DEC 5/GOLD CLOSED DOWN $26.80 TO $2625.15//SILVER CLOSED DOWN ONLY 23 CENTS TO $31.05//PLATINUM WAS DOWN $8.90 TO $935.45 WHILE PALLADIUM WAS DOWN $17.00 TO $965.40 //GOLD COMMENTARY TONIGHT FROM ALASDAIR MACLEOD//GERMANY VOLKSWAGEN IN TROUBLE AS THEY MUST LOWER THEIR COSTS//UK MIGRANT PROBLEM OUTLINED/ISRAEL VS HAMAS:: CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL SENT TO HAMAS//ISRAEL VS HEZBOLLAH MANY VIOLATIONS//MAJOR UPDATES IN SYRIAN REBELLION WITH HTS TAKING HAMA//THINGS ARE REALLY BAD OVER THERE AS SYRIA’S ASSAD IS ASKING FOR ISRAEL HELP: ISRAEL WILL AGREE IF THEY EXPEL IRANIAN ASSETS THERE//RUSSIA VS UKRAINE UPDATES//MEDICAL; MARK CRISPIN MILLER REPORT/DR PAUL ALEXANDER/SLAY NEWS ETC//MORE UPDATES ON THE CONTRACT KILLING OF THOMPSON/VICTOR DAVIS HANSON COMMENTARY/SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT///
099 H DB AG 8 132 C SG AMERICAS 4 190 H BMO CAPITAL 7 363 H WELLS FARGO SEC 23 435 H SCOTIA CAPITAL 1 555 H BNP PARIBAS SEC 6 624 H BOFA SECURITIES 13 657 C MORGAN STANLEY 2 661 C JP MORGAN 9 3 661 H JP MORGAN 7 686 C STONEX FINANCIA 61 16 690 C ABN AMRO 17 6 737 C ADVANTAGE 13 3 880 C CITIGROUP 1
TOTAL: 100 100 MONTH TO DATE: 16,501
JPMorgan stopped 10/100
GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR DEC/2024. CONTRACT: 100 NOTICES FOR 10,000 OZ 0.3110 TONNES
total notices so far: 16,501 contracts for 1,650,100 Oz (51.325 tonnes)
FOR DEC
SILVER NOTICES: 280 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 1.400 MILLION OZ/
total number of notices filed so far this month : 6735 for 33.675 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 DOWN $26.80 INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD:
NO CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:
INVENTORY RESTS AT 873.65 TONNES
SLV/
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER DOWN $0.23 AT THE SLV
NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:
INVESTORS ARE SWITCHING SLV TO SPROTT’S PSLV.
CLOSING INVENTORY: 470.718 MILLION OZ
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI ROSE BY A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED2775CONTRACTS TO 136,849 AND CONTINUING ON ITS MARCH TO THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020, AND THIS MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR SMALL SIZED GAIN OF $0.26 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S TRADING. WE HAD A MEGA MEGA HUMONGOUS GAIN OF 5905 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES WITH OUR GAIN OF $0.26 IN PRICE. WE HAD ZERO LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS ON WEDNESDAY COMEX TRADING AS THEY DESPERATELY TRIED TO CONTAIN SILVER’S PRICE RISE FOR THE PAST 2 WEEKS BUT THEY FAILED WEDNESDAY WITH SILVER’S GAIN OF 26 CENTS.
WE HAD AN EXTRA HUMONGOUS 3130 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE ACCOMPANIED BY A STRONG 451 CONTRACT T.A.S ISSUANCE WHICH WILL BEING USED IN THURSDAY’S TRADING AS THEY PLAY AN INTEGRAL PART IN OUR COMEX TRADING TRYING TO CONTAIN ANY SILVER PRICE RISE. IN ESSENCE WE GAINED A MEGA MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED 5905 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES DESPITE OUR SMALLISH GAIN IN PRICE. WE HAD ZERO TAS LIQUIDATION THROUGHOUT WEDNESDAY’S COMEX SESSION
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 SEVERAL TIMES LAST MONTH AND AGAIN ON LAST WEEK. THE ACCUMULATED T.A.S. WAS BEING USED TO MANIPULATE PRICES AT THE COMEX AND THAT THAT CONTINUED ON MONDAY..
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 WEDNESDAY NIGHT: A STRONG 451 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 NOW SEEMS THAT THE OCC HAS ORDERED THE BANKS TO REDUCE ITS NEW LEVEL OF 1 TRILLION DOLLARS IN GOLD/SILVER DERIVATIVES AND THUS THE REASON FOR CONSTANT RAIDS BUT TO NO AVAIL TODAY. IT ALSO LOOKS LIKE THE FED (GOV’T) IS BEHIND EVERY DAY 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 $0.26) AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OFF ANY APPRECIABLE NET SILVER LONGS FROM THEIR PERCH AS WE HAD AN EXTRA HUMONGOUS GAIN IN OI ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A HUGE 3130 CONTRACT ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 40.435 MILLION OZ (FIRST DAY NOTICE) TO WHICH WE MUST ADD ANOTHER OF THOSE STUPID “DELIVERIES” CALLED EXCHANGE FOR RISK LAST THURSDAY NIGHT (NOV 29) THE CME ISSUED 132 NOTICES OR .66 MILLION OZ WHERE BY THE BUYER TAKES THE RISK THAT HE WILL EVER BE DELIVERED UPON. WHAT A CROCK OF NONSENSE! THERE WAS NO EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUED WEDNESDAY NIGHT (WHAT A RELIEF). HOWEVER WE DID HAVE A HUGE 123 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFER TO LONDON WHERE THESE GUYS WILL TAKE IMMEDIATE DELIVERY OVER THERE. FOR 615,000 OZ
// STANDING FOR SILVER//DEC REDUCES TO 36.055 MILLION OZ + .66 MILLION OZ EX FOR RISK = 36/715 MILLION OZ
WE HAD:
/ HUGE SIZED COMEX OI GAIN ( ZERO T.A.S. LIQUIDATION +//HUGE SIZED EFP ISSUANCE/ VI) STRONG SIZED NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE 451 CONTRACTS)/
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL: ADDED 31 CONTRACTS.
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS NOV. ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF DEC
TOTAL CONTRACTS for 4DAYS, total 6599 contracts: OR 32.995 MILLION OZ (1649 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 32.995 MILLION OZ
LAST 24 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//3RD HIGHEST EVER RECORDED FOR A MONTH)
MAY: 135.995 MILLION OZ //WILL BE A STRONG MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
JUNE 110.575 MILLION OZ ( WILL BE ANOTHER STRONG MONTH ISSUANCE)
JULY: 108.870 MILLION OZ (WILL BE A STRONG ISSUANCE MONTH/ A TOUCH OVER 100 MILLION OZ/)
AUGUST; 99.740 MILLION OZ//THIS MONTH WILL BE STRONG FOR ISSUANCE BUT LESS THAN JULY.
SEPT: 112.415 MILLION OZ//WILL BE A HUGE MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
OCT; 97.485 MILLION OZ (WILL BE SMALLER ISSUANCE THIS MONTH )
NOV. 115.970 MILLION OZ ( HUGE THIS MONTH)
DEC: 32.995 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH WILL BE A HUMDINGER FOR ISSUANCE
RESULT: WE HAD A HUGE SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 2775 CONTRACTS WITH OUR GAIN OF $0.26 IN PRICE OF SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX//WEDNESDAY.,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A HUGE EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 3130 ISSUED FOR DEC 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 DEC OF 40.435 MILLION OZ ON FIRST DAY NOTICE, FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 0.615 MILLION OZ EX FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFER TO LONDON TO WHICH WE ADD .66 MILLION OZ OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK//NEW TOTAL; 37.33 MILLION OZ
//NEW TOTAL STANDING FOR DEC AT 36.055 MILLION OZ
WE HAVE A HUGE SIZED GAIN OF 5905 OI CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE…..THE TOTAL OF TAS INITIATED CONTRACTS TODAY: A STRONG 451 CONTRACTS TRYING DESPERATELY TO CONTAIN SILVER’S PRICE RISE,//ZERO FRONT END OF THE TAS CONTRACTS WERE LIQUIDATED DURING THE WEDNEDAY COMEX SESSION. BUT THEY STILL NEED THESE ISSUANCE FOR REPLENISHMENT FOR FUTURE TRADING /THE STRONG TA.S. ISSUANCE//LIQUIDATION DISTORTS THE TOTAL OI CONTRACTS STANDING AT THE COMEX. NO NET LONG SPECULATORS WERE BURNED ON WEDNESDAY
/ ZERO NET SHORT COVERING FROM OUR SPEC SHORTS WITH THE GAIN IN PRICE WEDNESDAY/ . ALSO SOME OF OUR LONGS EXERCISED THEIR RIGHT AND TENDERED FOR PHYSICAL SILVER MUCH TO THE ANGER OF OUR BANKERS. SILVER IS NOT BASEL III COMPLIANT SO THE BANKERS CAN TAKE THEIR TIME WITH THE DELIVERY OF SILVER.
THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE WEDNESDAY NIGHT (451) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE
WE HAD 280 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 1.40 MILLION 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 6824 OI CONTRACTS TO 468,864 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 A FAIR SIZED 734 CONTRACTS//
WE HAD A STRONG SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI (6824 CONTRACTS) OCCURRED WITH OUR GAIN OF $6.15 IN PRICE WEDNESDAY. THE FRBNY SUPPLIED THE NECESSARY SHORT PAPER.. WE ALSO HAD A GOOD INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR DEC AT 55.169 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE. FOLLOWED BY WEDNESDAY’S 49 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP FOR 4900 OZ (0.1524 TONNES OF GOLD). THIS TOTALS 54.314 TONNES AND FROM THAT WE MUST ADD SATURDAY’S ISSUANCE OF .7776 TONNES OF EX. FOR RISK AND THEN YESTERDAY’S ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 1.919 TONNES//NEW STANDING 57.0106 TONNES
NEW STANDING FOR DEC: 57.0106 TONNES
/ ALL OF THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $6.15 GAIN IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S COMEX ///. WE HAD A HUMONGOUS GAIN OF 24,269 OI CONTRACTS (75.486 PAPER TONNES) ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES, WITH MANY LONGS, REMAINING AT THE END OF THE DAY, TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL GOLD VIA THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ROUTE, MUCH TO THE ANGER AND HORROR EXHIBITED BY OUR MAJOR BANKER, THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF NEW YORK. THE HORROR INTENSIFIED ONCE LONDON STARTED TO TRADE LAST WEEK, AND THROUGHOUT THE WEEK WITH MAJOR TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL VIA THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ROUTE! YOU CAN VISUALIZE THIS WITH THE VIOLENT ACTION AT THE COMEX WITH RESPECT TO 49 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP TODAY ALONG WITH THE .7776 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK “DELIVERY” ISSUED EARLY SATURDAY MORNING AND THEN YESTERDAY’S ISSUANCE OF 1.919 TONNES (EX. FOR RISK)
E.F.P. ISSUANCE
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED 17,445 CONTRACTS:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 469,598
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED INCREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 24,269 CONTRACTS WITH 6824 CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A HUMONGOUS SIZED 17,445 EFP OI CONTRACT ISSUANCE WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 24,269 CONTRACTS.. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A FAIR SIZED BUT CRIMINAL 1273 CONTRACTS ISSUED. WE HAD A ZERO LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S CONTRACTS WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE TUESDAY AS THE NEED FOR REPLENISHMENT WAS STILL IN ORDER TO CARRY OUT ITS PRICE CONTAINMENT STRATEGY IN FUTURE TRADING.
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (17,445 CONTRACTS) ACCOMPANYING THE STRONG SIZED INCREASE IN COMEX OI OF 6824 CONTRACTS/TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 24,269 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 DEC 55.169 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY.S 4900 OZ QUEUE JUMP TO WHICH WE ADD THE CRAZY .7776 TONNES OF EX. FOR RISK PRIOR AND THEN YESTERDAY’S ISSUANCE OF 1.919 TONNES//NEW STANDING RISES TO 57.0106 TONNES
//NEW STANDING DECEMBER: 57.0106 TONNES
/ 3) ZERO T.A.S. LIQUIDATION (TRYING TO LOWER GOLD’S PRICE WEDNESDAY WITH ZERO SUCCESS AS WE HAD A $6.15 PRICE GAIN .WE HAD ZERO NET LONG SPECS BEING CLIPPED AS WE HAD A STRONG GAIN IN OI ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES. STICKY GOLD’S LONGS ARE NOT FOOLED BY THE RAID IN PRICE AS THEY WERE REWARDED WEDNESDAY EVENING AS THEY EXERCISED EFP’S FROM LONDON TO TAKE DELIVERY OF BADLY NEEDED PHYSICAL.
4) STRONG SIZED COMEX OPEN INTEREST INCREASE 5) HUMONGOUS ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER///FAIR T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 1273 T.A.S.CONTRACTS///49 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP OR 4900 OZ WILL STAND FOR DELIVERY AT THE COMEX.
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023-2024 INCLUDING TODAY
DEC
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF DEC :
TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 30,952 CONTRACTS OF 3,095,200 OZ OR 96.27 TONNES IN 4 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 7738 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN 4 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES 96.27 TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2023, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 96.27 DIVIDED BY 3550 x 100% TONNES = 2.70% 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/SECOND HIGHEST ON RECORD
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 175.11 tonnes HEADING FOR A WEAKER MONTH AND MUCH LESS THAN THE THREE PREVIOUS MONTHS
JULY: 351. 65 TONNES (3RD HIGHEST EVER RECORDED EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL AND THE HIGHEST EVER RECORDED POST BASEL III)
AUGUST: 274.79 TONNES//THIS MONTH WILL NO DOUBT BE A STRONG ISSUANCE OF EFP’S BUT MUCH LESS THAN LAST MONTH.
SEPT: 335 .104 TONNES//IF THIS CONTINUES WE WILL HAVE A HUMDINGER OF AN EFP ISSUANCE. WE WILL PROBABLY END JUST SHORT OF THE 3RD HIGHEST ISSUANCE EVER RECORDED.
OCT. 277.71 TONNES (THIS WILL BE A GOOD ISSUANCE THIS MONTH)
NOV: 393.875 TONNES ( A HUGE MONTH////NOW SURPASSED THE PREVIOUS 3RD AND 2ND HIGHEST EVER RECORDED EX FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE TO BECOME THE 2ND HIGHEST EVER RECORDED
DEC 96.27 TONNES
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 SEPTEMBER. 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 (OCT), 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 HUGE SIZED 2775 CONTRACTS OI TO 136,849 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 7 YEARS AGO. HOWEVER WE HAVE NOW SET A NEW RECORD LOW OF 114,102 CONTRACTS JULY 3.2023
EFP ISSUANCE 3130 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
DEC 3130 and ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 3130 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 2775 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 3130 E.FP. ISSUED
WE OBTAIN A HUGE SIZED GAIN OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 5905 CONTRACTS
THUS IN OUNCES, THE GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTALS 29.525 MILLION OZ OCCURRED WITH OUR $0.26 GAIN IN PRICE
c) Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens
ii a) Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
b. Other gold/silver commentaries
c. Commodity commentaries//
d)/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC
2.ASIAN AFFAIRS//THURSDAY MORNING WEDNESDAY NIGHT
ASIA TRADING THURSDAY MORNING/WEDNESDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR 0.13%
//Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 182.02 PTS OR 0.92%
// Nikkei CLOSED UP 119.21 OR 0.30%//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP .18%///Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED UP TO 7.2703 CHINESE YUAN OFFSHORE CLOSED UP TO 7.2703// Oil DOWN TO 68.52 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT DOWN AT 72,32 Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL MOSTLY GREEN
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN STRONGER
1. COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS
GOLD
LET US BEGIN:
THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST ROSE BY A STRONG SIZED6824 CONTRACTS TO 468,824 WITH OUR GAIN IN PRICE OF $6.15 WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S TRADING. , WE LOST ZERO NET LONGS AS WE HAD A STRONG PRICE GAIN FOR GOLD AND AS YOU WILL SEE BELOW WE HAD A MEGA HUMONGOUS NUMBER OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUED (17,445). THUS A MEGA HUMONGOUS GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 24,269 CONTRACTS AND THEREFORE NO LOSS IN NET LONGS.
THE LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS THROUGHOUT LAST MONTH CONTINUES TO DISTORT OPEN INTEREST NUMBERS GREATLY AND IT SURELY WAS ON DISPLAY THIS ENTIRE PAST WEEK AND ESPECIALLY DURING MONDAY’S LOSS IN PRICE. WE HAD VERY LITTLE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION YESTERDAY.
THE FED IS THE MAJOR SHORT OF AROUND 93+ TONNES OF GOLD OWING TO THE B.I.S. THE FED NEEDS TO COVER AS THEY ARE VERY WORRIED ABOUT WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO GOLD PRICES ONCE THE BRICS BEGIN THEIR INITIATIVE AND ABANDON THE US DOLLAR. THIS IS SCHEDULED TO HAPPEN LATE OCT 2024/(AS OUTLINED IN OUR GOLD PHYSICAL COMMENTARIES//VIEW ANDREW MAGUIRE LATEST LIVE FROM VAULT PODCAST 197 , 199, AND FRIDAY NIGHTS 201 AS HE TACKLES THIS IMPORTANT TOPIC). THE FOUR OR FIVE BANKS ARE ALSO WORRIED ABOUT THEIR HUGE PRECIOUS METAL DERIVATIVE EXPOSURE (NORTH OF ONE TRILLION DOLLARS) AND THIS IS PROBABLY THE MAJOR REASON FOR GOLD/SILVER’S RISE THESE PAST TWO MONTHS. THEY ARE TOTALLY TRAPPED., AND THEIR FAILURE TO STOP CENTRAL BANK PURCHASES OF PHYSICAL GOLD IS THE MAJOR ISSUE OF THE DAY! ACTUALLY THE FED HAS COAXED THE SPECULATORS TO GO MASSIVELY SHORT WHILE THEY TAKE THE LONG SIDE AFTER THEY COMMENCE THE AVALANCHE IN LOWERING THE PRICE OF GOLD.
OUR PHYSICAL LONDONERS BOUGHT NEW MASSIVE QUANTITIES OF LONGS AT ANY PRICE AND THIS GOLD BOUGHT WILL BE TENDERED FOR PHYSICAL ON A T + 1 BASIS. BECAUSE GOLD IS BASEL III COMPLIANT, GOLD MUST BE DELIVERED IN A VERY TIMELY ONE DAY. CENTRAL BANKS AROUND THE WORLD, BEING REPRESENTED BY OUR LONDONERS, ARE THE REAL PURCHASERS OF THIS GOLD.
WE HAD CONSIDERABLE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION THROUGHOUT LAST WEEK’S TRADING BUT VERY LITTLE YESTERDAY.
THE PROBLEM FOR THOSE PROVIDING THE SHORT PAPER IS THE SHOCK TO THEM ON RECEIVING NOTICE THAT THE LONGS WANT THE PHYSICAL GOLD AS THEY TENDER FOR THAT SHINY YELLOW METAL. THE HIGH LIQUIDATION OF THE SPREADERS // T.A.S DURING LAST WEEK AND EARLY THIS WEEK IS SURELY DISTORTING COMEX OPEN INTEREST BUT THAT DOES NOT STOP LONDON’S ACCUMULATION OF PHYSICAL! YOU CAN ALSO VISUALIZE THAT PERFECTLY WITH THE HUGE AMOUNTS OF QUEUE JUMPING ORCHESTRATED BY CENTRAL BANKERS BOLTING AHEAD OF ORDINARY LONGS AS THEIR NEED FOR PHYSICAL IS GREAT AS THEY SCOUR THE PLANET LOOKING FOR GOLD
EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
WE ARE NOW ENTERING INTO THE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF DECEMBER.… THE CME REPORTS THAT THE BANKERS ISSUED A HUGE SIZED TRANSFER THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE AS THESE LONGS RECEIVED A DELIVERABLE LONDON FORWARD TOGETHER WITH A FIAT BONUS.,
THAT IS A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED 17,445 EFP CONTRACTS WERE ISSUED: : /DEC 17,445 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:
TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 17,445 CONTRACTS. THESE EFP;S CIRCLE AROUND LONDON ON A 13 DAY BASIS AND ARE NOW USED BY GLOBAL CENTRAL BANKS TO EXERCISE FOR PHYSICAL GOLD WITH THE OBLIGATION TO DELIVER BEING FORCED ONTO COMEX BANKS. THE GOLD DELIVERED COMES FROM LONDON.
ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE GAINED THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A MEGA HUMONGOUS SIZED TOTAL OF 24,269 CONTRACTS IN THAT 17,445 CONTRACT LONGS WERE TRANSFERRED AS EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN OF 6824 COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS HUMONGOUS GAIN ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED DESPITE OUR SMALL GAIN IN PRICE OF $6.15 WEDNESDAY// COMEX. THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS WILL BE USED BY CENTRAL BANKS, TO EXERCISE FOR PHYSICAL GOLD AS MENTIONED ABOVE.
AS PER OUR NEWBIE TRADE AT SETTLEMENT (TAS) MANIPULATION OPERATION (WHICH CRAIG HEMKE HAS POINTED OUT HAPPENS USUALLY DURING MID MONTH IN THE DELIVERY CYCLE), BUT NOW ON A DAILY BASIS, THE CME REPORTS THAT THE TOTAL T.A.S. ISSUANCE FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT WAS A NORMAL SIZED SIZED 1273 CONTRACTS, AND THESE WILL BE USED TO REPLENISH SUPPLIES.. ALMOST ALL 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 (T.A.S.) 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 ORCHESTRATED, ON MONDAY NOV 25, THEIR RAID TO LOWER THE PRICE OF GOLD TO MAKE THEIR COMEX BETS WHOLE ON OPTIONS EXPIRY WEEK AND THUS THE NEED FOR CONTINUAL STRONG T.A.S. ISSUANCE AND THEN LIQUIDATION (COUPLED WITH THE LIQUIDATION OF CALENDAR SPREADERS ). THE USE OF OUR TWO SPREADER MECHANISMS WERE OF EXTREME IMPORTANCE TO OUR CROOKS IN LAST WEEK’S TRADING. WE HAD CONTINUAL T.A.S. AND FINAL MONTH END SPREADER LIQUIDATION ON LAST FRIDAY.THE LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. SUBSIDED WITH YESTERDAY’S TRADING.
// WE HAVE A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING: DEC (57.0106 TONNES) WHICH IS HUGE FOR OUR ACTIVE DEC DELIVERY MONTH.
HERE ARE THE AMOUNTS THAT STOOD FOR DELIVERY IN THE PRECEDING 48 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/= 11.9325
JUNE; 95.578 TONNES. + 1.045 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK =96.623 THIS IS THE HIGHEST RECORDED GOLD STANDING SINCE AUGUST 2022
JULY: 11.692 TONNES
AUGUST 69.602 TONNES//FINAL STANDING
SEPT. 13.164 TONNES.
OCT 39.474 TONNES + + 20.917 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK =60.391 TONNES
NOV . 11.265 TONNES +4.665 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK/TUESDAY + 3.11 TONNES OF EX. FOR RISK/PRIOR = 19.0425 TONNES
DEC: 54.314 TONNES + .776 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK PRIOR + 1.919 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK YESTERDAY /NEW TOTAL 57.0106 TONNES
THE SPECS/HFT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT ROSE BY $6.15/)//AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OFF ANY NET SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE DID HAVE A MEGA HUMONGOUS GAIN IN PRICE WITH OUR TWO EXCHANGES. WE DID HAVE LITTLE T.A.S. SPREADER LIQUIDATION WEDNESDAY. WE ALSO HAD A NORMAL T.A.S. ISSUANCE AS THE NEED FOR REPLENISHMENT WAS STILL PRESENT. THIS COULD NOT STOP CENTRAL BANK LONGS, SEIZING THE MOMENT, EXERCISED AGAIN FOR PHYSICAL IN A BIG WAY TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL WEDNESDAY EVENING. LATE FRIDAY NIGHT (EARLY SATURDAY MORNING NOV 30) THE CME ANNOUNCED ANOTHER OF THOSE CRAZY DELIVERIES: THE ISSUANCE OF 250 EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS WHICH TOTAL 25000 OZ (.7776 TONNES. HERE THE BUYER ASSUMES THE RISK THAT HE WILL BE DELIVERED UPON IN PHYSICAL METAL. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY INSANE AND A HUGE VIOLATION OF THE TRUE DISCOVERY PRICE MECHANISM. AND THEN GUESS WHAT? THE CME ANNOUNCED ANOTHER EXCHANGE FOR RISK, LATE TUESDAY EVENING/ EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING OF 617 CONTRACTS FOR 61,700 OZ OR GOLD (1.919 TONNES) THUS BOTH OF THESE WILL BE ADDED TO THE TOTAL GOLD BEING DELIVERED UPON. (2.6966 TONNES) MERCIFULLY THE CME ANNOUNCED ZERO EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS FOR DELIVERY THURSDAY MORNING.
WE HAVE GAINED A TOTAL OF 77.76 PAPER TONNES FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR DEC (55.167TONNES) ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S HUGE QUEUE JUMP OF 31500 OZ OR 0.9797 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD THAT CRAZY .7776 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK PRIOR ISSUED LATE FRIDAY NIGHT AND THEN OUR NEW EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 1.919 TONNES ISSUED LATE TUESDAY NIGHT (EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING)
THUS TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK/PRIOR = 2.6966
/ STANDING FOR DEC INCREASES TO 57.0106 TONNES
NEW STANDING FOR DECEMBER: 57.0106 TONNES (WHICH IS HUGE FOR OUR VERY ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH)
ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR SMALL GAIN IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $6.15
WE HAD 734 CONTRACTS REMOVED FROM THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST (CROOKS)//PRELIMINARY TO FINAL.
NET GAIN ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 24,269 CONTRACTS OR 2,426900 (75.486 TONNES)
confirmed volume WEDNESDAY 189,727 contracts: poor //// T.A.S. ENHANCED TO A MUCH LESSER EXTENT.
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month
16,501 notices 1,650,100 oz 51.325 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
dealer deposits: 0
total dealer deposits: NIL oz
we have 1 customer deposit
I) from JPMorgan: 14,275.044 oz (444 KILOBARS)
total deposits 14,275.044 oz
withdrawals: 2
i) Out of HSBC 5885.330 oz
ii) Out of Malca 4107.479 oz (129 kilobars)
TOTAL WITHDRAWALS: 10,032.809 oz
adjustments: 0
CALCULATIONS FOR THE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DEC.
For the front month of DEC: we have an oi of 1061 contracts having LOST 775 contracts. We had
824 contracts were served on WEDNESDAY, so we GAINED 49 contracts or 4900 oz underwent a queue jump bolting ahead of others to take delivery of gold.
JANUARY lost 23 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 2138
FEBRUARY GAINED 3409 CONTRACTS TO 362,502 .
We had 100 contracts filed for today representing 10,000 oz
This is a huge 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 9 notices issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 100 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 10 notice(s) was (were) stopped (received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account
To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for DEC /2024. contract month, we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (16,501 x 100 oz ) to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of DEC(1061 CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today (100 x 100 oz per contract( equals 1,746,200 OZ OR 54.314 TONNES. to which we add 2.6966 tonnes of exchange for risk//new total: 57.01166 tonnes
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the DEC contract month: No of notices filed so far (16,501 x 100 oz +we add the difference for front month of DEC (1061 OI} minus the number of notices served upon today (100 x 100 oz which equals 1,746,200 oz (54.314 TONNES) + .2.966 tonnes of ex. for risk PRIOR + //new total 57.0106 TONNES
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING FOR DEC.: 57,016 TONNES WHICH IS HUGE FOR THIS ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH IN THE CALENDAR.
TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED GOLD: 17,833,332.840 OZ
TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD 7,975,826.278/// 248.08 tonnes).
TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD: 9,857,511,612 OZ
REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON: 6,083,295 oz (REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD)= 189.216 tonnes //
JPMorgan enhanced inventory is 3.592 million oz/17.833 million oz = 20.14% of entire inventory..
END
SILVER/COMEX
DEC 5. 2024
INITIAL
//2024// THE DEC 2024 SILVER CONTRACT//INITIAL
Silver
Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory
NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory
599,444.610 OZ
Asahi
.
Deposits to the Dealer Inventory
5,011.100 ashai oz
Deposits to the Customer Inventory
610,495.600 Asahi
No of oz served today (contracts)
280 CONTRACT(S) (1.400 MILLION OZ)
No of oz to be served (notices)
476 contracts (2.380 MILLION oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)
6735 Contracts (33.675 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) 1 dealer deposit/
i) Into Asahi 5,011.100 oz
total dealer deposit : 5,011.100 oz
i) We had 0 dealer withdrawal
total dealer withdrawals: 0 oz
We had 1 customer deposits
i) Into Asahi: 610,495.600 oz
total customer deposits 610,495.600oz
We had 1 withdrawals
i) out of Asahi 599,499.610 oz
total withdrawal 599.499.610 oz
JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 134.401million oz/306.577million or 43.84%
adjustment 0
TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 76.522MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 306.577 million oz
CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR DEC
silver open interest data:
FRONT MONTH OF DEC /2024 OI: 756 OPEN INTEREST FOR A LOSS OF 123 CONTRACTS. WE HAD
0 CONTRACTS ISSUED ON WEDNESDAY SO WE HAD ANOTHER HUGE 123 EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFER TO LONDON (.615 MILLION OZ) WHERE THEY WILL TAKE DELIVERY OVER ON THE LONDON SIDE OF THE POND. THEY ASSESSED FOR THE THIRD DAY IN A ROW THAT THERE WAS NO PHYSICAL SILVER OVER HERE SO THEY HAVE TRIED THEIR LUCK ON TAKING DELIVERY IN LONDON.
JANUARY SAW A GAIN OF 162 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 2502
FEBRUARY SAW A GAIN OF 41 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 64
MARCH SAW A GAIN OF 938 CONTRACTS UP TO 114,430
TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 280 for 1.400 MILLION oz
CONFIRMED volume; ON WEDNESDAY 85,304 huge// t.a.s. enhanced to a MUCH lesser extent,
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in DEC we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 6735x 5,000 oz = 33.675 MILLION oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of DEC (756) and the number of notices served upon today (280)x (5000 oz)
Thus the standings for silver for the DEC 2024 contract month: 6735 Notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of DEC(756) minus number of notices served upon today (280)x 5000 oz equals silver standing for the DEC contract month equating to 36.066 MILLION OZ. + to which we add .66 million oz of exchange for risk PRIOR//new total 36.715
New total standing: 36.715 million oz.
There are 79.410 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
BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE MASSIVE FRAUDS!
GLD AND SLV INVENTORY LEVELS//
DEC 5 WITH GOLD DOWN $26.80 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD./ : .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 873.65 TONNES
DEC 4 WITH GOLD UP $6.15 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.31 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD./ : .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 873.65 TONNES
DEC 3 WITH GOLD UP $10.30 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.59 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD./ : .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 875.96 TONNES
DEC 2 WITH GOLD DOWN $20.20 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD : .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.55 TONNES
NOV 29 WITH GOLD UP $16.00 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD : Z WITHDRAWAL OF .86 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD . .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 878.55 TONNES
NOV 27 WITH GOLD UP $18.05 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD : . .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 879.41 TONNE
NOV 26 WITH GOLD UP $3.80 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD : A DEPOSIT OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLDINTO THE GLD. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 879.41 TONNES
NOV 25 WITH GOLD DOWN $91.60 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD :. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 877.97 TONNES
NOV 21 WITH GOLD UP $23.85 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 3.16 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 875,39 TONNES
NOV 20 WITH GOLD UP $22.10 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 0.58 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 872.23 TONNES
NOV 19 WITH GOLD UP $13.00 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 1.72 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 871.65 TONNES
NOV 18 WITH GOLD UP $44.20 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A DEPOSIT OF 2.56 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 869.93 TONNES
NOV 15 WITH GOLD DOWN $1.90 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.25 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 867.37 TONNES
NOV 14 WITH GOLD DOWN $12.90 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.91 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 868.62 TONNES
NOV 13 WITH GOLD DOWN $19.30 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 870.63 TONNES
NOV 12 WITH GOLD DOWN $11.40 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.88 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 871,97 TONNE
NOV 11 WITH GOLD DOWN $75.35 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.74 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 876.85 TONNES
NOV 8 WITH GOLD DOWN $11.85 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.87 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 883.46 TONNES
NOV 7 WITH GOLD UP $30.50 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.45 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 883.46 TONNES
NOV 6 WITH GOLD DOWN $72.80 ON THE DAY; HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.72 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/:. .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 886.91 TONNES
NOV 5 WITH GOLD UP $4.05 ON THE DAY; NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:.// . // .///INVENTORY RESTS AT 888.63 TONNES
GLD INVENTORY: 873.65 TONNES, TONIGHTS TOTAL
SILVER
DEC 5 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.23 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV” /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 470.718 MILLION OZ
DEC 4 WITH SILVER UP 26 CENTS //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV”: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.206 MILLION OZ FORM THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 470.718 MILLION OZ
DEC 3 WITH SILVER UP 59 CENTS //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 472.924 MILLION OZ
DEC 2 WITH SILVER DOWN 19 CENTS //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV. A WITHDRAWAL OF 1,458,000 OZ FROM THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 472.924 MILLION OZ
NOV 29 WITH SILVER UP 51 CENTS //SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV. A WITHDRAWAL OF 365,000 OZ FROM THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 474.382 MILLION OZ
NOV 27 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.25 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV.. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 474.747 MILLION OZ
NOV 26 WITH SILVER UP $0.10 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:.A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.094 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV./.. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 474.747 MILLION OZ
NOV 25 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.96 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:. . /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.841 MILLION OZ
NOV 22 WITH SILVER UP $0.40 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:. . /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.841 MILLION OZ
NOV 21 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.06 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.729 MILLION OZ FORM THE SLV. . /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.841 MILLION OZ
NOV 20 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.22 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: . /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 477.572 MILLION OZ
NOV 19 WITH SILVER UP $0.10 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 5,742,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 477..572 MILLION OZ
NOV 18 WITH SILVER UP $0.68 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 1,277,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 471,830 MILLION OZ
NOV 15 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.09 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 3,100,000 OZ OUT OF THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 471,830 MILLION OZ
NOV 14 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.07 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1,504,000 OZ OUT OF THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 473.653 MILLION OZ
NOV 13 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.16 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1,274,000 OZ OUT OF THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.157 MILLION OZ
NOV 12 WITH SILVER UP $0.16 //SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 576,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 476.000 MILLION OZ
NOV 11 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.79 //SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 374,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 477.527 MILLION OZ
NOV 8 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.43 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 2.005 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV. /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 477.846 MILLION OZ
NOV 7 WITH SILVER UP $0.11 //NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: /// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.841 MILLION OZ
NOV 6 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.41 //HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.692 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV/.//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 475.841 MILLION OZ
NOV 5 WITH SILVER UP 0.18 :SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.109 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV/.//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 479,533 MILLION OZ
CLOSING INVENTORY 470.718 MILLION OZ//
PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES
1/ PETER SCHIFF/SCHIFF GOLD/MIKE MAHARRY
2/ Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens
In very thin markets, the rouble recently fell to 115 to the dollar before recovering to 104. Is this justified, and does it make sense for the rouble to go onto a gold standard?
With Russia being on a war footing, she suffers economic distortions leading to supply shortages which are undoubtedly fuelling price inflation. But let’s take a step back to see whether the recent collapse in the rouble (and its subsequent partial recovery) reflect the true economic situation.
Following currency sanctions against Russia, the foreign exchange market in roubles is extremely limited, which is another way of saying that the rouble’s exchange rate is not necessarily a good indication of her economic conditions. But the setback is an opportunity for unsympathetic analysts to conclude that Russia’s economy is in trouble. Often, such an attack on an exchange rate can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, because analysts assuming that the exchange rate is falling for a reason will seek to justify it in fundamental terms.
This is not to say that an economy on a war footing is free of difficulties. Economic resources are redeployed by the state from the private sector, creating shortages of labour, and driving up prices of raw materials needed by the war machine. Inevitably, these bring price pressures on all aspects of the economy. And with Russia’s unemployment estimated at only 2.6%, labour shortages are pushing up wages dramatically.
Interest rates are exceptionally high, with the central bank’s overnight rate currently 21%. But unlike western banks who typically pay fractions of a per cent on deposits, Russian banks pay 18% or more to savers. Consequently, the savings rate is rising, which Keynesians in the west interpret as bad for consumer demand, and therefore could tip the Russian economy into a deepening recession.
These gloating sirens protest too much. The good news is that a high savings rate, estimated at 31.7% by the World Bank in 2023 when deposits rates were lower, keeps a lid on consumer price inflation estimated officially at about 8%. As for those without surplus earnings to save, the labour shortage means that their wages are rising by 9% on average adjusted for inflation, which translates into nominal increases of 17%. Contrary to the objective of western sanctions, Russia’s workforce is finding that their standard of living is improving significantly.
This partly explains Putin’s continuing electoral popularity. And thanks to its energy and commodity exports, Russian government debt is remarkably controlled, with estimates varying between 14.6%—17% of GDP at end-2023. The government has been running a current account surplus of $115bn equivalent between January—September, up 11.6% on the same period the previous year, and a modest budget surplus of $1.7bn. In the current year, it was expected that government debt would rise to 22% of GDP but is now expected to be about 18% (Source: Trading Economics). These are remarkable numbers for a heavily sanctioned country at war.
Defence spending has risen very sharply for obvious reasons, but it is still only 6% of GDP — eminently affordable in the context of wider government spending which is only 18.5% of GDP (IMF estimate for 2023). Savings in government spending have been made elsewhere to accommodate defence commitments, keeping total spending at pre-pandemic levels.
So what are the problems?
The principal problem is a central bank interest rate policy officially aimed at containing inflation, but more likely supporting the rouble with a current deposit rate of 21%. This gives western analysts a target, claiming that inflation is probably rising significantly faster than the official 8% figure, and that industrial investment is grinding to a halt due to punitive interest rates. Wage inflation is significant, some workers getting almost double the wages they achieved not much more than a year ago.
Clearly, for western macroeconomists these numbers indicate that the Russian economy is vulnerable. They point to its dependency on gas exports, for which European demand is being satisfied by American LNG shipments. In the medium to long term, the oil price is likely to be undermined by Trump’s intended policy of unrestricted fracking, and there is a general feeling among western analysts that disappointing economic growth in the major economies could lead to declining commodity prices generally.
However, Russia has proved adept at ensuring markets for her energy and other exports continue to ensure a trade surplus and provide a source of revenue for the government. The assumption that the western alliance’s sanctions will undermine the economy, particularly bans on technology imports, continue to be wide of the mark. And with respect to technology, Russia’s missile technology is considerably advanced on anything in the West, with Oreshnik missiles travelling at Mach 10 and upwards.
But here’s an important point: price levels in Russia are significantly lower than elsewhere, giving a purchasing power parity of less than 40% in dollar terms. With a private sector comprising over 80% of economic activity, income taxes at 13% and only 15% for higher earners, the economy is considerably more dynamic than anything in the West. Consequently, Russia’s economy has now overtaken that of Japan to become the fourth largest in the world measured in purchasing power parity terms after China, the US, and India in descending order of size.
Obviously, defeating Ukraine (and NATO) sooner rather than later will bring economic benefits, but given the numbers above these will be relatively marginal. Putin can spin it out longer perhaps than NATO can, whose European members are ensnared in economic difficulties. But returning to the issue of the rouble exchange rate, perhaps Russia’s economic fundamentals matter less than foreign perception. The only way to address this issue is for the rouble to go onto a gold standard to ensure its stability.
Let’s look at this from the point of view of the oil price, which is the marker for Russia’s energy exports. The chart below shows how the value of oil priced in gold varies little over time, while the fall in the purchasing power of the dollar has contributed to enormous price rises and destabilising volatility.
Therefore, under a gold standard the rouble value of Russia’s oil exports would be stable and considerably less volatile. The next point to consider is whether oil priced in gold is at a discount or premium to its long-term average, because we can expect it to revert to a mean. This is our next chart.
We find that oil priced in gold is currently at a discount of 48% compared with the price in 1950, and a discount of 45% compared with the average of all month-end values since 1950. Put another way, gold is already expensive relative to oil, which suggests that the downside in oil priced in gold is limited.
The relationship between gold and oil can also be observed in other commodities, because gold has risen strongly on monetary considerations, while commodities generally have not. On this basis, it would be a good time for Russia to introduce a gold standard, because over time, the value of its oil exports priced in gold can be expected to rise.
Doubtless, the Russians will be considering the value of the rouble next year in the light of developments. While it seems likely that the war will be won by Russia, the western alliance will almost certainly find other ways of applying pressure on her: for NATO, the war will not be over, and other economic measures are sure to be contemplated. But a further advantage of linking the rouble to gold will be that through comparison the dollar-based fiat currency regime will be exposed for what it is: unstable and itself in crisis.
3. CHRIS POWELL AND GATA DISPATCHES
4. OTHER GOLD COMMENTARIES//LIVE FROM THE VAULT/no 201 ANDREW MAGUIRE
ROBERT H
Last week, Russia announced a temporary ban on the export of precious metals scrap. The Russian government hopes keeping scrap within its borders will enhance domestic refining operations. The reality is 6 months of supply of scrap gold is gone and can only be replaced by either output or price increase to lower demand.
This strategic move is intended to boost the country’s gold and silver supplies and direct those resources to domestic production. In effect, the Russian government hopes the ban will support domestic industries, enhance government revenues, and tighten control over the trade of valuable resources.
Recycled gold accounts for about 25 percent of the annual global supply, with mine output making up the difference. Scrap makes up about 18 percent of the annual silver supply.
The Russian export ban will run from Dec. 1 through May 31, 2025. It includes waste and scrap of precious metals or metals clad with precious metals, and other waste and scrap containing precious metals or precious metal compounds, along with waste and scrap of electrical and electronic products used to extract precious metals.
According to a statement released by the Russian government, “These measures enable increasing capacity utilization of Russian processing enterprises, including refineries, and attracting significant volumes of secondary raw materials containing precious metals into precious metals processing and production processes.”
The move is also expected to boost tax revenue by keeping the entire value chain—from raw materials to refined products—within the national economy.
The Russian government has imposed similar temporary bans in the past.
The ban could impact global gold and silver supplies and may leave some buyers scrambling to find new sources of scrap.
END
LIVE FROM THE VAULT/ANDREW MAGUIRE KINESIS 201
end
5 B GLOBAL COMMODITY ISSUES/FOOD IN GENERAL//FREIGHT/COMMODITIES:
6 CRYPTOCURRENCY NEWS
Bitcoin Soars Above $100,000 For The First Time
Wednesday, Dec 04, 2024 – 09:49 PM
After toying with its fanatical fan base for much of the past 2 weeks, teasing a breach of the “nice round number” resistance several times only to fade right below it, moments ago bitcoin finally erupted higher with an aggressive buyer taking advantage of the illiquid Asian session and sending the world’s first digital token above $100,000 for the first time ever…
…as the sell wall at $100,000 was promptly dismantled leading to massive levered liquidations…
… and greenlighting the road to $200,000 and beyond.
The crypto market has jumped by roughly $1.4 trillion since Trump’s US election victory on Nov. 5, on a platform that roundly embraces crypto and bitcoin is now larger in ‘market cap’ than Saudi Aramco (topping $2 trillion tonight)…
Speculators also digested comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said at an economic forum in Moscow that nobody can prohibit the use of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies.
Bitcoin on Nov. 22 was less than $300 from achieving $100,000 for the first time but fell back while teasing the crypto community. Crypto’s adherents view the six-figure number as a validation of claims that Bitcoin is a modern-day store of value and hedge for inflation risk.
In addition to making new highs in USD terms, bitcoin’s rally tonight took it to a new record high versus gold…
Bitcoin ETFs have attracted inflows of about $32 billion this year, including over $8 billion since Trump became president. The combined trading volume for digital assets and related derivatives across centralized exchanges climbed to a record of more than $10 trillion last month, according to CCData.
END
ASIA TRADING THURSDAY MORNING/WEDNESDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR 0.13%
//Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 182.02 PTS OR 0.92%
// Nikkei CLOSED UP 119.21 OR 0.30%//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP .18%///Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED UP TO 7.2703 CHINESE YUAN OFFSHORE CLOSED UP TO 7.2703// Oil DOWN TO 68.52 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT DOWN AT 72,32 Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL MOSTLY GREEN
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN/ONSHORE YUAN TRADING STRONGER AGAINST US DOLLAR/OFFSHORE YUAN STRONGER
1.YOUR EARLY CURRENCY VALUES/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGS THURSDAY MORNING.7:30 AM
ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED UP AT 7.2703
OFFSHORE YUAN: DOWN TO 7.2703
SHANGHAI CLOSED CLOSED UP 4.21PTS OR 0.13%
HANG SENG CLOSED CLOSED DOWN 182.02 PTS OR 0.92%
2. Nikkei closed UP 119.21 PTS OR 0.30%
3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL MOSTLY GREEN
USA dollar INDEX UP TO 106.13 EURO RISES TO 1.0537 UP 24 BASIS PTS
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +1.064 Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 150.39…… JAPANESE YEN NOW FALLING AS WE HAVE NOW REACHED THE RE EMERGING OF THE YEN CARRY TRADE AGAIN AFTER DISASTROUS POLICY ISSUED BY UEDA
3c Nikkei now ABOVE 17,000
3d USA/Yen rate now well ABOVE the important 120 barrier this morning
3e Gold DOWN /JAPANESE Yen UP CHINESE ONSHORE YUAN: UP OFFSHORE: UP
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 DOWN for WTI and DOWN FOR BRENT this morning
3h European bond buying continues to push yields lower on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund YIELD DOWN TO +2.0840 Italian 10 Yr bond yield DOWN to 3.195 //SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD DOWN TO 2.750
3i Greek 10 year bond yield DOWN TO 2.882
3j Gold at $2647.50 /Silver at: 31.29 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $50.00//AFTER 28.40
3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble UP 3 AND 44/100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 101.55
3m oil into the 68 dollar handle for WTI and 72 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 150.39 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 1.064% STILL ON CENTRAL BANK (JAPAN) INTERVENTION//YEN CARRY TRADE IS NOW UNWINDING.
30 SNB (Swiss National Bank) still intervening again in the markets driving down the FRANC. It is not working: USA/SF this 0.8830 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF: 0.9305 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: 4.216 UP 4 BASIS PTS…
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.366 UP 2 BASIS PTS/
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.154 UP 3 BASIS PTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 34.71…
10 YR UK BOND YIELD: 4.313 UP 6 PTS
10 YR FRANCE YIELD: 2.909 DOWN1 BASIS PTS FRENCH YIELD/GERMANY A HIGH .826 PTS
10 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 3.127 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
5 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 2.975 DOWN 3 PTS.
2a New York OPENING REPORT
Futures Flat After 56th Record High, Bitcoin Tops $100,000
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 08:27 AM
S&P 500 futures are flat, holding near Wednesday’s record high, with WTI futures bouncing around after OPEC+ agreed to delay output hikes for 3 months. As of 8:00am, futures were flat in a quiet trading session ahead of NFP after closing at a new all-time high for the 56th time in 2024; Nasdaq futures are down 0.1% as Mag7 names are mostly lower premarket with Semis underperforming. Bond yields are 1-2bps higher. Financials indicated higher. Bitcoin topped $100,000 for the first time after President-elect Trump named crypto proponent Paul Atkins to head the SEC. Microstrategy, which has become a proxy for crypto in the world of stocks, was up 8% crushing the latest onslaught of shorts. French assets rose slightly as investors debated the implications of the collapse of Michel Barnier’s government. The CAC 40 stock index climbed 0.1% in Paris, tracking Europe’s regional Stoxx 600 gauge. Commodities are mixed while the USD extends losses for a third consecutive day. It is a relatively light macro data day with jobless claims, which is not thought to be catalytic given tomorrow’s NFP print.
In premarket trading, cryptocurrency stocks jumped on Thursday after Bitcoin rallied past $100,000 for the first time, boosted by President-elect Donald Trump’s embrace of digital assets. Microstrategy, Coinbase, Riot Platforms and MARA Holdings were among those sharply higher in premarket trading. Here are some other notable premarket movers
AeroVironment (AVAV) falls 8% after the drone maker reported 2Q adjusted EPS that disappointed amid higher R&D spending.
American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) tumbles 13% after the apparel retailer lowered its full-year comparable sales forecast.
ChargePoint (CHPT) jumps 11% after the electric-vehicle charging company reported third-quarter revenue that beat average expectations.
Fiserv (FI) drops 9% after President-elect Donald Trump tapped the fintech’s CEO Frank Bisignano to serve as the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration.
Five Below (FIVE) jumps 14% after the discount retailer boosted its full-year net sales guidance and named former Forever 21 head Winnie Park as CEO.
Nano-X Imaging (NNOX) rises 11% after the medical imaging technology company said it received FDA clearance for its Nanox.ARC x-ray system.
NCino (NCNO) declines 19% after the banking software maker’s fourth-quarter revenue forecast fell short of estimates.
SentinelOne (S) falls 15% after the cybersecurity software company posted 3Q profit that fell short of estimates.
Synopsys (SNPS) declines 8% after the maker of electronic design automation software provider a weaker-than-expected forecast.
S&P 500 contracts were steady after the 56th record close of 2024 put the index on course for its best year since 2019. Fed Chair Jerome Powell buoyed sentiment on Wall Street by saying the US economy is in “remarkably good shape.” The dollar and Treasuries were lower. Attention turns next to today’s US jobless claims numbers before key non-farm payrolls data Friday.
In comments at the New York Times DealBook Summit in New York, Fed Chair Powell said downside risks from the labor market had receded. He also said Fed officials could afford to be cautious as they lower rates toward a neutral level — one that neither stimulates nor holds back the economy. Powell’s comments on the US economy did little to alter expectations implied by market pricing that the Fed will cut rates again when it meets later this month. Meanwhile, two surveys showed that US executives turned significantly more optimistic about the economy and prospects for their own businesses after Trump won the election.
France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen teamed up with a left-wing coalition to topple Barnier’s administration on Wednesday, pitching the country into further political turbulence. President Emmanuel Macron now needs to find another premier who can pass a budget for 2025 through the deeply divided parliament.
“The markets have partially anticipated this development, but repercussions can be expected,” said Alexandre Hezez, chief investment officer at Group Richelieu. “Any political or budgetary misstep could punish France much more severely on the markets.”
French assets rebounded slightly as investors debated the implications of the collapse of Michel Barnier’s government. The CAC 40 stock index climbed 0.1% in Paris, tracking Europe’s regional Stoxx 600 index which rose for a sixth straight session and French equities outperform in early Thursday trading amid optimism that tax hikes proposed by the toppled government will not materialize. French aerospace firm Safran was lagging behind as analysts didn’t approve of its new targets. Aurubis rose on a higher-than-expected dividend. Here are the biggest movers Thursday:
Aurubis shares rise 14%, the most in 15 years, after the German copper producer announced a higher dividend than expected, which analysts called a positive surprise
French equities rise after a no-confidence vote toppled Prime Minister Michel Barnier, amid optimism that his proposed tax hikes will not pass in parliament, with the CAC40 up as much as 0.7%
HelloFresh shares gain as much as 12% on Thursday after Jefferies analysts raised their rating to buy from hold, saying the meal-kit firm’s stock is still trading “in value territory”
Watches of Switzerland shares jump as much as 10%, hitting their highest level since January, after the watch retailer reported a much better set of revenue figures in its second quarter
Avanza gains as much as 5.7% following an upgrade to buy at SEB, which expects the retail-trading platform’s outlook to be boosted by improving disposable incomes in Swedish households
TotalEnergies gain as much as 1.9% after the French energy company was upgraded to outperform at RBC, which notes a stronger outlook for shareholder compensation, relative to peers
Card Factory shares rise as much as 10%, the most since April 30, after the UK retailer’s acquisition of Minnesota-based Garven Holdings for $25 million
Continental shares rise as much as 1.9% after Bernstein analysts upgraded the auto parts maker to market perform, saying they expect the company’s tire business to remain strong next year
Safran shares drop as much as 5.5% after some analysts said the new targets outlined by the aerospace firm for the coming years are well below consensus expectations
Serica Energy drops as much as 5.7% after the oil and gas producer warned it has had to shut production at the Triton FPSO because of more issues, resulting in another cut to FY production guidance
Frasers Group shares fall as much as 15%, the biggest intraday drop since March 2020, after after the UK owner of retail outlets such as Sports Direct and House of Fraser cut its FY profit forecast
Tullow Oil shares plunge as much as 11% after announcing it has started to search for a new head as Chief Executive Rahul Dhir will step down in 2025
Synsam falls as much as 9.7% after its shareholder Theia Holdings offered as many as 16 million shares at a 9.9% discount compared to Wednesday’s close
In Asia, the MSCI Asia Pacific index was little changed as technology shares advanced while Korean stock losses extended amid a political turmoil with the country’s ruling party looking to prevent President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment by voting against a motion to initiate proceedings that may take place Saturday. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index traded in a narrow range, with TSMC and other chip shares in the region tracking the sector’s gains on Wall Street overnight. Shares in Hong Kong declined, while Chinese equities listed in the city also snapped a four-day winning streak with traders awaiting a key policy meeting later this month. South Korean stocks slid for a second day, with the ruling and opposition parties set to clash over an impeachment motion to unseat
Bitcoin jumped as much as 6.1% to breach the $100,000 mark for the first time, boosted by Trump’s embrace of digital assets. Crypto tracking ETFs have seen huge inflows in recent days.
In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index slipped 0.1%, falling for the second straight day; the yen extended gains after Bank of Japan Board Member Toyoaki Nakamura said he didn’t object to an interest rate hike later this month. EUR/USD edged up 0.2% to $1.0530 after France’s Prime Minister Michel Barnier was toppled in a no confidence vote, as widely expected
In rates, treasuries are slightly cheaper across maturities, underperforming core European rates ahead of weekly jobless claims and Friday’s broader US employment report. The US 10-year yield is higher by 3 bps to 4.21% with comparable bunds and gilts little changed, while French 10-year bond rise, trades around 5bp richer vs US, and outperforming their German peers and narrowing the 10-year yield spread to the lowest level this week despite the collapse of Michel Barnier’s government. President Macron is scheduled to make a statement at 8 p.m.
In commodities, oil prices edged higher as OPEC+ meets to discuss a further delay to its plans to revive oil production. WTI rises 0.5% to $68.90.
The US economic data calendar includes November Challenger job cuts (7:30am New York time) and October trade balance and weekly jobless claims (8:30am). Fed speaker slate includes Barkin at 12:15pm
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 futures little changed at 6,094.75
Brent Futures up 0.2% to $72.45/bbl
Gold spot down 0.3% to $2,642.18
US Dollar Index down 0.13% to 106.19
STOXX Europe 600 up 0.2% to 518.70
MXAP little changed at 186.91
MXAPJ little changed at 585.56
Nikkei up 0.3% to 39,395.60
Topix little changed at 2,742.24
Hang Seng Index down 0.9% to 19,560.44
Shanghai Composite up 0.1% to 3,368.86
Sensex up 0.9% to 81,698.29
Australia S&P/ASX 200 up 0.1% to 8,474.92
Kospi down 0.9% to 2,441.85
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.07%
Euro up 0.2% to $1.0530
Top Overnight News
BOJ’s Toyoaki Nakamura delivers somewhat dovish remarks, calling for policy tightening to proceed at a cautious pace and expressing doubt about the sustainability of wage growth. Bets on a BOJ rate hike this month fell to 37% WSJ
South Korea’s main opposition leader said ousting President Yoon Suk Yeol may be difficult due to lack of support from the ruling party. BBG
French stocks and bonds gained ahead of an address by Emmanuel Macron at 2 p.m. ET. As the president looks for a new PM, SocGen strategists see political uncertainty driving risk premium higher until new parliamentary elections. BBG
The ECB may resort to yield-curve control if a surge in government borrowing costs damps the impact of rate cuts, ING said, though that would be a “bold call” and not its base-case scenario. BBG
Ukrainian officials are holding high-level talks with the incoming Trump administration, seeking to narrow wide differences on achieving a settlement of Kyiv’s war with Russia even before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. WSJ
US President-elect Trump picked Paul Atkins for SEC Chair, while he picked Faulkender for Deputy US Treasury Secretary and Gail Slater as assistant AG for the antitrust division at the Department of Justice. Trump also named former Senator Kelly Loeffler to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration and Frank Bisignano to serve as the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, while he named former Congressman Billy Long of Missouri to serve as the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.
Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy has traveled to Qatar and Israel to kickstart the U.S. president-elect’s diplomatic push to help reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal before he takes office on January 20th. RTRS
Bitcoin blew past $100,000 as traders took in the prospect of relaxed regulations under Donald Trump’s pick of crypto proponent Paul Atkins to lead the SEC. BBG
China is accelerating its efforts to wean itself off of American semiconductors. FT
US execs turned sharply optimistic after Donald Trump’s presidential win, with 67% confident about the economy, up from 26% in August, a survey showed. Business leaders plan to ramp up investments and hiring, despite inflation jitters. BBG
Fed’s Daly (2024 voter) said they do not need to be urgent and need to carefully calibrate policy, while she will wait until the December meeting to make her decision. Daly also stated that inflation is still the number one challenge people are facing and there’s a lot more work to deliver on 2% inflation and durable expansion.
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks traded mixed and partially sustained the momentum from the fresh record levels on Wall St where tech led the advances with the help of earnings releases and softer yields following weak ISM Services data. ASX 200 eked slight gains with tech stocks taking inspiration from the outperformance stateside, while there was also an improvement in the latest trade and household spending data. Nikkei 225 gapped higher at the open but then gave back some of the initial spoils amid a choppy currency, while there was some intraday support seen after cautious rhetoric from BoJ’s Nakamura although the momentum waned shortly after. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were mixed with sentiment clouded after the PBoC’s operations resulted in another net liquidity drain and with a recent article in Chinese state media downplaying the pursuit of fast growth ahead of next week’s Central Economic Work Conference.
Top Asian News
China Foreign Ministry has decided to impose sanctions on 13 US military firms and executives from December 5th, it announced. Some of the firms under sanctions include Teledyne Brown Engineering, Brinc Drones, Shield AI.
South Korean army chief offered to resign, according to Yonhap
Chinese state media warned against blindly pursuing faster growth and signalled more focus on supporting consumption in a flurry of articles ahead of the Central Economic Work Conference, according to Bloomberg.
BoJ board member Nakamura said he is not confident about the sustainability of wage growth, while he added they are at a critical phase and must check many data and cautiously adjust the degree of monetary support in accordance with an improvement in the economy. Nakamura said that he sees a chance inflation may miss 2% from fiscal 2025 onward and noted that Japan’s economy has yet to move on course for a stable growth path. Furthermore, he said structural changes in Japan’s economy are required for inflation to stably hit 2% which will take a significant amount of time but also stated the adjustment of easy monetary policy will proceed gradually as the economy is expected to head toward a growth path. BoJ Board Member Nakamura later commented during a press conference that they will decide policy by examining data and he is not against a rate hike but believes it should be data-dependent.
Japanese PM Ishiba said the government should mull what’s an appropriate FX level and there are no plans to change the government-BoJ joint stance.
South Korean ruling party leader Han said the party will try to stop the impeachment motion from passing parliament but demanded that President Yoon leave the party, according to Yonhap. Furthermore, the opposition party said it plans to vote to impeach President Yoon at 7pm local time on Saturday.
European bourses opened flat but started grinding higher shortly after the open despite relatively quiet newsflow but potentially as some of the optimism potentially emanating from the gains on Wall Street. European sectors kicked off the session with a mild positive bias which later expanded as sentiment continued to improve shortly after the cash open. CAC 40 shrugged off the vote of no confidence which played out as expected, while President Macron is reported to be looking to announce a replacement before Saturday as opposed to taking the country to the polls. In terms of US equity futures, mild downward bias seen in the ES and NQ after yesterday’s session on Wall Street in which US stocks gained and the major indices printed fresh record highs with the Nasdaq leading advances amid outperformance in Tech and Consumer Discretionary and Communication names.
Top European News
BoE Monthly Decision Maker Panel data November 2024: Year-ahead own-price inflation was expected to be 3.7% in the three months to November vs. 3.5% in October. Expectations for CPI inflation a year ahead rose from 2.6% to 2.7% in the three months to November.Three-year ahead CPI inflation expectations was unchanged at 2.6%. Firms reported that annual wage growth was 5.5% in the three months to November vs. 5.6% in October. Expected year-ahead wage growth dropped by 0.1ppt to 4.0% on a three-month moving-average basis in November
French President Macron will address the nation on Thursday evening in a televised speech at 18:00 GMT, according to Sky News.
French Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said they have some requirements for backing the next PM and will contribute to crafting a budget, while she is not calling for President Marcon’s resignation but noted that the pressure is piling up.
Istat cut Italy’s 2024 GDP growth forecast to 0.5% (prev. 1.0% seen in June); cut 2025 GDP growth to 0.8% (prev. 1.1%).
Moody’s said French no-confidence vote is “Credit Negative”.
S&P said the fall of the French Govt. leaves France without a clear path towards reducing its budget.
FX
USD remains on the backfoot vs. peers following yesterday’s ISM-induced move in yields. Commentary from Fed Chair Powell who noted that the Fed can afford to be cautious in finding neutral failed to cause a stir in markets. Today’s US Calendar is a lighter one with US challenger layoffs and Fed’s Barkin on deck. Tomorrow’s NFP release looms large. DXY briefly slipped below yesterday’s 106.09 low. The next target comes via the 106 mark; Monday’s low sits @ 105.78.
EUR on a firmer footing vs. the USD with not much in the way of follow-through selling from the collapse of the French government (which was widely expected). Focus remains on the next steps and who (if anyone) Macron can appoint as PM. The main kicker is that the 2024 budget will likely be rolled into 2025. From a broader Eurozone perspective, pricing of a 50bps move at next week’s ECB meeting continues to be unwound with odds of a 25bps move now @ 86%. EUR/USD has made some progress on a 1.05 handle with the next upside target coming via the 21DMA @ 1.0561.
JPY is one of the better performers vs. the USD on account of remarks from BoJ dove Nakamura who stated that he is not against a rate hike. Pricing around the December announcement remains particularly choppy. However, odds of an unchanged rate sit @ 62% vs. 42% seen at the start of the week. USD/JPY is currently tucked within Friday’s 149.51-151.22 range.
GBP firmer vs. the USD for a third session in a row after shrugging off a dovish headline from the FT yesterday about BoE Governor Bailey’s view on the rate path (which appeared to in the end be more related to market pricing than his own view). MPC member Greene is due to speak later today. The BoE’s DMP (on which it places great weight) saw no follow-through into GBP. Cable has gained a firmer footing on a 1.27 handle and is now eyeing last Friday’s high @ 1.2749.
Antipodeans are both firmer vs. the USD with slight outperformance in NZD/USD despite a lack of fresh NZ-specific drivers. NZD/USD is currently caged within yesterday’s 0.5829-0.5884 range and yet to approach the 0.59 mark. AUD/USD failed to garner much additional support from an improvement in Australian trade and household spending data. AUD/USD currently sits towards the middle of yesterday’s 0.6399-0.6488 range.
Fixed Income
Mar’25 USTs are seeing a modest pullback from yesterday’s ISM-induced rally in US paper. The release further cemented expectations for the Fed to cut rates later this month with odds of such a move @ 73% before likely pausing in January. Comments from Fed Chair Powell yesterday did little to stand in the way of this pricing. A dovish outturn for NFP tomorrow could seal the deal on the FOMC.
French paper remarkably calm after yesterday’s collapse of the French government. The outcome was as expected and attention now turns towards who, if anyone Macron can appoint as PM (there is currently no obvious replacement candidate). The main kicker is that the 2024 budget will likely be rolled into 2025 and policy will likely end up being less restrictive than initially thought. In response to recent events, Moody’s has cautioned that the no confidence vote is “credit negative”. The GE/FR spread has narrowed to just below 81bps having peaked just shy of 89bps on Monday with last week’s 12yr high at 90bps just above.
Dec’24 Bunds are currently within yesterday’s 134.66-135.28 trading band with the corresponding 10yr yield around the 2.08% mark vs. yesterday’s 2.10% peak.
Mar’25 Gilts are marginally softer and in-fitting with price action in global peers. From a UK-specific standpoint, yesterday’s FT headline on Governor Bailey caused a stir, however, desks are broadly of the view that his comments over four rate hikes next year were taken out of context as he was referring more to market pricing than his own view. Today’s DMP release saw expectations for CPI inflation a year ahead rose from 2.6% to 2.7% in the three months to November, expected year-ahead wage growth dropped by 0.1ppt to 4.0%; BoE pricing was little changed.
France sold EUR 5bln vs exp. EUR 3-5bln 4.0% 2038, 0.5% 2040, 1.5% 2050, 0.5% 2072 OAT
Spain sold EUR 2.447bln vs exp. EUR 2-3bln 2.70% 2030 & 3.45% 2034 Bono
Commodities
Crude futures holding a modest upward bias after selling off in the US afternoon on Wednesday, which was later attributed to a bank offloading a large volume of US oil futures contracts ahead of today’s OPEC+ meeting. Sources today, so far, have failed to move prices.
Precious metals trade with a softer bias despite the weaker Dollar with traders cautious as they look ahead to the US jobs report tomorrow ahead of the US CPI data due next week.
Copper trades higher this morning with prices supported by the softer Dollar intraday coupled with the positive risk bias in Europe. Traders look ahead to next week’s Central Economic Work Conference which was hoped to provide fiscal stimulus, although Chinese press played this down in overnight reports.
Russian oil producer Rosneft invested USD 20bln into India, according to an Indian Government statement citing Russian President Putin. Russia are reportedly ready to set up manufacturing operations in India.
China’s Ministry of Commerce expresses strong concern over the EU’s plans to impose duties on Chinese titanium dioxide in 2025. China hopes the EU will conduct its investigation in line with WTO rules and avoid abusing trade remedies. Says it will firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.
OPEC+ has a deal in principle to delay output hike, according to delegates cited by Bloomberg; OPEC+ still discussing duration of delay, with three months in focus.
Several OPEC+ sources suggested a delay of output cuts for three months is the most likely outcome, while others have said a longer period is possible, according to Reuters sources.
OPEC+ voluntary cuts are expected to be pushed back by 3 months and then the group collective cut is expected to be extended until the end of 2026, according to Energy Intel’s Bakr.
Geopolitics
Israel’s cabinet will meet today to discuss the proposal for an exchange deal with Hamas, according to Israeli Media.
Russia reportedly fired missiles from its bases in Tartus, targeting Syrian rebels near Hama, according to a journalist via X.
08:30: Nov. Initial Jobless Claims, est. 215,000, prior 213,000
08:30: Nov. Continuing Claims, est. 1.9m, prior 1.91m
08:30: Oct. Trade Balance, est. -$75b, prior -$84.4b
DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
It’s been a very eventful 24 hours for markets, with the French government losing a no-confidence vote for the first time since 1962, alongside ongoing political uncertainty in South Korea and some hawkish-leaning comments from Fed Chair Powell. But despite everything that’s happening, risk assets have been broadly unphased by the various developments, with the S&P 500 (+0.61%) closing at another record high yesterday, whilst Bitcoin has crossed the $100,000 mark overnight for the first time. Indeed, it now means the S&P 500 is up +27.6% so far in 2024, which is only a couple of points behind its 2013 gain (+29.6%) that still stands as the strongest annual advance of the 21st century so far.
In terms of the French situation, the National Assembly voted yesterday to oust the government of Michel Barnier, with 331 votes in favour out of 577. However, the result was broadly expected, so it’s little surprise that markets haven’t seen much of a reaction. Indeed, since Marine Le Pen’s announcement on Monday that her party would vote against the government, it was clear that the numbers were there to remove the government, so that was when the biggest market reaction took place.
For the time being, the existing government will remain in place, and if needed, they can use emergency legislation to collect taxes and spend money. So this doesn’t mean a US-style shutdown beckons. But it’s still not obvious what ends the impasse, as the National Assembly remains fractured between different groups, with no obvious majority capable of being assembled. After all, it took almost a couple of months before Macron chose Michel Barnier as PM in the first place. And under the French constitution, a new election can’t be held until a year after the last one, which isn’t until the summer. President Macron is set to make a statement this evening, so that’ll be in focus for the path forward. Macron has said he will serve out his presidential term until 2027, but Le Pen continued to pressure him to resign yesterday in order to break the gridlock.
Overnight, the Euro has seen little change in response to these developments, and is currently trading at $1.052. Otherwise, French assets closed ahead of the vote yesterday, but they put in a reasonably strong performance beforehand, with the Franco-German 10yr spread tightening another -1.3bps on the day to 83.8bps. Moreover, France’s CAC 40 (+0.66%) outpaced the Europe-wide STOXX 600 (+0.37%). That came as European risk assets did well across the board yesterday, with the Italian-German 10yr spread (-3.5bps) reaching its tightest in 3 years at 115.5bps. And over in credit, Euro IG spreads (-1bp) and HY spreads (-5bps) both tightened as well.
That strength among French assets was echoed in the US, with the S&P 500 (+0.61%) hitting another record high and posting its 11th gain in the last 12 sessions. That came as Fed Chair Powell said the US economy is “in remarkably good shape”, and the growth has been better than previously forecasted. He added that he feels “very good about where the economy is and where monetary policy is”, and said the FOMC “can afford to be a little more cautious as we try to find neutral.” In the meantime, several other Fed speakers made similar comments about moving slowly, with San Francisco President Daly saying that “We do not need to be urgent”, and St Louis Fed President Musalem saying that “the time may be approaching to consider slowing the pace of interest rate reductions or pausing”. Richmond Fed President Barkin, also said he was in favour of a slower rate cut path to get policy to a “somewhat restrictive level.”
But even as Fed speakers leant in a somewhat hawkish direction, US Treasury yields fell across the curve thanks to some weaker than expected data. In particular, the ISM services index was only at 52.1 in November (vs. 55.7 expected), ending a run of 4 consecutive monthly increases. And the employment component was down to 51.5, which dampened expectations ahead of tomorrow’s jobs report. There also wasn’t much optimism either from the ADP’s report of private payrolls, which came in at 146k (vs. 150k expected), but also contained a negative revision to the previous month of -49k.
In light of that, investors dialled up the likelihood of a December rate cut from the Fed, with futures taking the probability up to a three-week high of 77.5% by the close. So that helped to push down US Treasury yields, with the 2yr yield (-5.4bps) closing at a 1-month low of 4.13%, whilst the 10yr yield (-4.5bps) fell to 4.18%. In turn, that helped to lift US equities, particularly in some of the more cyclical sectors, and the S&P 500 ended the day up +0.61% at a new record. That was supported by a further gain for the Magnificent 7 (+1.58%) which also hit a fresh record.
Overnight in Asia, South Korean markets have lost further ground overnight, with the KOSPI down another -0.85%. The South Korean won did stabilise yesterday, strengthening +1.11% against the US Dollar, but it’s since fallen back a bit, weakening another -0.16% this morning. Otherwise though, there’s been a fairly steady performance across the region, with Japan’s Nikkei (+0.31%), China’s CSI 300 (-0.23%) and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 (+0.15%) not seeing any big moves in either direction. The only exception to that is the Hang Seng, which is down -1.15% this morning. And looking forward, US equity futures are only very slightly lower, with those on the S&P 500 down -0.05%.
To the day ahead now, and data releases from the US include the October trade balance and the weekly initial jobless claims. Meanwhile in Europe, we’ll get Euro Area retail sales, German factory orders and French industrial production for October, along with the November construction PMIs from Germany and the UK. Central bank speakers include the Fed’s Barkin, the ECB’s Vujcic and the BoE’s Greene.
2B) European report
Bitcoin pushes past 100k & USD remains on the backfoot – Newsquawk US Market Open
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 06:55 AM
European bourses opened flat but started grinding higher shortly after the open despite relatively quiet newsflow; France’s CAC 40 shrugged off the vote of no confidence which played out as expected.
USD remains on the backfoot vs. peers following yesterday’s ISM-induced move in yields; EUR on a firmer footing vs. the USD with not much in the way of follow-through selling from the collapse of the French government.
Crude futures holding a modest upward bias after selling off in the US afternoon on Wednesday, which was later attributed to a bank offloading a large volume of US oil futures contracts ahead of today’s OPEC+ meeting.
Bitcoin climbed above the psychological USD 100k level for the first time ever and continued to advance with prices underpinned after US President-elect Trump picked crypto-backer Paul Atkins to lead the SEC.
Looking ahead, highlights include US Challenger Layoffs & Weekly Jobless Claims, OPEC+ Meeting, Speakers including Fed’s Barkin, BoE’s Greene & ECB’s Patsalides, Supply from US.
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EUROPEAN TRADE
EQUITIES
European bourses opened flat but started grinding higher shortly after the open despite relatively quiet newsflow but potentially as some of the optimism potentially emanating from the gains on Wall Street.
European sectors kicked off the session with a mild positive bias which later expanded as sentiment continued to improve shortly after the cash open.
CAC 40 shrugged off the vote of no confidence which played out as expected, while President Macron is reported to be looking to announce a replacement before Saturday as opposed to taking the country to the polls.
In terms of US equity futures, mild downward bias seen in the ES and NQ after yesterday’s session on Wall Street in which US stocks gained and the major indices printed fresh record highs with the Nasdaq leading advances amid outperformance in Tech and Consumer Discretionary and Communication names.
Foxconn (2317 TT) November revenue +3.47% Y/Y (prev. +8.59% Y/Y in October); Foxconn says Q4 operations are expected to show significant growth on a Q/Q and a Y/Y basis.
EU antitrust Chief says Google (GOOG) split still on the table, according to Bloomberg.
TSMC (TSM) and Nvidia (NVDA) are in talks on producing Blackwell chips at TSMC’s Arizona plant. according to Reuters sources
USD remains on the backfoot vs. peers following yesterday’s ISM-induced move in yields. Commentary from Fed Chair Powell who noted that the Fed can afford to be cautious in finding neutral failed to cause a stir in markets. Today’s US Calendar is a lighter one with US challenger layoffs and Fed’s Barkin on deck. Tomorrow’s NFP release looms large. DXY briefly slipped below yesterday’s 106.09 low. The next target comes via the 106 mark; Monday’s low sits @ 105.78.
EUR on a firmer footing vs. the USD with not much in the way of follow-through selling from the collapse of the French government (which was widely expected). Focus remains on the next steps and who (if anyone) Macron can appoint as PM. The main kicker is that the 2024 budget will likely be rolled into 2025. From a broader Eurozone perspective, pricing of a 50bps move at next week’s ECB meeting continues to be unwound with odds of a 25bps move now @ 86%. EUR/USD has made some progress on a 1.05 handle with the next upside target coming via the 21DMA @ 1.0561.
JPY is one of the better performers vs. the USD on account of remarks from BoJ dove Nakamura who stated that he is not against a rate hike. Pricing around the December announcement remains particularly choppy. However, odds of an unchanged rate sit @ 62% vs. 42% seen at the start of the week. USD/JPY is currently tucked within Friday’s 149.51-151.22 range.
GBP firmer vs. the USD for a third session in a row after shrugging off a dovish headline from the FT yesterday about BoE Governor Bailey’s view on the rate path (which appeared to in the end be more related to market pricing than his own view). MPC member Greene is due to speak later today. The BoE’s DMP (on which it places great weight) saw no follow-through into GBP. Cable has gained a firmer footing on a 1.27 handle and is now eyeing last Friday’s high @ 1.2749.
Antipodeans are both firmer vs. the USD with slight outperformance in NZD/USD despite a lack of fresh NZ-specific drivers. NZD/USD is currently caged within yesterday’s 0.5829-0.5884 range and yet to approach the 0.59 mark. AUD/USD failed to garner much additional support from an improvement in Australian trade and household spending data. AUD/USD currently sits towards the middle of yesterday’s 0.6399-0.6488 range.
Mar’25 USTs are seeing a modest pullback from yesterday’s ISM-induced rally in US paper. The release further cemented expectations for the Fed to cut rates later this month with odds of such a move @ 73% before likely pausing in January. Comments from Fed Chair Powell yesterday did little to stand in the way of this pricing. A dovish outturn for NFP tomorrow could seal the deal on the FOMC.
French paper remarkably calm after yesterday’s collapse of the French government. The outcome was as expected and attention now turns towards who, if anyone Macron can appoint as PM (there is currently no obvious replacement candidate). The main kicker is that the 2024 budget will likely be rolled into 2025 and policy will likely end up being less restrictive than initially thought. In response to recent events, Moody’s has cautioned that the no confidence vote is “credit negative”. The GE/FR spread has narrowed to just below 81bps having peaked just shy of 89bps on Monday with last week’s 12yr high at 90bps just above.
Dec’24 Bunds are currently within yesterday’s 134.66-135.28 trading band with the corresponding 10yr yield around the 2.08% mark vs. yesterday’s 2.10% peak.
Mar’25 Gilts are marginally softer and in-fitting with price action in global peers. From a UK-specific standpoint, yesterday’s FT headline on Governor Bailey caused a stir, however, desks are broadly of the view that his comments over four rate hikes next year were taken out of context as he was referring more to market pricing than his own view. Today’s DMP release saw expectations for CPI inflation a year ahead rose from 2.6% to 2.7% in the three months to November, expected year-ahead wage growth dropped by 0.1ppt to 4.0%; BoE pricing was little changed.
France sold EUR 5bln vs exp. EUR 3-5bln 4.0% 2038, 0.5% 2040, 1.5% 2050, 0.5% 2072 OAT
Spain sold EUR 2.447bln vs exp. EUR 2-3bln 2.70% 2030 & 3.45% 2034 Bono
Crude futures holding a modest upward bias after selling off in the US afternoon on Wednesday, which was later attributed to a bank offloading a large volume of US oil futures contracts ahead of today’s OPEC+ meeting. Sources today, so far, have failed to move prices.
Precious metals trade with a softer bias despite the weaker Dollar with traders cautious as they look ahead to the US jobs report tomorrow ahead of the US CPI data due next week.
Copper trades higher this morning with prices supported by the softer Dollar intraday coupled with the positive risk bias in Europe. Traders look ahead to next week’s Central Economic Work Conference which was hoped to provide fiscal stimulus, although Chinese press played this down in overnight reports.
Russian oil producer Rosneft invested USD 20bln into India, according to an Indian Government statement citing Russian President Putin. Russia are reportedly ready to set up manufacturing operations in India.
China’s Ministry of Commerce expresses strong concern over the EU’s plans to impose duties on Chinese titanium dioxide in 2025. China hopes the EU will conduct its investigation in line with WTO rules and avoid abusing trade remedies. Says it will firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.
OPEC+ has a deal in principle to delay output hike, according to delegates cited by Bloomberg; OPEC+ still discussing duration of delay, with three months in focus.
Several OPEC+ sources suggested a delay of output cuts for three months is the most likely outcome, while others have said a longer period is possible, according to Reuters sources.
OPEC+ voluntary cuts are expected to be pushed back by 3 months and then the group collective cut is expected to be extended until the end of 2026, according to Energy Intel’s Bakr.
Swedish CPIF Flash YY (Nov) 1.9% vs. Exp. 1.9% (Prev. 1.5%); CPIF MM (Nov) 0.5% (Prev. 0.5%)
NOTABLE EUROPEAN HEADLINES
BoE Monthly Decision Maker Panel data November 2024: Year-ahead own-price inflation was expected to be 3.7% in the three months to November vs. 3.5% in October. Expectations for CPI inflation a year ahead rose from 2.6% to 2.7% in the three months to November.Three-year ahead CPI inflation expectations was unchanged at 2.6%. Firms reported that annual wage growth was 5.5% in the three months to November vs. 5.6% in October. Expected year-ahead wage growth dropped by 0.1ppt to 4.0% on a three-month moving-average basis in November
French President Macron will address the nation on Thursday evening in a televised speech at 18:00 GMT, according to Sky News.
French Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said they have some requirements for backing the next PM and will contribute to crafting a budget, while she is not calling for President Marcon’s resignation but noted that the pressure is piling up.
Istat cut Italy’s 2024 GDP growth forecast to 0.5% (prev. 1.0% seen in June); cut 2025 GDP growth to 0.8% (prev. 1.1%).
Moody’s said French no-confidence vote is “Credit Negative”.
S&P said the fall of the French Govt. leaves France without a clear path towards reducing its budget.
NOTABLE US HEADLINES
Fed’s Daly (2024 voter) said they do not need to be urgent and need to carefully calibrate policy, while she will wait until the December meeting to make her decision. Daly also stated that inflation is still the number one challenge people are facing and there’s a lot more work to deliver on 2% inflation and durable expansion.
US President-elect Trump picked Paul Atkins for SEC Chair, while he picked Faulkender for Deputy US Treasury Secretary and Gail Slater as assistant AG for the antitrust division at the Department of Justice. Trump also named former Senator Kelly Loeffler to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration and Frank Bisignano to serve as the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, while he named former Congressman Billy Long of Missouri to serve as the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.
GEOPOLITICS
MIDDLE EAST
Israel’s cabinet will meet today to discuss the proposal for an exchange deal with Hamas, according to Israeli Media.
Russia reportedly fired missiles from its bases in Tartus, targeting Syrian rebels near Hama, according to a journalist via X.
CRYPTO
Bitcoin climbed above the psychological USD 100k level for the first time ever and continued to advance with prices underpinned after US President-elect Trump picked crypto-backer Paul Atkins to lead the SEC.
APAC TRADE
APAC stocks traded mixed and partially sustained the momentum from the fresh record levels on Wall St where tech led the advances with the help of earnings releases and softer yields following weak ISM Services data.
ASX 200 eked slight gains with tech stocks taking inspiration from the outperformance stateside, while there was also an improvement in the latest trade and household spending data.
Nikkei 225 gapped higher at the open but then gave back some of the initial spoils amid a choppy currency, while there was some intraday support seen after cautious rhetoric from BoJ’s Nakamura although the momentum waned shortly after.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were mixed with sentiment clouded after the PBoC’s operations resulted in another net liquidity drain and with a recent article in Chinese state media downplaying the pursuit of fast growth ahead of next week’s Central Economic Work Conference.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
China Foreign Ministry has decided to impose sanctions on 13 US military firms and executives from December 5th, it announced. Some of the firms under sanctions include Teledyne Brown Engineering, Brinc Drones, Shield AI.
South Korean army chief offered to resign, according to Yonhap
Chinese state media warned against blindly pursuing faster growth and signalled more focus on supporting consumption in a flurry of articles ahead of the Central Economic Work Conference, according to Bloomberg.
BoJ board member Nakamura said he is not confident about the sustainability of wage growth, while he added they are at a critical phase and must check many data and cautiously adjust the degree of monetary support in accordance with an improvement in the economy. Nakamura said that he sees a chance inflation may miss 2% from fiscal 2025 onward and noted that Japan’s economy has yet to move on course for a stable growth path. Furthermore, he said structural changes in Japan’s economy are required for inflation to stably hit 2% which will take a significant amount of time but also stated the adjustment of easy monetary policy will proceed gradually as the economy is expected to head toward a growth path. BoJ Board Member Nakamura later commented during a press conference that they will decide policy by examining data and he is not against a rate hike but believes it should be data-dependent.
Japanese PM Ishiba said the government should mull what’s an appropriate FX level and there are no plans to change the government-BoJ joint stance.
South Korean ruling party leader Han said the party will try to stop the impeachment motion from passing parliament but demanded that President Yoon leave the party, according to Yonhap. Furthermore, the opposition party said it plans to vote to impeach President Yoon at 7pm local time on Saturday.
DATA RECAP
Australian Balance on Goods (Oct) 5,953M vs. Exp. 4,550M (Prev. 4,609M)
Australian Goods/Services Exports (Oct) 3.6% (Prev. -4.3%)
Australian Goods/Services Imports (Oct) 0.1% (Prev. -3.1%)
Australian Household Spending MM (Oct) 0.8% vs Exp. 0.3% (Prev. -0.1%)
Australian Household Spending YY (Oct) 2.8% vs Exp. 2.2% (Prev. 1.3%)
2C ASIAN REPORT
French PM Barnier loses confidence vote, Bitcoin climbs past $100,000 following SEC nomination – Newsquawk Europe Market Open
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 01:22 AM
APAC stocks traded mixed and partially sustained the momentum from the fresh record levels on Wall St where tech led the advances; European equity futures are indicative of a flat/subdued cash open.
Fed Chair Powell said they are on a path to more neutral rates over time and though downside risks are less than thought, the Fed can afford to be cautious in finding neutral.
French government lost a no-confidence motion as lawmakers voted 331 out of 574 current members in support of the no-confidence motion; French PM Barnier will submit his resignation today and is expected at the Elysee Palace at 09:00 GMT.
Chinese state media warned against blindly pursuing faster growth and signalled more focus on supporting consumption in a flurry of articles ahead of the Central Economic Work Conference, according to Bloomberg.
Bitcoin climbed above the psychological USD 100k level for the first time ever and continued to advance with prices underpinned after US President-elect Trump picked crypto-backer Paul Atkins to lead the SEC.
Looking ahead, highlights include Swiss Unemployment, US Challenger Layoffs & Weekly Jobless Claims, OPEC+ Meeting, BoE DMP, Speakers including Fed’s Barkin, BoE’s Greene & ECB’s Patsalides, Supply from Spain, France & US.
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US TRADE
EQUITIES
US stocks gained and the major indices printed fresh record highs with the Nasdaq leading advances amid outperformance in Tech and Consumer Discretionary and Communication names.
Tech was buoyed by the strong Salesforce (CRM) and Marvell (MRVL) earnings, while Energy, Materials and Financials lagged. T-notes were bid with upside primarily supported by a big miss on the ISM Services PMI which printed beneath all analyst forecasts.
SPX +0.61% at 6,086, NDX +1.24% at 21,492, DJIA +0.69% at 45,014, RUT +0.42% at 2,427.
Fed Chair Powell said the US economy is in remarkably good shape and he feels very good about where monetary policy is, while he added they are not quite there on inflation but are making progress. Powell said they are on a path to more neutral rates over time and though downside risks are less than thought, the Fed can afford to be cautious in finding neutral.
Fed’s Daly (2024 voter) said they do not need to be urgent and need to carefully calibrate policy, while she will wait until the December meeting to make her decision. Daly also stated that inflation is still the number one challenge people are facing and there’s a lot more work to deliver on 2% inflation and durable expansion.
Fed Beige Book stated economic activity rose slightly in most Districts and employment levels were flat or up only slightly, while prices rose only at a modest pace across Districts.
US President-elect Trump picked Paul Atkins for SEC Chair, while he picked Faulkender for Deputy US Treasury Secretary and Gail Slater as assistant AG for the antitrust division at the Department of Justice. Trump also named former Senator Kelly Loeffler to serve as Administrator of the Small Business Administration and Frank Bisignano to serve as the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, while he named former Congressman Billy Long of Missouri to serve as the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.
APAC TRADE
EQUITIES
APAC stocks traded mixed and partially sustained the momentum from the fresh record levels on Wall St where tech led the advances with the help of earnings releases and softer yields following weak ISM Services data.
ASX 200 eked slight gains with tech stocks taking inspiration from the outperformance stateside, while there was also an improvement in the latest trade and household spending data.
Nikkei 225 gapped higher at the open but then gave back some of the initial spoils amid a choppy currency, while there was some intraday support seen after cautious rhetoric from BoJ’s Nakamura although the momentum waned shortly after.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were mixed with sentiment clouded after the PBoC’s operations resulted in another net liquidity drain and with a recent article in Chinese state media downplaying the pursuit of fast growth ahead of next week’s Central Economic Work Conference.
US equity futures were little changed and took a breather after yesterday’s rally.
European equity futures are indicative of a flat/subdued cash open with the Euro Stoxx 50 future -0.2% after the cash market closed with gains of 0.8% on Wednesday.
FX
DXY traded little changed at the 106.00 level following recent data releases including a weak ISM Services PMI report and disappointing ADP jobs data, while there were several Fed comments including from Powell although the latest rhetoric provided very little incrementally.
EUR/USD eked marginal gains but with the upside capped amid political uncertainty in France where PM Barnier lost the no-confidence vote, while the next course of action is on President Macron who was previously said to aim to name a new prime minister ahead of Saturday.
GBP/USD was stuck near the 1.2700 focal point after rebounding from yesterday’s initial BoE Governor Bailey-triggered selling pressure.
USD/JPY was choppy with brief support seen following dovish-leaning comments from BoJ’s Nakamura who said he was not confident about the sustainability of wage growth and they must cautiously adjust the degree of monetary support in accordance with improvement in the economy. However, the gains in USD/JPY gradually faded and there was late pressure after Nakamura separately commented in a press conference that he is not against a rate hike but believes it should be data-dependent which dragged USD/JPY to sub-150.00.
Antipodeans were marginally higher with slight outperformance in NZD/USD, while price action in AUD/USD was contained with an improvement in Australian trade and household spending data failing to spur a boost.
FIXED INCOME
10yr UST futures mildly pulled back after climbing yesterday in the aftermath of the soft ISM Services data which fell short of even the most pessimistic of analysts’ forecasts, while comments from Fed officials including Chairman Powell did little to shift the dial.
Bund futures remained afloat in quiet trade after the prior day’s intraday rebound and with German Factory Orders scheduled later.
10yr JGB futures were lacklustre in the absence of any tier-1 data releases and after a somewhat mixed 30yr JGB auction.
COMMODITIES
Crude futures were rangebound and languished around the prior day’s lows after selling off in the US afternoon, which was later attributed to a bank offloading a large volume of US oil futures contracts ahead of today’s OPEC+ meeting.
Spot gold traded sideways amid a lack of major pertinent catalysts and an uneventful dollar.
Copper futures were lacklustre owing to the mixed risk appetite in the region and with Chinese media downplaying fast GDP growth.
CRYPTO
Bitcoin climbed above the psychological USD 100k level for the first time ever and continued to advance with prices underpinned after US President-elect Trump picked crypto-backer Paul Atkins to lead the SEC.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
Chinese state media warned against blindly pursuing faster growth and signalled more focus on supporting consumption in a flurry of articles ahead of the Central Economic Work Conference, according to Bloomberg.
BoJ board member Nakamura said he is not confident about the sustainability of wage growth, while he added they are at a critical phase and must check many data and cautiously adjust the degree of monetary support in accordance with an improvement in the economy. Nakamura said that he sees a chance inflation may miss 2% from fiscal 2025 onward and noted that Japan’s economy has yet to move on course for a stable growth path. Furthermore, he said structural changes in Japan’s economy are required for inflation to stably hit 2% which will take a significant amount of time but also stated the adjustment of easy monetary policy will proceed gradually as the economy is expected to head toward a growth path. BoJ Board Member Nakamura later commented during a press conference that they will decide policy by examining data and he is not against a rate hike but believes it should be data-dependent.
Japanese PM Ishiba said the government should mull what’s an appropriate FX level and there are no plans to change the government-BoJ joint stance.
South Korean ruling party leader Han said the party will try to stop the impeachment motion from passing parliament but demanded that President Yoon leave the party, according to Yonhap. Furthermore, the opposition party said it plans to vote to impeach President Yoon at 7pm local time on Saturday.
DATA RECAP
Australian Balance on Goods (Oct) 5,953M vs. Exp. 4,550M (Prev. 4,609M)
Australian Goods/Services Exports (Oct) 3.6% (Prev. -4.3%)
Australian Goods/Services Imports (Oct) 0.1% (Prev. -3.1%)
Australian Household Spending MM (Oct) 0.8% vs Exp. 0.3% (Prev. -0.1%)
Australian Household Spending YY (Oct) 2.8% vs Exp. 2.2% (Prev. 1.3%)
GEOPOLITICS
MIDDLE EAST
US President-elect Trump’s Middle East envoy met the Qatari and Israeli PMs in a push to reach a Gaza ceasefire deal before inauguration, while Qatar has resumed its role as a key Gaza mediator and the Hamas negotiating team is expected to return to Doha to facilitate talks. It was separately reported that Trump’s adviser cited by Axios said Trump wants to implement a Gaza ceasefire deal ASAP without delay and before January 20th.
Russia reportedly fired missiles from its bases in Tartus, targeting Syrian rebels near Hama, according to a journalist via X.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE
North Korea-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership treaty came into force, according to KCNA.
OTHER
US senior cyber security official said there is a risk of ongoing compromise from ‘Salt Typhoon’ hackers and the White House made tackling the hackers a priority of the federal government, while the official noted that Chinese access to Americans’ telecommunications was potentially broad.
EU/UK
NOTABLE HEADLINES
ECB’s Nagel said he has no objection now to a rate cut next week but will reserve judgement until the meeting and favours a gradual, cautious approach to rate cuts. Furthermore, he does not forecast a significant risk of inflation undershooting and said the ECB should not cut rates below neutral.
French government lost a no-confidence motion as lawmakers voted 331 out of 574 current members in support of the no-confidence motion.
French PM Barnier will submit his resignation today and is expected at the Elysee Palace at 09:00 GMT, according to Sky News; French President Macron will address the nation on Thursday evening in a televised speech at 18:00 GMT.
French Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said they have some requirements for backing the next PM and will contribute to crafting a budget, while she is not calling for President Marcon’s resignation but noted that the pressure is piling up.
Four South America Mercosur members support the new terms of an EU trade deal and are waiting on EU approval, according to Reuters sources.
3B NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
3C JAPAN
end
3D. CHINA/TAIWAN/INDO PACIFIC
China/
4.EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDINAVIAN AFFAIRS
GERMANY
“Current Situation Serious”: VW CEO Tells Workers Labor Cost Reduction Urgent To “Secure Future”
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 07:45 AM
Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume addressed thousands of workers at the company’s Wolfsburg headquarters, emphasizing the urgent need to “secure the company’s future” amid a vicious downturn in the auto industry and intensifying competition.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Blume stated that the German auto giant has been streamlining operations and incorporated new synergies but still faces a bumpy road ahead. He added that reducing labor costs is needed.
“The current situation is serious. New competitors are entering the market with unprecedented force. The price pressure is immense,” the CEO told workers on Wednesday.
He added, “In addition, our labor costs in Germany have now become too high. That is why urgent measures are needed to secure Volkswagen’s future.”
In late October, Volkswagen’s top labor leader, works council chief Daniela Cavallo, who also sits on VW’s supervisory board, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying three factories were preparing for closure, and VW was mulling over eliminating thousands of jobs and scaling back pay by 10% and hours.
Earlier this week, WSJ noted that 100,000 workers, or about 33% of the company’s total German workforce, staged a labor action across nine factories amid plant closure and mass layoff threats.
We’ve been extensively covering the dire situation unfolding at VW this fall:
Also on Wednseday, works council Cavallo told workers, following Blume’s message, that severe headwinds plague VW and the entire auto industry. She hoped for a solution by VW that does not involve factory closures and job cuts
“We want to bring this to a good end before Christmas,” she told workers.
In markets, VW shares in Germany were down 27.5% on the year, trading around 2010 lows.
Implementing restructuring in the weeks before Christmas would be an absolute PR nightmare. Perhaps these cuts are planned for the start of the new year.
END
UK
free speech is gone in the UK. And this is what it happening with respect to the raping of white girls by these migrant gangs
(zerohedge)
UK Podcaster Faces Prison For Saying “Young White Girls Are Being Raped by These Grooming Gangs”
A podcaster in the UK faces potential prison time after being charged for making “grossly offensive comments” in a YouTube video in which he stated, “Young white girls are being raped by these grooming gangs.”
Yes, really.
Carlisle Crown Court heard that 41-year-old Derek Heggie made the comments in two YouTube videos in early August during the rioting and unrest that took place across numerous cities in the aftermath of the Southport murders.
Heggie had been set to stand trial on a charge under the Malicious Communications Act, but instead “pleaded guilty to sending communication of an offensive nature.”
Prosecutors said Heggie’s comments were “particularly inflammatory” in the context of the riots and he is still being remanded in custody as he awaits sentencing later this month.
Why did he plead guilty!
This is what he said:
The court heard that, in videos referring to Muslims, Heggie made comments including "young white girls are being raped by these grooming gangs".
While Heggie may have made other comments that were deemed ‘inflammatory’, the only example cited in a BBC News report is him saying, “Young white girls are being raped by these grooming gangs.”
One wonders why the former boxer pled guilty given that this is a statement of fact.
As Sky News previously reported, “In a number of cities across the UK, gangs of predominantly British Pakistani men have been convicted for targeting vulnerable white young women and girls.”
If stating this fact is now a crime, one wonders when they’re going to start locking up journalists and researchers who publish statistics based on independently verifiable crime figures.
A report by the Quilliam Foundation published in 2017 found that, “264 people have been convicted for the specific crime of gang grooming since 2005, and of those offenders 222 or 84% were Asian.”
I guess we had better lock them up too.
Heggie’s treatment is another reminder of how people in the UK are being charged and thrown in prison for what amounts to thought crime.
As we previously highlighted, a 40-year-old man was arrested and sentenced to three years in prison for social media posts that contained “anti-establishment rhetoric.”
A 61-year-old man was also jailed for 18 months for chanting “who the fuck is Allah” and telling police officers “you’re not English anymore” during a protest outside Downing Street.
* * *
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GERMANY/RUSSIA
FRANCE
5 RUSSIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN AFFAIRS
ISRAEL/HEZBOLLAH
Insane! they give authority to the Lebanese army and yet they are not paid because the country is broke.
Also the Lebanese army folk are very close to Hezbollah fighters
(JerusalemPost)
Lebanese army funding crisis endangers Hezbollah ceasefire stability – report
The country’s economic crisis has severely impeded the military, which is unable to provide sufficient supplies, training, and salaries for soldiers.
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut’s Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024.(photo credit: Canva, REUTERS/THAIER AL-SUDANI)
An alarming lack of funding is casting doubts as to whether the Lebanese Armed Forces will be able to uphold the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, according to a Thursday N12 report.
The Lebanese Armed Forces is the primary body responsible for upholding the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon on the Lebanese side of the border.
The Lebanese military’s failure to uphold UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which led to Hezbollah rearming and maintaining a presence south of the Litani River in Lebanon and attacking Israel from these positions since October 8, is seen as a major factor raising questions over the military’s ability to prevent Hezbollah’s return to southern Lebanon post-ceasefire, N12 said.
The Lebanese military has the manpower of 75,000 soldiers, divided into 12 infantry brigades and separate battalions specializing in tanks, artillery, and border defense, the report said, citing CIA data.
The Lebanese military also has special operations forces, naval commandos, rangers, and a small air force. The report noted that Lebanon’s air force consists of approximately 1,500 soldiers and 78 aircraft, including nine fighter jets and 60 combat helicopters.
Lebanon’s army is led by General Joseph Aoun, who served in this position since 2017 and received a master’s degree in strategic studies from the US.
Lebanese army soldiers patrol after a suspected Israeli naval force landed in the northern Lebanese coastal town of Batroun early on Friday and captured one person, a security source said, in Batroun, Lebanon November 2, 2024. (credit: MOHAMED ABD EL GHANY/REUTERS)
The country’s economic crisis has severely impeded the military, which is unable to provide sufficient supplies, training, and salaries for soldiers. According to the rreport, soldiers receive a salary of just $50 a month.
The Lebanese Army relies on equipment from foreign countries, including the US, France, UAE, Saudi Arabia, the UK, Germany, Qatar, Iran, and Russia.
A shrinking defense budget
According to N12’s report, Lebanese defense spending has reduced to less than $250 million annually from the original $2 billion, military equipment is out of date, and over half of the army’s 75,000 soldiers are Shiite, the same religious sect as Hezbollah.
The report also quoted Lebanon and Syria expert Professor Eyal Zisser of Tel Aviv University, who called the relations between Hezbollah and the Lebanese army “excellent,” as both entities coordinate with one another and even pass over intelligence.
The expert interviewed by N12 said that there are entrenched familial ties between the Lebanese army and Hezbollah, noting, “Often, one family member serves in the army while another is in Hezbollah.”
According to Zisser, the current ceasefire requires the Lebanese army to become the only armed force operating south of the Litani, including deploying soldiers, setting up checkpoints, dismantling unauthorized weapons facilities, confiscating illegal arms, and preventing the presence of Hezbollah or other armed groups.
END
ISRAEL///HAMAS//WEST BANK
UPDATED/(JERUSALEMPOST)
Yamam, ISA arrests terrorist in Nablus hospital, eliminates other terrorists in West Bank
The terrorists eliminated by the IDF, in addition to the one arrested, had been responsible for the August murder of Yonatan Deutsch.
Yamam and ISA forces apprehended the terrorist Ayman Ghanam on Wednesday night from a hospital in Nablus, the IDF announced shortly after the arrest. The military also announced that the terrorist Abd al-Ra’uf Masri was killed during an exchange of fire in early October.
Ghanam was wounded by an ISA-directed strike in Aqabah in the Jordan Valley on Tuesday, which led to his evacuation to the hospital in Nablus, the IDF said. After the unsuccessful elimination attempt, security forces went on to capture Ghanam alive.
The IDF assured that the operation was conducted after careful planning and efforts were made to mitigate the risk of harm to both patients and medical staff at the site.
The Central Command Commander, the Jordan Valley and Emek HaMayanot Brigade Commander, the Head of the Jordan Valley Regional Council, and additional commanders during an assessment of the situation at the terror attack site, August 11, 2024. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)
The other terrorists responsible
Since carrying out the attack in August, the military reported that Ghanam had become the head of a terror cell planning future attacks against Israeli civilians.
Masri, the terrorist killed in an exchange of fire in early October, had also taken part in the shooting attack which killed Deutsch, the IDF reported. M-16 rifles, cartridges, and military equipment were located on Masri’s body, the military confirmed.
The IDF previously announced the elimination of West Bank terrorist Wael Lahluh, who the ISA and the IDF eliminated in an aerial strike earlier this week. Lahluh had been head of the terror cell responsible for the murder of Deutsch at the time of his death along with several attacks in the area of Gilboa.
END
I
ISRAEL.HAMAS/HOSTAGES QATAR
(TIMES OF ISRAEL)
Qatar said resuming Gaza mediation role as Trump envoy pushes for deal by Jan. 20
Mideast point man in-waiting Steve Witkoff held talks with Netanyahu and Qatari PM, who then met Mossad chief, source says; Hamas to return to Doha for fresh round of negotiations
Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani attends a press conference in Doha, Qatar, Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)
US President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming Middle East envoy traveled to Qatar and Israel to kick-start efforts to reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal before he takes office on January 20, a source said, amid indications that Doha was resuming its role as a mediator in the talks.
Steve Witkoff, the incoming envoy, met separately in late November with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the source said.
The meetings signal that the Gulf state of Qatar has resumed its role as a key mediator after suspending its role last month, the source said.
The Gulf country had worked alongside the US and Egypt for months on fruitless indirect talks that have not achieved a lasting ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza or the release of over 100 hostages held in the enclave. War was sparked on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists swarmed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and abducting another 251.
The source added that Hamas negotiators would likely return to the Qatari capital Doha to facilitate a fresh round of talks.
“There are plans for a subsequent round of indirect talks between Israel and Hamas to take place potentially in Doha soon, but no specific date has been set,” the source said.
Qatar had been a key mediator of the indirect talks between Israel and Hamas until it announced last month it was suspending its role until they the two parties show “willingness and seriousness” to resume talks.
On Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry in Doha claimed the pause was still in place. The announcement appeared to contradict remarks made last week by US President Joe Biden who said Qatar along with Egypt and Turkey would be launching a new push for a hostage deal.
Palestinians run to take cover during an Israeli airstrike in the Nuseirat camp, in the central Gaza Strip, on November 28, 2024 (Ali Hassan/Flash90)
The Haaretz daily cited a source close to the talks confirming that Doha had resumed its role as a mediator.
Al Thani confirmed to Sky News Wednesday that a Trump official had told him the incoming president wanted to get a deal done by January 20.
“We had heard this from his team… that they want this (hostage deal) to be resolved now — today, even,” Al Thani said.
Trump said on Monday there would be “hell to pay” in the Middle East if hostages held in the Gaza Strip were not released prior to his inauguration. On Wednesday, he named Adam Boehler, a lead negotiators of the Abraham, as his pick for special presidential envoy for hostage affairs.
Witkoff, a real estate investor and Trump campaign donor with business ties to Qatar and other Gulf states, but no prior diplomatic experience, met Al Thani, who also serves as foreign minister, in Doha on November 22.
Steve Witkoff arrives at a campaign rally for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP/Evan Vucci)
“Both agreed a Gaza ceasefire is needed before Trump’s inauguration so that once the Trump administration takes office it can move onto other issues, like stabilizing Gaza and the region,” said the source, who had been briefed on meetings between Witkoff, Qatar and Israel and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The comment dovetailed closely with the Qatari premier’s remarks to Sky News.
Qatar’s foreign ministry did not respond to Reuters’ request for confirmation or comment.
Witkoff met Netanyahu in Israel the next day. The Israeli prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Witkoff also met families of Israeli hostages, an Israeli official told Reuters.
People attend a rally in Tel Aviv calling for the release of Israelis held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, November 30, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/ Flash90)
He “spoke with them about Team Trump’s efforts to try and broker the deal before inauguration,” the official said.
A day later, al-Thani traveled to Vienna to meet Mossad spy agency chief David Barnea, who has led Israel’s talks for a hostage deal and Gaza ceasefire over the last 14 months.
A US official said Biden’s aides were aware of Witkoff’s meetings and understand that Witkoff supports a Gaza deal along the lines the administration has been pursuing, but did not see a need to coordinate with him.
Officially, the Biden administration, rather than Witkoff, retains the US lead in efforts to revive negotiations towards a ceasefire in Gaza.
Biden’s team has kept the Trump camp updated, but the two sides have not worked together directly, the US official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Biden administration does not see a need to coordinate with Witkoff because it regards his discussions with regional players as largely an effort to learn the issues rather than negotiations, the official said.
Trump’s transition team and representatives for Witkoff did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Then-Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks at an event marking one year since the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre in southern Israel, Oct. 7, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Reacting to Trump’s warning of “hell to pay,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Reuters on Wednesday his comment was a “powerful reflection” of the urgency for a ceasefire and hostage deal shared by both Republicans and Democrats.
“We’re going to pursue every avenue we can in the time that we have left to try to get the hostages back and to get a ceasefire. And I think the president-elect’s statement reinforces that,” Blinken said.
According to Israel’s Channel 12 news, an Israeli delegation is set to travel to Cairo early next week to discuss a new proposal put together by Egypt.
The proposal envisions a staged release of hostages alongside an initial temporary ceasefire of 45 to 60 days.
It is believed that 96 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 34 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Hamas released 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November, and four hostages were released before that. Eight hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 38 hostages have also been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the military as they tried to escape their captors.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.
Jacob Magid contributed to this report.
END
ISRAEL/HAMAS/NEW DEAL OUTLINED
Israel presents Hamas new ceasefire and hostage release deal
An Israeli official noted, “The Egyptian and Qatari mediators believe Hamas might now agree to a hostage-release and ceasefire deal.”
By WALLA!DECEMBER 5, 2024 08:21Updated: DECEMBER 5, 2024 08:40
Illustrative image of Hamas terrorists.(photo credit: Canva, MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images, YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH 90)
Israel has given to Hamas, through Egyptian mediators, an updated version of a ceasefire deal proposal that involves the release of the remaining 100 hostages, two Israeli officials said.
Attempting to leverage regional and international shifts—including the elimination of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in mid-October, the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon, and President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration in late January—the updated version of the proposal mirrors previous similar efforts while emphasizing the implementation of the first phase of the deal from August.
“The Egyptian and Qatari mediators believe Hamas might now agree to a hostage-release and ceasefire deal, even if it is partial,” one Israeli official noted.
Key points of the new proposal were finalized during a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, involving senior ministers and several security chiefs. These points were passed to Egyptian intelligence, who then presented them to Hamas representatives in Cairo.
“Egypt is currently the primary negotiation channel with Hamas, although Qatar is also involved,” Israeli officials stated.
Former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on the backdrop of hostage posters. (Illustrative) (credit: FLASH90/CANVA)
The new proposal offers a ceasefire with Hamas lasting 42 to 60 days. During this period, the Gazan terror organization would release female hostages, male hostages over 50, and hostages in critical medical condition.
Israel, which initially demanded the release of 33 individuals in these groups, has adjusted its expectations, citing assessments that some hostages may no longer be alive.
Notably, the proposal maintains Israel’s readiness to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including those serving life sentences, in exchange.
Israel awaits Hamas response
“We are waiting for the Egyptians to inform us of Hamas’s response,” an Israeli official remarked concerning Hamas’s stance on the updated proposal. “Within a few days, we will know whether Hamas is willing to negotiate within the framework we presented or not,” he added.
If Hamas responds positively, an Israeli delegation will travel to Cairo to finalize details such as the ceasefire duration, the number of hostages to be released, and which Palestinian prisoners will be freed.
In Washington, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer met with President-elect Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.
“The President-elect supports a deal for the release of hostages and a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, provided it is acceptable to Israel.” a Trump advisor said, adding, “Trump wants such a deal to move forward quickly, without delay, and before January 20.”
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told Sky News that he is in contact with Trump’s advisors on the matter.
“We have heard from Trump’s advisors that he wants the hostage issue and the Gaza ceasefire resolved before he takes office. We hope both sides understand this message,” he said.
Rescuers sift through charred debris after an Israeli strike hit a camp for displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on December 4, 2024 (BASHAR TALEB / AFP)
The IDF says that last night’s airstrike in the Israeli-designated humanitarian zone in the southern Gaza Strip killed several Hamas operatives, including a top commander in the terror group’s internal security forces.
According to the military, Osama Ghanim was involved in “activity to suppress the citizens of Gaza and was responsible for detecting threats against Hamas from within the Strip.
“Ghanim held a key role in implementing Hamas’s brutal methods, which included conducting harsh civilian interrogations while violating human rights, suppressing residents suspected of opposing Hamas, and persecuting civilians from the LGBTQ+ community,” the IDF says.
The IDF says it took numerous steps to mitigate civilian harm in the strike, including by using a precision munition, aerial surveillance, and other intelligence.
Palestinian media reported that some 20 people were killed in the strike.
Some 18,000 Palestinian civilians have been evacuated from northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya in the past day, according to a report by Army Radio.
Before entering the town in the Strip’s far north last month, the IDF estimated that only a few thousand Palestinians were residing there.
During the evacuation of the population from several shelters in the combat zone, troops detained around 100 suspected terror operatives who were taken to Israel for questioning, the report says.
The military has previously denied it is seeking to forcibly displace Palestinians in Gaza, saying that “the IDF’s warnings to members of the civilian population to temporarily distance themselves from areas expected to be exposed to intense warfare are made in accordance with the obligation under international law to take feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm by providing advance warnings prior to attacks. The IDF only operates in areas in which there is known to be a militant presence, and is still at this time working to dismantle Hamas’s military infrastructure in various areas throughout the Gaza Strip.”
Troops killed some 20 terror operatives during fighting in Beit Lahiya in the past day, Army Radio says, a relatively low figure compared to recent weeks, as combat in the area has become less intense.
The IDF launched an offensive against Hamas in the Strip’s far northern towns of Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoun in early October. So far, the military estimates that it has killed at least 1,750 terror operatives.
Another 1,300 have been detained, and around 90,000 civilians have been evacuated from the area.
Thirty-one IDF soldiers have been killed so far in the operation.
The body of Itai Svirsky, who was taken hostage on October 7 from Kibbutz Be’eri, was recovered by the IDF in a joint operation with the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), the military announced on Wednesday. There are 100 hostages who remain in Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip, 14 months after they were kidnapped.
“Itai, a member of Kibbutz Be’eri, was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023. He was tragically killed in captivity, and his body was held in Gaza,” said the statement.“As part of the operation, the Kidnapped and Missing Persons team in the IDF Human Resources Division, responsible for supporting the families of the kidnapped, worked closely with the Institute for Forensic Medicine and the Israel Police to identify his remains,” it continued.The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said, “Returning Itai’s body for proper burial in Israel provides crucial closure for his family. However, families are still waiting for their loved ones after 425 days in captivity. Many hostages remain alive but in grave danger, requiring immediate release for urgent medical care and rehabilitation. The others must be returned for a dignified burial. The time has come to bring all 100 hostages home.”The agency and military informed the Svirsky family of the developments on Wednesday and extended “their deepest condolences to the family” and will “continue to work tirelessly to bring all the kidnapped home.”
Svirsky’s death
On January 15, Hamas announced in a video that Itai Svirsky, 38, had been killed in an IDF airstrike. He was held hostage with Yossi Sharabi, who was killed in captivity, and Noa Argamani, who was rescued in June.In a video released at the time by Hamas, Argamani announced their deaths.“I was located in a building,” Argamani said in the Hamas video. “It was bombed by an IDF airstrike, an F16 fighter jet.Three rockets were fired. Two of the rockets exploded, and the other did not. We were in the building with Al-Qassam soldiers and three hostages: me – Noa Argamani – Itai Svirsky, and Yosef Sharabi.
“After the building we were in was hit, we were all buried under rubble. Al-Qassam soldiers saved my life and Itai’s. Unfortunately, we were not able to save Yossi’s.“After many days… two nights, Itai and I were relocated to another place. While we were being transported, Itai was hit by an IDF airstrike. He did not survive.”
Argamani commemorated Svirsky in a post to Instagram on Wednesday, soon after the news broke: “Dear Itai, during our shared stay in captivity, we imagined thousands of situations together, how we would return to Israel together, how we would meet for coffee after everything was over and laugh about it all. We never thought for a moment that you would return to Israel like this, as a corpse.“Thank you for every moment of our shared time together. You were my friend; you were my big brother in this dark place. You taught me so many things that I will take with me no matter where I go. Now, you will receive a proper burial in Israel. Rest in peace,” Argamani wrote.The IDF’s position is that Svirsky was shot and murdered by Hamas in captivity. He was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7 during Hamas’s rampage through the southern Israeli community. At the time, the 38-year-old had been staying with his mother, Orit, 70.He and his mother had been hiding under blankets in the safe room when the terrorists stormed in and sprayed the room with bullets, killing Orit.Itai’s father, Rafi, 71, was also murdered, along with his three golden retrievers.
Sam Halpern and Noa Feigenbaum contributed to this report.
end
ISRAEL/HAMAS/WEST BANK/PLO
UN’s diplomatic failure: why the two-state solution won’t bring peace to Israel – editorial
The UN’s two-state solution rhetoric fails to address Palestinian terrorism and Israel’s security needs.
Delegates react to the voting results during the United Nations General Assembly vote on a draft resolution that would recognize the Palestinians as qualified to become a full UN member, in New York City, US May 10, 2024.(photo credit: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
‘Insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results,” Albert Einstein once allegedly stated. And as we approach 2025, here we go again.
The United Nations General Assembly announced it will host a June conference to discuss the two-state solution, a decades-old proposal for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. UNGA President Philémon Yang announced the initiative with grandiose rhetoric, urging both parties to recommit to negotiations and a peaceful resolution.
“After more than a year of war and suffering, realizing this vision is more urgent than ever before,” Yang said. He described the ongoing denial of Palestinian statehood as a perpetrator of violence and despair, effectively giving carte blanche to Palestinian violence against Israelis – comments that echo what UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated last October, merely weeks after Hamas terrorists crossed Israel’s border and raped, mutilated, murdered and kidnapped over 1,000 civilians, including women and children, and soldiers.
“It is important also to recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” Guterres famously said.Yang claimed the two-state solution ensures Palestinian self-determination while safeguarding Israel’s security.
But the announcement, while dressed in the language of hope, reeks of hollow moral grandstanding that ignores the realities on the ground and the UN’s culpability in perpetuating this conflict.
The two-state solution, long the UN’s focus, consistently fails due to Palestinian leadership’s refusal to recognize Israel and ongoing corruption and incitement. Instead of addressing these issues, the UN has acted as an enabler.
This Week in History: The UN Partition Plan announced (credit: ARCHIVE)
Sticking to the status quo
The truth is stark: the two-state solution has become a diplomatic euphemism for maintaining the status quo. While Yang stressed dialogue, he conspicuously omits any serious critique of the Palestinian Authority’s kleptocratic governance or Hamas’s terrorist regime in Gaza. No state should be expected to negotiate under fire, yet Israel is routinely pressured to do so as rockets fall on its cities and its citizens are slaughtered.
Yang’s comments praising the Palestinian struggle and decrying Israeli actions betray a glaring bias. While he stresses the importance of dialogue, he omits the fact that Israel has faced unrelenting attacks. The UNGA’s tendency to vilify Israel while excusing Palestinian extremism makes any serious discussion about peace a farce.
Reut Shapir Ben Naftaly, representing Israel on Tuesday, also called out the hypocrisy, stating that in the coming week, the Assembly would host three meetings focused on the Middle East, centered on resolutions that exhibit a “blatant disregard for the truth.” She emphasized that, following October 7, the UN’s deeply entrenched anti-Israel bias has been glaringly exposed.
Yang’s remarks, with their selective moral outrage, ignore the hundred-plus Israeli hostages still held in Gaza whose plight has been sidelined in global discourse. It seems the UN’s commitment to human rights skips over Israeli victims when crafting its narratives.
The planned June conference will likely follow the UN’s usual script: a parade of resolutions condemning Israel, sanctimonious speeches, and no real accountability for Palestinian leadership or their terrorist proxies. If the UN truly wanted to contribute to peace, it would focus on dismantling terror networks, ensuring that aid reaches civilians instead of fueling violence, and genuinely supporting Israel’s right to security.
The hypocrisy surrounding this upcoming conference is particularly apparent when considering recent history. As the UN decries Israel, it continues to fund entities and initiatives in Palestinian territories with little oversight, allowing resources to be siphoned into terror infrastructure (UNRWA anyone?).
The result? Billions in aid funneled into a society where martyrdom is celebrated, and peace is an afterthought. Meanwhile, Israel is expected to negotiate with a partner that not only denies its right to exist but actively seeks its destruction.
The UN was founded on the principle of safeguarding peace and protecting human rights. But its treatment of Israel underscores how far it has strayed from these ideals.
The June conference is a charade, a testament to the UN’s irrelevance in achieving peace in the Middle East. The organization has shown that it lacks both the will and the credibility to address the conflict. Israel, meanwhile, will continue to fight for its survival.
END
end
SYRIA/REBELS/SYRIAN ARMY/USA/NORTH= WEST SYRIA
(JERUSALEM POST)
LAST NIGHT
As Aleppo falls to rebels, the Kurdish and Christian minorities face growing threats – opinion
Turkey, Iran, and rebel factions fuel ethnic violence in Syria, threatening Kurdish and Christian communities.
By JUDAH WAXELBAUMDECEMBER 4, 2024 23:43
SYRIA’S PRESIDENT Bashar Assad meets with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in Damascus, this week.(photo credit: SANA/REUTERS)
For the first time since 2016, Aleppo, Syria, is in rebel hands. The Syrian regime, a fragile shell since the 2016 revolution, was unprepared for a new wave of opposition forces.
Multiple factions are seeking to reshape the turmoil-riddled nation, many backed by foreign players or uneasy alliances. For those who do not follow Syrian affairs, it would be easy to view this conflict as a spark in a decade-long civil war, when, in reality, this is an outside effort to eliminate vulnerable ethnic groups.
In order to fully understand what is happening, it is important to know who is fighting in Syria. Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is the main force there, seizing territory. HTS is a known terrorist organization that began as an offshoot of al-Qaeda.
HTS opposes the regime led by President Bashar al-Assad and is supported by Istanbul. For years now, Turkey has been operating in Northern Syria, seeking to develop a buffer zone along their shared border and to eliminate groups considered a danger to their sovereignty.
Since HTS is an Islamic terror group and fundamentally opposed to Christian Syrians, all Christians in the areas it occupies are at risk.
Raising the opposition flag at the Aleppo Citadel in the center of the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Dec. 1, 2024. (credit: Moaid Ismaeil/The Media Line)
PKK aligned?
Another group is the Syrian National Army (SNA), mainly Turkish and Arab mercenaries primarily carrying out campaigns against Kurdish groups on behalf of Turkey. Many of the SNA’s men are rebels from the previous Syrian revolution.
SNA and HTS do not fight one another, as SNA is seeking out Kurdish minorities and HTS is fighting the Assad regime; they overlap in many areas.
The Kurdish groups pursued by the SNA, Turkey, and the Syrian regime are the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the People’s Defense Unit (YPG). Both the SDF and the YPG are fighting for a Kurdish safety zone – or homeland – in Northern Syria.
Turkey accuses these groups of being aligned with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a group that has carried out attacks within Turkey. Many Kurdish groups saw the 2016 uprising as an opportunity to break away from Syria; while Turkey viewed it as a chance to eliminate Kurdish communities they considered a risk. Turkey’s efforts have resulted in mass displacement and ethnic cleansing along its border with Syria.
The Syrian regime is propped up by Russia and Iran. Assad has been dramatically weakened over the last few years, his government incapable of maintaining control across the country, leaving the north in a revolving cycle of militias and power vacuums.
When Assad was previously on the brink of being overthrown, he had Iran deploy Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon to come to his aid. Due to Israel’s war against Hezbollah, which has largely dismantled its military capabilities, Assad is unable to call on them again.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is reportedly offering assistance against the HTS, but Iran is spread thin after supplying Hamas and Hezbollah in prolonged wars against Israel.
The Syrian regime has carried out horrific attacks against its people. In multiple instances, the regime is accused of using chemical warfare against dissidents and opposition. So, while it would make sense for Syrians to rise up again, this new wave of fighting is much more complicated than a revolution in the north.
In all likelihood, Turkey will back the HTS and SNA until they are satisfied with their ethnic cleansing campaign against the Kurds – and then strike a deal with Assad to turn on the HTS.
Turkey is not interested in overthrowing Assad; the HTS is a means to an end to clear the way for SNA units. Meanwhile, the HTS will persecute and kill Christian communities along the way.
The international community has rushed in with their usual rhetoric of “de-escalation” with no guidance on what that means.
If something is not done, Kurdish groups that have been friendly to Israel and the US will continue to face violence along with Syrian Christian minorities. The headlines may discuss the peril Assad faces, but he is not the victim here; it is the Kurdish and Christian people who will come under siege.
The writer was granted the American Israel Public Affairs Committee Activist of the Year Award in 2019 and 2020. He is an Arizona State University-Watts College of Public Service master of public policy graduate.
END
SYRIA REBELS/USA/ LAST NIGHT
Rebel leader Julani makes his appearance. He is not dead
(Times of Israel)
Watch: Terror Leader Julani Makes Rare Appearance In Aleppo, Ending Rumors Of His Death
Wednesday, Dec 04, 2024 – 06:50 PM
Soon after the fall of Aleppo last week, rumors began to circulate that the longtime head of Syrian Al-Qaeda (now called Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS) Abu Mohammad al-Julani, was killed in a Russian retaliatory airstrike in Idlib. These claims made it into Lebanese and Israeli media, but with no verification.
But the rumors were laid to rest on Wednesday with Julani’s unexpected appearance in the center of historic Aleppo. Al Jazeera featured footage (below) of the HTS leader descending the steps of the historic and iconic Aleppo citadel in what was clearly a ‘victory’ celebration.
The terror leader, who has a$10 million bounty on his head by the FBI and US Rewards for Justice program, is asserting ownership over the major northern Syrian city. His jihadist forces are currently threatening the central city of Hama as well.
According to the latest from the Associated Press, “Syrian insurgents captured four new towns early Tuesday, bringing them closer to the central city of Hama, opposition activists said, while government forces retook some territory they lost last week.”
Large Syrian Army reinforcements have been observed heading north from Damascus over the last 24 hours. The HTS militants and AQ-aligned groups are less than six miles from Hama, and have threatened and taken adjacent towns on the edge of the city.
Julani is believed supported from Turkey, and likely by other allied Western nations’ intelligence services as well, despite his Al-Qaeda background. Once known as the Nusra Front, which early in the Syrian war of the last decade cooperated at times with the Islamic State, the group now known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has long attempted a rebranding campaign.
"They look scary… exactly how you imagine when someone says a terrorist: long beards and crazy hair. But they’re nice.”@yarotrof and @IsabelColes on HTS' reinvented leader Jawlani whose rebels stormed Aleppo and reignited Syria's civil warhttps://t.co/TjCPGJPKYM
HTS has gone through many names and iterations over the years while holding on to much of Idlib province bordering Turkey, even as much of the rest of Syria came back under the control of the Assad government.
Still, Washington has long admitted it is a terror organization. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Sunday that HTS remains “a terrorist organization designated by the United States” and expressed that the US has “real concerns about the designs and objectives of that organization.” But he also admitted that the US will not “cry” over the pressure the Syrian government and its allies are facing from the successful offensive on Aleppo.
Meanwhile, just like in the opening years of the war, the US mainstream media is once again working overtime trying to whitewash Syria’s Al Qaeda factions, presenting them as mere ‘rebels’ and ‘revolutionaries’. The below is a real line from The Wall Street Journalthis week:
Once affiliated with Islamic State and al Qaeda, Jawlani professes religious tolerance.
"They look scary… exactly how you imagine when someone says a terrorist: long beards and crazy hair. But they’re nice.”@yarotrof and @IsabelColes on HTS' reinvented leader Jawlani whose rebels stormed Aleppo and reignited Syria's civil warhttps://t.co/TjCPGJPKYM
Likely there will much more such obvious propaganda efforts to come. But the supposedly ‘tolerant’ Julani is still on the FBI’s ‘most wanted’ list, and no amount of obfuscation or Gulf think tank sponsored rebranding campaigns will change that.
Given that the terror chief just appeared out in the open, posing on top of the Aleppo Citadel, the CIA or US military likely could have taken him out with a drone… but they won’t.
END
SYRIA REBELS/SYRIA/NORTHWEST AREA OF SYRIA
Rebels enter Syria’s 4th largest city, Hama. Hama lies south of Aleppo. The Rebels have eyes on Homs, Syria’s 3rd largest city.
(zerohedge)
Syrian rebels enter Hama, pushing army from key city and freeing hundreds of prisoners
Rebels said they had taken districts in the city’s northeast and had seized the central prison, freeing detainees.
By REUTERSDECEMBER 5, 2024 14:25Updated: DECEMBER 5, 2024 15:26
A rebel led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands in the back of a vehicle in al-Rashideen, Aleppo province, Syria November 29, 2024.(photo credit: REUTERS/Mahmoud Hasano)
Syrian rebels ousted pro-government forces from Hama on Thursday, bringing the insurgents a major new victory after a lightning advance across northern Syria and dealing a new blow to President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian and Iranian allies.
The Syrian army said it was redeploying outside the city “to preserve civilians lives and prevent urban combat” after what it called intense clashes.
Rebels said they had taken districts in the city’s northeast and had seized the central prison, freeing detainees.
Qatari state-run media Al Jazeera television broadcast what it said were images of rebels inside Hama, some of them meeting civilians near a roundabout while others drove in military vehicles and on mopeds.
The rebels took the main northern city of Aleppo last week and have since pushed south from their enclave in northwest Syria.
Opposition forces advancing in Syria, Dec. 1, 2024. (credit: Muhammad Eido/The Media Line)
Their capture of Hama, which had remained in government hands throughout the civil war triggered by a 2011 rebellion against Assad, will send shockwaves through Damascus and fears of a continued rebel march south.
Hama lies more than a third of the way from Aleppo to Damascus, and its capture would open the road for a rebel advance on Homs, the main central city that functions as a crossroads connecting Syria’s most populous regions.
Hama is also critical to the control of two major towns with big minority religious communities – Muhrada, home to many Christians, and Salamiya, where there are many Ismaili Muslims.
Although Hama had not previously been taken by rebels during the war, it was historically a center of opposition to the Assad dynasty’s rule.
As his forces swept into Hama the main insurgent commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani issued a video statement warning against any involvement by the other main regional force that is backed by Iran – Iraq’s Hashd al-Shaabi militias.
“We urge him (Iraq’s prime minister) again to keep Iraq away from entering into the flames of a new war tied to what is happening in Syria,” Golani said.
Golani referred to that bloody episode in his statement, saying “the revolutionaries have begun entering the city of Hama to cleanse that wound that has persisted in Syria for 40 years.”
What factions are involved?
The most powerful rebel faction is the militant Sunni Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the former al Qaeda affiliate in Syria. Golani, its leader, has pledged to protect Syria’s religious minorities and has called on them to abandon Assad, but many remain fearful of the insurgents.
On Wednesday, Golani visited Aleppo’s historic citadel, a symbolic moment for rebels who were driven out of the city in 2016 after months of siege and intense fighting, their biggest defeat of the war. Aleppo was Syria’s biggest city before the war.
HTS and the other rebel groups are trying to consolidate their rule in Aleppo, bringing it under the administration of the so-called Salvation Government they established in their northwestern enclave.
Conditions in Aleppo
Aleppo residents have said there are shortages of bread and fuel, and that telecoms services have been cut.
The rebel forces advancing on Hama have included a Turkey-backed insurgent coalition called the Syrian National Army, which holds a strip of territory along the Syrian-Turkish frontier, rebel sources said.
Turkey, which designates HTS as a terrorist organization, has long been the biggest external backer of other rebel factions and its role will be critical to the future of any enlarged insurgent region in Syria.
Ankara has denied having taken part in the rebels’ sudden sweep into Aleppo last week.
end
The Jihadists Take 2nd Major Syrian City After Assad’s Army Withdraws
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 10:40 AM
In another stunning advance by Syrian jihadists led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Hama has become the second major Syrian city to fall to the anti-Assad insurgents since the shock campaign based out of Idlib began last week.
The Syrian national army confirmed in a Thursday statement that it has withdrawn from the city, redeploying its forces “to preserve civilian lives and prevent urban combat.”
Al Jazeera correspondent Resul Serdar observed of the “major development” that “In just over a week they have managed to take full control of Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo, and now the fourth-largest city.”
The assault had been happening since Tuesday night, reportedly with violent clashes with the Syrian Army being most concentrated in the Jabal Zayn al-Abidin area, just north of Hama.
Hama is one-third of the way from Aleppo to Damascus, and puts the HTS jihadists a significant step closer to accessing Syria’s most populous government regions.
One of the largest Christian towns of Syria, neighboring Muhrada, is now under direct threat.
with a heavy heart, I report to you that Hama, my city, has officially fallen in the hands of terrorists. May the Lord take our souls or theirs, we will never coexist with them. pic.twitter.com/qkp6dFBxty
Longtime Syrian al-Qaeda leader and head of HTS, Abu Mohammed al-Golani has issued a video statement telling outside Iranian-backed powers they must not intervene. The warning was specifically directed against Iraq’s Hashd al-Shaabi militias.
Golani said in reference to Iraq’s prime minister: “We urge him again to keep Iraq away from entering into the flames of a new war tied to what is happening in Syria.”
There have been days of reports of pro-Iranian militias pouring across the border in the multiple hundreds from Iraq, near the Abu Kamal area. US warplanes have also engaged Syrian national forces and militia in the Deir Ezzor region.
Another key faction within Golani’s group is the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army. Reuters summarized of a near-term of goal of these groups, “HTS and the other rebel groups are trying to consolidate their rule in Aleppo, bringing it under the administration of the so-called Salvation Government they established in their northwestern enclave.”
Footage by the Islamist fighters showing they have entered the center of the city of Hama:
l – and that there are no longer any telecom services in the area.
The militants could seek to strike Homs next, but it’s likely that the Syrian government will muster most of its forces at the strategic city in anticipation of such an assault.
Takeover of Homs would give HTS easier access to all other parts of the country. At this point Hama’s populous Christian community has reportedly been fleeing, seeking shelter closer to the coast in the nearby ‘Valley of the Christians’ area, not trusting the pledges of Golani to ‘protect’ religious minorities.
END
ASSAD’S SYRIA
‘Assad’s forces are conscripts with no motivation, surviving on moldy potatoes and tomatoes’
The Jerusalem Post Podcast with Tamar Uriel-Beeri, Zvika Klein, and Sarah Ben-Nun.
A rebel led by the Islamist terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham looks out from inside a military vehicle in al-Rashideen, Aleppo province, Syria November 29, 2024.(photo credit: REUTERS/Mahmoud Hasano)
Syria has witnessed a dramatic escalation in recent days as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Salafi-jihadi group led by Abu Mohammad al-Julani, launched an unexpected and highly effective offensive against the Syrian Arab Army.
Jonathan Spyer, director of research at the Middle East Forum and a columnist for The Jerusalem Post, explained to Zvika Klein and Tamar Uriel-Beeri during The Jerusalem Post Podcast, that Syria has been divided into three distinct areas of control over the past half-decade. “The Assad regime controls around 60% of the country, including Damascus and the western coastal area. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-led coalition backed by the United States, hold about 30% east of the Euphrates River. The remaining 10% in the northwest is home to remnants of the Sunni Arab and Islamist rebellion,” Spyer said.
The northwest enclave is further divided. The northern part is under the Turkish-backed Syrian Interim Government and its armed forces, the Syrian National Army, while the southern section, particularly Idlib province, is governed by the Syrian Salvation Government under HTS.
“Although HTS is officially designated as a terror organization by Turkey, it operates in cooperation with Ankara in practice,” Spyer added.
HTS’s recent offensive coincides with a period of significant weakness for the Assad regime and its allies. Spyer attributed this to several factors, including Iran’s preoccupation with Israeli strikes and Hezbollah’s substantial losses.
Smoke billows near residential buildings in a picture taken from a drone in Aleppo, Syria December 3, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/Mahmoud Hasano TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)
“Hezbollah has suffered devastating losses in recent months, with estimates ranging between 3,500 and 4,000 fighters killed. Meanwhile, Russia is deeply engaged in the war in Ukraine, where thousands of its troops are dying weekly,” Spyer explained.
The offensive also highlighted the dire state of Assad’s forces. “Assad’s army is by far the weakest link in the Iran-led axis. It’s underfunded, under-equipped, and staffed by conscripts with no motivation, surviving on moldy potatoes and tomatoes. HTS recognized this as the perfect opportunity to strike,” Spyer said.
The offensive has brought attention to Abu Mohammad al-Julani, HTS’s leader, whom Spyer described as “remarkably adaptable.”
“Julani’s career trajectory is one of the most remarkable outcomes of the Syrian Civil War. Despite originating from the most extreme wing of Salafi-jihadism, he has managed to create a tightly governed area in northwest Syria,” Spyer said.
However, Spyer warned against misinterpreting Julani’s pragmatism as moderation. “It would be wrong to assume that a capable jihadi leader has given up on jihad. Julani is not content to simply be the mayor of Idlib, even if he has proven to be an effective one,” he said.
Spyer added that Julani’s ability to navigate the complexities of Syria’s war has kept him alive, unlike many of his contemporaries in the Salafi-jihadi movement.
Regional and global implications
Spyer dismissed conspiracy theories suggesting coordination between HTS and Israel. “HTS likely recognized that Hezbollah, Iran, and the Assad regime were distracted, creating a perfect storm for their offensive,” he said.
When asked about Israel’s perspective, Spyer highlighted the importance of maintaining a balance of power. “It would not be good for Israel or the West if either side—Assad or HTS—achieved total victory. A resurgent Assad regime backed by Iran and Hezbollah, or a Salafi-jihadi state on Israel’s borders, would be disastrous,” Spye explained.
He added that Israel is unlikely to intervene directly. “Israel’s hands are full with its own security challenges. Letting both sides weaken each other is not necessarily a bad outcome,” Spyer noted.
As HTS advances, concerns have grown over the fate of minority communities in its path. “HTS’s record with non-Muslim and non-Arab populations, such as Kurds and Christians, is not good. This is something the West needs to address,” Spyer said.
While international attention is largely focused on other areas of the Middle East, Spyer cautioned against ignoring the potential humanitarian crisis in Syria. “Large Kurdish and Christian populations are at risk, and their safety must be a priority for Western powers,” he said.
“The Syrian conflict is a microcosm of broader regional tensions, with competing powers vying for influence in a complex and ever-changing landscape,” Spyer concluded.
To contact us, please reach out at podcast@jpost.com. This podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more.
Michael Snyder putting it all together;
(Michael Snyder)
World War III Is Heating Up On Several Fronts, But Most Americans Have No Idea…
In recent months, quite a few pundits have been openly warning us that World War III has begun. Sadly, those pundits are quite correct. Right now, a historic global struggle is being waged by two very powerful alliances. The “western alliance” made up of the United States, Europe, Israel and their allies is engaged in a battle for supremacy with the “eastern alliance” made up of Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, Syria and their allies. Over the past week, this battle for supremacy has erupted on a couple of new fronts, but most Americans have no idea what is really going on.
Just look at what is happening in Syria. Most Americans have no idea that radical Sunni Muslims backed by the western alliance just conducted a highly successful offensive on Syria’s second largest city and are threatening to overthrow the Assad regime once and for all…
The Syrian military and its ally Russia conducted deadly joint air raids Monday on areas that Islamist-led rebels seized control of over the weekend. The strikes were a response to a lightning offensive by the rebels that saw them wrest control of swathes of northwest Syria from government forces.
The conflict that started more than a decade ago took a significant turn several days ago, catching many — including, it seems, Syrian dictator Bashar Assad and his Russian backers — by surprise. On Saturday, rebels, including many with the U.S.-designated Islamic terrorist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), took control of the major city of Aleppo in northern Syria.
The rebels seized Aleppo’s airport and started pushing into towns and villages in the countryside around the city on Sunday after leaving piles of dead government soldiers in the streets. Observers said the rebel forces were often met with little to no resistance by regime forces, but by Monday the pace of the surprise offensive appeared to have slowed, with Assad and his Russian backers ramping-up their response.
While she served as Secretary of State during the Obama administration, Hillary Clinton was instrumental in starting the civil war in Syria. That civil war caused a massive refugee crisis that western Europe is still wrestling with to this day.
Now the civil war in Syria has freshly erupted, and if Assad gets toppled that will be a major victory for the western alliance.
Widespread reports, including observers on the ground, have indicated that Iran-backed Iraqi militias have been pouring across the border into eastern Syria to assist Damascus in repelling the Islamist militant advance after Al Qaeda splinter group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham took over Aleppo this weekend.
A Syrian army officer has told Reuters that Iraqi militia forces crossing the border are “fresh reinforcements being sent to aid our comrades on the frontlines in the north.”
Many of the fighters have been identified as belonging to the Kataib Hezbollah and Fatemiyoun groups. The US has long been in an internecine conflict with Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, with over the years periodic rocket fire even targeting the US Embassy in Baghdad, as well as various bases which host remaining American troops.
Boroujerdi told a news conference in Damascus that Iran was ready to render military assistance to Syria. “Iran’s military aid will be provided as soon as Tehran receives a request from the Syrian government. We are going to announce it immediately,” the Iranian deputy said.
Boroujerdi, who is heading an Iranian delegation, arrived in Damascus on Wednesday for talks with Syrian Vice-Premier and Foreign Minister Walid Muallem. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is expected to meet Boroujerdi on Thursday.
The Iranian deputy stressed the importance of the four-sided coordination of efforts by Russia, Iran, Iraq and Syria in fighting terrorism.
Iran normally prefers to fight their wars using proxy forces.
The ceasefire in Lebanon, barely five days old, is near collapse as of Monday after Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel, following the Biden-Harris administration’s erroneous claim that Israeli surveillance drones violated the agreement.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported Monday that two Hezbollah rockets had been fired at Har (Mount) Dov, a strategic mountain that Breitbart News visited last Thursday and which Hezbollah claims, wrongly, is Lebanese.
If Hezbollah is forced to keep their forces in Lebanon in order to contend with the IDF, they won’t be able to intervene in the conflict in Syria.
Ultimately, so many of these conflicts are interrelated.
Ukraine is hoping that at least some Russian forces get diverted to Syria to help the Assad regime, because last month the Ukrainians lost a great deal of territory…
Ukraine has endured a tough three months in which Russian forces made gains across the front, which are likely continue over winter, a military analyst has said.
“The trend is very worrying, and there’s no reason to expect the situation to calm down in December either,” Emil Kastehelmi, from the Finnish-based Black Bird Group, told Newsweek.
In an X, formerly Twitter, thread, the OSINT analyst said that, in the three months to December, Moscow’s troops had captured around 617 square miles in Ukraine and 190 in Russia’s Kursk oblast, where Ukrainian forces had staged an incursion but where they have lost the western flank, as well as positions in the Donbas region.
Ukraine is the one place where the western alliance is losing badly, and western politicians are extremely determined to turn things around.
But the truth is that unless NATO gets directly involved, Ukraine will definitely lose.
As the war drags on, Ukrainian soldiers are deserting from their posts in staggering numbers…
More than twice as many Ukrainian soldiers have been charged with desertion this year than in 2022 and 2023 combined, the Financial Times has reported. The spike in desertions has hampered Kiev’s ability to replenish its thinned-out ranks.
Ukrainian prosecutors opened 60,000 cases against deserters between January and October of this year, the British newspaper reported on Saturday, noting that those convicted face prison terms of up to 12 years.
Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have already died on the killing fields of eastern Ukraine.
Let us hope for an agreement that will bring the endless slaughter to an end.
Before I conclude this article, I want to mention one more nation where the great battle between east and west has suddenly erupted.
In Georgia, angry protesters that are being backed by the western alliance have been clashing violently with the police for days. Just like we witnessed in Ukraine in 2014, it appears that this could be an attempt to overthrow the democratically-elected government of Georgia…
Days of protests have rocked Georgia following the government’s controversial decision to delay the former Soviet country’s bid to join the European Union.
Tensions have been brewing for months in the South Caucasus nation of 3.7 million people, where critics accuse the ruling Georgian Dream party of following increasingly authoritarian, pro-Russia policies in a turn away from the West that has tempered hopes for Georgia’s long-promised path to EU membership.
The protests have been met with a violent police crackdown as the ruling party and thousands of protesters become locked in a deepening battle over the country’s future and whether Georgia should forge closer ties with Russia or Europe.
The U.S. and Europe would love to see a “color revolution” that removes the Georgian Dream party from power.
Of course the Russians and other eastern alliance nations would very much like to avert such an outcome.
I just wish that every country would be allowed to do what they want without outside interference.
But that isn’t going to happen, is it?
Sadly, the great struggle between east and west that we are witnessing is just going to continue to intensify, and at this stage it should be obvious to everyone that it is not going to have a happy ending.
We live in such perilous times, and if you have not been paying much attention to what is going on around the world now would be a great time to start.
Syria asks for Israel’s help against HTS. Israel demands Iranian assets must be removed
A MUST VIEW
RUSSIA;UKRAINE
Blinkin is a total imbecile!!
(zerohedge)
Blinken Ramps Up Pressure For Zelensky To ‘Get Younger People Into The Fight’
Wednesday, Dec 04, 2024 – 11:00 PM
It’s no secret that the Biden administration has been pressuring Ukraine’s Zelensky behind the scenes to drop the age of conscription down to 18 from the current age of 25. But now the White House is becoming much more direct and out in the open about it.
With less than 50 days to go of Biden in office, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on Kiev to make “hard decisions” about expanding mobilization efforts to fight the Russians. He’s urging that younger men be forced into the fight.
“Getting younger people into the fight, we think, many of us think, is necessary” Blinken stated in a NATO press conference on Wednesday. “Right now, 18- to 25-year-olds are not in the fight,” he explained.
He emphasized that that manpower is critical “because even with the money, even with the munitions, there have to be people on the front lines.” The Biden White House has been rushing as much arms to Ukraine forces as it can with little time left in the Democratic administration.
Blinken also stressed that NATO is seeking to ensure every soldier Ukraine mobilizes has “the training and the equipment they need to effectively defend the country.”
Additionally, Reuters quoted the US top diplomat as saying it remains “up to the Ukrainian authorities to decide how best to get younger men into the fight.”
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte the same day echoed the US view in a press conference: “We need probably more people to move to the front line” – he said without specifying age groups.
As the outgoing Biden administration is asking Congress to soon approve billions more for Ukraine, this conscription age change policy could serve as the quid pro quo being requested of Kiev from Washington, in order to keep the billions in arms and aid flowing.
Last spring on one of his many visits to Ukraine, hawkish Senator Lindsey Graham expressed shock upon learning that men in their early 20s in Ukraine cannot be drafted. “I would hope that those eligible to serve in the Ukrainian military would join. I can’t believe [conscription age starts] at 27,” he said at the time. “You’re in a fight for your life, so you should be serving — not at 25 or 27.”
When President Volodymyr Zelensky soon after this statement signed a bill into effect to lower the mobilization age for combat duty from 27 to 25, this took some of the pressure off for the time being.
But now the pressure is ramping up once again. If Zelensky pulls the trigger it would be hugely unpopular among Ukrainians, and could result in internal dissent and mass protests, even as the war rages in the east.
RUSSIA/UKRAINE
Drones for Ukraine
This is exactly how Germany will find itself in the cross hairs of Russian response. There is no way Russia will allow Germany to provide such weapons without a response in due course. At some point enough Russians will die in some swarm attack and the tipping point will be crossed. Germany has many other problems to deal with far more pressing than beat a war drum. And supply of such weapon systems while being tested by everyone is not astute in creating vast killing fields without a response. And it serves to harden any chance of peace. It is why the Russians have also stated that any peace agreement in and with Ukraine has to to be a broader European peace deal that clearly eliminates future conflict on the continent. Clearly a concept not in vogue with NATO. It remains to be seen if America dumps NATO and Europe for a peace agreement with Russia.
Sometime next year when it becomes evident that a broader war is upon us. Do remember how we got there.
Breaking: Nobel Peace Prize Nominee Provides Affidavit: “All covid 19 vaccine mRNA gene therapies are BIOWEAPONS …
No one should be taking these shots. What’s done is done.
The question is how can anyone trust CDC or any other such organization pushing these shots?
Ana Maria Mihalcea, MD, PhD Dec 4 · Humanity United Now – Ana Maria Mihalcea, MD, PhD Dear Subscribers – Whatever support you would lend to me – give it to my friend Dr Joseph Sansone NOW. Please support this effort and help raise the finances so we could even hire an attorney. What good is all the research if it never leads to Justice and Change? We have another chance here, share this work, support Joe financially. We are the change we have been waiting for. Together we can do this. Let’s go America and all those in the world who love freedom! This is how we make America healthy again, BAN THE BIOWEAPONS!!! Thank you! Breaking: Nobel Peace Prize Nominee Provides Affidavit: “All covid 19 vaccine mRNA gene therapies are BIOWEAPONS which means they are POISON”Dr. Joseph Sansone Dec 4 READ IN APP Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Dr. Ben Marble, M.D., creator of MyFreeDoctor.com provided an affidavit stating that “All covid 19 vaccine mRNA gene therapies are BIOWEAPONS which means they are POISON”.
Blood pressure (BP) medications are some of the most overly prescribed medications.
Over 70 percent of adults 60 years and older have high blood pressure, and over half of those take blood pressure medication to prevent cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes. For those who don’t need blood pressure medication, taking these drugs may do more harm than good.
In a new study challenging decades of medical practice, researchers have suggested that nursing home residents might safely stop or reduce their blood pressure medication use by 30 percent or more without increasing their risk of heart attack or stroke.
Older adults have a higher risk of adverse drug reactions and side effects when taking multiple medications (polypharmacy), as their ability to absorb and eliminate drugs is often impaired. Taking people off these drugs can help reduce the risk of side effects like dizziness and falls and potential interactions associated with polypharmacy.
Doing More Harm Than Good
Published in JAMA Network Open on Nov. 25, the study found that discontinuing nursing home residents’ BP medications or reducing their dosage by at least 30 percent did not lead to hospitalization for heart attack or stroke after two years, compared to those who continued taking their prescriptions.
Researchers analyzed electronic health record data from long-term care residents aged 65 and older admitted to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) community living centers. These residents were taking at least one BP medication. Nearly 18 percent of the roughly 13,000 residents had their BP medications reduced in dosage or frequency for at least two weeks.
Researchers monitored these residents for two years, finding no significant difference in the risk of hospitalization for heart attack or stroke between those who reduced or discontinued their BP medications and those whose prescriptions remained unchanged.
This outcome may be attributed to the side effects of these medications potentially outweighing the benefits of tightly controlled blood pressure, Michelle Odden, who has a doctorate in epidemiology and is an associate professor of epidemiology in the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health at the Stanford University School of Medicine, told The Epoch Times in an email interview.
“The other possibility is that high blood pressure may not be as risky in older people with a lot of health conditions or other conditions such as frailty that require them to live in a nursing home,” she added.
Also, residents who reduced or discontinued their BP medications tended to have slightly lower systolic (the top number) and diastolic (the bottom number) blood pressure levels before going off medications. This group was also on more antihypertensive drugs and had a history of conditions such as diabetes, stroke, kidney failure, and acute kidney injury.
High blood pressure is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. BP medications may need to be taken for life, especially if lifestyle changes fail to yield adequate results.
Not controlling hypertension can lead to serious complications. For instance, a 20-mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure and a 10-mmHg increase in diastolic blood pressure can double the risk of ischemic heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.
However, previous research has indicated that excessively lowering systolic blood pressure (below 130 mmHg) or excessive use of BP medications may actually harm older adults, particularly those on multiple medications or with preexisting health problems.
A 2015 investigation found that people with particularly low blood pressure and those taking multiple BP medications faced more than double the risk of death compared to others with high blood pressure, highlighting the dangers of overtreatment in frail populations.
The new study reported that these findings contrast with an earlier Cochrane review. Cochrane is a British nonprofit recognized as the highest standard of evidence-based health care. The review suggested that stopping or reducing BP medications increased the risk of heart attack by 86 percent and stroke by 44 percent. However, the authors stated that the review had weak evidence, noting that the included studies were low-quality, had short follow-up periods, focused solely on discontinuation of diuretic antihypertensive medication, and were conducted over 20 years ago.
Long-Term Use May Lead to Kidney Damage
Apart from preventing cardiovascular disease, BP medications are also prescribed to avoid kidney damage. However, some research has suggested that going on BP medication for the long term may do the reverse and actually cause kidney damage.
A study published in Circulation Research in October gave a potential reason for why long-term use of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) inhibitors, a commonly prescribed type of BP medication, may lead to kidney damage.
Renin is a protein that increases blood pressure. Cells in the kidney release renin when blood pressure is low and stop releasing it to lower blood pressure. Renin also activates angiotensin, which constricts blood vessels to increase blood pressure. RAS inhibitors reduce blood pressure by blocking these various biochemical processes.
The research was conducted in mice, and three-dimensional imaging was used to detect changes in the animals’ kidneys.
The researchers found that suppressing renin and angiotensin with antihypertensives caused blood vessels in the kidneys to balloon, causing kidney damage.
“We found that RAS inhibition causes widespread vascular disease, impacting all arterioles (tiny blood vessels) and their associated glomeruli (the kidneys’ filtering units),” Dr. Maria Luisa S. Sequeira-Lopez, professor at the University of Virginia School of Medicine and co-author of the study, told The Epoch Times.
Sequeira-Lopez said that RAS inhibition was also linked to increased scarring and inflammation and disorganized nerves in diseased blood vessels.
Filmmaker Adam Somner (57, C); rockers Michael Batson (39, Surrounded By Monsters), Bob Bryar (44, My Chemical Romance), Will Cullen Hart (53, Olivia Tremor Control); singer Leah Kunkel; & more
Adam Somner Dies: Oscar-Nominated Producer, Longtime First AD For Steven Spielberg, Paul Thomas Anderson & Ridley Scott, Was 57
November 29, 2024
Oscar-nominated producer Adam Somner, who was among the most in-demand first assistant directors in the business during the past few decades, died [in Studio City] November 27 from anaplastic thyroidcancer [ATC]. He was 57.
Researcher’s note - Anaplastic thyroid cancer is one of the fastest growing and most aggressive of all cancers. The cause of anaplastic thyroid cancer is unknown, however, in some cases it arises in the setting of differentiated thyroid cancers such as papillary or follicular thyroid cancers. While overall survival statistics are discouraging – with an average survival rate of 6 months and approximately 1 in 5 alive after 12 months – it is important to note that there are long-term survivors. Link
Surrounded By Monsters vocalist Michael Batson has passed away at the age of 39
December 2, 2024
Michael Batson, vocalist for Texas deathcore band Surrounded By Monsters, has tragically passed away at the age of 39. His death occurred on November 19th, though no official cause has been disclosed. A GoFundMe has been established to assist his significant other and bandmate, Traci, with final expenses.
Bob Bryar’s Death: Decomposed Remains Discovered as Ex-My Chemical Romance Drummer Dies at 44
November 30, 2024
Bob Bryar, former drummer of the My Chemical Romance crew, dies at 44, and his cause of death remains under investigation. The drummer, who played alongside the American rock band from 2004 to 2014, met the crew during one of their tours in 2004. Following his exit in 2014, the drummer lent his talent to other bands across the United States before finally embracing a career in real estate. According to TMZ, the drummer was last seen alive in Tennessee on November 4. While the exact time of Bob Bryar’s death remains unconfirmed, law enforcement revealed they discovered his remains badly decomposed in his Tennessee apartment on Tuesday, November 26, 2024. Animal control reportedly came to the apartment afterward to recover two of his dogs from the scene. The office of the Medical Examiner continues investigating his cause and manner of death.
Athens Musician Will Hart of Olivia Tremor Control Has Died at 53
November 29, 2024
The Athens [GA] music scene suffered a huge blow over the Thanksgiving holiday as Will Cullen Hart of the legendary 1990s psychedelic pop band Olivia Tremor Control has died at age 53, according to his lifelong friend and collaborator Robert Schneider. Hart “passed away this morning of natural causes, suddenly, peacefully, and in a very happy mood around the release of the two new OTC songs,” Schneider wrote on Facebook earlier today (Friday, Nov. 29). While the cause of death is unclear, Hart had suffered from multiple sclerosis for almost two decades.
Singer Leah Kunkel ‘didn’t need to be the lead voice’
November 28, 2024
Singer Leah Kunkel, who lived in Northampton, Massachusetts, died Tuesday, after a brief illness. She was 76. Kunkel was the younger sister of Cass Elliot of folk group “The Mamas and the Papas,” and a performer in her own right, said Jim Olsen, the president and founder of Signature Sounds.
Elephant 6 & Olivia Tremor Control Co-Founder Will Cullen Hart Dead At 53
November 29, 2024
Will Cullen Hart, co-founder of the legendary Athens, GA, indie rock collective Elephant 6 and musician with the Olivia Tremor Control and Circulatory System, has died. Robert Schneider, of the Elephant 6-affiliated band Apples In Stereo, revealed Hart’s death “of natural causes” on Facebook today (Nov. 29). The news arrives on the same day the Olivia Tremor Control released the singles “Garden Of Light” and “The Same Place,” their first new music in 13 years. Hart was 53. W. Cullen Hart (Will to his friends), passed away this morning of natural causes, suddenly, peacefully, and in a very happy mood around the release of the two new OTC songs.
Former University of Montana running back Joey Counts passes away
November 29, 2024
MISSOULA, Mont. – Former University of Montana running back Joey Counts has passed away. Counts, originally from Mesa, Arizona, played for the Griz football team from 2012 to 2016. Counts had been serving as a firefighter for Gilbert Fire and Rescue in Arizona. The department expressed their condolences on Facebook, saying, “Our hearts are broken after the loss of one of our own, firefighter Joseph Counts.” No information on the cause of Counts’ death has been shared publicly at this time. Counts was 31 years old.
Researcher’s note - Maricopa County approves incentives for its employees who get vaccinated [sic]: Link
Cindy (Duarte) Brakman, 2010 Clemson Hall of Fame Inductee, Passes Away
December 1, 2024
Cindy (Duarte) Brakman passed away on Nov. 30, 2024, after a long battle with cancer. Brakman, a trailblazer in both Cross Country and Track, was inducted into Clemson’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010, earning the distinction as the first Clemson women’s track athlete to earn All-America honors in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country. Brakman, originally from Ghent, N.Y., graduated from Clemson in May 1984 with a degree in English. Brakman was most recently on campus weeks ago, traveling in from her home in Newport News, Va., with husband, Carl, to celebrate as Clemson inducted her former teammate, Stephanie Weikert into the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Paige Hubl, Former Nebraska Volleyball Standout and LSE Head Coach, Passes Away
November 28, 2024
Paige Laureen Hubl [34], a former volleyball star for the University of Nebraska Huskers, has died. Her alma mater called on her later in life as LSE named Hubl their head volleyball coach in July 2018. She coached the Knights for four years. Hubl also worked for the student-athlete sports info website, Hudl. News of her deathstunned many friends and former teammates, many of whom took to social media to mourn. “This one hurts. We were just celebrating our hall of fame induction just a month ago.”
Researcher’s note - COVID-19 vaccination [sic] is strongly recommended for all members of the university community: Link
After a years-long long battle with cancer, Southern California-based trainer Ben Cecil has passed at the age of 56. He leaves behind his wife Kirsty, and two children, Francesca and Hugo. A near 30-year training career yielded 325 victories and nearly $25 million in prize money.
Longwood’s Nolan Horn, 15, beloved baseball player, dies after brave cancer battle
December 2, 2024
Yaphank, New York – Nolan Horn, known for his radiant smile, kindness and an unrelenting determination both on and off the baseball field, passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, surrounded by his family. The 15-year-old Longwood High School student, who fought a two-year battle with braincancer, held hands with his parents and older brother as he took his final breath. Nolan symptoms had worsened significantly in recent weeks. He had lost his ability to eat and speak, and he needed assistance to move. About a week ago, he entered hospice care at his home. Nolan suffered from a rare form of braincancer called Diffuse Midline Glioma (DMG), a disease that primarily affects children and is notoriously difficult to treat due to its location in critical areas of the brain and its resistance to most therapies. It is typically terminal.
The Mary Louis Academy Mourns Samantha Harris After Unforeseen Tragedy
December 2, 2024
Samantha Harris was a student at The Mary Louis Academy, a Catholic college preparatory school in Jamaica Estates, NY. Harris was an athlete and was known school-wide for her brilliance in sports and academics. On their official page, it was announced that Harris had passed away on November 30, 2024. The post read, “It is with deep regret that we share that Samantha Harris, TMLA Class of 2025, passed on November 30, 2024.” The cause of her passing has not yet been confirmed.
Funeral services for Addison Lyn Lanham, 17, of Washington [OK], will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday, December 4, 2024 at Goldsby Church. Miss Lanham passed awayunexpectedly Thursday, November 28, 2024. Addison was a standout athlete on the basketball court for the Warriors, and was set to begin a new journey at her new school. Like most kids her age, she enjoyed hanging out with her friends, listening to music and playing on her phone. One of her goals after high school, was studying to be a physical therapist.
Massapequa teen dies after collapsing during charity hockey game
December 1, 2024
A Massapequa teen playing in a charity hockey game Saturday night collapsed on the ice and was later pronounceddead. Connor Kasin, 17, a senior at Massapequa High School, suddenly lost consciousness just before 9 p.m., during an intermission of the game at the Town of Oyster Bay Skating Center in Bethpage, Nassau County, Police said. Witnesses immediately performed CPR until medics and officers arrived, police said. Despite their efforts, Connor was later pronounceddead at the hospital.
regarding the safety of the Pfizer/BNT vaccine and call for an immediate halt of all RNA biologicals, vaccines etc. Massive DNA contamination in Malone Bancel Bourla Sahin et al. mRNA gene injections
I have said before, drag Malone, Bourla, Bancel, Tureci, Weissman, Sahin, Kariko et al. into a proper court, proper judges, juries, separate, under oath, and investigate and interrogate and find out who did what, when, how, who knew what when…it starts with this 7…add Francis Collins to the mix and Fauci…and all linked to them and their mRNA technology and mRNA transfection vaccine work…put a pin in that for a moment…
Now to the study at hand:
The key findings of this paper and based on very good research methods is that:
1)there is foreign DNA in the vaccine raising the prospect of integration into host genetic material, issue of reverse transcription…”identified large amounts of DNA after RNase A digestion in all lots with concentrations ranging from 32.7 ng to 43.4 ng per clinical dose. This far exceeds the maximal acceptable concentration of 10 ng per clinical dose that has been set by international regulatory authorities.”
2)carcinogenic SV40 promoter/enhancer and the antibiotic resistance gene is part of the mRNA gene injection and represents a deadly contaminant…”Gene analyses with selected PCR primer pairs proved that residual DNA represents not only fragments of the DNA matrices coding for the spike gene, but of all genes from the plasmid including the SV40 promoter/enhancer and the antibiotic resistance gene.”
Is this why we are seeing a dramatic rise in cancers? That the SV40 promoter/enhancer and the antibiotic resistance gene also plays a role with the IgG4 class switch antibodies that bind IgG1, IgG3 antibodies that normally constrain tumor cells? That the SV40 subverts the P53 guardian of the genome? The Toll-like receptors 7, 8 etc.? I mean what is going on here with these mRNA gene injections? Why was the proper long duration of follow-up studies not done? Why was this mRNA vaccine rushed to market under Operation Warp Speed (OWS) in months when it needed years? That OWS could be so much of a disaster?
3)Finding of extracellular vehicles aka exosomes (these are similar to the fatty balls, the lipid-nano particles that encase the mRNA payload in the vaccine and which function to safeguard and transport and in some sense ‘hide’ (with the swapping in of Pseudouridine (methylated-Pseudouridine) the mRNA across and deep inside the body) that could be a central player in the ‘SHEDDING’ we warned of and is occurring and that is likely the reason that people who are unvaccinated yet in close juxtaposition to persons who are, go on to develop similar symptoms and at times severe. It is as if they too are vaccinated.
So, if spike protein is moved in exosomes (have specialized functions in physiological processes), can it be excreted at a nanoscale via our exhaled breaths? Via our pores in shedding? In our sweat?
Are we in effect, vaccinating each other? With something that is proven deadly? This must be considered as it was never ruled out in study. Is this something Jay Bhattacharya must approve to be instantly studied on confirmation at NIH? I would think so as he also simultaneously calls for the stoppage of all mRNA technology vaccines.
Reality is that unvaccinated in close contact with vaccinated persons also show an immune response as if vaccinated underscoring the potency and sensitivity of the immune system yet the dangerous self-spreading ‘shedding’ component of the Malone Bourla Bancel et al. mRNA gene vaccine; was this a deliberate feature when the mRNA vaccines were made? To self-spread?… “Secretion into cell supernatants occurred predominantly via extracellular vesicles enriched for exosome markers.”
‘Spike Protein Is Mainly Released Via Extracellular Vesicles
Researchers reported that ‘The luminal part of membrane proteins can be cleaved at the membrane surface by different cellular secretases and released into the medium, but uncleaved proteins can also be secreted from the cells via extracellular vesicles (exosomes). We used mass spectrometry to clarify by which mechanism spike proteins were secreted into the supernatant after artificial transfection of the cell line with the lot GH9715 as model system. To this end, both the transfected cells and the medium were harvested after 24h of transfection. As a result of the isolation of the extracellular vesicles (EV) from the medium, we gained three fractions – the cell lysate, the EVs, and the EV-free medium for proteome profiling. The results of the spike protein abundance in the three fractions are presented in Table 2. The spike protein was most abundant in the lysate (60 spectral counts) and clearly present in the EVs (14 spectral counts), while only low levels (2 spectral counts) were found in the EV-free medium. Importantly, control transfected cells were negative for spike protein and, as expected, common EV markers (CD81, TSG101, alix) were enriched in the EV fraction versus the soluble secretome and detected in both transfected and untransfected cells.’
See paper abstract here:
mRNA housed in transfection-competent lipid nanoparticles (LNP).
‘Background: BNT162b2 (BioNTech, Pfizer) RNA-based COVID-19 injections are specified to transfect human cells to efficiently produce spike proteins for an immune response.
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Methods: We analyzed four German BNT162b2 lots applying HEK293 cell culture, immunohistochemistry, ELISA, PCR, and mass spectrometry.
Results: We demonstrate successful transfection of nucleoside-modified mRNA (modRNA) biologicals into HEK293 cells and show robust levels of spike proteins over several days of cell culture. Secretion into cell supernatants occurred predominantly via extracellular vesicles enriched for exosome markers. We further analyzed RNA and DNA contents of these vials and identified large amounts of DNA after RNase A digestion in all lots with concentrations ranging from 32.7 ng to 43.4 ng per clinical dose. This far exceeds the maximal acceptable concentration of 10 ng per clinical dose that has been set by international regulatory authorities. Gene analyses with selected PCR primer pairs proved that residual DNA represents not only fragments of the DNA matrices coding for the spike gene, but of all genes from the plasmid including the SV40 promoter/enhancer and the antibiotic resistance gene.
Conclusion: Our results raise grave concerns regarding the safety of the BNT162b2 vaccine and call for an immediate halt of all RNA biologicals unless these concerns can be dispelled.’
Sure looks like an assassin, professional! Shooting happened outside a Hilton on ~Sixth Avenue near West 54th Street in New York City; denied healthcare? COVID OWS linked? Obamacare? Black mask?
The lunacy and danger of COVID, imagine an assassin can lay in wait in a black full ski mask and people walk past as NORMAL…is it lunacy in NYC and dangerous to have brought attention to him in that mask? or is it normalized now after COVID to not be concerned. This is an important question.
What secrets did he have to reveal that he would need to be killed so suddenly? Who would be damaged by what he as CEO had to say? This is a targeted hit but why? Why so brazen? In your face?
Thats what I am talking about & Trump must stand now & all heads of the health agencies & call for the immediate stop of mRNA technology vaccines, or say ‘I will stop it in hour one JAN 20th 2025’
embarrassment for hated leader Macron; I know France is overrun by Merkel’s radical islamist jihadists who stab and rape and kill non-believers, yet this is good news, shows France has a chance IMO
Karine Jean-Pierre: Biden Was ‘Truthful’ About Pardoning HunterGaslighting White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has claimed that lame-duck President Joe Biden was being “truthful” when he repeatedly promised the American people he wouldn’t pardon his convicted felon son Hunter.READ MORE
Fani Willis Forced to Release All Communications with Jack Smith, J6 CommitteeThe Fulton County Superior Court has ruled against District Attorney Fani Willis, ordering her to disclose communications with Special Counsel Jack Smith and the House January 6 Committee. The decision, announced on Tuesday, follows a lawsuit brought by Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, which accused Willis of violating Georgia’s Open Records Act. The court’s order grants Judicial Watch’s motion …READ THE FULL REPORT
Watch: President of Angola Jerks Biden’s Arm to Guide Him During Arrival CeremonyJoe Biden, the alleged president, traveled to Africa this week to meet with President João Lourenço of Angola and it was a disaster. On Tuesday, 82-year-old Biden participated in an arrival ceremony and he needed help to get in his place. The president of Angola had to jerk Biden’s arm to guide him on the red carpet. JUST IN: President …READ THE FULL REPORT
BIG Feds charge Chinese illegal with shipping WEAPONS and MILITARY tech to North Korea from CaliforniaA Chinese illegal has been arrested by federal authorities and charged with shipping “large amounts of weapons, ammunition, and military tech” to North Korea via Ontario, California. He was doing this at the direction of North Korea’s government. Here’s more via Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin: BREAKING: Federal authorities will announce charges today against a Chinese illegal immigrant living in …READ THE FULL REPORT
Dan Bongino, Piers Morgan Defend Pete Hegseth from Drinking Allegations by Anonymous Fox News StaffersFollowing the defense by Fox and Friends Weekend co-host Will Cain, former Fox News host Dan Bongino, current Fox contributor Piers Morgan and other Fox associates publicly defended President-elect Trump’s defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth against allegations of unprofessional drunkenness made by anonymous Fox staffers that was reported by NBC News on Tuesday. The decorated Iraq and Afghan war veteran …READ THE FULL REPORT
Report: Tape of O.J. Simpson Confessing to ’94 Murders in Police PossessionSimpson brutally murdered his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman in June 1994. Despite overwhelming evidence pointing to OJ Simpson being the murderer, the disgraced football player was found not guilty. OJ Simpson died in April 2024 just a couple of months after it was reported he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. According to a search warrant …READ THE FULL REPORT
LATEST REPORTS FOR NEWS JUNKIES
FBI Issues Warning to All iPhone and Android Users: Stop Sending TextsThe FBI has issued a warning to Americans about sending regular text messages between Androids and iPhones. The agency revealed that exchanges between the two brands leave messages vulnerable to hackers. Instead, users are advised to use secure, encrypted messaging and phone calls on apps like WhatsApp to prevent third parties from accessing conversations. The warning comes as Chinese hackers …READ THE FULL REPORT
CNN Lets 10-Year Olds Claim People Want to Shoot Them for Being TransgenderCNN National Correspondent Lucy Kafanov has a rainbow flag emoji in her Twitter handle and was wearing rainbow gloves on Wednesday, but CNN Newsroom still thought she was an appropriate choice to send to the Supreme Court to cover oral arguments in U.S. v. Skrmetti, the case that seeks to answer whether Tennessee’s ban on so-called “gender-affirming care” violates the …READ THE FULL REPORT
Pete Hegseth post letter DEBUNKING lies about him being ‘forced out’ at veterans advocacy groupToday Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth retweeted a letter debunking lies being spread about him being ‘forced out’ of his role at a veterans advocacy group. Hegseth tweeted “Read for yourself. You’ll see the truth is on our side.” The letter is from the trustee of Concerned Veterans of America who sets the record straight on why Hegseth is …READ THE FULL REPORT
CNN Lets 10-Year Olds Claim People Want to Shoot Them for Being TransgenderA 10-year-old transgender girl had a devastating reaction when asked what her biggest fear was amid a fierce public debate over trans rights. The child was speaking to CNN’s Lucy Kafanov as Supreme Court hears a case over the constitutionality of a Tennessee law denying transgender minors gender-affirming care. Kafanov asked what concerns she had about speaking out for her …READ THE FULL REPORT
Fox News Commentator, Doctor Kelly Powers Dies at 45 After Cancer BattleFox News commentator and doctor Kelly Powers died Sunday following a lengthy battle with brain cancer. Powers suffered various health complications in 2020, prompting her initial diagnosis, the New York Post reported. Although her illness went into remission, it returned in 2024 before she passed away. “She was a brave and beautiful soul who could make friends anywhere she went. …READ THE FULL REPORT
MICHAEL EVERY/PHIL MAREY/OR OTHER EXECS //RABOBANK/
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7.OIL AND NATURAL GAS ISSUES/GLOBAL
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8. EMERGING MARKETS//AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND ISSUES//
BRICS
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: 1.0537 UP 24 BASIS PTS
USA/ YEN 150.39 DOWN 1.31 NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.00% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//END OF YEN CARRY TRADE BEGINS AGAIN OCT 2024/Bank of Japan raises rates by .15% to 1.15..UEDA ENDS HIKING RATES AND NOW CARRY TRADES RE INVENTS ITSELF//
GBP/USA 1.2737 UP .0026
USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.4055 DOWN 0.0017 (CDN DOLLAR UP 17 BASIS PTS)
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED UP 4.31 PTS OR 0.13%
Hang Seng CLOSED DOWN 182.02 OR 0.92%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP .18%
// EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL MOSTLY GREEN EXCEPT LONDON
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL MOSTLY GREEN
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG CLOSED DOWN 182.02 PTS OR 0.92%
/SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 4.21 PTS OR 0.13%
AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.18%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 119.21 PTS OR 0.30%
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE GREEN
Gold very early morning trading: 2654.15
silver:$31.39
USA dollar index early THURSDAY morning: 106.13 DOWN 16 BASIS POINTS FROM WEDNESDAY’s CLOSE.
The USA/Yuan, CNY ON SHORE CLOSED UP 7.2660(ON SHORE)
THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE: (YUAN CLOSED (UP)…. (7.2658)
TURKISH LIRA: 34.71 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//
the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +1.067
Your closing 10 yr US bond yield DOWN 2 in basis points from TUESDAY at 4.2103% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%)
USA 30 yr bond yield 4.361 DOWN 4 in basis points /11:00 AM
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 4.165 UP 2 BASIS PTS.
GOLD AT 11;00 AM 2646.10
SILVER AT 11;00: 31.30
Your 11:00 AM bourses for Europe and the Dow along with the USA dollar index closing and interest rates: THURSDAY CLOSING TIME 11:00 AM//
London: CLOSED UP 13.57 PTS OR 0.16%
German Dax : CLOSED UP 126.66 OR 0.63%
Paris CAC CLOSED UP 27.26 PTS OR 0.37%
Spain IBEX CLOSED UP 187.10 OR 1.57%
Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 546.37 OR 1.59%
WTI Oil price 68.80 12 EST/
Brent Oil: 72.86 12:00 EST
USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE /// AT: 101.98 ROUBLE UP 3 AND 00/100
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.1190 UP 4 BASIS PTS.
UK 10 YR YIELD: 4.3205 UP 2 BASIS POINTS
CDN 10 YEAR RATE: 3.125 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS.
CDN 5 YEAR RATE: 2.973 DOWN 2
CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM
Euro vs USA 1.0584 UP 0.0072 OR 72 BASIS POINTS
British Pound: 1.2754 UP 0.0053 OR 53 basis pts
BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.2840 UP 4 BASIS PTS//
JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: 1.062
USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 150.02 DOWN 0.522 BASIS PTS// HEADING FOR 160 TO THE DOLLAR
USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.4025 DOWN 0.047 CDN DOLLAR UP 47 BASIS PTS
West Texas intermediate oil: 68.49
Brent OIL: 72.18
USA 10 yr bond yield DOWN 1 BASIS pts to 4.179
USA 30 yr bond yield DOWN 2 BASIS PTS to 4.334%
USA 2 YR BOND: UP 2 PTS AT 4.146
CDN 10 YR RATE 3.098 DOWN 2 BASIS PTS
CDN 5 YEAR RATE: 2.955 DOWN 0 BASIS PTS
USA dollar index: 105.73 DOWN 57 BASIS POINTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 34.68 GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 101.00 DOWN 4 AND 0/100 roubles
GOLD 2,630.00 3:30 PM
SILVER: 31.30 3:30 PM
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: DOWN 248.33 PTS OR 0.55%
NASDAQ DOWN 67.14 PTS OR 0.31%
VOLATILITY INDEX: 13.29 DOWN .16 PTS OR 1.19%
GLD: $242.86 DOWN 1,81 OR 0.76%
SLV/ $28.56 UP 0.03 OR 0.11%
TORONTO STOCK INDEX// TSX INDEX: UP 51,90 PTS OR 0.20%
end
USA AFFAIRS
USA TRADING TODAY CLOSING
MORNING TRADING
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END
II USA DATA
Rate-Cuts? Jobless Claims Remain Low As Hurricane Effects Fade
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 08:37 AM
The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time rose modestly last week from 215k to 224k – still obviously very low numbers…
Source: Bloomberg
Hurricane-related states (Florida and North Carolina) have seen initial claims crash to near record lows
Source: Bloomberg
Additionally, WTF is going in California…?
In the week leading up to Thanksgiving, claims surged by almost 5,000…
…and then last week, claims crashed by almost 10,000?
Continuing Claims dropped back below 1.9mm Americans (1.871mm)
Source: Bloomberg
Not exactly rate-cutting-type numbers, eh?
III USA ECONOMIC NEWS
The truth of the matter is that the insurance operations in the uSA are experiencing huge numbers of cancers major injuries due to vaccines and corresponding deaths. These are mounting each day. It seems that the contract killing is related to the above
(zerohedge)
Taylor Lorenz Says ‘We Want These Executives Dead’ Hours After Health Insurance CEO Murdered
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 10:00 AM
Former Washington Post reporter Taylor Lorenz encouraged people to kill health company executives just hours after the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Biran Thompson.
“And people wonder why we want these executives dead,” Lorenz wrote on Bluesky in response to Thompson’s murder.
Lorenz then posted an image of Blue Cross Blue Shield CEO Kim Keck.
“People have very justified hatred toward insurance company CEOs because these executives are responsible for an unfathomable amount of death and suffering,” Lorenz said in another post. “As someone against death and suffering, I think it’s good to call out this broken system and the ppl in power who enable it.”
Of note, bullet casings recovered at the scene of Brian Thompson’s murder were inscribed with the words “Delay, Deny & Depose.”
NEW: The man who m*rdered UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson inscribed the words “deny,” “defend” & “depose” on the shell casings that were left at the scene.
The masked ass*ssin is still on the run as details of his whereabouts remain unknown.
Lorenz also shared other left-leaning journalists’ posts, including Ken Klippenstein and Jezebel staff writer Kylie Cheung, the latter of whom wrote ” the way we’re socialized to see violence only as interpersonal—not see state violence (policies that create poverty/kill), structural violence, institutional violence—is very deliberate. same w/ panics about ~shoplifting~ vs how much corporations steal from every single one of us.”
the way we're socialized to see violence only as interpersonal—not see state violence (policies that create poverty/kill), structural violence, institutional violence—is very deliberate. same w/ panics about ~shoplifting~ vs how much corporations steal from every single one of us https://t.co/ZS3dH23Upp
“No s— murder is bad. The jokes about the United CEO aren’t really about him; they’re about the rapacious healthcare system he personified and which Americans feel deep pain and humiliation about,” wrote Klippenstein, who joked that he hoped Thompson’s ambulance ride “was in network.”
No shit murder is bad. The jokes about the United CEO aren’t really about him; they’re about the rapacious healthcare system he personified and which Americans feel deep pain and humiliation about
Lorenz also reposted another Bluesky user who wrote, “[H}ypothetically, would it be considered an actionable threat to start emailing other insurance CEOs a simple ‘you’re next’? Completely unrelated to current events btw.”
end
UnitedHealthcare CEO Assassination: Bullet Casings Inscribed With “Deny, Defend, Depose”
Thursday, Dec 05, 2024 – 12:00 PM
The plot thickens in the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, as New York Police Department investigators have discovered shell casings at the shooting area engraved with the words “deny,” “defend,” and “depose.”
The shooter, still at large, appeared to have targeted Thompson, waiting for him early Wednesday morning outside the New York Hilton Midtown hotel, firing multiple shots from a suppressed 9mm handgun, killing the high-level insurance executive.
Officials familiar with the investigation told the New York Times that the words “deny,” “defend,” and “depose” were found on 9mm bullet casings at the scene. They also noted that ballistic tests are currently underway.
🚨UPDATE: Below are photos of a person of interest wanted for questioning regarding the Midtown Manhattan homicide on Dec. 4. This does not appear to be a random act of violence; all indications are that it was a premediated, targeted attack.
The words etched into the metal casings may have multiple meanings, with many on X indicating the words point back to the 2010 book “Delay Deny Defend: Why insurance companies don’t pay claims and what you can do about it,” in which author Jay Feinman “exposes insurance injustice and a plan for consumers and lawmakers to fight back.”
Here’s a summary of the book featured on Amazon (an extended summary can be found here):
“The denial of valid insurance claims is not occasional or accidental or the fault of a few bad employees. It’s the result of an increasing and systematic focus on maximizing profits by major companies such as Allstate and State Farm. Citing dozens of stories of victims who were unfairly denied payment, the book explains how people can be more careful when shopping for policies and what to do when pursuing a disputed claim. It also lays out a plan for the legal reforms needed to prevent future abuses.”
The internet search term “Delay Deny Defend” exploded nationwide on Wednseday night after the bombshell bullet casing report dropped.
Recent data from Lending Tree shows that UnitedHealthcare had some of the highest claim denial rates by any insurance company in the US.
The assassination of the high-level healthcare executive is unfolding like a real-time Netflix murder mystery show.
I’m completely obsessed with this now. The words on the shell casings are similar to the title of a book “Delay, Deny, Defend” which is critical of the insurance industry. Police also don’t think the shooter was a professional assassin. https://t.co/Alvr8NgErG
In recent months, a disturbing revelation has emerged from the heart of our nation’s immigration system: Over 300,000 unaccompanied migrant children who crossed the U.S. border during the Biden-Harris administration are unaccounted for. An internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report dated Aug. 19, 2024, confirms this alarming statistic, highlighting a profound failure in our duty to protect the most vulnerable.
The DHS report reveals that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has lost track of at least 32,000 unaccompanied migrant children, with the whereabouts of up to 323,000 remaining unknown. Without a doubt, we cannot deny the fact that many of these children are now tools and victims of the human sex trafficking industry – a heinous trade that represents the worst of the worst. This staggering number raises urgent questions about the safety and well-being of these children. They are left to fend for themselves in a dangerous world without proper oversight.
The House of Representatives has taken notice, holding a hearing on Nov. 19, 2024, entitled “Trafficked, Exploited, and Missing: Migrant Children Victims of the Biden-Harris Administration.” This hearing aims to address the systemic failures that have led to this crisis and to hold those responsible for the welfare of these children accountable.
The New York Times has previously reported on the challenges faced by unaccompanied migrant children. On Feb. 15, 2023, an article highlighted the surge in child labor among migrant children, noting that many are forced into hazardous jobs to survive. Another report on April 17, 2023, detailed the lack of proper vetting for sponsors, leading to situations where children are placed in unsafe environments. These reports underscore a pattern of neglect and systemic failure that demands immediate action.
It is worth recalling the outcry during the Trump administration over the alleged “children in cages” narrative – a claim that was later debunked. The media and public were swift to condemn what was perceived as inhumane treatment of migrant children. Yet now, faced with the reality of hundreds of thousands of missing children, there is a deafening silence. Where is the collective moral outrage? How is it that a false alarm over detention centers led to national protests, but the disappearance of over 300,000 children has not moved us to the same level of indignation?
The current administration must be held accountable for this humanitarian crisis. President Biden and Vice President Harris must take immediate and decisive action to locate these missing children and ensure their safety. Furthermore, those in positions of oversight who have failed in their duties must resign. The American people deserve transparency and accountability from their leaders, especially when the lives of innocent children are at stake.
This is not a partisan issue; it is a moral imperative. The missing children are not just statistics; they are human beings, many of whom are now trapped in a cycle of abuse and exploitation. The human sex trafficking industry thrives on the most vulnerable, and these children, abandoned by the very systems meant to protect them, are its latest victims.
We must demand answers and action. The time for complacency has passed. We must find the children. Let this be the rallying cry for a nation that claims to champion the cause of justice and freedom.
Let the moral conscience of America awaken. Let the lives of these children remind us of our responsibility. Let us not rest until they are found.
Rev. Samuel Rodriguez is lead pastor of New Season Church in Sacramento, California, and president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference. He has advised three U.S. presidents and is the first Latino to participate in multiple presidential inauguration ceremonies.
President-elect Donald Trump announced on Dec. 4 that he has selected Peter Navarro as senior counselor for trade and manufacturing.
During Trump’s first term, Navarro, a staunch advocate of tariffs, served as director of the National Trade Council and as director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy.
Trump said the new role “leverages Peter’s broad range of White House experience while harnessing his extensive policy analytic and media skills.”
Navarro’s “mission will be to help successfully advance and communicate the Trump manufacturing, tariff, and trade agendas,” the president-elect said.
Navarro was released from prison on July 17 after serving a four-month sentence for refusing to appear before the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol.
Tariffs were an integral economic policy feature of Trump’s 2024 election campaign. Since his victory last month, Trump has threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, slap 10 percent levies on Chinese goods, and implement a 100 percent tariff on countries engaged in anti-dollar activities.
As one of the top White House economic and trade advisers in Trump’s first administration, Navarro was a leading voice in enacting tariffs on the United States’ trading partners, particularly China.
Navarro said levies would help level the playing field and rectify what he viewed as unfair imbalances in international trade.
“President Trump has made it clear he’s a free trader. He’s made it abundantly clear that for this administration, free trade means is free, fair, reciprocal, and balanced,” Navarro said in prepared remarks at a June 2018 Hudson Institute event outlining Trump’s policy regarding the U.S.–China trade relationship.
In 2019, he also championed Trump’s threat of tariffs on Mexico in response to Mexico’s “exports” of “illegal aliens.”
“This is strictly about national security and threats to our economy from illegal immigration from a criminal enterprise,” Navarro told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.”
Despite various criticisms that Trump’s tariffs would ignite inflation pressures and weigh on economic growth prospects, Navarro defended his trade agenda as “one of the most successful applications of a defense trade policy in U.S. history.”
Appearing at a Harvard University event in April 2019, Navarro declared that “Ricardo is dead.” This was in reference to 19th-century economist David Ricardo, who touted that international trade is always beneficial and that nations can prosper with the theory of “comparative advantage.”
However, according to Navarro, 19th-century economic philosophies have little relevance in modern global markets filled with “industrial espionage, rampant cheating, intellectual property theft, forced technology transfer, state capitalism, and currency misalignments.”
Navarro has been reluctant to back trade agreements supported by whom he called “globalist elites” on Wall Street.
“If Wall Street is involved and continues to insinuate itself into these negotiations, there will be a stench around any deal that’s consummated because it will have the imprimatur of Goldman Sachs and Wall Street,” Navarro said in a 2019 speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Navarro will not be the only pro-tariff official in the incoming administration.
Trump has been surrounding himself with staunch defenders of his trade agenda.
Scott Bessent, a Wall Street financier tapped to lead the Treasury Department, has been vocal in supporting levies on U.S. trading partners.
Bessent has spoken favorably about tariffs, describing the measure as a negotiating tool to accomplish the president-elect’s foreign policy objectives.
“Whether it is getting allies to spend more on their own defense, opening foreign markets to U.S. exports, securing cooperation on ending illegal immigration and interdicting fentanyl trafficking, or deterring military aggression, tariffs can play a central role,” Bessent wrote in a recent Fox News op-ed.
In an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Bessent also said that tariffs should be “layered in gradually” to prevent immediate inflationary pressures and allow disinflationary measures to offset higher prices.
Trump selected billionaire Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary.
Lutnick, the CEO of investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, has also endorsed tariffs, calling them “bargaining chips” to negotiate better trade pacts that can slash levies.
“I think tariffs make sense,” Lutnick told CNBC’s “Money Movers” in September. “We should compare what people tariff us and put the exact same tariffs on them and make it equal.”
The president-elect recently rounded out his economic team with Kevin Hassett as director of the White House National Economic Council and international trade attorney Jamieson Greer as U.S. trade representative.
Hassett was the previous head of the Council of Economic Advisers, a position that Trump has yet to announce.
According to Trump, Greer was integral in his first term in replacing the decades-old North American Free Trade Agreement with the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement and implementing tariffs on China.
Greer was the chief of staff to Robert Lighthizer, who served as Trump’s former trade representative.
end
IIIB USA COMMENTARIES RE ISRAEL/HAMAS WAR/ and PERVASIVE ANTISEMITISM/WOKISM
Minneapolis City Council urges amnesty for pro-Palestinian protesters at U. of Minnesota
The resolution goes to the full council on Thursday and, if passed, then to Mayor Jacob Frey, who released a statement Tuesday night saying he’ll veto the resolution.
By DEENA WINTER/STAR TRIBUNE/TNSDECEMBER 4, 2024 10:17
University of Minnesota students filled the Minneapolis City Council meeting room Tuesday and successfully lobbied a narrow majority of council members to urge authorities to back off discipline and charges against protesters opposing the Israel-Hamas war.
By a 7-5 vote, council members, meeting as a committee, approved a resolution “expressing solidarity with nonviolent campus activism opposing war and supporting Palestinian human rights” and urging the university to rescind all discipline against students involved in an October protest. It also asks prosecutors to back off any criminal charges against the protesters.
The U disputes that all the protesters were nonviolent.
The resolution goes to the full council on Thursday and, if passed, then to Mayor Jacob Frey, who released a statement Tuesday night saying he’ll veto the resolution because while he supports First Amendment rights, that doesn’t extend to actions that endanger the safety of others.
“The council’s resolution risks setting a disturbing precedent that must apply to all groups evenly regardless of the cause they are protesting,” Frey said. “It is concerning to me that any council member could view this as acceptable, and I will veto the resolution without hesitation.”
PRO-PALESTINIAN supporters at the headquarters of the International Criminal Court, at the beginning of the Israel-Hamas War, in October 2023. (credit: PIROSCHKA VAN DE WOUW/REUTERS)
At Tuesday’s meeting, students and professors held signs and wore T-shirts in support of the protesters and dismay at the university’s reaction to an October 21 protest where several hundred pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered and about a dozen were arrested after barricading Morrill Hall, the site of the Twin Cities campus administrative offices.
Council urges university to drop penalties
During the protest, Students for a Democratic Society used patio furniture to create barricades, covering the building’s front windows, as part of their push for the university to divest from companies with ties to Israel.
University officials say protesters spray-painted security cameras, broke interior windows, and barricaded entrances and exits, trapping staffers for “an extended period of time.” University police and Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested at least 11 protesters soon after.
The resolution was sponsored by Council Member Robin Wonsley, who said campus activism has been crucial to many movements, including the civil rights movement.
“Nearly all of these nonviolent protests were criminalized and repressed at the time but are now widely celebrated and praised for taking bold and necessary action to achieve social change,” she said.
Wonsley accused the university of trying to criminalize student protesters by evicting them from student housing, suspending them for up to 2½ years and making them pay up to $5,000 in restitution in one case.
Juliet Murphy of Students for a Democratic Society said seven of eight student protesters who were arrested and jailed were recently told they could be suspended for one to five semesters, be ordered to do 20 hours of community service and have to write a five- to 10-page essay on the difference between protest and vandalism. Murphy said one was told they would have to pay $5,636 in restitution in order to be readmitted to the university.
A university spokesman said federal and state privacy laws prevent the university from confirming or commenting on any specifics related to individual student discipline.
The City Council resolution urges the university to rescind all academic charges, suspensions, fines, and evictions and instead work with the group to accomplish their goals. It also urges city and county attorneys to drop or not pursue criminal charges against the protesters.
A spokesman for the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said only one person had been charged by that office in connection with the protest: a fourth-degree assault charge for spitting at a police officer. All the other cases were referred back to the police for additional investigation but haven’t been resubmitted for possible charges.
“Protesting at the University of Minnesota has a rich history, as the City Council states, and individuals safely exercising their freedom of speech are to be commended,” a statement by the office said.
U President Rebecca Cunningham has said the incident was not a peaceful protest, because “These actions crossed the line into illegal activity when they actively threatened the emotional and physical safety of our employees, prevented their free movement, disrupted building operations and destroyed campus property.”
In a Tuesday social media post, University of Minnesota Regent James Farnsworth accused Wonsley of making “a number of factual errors and misstatements” during the council meeting.
“As I’ve previously stated, peaceful and respectful protest/demonstration are cornerstone to a university campus,” he wrote. “That was not what took place in October.”
The students chose Morrill Hall because of its history as a site for activism: In 1969, 70 Black students occupied the building in a peaceful 24-hour protest against institutional racism.
U Associate Professor Sima Shakhsari, speaking as a private citizen, joined the students at the council meeting and said afterward that Morrill Hall has been the site of over ten occupations, and this is the harshest punishment the university has handed down. Some protesters spent more than 40 hours in jail before being released without charges, Shakhsari said.
“When it comes to Palestine, our students are marked as terrorists,” Shakhsari said. “The students have been punished enough.”
The resolution passed the Committee of the Whole — which comprises the full council — by a vote of 7-5 and was supported by Council Members Wonsley, Jason Chavez, Aurin Chowdhury, Jeremiah Ellison, and Jamal Osman, as well as Council President Elliott Payne and Council Vice President Aisha Chughtai.
It was opposed by Council Members Michael Rainville, LaTrisha Vetaw, Katie Cashman, Emily Koski and Linea Palmisano.
Council Member Andrea Jenkins was absent.
end
iiiC USA COVID //VACCINE ISSUES/IMPORTANT MEDICAL ISSUES
END
FREIGHT ISSUES/USA/
END
VICTOR DAVIS HANSON OR NEWT GINGRICH/TUCKER CARLSON
ROBERT H TO US:
TUCKER IS BACK…..
Tucker Carlson Is Back in Russia – Will Interview Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Joe Biden’s Escalating Nuclear War Threats with Russia (VIDEO) | The Gateway Pundit | by Jim Hoft
This upcoming video may well be the last warning.
People like Blinken are leading the charge to war with zero understanding of what it will mean. Unelected bureaucrats who reach for war are more dangerous than the politicos who seek such bloody glory. They are traitors to their own nations. The next number of weeks is most dangerous as attempts to widen conflict and entice war grow.
While it is clear that under Biden the administration is lost without a moral compass; it remains a dangerous crowd quite capable of engulfing itself into a real hot conflict with Russia and Iran and China. Certainly an exchange that has all capacity to quickly escalate. The miserable attempt at raising tension on the Korean peninsula has failed. Thanks largely to a population who does not want to be another Ukraine as a disposable vassal. All signs and games of a declining Empire and hegemony clinging to what power exists. South Korea is a vassal of America run by America. Have no illusions. Germany is not much better.
In Syria, the Russian General has been replaced so expect a much harsher approach that will once and for all change matters on the ground. Russians and Iranians are headed there. Some time ago I wrote that Russian military was preparing to wage a hot war on 3 fronts fighting forces larger than itself. Nothing has changed other than Russia is ready and responds in its’ own time and not on the timelines wished for by opponents. They will stand by Syria. When Assad recently went to Moscow the next day transport planes were on the way. Only this time both Turkey and America may learn that Russia can play for keeps. They have no interest in profiteering from stealing oil and other things. Erdogan is no longer as safe as he was. The next time Russia may not give warning to him to save him and let fate take its course. Treachery is remembered.
Let’s see whether Tucker can save the West from itself in the remaining weeks before Trump arrives to seek peace. As it is apparently instructions have been issued to have all munitions transferred to Ukraine by January 5th. No doubt the Ukrainians will launch one more crazy offensive to ignite a more dangerous fight.
Complete madness on full display while countries like France sink into turmoil and Western European economies shrink leading to wonder how fast and far will Europe fall.
Deflated by the resounding November defeat, the left now believes it can magically rebound by destroying Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees.
Many of Trump’s picks are well outside the usual Washington, DC/New York political, media, and corporate nexus.
But that is precisely the point – to insert reformers into a bloated, incompetent, and weaponized government who are not part of it.
Trump’s nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel, is already drawing severe criticism.
His furious enemies cannot go after his resume, since he has spent a lifetime in private, congressional, and executive billets, both in investigations and intelligence.
Instead, they claim he is too vindictive and does not reflect the ethos of the FBI.
But what will Patel not do as the new director?
He will not serially lie under oath to federal investigators as did interim FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a current Patel critic.
He will not forge an FBI court affidavit, as did convicted felon and agency lawyer Kevin Clinesmith.
He will not claim amnesia 245 times under congressional oath to evade embarrassing admissions as did former Director James Comey.
He will not partner with a foreign national to collect dirt and subvert a presidential campaign as the FBI did with Christopher Steele in 2016.
He will not use the FBI to draft social media to suppress news unfavorable to a presidential candidate on the eve of an election.
He would not have suppressed FBI knowledge that Hunter Biden’s laptop was genuine—to allow the lie to spread that it was “Russian disinformation” on the eve of the 2020 election.
He will not raid the home of an ex-president with SWAT teams, surveil Catholics, monitor parents at school board meetings, or go after pro-life peaceful protestors.
Decorated combat veteran Pete Hegseth is another controversial nominee for secretary of defense.
What will Hegseth likely not do?
Go AWOL without notifying the president of a serious medical procedure as did current Secretary Lloyd Austin?
Install race and gender criteria for promotion and mandate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training?
Insinuate falsely that cabals of white supremacists had infiltrated the military—only to alienate that entire demographic and thus ensure the Pentagon came up 40,000 recruits short?
Oversee the scramble from Kabul that saw $50 billion in U.S. military equipment abandoned to Taliban terrorists?
Watch passively as a Chinese spy balloon traversed the continental United States for a week?
Allow the chairman of the Joint Chiefs to promise his Chinese communist counterpart that the People’s Liberation Army would first be informed if the President of the United States was felt to issue a dangerous order?
Rotate into the Pentagon from a defense contractor boardship and then leave office to rotate back there to leverage procurement decisions?
Oversee the Pentagon’s serial flunking of fiscal audits?
Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is certainly a maverick. He may earn the most Democratic hits, given his former liberal credentials.
But what will RFK also not do as HHS secretary?
Oversee his agencies circumventing U.S. law by transferring money to communist China to help it produce lethal gain-of-function viruses of the COVID-19 sort—in the manner of Dr. Fauci?
Organize scientists to go after critics of mandatory masking and defame them?
Give pharmaceutical companies near-lifetime exemptions from legal jeopardy for rushing into production mRNA vaccines not traditionally vetted and tested?
Leave office to monetize his HHS expertise and thus make millions from the pharmaceutical companies?
Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence, former congressional representative and military veteran Tulsi Gabbard, will soon be defamed in congressional hearings.
But what has Gabbard not done?
Joined “51 former intelligence authorities” to lie on the eve of the 2020 election that the Hunter Biden laptop “had all the hallmarks” of a Russian information/disinformation operation”—in an effort to swing the election to incumbent Joe Biden?
Lied under congressional oath like former DNI James Clapper, who claimed he only gave the “least untruthful answer” in congressional testimony?
Encourage the FBI to monitor a presidential campaign in efforts to discredit it—in the manner of former CIA Director John Brennan, who lied not once but twice under oath?
Fail to foresee the American meltdown in Kabul, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel, or the Houthis takeover of the Red Sea?
* * *
We are going to hear some outrageous things in the upcoming congressional confirmation hearings.
But one thing we will not hear about are the crimes, deceptions, and utter incompetence of prior and current government grandees.
The current crew, not their proposed Trump replacements, prompted the sick and tired American people to demand different people.
Voters want novel approaches to reform a government that they not only no longer trust but also now deeply fear.
KING REPORT
The King Report December 5, 2024 Issue 7384
Independent View of the News
The November ADP Employment Change is +146,000, 150k expected.
Barkin remarks on CNBCEncouraged with where inflation is headed.I See Positives and Risks on Both Sides of Fed’s MandatesIf inflation is high in Q1, that would be a signal that we have a lot more to do.We can’t ignore the Oct jobs report or that inflation is still above 2% Fed’s Musalem Says Time May Be Near to Slow or Pause Rate Cuts – BBG 8:41 ET Says cutting too much a higher risk than easing too little St. Louis Fed chief says important to maintain policy options
Musalem’s other commentsThe Job Isn’t Done Bring Inflation Back to TargetMonetary Policy Is ‘Moderately’ RestrictiveAdditional Policy Easing Likely Needed Over TimeI expect inflation to move to 2% over the next two years.Inflation has been higher than desired; the risk that inflation won’t cool fast enough has risen.Asset valuations are elevated; but not due to Fed policy.The appropriate level for the bank reserves is unknown. @porterstansb: The last time U.S. stocks were this overvalued versus the rest of the world was… well, never.https://t.co/tozSaNizrp
November ISM 52.1, 56 prior, 55.7 expected; Prices Paid 58.2, 58.1 prior, 57 consensus; Employment 53.7, 57.4 prior, 53 expected; New Orders 53.7. 57.4 prior, 56.6 expected.
Traders ignored Musalem’s hawkish views because they were eager to get long for expected dovish remarks from PE Powell at 13:40 ET. However, the DJTA as down smartly, again, during the morning.
Of course, the favorite trader vehicles, Fangs, led the rally. The NY Fang+ Index was +1.9% near 10:37 ET. ServiceNow hit +5.93% at 11:12 ET; Amazon was +3% near 10:49 ET.
ESZs steadily and intractably rallied from the Nikkei opening until they hit 6086.00 at 9:13 ET. The dump into the NYSE opening buying began early, probably on Musalem’s remarks. ESZs sank to 6072.50 at 10:13 ET. The usual suspects then poured into ESZs and Fangs on pattern buying: the propensity of stocks to rally into PE Powell addresses (expected dovish remarks).
ESZs hit a daily high of 6088.25 at 11:46 ET and they traded within a 5-handle range until the range expanded by two handles after 12:42 ET and ESZs inched up to a new high of 6088.75 at 12:51 ET. About 15 minutes before PE Powell’s scheduled appearance at 13:40 ET, ESZs broke down. ESZs hit 6075.25 at 13:33 ET and then bounced to 6082.00 at 13:41 ET.
Speaking at the Dealbook Summitt, PE Powell remarks per BloombergThere is very broad support for Fed independence on Capitol Hill.Independence allows the Fed to make decision for all Americans, not any political party (BS)Doesn’t think a ‘shadow Fed chair’ if DJT removes him is “on the table at all.”The US economy is in remarkably good shape right now. (Why cut rates then?)We’ve moved very quickly with rates.We’ve greatly increased Fed transparency.Unemployment still at a very low level (Why cut rates then?)Important for public to know what we are doingNot quite there on inflation but making progressSeptember cut was a strong signal to support labor marketLower response rate means more volatility in data (No, it means inaccurate!)Don’t know how big tariffs will be or timing, duration; can’t make policy yet Fed doesn’t have view on best immigration, tariffs ideasTreasury is responsible for the level of the dollar (more BS)The state of financial literacy in Congress is mixed. (Pot labelling the kettle)US debt is on an unsustainable path.Fed NEVER thinks about debt levels when setting rates (Total BS; if true even worse!)People are unhappy because price level is higher. (Why cut rates then?)Economic strength give Fed the ability to take its time on cutting rates.Bitcoin is a speculative asset; it competes with gold, not the US $ (more BS or stupidity) Most important Powell remark: “The economy is strong, and it’s stronger than we thought it was going to be in September. The downside risks appear to be less in the labor market, growth is definitely stronger than we thought, and inflation is coming a little higher.” (Why cut rates then?)
While PE Powell spoke, the Fed Beige Book said economic activity ‘rose slightly’ in most districts.
@KeithMcCullough: PE Powell: “the economy is in very good shape“, I just needed to cut so my boys would stop losing money in July-Sep.
ESZs jumped to a marginal new daily high of 6089.00 at 13:56 ET and then fell to 6050.75 at 14:00 ET on the Fed Beige Book. Buyers reappeared; ESZs jumped to a daily high of 6102.25 at 15:50 ET.
If the economy is strong; the job market is robust; inflation is sticky & rebounding; and the Fed policy will ignore US debt issuances & levels – and the Fed still wants to cut rates, party on, Garth!
Positive aspects of previous session Fangs rallied sharply on trader buying ahead of PE Powell’s appearance. The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq hit new intraday and closing highs. USZs rallied moderately
Negative aspects of previous session The DJTA declined. Powell explicitly told the world that the Fed will cut rates despite all the reasons not to cut rates!
Ambiguous aspects of previous session Aided and abetted by the Fed, US stocks are bubbling up again. What will be the consequences?
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]: 6079.13 Previous session S&P 500 Index High/Low: 6089.84; 6061.06
UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot in Midtown (NYC, on UNH Investor Day) Brian Thompson, 50, was shot in the chest just before 7 a.m. near a hotel on 54th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues…The shooting is being investigated as a possibly targeted hit… https://pix11.com/news/crime/man-critically-injured-in-midtown-shooting-nypd/
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was facing a DoJ investigation and lawsuit when he was shot dead at investor conference – unfairly restricting competitors and running a monopoly… The WSJ also reported that the DOJ was examining the company’s Medicare billing practices to see if doctors are aggressively characterizing their patients illnesses to wrongly increase payments from the government… (Suspect wore a hoodie and used a silencer, leading to speculation that he was a pro.) https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14157793/unitedhealthcare-ceo-brian-thompson-doj-investigation-shot-dead.html
US House Speaker Johnson aims for stopgap bill to fund government until Marchhttps://t.co/XAUeUnHCfF (Schumer wants September to thwart Trump for 8 months.)
@EricLDaugh: Speaker Mike Johnson says no new Ukraine funding. “It is NOT the place of Joe Biden to make that decision now. We have a newly-elected president, and we’re going to wait and take the new commander-in-chief’s direction on that.”https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1864378570270744741
French Government Falls after No-Confidence Vote in Parliament – BBG 14:27 ET
Today – As noted above, with abject discus, PE Powell and his ilk are fomenting another stocks bubble – and the current valuations are at or near other bubble extremes. The Fang bubble is even worse!
Stocks are egregiously overbought on every time horizon. A frightening decline can appear at any moment. However, traders know the Fed wants to cut rates and it will take a lot more inflation for the Fed to reverse course, as recent history has demonstrated. So, dips will be bought until something profound changes behavior.
It’s likely that stocks will continue to bubble up until the FOMC is released on December 18. Only a decisively hawkish FOMC Communiqué and commensurate hawkish PE Powell will halt the rally.
PE Powell and his ilk are setting up DJT for a financial and economic catastrophe in a year or two.
Expected economic data: Initial Jobless Claims 215k, Continuing Claims 19.04m; October Trade Balance -$75.0B; Richmond Fed Pres Barking 12:15 ET
ESZs are -6.00; NQZs are -35.00; and USZs are -8/32 at 21:20 ET.
S&P Index 50-day MA: 5852; 100-day MA: 5686; 150-day MA: 5578; 200-day MA: 5465 DJIA 50-day MA: 43,043; 100-day MA: 41,844; 150-day MA: 40,932; 200-day MA: 40,390 (Green is positive slope; Red is negative slope)
S&P 500 Index (6086.49 close) – BBG trading model Trender and MACD for key time frames Monthly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5220.07 triggers a sell signal Weekly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5650.00 triggers a sell signal Daily: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5965.12 triggers a sell signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 6060.46 triggers a sell signal
Biden White House Is Discussing Preemptive Pardons for Those in Trump’s Crosshairs The White House officials, however, are carefully weighing the extraordinary step of handing out blanket pardons to those who’ve committed no crimes, both because it could suggest impropriety, only fueling Trump’s criticisms, and because those offered preemptive pardons may reject them… https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/12/04/biden-white-house-pardons-00192610
Are Blanket Pardons Constitutional? However, the Constitution’s text and British and American precedent suggest that a valid pardon presupposes awareness by the President of that which is being pardoned as a logical and legal precondition for an exercise of judgment about the propriety of granting clemency. Accordingly, a pardon of the type issued by President Gerald Ford to former President Richard Nixon, purporting to pardon Nixon for all federal offenses committed during his terms of office, irrespective of Ford’s knowledge of them, should be deemed unconstitutional. https://online.ucpress.edu/fsr/article-abstract/33/5/301/117729/Are-Blanket-Pardons-Constitutional
The are beaucoup articles that legal types wrote near the end of Trump’s first term that opine blanket pardons and non-specific pardons are unconstitutional. They feared that DJT would issue numerous pardons to his family and cronies. Do they still hold that view if Biden is issuing these types of pardons?
Fox’s @BillMelugin_: Per source familiar, the WSJ reporting that Trump is considering FL Gov. DeSantis for SecDef is legitimate. I’m told Trump & DeSantis spoke face to face about it in FL yesterday at an event for fallen law enforcement, & Trump is “seriously considering” replacing Pete Hegseth w/ DeSantis.
@nicksortor: Capitol Hill sources tell me (GOP Sen.) Lindsey Graham is the leading force to DERAIL Pete Hegseth’s nomination for Secretary of Defense. (Others claims GOP Sen. Joni Ernst is involved)
TV/Radio Host @jimmyfailla: NBC runs with anonymous sources who say Pete Hegseth hits the bottle but ignores everyone ON RECORD who says Doug Emhoff hits his girlfriend. This is why the liberal media deserves the death it’s dying.
Trump strikes deal with DOJ on background checks for incoming administration officials Will allow the FBI to conduct background checks on administration nominees and appointees…https://t.co/E8ACJ5tkYv
Kash Patel, Trump’s pick to lead FBI, has been targeted in an Iranian hack & the actors have accessed at least some of his communications – CNN
Ex=DJT State Dept. Official MIKE BENZ: “There is no aid in USAID. It’s not an aid organization. USAID stands for US Agency for International Development. What it’s developing is all the activist organizations in foreign countries that the state department is building to gain influence. USAID was created to be a central hub that organized all the different foreign clandestine operations. It has a $50B budget. The entire intelligence community is only $72B. It’s more than the CIA and the State Department. It’s a switch player to assist the pentagon, the state department, and the intelligence community.”
Benz’s statement about the USAID being a CIA/IC front excited people that believe Barack Hussein Obama is an IC creation, because his mom, (Stanley) Ann Dunham, worked for the USAID, as well as the Ford Foundation. https://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/NAA.2011-04.pdf
Benz claims that the US is heavily involved in Ukraine over the massive natural gas deposits in the eastern part of the nation. He states that Burisma was the tool to garner the natural gas and keep it from Russia – in order to undercut Russian natural gas exports to Europe, which could bankrupt Russia.
@lukerosiak: The judge overseeing Hunter’s California case lashed out at President Biden in a scathing five-page ruling, saying the White House press release justifying his pardon was full of offensive and false statements, including that Hunter’s tax evasion was the result of addiction. https://x.com/lukerosiak/status/1864132218974581156
Sleepy Joe? Watch Biden, 82, close his eyes for 80 SECONDS at Africa summit on his favorite subject trainshttps://trib.al/MP0fk2s
“Envy was once considered to be one of the seven deadly sins before it became one of the most admired virtues under its new name, ‘social justice’.” ― Thomas Sowell, The Quest for Cosmic Justice
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