND SLV FOR PHYSICAL
THE CROOKS ARE STEALING GOLD AND SILVER FROM THE GLD/SLV AND REPLACING THE PHYSICAL WITH PAPER DOLLARS.
WITH GOLD UP $23.60 INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD/
: NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/
/ /INVENTORY RESTS AT 825.31TONNES
INVENTORY RESTS AT 825.31 TONNES
SLV//
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER UP $1.17 AT THE SLV//
HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 5.164 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV
// INVENTORY INCREASES TO 434.939 MILLION OZ/
INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.
CLOSING INVENTORY: 434.939 MILLION OZ
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI ROSE BY A FAIR SIZED 248 CONTRACTS TO 176,605 AND CONTINUING ON ITS MARCH TO THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020, AND THIS HUGE SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR STRONG GAIN OF $0.21 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX ON TUESDAY’S TRADING ON SILVER. WE HAD ZERO LONG LIQUIDATION AS WE HAD A NET GAIN OF 758 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE, AGAIN HAD SHORT COVERING BY OUR SPECS WITH THE STRONG GAIN IN PRICE AS WELL AS MASSIVE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION. WE HAD ANOTHER STRONG SIZED 482 T.A.S ISSUANCE,
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CROOKS NEED A HIGHER SILVER/GOLD T.A.S. TO CARRY ON THEIR CROOKED MANIPULATION ON A DAILY BASIS BUT DEMAND IS JUST TOO HIGH FOR THEM. THE HIGHER ISSUANCE OF T.A.S. IS NOW USED TO TEMPER OUR SILVER/GOLD PRICE RISE OR RAID AS WHAT HAPPENED LAST TUESDAY AND AGAIN ON FRIDAY, JUNE 7
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 TUESDAY NIGHT: 482 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 TODAY;S TRADING.
WE HAVE IN THE PAST YEAR 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 $0.21) AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SILVER LONGS FROM THEIR PERCH AS WE DID HAVE A HUGE SIZED GAIN OF 758 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES WITH THE GAIN IN PRICE OF $0.21.
WE MUST HAVE HAD:
A STRONG SIZED 510 CONTRACT ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 3.830 MILLION OZ (FIRST DAY NOTICE) FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 275,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP.
//NEW STANDING FOR SILVER//JUNE IS THUS 6.610 MILLION OZ
WE HAD:
/ FAIR SIZED COMEX OI GAIN //STRONG SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/ VI) STRONG SIZED NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE 482 CONTRACTS)/
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL REMOVED 232 CONTRACTS //
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS JUNE ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF JUNE
TOTAL CONTRACTS for 13 DAYS, total 13,610 contracts: OR 68.050 MILLION OZ (1046 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 68.050 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 111.035 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 : 78.655 MILLION OZ//
FEB /2024 : 66.135 MILLION OZ./FINAL
MARCH: 143.750 MILLION OZ// 4TH HIGHEST ON RECORD.
APRIL: 161.770 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH WILL BE A WHOPPER OF ISSUANCE OF EFPS//3RDHIGHEST EVER RECORDED FOR A MONTH)
MAY: 135.995 MILLION OZ //WILL BE A STRONG MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
JUNE 68.050 MILLION OZ ( WILL BE ANOTHER STRONG MONTH ISSUANCE)
RESULT: WE HAD A GIGANTIC SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 758 CONTRACTS WITH OUR STRONG GAIN IN PRICE OF SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//TUESDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A STRONG EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 510 ISSUED FOR JULY AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX TO LONDON AS FORWARDS. WE HAVE A GOOD INITIAL SILVER OZ STANDING FOR JUNE OF 3.830 MILLION OZ ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 275,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP
//NEW TOTAL STANDING FOR JUNE 6.610 MILLION OZ
WE HAVE A HUGE SIZED GAIN OF 758 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES WITH THE GAIN IN PRICE. THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY: A STRONG SIZED 482 CONTRACTS,//HUGE FRONT END OF THE TAS CONTRACTS WERE LIQUIDATED DURING THE TUESDAY COMEX SESSION/// WITH MAJOR SHORT COVERING FROM OUR SPEC SHORTS AND SOME NET LIQUIDATION OF LONGS.
THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE TUESDAY NIGHT (482) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE//AND MOST LIKELY TODAY., .
WE HAD 55 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 275,000 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 STRONG SIZED 5134 OI CONTRACTS TO 444,345 AND CLOSER TO THE RECORD (SET JAN 24/2020) AT 799,733 AND PREVIOUS TO THAT: (SET JAN 6/2020) AT 797,110, BUT WE ARE NOW MUCH FURTHER FROM OUR ALL TIME LOW OF 390,000 CONTRACTS.
THE DIFFERENTIAL FROM PRELIMINARY OI TO FINAL OI IN GOLD TODAY: REMOVED 318 CONTRACTS
WE HAD A STRONG SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI (5134 CONTRACTS) OCCURRED WITH OUR GAIN OF $17.25 IN PRICE/TUESDAY. THE FRBNY SUPPLIED THE NECESSARY SHORT PAPER. WE ALSO HAD A HUGE INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR JUNE AT 89.94 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 1000 OZ QUEUE JUMP AS BANKERS SCOUR THE PLANET LOOKING FOR GOLD ON THE THIS SIDE OF THE POND
NEW STANDING 94.360 TONNES// ALL OF THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $17.25 GAIN IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO TUESDAY’S TRADING. WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN OF 6372 OI CONTRACTS (19.81 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES.
E.F.P. ISSUANCE
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A FAIR SIZED 1238 CONTRACTS:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 444,345
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A STRONG SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 6372 CONTRACTS WITH 5134 CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A FAIR SIZED 1238 EFP OI CONTRACTS WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 6372 CONTRACTS.. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A FAIR SIZED 1325 CONTRACTS,,
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (1238 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE STRONG SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI OF 5134 CONTRACTS/TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 6372 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 JUNE AT 88.761 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 0.0311 TONNES
//NEW STANDING /JUNE 94.329 TONNES.
/ 3) HUGE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION OF CONTRACTS WITH ZERO NET LONG SPECS BEING CLIPPED,
4) STRONG SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST GAIN 5) FAIR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///FAIR T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 1325 CONTRACTS//
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023-2024 INCLUDING TODAY
JUNE
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF JUNE. :
TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 41,125 CONTRACTS OR 4,112,500 OZ OR 127.916 TONNES IN 13 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 3163 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 13 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES 127.916 TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2023, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 127.916 DIVIDED BY 3550 x 100% TONNES = 3.60% OF GLOBAL ANNUAL PRODUCTION
SEPT 142.12 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE ( LOW ISSUANCE)_
OCT: 141.13 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE (LOW ISSUANCE)
NOV: 312.46 TONNES FINAL ISSUANCE//NEW RECORD!! (INCREASING DRAMATICALLY)//SIGN OF REAL STRESS//SURPASSING THE MARCH 2021 RECORD OF 276.50 TONNES OF EFP
DEC. 175.62 TONNES//FINAL ISSUANCE//
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: 291.76 TONNES (WILL BE MUCH GREATER THAN LAST MONTH.//3RD HIGHEST EVER RECORDED EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL)
FEB’24: 201.947 TONNES
MARCH 2024: 352.21 TONNES//2ND HIGHEST EVER RECORDED EFP ISSUANCE.
APRIL: 267.05TONNES (WILL BE AN EXTREMELY STRONG MONTH BUT LESS THAN MARCH 2024)
MAY; 316.606 TONNES (WILL BE ANOTHER STRONG MONTH// 3RD HIGHEST RECORDED EFP ISSUANCE )// NOTICE THE HUGE INCREASES IN EX FOR PHYSICAL THESE PAST FEW MONTHS. THESE CONTRACTS ARE CIRCLED BACK FROM LONDON WHEREBY METAL IS REMOVED FROM THE COMEX.
JUNE 127.816 tonnes HEADING FOR A STRONG MONTH
SPREADING OPERATIONS
(/NOW SWITCHING TO GOLD) FOR NEWCOMERS, HERE ARE THE DETAILS
SPREADING LIQUIDATION HAS NOW COMMENCED AS WE HEAD TOWARDS THE NEW ACTIVE FRONT MONTH OF JUNE. WE ARE NOW INTO THE SPREADING OPERATION OF GOLD
HERE IS A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF HOW THE CROOKS FLEECE UNSUSPECTING LONGS IN THE SPREADING ENDEAVOUR ;MODUS OPERANDI OF THE CORRUPT BANKERS AS TO HOW THEY HANDLE THEIR SPREAD OPEN INTERESTS:HERE IS HOW THE CROOKS USED SPREADING AS WE ARE NOW INTO THE NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF 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 (APRIL), 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 ROSE BY A FAIR SIZED 248 CONTRACTS OI TO 176,357 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 6 YEARS AGO. HOWEVER WE HAVE NOW SET A NEW RECORD LOW OF 114,102 CONTRACTS JULY 3.2023
EFP ISSUANCE 510 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
JULY 510 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 510 CONTRACTS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON. IF WE TAKE THE COMEX OI GAIN OF 248 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 510 E.FP. ISSUED
WE OBTAIN A HUGE SIZED GAIN OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 758 CONTRACTS
THUS IN OUNCES, THE GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTALS 3.79 MILLION OZ
c) Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens
ii a) Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
b. Other gold/silver commentaries
c. Commodity commentaries//
d)/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC
2.ASIAN AFFAIRS//
THURSDAY MORNING/TUESDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 12.41 PTS OR 0.42% //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 95.078 PTS OR 0.52%// Nikkei CLOSED UP 62.26 OR 0.16%//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.02%///Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN TO 7,2609 CHINESE YUAN OFFSHORE CLOSED DOWN TO 7.2843/ Oil UP TO 81.71 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP AT 85.56 /Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN
ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN WEAKER
1. COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS
GOLD
LET US BEGIN:
THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST ROSE BY A STRONG` SIZED 5134 CONTRACTS TO 444,345 WITH OUR STRONG GAIN IN PRICE OF $17.25 WITH RESPECT TO TUESDAY’S TRADING. WE HAD A HUGE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION ON TUESDAY WITH ZERO LONGS BEING CLIPPED.
EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
WE ARE NOW IN THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF JUNE.… 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 A FAIR SIZED 1238 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: : AUGUST1238 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:
TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 1238 CONTRACTS.
ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE GAINED THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A STRONG SIZED TOTAL OF 6372 CONTRACTS IN THAT 1238 LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN OF 5,134 COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS STRONG SIZED GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $17.25/TUESDAY 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 TUESDAY NIGHT WAS A GOOD SIZED 1325 CONTRACTS. MOST OF THE TRADING AND SUPPLY OF CONTRACTS WAS ORCHESTRATED BY GOVERNMENT (FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF NEW YORK)
THROUGHOUT THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS, THE BANKERS CONTINUE TO SELL 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//. IT SEEMS THAT OUR CROOKS ARE HAVING A HARD TIME TRYING TO CONTROL THE PRICE OF GOLD AND THUS THE NEED FOR STRONG T.A.S. ISSUANCE. THE USE OF T.A.S. IS OF EXTREME IMPORTANCE TO OUR CROOKS IN TUESDAY’S TRADING
// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING: JUNE (94.360 TONNES)
HERE ARE THE AMOUNTS THAT STOOD FOR DELIVERY IN THE PRECEDING 42 MONTHS OF 2021-2024:
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
DEC. 47.073 + 4.634 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 51.707 TONNES
TOTAL 2023 YEAR : 436.546 TONNES
2024
JAN ’24. 22.706 TONNES
FEB. ’24: 66.276TONNES (INCLUDES 1.723 TONNES EX. FOR RISK)
MARCH: 18.8398 TONNES + 1.1695 EX FOR RISK = 20.093 TONNES
APRIL: 2024: 53.673TONNES FINAL
MAY/ 2024 8.5536 TONNES + 3.3716 TONNES EX FOR RISK/PRIOR= 11.9325
JUNE; 94.360 TONNES. THIS IS THE HIGHEST RECORDED GOLD STANDING SINCE AUGUST 2022
THE SPECS/HFT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT ROSE BY $17.25 //// AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING ANY SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN OF 6372 CONTRACTS ON TUESDAY WITH OUR TWO EXCHANGES WITH THE GAIN IN PRICE. THE T.A.S. ISSUED ON TUESDAY NIGHT WILL BE “PUT INTO THE BANK” TO BE USED AT A LATER DATE AT THE COLLUSIVE CHOOSING OF OUR BANKERS.
WE HAVE GAINED A TOTAL OI OF 19.81 PAPER TONNES FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR JUNE (89.94 TONNES) ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 10 CONTRACTS OR 1000 OZ (0.0622 TONNES)
NEW STANDING FOR JUNE: 94.360 TONNES
ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR GAININ PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $17.25
WE HAVE REMOVED 318 CONTRACTS FROM THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST (CROOKS)//PRELIMINARY TO FINAL
NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 6372 CONTRACTS OR 637200 OZ (19.81TONNES)
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month
30,141 notices 3,014,100 oz 93.751 TONNES
Total accumulative withdrawals of gold from the Dealers inventory this month
NIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of gold from the Customer inventory this month
x
0 dealer deposits:
total dealer deposits: NIL oz
we have 0 customer deposit:
total deposit nil oz
customer withdrawals: 1
i) Out of JPMorgan: 36,652.140 oz (1140 kilobars)
TOTAL WITHDRAWALS 36,652.140 0z
Adjustments: 1 CUSTOMER TO DEALER BRINKS:
A) 964.530 oz
CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR JUNE
For the front month of JUNE we have an oi of 216 contracts having LOST 161 contracts. We had 171 contracts served on Tuesday so we gained 10 contracts or 1000 oz additional ounces will stand for gold at the comex as they underwent a queue jump to take delivery on this side of the pond.
JULY GAINED 17 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 2435
AUGUST GAINED 3276 CONTRACTS UP TO 359,300 CONTRACTS
We had 20 contracts filed for today representing 2000 oz
This is a major assault on the comex for gold and this time it is physical that will be requested.
Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer and 0 notice was issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 20 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 0 notice(s) was (were) stopped (received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account
To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for June /2024. contract month, we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (30,141) x 100 oz ) to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of JUNE (216 CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today (20 x 100 oz per contract( equals 3,033,700 OZ OR 94.360 TONNES.
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the JUNE contract month: No of notices filed so far (30,141 x 100 oz +we add the difference for front month of June (216// , OI} minus the number of notices served upon today (20) x 100 oz which equals 3,033,700 oz (94.360 TONNES)
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING FOR JUNE: 94.360 TONNES WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY HUGE FOR THIS VERY ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH IN THE CALENDAR. JUNE IS TRADITIONALLY THE 2ND HIGHEST DELIVERY MONTH OF THE YEAR. FROM THIS POINT WE WILL GAIN IN GOLD TONNAGE WILLING TO STAND AT THE COMEX
TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED GOLD: 17,579,908.206 OZ
TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD 8,152,675.753( 253..58 tonnes).
TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 9,427,232.449 OZ
REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 6,471,961 oz (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD)= 201.31 tonnes //
END
SILVER/COMEX
JUN 20/2024
INITIAL
//2024// THE JUNE 2024 SILVER CONTRACT//INITIAL
Silver
Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory
NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory
643,655.379 oz
Delaware HSBC
.
Deposits to the Dealer Inventory
nil OZ
Deposits to the Customer Inventory
1129,380.000 oz ASAHI Brinks
No of oz served today (contracts)
55 CONTRACT(S) (275,000 OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)
7 contracts (0.035 million oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)
1315 Contracts (6.575 MILLION oz)
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Dealers inventory this month
NIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Customer inventory this month
i) 0 dealer deposit
total dealer deposit : nil oz
i) We had 0 dealer withdrawal
total dealer withdrawals: 0 oz
We had 2 customer deposits:
i) Into ASAHI 604,160,000 oz
ii) Into Brinks: 525,220.000 oz
total customer deposit 1,129,380.000oz
JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 127.823million oz/296.823million or 42.90%
adjustment: 0
Comex withdrawals: 2
i) out of Delaware 549,075.109 oz
ii) out of HSBC 94,580.290 oz
total withdrawal: 643,655.399 0z
TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 63.074MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 296.823
million oz
CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR JUNE:
silver open interest data:
FRONT MONTH OF JUNE/2024 OI: 62 CONTRACTS HAVING GAINED 55 CONTRACT(S).
WE HAD 0 NOTICES SERVED UP ON TUESDAY, SO WE GAINED 55 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 275,000 OZ WILL STAND AT THE COMEX VIA A CONSIDERABLE QUEUE JUMP TO WHERE THEY WILL TAKE DELIVERY ON THIS SIDE OF THE POND
JULY SAW A LOSS OF 5723 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 70,328
AUG, SAW A GAIN OF 8 CONTRACTS TO 376
SEPT SAW A GAIN OF 5622 CONTRACTS TO 86,657
.
TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 55 for 275,000 oz
CONFIRMED volume; ON TUESDAY 94,120 strong
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in JUNE we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 1315 x 5,000 oz = 6.575 MILLION oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of JUNE ((62) and the number of notices served upon today 55 x (5000 oz) equals the number of ounces standing.
Thus the standings for silver for the JUNE/2024 contract month: 1315 notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of JUNE (62)x number of notices served upon today minus (55)x 5000 oz of silver standing for the JUNE contract month equates to 6.610 MILLION OZ.
New total standing: 6.610 million oz.
There are 63.074 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.
Now that we have surpassed $28.40 the next big line in the sand for silver is $34.76. After that the moon
END
GLD AND SLV INVENTORY LEVELS//
BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE MASSIVE FRAUDS!
JUNE 20 WITH GOLD UP $23.60 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/://NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 825.31 TONNES
JUNE 18 WITH GOLD UP $17.25 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/://NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 825.31 TONNES
JUNE 17 WITH GOLD DOWN $18.25 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/: /A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.03 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 825.31 TONNES
JUNE 13 WITH GOLD DOWN$35.30 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/: /A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.89 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 830.78 TONNES
JUNE 12 WITH GOLD UP $28.30 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/: /A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.89 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD////NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 830.78 TONNES
JUNE 11 WITH GOLD DOWN $0.30 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD/: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 835.67 TONNES
JUNE 10 WITH GOLD UP $2,00 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 835.67 TONNES
JUNE 7 WITH GOLD DOWN $64.35 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 3.56 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 837.11 TONNES
JUNE 6 WITH GOLD UP $16.25 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 1.34 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 833.55 TONNES
JUNE 5 WITH GOLD UP $32.75 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
JUNE 4 WITH GOLD DOWN $20.60 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
JUNE 3 WITH GOLD UP $22.85 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
MAY 31 WITH GOLD DOWN $19.40 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
MAY 30 WITH GOLD UP $3.60 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
MAY 29 WITH GOLD DOWN $13.55 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: / //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
MAY 28 WITH GOLD UP $22.00 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.15 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD// //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 832.21 TONNES
MAY 24 WITH GOLD DOWN $2.25 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 5.18 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD// //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 833.36 TONNES
MAY 23 WITH GOLD DOWN $53.00 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 838.54 TONNES
MAY 22 WITH GOLD DOWN $32.10 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 838.54 TONNES
MAY 21 WITH GOLD DOWN $12,00 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: //NEW TOTAL TONIGHT 838.54 TONNES
MAY 20 WITH GOLD UP $21.30 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 5.10 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//NEW TOTAL 838.54 TONNES
MAY 17 WITH GOLD UP $31.70 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//NEW TOTAL 833.36 TONNES
MAY 16 WITH GOLD DOWN $7.90 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//A DEPOSIT OF 1.43 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD//NEW TOTAL 833.36 TONNES
MAY 15 WITH GOLD UP $34.90 ON THE DAY; SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//A DEPOSIT OF .600 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/INVENTORY RISES TO 831.93 TONNES
MAY 14 WITH GOLD DOWN $17.10 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD//INVENTORY RISES TO 831.33 TONNES
GLD INVENTORY: 825.31 TONNES, TONIGHTS TOTAL
SILVER
JUNE 20. WITH SILVER UP $1.17//HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY’ A DEPOSIT OF 5.164 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV/// /INVENTORY RISES TO 434.929 MILLION OZ.
JUNE 18. WITH SILVER UP $0.21//NOCHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY’ A WITHDRAWAL .730 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV/// /INVENTORY FALLS TO 429.775 MILLION OZ.
JUNE 17. WITH SILVER UP $0.21//SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY’ A WITHDRAWAL .730 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV/// /INVENTORY FALLS TO 429.775 MILLION OZ.
JUNE 14. WITH SILVER DOWN $0.10//NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY/ /INVENTORY REMAINS AT 429.083 TONNES
JUNE 13. WITH SILVER DOWN $1.10//HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY/ A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 1.958 MILLION OZ/INVENTORY RISES TO 429.083 TONNES
JUNE 12 WITH SILVER UP $0.97 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 5.983 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY RISES TO ; 427.125 MILLION OZ
JUNE 11 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.59 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 1.644 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY RISES TO ; 422.786 MILLION OZ
JUNE 10 WITH SILVER UP $0.30 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 3.198 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY RISES TO ; 421.142 MILLION OZ
JUNE 7 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.93 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 2.649 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY AT 417.944 MILLION OZ
JUNE 6 WITH SILVER UP $1.27 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 2.649 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY INCREASES TO 417.944 MILLION OZ
JUNE 5 WITH SILVER UP 0.38 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 1.52 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// INVENTORY INCREASES TO 415.295 MILLION OZ
JUNE 4 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.08 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //INVENTORY REMAINS AT 413.775 MILLION OZ
JUNE 3 WITH SILVER UP $0.35 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: //INVENTORY REMAINS AT 413.775 MILLION OZ
MAY 31 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.09 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY: A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 3.655 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//INVENTORY LOWERS TO 413.775 MILLION OZ
MAY 30 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.80 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY//INVENTORY REMAINS AT 417.430 MILLION OZ
MAY 29 WITH SILVER UP $0.20 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 1.051 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY DECREASES TO 417.430 MILLION OZ
MAY 28 WITH SILVER UP $1.64 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 2.832 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY INCREASES TO 418.481 MILLION OZ
MAY 24 WITH SILVER UP $0.10 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A DEPOSIT OF .822 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//INVENTORY INCREASES TO 421.313 MILLION OZ
MAY 23 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.00 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.736 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLVINVENTORY INCREASES TO 420.491 MILLION OZ
MAY 22 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.66 TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// INVENTORY INCREASES TO 422.227 MILLION OZ
MAY 21 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.41 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/A DEPOSIT OF 3.792 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV// INVENTORY INCREASES TO 422.227 MILLION OZ
MAY 20 WITH SILVER UP $1.28 TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.005 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV// INVENTORY LOWERS TO 418.435 MILLION OZ
MAY 17 WITH SILVER UP $1.37 TODAY: SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/A WITHDRAWAL OF 868,000 OZ FROM THE SLV// INVENTORY LOWERS TO 419.440 MILLION OZ
MAY 16 WITH SILVER DOWN 14 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/ INVENTORY REMAINS AT 420.308 MILLION OZ
MAY 15 WITH SILVER UP 101 CENTS TODAY: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV;; A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.919 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV NVENTORY RESTS AT 420.308 MILLION OZ
MAY 14 WITH SILVER UP 25 CENTS TODAY: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV;;INVENTORY RESTS AT 422.227 MILLION OZ
CLOSING INVENTORY 434.929 MILLION OZ//
PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES
1.PETER SCHIFF SCHIFF GOLD/MIKE MAHARRAY
2. ALASDAIR MACLEOD/JIM RICKARDS/PAM AND RUSS MARTENS/ JAMES RICKARDS/GOLD AND SILVER COMMENTARY
The intensification of conflict between the western alliance and the Asian hegemons is speeding up. America and NATO have lost control, and their fate is now in the hands of Russia and China.
A number of disparate elements are coming together, demanding resolution. But the western alliance is not as battle ready as Russia. The former has not innovated weapons sufficiently and doesn’t possess the hypersonic missiles of Russia, China and her allies. And the Europeans, including Britain, are too socially degraded as cohesive nations to recruit sufficient troops for their depleted armies. Talk of recruitment or even national service in these nations is unrealistic. It is not an exaggeration to say that politically, European NATO members are disintegrating.
The pressure to go nuclear is mounting, particularly for America which wants Russia destroyed and has proved to be unconcerned with collateral damage to its allies. Her wars and operations in Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan have created acute refugee problems in Europe. And countless Ukrainians have been slaughtered without any regret. But America can now only maintain her global dominance by unleashing a third world war. That she can retain European allies in this path to Europe’s own destruction is irrational.
Only last week at the G7 meeting in Italy, plans to sequester and divert interest on Russia’s reserves to fund Ukraine’s armaments were finalised. Legally, this is theft of Russia’s property. The West has signalled to the rest of the world its contempt for property rights — and Russia has made sure the world is aware of it.
This is the year of Russia’s chairmanship of BRICS, to be followed by China in 2025. Not only is the membership due to be expanded, but having failed to get a gold-backed trade settlement onto the Johannesburg agenda last August we can be sure that Russia has updated her plans for this year’s meeting in Kazan in October. This article looks at how this might pan out.
Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine is destroying that nation’s manhood mainly to save Biden’s skin in the presidential election in November. It is remarkable that in modern politics the callousness of Caesar in Gaul when he proudly massacred a million souls for his own glory is being repeated today. We look at Biden’s timing from Russia’s strategic point of view. And as defeat for NATO in Ukraine looms, America appears to be provoking China into precipitative action over Taiwan almost as a side bet.
Led by America, an increasingly desperate western alliance is pushing these conflicts towards direct engagements with Russia and China. Though far from an exhaustive list, the following questions arise:
· Has the western alliance the manpower and other resources to escalate conflicts against the Asian hegemons? And with the majority of the world’s population either in the Asian hegemons’ sphere of influence or determined to not join the western alliance, can the alliance succeed despite passive but mounting hostility from the rest of the world?
· Will Russia get a gold-backed trade settlement currency approved in Kazan? If so, how will it be comprised? And what will be the consequences for the dollar-based fiat currency system?
· What are likely to be the legal and financial consequences of the theft of interest from Russia’s Euroclear account?
· What are Putin’s intentions over Ukraine, having put out renewed feelers for peace last week? And what was the peace conference in Zurich all about, from which Russia was excluded and China decided not to attend?
· What actions are China likely to take against an increasingly aggressive America in the Pacific over Taiwan?
The resolution of these issues is largely interdependent. This article flags up likely answers and gives its readers some guidance as to how these issues relate to each other. It would appear that their complexity works against the West which is proving incapable of sufficient strategic judgement, compared with that of the Russians and Chinese. It compares the blundering ability to think just one move ahead instead of a more considered and patient approach.
The social background
In any war, the likely victor needs to have a fighting ethic. The Spartans versus Greeks, the Roman legions, the Crusades. The alliance of Wellington’s army and Blucher’s Prussians against Napoleon at Waterloo. And in modern times, the toleration of slaughter in the trenches in the First World War followed by the Allies’ defeat of Germany and Japan in the second world war. Men wrenched from their working lives with the threat of death require a belief that what they are doing is for the nation or for God.
These motivations do not exist in the west today. National identity is fatally fractured, wokeness has replaced the cohesive morality of Christianity, and there are no material rewards. But Russia is not a godless society, and the homeland is being threatened. And that is why President Putin has the national backing that western leaders lack.
The rest of the world looks on, refusing to be drawn into conflicts initiated by dying empires. Nations are fence-sitting, many with large Muslim populations antagonised by America’s support for Israel over Gaza.
These are the social truths behind the conflict between the United States with its NATO partners and the two Russian hegemons, Russia and China. Skirmishing in various theatres of war with special forces is one thing, but escalation requiring civilian boots on the ground is another. In this, Russia has proved herself capable of motivating her men, and China’s command of her citizens suggests the same. Instead, Sunak and other European leaders are talking of enforced enlistment — good luck with that.
Warfare has also evolved from the battlefield tactics of yesteryear. In the West, we assumed that we can beat Russia through a combination of special forces (i.e. the brilliance of our SAS and Navy Seals) and technology. Both these are turning out to be the triumph of hope over experience. The west has failed to innovate her defence capability sufficiently and doesn’t possess the hypersonic missiles of the Asian axis. And China’s applied technology is now superior to anything we can muster.
In short, as we drift into a seemingly inevitable third world war, these shortcomings will become increasingly obvious, and being built on sand NATO’s fragile unity will likely collapse.
With the exceptions of the USSR and China, the post WW2 settlement saw the United States colonise the world. She has hundreds of military bases “protecting” her allies. Her currency has been the only settlement medium for commodities and international trade. America is determined to protect this privileged position. And it is through both the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the rapidly expanding BRICS networks that Russia and China are overturning America’s order.
The importance of BRICS is generally not understood in the west, being a silent struggle for global supremacy. Nowhere is this more evident than in plans for the SCO and BRICS to do away with the dollar for settling trade. It is set to expand from the current ten members to considerably more, as nations gain the necessary confidence to turn against America’s hegemony. New BRICS members will be required to turn their backs not only on America, but to the dollar as well. A new trade settlement arrangement will be required for that objective to be achieved.
The BRICS currency solution
In the plans for a new BRICS currency, probably the most important adviser is Sergei Glazyev. He has Putin’s ear. The failure of his initial proposal to make the agenda in Johannesburg was probably a setback rather than the end of his project. But there is a larger geopolitical picture to consider.
There can be little doubt that gold will be involved in some way. Not only did Glazyev write an article in the Moscow business magazine Vedomosti proposing that a proper gold standard should be reintroduced for Russia’s rouble, but the various briefings and leaks point to gold having a role in the new trade exchange medium. If Glazyev is any guide to Putin’s thinking, then gold will be the stabilising factor for Russia, BRICS, and the wider Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
The reintroduction of gold as the keystone to reserve currencies for all the nations involved is certain to have a major impact on the dollar, the euro, the yen, the pound, and any other fiat currency not in the scheme. Almost certainly, it will accelerate the collapse of the dollar, not just because the redemption of these currencies for gold, energy, and commodities generally will accelerate, but because international faith in the value of these currencies relative to the new will be undermined. This raises two issues: it will almost certainly lead to the destruction of trade with and between the old order western alliance, and it will also threaten the values of SCO and BRICS member nations’ currencies unless they are also credibly linked to gold’s value.
On the first issue, neither China nor India is ready for such an aggressive step. It will destroy much of their existing trade, and in China’s case the central plank of her foreign policy is not to initiate aggressive economic action against her geopolitical enemies, preferring them to make the errors. China will therefore respond to events having already planned ahead for them.
The second issue, being the threat to members’ own currencies from a properly functioning trade settlement medium, is likely to be Glazyev’s greatest challenge. Only a few of the members have sufficient gold to back their currencies, though many of them have already been selling their dollars for bullion. Assuming the wider currency issue is not overtaken by events, the only practical solution is to propose a framework at Kazan, the basis of which is already rumoured to consist of backing by gold and a mixture of participating currencies.
One can imagine that many participants will not want to have their own currencies in the scheme for fear of losing control over them: the Saudis could fall in this camp. Glazyev’s plan is therefore likely to rely heavily on the yuan and rouble as new reserve currencies, but not in the front line like the dollar. Their trade weighted involvement would justify these ratings anyway and should be acceptable to the Kazan delegates.
If these principal currencies are to have a role in a viable alternative to the dollar, then it is for them that gold backing becomes important. As Glazyev pointed out in his Vedomosti article there are substantial benefits for Russia to turn the rouble into a gold substitute anyway. While China will not want to take this initiative, except to protect the yuan in a dollar collapse, she could confirm her long-term intention to do so, and to give her statement credibility reallocate to her monetary reserves some of the bullion stocks she has been hoarding off-balance sheet in various government accounts.
It would be an important step in the direction of displacing the dollar, but tactfully handled and presented as a future ambition will probably not be associated in western minds with a deliberate act of dollar destruction by China. Therefore, we should expect to see a BRICS agreement in Kazan for a new currency in principle, perhaps with a new committee appointed to come up with a concrete proposal for the following year’s summit when China will be chairman.
Stealing from Euroclear
At the G7 summit in Italy, it was agreed that the interest on Russia’s currency and bond balances in Euroclear be redirected in support of Ukraine’s war effort. This interest is as much Russia’s property as the principal which was defaulted on by the US and her allies in the name of sanctions.
There are far greater western-owned assets in Russia, which Putin might seize in retaliation. But as Jim Rickards, a lawyer qualified in these matters pointed out in a series of recent interviews, Russia could sue Euroclear wherever it has offices, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, and Beijing. This is where the structure of Euroclear might lead to its downfall.
On shareholders’ equity of less than €10 billion, it acts as the settlement agent and depository for €37 trillion in bonds, equities, and derivatives. In order for Euroclear to remove risk of settlement failure, it owns these securities as its own property, issuing electronic certificates of entitlement in their place. This is what the dematerialisation of certificates means.
The reasons for this arrangement need not detain us here, but a successful action by Russia under international law in any of the jurisdictions above might require Euroclear to cede some of its property beyond its shareholders’ interests. In other words, sell some of or borrow against the pool of securities it owns on behalf of you and me.
It could be an attractive option for the Russian state to sue Euroclear in an attempt to undermine western capital markets. In effect, this would compromise the standing of Euroclear with respect to its obligations on all investments in its care. In any event, the G7’s cavalier treatment of another nation’s property will not go unnoticed in the global south.
The war in Ukraine
Despite western propaganda to the contrary, it is clear that Russia is gaining the upper hand in the proxy war against America and her NATO partners. It has reached the stage where Russia has come up with another peace proposal, as a test of Zelensky’s backers’ resolve. At the same time, 92 national delegations attended a peace summit in Switzerland, to which Russia was not invited. Joe Biden decided to not attend, preferring the easiness of a Hollywood fundraiser instead.
Biden’s absence spoke volumes about how Ukraine is now seen to be a lost cause. Doubtless, that’s why Victoria Nuland who has led on US policy in Ukraine for a decade or more resigned in March. Biden’s problem now is how to defer a US defeat until after the presidential election in November. America is already ramping up an alternative conflict against China over Taiwan as an alternative theatre of war to Ukraine, but the Chinese are refusing to take the bait. But from Putin’s position, he has to decide whether by pushing for an early victory or by delaying, how it might influence the US presidential outcome.
If he defeats Ukraine, which means at least capturing Kiev and driving out US and NATO forces, it will be a political failure for Biden, bookending his hasty retreat from Afghanistan in 2021. Trump’s chances of being re-elected should be enhanced. It is more likely that Trump will agree to a peace settlement, and the Deep State facing up to reality would probably take the opportunity to concede the policy failure, so long as Russia offers an acceptable fall-back solution.
Alternatively, if Biden is re-elected it is more likely that aggressive anti-Russian US foreign policy will escalate. Therefore, the odds appear to favour a renewed Russian intensification of its military operation in the coming months. Perhaps it is this dawning reality driving European NATO members into a panic over the Russian threat, even talking of conscription to bolster their inadequate armies. But with their high levels of government debt as a starting point for most of these participants, it would become an economic suicide note, even without a social rebellion of their civilian populations.
Therefore, it appears that not only has Putin the upper hand over Ukraine, but the timing of his end game is being determined by his reading of the US’s presidential election. Furthermore, with Ukraine running out of press-ganged volunteers, human resources and battlefield morale strongly favour an early push by the Russians.
The gold backstop
As noted above, there is a strong case for putting the rouble onto a gold standard. But being in partnership with China, it is not a decision solely for Putin. A premature move is unlikely to have the support of the SCO and BRICS memberships. Nevertheless, if America’s mindless doubling down on its losing geopolitical bets continues, a move to undermine the dollar’s credibility by announcing a gold standard could be the only way to avoid escalation towards a nuclear conflict.
It is too soon to make that assessment. But as NATO’s prospects in Ukraine continue to deteriorate and western markets increasingly realise that the dollar is being discarded by nations representing the majority of the world’s population, priced in gold the dollar is bound to depreciate. This is why central banks not in the western alliance’s camp are reducing their dollar exposure.
Undermining the dollar even more, selling by foreigners is bound to drive up the cost of financing the US Government’s deficit. Rising bond yields will spread from New York to the rest of the world wherever there is a government committed to budget deficits. Financial asset values will decline, and economic slumps ensue. It is getting difficult to argue for a more positive outcome.
Forward thinking Chinese and Russian leaders have been aware of this danger for some time, which is why they have been careful not to provoke it. Equally, they have insured against it by accumulating substantial gold reserves to secure their currency and credit values against a full-scale western currency and financial asset crisis.
In default of alternatives, it now appears to China’s households, whose annual savings total the equivalent of $6 trillion, that gold has become an attractive investment option. As the crisis facing the western alliance develops, the pace at which these savings migrate from bank deposits into gold is set to increase. The quantities involved could easily trigger a crisis in gold and silver paper obligations, if bullion banks in London and New York fail to deliver physical bullion.
As I stated earlier in this article, the resolution of geopolitical issues is interdependent, which makes it virtually impossible to judge the timing of an inevitable currency crisis for the West. The only forces trying to manage this risk appear to the Chinese and the Russians. Our politicians are unaware of the magnitude of these dangers. For those of us trying to protect our wealth in these uncertain times, it is time to batten down the hatches and get out of credit before its value is destroyed.
Shedding its long-standing price sensitivity to the price of gold, Thailand is currently a gold buyer driving the price up, just like China. Present changes in the global gold market, in which pricing power is shifting East, could be a precursor to a transformation in the international monetary order. Possibly, trade in the East will settle through a system connecting local CBDCs, while any remaining imbalances are transferred in gold.
Introduction
Up until 2021, many countries in Asia were gold price sensitive for nearly a century: they bought when the gold price was steady or declining but swiftly turned into sellers when the price increased. During this period the price of gold was set in the West and the East dampened volatility, best demonstrated in my article “The West–East Ebb and Flood of Gold Revisited.”
After the war in Ukraine broke out in 2022 things started changing in the global gold market, which I have described in “The West Is Losing Control Over the Gold Price” (August 2023), and “China Has Taken Over Gold Price Control from the West” (March 2024). As the titles of the articles suggest, the war, and the resulting sanctions on Russia, set in motion large scale gold purchases by the Chinese, who flipped from being price sensitive to price drivers.
International trade statistics show Thailand has followed China since November 2023. Instead of steadily accumulating and selling into rallies, Thailand was a solid net importer while the gold price went up 20% from ฿72,100 Thai baht per ounce in October 2023 to ฿85,700 in April 2024 (from $2,000 to $2,300).
The consensus is that elevated demand in Thailand is due to geopolitical tensions. Next to a long history of saving in gold, the Thai people are stimulated to buy gold as their central bank is accumulating the precious metal too.
Since the Great Financial Crisis, the central bank of Thailand (BOT) increased its gold reserve nearly threefold from 84 tonnes to 236 tonnes. Late October 2023, BOT Deputy Governor of Monetary Stability, Alisara Mahasandana, said in an interview that gold is a relative safe haven in an era of high inflation and growing geopolitical risks. “We need to create a resilient portfolio against all shocks and changes around us… [Gold] is a hedging tool during high inflation and political uncertainty as well as geopolitical events. It’s good for risk diversification,” she said. Adding that bonds of countries previously perceived to be safe bets face an uncertain outlook.
Then, in April 2024, the Thai Government Pension Fund (GPF) stated to “adjust investment proportions by reducing assets that could be affected by war and increasing investments in alternative assets such as gold and oil, which help to mitigate risk.”
Enter mBridge and Gold Recycling
Although I don’t know exactly who are the buyers of the gold we see going into Thailand, I can’t help but think the country’s change in gold buying behavior could be related to mBridge, an international payments project coordinated by the BIS Innovation Hub in Hong Kong, and the Gold Recycling theory suggesting that nations interested in parting with the dollar store trade surpluses in gold.
The earliest participants that started developing mBridge are Thailand, the UAE, China, and Hong Kong. According to the BIS the project “aims to explore a multi-central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform shared among participating central banks and commercial banks, built on distributed ledger technology (DLT) to enable instant cross-border payments and settlement.” A common technical infrastructure has significant potential to improve the current system and allow cross-border payments to be more efficient, immediate, and cheaper. In addition, no dollars are needed in mBridge, and, needless to say, many countries in Asia favor non-dollar trading for political reasons.
On May 21, 2024, the central banks of Thailand and China discussed “strengthening banking and financial cooperation, including the promotion of local currency usage as well as cross-border payment and settlement.” A memorandum of understanding was signed for a Cooperation Framework for Bilateral Local Currency Transactions. This was a few days before mBridge reached Minimum Viable Product stage, on June 5, 2024. Saudi Arabia—that historically played an important role in the petrodollar system—also announced to join mBridge as a full participant on June 5.
MBridge now counts 5 participants and more than 26 central banks as observing members. According to Ledger Insights, “mBridge uses an Ethereum compatible DLT network, the mBridge Ledger, developed by China’s Digital Currency Research Institute.” Because China is in charge of the backbone of the system it will be resistant to Western sanctions.
But mBridge is not a panacea for the dollar centric monetary system. Participants of mBridge are bound to have imbalances (trade surpluses and deficits) with each other which are difficult to settle in their respective currencies due to illiquid financial markets and capital controls, among other reasons. The Gold Recycling theory holds that countries store their surpluses in gold, not US Treasuries. When combined, mBridge and Gold Recycling allow for non-dollar trading and storing surpluses in non-dollar assets: de-dollarization.
In the gold industry it’s an open secret that the central bank of Saudi Arabia is covertly buying gold. The fact that it has joined mBridge, together with China and Thailand that are obviously buying gold hand over fist, could be a game changer.
Russia is not part of mBridge yet, though in 2023 its central bank mentioned it’s setting up a digital currency trade relationship with the UAE. This June, Anatoly Aksakov, Chair of the Financial Markets Committee of the State Duma, said Russia aspires to perform its first cross-border payments using the digital ruble within 18 months. “I’m confident that it will be common practice within five years,” Aksakov said.
In my view, a lot of blanks still need to be filled in. For example, liquidity in currency pairs connected to mBridge (or will they all use the renminbi as trade currency?). A little patience will confirm in what direction the international monetary order is progressing.
4. OTHER MAJOR GOLD COMMENTARIES/PODCASTS/
5 B GLOBAL COMMODITY ISSUES/FOOD IN GENERAL//FREIGHT/COPPER
/China’s Copper Exports Jump To Record On ‘Export Arbitrage’
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 05:45 AM
Until the Chinese government introduces more robust stimulus packages to counter soft economic data and exporters in the world’s second-largest economy ease up on flooding global markets with copper, prices of the base metal—crucial for power lines and AI data centers—are expected to remain under pressure.
The latest customs data from Bloomberg shows that Chinese exports of unwrought copper and other products in May doubled from last year to roughly 150,000 tons, exceeding the previous high in 2012. This comes as copper prices hit a record high of more than $5.10/lb on COMEX.
In late May, copper hit a record of $5.10/lb, as traders panicked and bought the red metal on the ‘Next AI Trade’ theme, primarily because of tightening supplies and rising demand from electric vehicles, AI data centers, reshoring, and power grid upgrades.
However, as Bloomberg explained:
“Producers have been locked in deflation for much of the past two years due to a tepid economy, opening up opportunities abroad where prices are higher…”
In other words, Chinese exporters have been exporting deflation via the red metal as domestic economic activity remains in a slump.
“We believe copper prices will likely remain under pressure in the short-term, unless the Chinese government unveils sustained stimulus measures, or we see Chinese smelters cutting output,” analysts at ING wrote in a note.
Traders have also been watching for signs of recent price declines stimulating buying from manufacturers. But traders and analysts remain doubtful that demand will rebound meaningfully.
“With Chinese smelters still delivering cathode into bonded warehouses owing to the open export arbitrage, it still feels too early to say we are at the bottom of the current copper price cycle,” Colin Hamilton, managing director for commodities research at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a note to clients.
Last week, Trafigura Chief Economist Saad Rahim, one of copper’s biggest bulls, called the recent copper price surge unjustified due to real-world supply:
“Prices of non-ferrous metals have moved much higher than fundamentals in the physical spot market might indicate or justify, especially for copper.”
At the end of last week, Goldman’s James McGeoch pointed out to clients that the multi-month trend line supporting prices has been broken.
There is some good news for bottom watchers, as Bloomberg noted:
“China’s smelters are at least starting to pare their production of refined copper from the record levels seen in recent months, according to the latest output figures for May, although the decline is more likely linked to a global shortfall in raw materials rather than a response to weak demand.”
Now, the copper bull market is at crossroads. Bulls need supply to continue tightening, and China needs to stop dumping supply for the ‘Next AI Trade’ to play out.
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 12.41 PTS OR 0.42% //Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 95.078 PTS OR 0.52%// Nikkei CLOSED UP 62.26 OR 0.16%//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.02%///Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) closed DOWN TO 7,2609 CHINESE YUAN OFFSHORE CLOSED DOWN TO 7.2843/ Oil UP TO 81.71 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP AT 85.56 /Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN
ONSHORE YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING WEAKER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN WEAKER
1.YOUR EARLY CURRENCY VALUES/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGSTHURSDAY MORNING.7:30 AM
ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED DOWN TO 7.2609
OFFSHORE YUAN: UP TO 7.2863
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 12.61 PTS OR 0.42 %
HANG SENG CLOSED DOWN 95.09 PTS OR 0.52%
2. Nikkei closed UP 62.26 PTS OR 0.16 %
3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL GREEN
USA dollar INDEX UP TO 105.13 EURO FALLS TO 1.0719 DOWN 28 BASIS PTS
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +0.948 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 158.42 JAPANESE YEN NOW FALLING AS WELL AS LONG TERM 10 YR. YIELDS RISING //EVENTUALLY THIS WILL BREAK THE JAPANESE CENTRAL BANK
3c Nikkei now ABOVE 17,000
3d USA/Yen rate now well ABOVE the important 120 barrier this morning
3e Gold UP /JAPANESE Yen DOWN CHINESE 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 YIELD UP TO +2.4250/Italian 10 Yr bond yield UP to 3.944 SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD UP TO 3.342%
3i Greek 10 year bond yield UP TO 3.622
3j Gold at $2339.35//Silver at: 30.33 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $34.40//AFTER 28.40
3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble UP 3 AND 16/ 100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 85.36
3m oil into the 81 dollar handle for WTI and 85 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 158.42/ 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 0.948% 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 0.8909 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF: 0.9547 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: 4.251 UP 10 BASIS PTS…
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.384 UP 1 BASIS PTS/
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.733 UP 3 BASIS PTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 32.82…
10 YR UK BOND YIELD: 4.080 DOWN 5 PTS
2a New York OPENING REPORT
US Stocks At All-Time High, Nasdaq Futures Gains For 8th Day After SNB Unexpectedly Cuts Rate
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 08:09 AM
After hitting the beach during yesterday’s blistering Juneteenth holiday, the “buy everything” algos are back and bigger than ever, pushing futures to a fresh all time high with tech leading – as always – and small-caps lagging after the Swiss National Bank unexpectedly cut rates for a second time this year, setting the stage for much more monetary easing. As of 8:00am, S&P 500 futures are up 0.4%, while the ongoing AI frenzy pushed Nasdaq 100 futures 0.6% higher, and are now up for an 8th straight day, the longest stretch since November.
Bond yields are up 2-3bps even as they are on the brink of erasing this year’s loss after a rollercoaster first half; the US dollar is higher vs. most majors while the yuan slumped to a 2024 low as China’s plans for potentially the biggest shift in years in how it conducts monetary policy are starting to surface. Commodities are mixed with oil and precious metals/Ags leading while base metals are weaker amid continued China weakness. Today’s macro data focus will be on jobless claims, housing data, and Fedspeak.
In premarket trading, it was all the usual suspects that were surging with NVDA surging +3%, or up some $100 billion , followed by MU +2.3%, SMCI +2.8%, MRVL +1%; And yes, all Mag7 names are higher pre-mkt. Here are this morning’s notable movers:
Accenture (ACN) rises 6% after posting 3Q results and providing forecasts.
Dell (DELL) gains 3% and Super Micro Computer (SMCI) climbs 4% after Elon Musk said in post on X that the companies will provide server racks for the supercomputer that the billionaire’s artificial intelligence startup xAI is building.
Harrow (HROW) rises 13% after providing a relaunch update for corticosteroid Triesence
Nvidia (NVDA) climbs 3% as the world’s most-valuable company extends its lead over fellow mega-cap tech firms Microsoft and Apple.
Ocular Therapeutix (OCUL) gains 7% after TD Cowen upgraded the stock to buy, saying enrollment for the firm’s eye disease trial is no longer an overhang.
Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) declines 11% after the SEC declared effective a regulatory filing that could dilute shareholders on Tuesday.
Winnebago Industries (WGO) slips 4.8% after posting quarterly profit that that missed the average analyst estimate.
Traders will now look out for US weekly jobless claims data which is expected to show a small decrease from the previous print. Several Federal Reserve officials, including the Minneapolis Fed’s Neel Kashkari and the Richmond Fed’s Thomas Barkin, are also due to speak and could offer clues on when the US could kick off rate cuts.
“Rate cuts are very much in play for the remainder of this year and that should support risk assets,” said Guy Miller, chief market strategist at Zurich Insurance Company Ltd. “It’s encouraged investors that actually the rates environment is going to be supportive.”
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 benchmark climbed 0.6% led by technology, chemical and construction shares, after the Swiss National Bank trimmed interest rates for the second time this year, encouraging hopes for policy easing across the developed world. The Bank of England held interest rares steady as expected but hinted more of its policymakers are close to backing cuts. Traders now price more than a 50% chance of a BOE rate reduction in August, knocking the pound lower and sending 10-year gilt yields down by three basis points. Here are the most notable European movers:
Evotec shares gain as much as 16%, the most intraday since January 2021, after Bloomberg News reported multiple buyout firms have been studying the German drug developer as a potential target.
Huhtamaki shares rise as much as 3.8% after being initiated with a buy recommendation at Citi, which says that unlike consensus it sees the consumer packaging product firm’s growth targets as achievable.
Lonza shares climb as much as 1.9% after Berenberg increased its price target on the Swiss maker of drug ingredients, saying the company’s long-term growth and margin prospects are “materially better than for the wider sector.”
Energean shares rise as much as 7.7% after the company agreed to sell its portfolio in Egypt, Italy and Croatia to Carlyle International Energy Partners for an enterprise value of up to $945 million, according to a statement. Analysts at Jefferies came to a mixed conclusion on the deal.
BIC slumps as much as 19%, the most on record, after the French maker of pens and lighters downgraded its sales guidance for the full-year based on a tougher-than-expected US market.
YouGov shares slump as much as 41%, the biggest drop since 2009, after it warned it has seen lower bookings than anticipated since the start of the second half of its financial year, resulting in its full-year guidance coming in below expectations.
Tate & Lyle shares fall 6.9% after the ingredients company struck a deal to buy pectin and specialty gum company CP Kelco for $1.8 billion.
Danone shares drop as much as 4.4% after the food-products company unveiled the next stage of its Renew strategy ahead of a capital markets day event.
Verbio shares fall as much as 9.3% as Hauck Aufhaeuser lowers its price target, making it no longer a Street high. Broker says it sees greenhouse gas quotas remaining under pressure and this weighing on the German biofuel firm’s FY24/25 results.
SSP shares fall as much as 5.5% after being downgraded to hold at Berenberg, based on potential headwinds to the food services company’s UK and Ireland rail business.
Meanwhile, France, the source of global market turmoil last week, raised €10.5 billion ($11.3 billion) in its first bond sale since President Emmanuel Macron called a snap election. Seen as a test of investor sentiment, the auction saw solid demand, supporting French bond prices, while the extra yield investors demand to hold French debt eased further off seven-year highs hit recently.
Earlier in the session, Asian stocks traded lower amid lackluster trading, dragged by Chinese shares. The regional moves contrasted with that of European peers, which gained after the Swiss National Bank delivered an interest rate cut. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped as much as 0.4% after gaining 1.7% over the previous two sessions. The biggest drags on the gauge included Tencent, Toyota and Alibaba. Hong Kong benchmarks pared Wednesday’s sharp gains as traders eye more capital market reform policies. Mainland China shares fell for a second session. Shares in Japan declined amid lingering political risks in Europe, while the Nikkei advanced.
In FX, the Swiss franc fell 0.7% against the dollar and is at the bottom of G-10 FX after the Swiss National Bank cut interest rates for the second straight meeting and lowered its inflation projections. The Norwegian krone is the best performer, rising 0.2% after the Norges Bank stood pat on rates and said it will probably need to keep them at current levels for the rest of the year. The pound is down 0.2% ahead of the Bank of England decision. Nvidia shares rise 3.4% in premarket. Treasuries fall, with US 10-year yields rising 3bps to 4.25%. Bunds also dip and underperform their French counterparts, narrowing the 10-year OAT-bund spread by ~2bps. Oil prices are steady, with WTI trading near $81.40 a barrel. Spot gold rises ~$6 to around $2,334/oz. Silver rises 1.4%.
In rates, treasuries reopened after Wednesday’s Juneteenth holiday with yields cheaper by around 2bp across the curve in early US session. Early weakness was pared slightly as gilts advanced after Bank of England kept rates on hold but hinted it may soon back cuts. European bonds were pressured lower from the London open, weighing on Treasuries despite healthy demand for a French bond sale. Treasury 10-year yields trade around 4.24%, cheaper by ~2bp vs Tuesday’s close, with bunds lagging slightly while gilts outperform by around 4bp in the sector. Late Tuesday the US 2s10s spread flattened sharply, with the downside move falling just short of 50bp inversion, a level not seen since December. Also Thursday, a $21b 5-year TIPS reopening auction takes place at 1pm New York time.
In crypto, bitcoin is modestly firmer and holds above $66k, with Ethereum also gaining and now above USD 3.5k. Italy is looking at adopt measures to enhance surveillance over risks surrounding crypto assets, according to Reuters sources; including large fines for those who manipulate the market.
Looking to the day ahead now, and we’ll get the Bank of England’s latest policy decision, along with remarks from the Fed’s Kashkari, Barkin and Daly. The ECB will also be publishing their Economic Bulletin. Elsewhere, US data releases include Q1 current account balance, May housing starts/building permits, June Philadelphia Fed business outlook and initial jobless claims (8:30am). Fed officials scheduled to speak include Kashkari (8:45am), Barkin (4pm) and Daly (10:15pm). Meanwhile in Europe, there Germany’s PPI for May, and the European Commission’s preliminary consumer confidence indicator for the Euro Area in June.
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 futures up 0.3% to 5,509.00
STOXX Europe 600 up 0.3% to 515.62
MXAP down 0.2% to 180.70
MXAPJ little changed at 572.28
Nikkei up 0.2% to 38,633.02
Topix down 0.1% to 2,725.54
Hang Seng Index down 0.5% to 18,335.32
Shanghai Composite down 0.4% to 3,005.44
Sensex up 0.1% to 77,421.97
Australia S&P/ASX 200 little changed at 7,769.44
Kospi up 0.4% to 2,807.63
Euro down 0.3% to $1.07153
Brent Futures up 0.2% to $85.25/bbl
Gold spot up 0.2% to $2,333.50
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.43%
US Dollar Index up 0.24% to 105.50
Top Overnight News
China sitting on the largest copper glut in years as manufacturers dial back consumption amid a price spike and soft consumer demand. FT
China’s PBOC head said the central bank is studying how to implement bond trading, but rejected comparisons to quantitative easing. BBG
Chinese automakers call for Beijing to impose a 25% tax on large European cars, the latest sign of escalating tensions between Beijing and Brussels. BBG
AAPL is searching for a local Chinese AI partner (it’s held talks w/Baidu, Alibaba, and Baichuan AI) to help launch Apple Intelligence in the country. WSJ
SNB surprises markets with a 25bp rate cut at its Thurs meeting (most assumed rates would stay unchanged), w/the reduction spurred by a further easing of inflation pressures. RTRS
France saw healthy demand as it tested the market with a €10.5 billion debt auction — the first since Emmanuel Macron’s election call rattled investors. Bids across all four sales were 2.41 times the total amount sold. BBG
Russia’s Vladimir Putin arrived in Vietnam from North Korea, where he and Kim Jong Un revived a Cold-War era agreement to provide immediate military assistance if one of them is attacked. BBG
Nasdaq is increasing scrutiny of small IPOs from China and Hong Kong to avoid wild swings, people familiar said. BBG
Bobby Jain signaled that efforts to raise cash for his new hedge fund faced competition from private credit firms. BBG
Central Banks
SNB cut the Policy Rate by 25bps to 1.25% (vs split expectations between a 25bps cut and a hold); reiterates SNB is willing to be active in the FX market as necessary. SNB Chairman Jordan says “underlying inflation pressure has decreased; we are also willing to be active in the foreign exchange market as necessary. We do not give any forward guidance regarding interest rates; will adjust policy rate to ensure inflation rate stays in range of price stability; FX interventions can be in both directions”.
Norges Bank maintains Key Policy Rate at 4.50% as expected; “the policy rate will likely be kept at that level for some time ahead”; will be a need to maintain a tight monetary policy stance for somewhat longer than previously projected. Norges Bank Governor says neutral long-term interest rate now estimated at 2-3%, slightly higher than before.
Brazil Central Bank maintained the Selic Rate at 10.50%, as expected, with the decision unanimous, while it stated it decided to interrupt the easing cycle due to the uncertain global scenario, resilient activity in Brazil, higher inflation projections, and unanchored inflation expectations. Furthermore, it said monetary policy should continue being contractionary until the consolidation of both the disinflation process and the anchoring of expectations around the targets, as well as noted that the committee will remain vigilant and future changes in the interest rate will be determined by the firm commitment to reaching the inflation target.
BoC Minutes noted that the Governing Council considered the merits of waiting until the July 24th meeting to cut rates prior to the June 5th rate announcement and while members recognised the risk that progress on inflation could stall, there was consensus indicators showed enough progress to warrant a cut. Furthermore, members agreed that any future monetary policy easing would likely be gradual and the timing of cuts would depend on the data and implications for the future path of inflation.
Chinese Loan Prime Rate 1Y (Jun) 3.45% vs. Exp. 3.45% (Prev. 3.45%); 5Y (Jun) 3.95% vs. Exp. 3.95% (Prev. 3.95%)
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks were subdued in rangebound trade amid a lack of catalysts and following the US holiday lull. ASX 200 was lacklustre as underperformance in defensives outweighed the gains in energy and real estate. Nikkei 225 retreated with weakness in the heavy industries clouding over exporter optimism. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were lower with the former choppy amid resistance around 18,500, while the mainland was uninspired after China’s Loan Prime Rates were unsurprisingly kept unchanged and the PBoC also reverted to a tepid liquidity operation.
Top Asian News
PBoC will make clear it will start to use a short-term interest rate as its main policy rate after reducing the importance of the MLF rate as a policy benchmark, according to PBoC-backed Financial News citing unnamed industry people.
Toyota (7203 JT) is to reportedly halt six production lines at five plants in Japan from Thursday evening amid parts shortages; will decide on Friday whether to resume production.
Japanese Top Currency Diplomat Kanda says will thoroughly respond to excessive FX moves, via JiJi; no limit for FX intervention resources. FX market determined by various factors including rate gap. Needs to pay close attention to impact on FX market from central banks’ policy decision. Says FX intervention announced in end of May was quiet effective in responding to excessive FX moves caused by speculators.
European bourses, Stoxx 600 (+0.3%) are entirely in the green, having initially opened on a tentative footing; stocks caught a bid after the SNB cut rates, though are currently now off worst levels. European sectors hold a strong positive bias, though with the breadth of the market fairly narrow. Tech takes the top spot, lifted by gains in the Chip names, whilst Food Bev & Tobacco underperforms. US Equity Futures (ES +0.3%, NQ +0.6%, RTY +0.1%) are entirely in the green, with clear outperformance in the NQ, which has been lifted by Nvidia (+3.4% pre-market).
Top European News
Savanta poll for Telegraph predicts UK PM Sunak to lose his seat at the July 4th election.
French PM Attal says Macron’s Centrist Camp pledges to reduce electricity bills by 15% next winter; pledges to link pensions to inflation.
France’s National Rally President Bardella says we will bring out an amended 2024 budget this summer.
Germany’s IFO raises 2024 GDP growth forecast to +0.4% (prev. +0.2%)
ECB’s Knot says recent uptick in May inflation figures remind us disinflation is bumpy; On core inflation, not all signs are green yet; may still be transmission in the pipeline; recent shift in market shows road to inflation target is bumpy. There is strong case for using projection meetings to recalibrate policy stance. Can look through small deviations from target as long as ECB responds especially forcefully to larger deviations. Optimal policy path is broadly in line with just under three cuts in 2024, as prices into ECB projections.
ECB’s Centeno says “let’s leave all options to July, and naturally September as well”, adds we cannot risk undershooting when asked on where rates could go.
FX
DXY is firmer vs. all major peers with the index propped up by losses in CHF, JPY and EUR. Fresh fundamentals for the US have been lacking with focus on today’s weekly jobs figures after last week’s unexpected uptick.
After holding steady in recent sessions, EUR has lost some ground to the broadly firmer USD and moving ever closer to the 1.07 mark. If breached, this could open up a test of the WTD low at 1.0686 and the monthly low at 1.0667.
Cable is currently pivoting around the 1.27 level ahead of the BoE rate decision. A hawkish outcome could see the pair attempt to print a new weekly high above 1.2739, whilst a dovish release could see the pair try and forge a new low for the month below 1.2656.
JPY is softer vs. the USD in a continuation of the trend seen since June 13th. Officials continue to jawbone the currency but with little in the way of success. USD/JPY breached its 14th June high at 148.25, now as high as 158.44 with not much in the way of resistance until 159.
Antipodeans are both broadly steady vs. the USD. AUD/USD has paused its recent run of gains after printing a WTD peak at 0.6679. NZD was unable to capitalise on better-than-expected GDP metrics and is now marginally softer vs. the USD.
CHF is the laggard across the majors after the SNB cut rates in what was expected to be a finely poised decision. The SNB also reiterated its willingness to intervene in FX markets as necessary; EUR/CHF spiked higher from 0.9486 to 0.9548.
Norges Bank maintained its key policy rate at 4.50% as expected, noting that “the policy rate will likely be kept at that level for some time ahead”. NOK saw marked immediate appreciation on the hawkish adjustment to forward guidance, with EUR/NOK falling from 11.3338 to 11.2928.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1192 vs exp. 7.2653 (prev. 7.1159).
Fixed Income
USTs are softer but comfortably within yesterday’s ranges where newsflow was light on account of the US holiday, as attention turns to US IJC & Philly Fed data, as well as a few Fed speakers. Holding at the low-end of a 110-16 to 110-26+ range.
Bunds saw a modest, but shortlived, spike higher following the SNB’s 25bps cut lifting Bunds to their 132.59 session peak (vs current 132.30), and were unreactive to softer-than-expected PPI figures.
Gilts are softer but faring marginally better than peers into the upcoming BoE policy announcement. Currently in a narrow 25 tick band which has seen Wednesday’s 98.41 base breached to a current 98.32 base.
OATs fell from 123.98 to 123.78 following the French auction, given that the smaller than usual covers for the line; however, the sale was at the top end of the amount on offer, and as such, OATs pared much of the pressure.
France sells EUR 10.5bln vs exp. EUR 8-10.5bln 2.75% 2027, 5.50% 2029, 2.75% 2030, 0.00% 2032 OAT.
Commodities
Crude is modestly firmer amid a lack of macro impulses and following yesterday’s US Juneteenth market holiday. Brent Aug holds above USD 85/bbl.
Firm trade across precious metals (ex-palladium) despite the stronger Dollar and with major macro updates light whilst risk events ahead include the BoE and US IJC. Spot gold reached a high of USD 2,345.75/oz after topping a set of resistance levels including yesterday’s high (2,335/oz)
Mixed trade across base metals with copper moving sideways despite the broader Dollar strength but amid the tentative market tone as traders await the return of US players.
Norway’s Prelim May Oil Production 1.689mln BPD (prev. 1.854mln M/M); Gas Production 10bln cu metres (prev. 10.4bln M/M)
Geopolitics: Middle East
“Israeli officials were in Qatar this week in attempt to nail down hostage deal – report”, according to Times of Israel.
“Israeli Foreign Minister: We must stop Iran now before it is too late”, according to Sky News Arabia.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah chief said nowhere in Israel will be safe from the group’s attacks in case of war including targets in the Mediterranean and if war is ‘imposed’ on Lebanon, the group will fight with ‘no rules and no ceilings’, while Cyprus allowing Israel use of its airports means that it has become a part of the war and that Hezbollah will deal with it as such. In relevant news, Hezbollah announced it was targeting the positions of Israeli soldiers in Jal Al-Alam, Al-Baghdadi and Al-Raheb, according to Sky News Arabia.
Nine Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike targeting a group of citizens and merchants waiting for aid in Gaza, according to medical sources cited by Reuters.
Israeli media said the US told Israel that Qatar is close to imposing sanctions on Hamas to resume negotiations, according to Sky News Arabia.
A meeting between US envoy Hochstein and Israeli PM Netanyahu was said to be bad and Hochstein said accusations about withholding weapons are false, according to Axios citing informed sources. Furthermore, US officials said the new dispute between Netanyahu and the Biden administration hinders US-Israeli diplomatic efforts to calm tensions on the border between Lebanon and Israel, while it was reported by Sky News Arabia that President Biden wants to meet with Israeli PM Netanyahu as soon as possible.
US Central Command said it conducted an air strike in Syria that killed a senior Islamic State official on June 16th.
Geopolitics: Other
North Korean leader Kim said Russian President Putin’s visit was a meaningful step in developing bilateral ties and protecting world peace and stability, while it was noted that each country is to provide all available military and other assistance if the other faces armed aggression under the North Korea-Russia pact, according to KCNA.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi expressed grave concern that Russian President Putin did not rule out military technology cooperation at the summit with North Korean leader Kim, while he added Putin’s comment that the UN Security Council should review North Korean sanctions is utterly unacceptable.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg warned there will be consequences for China if it continues to support Russia’s war economy, according to FT.
US Secretary of State Blinken discussed with his Philippine counterpart China’s actions in the South China Sea which Manila and Washington said was escalatory, according to Reuters.
Ukrainian drone attacks by SBU Security Agency caused fires at oil depots in Russian regions of Tambov and Adygeya, according to Kyiv intelligence source cited by Reuters
US Event Calendar
08:30: June Initial Jobless Claims, est. 235,000, prior 242,000
June Continuing Claims, est. 1.81m, prior 1.82m
08:30: May Housing Starts, est. 1.37m, prior 1.36m
May Building Permits, est. 1.45m, prior 1.44m
May Housing Starts MoM, est. 0.7%, prior 5.7%
May Building Permits MoM, est. 0.7%, prior -3.0%
08:30: June Philadelphia Fed Business Outl, est. 5.0, prior 4.5
08:30: 1Q Current Account Balance, est. -$206.8b, prior -$194.8b
Central Bank speakers
08:45: Fed’s Kashkari Participates in Fireside Chat
16:00: Fed’s Barkin Speaks on Economic Outlook
22:15: Fed’s Daly Participates in Panel Discussion on AI
DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
With Hollywood and the rest of the US on holiday yesterday, attention was back on Europe again as the European Commission criticised seven member states for running deficits that were too high, and they outlined the first steps that could open an Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP). Significantly, that group included both France and Italy, who are running deficits above the 3% limit set out in the EU treaties. On one level, this might seem insignificant for markets given we already knew about the deficit issue and it was priced in. But it’s particularly important right now, because we’ve got the French parliamentary elections on June 30 and July 7, where both Marine Le Pen’s National Rally and the left-wing alliance have indicated that they’d take a more assertive stance against the EU, raising the risk of more clashes over the months ahead. Indeed, the Franco-German 10yr spread widened by another +1.9bps yesterday at 78.9bps, which is its highest closing level since November 2012. There is €10.5bn of French 3 to 8yr bonds to be auctioned this morning – the first since the elections were called 11 days ago. So this will be a good test of demand.
Back to the potential EDP, the Commission unveiled a report looking into several member states, which is the first step in opening such an action. The next steps won’t happen until July, where the Economic and Financial Committee has to provide an opinion on the report, and any recommendations would come in November, so there’s still some way to go in this process. But the report pointed out that in France and Italy, deficits were projected to remain above the limit, with France’ deficit expected to be at 5.3% in 2024 and 5.0% in 2025. Italy’s numbers were a bit lower, at 4.4% in 2024 and 4.7% in 2025, but still above the 3% limit. Other countries were also mentioned, but France and Italy are two of the three biggest Euro Area economies alongside Germany, so what happens there is particularly important, and the treaties even permit the EU to impose fines if the deficits aren’t corrected.
European markets struggled against this backdrop, particularly in France. This meant the CAC 40 fell -0.77% and underperformed other indices, including the STOXX 600 (-0.17%), the DAX (-0.35%) and the FTSE MIB (-0.29%). Sovereign bonds also lost ground across the board, with yields on 10yr bunds (+0.9bps), OATs (+2.7bps) and BTPs (+5.0bps) all moving higher.
Over in the UK, there was another important milestone yesterday, as CPI inflation fell exactly in line with the Bank of England’s target, reaching +2.0% in May as expected. However, some of the details of the report were less favourable, as core CPI was higher at +3.5%, while services inflation surprised on the upside at +5.7% (vs. +5.5% expected), and that’s one of the stickier categories. As a result, investors dialled back the chance that the Bank of England would cut rates by the August meeting, with the chance falling from 52% to 34% by the close.
The Bank of England will remain in focus today, as they’re announcing their latest policy decision at 12pm London time. In terms of what to expect, it’s widely anticipated they’ll leave rates unchanged at 5.25%. In his preview (link here), DB’s UK economist thinks there’ll be a 7-2 vote split, with 2 in favour of a cut. He also has a chartbook out yesterday (link here) after the UK inflation print, where he points out that the report will raise the bar for a summer rate cut.
Staying on the UK, there are now just two weeks left until the general election on July 4, and yesterday saw another MRP poll from YouGov released. That showed Labour winning a 200-seat majority, with 425 seats in the House of Commons, beating their previous record in the 1997 landslide won by Tony Blair. The poll also showed the Conservatives falling to 108 seats, down from 365 at the last election. The Lib Dems significantly strengthened their presence as well, up to 67 seats, which would be the most seats for them or their predecessor Liberal Party since 1923. In addition, the poll saw Nigel Farage winning a seat in Parliament for the first time, with his Reform UK party on 5 seats.
Over in the US, markets were closed for the Juneteenth holiday, but futures were pointing to a more resilient performance relative to Europe, staying relatively flat all day. There wasn’t much data either, although the NAHB’s housing market index for June fell back to a 6-month low of 43 (vs. 46 expected). This morning S&P and Nasdaq futures are +0.12% and +0.32% higher respectively with today being the first day with Nvidia opening as the largest company in the S&P 500 and with it the world.
Asian equity markets are mostly drifting lower this morning with the Nikkei (-0.64%) leading losses followed by the CSI (-0.49%), the Hang Seng (-0.40%) and the Shanghai Composite (-0.28%). The PBOC kept its one-year loan prime rate (LPR) unchanged at 3.45% while the 5-yr LPR – a reference rate for mortgages remained intact at 3.95%. China also set the yuan’s daily reference rate at 7.1192 per dollar, its weakest since November. US treasuries have resumed trading following yesterday’s holiday with yields on 10yr USTs moving +2.5bps higher to trade at 4.25% as we go to print.
Early morning data showed that New Zealand’s economy exited a technical recession, growing +0.2% q/q in Q1 (v/s +0.1% expected) as against a -0.1% contraction in the previous quarter. GDP rose +0.3% from the year-earlier quarter, beating the +0.2% estimate. Following the data release, the New Zealand dollar strengthened (+0.24%) against the dollar before retracing to trade little changed at $0.6133.
To the day ahead now, and we’ll get the Bank of England’s latest policy decision, along with remarks from the Fed’s Kashkari, Barkin and Daly. The ECB will also be publishing their Economic Bulletin. Elsewhere, US data releases include the weekly initial jobless claims, housing starts and building permits for May, the Philadelphia Fed’s business outlook for June, and the Q1 current account balance. Meanwhile in Europe, there Germany’s PPI for May, and the European Commission’s preliminary consumer confidence indicator for the Euro Area in June.
2B EUROPE OPENING/TRADING
Rangebound start to a packed day of Central Bank action – Newsquawk Europe Market Open
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 01:27 AM
APAC stocks were subdued in rangebound trade amid a lack of catalysts and following the US holiday lull.
European equity futures indicate a firmer open with Euro Stoxx 50 future up 0.3% after the cash market closed higher by 0.7% on Wednesday.
DXY is steady on a 105 handle with FX markets broadly contained, Cable holds above 1.27 ahead of the BoE announcement.
Bunds are lower, whilst crude markets are contained after WTI hit resistance around USD 81/bbl.
Looking ahead, highlights include US IJC & Philly Fed Index, SNB, Norges & BoE Policy Announcements, Comments from SNB’s Jordan, Norges Bank Governor Bache, Fed’s Barkin & Kashkari, Supply from Spain, France & US
2. Listen to this report in the market open podcast (available on Apple and Spotify)
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US TRADE
EQUITIES
US stock markets were closed for Juneteenth
APAC TRADE
EQUITIES
APAC stocks were subdued in rangebound trade amid a lack of catalysts and following the US holiday lull.
ASX 200 was lacklustre as underperformance in defensives outweighed the gains in energy and real estate.
Nikkei 225 retreated with weakness in the heavy industries clouding over exporter optimism.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were lower with the former choppy amid resistance around 18,500, while the mainland was uninspired after China’s Loan Prime Rates were unsurprisingly kept unchanged and the PBoC also reverted to a tepid liquidity operation.
US equity futures (ES +0.3%, NQ +0.6%) were mostly firmer following the recent US holiday closure and ahead of Friday’s witching hour.
European equity futures indicate a firmer open with Euro Stoxx 50 future up 0.3% after the cash market closed higher by 0.7% on Wednesday.
FX
DXY kept to within tight parameters above the 105.00 level following the Juneteenth holiday closure, while participants look ahead to several data releases and a couple of Fed speakers scheduled later.
EUR/USD languished beneath 1.0750 amid a lack of pertinent catalysts for the single currency.
GBP/USD conformed to the rangebound picture across the FX space as the BoE rate decision looms.
USD/JPY eked marginal gains after its return to the 158.00 handle but with upside capped amid a lack of drivers.
Antipodeans were rangebound with only brief support in NZD/USD following stronger-than-expected GDP.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1192 vs exp. 7.2653 (prev. 7.1159).
Brazil Central Bank maintained the Selic Rate at 10.50%, as expected, with the decision unanimous, while it stated it decided to interrupt the easing cycle due to the uncertain global scenario, resilient activity in Brazil, higher inflation projections, and unanchored inflation expectations. Furthermore, it said monetary policy should continue being contractionary until the consolidation of both the disinflation process and the anchoring of expectations around the targets, as well as noted that the committee will remain vigilant and future changes in the interest rate will be determined by the firm commitment to reaching the inflation target.
BoC Minutes noted that the Governing Council considered the merits of waiting until the July 24th meeting to cut rates prior to the June 5th rate announcement and while members recognised the risk that progress on inflation could stall, there was consensus indicators showed enough progress to warrant a cut. Furthermore, members agreed that any future monetary policy easing would likely be gradual and the timing of cuts would depend on the data and implications for the future path of inflation.
FIXED INCOME
10-year UST futures were lacklustre in post-holiday trade with US supply ahead including a 5-year TIPS auction.
Bund futures trickled lower with a lack of demand after the recent whipsawing and German 30-year supply.
10-year JGB futures tracked the losses in global counterparts amid light catalysts and a quiet calendar, while the latest 5-year JGB auction results were mixed and showed a slightly higher b/c but lower accepted prices than the previous month.
COMMODITIES
Crude futures traded rangebound following Wednesday’s holiday-quietened performance and after WTI hit resistance around USD 81/bbl, while the latest delayed DoE inventories are scheduled for release later.
Spot gold slightly picked up as Shanghai commodities trade got underway and as silver breached USD 30/oz.
Copper futures were mildly higher alongside the positive mood in the metals complex but with gains capped by the cautious risk tone.
CRYPTO
Bitcoin eked marginal gains after returning to above the USD 65,000 level.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
Chinese Loan Prime Rate 1Y (Jun) 3.45% vs. Exp. 3.45% (Prev. 3.45%)
Chinese Loan Prime Rate 5Y (Jun) 3.95% vs. Exp. 3.95% (Prev. 3.95%)
PBoC will make clear it will start to use a short-term interest rate as its main policy rate after reducing the importance of the MLF rate as a policy benchmark, according to PBoC-backed Financial News citing unnamed industry people.
DATA RECAP
New Zealand GDP QQ (Q1) 0.2% vs. Exp. 0.1% (Prev. -0.1%)
New Zealand GDP YY (Q1) 0.3% vs. Exp. 0.2% (Prev. -0.3%, Rev. -0.2%)
GEOPOLITICAL
MIDDLE EAST
Lebanon’s Hezbollah chief said nowhere in Israel will be safe from the group’s attacks in case of war including targets in the Mediterranean and if war is ‘imposed’ on Lebanon, the group will fight with ‘no rules and no ceilings’, while Cyprus allowing Israel use of its airports means that it has become a part of the war and that Hezbollah will deal with it as such. In relevant news, Hezbollah announced it was targeting the positions of Israeli soldiers in Jal Al-Alam, Al-Baghdadi and Al-Raheb, according to Sky News Arabia.
Nine Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike targeting a group of citizens and merchants waiting for aid in Gaza, according to medical sources cited by Reuters.
Israeli media said the US told Israel that Qatar is close to imposing sanctions on Hamas to resume negotiations, according to Sky News Arabia.
A meeting between US envoy Hochstein and Israeli PM Netanyahu was said to be bad and Hochstein said accusations about withholding weapons are false, according to Axios citing informed sources. Furthermore, US officials said the new dispute between Netanyahu and the Biden administration hinders US-Israeli diplomatic efforts to calm tensions on the border between Lebanon and Israel, while it was reported by Sky News Arabia that President Biden wants to meet with Israeli PM Netanyahu as soon as possible.
US Central Command said it conducted an air strike in Syria that killed a senior Islamic State official on June 16th.
OTHER
North Korean leader Kim said Russian President Putin’s visit was a meaningful step in developing bilateral ties and protecting world peace and stability, while it was noted that each country is to provide all available military and other assistance if the other faces armed aggression under the North Korea-Russia pact, according to KCNA.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi expressed grave concern that Russian President Putin did not rule out military technology cooperation at the summit with North Korean leader Kim, while he added Putin’s comment that the UN Security Council should review North Korean sanctions is utterly unacceptable.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg warned there will be consequences for China if it continues to support Russia’s war economy, according to FT.
US Secretary of State Blinken discussed with his Philippine counterpart China’s actions in the South China Sea which Manila and Washington said was escalatory, according to Reuters.
EU/UK
NOTABLE HEADLINES
Savanta poll for Telegraph predicts UK PM Sunak to lose his seat at the July 4th election.
NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
END
2e) JAPAN
As my good friend G. tells us, the music just stopped in Japan. This huge bank has mega amounts of sovereign bonds as they will now sell these to offset their monstrous losses on their books
Norinchukin Bank to Sell $63 Billion of Sovereign Bonds
The Music Just Stopped: Japan Banking Giant Norinchukin To Liquidate $63 Billion In Treasuries & European Bonds To Plug Massive Unrealized Losses
Norinchukin Bank plans to sell roughly 10 trillion yen ($63 billion) in US and European sovereign bonds to stem losses from wrong-way bets on interest rates, according to a spokesperson for the Japanese agriculture bank.
The bond sales, amounting to almost a sixth of the bank’s global portfolio, will take place by the end of March, the bank said. The lender now expects to report a net loss of 1.5 trillion yen for the current fiscal year, triple the previous estimate of 500 billion yen, the spokesperson said, confirming an earlier Nikkei report. The final loss amount may change, depending on how much the bank can sell and market conditions, the spokesperson said.
Norinchukin Bank Chief Executive Officer Kazuto OkuPhotographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
“We will reduce [sovereign] interest rate risk and diversify into assets that take on corporate and individual credit risk,” Chief Executive Officer Kazuto Oku told Nikkei.
The move to unload global sovereign bonds comes less than a month after the bank announced a plan to overhaul its investment portfolio after losses stemming from bets that interest rates in Europe and the US wouldn’t remain elevated for so long.
Unlike Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and other big listed banks in Japan, Norinchukin relies primarily on its securities portfolio of almost 60 trillion yen to generate profit. For years, that focus has pushed Norinchukin to invest overseas to escape Japan’s environment of negative interest rates. In addition to bonds, the bank is a major investor in collateralized-loan obligations, with 7.4 trillion yen worth of the securities.
“It seems a failure of risk oversight rather than a systemic story of Japanese holders liquidating,” said Ed Al-Hussainy, a rates strategist at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. “This is in sharp contrast to what others are doing in Japan. We have seen very aggressive buyers of US investment-grade debt and, after selling Treasuries in 2022, Japanese buyers have returned.”
Unrealized Losses
Norinchukin had unrealized losses of 2.19 trillion yen on its bond portfolio as of March, according to an investor presentation last month. The bond holdings of 31.3 trillion yen accounted for about 56% of its overall portfolio. Among the bonds and credit held by the bank, 36% had maturities of less than a year, while 31% were due within five to 10 years. More than half the overall investment portfolio was in US dollars.
To deal with the losses, the bank has said it’s turning to its members to raise 1.2 trillion yen of capital.
In 2009, the bank was forced to raise 1.9 trillion yen from cooperatives and other members after racking up Asia’s biggest realized and unrealized losses on investments in asset-backed securities. The fresh request has prompted some of them to question the bank’s investment strategy.
Norinchukin has long been known as one of the largest buyers of bonds in the $1.3 trillion CLO market. The bank has been purchasing the AAA portions of CLOs over the past year, after it stepped away briefly following the UK pension crisis.
The company is far from alone in facing paper losses on bond holdings. US banks had $516.5 billion of unrealized losses in their securities portfolio at the end of March, according to regulators. Bank of America Corp., the second-biggest US bank, had more than $100 billion of such losses, and its low-yielding bond portfolio has limited its profit gains as rates rose.
— With assistance from Michael Mackenzie and Carmen Arroyo
3 CHINA
end
4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDINAVIAN AFFAIRS
SWITZERLAND
SNB Unexpectedly Cuts Rates Again As Swiss Inflation Continues To Ease
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 09:47 AM
The Swiss National Bank unexpectedly cut interest rates on Thursday for the second time this year, pointing to easing price pressures that allowed it to maintain its position as the front-runner in the global policy easing cycle now underway.
The Swiss franc, which had soared in the past three weeks after the shocking result from the European parliament elections hammered the Euro, weakened against other currencies and stocks gained after the central bank cut its policy rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%, as expected by two-thirds of analysts polled by Bloomberg, following a quarter-point reduction in March.
The SNB’s decision had been “finely balanced”, similar to the BOE’s decision to not cut rates, given a recent rebound in economic growth and a break in the trend of gently falling inflation in Switzerland.
“The underlying inflationary pressure has decreased again compared to the previous quarter,” SNB Chairman Thomas Jordan said. “With today’s lowering of the SNB policy rate, we are able to maintain appropriate monetary conditions.”
Jordan pointed to the SNB’s inflation forecasts, which were tweaked downwards and enabled the reduction in interest rates. While everyone knows how accurate central bank predictions are, even at the furthest end of its forecasts – covering the first quarter of 2027 – the SNB now expects inflation at 1.0%, well within its 0-2% target range.
With the updated language in the Monetary Policy Assessment, which states that “with today’s lowering of the SNB policy rate, the SNB is able to maintain appropriate monetary conditions” and an estimate of the neutral rate at around 1.25%, Goldman maintains its view that today’s cut is likely to be the end of the SNB’s easing cycle.
UBS, however, disagrees and points out that the SNB said that without this rate cut, the inflation forecasts would have been lower: “That suggests by the time of the next meeting, inflation forecasts will be lower without another cut; there was no change in the language to suggest a pause is coming up. Before this decision, UBS Economics had expected a cut in June and one more in September, to lower the base rate to 1%.“
The recent rise of the Swiss franc, driven by rising political uncertainty in Europe pushing investors towards the safe haven currency, was also highlighted by Jordan. The franc has gained 4.5% against the euro in the past month on political concerns, including the upcoming French elections, which could see the far right win power. The SNB was paying close attention, Jordan said.
“We are ready to be active on the foreign exchange market and that can go in both directions,” he told reporters.
According to Reuters, various factors lie behind Switzerland’s low price pressures, including an energy mix that makes the country less exposed to oil and gas costs, wage restraint, and protection against imported price inflation from the strong franc.
Here are the three main points on the rate cut according to Goldman:
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) surprised consensus expectations again and delivered another 25bp cut to 1.25%, in line with our forecast. The language around FX interventions was left unchanged, with the Monetary Policy Assessment (MPA) noting that the SNB remains willing to be active in FX market “as necessary”.
Exhibit 1 shows the new conditional inflation forecast, which was revised down slightly on account of weaker second-round effects (-0.1pp to 1.3% in 2024, -0.1pp to 1.1% in 2025, -0.1pp to 1.0% in 2026). The SNB reiterated its GDP growth forecast of “around 1%” for 2024 in the latest MPA. Looking ahead, the SNB expects unemployment to continue to rise gradually and capacity utilisation to decline somewhat further.
With the new inflation projections, the stress on underlying inflationary pressure, and updated language in the MPA, which states that “with today’s lowering of the SNB policy rate, the SNB is able to maintain appropriate monetary conditions”, we see today’s cut as the end of the SNB’s easing cycle. Given our estimate of the neutral rate at around 1.25%, we continue to expect them to remain on hold at the upcoming meetings, barring any unforeseen developments at home or abroad.
ING economist Peter Vanden Houte said the rate cut was not a big surprise given the recent strengthening of the franc.
“With decent Swiss GDP growth in the first quarter there was no real urgency for the SNB to cut rates, but given the still benign inflation outlook the SNB saw a window to ease,” said Vanden Houte. “For the SNB it was more a rate cut because it could, not because it should.”
Thomas Gitzel, chief economist at VP Bank Group, said the SNB had done the right thing by lowering rates again. Had it not, “it could have created the impression the SNB was unsure about its key interest rate reduction in March.”
All aboard the cutting train
Cooling inflation allowed the SNB to become the first major central bank to lower rates at its last meeting. It has since been followed by the ECB, which last week cut rates for the first time in five years. Canadian and Swedish central banks have also started to bring down borrowing costs that were lifted to tackle the post-pandemic inflation surge. The U.S. Federal Reserve last week, however, held rates steady and pushed out the start of rate cuts to later this year.
Economists said that Thursday’s cut narrowed the scope for more easing for the Swiss central bank, with one more quarter-point move in September a possibility, but not a given.
“With the latest rate cut, the policy rate is now closer to its terminal value, which we estimate at 1.00%,” said Maxime Botteron, economist at UBS in Zurich, referring to a potential end point of the current easing cycle. “This means that the potential for additional cuts is limited.”
cuts rates and this is terrific for gold
FRANCE
Macron’s Idiotic Ukraine Policies Have Paved Way For Triumph Of The French Right
WEDNESDAY, JUN 19, 2024 – 04:35 AM
The EU, NATO, and a number of European capitals are watching France’s political turmoil with growing alarm, as President Emmanuel Macron is clearly on the ropes, having called early elections, leaving a path open for the French ‘far-right’ to triumph.
The foreign policy establishment in both Europe and Washington fears that large-scale joint initiatives like ramped-up military spending and the new push to fund Ukraine’s defense for years to come could also be in question, given Macron had long become among Kiev’s top cheerleaders.
He had even recently unveiled a controversial plan to send French and NATO military trainers to Ukraine. “Paris has been working for a while now with the Ukrainians on this,” a person familiar with France’s initiative had told The Financial Times. But given the plan wasn’t launched formally by NATO leadership, Macron is seen as the prime mover on the European continent behind all of this.
But France’s surprise political leader as of this past weekend, Marine Le Pen – who blew president Macron away in the European Parliament elections – is reaching out to mainstream voters as she aims to cement a majority in the next parliament, a result that would constitute an earthquake in European politics.
Her group, the National Rally, is already on track to become the biggest party in the lower house, a prospect which has caused alarm among investors, the national security establishment, France’s international partners, and a section of the French public. Two rounds of parliamentary elections will conclude on July 7.
Macron in a Tuesday address admitted he was hurt by his party’s defeat in the European Parliament elections, and said the country would have been in “chaos” without his call for snap legislative elections:
“Without a dissolution, there would have been chaos,” Macron was quoted as saying on Tuesday by Agence France-Presse. “The decision I took was the most difficult, the most serious, but the most responsible.”
With the National Rally expected to make sizeable parliamentary gains, what is its stance on Russia-Ukraine policy? And what’s Jordan Bardella vision of the issue, who could become French PM at the young age of 28?
The ‘controversial’ and supposedly ‘Russia-sympathetic’ stance is perhaps best seen in some quietly removed sections of defense policy that had been on the National Rally’s website prior to June 11. The sections had called for deepening diplomatic ties with Moscow, and for France to exit NATO’s integrated military command. Politico details of the removed policy sections which undoubtably still reveal the party’s thinking…
The deleted proposals hailed from Marine Le Pen’s presidential run in 2022, in which her party had laid out 17 thematic booklets outlining its proposals across all policy areas. While 16 booklets remain online, the one on defense was removed from the web page some time after June 11. It can still be found online at a page that is no longer linked to on the party’s website.
In the manifesto, the National Rally had advocated distance from Washington while trying to engage with Moscow. Noting that Washington “does not always behave as an ally to France,” Le Pen’s program in 2022 proposed to seek “an alliance with Russia on certain issues,” such as European security or combating terrorism.
The withdrawn document also said that France should “immediately” leave NATO’s integrated military command.
The deleted document also proposed “to put an end” to cooperation projects with Germany in the military sector, given “a deep and irreconcilable doctrinal, operational and industrial divergence with Berlin.” Those include plans for jointly developed next-generation battle tanks and next-generation fighter jets.
To expand on the question of France’s political future and what it means for new roadblocks or even serious reversal of Macron’s Ukraine policies, columnist and political cartoonist Ted Rall told Russia’s Sputnik early this week that “There’s no Jordan Bardella without a Marine Le Pen.”
“We don’t want Ukraine to join NATO, and we don’t want to divide our nuclear deterrent at the European level and send troops into a war that is not currently France’s war. These are very serious questions.” –Marine Le Pen
‘Macron wants to send French soldiers to Odessa to bolster his image’ – Marine Le Pen ‘We don’t have the same sensitivity as Sarkozy or Mariani on this issue [the war in Ukraine]. What is certain is that we [France] immediately supported Ukraine, we immediately condemned Russia,… Show more
Rall explained that shift to the right is in part a reaction against Macron’s ratcheting Ukraine policies, and a reflection of the reality that “The French don’t have an appetite for conscription or even for wars of choice.”
“They haven’t been engaged in [a war] in a long, long time,” Rall explained. “Ukraine’s a hot war. It’s a real war. It’s not like a police action, like going to quell the natives in New Caledonia. This is real serious. Frenchmen will be coming back in body bags from Ukraine.”
“And it’s a conflict that a lot of French people are deeply divided about. The politics are bad for Macron,” he continued. I don’t know why he’s absolutely so determined to push this narrative because truly he and his administration and his legacy are really on the ropes right now. And the last thing he needs is a controversial or unpopular policy, which this, I think, is.”
5/RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
ISRAEL HAMAS RAFAH
Expensive Incompetence: US Giving Up On $230 Million Gaza Air Pier
WEDNESDAY, JUN 19, 2024 – 09:05 AM
A vivid metaphor for American global geopolitical incompetence is about to float off into the sunset, as the White House is poised to give up on the $230 million Gaza aid pier it built to alleviate an Israel-imposed humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Disassembly could begin in July, officials told New York Times.
First announced as a White House aim in March during President Biden’s State of the Union address, the pier required hundreds of millions of dollars and the work of some 1,000 service members to plan, assemble and operate. Now, the surrender on the pier idea comes after it was operational for just 10 days — at $23 million each.
The pier will go down as one of history’s costliest publicity stunts. The impetus for the pier was mounting political pressure on Biden — particularly from his own party — as Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 Hamas invasion killed tens of thousands, displaced more than a million, and caused a territory-wide food and medical-supply crisis.
Biden’s pier announcement came a week after the Michigan primary, in which 13% of Democrats — more than 100,000 people — voted “uncommitted” as a means of condemning Biden’s performance on Gaza, among other issues.
Any second lieutenant could have foreseen this train wreck. Absolute humiliation for our troops all because Biden wanted a talking point in his re election campaign.
Any second lieutenant could have foreseen this train wreck.
Absolute humiliation for our troops all because Biden wanted a talking point in his re election campaign.
The pier fiasco is the latest demonstration of the US government’s pathetic deference to Israel: Unable to persuade its perennial, multi-billion-dollar beneficiary to allow sufficient aid to pass through land crossings, the US government felt compelled to spend $230 million trying to bypass the blockade — a blockade the same US government continued to facilitate via military and financial aid.
Pier was a failure. Shoulda pressed more to open already established border crossings instead of setting $300m+ on fire.
The pier opened for business on May 18, and got off to an inauspicious start: After desperate Palestinians mobbed and ransacked the first aid trucks before they could reach a distribution warehouse managed by the World Food Programme, the pier operation was paused for two days.
BREAKING: Waves swept away a section of the American floating pier installed to carry aid to Gaza, Israeli media reported Saturday. I would say this sums up Biden’s efforts. Can’t even build a structurally sound pier.
1BREAKING: Waves swept away a section of the American floating pier installed to carry aid to Gaza, Israeli media reported Saturday. I would say this sums up Biden’s efforts. Can’t even build a structurally sound pier.
The pier’s cost isn’t measured only in money: In May, a US service member was critically injured on the pier. After first being medevacked to an Israeli hospital, he was later flown to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, still in critical condition.
On Sunday, Israel announced a daytime-only “tactical pause” along a road that supplies the southern Gaza city of Rafah, with a goal of allowing humanitarian aid to flow. The pause is to last until further notice, but Israel made no adjustments to other potential aid entry points in the 25-mile long strip.
Look for Donald Trump to throw some pier-fiasco jabs at Bidenwhen the two square off in their first 2024 debate next Thursday at 9pm ET.
END
Fewer Than Half Of The Hostages In Gaza Still Alive, US Intel Believes
BY TYLER DURDEN
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 01:30 PM
By Israel’s official tally there should be 116 Israeli hostages still in Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip, but new statements issued by US intelligence officials say the number of captives still alive might be as low as 50. Initially, about 250 were taken captive during the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror attack of Oct.7.
The Wall Street Journalwrites, citing a new intel review of the situation, “That assessment, based in part on Israeli intelligence, would mean 66 of those still held hostage could be dead, 25 more than Israel has publicly acknowledged.” The hostages have been held for 258 days at this point.
Of the eight captives with American citizenship (dual nationals), three were previously reported by Israel to be deceased. The fact that there are Americans among the hostages has received relatively little mainstream media attention.
Still, hostage and ceasefire talks mediated by Qatar and Egypt have failed to move forward, and the situation remains dire given there could be more hostages lost by the day, with Hamas maintaining its position that it doesn’t actually know how many still remain given there’s a grinding war on in the Strip. Hamas officials have blamed unrelenting Israeli airstrikes for killing off many hostages.
“The number of hostages alive or dead has been an issue in cease-fire talks brokered by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar,” WSJ continues. “As part of a deal, hostages would likely be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Israel was initially unwilling to accept dead bodies to meet the number of hostages required to be released in the first phase of any deal, but its latest proposal presented to Hamas says it would accept dead bodies.”
The Netanyahu government’s lack of progress on getting the hostages released through negotiations has continued to drive large-scale protests, including a violent one earlier in the week in front of Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem, resulting in nine arrests.
Currently tensions are soaring between military leaders and PM Netanyahu, following Wednesday remarks of military spokesman Daniel Hagari, who asserted that Hamas can not be completely be rooted out because it is “an ideology”. This was seen as a direct contradiction of Netanyahu’s vow to not stop until the group is eradicated.
“This business of destroying Hamas, making Hamas disappear — it’s simply throwing sand in the eyes of the public,” Hagari had explained in an Israeli Channel 13 news interview. “Hamas is an idea, Hamas is a party. It’s rooted in the hearts of the people — anyone who thinks we can eliminate Hamas is wrong.”
Netanyahu’s office quickly responded, pointing out that this precisely remains the war’s goal. The statement said the security cabinet “has defined as one of the war goals the destruction of Hamas’s military and governance capabilities.” It emphasized, “The Israel Defense Forces is of course committed to this.”
Retired Israeli General Israel Ziv commented in a US media interview that Israeli military leaders feel they have “exhausted the purpose of the war” and have reached a “tactical peak”.
“We are getting close to finishing the job defined by the government and we’ll reach a point when we’re just fighting guerrilla warfare, and that could take years,” Ziv described.
ISRAEL/HEZBOLLAH
Israel’s Top Generals Approve Battle Plans For Lebanon Offensive
TUESDAY, JUN 18, 2024 – 11:05 PM
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday announced that plans to launch an offensive in Lebanon against Hezbollah have been formally approved.
The IDF statement further said it is preparing to “accelerate readiness in the field” at a moment the situation is deteriorating, given the Lebanese paramilitary group backed by Iran has in the last days sent hundreds of drones and missiles into northern Israel. The statement spelled out that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved.”
The military cited that the head of the IDF’s Northern Command Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin and chief of the Operations Directorate Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk had given their final approval for the Lebanon battle plans.
However, whether the trigger is pulled on launching the major operation remains to be seen, as outside diplomatic efforts to intervene also intensify.
During an afternoon briefing Pentagon spokesman Major General Patrick Ryder was asked by reporters about the newly approved Israeli battle plans. He responded: “I’m not going to get into hypotheticals and speculate on what might happen other than to say no one wants to see a wider regional war.”
Hezbollah has been strongly signaling it could attack Israel’s third largest city of Haifa, which would mark a severe escalation, after Israel has launched airstrikes as deep into Lebanon as far north as Baalbek, as well as near the Syrian border in the northeast.
President Biden’s envoy Amos Hochstein has been in both Israel and Lebanon seeking to convince officials on both sides against escalation; however, the US doesn’t have direct contact with Hezbollah but instead tends to go through Lebanese government intermediaries. The White House has warned that an expanded Israeli offensive in Lebanon would be disastrous for both Israel and the whole region, given the war could widen to include Iran.
Israeli officials have said the IDF stands ready to “destroy” Hezbollah, and on Sunday IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said “Hezbollah’s increasing aggression is bringing us to the brink of what could be a wider escalation, one that could have devastating consequences for Lebanon and the entire region.”
Earlier this month Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Whoever thinks he can hurt us and we will respond by sitting on our hands is making a big mistake.” He had added at a time when massive fires were spreading in the north due to constant Hezbollah drone and missile attacks, “We are prepared for very intense action in the north.” There are currently some 100,000 Israeli residents who remain outside their homes and communities due to the persistent threat of rocket attack.
end
ISRAEL/HEZBOLLAH
Nasrallah Says ‘No Place’ Safe, Even Threatens Cyprus, If Israel Invades Lebanon
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 02:45 AM
Amid widespread reports and statements that Israel and Hezbollah are on the brink of full-scale war, the Shia paramilitary group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah has warned of a war “without rules or ceilings” if Israeli forces launch an offensive in Lebanon.
The words were given in response to Israel’s top generals the day prior announcing that battle plans have been approved for a Lebanon offensive and widening of the war. The IDF statement said it is preparing to “accelerate readiness in the field.”
“The enemy must wait for us by air, land, and sea. We repeat: If war is imposed on Lebanon, the resistance will fight without rules, controls, or ceilings,” Nasrallah responded Tuesday.
“Storming the Galilee is a possibility that remains present within the framework of any war that the occupation may launch against Lebanon,” Hezbollah’s Secretary-General continued.
And that’s when he for the first time of the conflict which began in wake of Oct.7 issued a warning against Cyprus, given that the Greek-speaking island-nation currently has a bilateral defense cooperation agreement with Israel.
“Opening Cypriot airports and bases to the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon would mean that the Cypriot government is part of the war, and the resistance will deal with it as part of the war,” Nasrallah said.
He further warned that targets in the Mediterranean would also come under attack. In 2006 the Israeli Navy’s INS Hanit warship suffered a direct hit from a Hezbollah anti-ship missile (likely made by Iran), killing four soldiers.
His fresh words are also being interpreted by Israeli media to say gas fields in the Mediterranean and energy platforms could also be attacked:
Israel “knows that what also awaits it in the Mediterranean is very big,” Nasrallah added, without elaborating, possibly insinuating the group could attack its offshore gas rigs.
While Israel is not known to have any bases or ports in Cyprus, it has on occasion conducted joint military drills with Cypriot forces.
More likely is a scenario where Israeli jets would take off from Cypriot bases – or else one of the two British bases maintained on Cyprus. Any bigger Israeli anti-Hezbollah operation in Lebanon would without doubt involve a ratcheting air war over southern Lebanon.
Nasrallah in his Tuesday statement warned further, “We developed some of our weapons and used new weapons that we had not used previously.” Israeli leaders are concerned about recent drone image Hezbollah was able to capture over Haifa, which is Israel’s third largest city.
ISRAEL/HOUTHIS/RED SEA
ISRAEL
UKRAINE/RUSSIA
After West Rejected Putin’s Overture, Document Of Ukraine’s Surrender To Be Next Proposal: Kremlin
WEDNESDAY, JUN 19, 2024 – 05:45 AM
The Kremlin has continued blasting the international Ukraine peace summit which was held in Burgenstock, Switzerland over the weekend, with spokeswoman Maria Zakharova highlighting that the Alpine “get-together” produced zero results.
Though there were almost 100 countries represented, Zakharova said that this attempt to involve as many countries of the Global South as possible “has failed”. She further described that the whole effort at putting on a “universal event” while at the same time talking more weapons deliveries to Kiev behind the scenes was all about trying to “camouflage” the West’s continued aggressive intentions.
Decrying the Zelensky peace formula, she added that “Its authors in the United States and on Bankovaya Street are trying to portray it as the only foundation for a peace settlement.”
Notably Saudi Arabia, India, South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia, Mexico and the UAE did not sign the summit’s final communique. Additionally, Brazil was present as an “observer” but also did not sign.
They are not interested in peace in Ukraine, they need further confrontation, escalation and expanded hostilities to implement their unrealizable dream of inflicting a “strategic defeat” on Russia.
Just the day prior to the start of Saturday’s two-day Swiss summit, President Putin had listed key conditions for peaceful settlement, centered on Ukrainian troops leaving the four annexed eastern territories, as well as Kiev giving up all aspirations to join NATO.
Leaders gathered in Switzerland had rejected the overture as but more “propaganda” – and said it would be tantamount to Ukraine’s total capitulation.
The Kremlin now says that the next formal proposal on the horizon will be a document of the Ukrainian government’s surrender. This was stated by Russia’s chief delegate to the Vienna talks on military security and arms control, Konstantin Gavrilov, in a Rossiya-24 television interview.
“There are points of no return. The next thing that Russia will have to offer will be the document about [the Kiev government’s] surrender,” he said. He called last week’s proposals by Putin “realistic” and said they could end the war if they were embraced.
The joint communique issued by the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland is the most bland and unremarkable document that probably could’ve been produced. The main points are that nuclear facilities must be safeguarded, global food security must be uninterrupted, and Ukrainian prisoners of war should be returned No tangible framework of any kind for an actual resolution of the war, despite the gathering being labeled a “Peace Summit.” Instead, the usual maximalist demands were proclaimed by participants. Polish President Duda even called for the “de-colonization” of Russia, meaning the dissolution of the Russian Federation Whenever there’s a “Peace Summit” organized and attended by international bigwigs, it’s safe to assume that the purpose of the summit is the exact opposite As a minor point, Russia did not attend. Neither did China Saudi Arabia, India, South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia, Mexico and the UAE did not sign the communique. Brazil attended as an “observer” and also did not sign
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The joint communique issued by the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland is the most bland and unremarkable document that probably could've been produced. The main points are that nuclear facilities must be safeguarded, global food security must be uninterrupted, and Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/7c0Swyy7kn
“Ukrainian troops must be completely withdrawn from the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions,” Putin had said in a televised address. “As soon as Kyiv says it is ready to do this and begins really withdrawing troops and officially renounces plans to join NATO, we will immediately — literally that very minute — cease-fire and begin talks,” he asserted.
But Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni on Saturday echoed the consensus of leaders gathered with Zelensky in Burgenstock, on Saturday saying this “seems to me more like a propaganda move than a real one.”
“If President Putin’s proposal is: We are willing to have a peace negotiation if Ukraine recognizes the invasion of Ukraine and gives up the occupied parts… doesn’t seem particularly effective to me as a proposal,” Meloni said.
END
Ukraine Drone Strikes Score Direct Hits On Two More Russian Oil Depots
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 11:40 AM
An overnight Ukrainian cross-border drone attack impact several regions of Russia, resulting in the death of a civilian woman in the Krasnodar region, and setting several oil depots ablaze in other areas.
A Russian defense ministry statement Thursday described “terrorist attacks” which involved groups of unmanned aerial vehicles coming from Ukraine territory. Six drones were intercepted over the Republic of Adygea, three over Bryansk region, and three over the Krasnodar region, as well as some over Rostov, Belgorod, and Oryol.
Drone attacks reported on oil depots in Enem, Republic of Adygea, Russia, and Platonovka, Tambov Oblast, Russia. Both locations are about 420 kilometers from nearest Ukrainian-controlled territory. Ukraine is continuing its campaign to cripple Russia’s oil supply infrastructure.
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Drone attacks reported on oil depots in Enem, Republic of Adygea, Russia, and Platonovka, Tambov Oblast, Russia. Both locations are about 420 kilometers from nearest Ukrainian-controlled territory. Ukraine is continuing its campaign to cripple Russia's oil supply infrastructure. pic.twitter.com/tUtHFm6OjN
The woman was killed in Krasnodar as a result of a direct drone hit on her now “completely destroyed” house, according to the regional governor. Additionally a statement from the governor’s office of the neighboring republic of Adygea said that one or more drones struck an oil depot in the village of Enem and ignited an area as large as 400 square meters.
Another oil depot was set on fire, with an oil storage tank destroyed, in the central Tombov region, according to reports. “Early this morning there was an explosion and a tank caught fire on the territory of the Platonovskaya oil depot,” Maksim Yegorov, the governor of Tambov region confirmed.
Starting early this year the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and Ukraine’s Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) began to openly tout an active campaign to take out Russia’s oil refineries and thus directly harm its energy exports.
As has become the expected response, Russia’s military early on Thursday pummeled Ukraine’s own energy infrastructure. The war-ravaged country has struggled to keep the lights on for large sectors of the population for several months. Rolling blackouts have been coordinated since March.
“In retaliation to the Kiev regime’s attempts to damage Russia’s energy facilities, Russian troops delivered a combined strike by air-launched long-range precision weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles against Ukrainian energy sites providing for the production of armament and military hardware for the Ukrainian army,” the Russian defense ministry announced. “The goals of the strike were achieved. All the designated targets were struck.”
This new barrage of Russian missiles and drones reportedly caused “significant” damage to a thermal power plant, Ukraine officials said. “The attack on energy infrastructure in four regions damaged equipment, wounded seven workers and cut off electricity to more than 218,000 consumers,” the energy ministry said.
END
6.COVID ISSUES/VACCINE ISSUES//DRUG AND HEALTH ISSUES
Appeals Court Revives Case Against COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement
A U.S. appeals court on June 18 revived a case against a COVID-19 vaccine mandate issued by a city in Washington state under a proclamation from state officials.
Firefighters who applied for exemptions to the Spokane mandate “plausibly assert that the individual city defendants applied the proclamation arbitrarily and capriciously, and that they thereby showed callous disregard to the firefighters’ Free Exercise rights,” U.S. Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson wrote in the ruling.
Spokane officials imposed the mandate on health care providers after Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, in a 2021 proclamation, ordered providers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Spokane firefighters have emergency medical technician licenses, so they fell under the mandate.
Firefighters who submitted exemptions on religious or medical grounds sued the city and state after the city refused to accommodate them. City officials said that employing unvaccinated personnel would delay emergency response times, posing a scenario where an unvaccinated technician was dispatched to a patient requiring hands-on care. The unvaccinated technician could not “safely … provide” the care, “negatively impact[ing] response time and likely requir[ing] the city to dispatch additional resources,” lawyers for the city said in a brief.
Dr. Joel Edminister, medical director for the Spokane Fire Department, said that science supported imposing the mandate to achieve herd immunity, pointing to a non-peer-reviewed paper from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that concluded, in one county in California for about two months, unvaccinated people comprised most of the known COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.
The firefighters disagreed. Some of them recovered from COVID-19, giving them immunity similar to that conferred by vaccination, they said in a brief. The city could have also accommodated them by moving them to different roles or requiring testing and masking in lieu of vaccination, they said.
Several neighboring cities granted accommodations to firefighters, plaintiffs noted, and under pre-existing agreements, those cities send firefighters to Spokane to work at certain times. That means Spokane firefighters were being treated differently than firefighters from outside the city, in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment, the firefighters said in their complaint.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice ruled in favor of the city and state officials in 2022. He said the mandate served “a legitimate government purpose, which is to slow the spread of COVID-19” and that the proclamation applied to all city employees, meaning it did not violate the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.
“Plaintiffs cannot overcome the Proclamation’s legitimate purpose with complaints that the availability of accommodations within the City of Spokane differ from those available elsewhere,” Judge Rice wrote.
That decision was erroneous, Judge Nelson, writing for a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, said in the new ruling.
“Spokane implemented a vaccine policy from which it exempted certain firefighters based on a secular criterion—being a member of a neighboring department—while holding firefighters who objected to vaccination on purely religious grounds to a higher standard,” Judge Nelson wrote.
“Had Spokane subjected unvaccinated out-of-department firefighters to the same standard, its implementation of the vaccine policy might well be generally applicable. But that is not this case. By continuing to work with unvaccinated firefighters from surrounding departments, Spokane undermined its interest and destroyed any claim of general applicability.”
A policy must be shown to be neutral and generally applicable, or it is subject to the highest level of scrutiny by the courts.
Under that level of scrutiny, policies must be the least restrictive means of furthering a government interest.
The mandate was not the least restrictive means of stemming the spread of COVID-19, Judge Nelson said. The city, for instance, could have required testing and masking, or considered post-infection immunity, he wrote.
The appeals court reversed the lower court ruling and remanded the case back to Judge Rice.
“We are grateful for a very thoughtful opinion,” Nathan Arnold, an attorney representing the firefighters, told The Epoch Times via email. “We are pleased to have an opportunity to continue seeking redress for these public servants, and many other similarly situated individuals, in defense of their civil liberties.”
A lawyer for the defendants did not respond to a request for comment.
U.S. Circuit Judge Daniel Collins joined Judge Nelson. Judge Michael Daly Hawkins said in a dissent that he would have upheld Judge Rice’s ruling.
“The complaint also alleges that other cities and entities adopted different policies and the city defendants had pre-existing mutual aid agreements with some neighboring fire departments. The complaint then predicts that, as a result of those pre-existing mutual aid agreements, some unvaccinated firefighters from neighboring departments may operate within the city of Spokane,” he said.
“In my view, these allegations are insufficient to plausibly show that the proclamation, as implemented by the city defendants, is not neutral or generally applicable.”
Turkish cop collapses doing crowd control at a concert; Ukrainian man goes into cardiac arrest while playing soccer; Thai heart attack victim “saved in the nick of time”; & more
Ronald Koeman’s wife announces she’s battling cancer – but gives Euro 2024 blessing
June 8, 2024
Ronald Koeman’s wife has given her blessing for him to take Holland to the Euros after revealing she is fighting another battle with cancer. Bartina Koeman, who beat the disease a decade ago, has been diagnosed with breast cancer with the tournament now less than a week away. But she insists she is once again up for the fight – and that she refused to even contemplate asking her husband to stay at home.
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Illness while swimming in the lake, 29-year-old saved by carabiniere
June 10, 2024
Bracciano, Italy – He was saved by an off-duty carabiniere. He is a 29-year-old Romanian citizen who would have drowned on Saturday if the military policeman had not intervened, who was on holiday on the shores of Lake Bracciano in Santo Celso. The young man was taken ill while swimming. To notice him in difficulty was the carabiniere who dived into the water and brought the young man to shore and entrusting him to the care of the 118 medics who transported him, by helicopter, to the hospital “Gemelli” in Rome, where he is still hospitalized, not in danger of life.
Fear for the councillor, Edy Tamajo, he had a sudden illness and was rush to the Civic Hospital
June 14, 2024
Palermo (Sicily) – Illness for the Councillor for Productive Activities, Edy Tamajo, rescued in Mondello (Palermo) and transferred to the Civic Hospital of Palermo. There is still very little information about what happened. According to an initial reconstruction of the facts, the councillor collapsed during a meeting in Mondello. Rescued by the 118 medics, he was transferred to the Civic Hospital for the investigation and treatment.
Ill at the soccer game, his hero friend (who had just done the first aid course) saves his life
June 13, 2024
Nizza Monferrato (Asti) – A group of friends were playing five-a-side soccer in the field near the municipal swimming pool of Nizza Monferrato. At one point, however, one of them fell to the ground, caught by a cardiac arrest. Without any signs of what was happening, the man collapsed to the ground without any signs of life. Next to him the teammate immediately felt his pulse and realized that it was a cardiac arrest and immediately began the massage to restart the heart. A rescue so timely that you can recover the beat for two or three phases before the arrival of the defibrillator provided to the structure and, almost simultaneously, the arrival of the 118 rescuers. By chance, the teammate whose timely intervention allowed the heart attack [victim] to not suffer brain damage from cardiac arrest, had completed a few days course of first aid and was therefore “fresh” memory of the maneuvers to be performed.
Caught sick near the cemetery, a 58-year-old in serious condition in Soave di Porto Mantovano
June 12, 2024
The man was rescued by 118 and brought to the Civil Hospital of Brescia with the helicopter rescue in code red. Caught by a sudden illness while he was near the cemetery of Soave in Porto Mantovano, now a 58-year-old is in very serious condition at the Civil Hospital of Brescia, where he arrived in code red by helicopter.
Agostino Ciucci victim of an illness: is under control in the hospital
June 12, 2024
Puglia – The mayoral candidate in the last election, Agostino Ciucci, suffered a sudden illness this afternoon while he was at his home following his shift. According to reports in the Daily of Puglia, the doctor, who had applied to the administrative board with the list “Rights and Civilization for Lecce”, would have regularly worked last night. In the afternoon he would then feel a strange illness that led him to call for help that, after rescuing the candidate mayor at home, they transported him to the hospital “Vito Fazzi”. Once he arrived, he was transferred to the neurology department, where all the necessary tests were carried out. From the initial checks it is not serious, but the clinical picture remains monitored by doctors.
Regional councillor, Angelo Chiorazzo, struck by cerebral aneurysm
June 12, 2024
Senise (Basilicata) – Angelo Chiorazzo, 50, a Lucan from Senise and newly elected regional councillor of Basilicata, was struck by a brain aneurysm. He was admitted to San Carlo di Potenza hospital, Chiorazzo, where he underwent surgery this morning.
Ludovica Cavalli is now well but the scare was huge: “First tachycardia, then hyperventilation”
June 10, 2024
Rome – Quite a scare for Ludovica Cavalli Sunday evening during the final of the 1500 meters women at the European Athletics Championship in Rome: the 23-year-old Genoese felt bad during the race, sliding back several meters without anyone understanding at the moment what was happening, then after the finish she fell to the ground touching her chest. Immediate help for the illness, for those who then were fundamental attentions to understand the extent of the illness that held with bated breath the audience present at the Olimpico and the viewers at home.
Sheriff has cardiac arrest at Pastrengo: He was saved and operated on
June 10, 2024
Naples – A dramatic episode shook the Provincial Command of the Carabinieri of Naples: a sheriff was struck by a heart attack while on duty. The emergency intervention of the 118 medical staff allowed him to be transferred quickly to the Mediterranean Clinic, where doctors intervened urgently to save his life. The sheriff, during the normal course of his daily duties, felt a strong pain in the chest, an unequivocal signal of a cardiac arrest. Colleagues and those present immediately alerted the rescuers, who arrived promptly on the spot. The medics of 118, with their promptness and professionalism, stabilized the man directly in the office located in Via Pastrengo. Subsequently, it was decided to urgently transfer him to the Mediterranean Clinic to undergo a life-saving surgery.
Caught by an illness in the woods, man was taken to the hospital with the helicopter rescue
June 9, 2024
Pruno (Lucca) – He suffered a severe chest pain while he was hiking a path in the woods, just above the village of Pruno. He was rescued for a sudden illness. It happened around 11 am this morning (9 June). The operations center of 118 sent on site a team of mountain rescue of Querceta and the helicopter rescue: once identified the hiker, 60 years old, resident in the province of Pisa, was winched aboard the helicopter and transferred to Noa Massa.
Hit by a heart attack, he falls to the ground, saved thanks to cardiac massage practiced by passers-by
June 8, 2024
Venaria (Torino) – In the late afternoon of yesterday, Friday, June 7, 2024, a 61-year-old man was taken ill while walking along Corso Garibaldi in Venaria. His life was put in serious danger, but thanks to the quick reflexes of passers-by and the intervention of the Carabinieri, the man was saved and transported to the hospital. The incident occurred around 17:30, when the man suddenly collapsed to the ground from a heart attack.
Police officer passed heart crisis while interfering in discussion [i.e., doing crowd control] at concert
June 10, 2024
The Culture Road Festival, held in Samsun, came up with an unexpected event as well as entertainment and cultural events. During the festival at Batıpark in Ilkadim district, the beloved singer Buray took the stage and the brawl between the two groups marked the night. While Buray’s energetic performance took place at the concert area, there was an intense time arguing between the two groups for an unknown reason. Police officer Sadık Döngel [40] wanted to intervene in order to control the crowd and prevent the fight from growing. At this time, however, he collapsed unexpectedly. The medical teams, who quickly arrived at the scene on the tip, first responded and referred the police officer Sadık Döngel to Ondokuz Mayıs University Medical Faculty Hospital. It was learned that Döngel, who was taken to the intensive care unit, was intubated and maintained the seriousness of his condition. Doctors are making an intensive effort to minimize the effects of a heart attack.
In Uzhhorod, a man suffered a sudden cardiac arrest while playing football: he was resuscitated
June 14, 2024
During a soccer game in Uzhhorod on a field near a school, one of the players suddenly collapsed due to cardiac arrest. Thanks to a lightning-fast reaction and professional actions, his life was saved, according to the Facebook page of the Transcarpathian Territorial Center for Emergency Medical Care , UNN reports. “Boys were playing soccer on the field near health care facility #19. Suddenly one of the players stopped, screamed loudly and fell to the ground. Intuitively realizing that it was a heart problem, I rushed to him. The man had a sudden cardiac arrest. I immediately started cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and people around me helped,” said sports medicine doctor Volodymyr Sabadosh. According to him, they called 103 at the same time. “Resuscitation was carried out without stopping for a moment until the ambulance arrived,” the doctor said. Brigade 103 arrived at the scene in a matter of minutes. After three injections of adrenaline, two defibrillator shocks and intensive resuscitation, the man’s heart started beating again, he started panting and regained consciousness. After stabilization, he was taken to a medical facility in Uzhhorod.
Heart attack victim in Bangkok Chit saved in the nick of time
June 14, 2024
Police officers successfully performed CPR on a heart attack patient, after the automated external defibrillator (AED) had failed, saving his life just in time. The incident occurred across the Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal, Bangkok yesterday after authorities received an emergency call at 5 pm. Upon arrival, authorities found the man unresponsive with symptoms indicating a possible heart attack. Fortunately, a member of the 191 training unit and a trained field medic, Thongchai Tosongkram happened to be nearby and stopped to assist after conducting an initial assessment of the patient’s condition. Thanks to the quick actions of the police officers and the CPR administered, the patient’s life was saved. He is currently receiving medical treatment and is reported to be in stable condition.
Biggest challenge of my life’: TikTok exec, 38, reveals shock diagnosis weeks after completing half marathon
June 14, 2024
Sydney, New South Wales – A fit and healthy social media professional who completed the Sydney half marathon last month has shared his shocking health battle on social media, revealing he has recently been given a preliminary diagnosis of stage four non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Sydney-based Govind Sandhu, head of Global Music Partnerships at TikTok, is now urging others to get regular check-ups as he comes to terms with beginning an “aggressive” treatment plan. In an emotional video shared to his Instagram on Wednesday, the 38-year-old said he began to deteriorate following the half marathon, which was held on May 5.
a legendary foreign policy thinker write bluntly in Foreign Affairs: “The United States faces a serious threat of a terrorist attack in the months ahead.” Of course, Obama & Biden GUARANTEED this!
You would have to be brain dead to not see what Obama ad Biden have done to America and this CIA chief warns…they all know, law enforcement knowns, you do not bring the 6th century medieval beast into the 21st century…there is nothing to come of it but pain…yet Obama and Biden blessed our children and grand-children with this pain…it is booked, certain, coming, mass gang rapes, stabbings, bombings, killings of Americans by illegals from Latin America and the islamist North African and Middle Easterners…all intent on harming America. No sane nation does what Obama and Biden has done and some estimates now say it is not 16 million but more like 30 million illegals Obama and Biden flooded the US with…and yes, it will TRANSFORM America.
Pleads Not Guilty, trial expected to take place in fall, concurrent with POTUS election; Laken Riley Murder Suspect Linked to Venezuelan Crime posse; as I have said, if 100% sure, torture & KILL him!
Let me be clear, many Americans, our wives, daughters will be brutally raped and killed by illegals who Obama, Mayorkas, and Biden Inc. allowed into USA…brought into USA.
In Georgia, nursing student Laken Riley met her demise at the hands of Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal alien from Venezuela.
Like Morin, Riley was jogging near her college campus, where Ibarra was unlawfully employed.
He allegedly ambushed Riley, brutally murdering her and breaking her skull, as prosecutors have alleged. Ibarra is now facing murder charges.
The Venezuelan national accused of killing a nursing student whose body was found on the University of Georgia campus pleaded not guilty Friday to murder and other charges in her death.
A grand jury in early May returned an indictment charging Jose Ibarra, 26, with murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping and other crimes in the February killing of Laken Hope Riley.
The 10-count indictment accuses Ibarra of hitting the 22-year-old Augusta University College of Nursing student in the head, asphyxiating her and pulling up her clothing with the intent to rape her.
Diego Ibarra – a Venezuelan national and the brother of Jose Antonio Ibarra, the man allegedly behind Riley’s murder – has ties to the Tren de Aragua gang, prosecutors wrote in documents filed on Wednesday, as reported by the New York Post.
While Jose Antonio Ibarra is already in jail for Riley’s murder, his brother appears to have his own list of disturbing crimes under his belt.
Migrant accused of sexually assaulting 13-year-old girl in NYC park was ordered removed by an immigration judge two years ago; Ecuadorian migrant arrested Tuesday in the sexual assault of 13-year-old
‘Inga-Landi — who is set to be charged with rape for the horrific June 13 assault in Kissena Park — likely applied for some form of relief or appealed the removal ruling to remain in the US, the sources said.
He crossed the besieged US-Mexico border on June 25, 2021, with his son into Eagle Pass, Texas, where he was captured, processed and released by Border Patrol agents, according to the sources.’
JUST IN: Federal Judge Halts Rule Mandating Employers to Accommodate Employee AbortionsA federal judge in Louisiana has blocked the implementation of a regulation in two states that mandated employers to accommodate employees seeking elective abortions. The judge supported plaintiffs’ claims that abortions do not qualify as “medical conditions” which employers are obligated to support. Judge David Joseph of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana issued a ruling …READ THE FULL REPORT
DOJ Charges Texas Doctor Who Exposed ‘Gender-Affirming’ Care for Minors, Faces Up to 10 Years in PrisonThe Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday unveiled an indictment against Dr. Eithan Haim. Last year, Dr. Haim disclosed evidence of cross-sex hormone treatments being administered at a Texas hospital, despite the hospital’s claims that these procedures had been stopped. The surgeon is now facing four felony charges for allegedly violating medical records laws, which could result in a prison …READ THE FULL REPORT
Anthony Fauci Claims ‘More People in Red States Died from COVID Because of Political Ideology’On Tuesday, former White House Chief Medical Advisor Anthony Fauci stated on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that political ideology contributed to a higher number of COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations in red states compared to blue states. “We now head into a moment where because of that divisiveness, it’s become a political issue. Vaccinations in particular have become a political issue where …READ THE FULL REPORT
LATEST REPORTS FO
end
MICHAEL EVERY/PHIL MAREY/OR OTHER EXECS //RABOBANK
7.OIL PRICES/GAS PRICES/OIL ISSUES
8. EMERGING MARKETS//AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND ISSUES//
YOUR EARLY CURRENCY/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN CLOSING MARKETS AND EUROPEAN BOURSE OPENING AND CLOSING/ INTEREST RATE SETTINGS THURSDAY MORNING 6;30AM//OPENING AND CLOSING
EURO VS USA DOLLAR: 1.0719 DOWN .0028
USA/ YEN 158.42 UP 0.467 NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.00% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//
GBP/USA 1.2685 DOWN .0034
USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3709 UP .0003 (CDN DOLLAR DOWN 3 BASIS PTS)
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED DOWN 12.61 PTS OR .42%
Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 95.07 PTS OR 0.52%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP 0.02%
// EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL GREEN
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL GREEN
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG CLOSED DOWN 95.07 PTS OR 0.52 %
/SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 12.61 PTS OR .42%
AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.02%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 62.26 PTS OR 0.16%
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE GREEN
Gold very early morning trading: 2339.80
silver:$30.33
USA dollar index early THURSDAY morning: 105.13 UP 24 BASIS POINTS FROM TUESDAY’s CLOSE.
The USA/Yuan, CNY ON SHORE CLOSED DOWN AT 7.2604 (ON SHORE)
THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (DOWN)…. (7.2892)
TURKISH LIRA: 32.84 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//ON DEATH WATCH
the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +0.948…
Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 3 in basis points from TUESDAY at 4.270% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%)
USA 30 yr bond yield 4.407 UP 4 in basis points /12.00 PM
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.748 UP 3 BASIS PTS.
GOLD AT 11;30 AM 2355.50
SILVER AT 11;30: 30.62
Your 12:00 AM bourses for Europe and the Dow along with the USA dollar index closing and interest rates: TUESDAY CLOSING TIME 12:00 PM//
London: CLOSED UP 64.54 PTS OR 0.79%
German Dax : CLOSED UP 171.18 PTS OR 0.95%
Paris CAC CLOSED UP 104.04 PTS OR 1.37 %
Spain IBEX CLOSED UP 104.00 OR 0.94%
Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 462.85 PTS OR 1.39
% PTS
WTI Oil price 81.87 12EST/
Brent Oil: 85.32 12:00 EST
USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE /// AT: 87,24 ROUBLE DOWN 2 AND 74/100
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.4250 UP 2 BASIS PTS.
UK 10 YR YIELD: 4.090 DOWN 1 BASIS POINTS
CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM
Euro vs USA 1.0704 DOWN 0.0043 OR 43 BASIS POINTS
British Pound: 1.2663 DOWN 0.0056 OR 56 basis pts
BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.082 UP 1 BASIS PTS//
JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: 0.948%
USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 158.87 UP 0.926YEN DOWN 93 BASIS PTS//
USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3687 DOWN 0020 //CDN dollar UP 20 BASIS PTS
West Texas intermediate oil: 82.34
Brent OIL: 85.83
USA 10 yr bond yield DOWN 1/2 BASIS pts to 4.279
USA 30 yr bond yield DOWN 1 BASIS PTS to 4.390%
USA 2 YR BOND: DOWN 2 PTS AT 4.727
USA dollar index: 105.27 UP 39 BASIS POINTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 32.80 GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 87.249 UP 2 AND 40/100 roubles
GOLD 2,358.90 3:30 PM
SILVER: 30,67 3;30 PM
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 299.90 PTS OR 0.77%
NASDAQ DOWN 151.56 PTS OR 0.79 %
VOLATILITY INDEX: 13.35 UP 0.87 PTS OR 6.97%
GLD: $218.16 UP 2.69 OR 1.25%
SLV/ $28.00 UP 1..04 OR 3.86%
end
USA AFFAIRS
TODAY’S TRADING IN GRAPH FORM
‘Bullion & Black Gold Bid But ‘Bad News’ Was Bad News For Big-Tech
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 04:00 PM
Jobless claims not good, housing data bad, Philly Fed ugly… and that meant the US macro surprise index plunged to early-2019 lows… near the lowest level since 2016…
Source: Bloomberg
But that ‘bad news’ had no (good news) influence on rate-cut expectations (which worsened marginally)….
Source: Bloomberg
Treasury yields ended the day marginally higher after recovering from the spike early on after claims data…
Source: Bloomberg
That ‘bad news’ was also bad news for the momo names too as The Dow dramatically outperformed the rest of the majors today (the only index positive) with Nasdaq the biggest loser from Tuesday’s cash close…
This was the second best day for The Dow relative to Nasdaq year-to-date with The Dow trading below 2x Nasdaq (below the peak dotcom bubble lows)…
Source: Bloomberg
Much of that big rebound was Energy’s dramatic outperformance of Mag7 stocks in the last two days…
Source: Bloomberg
Goldman’s equity trading desk noted that their activity levels are up 20% vs. the trailing 2 weeks with overall market volumes +10%.
Our floor is 3% better for sale, with both HFs and LOs moving the same direction.
HFs are 4% better for sale with the largest sell skews in Info tech and Consumer.
LOs are also better for sale at -11% overall, with supply in Info Tech and Consumer, while buying Fins and Materials.
The dollar rebounded from Tuesday’s tumble…
Source: Bloomberg
And despite the dollar strength, spot gold rallied back up to $2060, erasing most of the CPI plunge…
Source: Bloomberg
Bitcoin pumped and dumped to end the day unchanged around $65,000…
Source: Bloomberg
Oil prices extended gains with front-month WTI (Aug ’24) up to its highest since April…
Source: Bloomberg
…which is bad news for Biden and Powell as pump-prices are about to reignite…
Source: Bloomberg
Finally, NVDA had a bad day – its worst day in two months – after hitting a new record high early in the day…
Arguably, it could be a tad overbought here? Blow-off-toppy?
Philly Fed ‘Hope’ Hammered As Inflation Expectations Soar
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 01:00 PM
After a few strong months of hope-filled renaissance, the Philly Fed business outlook plunged in June with both the current and forward-looking activity indicators dropping significantly (but the Philly Fed notes optimistically, remaining positive)…
Source: Bloomberg
Under the hood, it was even uglier, with new orders recording a second consecutive negative reading in June, and the current shipments index fell 6 points to -7.2, its lowest reading since December.
On balance, the firms continued to report a decline in employment.
Source: Bloomberg
However, most worrisome, Philly Fed firms surveyed reported significant increases in prices overall in June.
The prices paid index rose 4 points to 22.5.Almost 26 percent of the firms reported increases in input prices (up from 19 percent last month), while 3 percent reported decreases (up from 0 percent); 71 percent reported no change (down from 78 percent).The current prices received index increased 7 points to 13.7. Nearly 14 percent of the firms reported increases in the prices of their own goods, no firm reported decreases, and 86 percent reported no change.
Source: Bloomberg
The future new orders index fell 24 points to 16.2, and the future shipments index dropped 46 points to -0.1…
Source: Bloomberg
The question is – will the message of soaring price expectations get through to the voting members? Or will expectations for plummeting new orders dominate their thinking?
END
Housing starts fall to a four-year low
June 20, 2024 at 8:41 a.m. ET
MarketWatchU.S. housing starts fell short of expectations on Wall Street
The numbers: Construction of new U.S. homes fell 5.5% in May, the lowest level in four years, as builders pulled back on new projects.
The pace of construction hit a speed bump as builders grappled with higher-than-normal financing costs, as well as elevated mortgage rates that affect home buyers.
Housing starts fell to a 1.28 million annual pace from 1.35 million in April, the government said Thursday. That’s how many houses would be built over an entire year if construction takes place at the same rate every month as in May.
Housing starts fell in May to the lowest level since June 2020, during the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The data fell short of Wall Street’s expectations of 1.38 million houses. All numbers are seasonally adjusted.
Both single-family and multi-family starts posted a decline across most of the nation.
Builders are worried about interest rates impacting their activity further. In June, the home builders’ industry group expressed concern over financing construction amid elevated borrowing costs.
Building permits, a sign of future construction, fell 3.8% to a 1.39 million rate.
Key details: Builders slowed down on starts on all types of homes across most of the nation.
They scaled back on single-family home starts, which fell by 5.2% in May, as well as on apartment starts, which fell even further by 10.3%.
Builders’ pace of construction also slowed across most of the U.S. The biggest declines in new home building were in the Midwest and the South. Only the West posted an increase in new construction.
Permits for single-family homes fell by 2.9% in May, and 6.1% for apartments.
Big picture: High interest rates are weighing on home builders. With mortgage rates still elevated, and interest rates weighing on financing costs, home builders are scaling back on new construction, as seen in the May figures.
The pullback comes at a time when the U.S. is facing a housing shortage. The nation is short of 4.5 million homes, based on population trends, according to calculations by real-estate brokerage Zillow.
To be sure, housing starts are generally a volatile data series, but the broader trend indicates that builders are feeling nervous about demand from home buyers. In June, nearly 30% of home builders surveyed by the National Association of Home Builders reported cutting prices to boost sales of newly built homes.
What are they saying? “Restrictive monetary policy clearly continues to weigh on housing activity,” Ali Jaffery at CIBC Economics wrote in a note.
“Housing supply is partly being crimped by higher rates, and the housing market in the U.S. could look very strong when the Fed is confident inflation is headed for 2%,” he added.
END
Jobless claims stay near a 10-month high. The end of the school year might be the reason.
June 20, 2024 at 8:38 a.m. ET
MarketWatchUnemployment filings are still low, but signs of labor-market stress may be emerging
The numbers: The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits last week fell slightly, but new jobless claims stayed near a 10-month high, which may be related to the end of the school year.
New claims declined to 238,000 from 243,000 in the prior week, the government said Thursday. The number of claims two weeks ago was the highest since August 2023.
New jobless claims surged last year after the school year ended, a pattern that may be repeating itself. Some states such as Minnesota allow certain education workers to apply for benefits when school ends.
The demand for labor has cooled a bit, though, so it’s also possible a strong labor market is showing some early signs of stress. Economists say it will take another month of jobless-claims reports to get a better idea.
Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had forecast new claims to total 235,000 in the seven days ending June 15, based on seasonally adjusted figures.
Key details: New jobless claims fell in 38 of the 53 states and territories that report these figures to the federal government.
Claims rose in 15 others, most notably Connecticut.
Omitting seasonal adjustments, actual new claims dropped last week to 227,212 from 236,046 in the prior week.
By comparison, actual jobless claims were much higher, at 249,813, in the same week in 2023.
The number of people already collecting unemployment benefits in the U.S., meanwhile, rose by 15,000 to 1.83 million, the government said.
The level of these so-called continuing claims — the highest since January — suggests it’s taking longer for people who lose jobs to find new ones.
Big picture: Many economists have been expecting layoffs to rise as high interest rates and lingering inflation slow the economy and depress the demand for labor.
Yet so far the labor market has remained remarkably resilient. It remains to be seen whether the recent rise in new jobless claims is part of a trend or just a typical seasonal bump at the end of spring.
Looking ahead: “We are cautiously watching the next few weeks’ worth of data to see if a trend is emerging,” U.S. economist Thomas Simons of Jefferies wrote in a note to clients.
“It appears that the jump in initial claims reflects school system employees filing at the end of the school year,” said chief economist Stephen Stanley of Santander Capital Markets. “Rules appear to vary from state to state, as filings have mainly jumped in Blue states, where rules for collecting benefits tend to be more liberal.”
III USA ECONOMIC COMMENTARIES
OAKLAND AND LOS ANGELES
Watch: Gavin Newsom’s Oakland, California Transformed Into Warzone On Juneteenth
THURSDAY, JUN 20, 2024 – 06:55 AM
Dramatic footage has surfaced on X showing a Juneteenth celebration in Oakland, California, which was transformed into a warzone in the overnight hours. What appears to be gang-on-gang violence sparked an insane shootout on city streets. In a state governed by radical leftist Gavin Newsom, where common sense law and order are seemingly absent, such scenes are becoming more frequent. This incident further exemplifies why people and businesses continue to flee to safer, red states.
Local media outlet SFGate reported that as many as 5,000 people attended the Juneteenth celebration in Oakland’s Lake Merritt area.
Around 2015 local time, a fight broke out at a sideshow involving “motorbikes and vehicles” at Grand and Bellevue avenues—and that was the moment when all hell erupted.
“During that fight, multiple shots rang out,” said Paul Chambers, the OPD’s strategic communications manager
#BREAKING: Multiple people have been injured after being shot and stabbed during a Juneteenth celebration #Oakland | #California Currently, numerous law enforcement officers and emergency personnel are on the scene in Oakland, California after Multiple people have been shot and reported to be stabbed where a large crowd was gathered during a Juneteenth celebration. The exact number of those shot, and stabbed, and injured is not yet known at this time. Authorities are actively investigating the incident Police have stated that this is a developing situation
OPD said there were no known fatalities. There are some reports that at least four people were injured.
“No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting,” police said, adding, “It is currently unknown if there was a single shooter or multiple shooters involved.”
Oakland has been plagued with illegal sideshows, where out-of-control youth drive recklessly on city streets and, in some instances, light cars on fire and loot stores.
This lawlessness stems from disastrous progressive policies that do little to enforce common sense law and order. Failed ‘defund the police’ and other social and criminal justice reforms have only emboldened criminals.
According to polls, law-abiding Americans are fed up with progressive policies that have transformed cities into scenes of the video game Grand Theft Auto. Folks are realizing their vote can stop this madness come November.
IIIB USA COMMENTARIES RE ISRAEL/HAMAS WAR/ and PERVASIVE ANTISEMITISM/WOKISM
END
iiiC USA COVID //VACCINE ISSUES/IMPORTANT MEDICAL ISSUES
END
FREIGHT ISSUES/USA
END
VICTOR DAVIS HANSON OR NEWT GINGRICH
END
SWAMP NEWS
Arizona Judge Declines To Dismiss Election Interference Case
In the ongoing legal battle over alleged election interference in Arizona in 2022, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Fish issued a series of rulings this week denying motions to dismiss and motions to remand charges back to a state grand jury against Cochise County Supervisors Peggy Judd and Tom Crosby.
The rulings released on June 18 mean the case will proceed to trial.
Ms. Judd and Mr. Crosby are charged with conspiracy and interference with an election officer, both class 5 felonies.
The case stems from events following the 2022 general election in Arizona, when Ms. Judd and Mr. Crosby allegedly conspired to delay the canvassing of votes in Cochise County, prosecutors say.
According to the indictment, the defendants’ actions aimed to prevent the timely certification of the county’s election results, thereby obstructing the statewide canvass process.
Following the rulings, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes issued a statement reaffirming the seriousness of the charges and the state’s commitment to pursuing justice.
“This is a serious case, and the charges have merit,” Ms. Mayes stated in a press release. “Today’s ruling by the court supports that. While the defendants are innocent until proven guilty, as are all defendants in our criminal justice system, my office is prepared to move forward with this case and pursue justice for the people of Arizona.”
Ms. Judd and Mr. Crosby filed motions to remand their cases to a grand jury for a new determination of probable cause earlier this year.
They argued that the original grand jury proceedings were flawed, alleging that the state failed to properly instruct the grand jury on relevant legal standards, presented misleading testimony, and used privileged information improperly.
Judge Fish in his ruling stated that the grand jury was appropriately instructed and that the evidence presented did not constitute misleading testimony or misuse of privileged information.
The judge emphasized that the role of the grand jury is to determine whether probable cause exists to believe that a crime has been committed, not to conduct a mini-trial.
Motion to Dismiss Denied
The defendants also moved to dismiss the case, arguing that the state grand jury lacked jurisdiction under A.R.S. §21-422.
They claimed that the alleged crimes did not fall within the specific categories that a state grand jury is authorized to investigate and indict.
Judge Fish rejected this argument, stating that the actions of the defendants, if proven, constituted “intentional, knowing, or corrupt misconduct involving any person compensated by public funds,” which falls within the grand jury’s jurisdiction.
He further noted that the alleged interference took place in both Cochise and Maricopa counties, thus justifying the state grand jury’s involvement under the applicable statutes.
The defendants contended that their actions were protected by legislative immunity, asserting that their decisions regarding the canvassing process were legislative acts.
They argued that as elected officials, their votes and decisions on election matters were covered by legislative immunity, which shields legislators from prosecution for actions taken within their official legislative capacity.
However, Judge Fish dismissed this argument.
He explained that the act of canvassing election results is a mandatory, nondiscretionary function required by law, and failing to perform this duty does not qualify as a legislative act protected by immunity. Consequently, the court determined that legislative immunity did not apply to the defendants’ actions.
The court also addressed and dismissed several other defense arguments. These included claims that the statutes under which the defendants were charged were vague and that the conspiracy charge should only be prosecuted in Cochise County.
Judge Fish found that the statutes provided sufficient clarity to inform the defendants of the prohibited conduct and that the venue was appropriate due to the alleged impact on both Cochise and Maricopa counties.
Background on Allegations
The indictment alleges that between Oct. 11, 2022, and Dec. 1, 2022, Ms. Judd and Mr. Crosby conspired to delay the canvass of votes cast in Cochise County during the Nov. 8, 2022, general election.
In early October 2022, the defendants allegedly inquired about conducting a hand count of ballots for the upcoming election and were advised by the Cochise County Attorney’s Office that they lacked specific authority to conduct such a hand count.
Also in October, state Elections Director Kori Lorick informed the Cochise County Board of Supervisors (CCBS) that a full hand count would violate the Elections Procedure Manual.
Later that month, CCBS held a special hearing where they voted to conduct a hand count audit of all precincts, despite legal advice against it.
The day prior to the election, Judge Casey McGinley granted a preliminary injunction, enjoining the full hand count audit.
Two days after the election, Cochise County Attorney Brian McIntyre warned of potential criminal actions if an expanded hand count proceeded.
Ms. Judd and Mr. Crosby then filed a special action suit against Cochise County Elections Director Lisa Marra, alleging she refused to comply with the board’s commands.
In late November, CCBS allegedly delayed the certification of election results, prompting legal action from then-Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs’ office.
On Dec. 1, Judge McGinley ordered the immediate canvassing of the election results, which Ms. Judd and Election Board Chair Ann English complied with, submitting the results to the secretary of state.
The indictment further alleges that from Nov. 14 to Nov. 28, 2022, they knowingly interfered with election officers’ duties, thereby preventing the timely transmission of the county’s election results to Ms. Hobbs’ office.
A pretrial conference is scheduled for Aug. 8, with the trial tentatively set to begin Aug. 15.
KING REPORT
The King Report June 20, 2024 Issue 7267
Independent View of the News
US Retail Sales were worse than expected for May; and April data were revised lower (Bidenomics).Retail Sales 0.1% m/m, 0.3% exp., April revised to -0.2% from 0.0% (Not inflation adjusted)Ex-Auto Sales -0.1% m/m, 0.2% exp., April revised to -0.1% from 0.2%Ex-Auto & Gas Sales 0.1% m/m, 0.4% exp., April revised to -0.3% from -0.1%https://www.census.gov/retail/sales.html@charliebilello: US Retail Sales increased 2% over the last year but after adjusting for higher prices they were down 1.2%. Both… well below the historical averages of +4.6% nominal and +2.0% real.
US Industrial Production surged in May despite much softer ISM and PMI readings (Bidenomics). IP 0.9% m/m, 0.3% exp., Manufacturing Production 0.9%, 0.3% exp., April revised to -0.4% from -0.3% Capacity Utilization 78.7%, 78.6% exp., April revised to 78.2% from 78.4% (Bidenomics)
The NY Fed: Business Leaders Survey – A monthly survey of service firms in New York State, northern New Jersey, and southwestern Connecticut, conducted by the New York Fed. The survey’s headline business activity index fell eight points to -4.7. The business climate index edged up three points but remained negative at -23.0, suggesting the business climate remains worse than normal. Employment growth picked up, and wages increased at a similar pace to the prior couple of months. Supply availability—a new monthly indicator now included in these reports—improved modestly, while input and selling price increases both moderated. Capital spending declined… The index for future business activity fell five points to 15.7, and the index for the future business climate fell seven points to -5.8, suggesting that firms were not very optimistic about future conditions. However, employment is expected to increase in the months ahead. https://www.newyorkfed.org/survey/business_leaders/bls_overview
ESUs rallied moderately during early Asian trading but turned negative at 21:00 ET. ESUs then chopped in an expanding range until they exploded higher ahead of the NYSE opening on the usual pump & dump buying. After hitting a daily high of 5558.75 at 9:41 ET, the dump began. ESUs sank to 5543.50 at 11:12 ET. The manipulation for the European close began; ESUs jumped to 5557.00 at 12:06 ET.
After sinking to 5548.25 at 12:30 ET, the manipulation to rig the VIX Fix settlement began. ESUs hit 5555.50 at 12:59 ET; the 14:15 ET VIX Fix settlement for June options beckoned. The usual suspects juiced ESUs to a daily high of 5562.25 at 13:50 ET.
The CBO then induced selling of USUs and ESUs. CBO Boosts 2024 US Budget Deficit Estimate to $1.915T from $1.5T – BBG 14:00 ET. CBO Now Sees Fed Cuts Starting in 1Q 2025 vs Mid-2024 Previously – BBG 14:00 ET CBO Raises US 2024 Deficit-to-GDP Ratio to 6.7% from 5.3% – BBG 14:00 ET
ESUs sank to 5546.50 at 14:03 ET. The upside manipulation then appeared; ESUs hit 5557.25 at 14:12 ET. ESUs then retreated to 5550.00 at the 14:25 ET VIX Fix. ESUs then vacillated in a 6-handle range until the late manipulation took ESUs to 5562.25 at 16:00 ET.
Though the NY Fang+ Index was negative all session, Nvidia rallied as much as 4% on two upgrades. Rosenblatt’s Hans Mosesmann hiked his target price to $200 from $140. Wells Fargo boosted its price target to $155 from $125. Nvidia became the largest capitalized ($3.33T) company in the world.
@charliebilello: The 3 largest companies in the S&P 500 (Microsoft, Apple, & Nvidia) now make up a record 21% of the index.
@KevRGordon: S&P 500 Tech sector’s price/sales ratio is going vertical and at an all-timehigh. https://t.co/n5J3pJIG9d
@jasongoepfert: We’ve never seen anything like this before. Once again, a new high in the Nasdaq. Once again, more stocks falling to 52-week lows than rising to 52-week highs on that exchange. That’s 9 days out of the past 20. It blows away any other period.https://x.com/jasongoepfert/status/1803157816288375031
US 20-year auction ($13B) results: 4.452% vs 4.480% WI – After an initial rally on the strong auction results, USUs declined from a daily high of 120 17/32 at 13:01 ET to 120 8/32 at 13:08 ET. .
Positive aspects of previous session The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq hit all-time highs, again.
Negative aspects of previous session Fangs were soft all session despite Nvidia’s bubble inflating further. ZH: The percentage of stocks outperforming the S&P reached the lowest level on record: Morgan Stanley The CBO unleashed some very troubling US fiscal reality. The DJTA declined 35.14 points.
Ambiguous aspects of previous session When will a critical mass of investors and/or traders heed the treacherous US fiscal situation?
First Hour/Last Hour Action [S&P 500 Index]: 1st Hour from NYSE Open: Up; Last Hour: Up
Pivot Point for S&P 500 Index [above/below indicates daily trend to traders]: 5482.91 Previous session S&P 500 Index High/Low: 5490.38, 5471.32
@KobeissiLetter: Americans spent a massive ~$17 trillion on food in 2023, the most ever recorded in a single year. Since 2020, food at home and away-from-home expenditures have soared $5 trillion, or ~35% as high inflation hit the country. At the same time, fast food prices have increased by 31%. Over the last 10 years, most fast food price increases have exceeded inflation with prices at McDonalds DOUBLING. Meanwhile, 78% of US consumers view fast food as a luxury due to high prices. Food inflation is a major problem for most Americans.https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1803416503993156035
Multiple North Korean soldiers ‘killed or injured’ by exploding landmines inside Demilitarized Zone just hours before Putin’s meeting with Kim Jong Unhttps://t.co/tz93ymB8Y7
@Global_Mil_Info: South Korea’s JCS has announced that multiple North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded in landmine incidents at the DMZ. North Korean soldiers have been laying down landmines, building anti-tank barriers and other defense structures at the DMZ…
NYT: Ukraine-Russia Peace Is as Elusive as Ever. But in 2022 They Were Talking. Representatives from the warring nations held peace talks in the early weeks of the Russian invasion. They fizzled. Documents from those talks show why any new ones will face major obstacles. https://archive.is/dDPFY#selection-433.0-439.191
@zerohedge: Norinchukin, which holds 20% of all foreign bonds held by Japanese banks, is starting a fire sale to plug its 2.2 trillion yen in unrealized losses because in Japan they don’t have a BTFP facility. Norinchukin (“Nochu”) is Japan’s “farmer” bank: it holds around $600 billion in deposits from Japan’s agricultural and fishing collectives. Most of the pensions of Japan’s lowest-income workers are stored here. Until recently, Nochu was best known as the CLO whale: it had invested over $40BN billions in various US CLOs (as least it was in the less risky tranches) making it one of the world’s largest CLO buyers. In 2022, the bank stopped its purchases of CLOs after the near-collapse of the UK bond market, the subsequent credit market shock and BOE bailout…
Head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah threatens Israel, Cyprus in televised address The head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned on Wednesday that his group would fight with “no rules” and “no ceilings” in case a broader war with Israel erupted, and that nowhere in Israel would be safe from Hezbollah’s attacks… https://whbl.com/2024/06/19/head-of-lebanons-hezbollah-threatens-israel-cyprus-in-televised-address/
WaPo: Hezbollah drones threaten to bypass Israel Iron Dome … Israel received a shock Tuesday when Hezbollah released drone footage showing a critical Israeli military base at the port of Haifa…
WaPo: Israel’s air defense caught off guard by Hezbollah’s low-tech drones As Hezbollah aircraft hit military sites and homes, they are resurfacing debates over Israel’s decade-old air defense system, which many worry provides an imperfect shield…
Israel warns of prospect of ‘all-out war’ after Hezbollah publishes video of military, civilian sites “We are getting very close to the moment of deciding to change the rules of the game against Hezbollah and Lebanon,” Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a statement on X. “In an all-out war, Hezbollah will be destroyed, and Lebanon severely beaten,” he added… Weapons expert Wim Zwijnenburg… told CNN that a drone visible in the footage appears to be “an Iranian-origin model of a Qasaf-2k, possibly manufactured locally.”… https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/18/middleeast/hezbollah-drone-video-israel-haifa-intl-latam/index.html
High-level US-Israel meeting ‘canceled,’ per source, as WH official says details not ‘fully finalized’ Biden’s administration is ‘effectively allying with Iran,’ expert says “What’s becoming clear is that the White House has misled Congress and the American people as to the extent of the withholding of key munitions that Israel needs to defend itself. It’s not just about 2,000-pound bombs, it’s about the precision guided conversion kits,” he told Fox News Digital. “The president is effectively allying with Iran to squeeze Israel inside Tehran’s ring of fire,” he added,referring to the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah terror groups… https://www.foxnews.com/politics/high-level-us-israel-meeting-canceled-per-source-wh-official-says-details-not-fully-finalized
Iran and its proxies (Hamas, Hezbollah, etc.) might be operating under the belief that they have a 7-month window to attack Israel under Team Obama-Biden’s shield, which could be gone in January if DJT wins.
PS – Russia, China, and other US antagonists also are cognizant of the Obama-Biden window.
Markets on WednesdayNikkei +0.23%, Hang Seng +2.87% (Xiaomi rallied as much as 6.4% on record sales of 26.3B yuan), CSI 300 -0.47%, Shanghai Comp -0.4%, Shenzhen Comp -0.87%Euro Stoxx 50 -0.61%, FTSE +0.17%, CAC -0.77%, DAX -0.35%, IBEX -0.10%, MIB -0.29%ESUs: Hi 5567.0, Lo 5559.75, Close 5561.75, +2.00NQUs: Hi 20252.50, Lo 20204.00, Close 20231.00, +34.75 (Nvidia +3% peak in Europe)USUs: Hi 120 18/32, Lo 120 6/32, Close 1120 9/32, –5/32 McDonald’s to end AI drive-thru experiment after errant orders — including bacon on ice cream and $222 McNuggets bill (What!? AI isn’t sacrosanct?! Perhaps the pin for the bubble is developing.) https://nypost.com/2024/06/17/business/mcdonalds-to-end-ai-drive-thru-experiment-after-errant-orders/
Today – The usual suspects will keep pigging out on Nvidia and other Mag 7 stocks until something disabuses them of the notion that these are ‘one-way stocks.’ If Nvidia surges early, be alert for a reversal at some point later in the session. The general market might not follow NVDA on the upside, but it probably will on the downside.
NQUs are +46.00 (From Tuesday); ESUs are +4.25; USUs are -7/32; and gold is -4.50 at 21:22 ET.
Expected economic data: Q1 Current Account -$206.8B; Initial Jobless Claims 235k, Continuing Claims 1.81m; May Housing Starts 1.37m, Permits 1.45m; June Phil Fed Business Outlook 5.0; Minn Fed Pres Kashkari 8:45 ET, Richmond Fed Pres Barkin 16:00 ET
S&P Index 50-day MA: 5221; 100-day MA: 5155; 150-day MA: 4996; 200-day MA: 4831 DJIA 50-day MA: 38,727; 100-day MA: 38,802; 150-day MA: 38,108; 200-day MA: 37,037 (Green is positive slope; Red is negative slope)
S&P 500 Index (5487.03 close) – BBG trading model Trender and MACD for key time frames Monthly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 4750.24 triggers a sell signal Weekly: Trender is positive; MACD is negative – a close below 5153.73 triggers a sell signal Daily: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5368.62 triggers a sell signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5464.24 triggers a sell signal
@CollinRugg: Attendees for a DACA anniversary event (Tuesday) are visibly concerned after President Joe Biden has another senior moment as he appears to forget how to talk. “Thanks to all the members of Congress and Homeland Security… Secretary… ughya… uhhh… ima… not sure you’re gonna…” – Bidenhttps://x.com/CollinRugg/status/1803156823803044213
Top Dems: Biden has losing strategy – Axios Relies on voter concerns about Jan. 6, political violence, democracy and Donald Trump’s character… Biden’s core inner circle hasn’t lost faith in that approach, the product of Biden and his longtime aide, Mike Donilon. But that puts them on an island within much of the party about what will decide the election… A Democratic strategist in touch with the campaign told Axios: “It is unclear to many of us watching from the outside whether the president and his core team realize how dire the situation is right now, and whether they even have a plan to fix it. That is scary.”… https://www.axios.com/2024/06/19/biden-faith-campaign-mike-donilon-2024-election
Someone In the Biden Campaign is Leaking Data to the Press. Here’s Why… In essence, POLITICO ran a story that breaks down Biden‘s presidential campaign committee’s messaging, data, and advertising pitches regarding the Trump verdict, point-by-point… Process stories, like the one published by POLITICO, often occur when a campaign wants to shift messaging and alert its allies without overtly breaking the law… Biden’s pollster elaborates further, noting to allies that the messaging should be tied to a broader narrative accusing Trump of “being self-centered and unwilling to take responsibility for his actions.” https://thenationalpulse.com/analysis-post/someone-in-the-biden-campaign-is-leaking-data-to-the-press-heres-why/
@Runyonesque3: The punters are deserting Biden after a week of disastrous public appearances… Trump: 8/13 $1.62 61.73%; Biden: 15/8 $2.88 34.72%
FBI knew since 2016 Hunter Biden’s team nearly scored $120 million Ukrainian deal while Joe was VP – Hunter Biden and his partners had plotted to set up a new venture in tax-friendly Liechtenstein that would be capitalized by a whopping $120 million investment from the controversial owner of the Ukrainian energy firm Burisma Holdings, according to documents obtained by Just the News that have been kept from the American public for eight years… The cache of documents was recently turned over by former Hunter Biden business partner Devon Archer to the House Oversight Committee as part of its impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden’s conduct… https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/hld-hunter-biden-was-proposed-board-member-120-million-burisma
@GOPoversight: HUNTER PLAYED THE DAD CARD IN SEC INVESTIGATION In 2016, Hunter Biden was subpoenaed by the Securities and Exchange Commission for information in its investigation of a tribal bond scheme in which several individuals were charged with violating federal securities laws. We obtained Hunter Biden’s response, dated April 20, 2016, to the SEC subpoena. In the letter, Hunter’s counsel wrote: “As a threshold matter, we request that you treat this matter with the highest degree of confidentiality, consistent with Commission policy and applicable law. The confidential nature of this investigation is very important to our clientand it would be unfair, not just to our client, but also to his father, the Vice President of the United States, if his involvement in an SEC investigation and parallel criminal probe were to become the subject of any media attention.” On May 11, 2016, the SEC published a press release—announcing the charging of seven individuals—with no mention or charging of Hunter Biden. @RepJamesComer and @Jim_Jordan want answers from the SEC. https://x.com/GOPoversight/status/1803087847076888621
Politico: It’s a tale of two murderous threats, and some members are sure to wonder why they were handled differently. A federal judge sentenced a Houston man yesterday to 33 months, including a hate-crime enhancement for racial targeting, for repeatedly threatening Rep. MAXINE WATERS (D-Calif.) in 2022. Meanwhile, a man who threatened Rep. JIM BANKS (R-Ind.) and his family went unprosecuted by the area’s U.S. attorney, ABC reports. (He was later charged by a local prosecutor.) Banks pressed AG MERRICK GARLAND on the uneven standard but has not gotten a response. https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2024/06/18/trump-the-team-player-00163853
@EndWokeness: New York Governor Kathy Hochul on the forecast predicting 90°F weather in NY: “Temperatures at levels not seen in our lifetimes… a significant health event.” “Not a natural hot weather stretch.” (It’s June!) https://x.com/EndWokeness/status/1803473374829592993
“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” — George Orwell, 1984
@TonySeruga: While I have hundreds of long-time trusted contacts between NYPD and LAPD, I am getting messages from LEOs across the U.S. that uniforms, equipment, cruisers (even a SWAT truck) have turned up missing in the past 6 months and no one seems to care. There have always been the occasional dry cleaner thefts, police vehicle burglaries, badges/ID, guns stolen from personal vehicles/home burglaries but this is different, targeting dozens of items at the same time.
@kylenabecker: This is what Malcolm X thought about White Liberals. “The white liberal differs from the white conservative only in one way: The liberal is more deceitful, more hypocritical than the conservative. Both want power, but the white liberal is the one who has perfected the art of posing as the Negro’s friend and benefactor.” “And by winning the friendship and support of the Negro, the white liberal is able to use the Negro as a pawn or a weapon in this political football game that is constantly raging between the white liberals and the white conservatives.” “The American Negro is nothing but a political football, and the white liberals control this ball through tricks or tokenism, false promises of integration and civil rights.” “In this game of deceiving and using the American Negro, the white liberals have complete cooperation of the Negro civil rights leader who sell our people out for a few crumbs of token recognition, token gains, token progress.”
In a stunning new CV19 vax lawsuit filed this week by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, there is new hope to finally bring down the CV19 bioweapon vax industry. AG Kobach filed a lawsuit against Pfizer, the biggest maker of the CV19 so-called “vaccine” with more than 60% of the market globally. Kobach is alleging “unlawful misrepresentation” of the efficacy of the injections and “censoring public discussion” of the disastrous effects of the injections. On top of that, it is reported by Kobach that four other states are going to join the Kansas AG’s lawsuit. This is big, and biotech analyst Karen Kingston, who has warned from the beginning of the murderous and disabling effects of the CV19 injections, explains why, “I am overjoyed to share this. Again, AG Kobach is suing Pfizer for ‘fraud and unconscionable acts.’ Ten counts have been brought against Pfizer, including conspiring with Health and Human Services (HHS), the (legacy) media, social media, other agencies and even the lobbying group ‘Bio.’ Even bigger than that, Kobach announced four other states will be joining this lawsuit and potentially even more. . .”
Why were other vax makers not sued? Kingston said, “It was because of the contract Pfizer had. They were not under the supervision of the U.S. government and did not participate with the Warp Speed program. Under that program, the U.S. government controlled the products that were being manufactured. . . . What it comes down to is because of the contract that Pfizer signed with the U.S. government, and it looks like Trump had his fingerprints all over it, the art of the deal, Trump broke Pfizer’s liability shield that the contract would be a weapon, so that state prosecutors and Americans could sue Pfizer if they did anything wrong. They tried to defraud us, and they harmed and manipulated us.”
Just in Kansas alone, Pfizer could be liable for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages for killing and harming people. Kingston goes on to say, “In all of these counts that are being brought by Kansas and the four additional states, the 10th count is the most important because so much for saying the Covid-19 injections are not safe and effective and they do cause harm, disease, disability, infertility, Myocarditis, Pericarditis and death. It is no longer a conspiracy theory. It is a fact with count number 10, it is a civil conspiracy.”
Many groups are alleged to have conspired to keep information about the dangers of these CV19 injections from the public. Some of the groups are the US government’s Health and Human Services (HHS), Stanford University and ‘BIO’ (Biotechnology Innovation Organization), the world’s largest bio lobbying group. Kingston adds, “BIO was the group that worked behind the scenes to shut down the BIOSECURE Act on behalf of China. . . . Even though these other groups are named as co-conspirators in this lawsuit, they are not going after those co-conspirators. You let Pfizer bring them in and explain what happened.” Kingston adds all co-conspirators can be sued for their role in hiding the truth about the CV19 injections from the public at a later time.
Kingston also points out, “When the BIOSECURE Act was brought up earlier this year, all the CEOs of Pfizer, GSK, AstraZeneca, they all flew to China and said you’ve got our backs, right? You are going to protect us, right? . . . . I think these Attorneys General are starting to wake up and say, wait a second, this mRNA technology from our U.S. pharma companies was actually used as a weapon against the American people. If they don’t stop it, there will be no future for our country. There will be no posterity. I think they are realizing that, but I also think they want to avoid World War III.”
In closing, Kingston says the Pfizer data proves, “If you get the injection, you get the (CV19) infection. It is the exact opposite of what we would call a vaccine. On top of that, they (Pfizer) knew about all the disease, disability, infertility and death that it would cause. . . . Their actual labeling is criminal. . . .Forcing the CV19 vaccine was about breaking American values and breaking our belief that individuals have human rights. That’s what it was about. . . . This is also about editing human beings, and not just human beings, but all biological lifeforms. The synthetic bio industry wants to do this to the world, and they want the laws to go away. They think they are the good guys.”
There is much more in the 51-minute interview.
Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog.com as he goes One-on-One with renowned biotech analyst Karen Kingston as she gives groundbreaking analysis on what the Kansas AG’s new lawsuit against Pfizer means for finally stopping the CV19 mRNA bioweapon vax nightmare in America for 6.18.24.
More Dr. P. A. horse shit. Now he’s an expert on politics and war. Shame on P. P. A.’s and H. O.’s fake news site..! I’ll donate when you clean up the horse shit and the blatant Trump bias.
harveyorganblog.com 
More Dr. P. A. horse shit. Now he’s an expert on politics and war. Shame on P. P. A.’s and H. O.’s fake news site..! I’ll donate when you clean up the horse shit and the blatant Trump bias.
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