MAY 8/MASSIVE T.A.S. CONTRACTS INITIATED YESTERDAY AND THAT LED TO TODAY’S RAID: GOLD FELL BY $82.60 TO $3301.90 WHILE SILVER WAS DOWN 16 CENTS TO $32.44/PLATINUM WAS DOWN 90 CENTS TO $983.60 WHILE PALLADIUM WAS DOWN $5.70 TO $973.75//BIG NEWS OF THE DAY ANNOUNCED BY TRUMP OF A TRADE DEAL WITH THE UK//MORE UPDATES ISRAEL VS HAMAS//STORIES ON SAUDI ARABIA/ISRAEL VS HEZBOLLAH AND HAMAS//ISRAEL VS HOUTHIS//COVID UPDATES/VACCINE INJURY REPORTS/SLAY NEWS/NEWS ADDICTS//EVOL NEWS/INDIA VS PAKISTAN ENGAGE IN A AIR DOGFIGHT//SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT//
132 C SG AMERICAS 6 190 H BMO CAPITAL MARKETS 947 323 C HSBC 2 363 H WELLS FARGO SECURITI 227 661 C JP MORGAN SECURITIES 558 48 685 C RJ OBRIEN 2 690 C ABN AMRO CLR USA LLC 5 726 C PLUS500US FINANCIAL 1 737 C ADVANTAGE FUTURES 3 1 880 H CITIGROUP 202 905 C ADM 8
TOTAL: 1,005 1,005 MONTH TO DATE: 15,951
JPMORGAN STOPPED 48/1005
MAY
GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR MAY/2024. CONTRACT: 1005 NOTICES FOR 100,500 OZ 3.126 TONNES
total notices so far: 15,951 contracts for 1,595,100 OR 49.614 tonnes)
FOR MAY
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SILVER NOTICES: 230 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 1.150 MILLION OZ/
total number of notices filed so far this month : 13,581 CONTRACTS (NOTICES) for 69.905 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 $82.60 INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD:
SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.23 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD//
INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.67 TONNES
SLV/
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER DOWN $0.16 AT THE SLV: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: //
CLOSING INVENTORY RESTS AT:
CLOSING INVENTORY: 448.783 MILLION OZ
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A HUGE SIZED 1327 CONTRACTS TO 139,208 AND STALLING ON ITS MARCH TO THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020, AND THIS HUGE SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR LOSS OF $0.54 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S TRADING. WE HAD A HUGE SIZED LOSS OF 1172 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES AS THE CME NOTIFIED US OF A SMALL 155 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE.. WE HAD HUGE LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS COMEX TRADING WEDNESDAY AS THEY DESPERATELY AGAIN TRIED TO CONTAIN SILVER’S PRICE RISE FOR THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS (WHERE RAIDS ARE CALLED UPON AGAIN AND AGAIN TRYING TO STOP THE RISE IN SILVER’S PRICE TO ABOVE $34.40 AND TO QUELL ADDITIONAL DERIVATIVE LOSSES TO OUR BANKERS’ MASSIVE TOTALS). THEY SUCCEEDED ON WEDNESDAY WITH SILVER’S HUGE LOSS IN PRICE AND THE PRICE IS STILL WELL BELOW THE MAGIC NUMBER OF $34.40 SILVER SPOT PRICE. . BUT THIS WAS COUPLED WITH A HUGE T.A.S. ISSUANCE OF 838 CONTRACTS ISSUED BY THE CME AND THAT SIGNALS DEEP CODE RED THAT THE CROOKS ARE DESPERATE TO STOP SILVER BREAKING OVER THE 34.40 DOLLAR MARK. THUS OUR RAIDS ON OUR PRECIOUS SILVER METAL WILL CONTINUE UNTIL SILVER BREAKS $34.40. WE HAD A SMALL 155 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE ACCOMPANIED BY OUR HUGE 838 CONTRACT T.A.S ISSUANCE WHICH WILL BE 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 LOST A HUGE SIZED 1172 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $0.54.
THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT FOR THE FIRST TWO DAYS OF THE MONTH OF MAY, WE HAD TWO CONSECUTIVE ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS OF 12.93 MILLION OZ. THESE EXCHANGE FOR RISKS MUST NOW BE ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELIVERY SCHEDULE. THE RECIPIENT OF THIS LARGESS IS WITHOUT A DOUBT THE CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA. LOGICALLY ONLY A CENTRAL BANK WOULD ACCEPT THIS CRAZY CONTRACT WHEREBY THE CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA TAKES THE RISK OF DELIVERY FROM A BULLION BANK WHO CANNOT GUARANTEE DELIVERY OF PHYSICAL SILVER TO THEM.
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 ESPECIALLY SILVER IS NOW USED TO TEMPER OUR SILVER PRICE RISE OR INITIATE A RAID AS WHAT HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES LAST MONTH AND AGAIN WITH THIS WEEK’S TRADING ON SILVER AND NOW TODAY TRYING TO KEEP THE SILVER PRICE BELOW $34.40 . THE KEY PRICE TO WATCH IS $34.40. IF IT BREAKS THAT PRICE, THEN WE HEAD FOR $50.00 SILVER.
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/THURSDAY MORNING: A HUGE 838 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
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 SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING THE PRICE OF SILVER DOWN (IT FELL BY $0.54) AND WERE SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OFF SOME NET SILVER LONGS FROM THEIR PERCH
WE HAD A SMALL 155 CONTRACT ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS) iiii) AN INITIAL SILVER STANDING FOR COMEX SILVER MEASURING AT 67.830 MILLION OZ TO WHICH WE ADD OUR 219 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP OF 1.095 MILLION OZ AND THEN WE MUST ADD THOSE CRAZY CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR 12.93 MILLION OZ
INITIAL STANDING FOR MAY: 71.690 MILLION OZ WHICH INCLUDES TODAY’S 1.095 MILLION QUEUE JUMP + 12.93 MILLION OZ (EX FOR RISK) EQUALS 84.62 MILLION OZ./
WE HAD:
/ HUGE COMEX OI LOSS+// A SMALL SIZED EFP ISSUANCE (155 CONTRACTS)/ VI) HUGE SIZED NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE 838 CONTRACTS)
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL: REMOVED 199 CONTRACTS.
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS APRIL. ACCUMULATION FOR EFP’S SILVER/JPMORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES/STARTING FROM FIRST DAY/MONTH OF MAY
TOTAL CONTRACTS for 6 DAYS, total 1849 contracts: OR 9.245 MILLION OZ (370 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 9.245 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: 132.54 MILLION OZ (THIS MONTH WILL BE A HUMDINGER FOR ISSUANCE BUT ISSUANCE SLOWED DRAMATICALLY THESE PAST FIVE DAYS/// WILL NOT EXCEED MARCH 2022 RECORD OF 209 MILLION OZ
YEAR 2024 TOTAL: 1363.84 MILLION OR 1.363 BILLION OZ
JANUARY 2025: 67.230 MILLION OZ///(THIS MONTH’S ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL WILL BE SMALL)
FEB. 58.260 MILLION OZ//EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE/FINAL
MARCH: 67.020 MILLION OZ///QUITE SMALL AND BECOMING SMALLER EACH AND EVERY MONTH.
APRIL: 100.895 MILLION OZ///AVERAGE SIZE ISSUANCE
MAY: 9.245 MILLION OZ (ISSUANCE WILL BE QUITE SMALL THIS MONTH)
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RESULT: WE HAD A HUGE SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 1172 CONTRACTS WITH OUR HUGE LOSS IN PRICE OF $0.54 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX// WEDNESDAY.,. . THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A SMALL 155 CONTRACT EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS: 155 ISSUED FOR JULY AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX TO LONDON AS FORWARDS.
WE FINISHED APRIL WITH A STRONG SILVER OZ STANDING OF 15.965 MILLION OZ NORMAL DELIVERY , PLUS OUR 4.00 MILLION EX FOR RISK
FINAL STANDING APRIL: 19.965 MILLION OZ
AND NOW MAY:
NEW STANDING FOR MAY: 71.690 MILLION OZ. (INCLUDES 1.095 MILLION OZ QUEUE JUMP + 12.93 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE.//NEW TOTAL STANDING 84.62 MILLION OZ
THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE WEDNESDAY NIGHT (838 ) WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED AT A LATER DATE AND FOR SURE TODAY’S TRADING (THURSDAY TRADING) AND BEYOND.
WE HAD 230 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 1.150 million OZ
THE SILVER COMEX IS NOW BEING ATTACKED FOR METAL BY LONDONERS ET AL. IT IS NOW TIME FOR THE FBI TO ENTER THE COMEX AND ARREST THESE CROOKS EVEN THOUGH THE MAJORITY OF THE TRADING IS GOVERNMENT. THE BANKERS ARE COMPLICIT
GOLD//OUTLINE
IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A STRONG SIZED 8582 OI CONTRACTS TO 443,832 AND CLOSER TO TO THE RECORD (SET JAN 24/2020) AT 799,105 AND PREVIOUS TO THAT: (SET JAN 6/2020) AT 797,110. (ALL TIME LOW OF 390,000 CONTRACTS.) THUS WE HAVE A PRETTY LOW OI IN COMEX WITH AN EXTREMELY HIGH PRICE OF GOLD. THE SHORT RATS ARE ABANDONING THE SHIP.
THE DIFFERENTIAL FROM PRELIMINARY OI TO FINAL OI IN GOLD TODAY: REMOVED A SMALL 503 CONTRACTS //.
WE HAD A STRONG SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI (8582 CONTRACTS) . THIS OCCURRED WITH OUR LOSS OF $30.30 IN PRICE WEDNESDAY. ON WEDNESDAY/APRIL 17 WE HAD THE HIGHEST EVER SINGLE NOMINAL GAIN IN COMEX GOLD PRICING HISTORY AT $106.35 GAIN.. THE FRBNY SUPPLIED THE NECESSARY SHORT PAPER..
WE ALSO HAD A HUMONGOUS INITIAL STANDING IN GOLD TONNAGE FOR APRIL AT 164.7185 TONNES/) TO WHICH WE ADDED + 8.3571 TONNES EX FOR RISK = 209.953 TONNES
FINAL STANDING FOR APRIL; 201.443 TONNES + 8.3571 TONNES EX FOR RISK = 209.953 TONNES
INITIAL STANDING FOR MAY: 49.822 TONNES OF GOLD!
/ ALL OF THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR $30.30 LOSS IN PRICE WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S COMEX ///. WE HAD A STRONG SIZED LOSS OF 8167 OI CONTRACTS (25.402 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! THE RESULT: A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY FOR THE MARCH CONTRACT MONTH AS WELL AS THE SAME FOR APRIL AND NOW MAY….. A MONSTROUS 49.822 TONNES DESPITE IT BEING AN OFF MONTH. CENTRAL BANKERS ARE NOW WAITING PATIENTLY FOR THEIR DELIVERY OF GOLD VIA SLOW MOVING SHIPS.
E.F.P. ISSUANCE
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A SMALL SIZED 415 CONTRACT:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 444,355/NOW AT THE LOW END OF THE SCALE DESPITE THE HIGH PRICE OF GOLD!!
SILVER ALSO HAS A LOW COMEX OI OF 139,208 CONTRACTS!!
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A VERY STRONG SIZED DECREASE IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 8167 CONTRACTS WITH 8582 CONTRACTS DECREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A SMALL SIZED 415 EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL OI CONTRACT ISSUANCE WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON. THUS TOTAL OI LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 8167 CONTRACTS.. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A MEGA MEGA HUGE SIZED AND CRIMINAL 54,145 CONTRACTS ISSUED, THE HIGHEST AMOUNT EVER IN COMEX HISTORY. WE HAD HUGE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION DURING THE COMEX SESSION WEDNESDAY
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A SMALL SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS (415 CONTRACT) ACCOMPANYING THE STRONG SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI OF 8582 CONTRACTS/TOTAL LOSS FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 8167 CONTRACTS..WE HAVE 1) NOW RETURNED TO OUR FORMER FORMAT OF BANKERS GOING LONG AND SPECULATORS GOING SHORT ,2.) STRONG STANDING FOR GOLD FOR MAY AT 49.822 TONNES ( WHICH WHICH INCLUDES OUR 3.02628 TONNES QUEUE JUMP)
NEW STANDING FOR GOLD, MAY CONTRACT ADVANCES TO: 49.822 TONNES OF GOLD.
.
/ 3) HUGE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION IN REMOVING SOME NET SPECULATOR LONGS, AS WE HAD 1)A $30.30 COMEX PRICE LOSS.. WE HAD 2) SOME NET LONG SPECS BEING CLIPPED WITH OUR STRONG LOSS OF 7664 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES// /./ ALSO, 3)STICKY GOLD’S LONGS WERE REWARDED WEDNESDAY EVENING AS THEY EXERCISED EFP’S FROM LONDON TO TAKE DELIVERY OF BADLY NEEDED PHYSICAL AND THUS OUR HUGE TONNAGE STANDING FOR GOLD FOR MAY.
4) STRONG SIZED COMEX OI LOSS// 5) SMALL SIZED ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL PAPER (1218 CONTRACTS)/// MEGA MEGA HUGE T.A.S. ISSUANCE: 54,145 T.A.S.CONTRACTS//
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS IN 2023-2025 INCLUDING TODAY
MAY INITIAL
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF MAY :
TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 4438 CONTRACTS OR 443,800 OZ OR 13.804 TONNES IN 6 TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 739 EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN6 TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES 13.804 TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2024, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 13.804 TONNES DIVIDED BY 3550 x 100% TONNES = 0.388% 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
2024 AND 2025:
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 360.03 TONNES THIRD HIGHEST EVER RECORDED FOR EFP ISSUANCE
TOTAL 2024 YEAR. 3,597.846 TONNES
JAN. 2025: 257.919 TONNES (ISSUANCE WILL BE PRETTY GOOD THIS MONTH BUT MUCH LOWER THAN LAST MONTH)
FEB: 207.21 TONNES//EX FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE (WILL BE A FAIR SIZED ISSUANCE THIS MONTH)
MARCH 130.84 TONNES//QUITE SMALL THIS MONTH.
APRIL; 208.57 TONNES. STILL A SMALL TO FAIR ISSUANCE FOR THE MONTH.
MAY: 13.804 TONNES OF GOLD EFP ISSUANCE
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 APRIL. 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 FELL BY A HUGE SIZED 1327 CONTRACTS OI TO 138,934 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 155 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
JULY 155 and 0 ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 155 CONTRACTS. EFP’S GIVE OUR COMEX LONGS A FIAT BONUS PLUS A DELIVERABLE PRODUCT OVER IN LONDON. IF WE TAKE THE COMEX OI LOSS OF 1327 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 155 E.FP. ISSUED
WE OBTAIN A HUGE SIZED LOSS OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 1172 CONTRACTS WITH THE HUGE LOSS IN PRICE OF $0.54 THE RATS ARE FLEEING THE ARENA.
THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTALS 5.860 MILLION PAPER OZ
c) Commentaries from: Egon von Greyerz///Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Pam and Russ Martens
ii a) Chris Powell of GATA provides to us very important physical commentaries
b. Other gold/silver commentaries
c. Commodity commentaries//
d)/CRYPTOCURRENCIES/BITCOIN ETC
2.ASIAN AFFAIRS THURSDAY MORNING//WEDNESDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 9.33 PTS OR 0.280%
//Hang Seng CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37%
// Nikkei CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37% //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP .26%
//Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED DOWN AT 7.2367 OFFSHORE CLOSED DOWN AT 7.2379 / Oil UP TO 58.66 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP TO 61.60 Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING :/ONSHORE YUAN DOWN TRADING AT 7.2367 AND WEAKER//OFF SHORE YUAN TRADING DOWN 7.2378 AGAINST US DOLLAR/ AND THUS WEAKER
1. COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS
GOLD
LET US BEGIN:
THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A STRONG SIZED8582 CONTRACTS TO 443,832 WITH OUR HUGE LOSS IN PRICE OF $30.30 WITH RESPECT TO WEDNESDAY’S // TRADING. WE LOST SOME NUMBER OF NET LONGS WITH THAT PRICE LOSS FOR GOLD. AND AS YOU WILL SEE BELOW, OUR LOSS IN PRICE ALSO HAD A SMALL NUMBER OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUED (415 ).
THE CME ANNOUNCED WEDNESDAY NIGHT, A 0 EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACT ISSUANCE FOR 0 OZ OR 0.0 TONNES. TOTAL ISSUANCE FOR MAY IS ZERO. IN THE MONTH OF APRIL WE HAD RECORDED A NEW RECORD 7 ISSUANCES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK AS THE BANK OF ENGLAND IS GETTING VERY ANTSY ABOUT GETTING ITS GOLD BACK. THUS OUR TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL STOOD AT 8.3571 TONNES OF GOLD WHICH WERE ADDED TO OUR NORMAL APRIL GOLD DELVERIES.
HISTORY: LAST THREE PRIOR MONTH’S EXCHANGE FOR RISK
IN MARCH:
THE TOTAL NO. OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH (3 NOTICES) EQUALED: 7.6179 TONNES OF GOLD WHICH WAS ADDED TO OUR MARCH DELIVERY TOTALS.
IN FEBRUARY:
WE HAD A HUGE FIVE EXCHANGE FOR RISKS ISSUANCES FOR GOLD, TOTALLING 18.4527 TONNES!.
THE RECIPIENT OF ALL OF THESE EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS IS THE BANK OF ENGLAND WHO DESPERATELY WANT THEIR LEASED GOLD BACK. THUS WE HAVE TWO SEPARATE ENTITIES (CENTRAL BANKS) DEMANDING THEIR GOLD BACK:
THE BANK OF ENGLAND
THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF NEW YORK (NEED TO RETRIEVE THEIR LEASED GOLD FROM THE BIS)
THE COUNTERPARTY TO THE BANK OF ENGLAND’S EXCHANGE FOR RISK ARE BULLION BANKS THAT CANNOT VERIFY THAT THEIR GOLD IS UNENCUMBERED AND THUS THE BUYER, THE CENTRAL BANK OF ENGLAND, ASSUMES THE RISK OF THAT DELIVERY. THIS IS THE 5TH CONSECUTIVE MONTH FOR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK !!.(DEC THROUGH APRIL)
IN APRIL:
AND NOW WE CONCLUDED APRIL WITH 7 ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR A TOTAL TONNAGE OF 8.3571 TONNES.
MAY: 0 ISSUED SO FAR…
DETAILS ON MAY COMEX MONTH//INITIAL
IN TOTAL WE HAD A STRONG SIZED LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 8582 CONTRACTS WITH OUR HUGE LOSS IN PRICE. HOWEVER, OUR FRIENDLY PHYSICAL LONDON BOYS HAD ANOTHER FIELD DAY AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT AS THEY WERE READY FOR THE FRBNY.S CONTINUED ORCHESTRATED ATTEMPTED AND FAILED RAID VERY EARLY IN THE COMEX SESSION AS THEY TRIED TO ABSORB EVERYTHING IN SIGHT FROM THE DAILY ATTACKS WITH THE CONTINUAL LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS. LONDONERS EXERCISED THEIR BOUGHT CONTRACTS FOR PHYSICAL GOLD VIA THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ROUTE AND THANKED THE FRBNY FOR THE THOUGHTFULNESS. LONDON ANNOUNCED LATE (JAN 30) THAT THEY WERE OUT OF GOLD. WRONGLY IT WAS ATTRIBUTED TO THEIR SHIPPING PHYSICAL GOLD TO COMEX FOR STORAGE DUE TO TRUMP’S INITIATION OF TARIFFS. THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT THIS GOLD LEFT LONDON TO CENTRAL BANKS, AND COMEX BANKS HAVE BEEN PAPERING THEIR LOSSES (DERIVATIVE) WITH KILOBAR ENTRIES. DELIVERY OF GOLD CONTRACTS ARE NOW TAKING SEVERAL WEEKS. NO DEFAULT HAS BEEN INITIATED AS DEALERS ARE AFRAID OF LOSS OF THEIR JOBS. SO THIS FRAUD CONTINUES. THE LEASE RATES IN LONDON HAVE NOW REVERTED BACK TO 1% BUT GOLD IN LONDON IS STILL EXTREMELY SCARCE. WE CAN NOW SAFELY SAY THAT THERE IS A RUN ON A BANK AND THAT BANK IS THE BANK OF ENGLAND!!!
THE LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS THROUGHOUT LAST MONTH OF APRIL AND ONTO MAY, CONTINUED TO DISTORT OPEN INTEREST NUMBERS GREATLY ALTHOUGH THE T.A.S. ISSUANCES IN GOLD HAVE GENERALLY BEEN ON THE LOW SIDE COMPARED TO SILVER WHICH HAVE BEEN HUGE. HOWEVER TODAY’S NUMBER IS A HUMDINGER AS THE CME NOTIFIES US THAT THEY HAVE ISSUED 54,145 CONTRACTS, THE HIGHEST NUMBER BY FAR IN COMEX HISTORY. NATURALLY THAT SIGNALS THAT WE WILL WITNESS CONTINUAL RAIDS AND FOR THE NEXT 4 DAYS IF HISTORY SERVES US WELL ANOTHER 4 MEGA MEGA ISSUANCE… (FROM JANUARY 2025 THROUGH TO MARCH 2025 WE HAD THESE 5 MEGA MEGA 30,000+ ISSUANCES WHICH DISTORTED OPEN INTEREST GREATLY
THE T.A.S. LIQUIDATION OF THESE T.AS. CONTRACTS IS WHY WE ARE HAVING DISTORTED COMEX OPEN INTEREST GAINS AND LOSSES IN OI BUT THIS IS COUPLED WITH MEGA HUGE AMOUNTS OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY TO CONFUSE THE ISSUE!!!!! AND THIS WAS SURELY ON DISPLAY WITH FIRST DAY NOTICE TOTALS WITH GOLD TONNES STANDING FOR APRIL AT 209 + TONNES INCLUDING MANY MASSIVE QUEUE JUMPS AND THIS CONTINUED INTO MAY AS YOU WILL SEE BELOW ANOTHER MASSIVE QUEUE JUMP OCCURRED ON MAY’S DELIVERY CYCLE WITH ANOTHER HUGE QUEUE JUMP RECORDED WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT 6.4634 TONNES, THE HIGHEST EVER QUEUE JUMP RECORDED IN COMEX GOLD HISTORY. TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP IS ALSO HUGE AT.3.2628 TONNES
THE TONNAGE STANDING FOR GOLD FOR MAY IS NOW 49.822 TONNES (WHICH INCLUDES TODAY’S MASSIVE QUEUE JUMP)
THE FED IS THE OTHER MAJOR SHORT OF AROUND 22+ 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 NOW THAT THEY MUST BECOME COMPLIANT TO BASEL III RULES JULY 1/2023 AS OUTLINED IN ANDREW MAGUIRE’S LATEST LIVE FROM THE VAULT 221 EPISODE. 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 THREE MONTHS. THEY ARE TOTALLY TRAPPED., AND THEIR FAILURE TO STOP CENTRAL BANK PURCHASES OF PHYSICAL GOLD IS THE MAJOR ISSUE OF THE DAY!IT SURE LOOKS LIKE THE BIS HAS GIVEN THE FED ITS MARCHING ORDERS TO COVER ITS PHYSICAL GOLD SHORT. TRUMP WILL PROBABLY BE FURIOUS WITH THE FED IF IT FINDS OUT THAT THEY (FRBNY) HAS BEEN MANIPULATING THE GOLD MARKET FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS.
OUR PHYSICAL LONDONERS BOUGHT NEW MASSIVE QUANTITIES OF LONGS AT ANY PRICE AND THIS GOLD BOUGHT WILL BE TENDERED FOR PHYSICAL ON A T + ???? BASIS. BECAUSE GOLD IS BASEL III COMPLIANT, GOLD IS SUPPOSED 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.
EUROPE IS NOW BASEL III COMPLIANT. THE WEST (FED AND COMEX) MUST BE COMPLIANT BY JULY 1//2025.
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 OUR TWO SPREADERS: 1) THE MONTH END SPREADERS AND 2. T.A.S DURING THESE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS 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, AND THE MASSIVE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING EACH AND EVERY MONTH INCLUDING FIRST DAY NOTICE OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING.
EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE
THE CME REPORTS THAT THE BANKERS ISSUED A SMALL SIZED TRANSFER THROUGH THE EFP ROUTE AS THESE LONGS RECEIVED A DELIVERABLE LONDON FORWARD TOGETHER WITH A FIAT BONUS.,
THAT IS A SMALL SIZED 415 EFP CONTRACT WAS ISSUED: : /JUNE 415 & ZERO FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS:
TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 415 CONTRACT. 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 GENERALLY DELIVERED COMES FROM LONDON BUT THEY ARE OUT!! THUS COMEX BECOMES THE MAJOR SOURCE FOR OUR CENTRAL BANKERS.
ON A NET BASIS IN OPEN INTEREST WE LOST THE FOLLOWING TODAY ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES: A STRONG SIZED TOTAL OF 8167 CONTRACTS IN THAT 415 CONTRACT LONG WAS TRANSFERRED AS EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS TO LONDON AND WE HAD A STRONG SIZED LOSS OF 8582COMEX CONTRACTS..AND THIS STRONG LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES HAPPENED WITH OUR HUMONGOUS LOSS IN PRICE OF $30.30 /// WEDNESDAY/ COMEX. THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS WILL BE USED BY CENTRAL BANKS, TO EXERCISE FOR PHYSICAL GOLD AT THE COMEX AS MENTIONED ABOVE. LOOKS LIKE THE SHORT RATS ARE FLEEING THE ARENA AS EVIDENCED BY THE LOWER OPEN INTEREST AT THE COMEX!
WE HAD :
HUGE LIQUIDATION OF OUR T.A.S. SPREADERS
SOME SPEC LIQUIDATION
T.A.S.SPREADER ISSUANCE
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/THURSDAY MORNING WAS A MEGA MEGA HUGE SIZED 54,145 CONTRACTS AND AS MENTIONED ABOVE, THE HIGHEST EVER ISSUANCE IN COMEX HISTORY.
THE RAIDS WHETHER ON OPTIONS EXPIRY MONTH OR OTHERWISE LIKE TODAY, ACCOMPLISHES TWO IMPORTANT ASPECTS FOR OUR CROOKS:
STALLS THE ADVANCE IN PRICE
LOWERS THEIR ADVANCING DERIVATIVE LOSSES.
MECHANICS OF T.A.S CONTRACTS/DECEMBER THROUGH MARCH, APRIL AND MAY
THROUGHOUT THE FEW YEARS, 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
FINAL STANDING FOR GOLD APRIL
// WE HAD A HUGE AMOUNT OF GOLD TONNAGE STANDING: APRIL (209.573 TONNES//.CME CORRECTED//) WHICH IS HUGE FOR OUR ACTIVE APRIL DELIVERY MONTH. FEB HAD THE HIGHEST STANDING FOR GOLD EVER RECORDED FOR ANY MONTH AT 256.607 TONNES
AND NOW LAST 5 MONTHS OF 2025: STANDING FOR GOLD
YEAR 2025:
JAN 2025:
113.30 TONNES (WHICH INCLUDES 43.408 TONNES EX FOR RISK)
FEB: 2025:
256.607 TONNES (WHICH INCLUDES 18.4567 TONNES OF EX FOR RISK)
MARCH:
STANDING FOR GOLD : 60.33 TONNES + 7.6179 TONNES EX FOR RISK = 67.9479 TONNES WHICH IS EXTREMELY HIGH FOR A NON DELIVERY MONTH.
APRIL:
FINAL STANDING FOR GOLD: 201.573 TONNES + 8.3571 TONNES EX FOR RISK = 209.953 TONNES
MAY:
INITIAL STANDING AT 28.945 INITAL GOLD TONNES STANDING FIRST DAY NOTICE PLUS 6.4634 TONNES QUEUE JUMP MAY 7 (A RECORD) + ANOTHER HUGE QUEUE JUMP MAY 8 OF 3.2628 TONNES = 49.822 TONNES
DEC. 47.073 + 4.634 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 51.707 TONNES
TOTAL 2023 YEAR : 436.546 TONNES
2024/STANDING FOR GOLD/COMEX
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: 80.4230 TONNES PLUS DEC MONTH EXCHANGE FOR RISK TOTAL 14.6836 TONNES EQUALS 95.1066 TONNES
total year 2024: 540.30 tonnes
2025 STANDING FOR GOLD/COMEX
January 2025: 70.102 TONNES + 43.208 EXCHANGE FOR RISK= 113.310 TONNES
FEBRUARY:/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 238.153TONNES +18.4527 EX FOR RISK
= 256.607 TONNES. THIS IS THE HIGHEST EVER MONTH FOR GOLD STANDING IN COMEX HISTORY
MARCH: 67.9479 TONNES (INCLUDES 7.6179 TONNES EX FOR RISK)
APRIL: 209.953 TONNES (INCLUDES 8.3571 TONNES EX FOR RISK/AND ALL MONTHLY QUEUE JUMPING)
MAY: STANDING NOW 49.822 TONNES (INCLUDES ALL QUEUE JUMPING)
COMEX GOLD TRADING/MAY CONTRACT MONTH
THE SPECS/HFT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT FELL BY A HUGE $30.30/ /)AND THEY WERE A SUCCESSFUL IN KNOCKING OFF SOME APPRECIABLE NET SPECULATOR LONGS AS WE DID HAVE A VERY STRONG SIZED LOSS IN OI FROM TWO EXCHANGES. AND AS EXPLAINED ABOVE WE HAD HUGE T.A.S. SPREADER LIQUIDATION WEDNESDAY BUT THEY ARE STILL TRYING TO QUELL GOLD’S ATTEMPT AT FURTHER INCREASES ABOVE $3,400 AND STOP HUGE COMEX/OTC DERIVATIVE LOSSES FROM EXPLODING AS IT LOOKS LIKE THEY ARE NOW SUCCEEDING AS GOLD ATTEMPTS TO BREACH THAT 3400 DOLLAR BARRIER AGAIN AS IT IS NOW TRADING EARLY MORNING WELL BELOW TO THAT LEVEL AT $3,353.00 DOWN $12 DOLLARS ON THE DAY.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT/THURSDAY MORNING
THE CROOKS HOWEVER COULD NOT STOP CENTRAL BANK LONGS, SEIZING THE MOMENT, THEY EXERCISED AGAIN FOR PHYSICAL IN A BIG WAY TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL WEDNESDAY EVENING/THURSDAY MORNING AND THUS OUR HUGE NUMBER OF GOLD CONTRACTS STANDING FOR DELIVERY AT THE COMEX. CENTRAL BANKERS WAIT PATIENTLY FOR THE GOLD TO ARRIVE BY BOAT. IT IS NOW TAKING SEVERAL WEEKS TO DELIVER
EXCHANGE FOR RISK EXPLANATION/FEB THROUGH /MAY TRADING
EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS/MONTH FOR FEBRUARY://FINISHES AT 4 ISSUANCES
THE CME ANNOUNCED TO THE WORLD THAT ON FEB 4 THEY ISSUED 100 CONTRACTS OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK TO THE BANK OF ENGLAND.THEN ,FEB 4 THEY ISSUED THEIR SECOND CONSECUTIVE EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 500 CONTRACTS FOR 50,000 OZ (1.555 TONNES OF GOLD. FEB 6 WAS THE THIRD ISSUANCE FOR A HUGE 2400 CONTRACTS, 240,000 OZ OR 7.465 TONNES. AND THEN FINALLY FRIDAY NIGHT, THE 4TH EXCHANGE FOR RISK WAS ISSUED REPRESENTED BY 2834 CONTRACTS OR 283400 OZ OR 8.8149 TONNES OF GOLD WITH THE OWNER OF THOSE CONTRACTS BEING THE BANK OF ENGLAND. THE BANK OF ENGLAND WANTS THEIR GOLD BACK. THIS NEW EXCHANGE FOR RISK WAS ADDED TO PREVIOUS EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 9.3264 TONNES TO A NEW TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 18.1413 TONNES. IN MID WEEK WE HAD ANOTHER .3114 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCED//NEW TOTAL 18,4527 TONNES!..FINALLY THIS TOTAL WAS ADDED TO OUR REGULAR DELIVERIES THROUGH THE MONTH.
EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS/MONTH FOR MARCH
EARLY IN THE DELIVERY CYCLE THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD OUR FIRST EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACT ISSUANCE IN MARCH FOR 150 CONTRACTS REPRESENTING 15,000 OZ OF GOLD OR .46656 TONNES. THE BANK OF ENGLAND WAS STILL NOT SATISFIED AS THEY NEED TO RETRIEVE ALL OF ITS LOST GOLD THROUGH LEASING! THE 15,000 OZ WAS ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELIVERY TOTAL.
MARCH ISSUES IT’S THIRD EXCHANGE FOR RISK: TOTAL FOR THE MONTH FINISHED AT 3
TOTAL ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK MARCH 28 TOTALS 2200 CONTRACTS FOR 6.8429 TONNES OF GOLD. PRIOR ISSUANCE: .7775 TONNES. THUS TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR MARCH : 7.6179 TONNES OF GOLD. MARCH BECOMES THE 4TH CONSECUTIVE MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE.
APRIL, ISSUED ITS 7TH EXCHANGE FOR RISK: 187 CONTRACTS OR 18,700 OZ OR 0.5816 TONNES
SUMMARY EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR THE MONTH OFAPRIL//TOTAL ISSUANCES 7 FOR 8.3571 TONNES OF GOLD!:
ISSUANCE FOR EXCHANGE FOR RISK ON FIRST DAY NOTICE//APRILL MONTH// WAS 700 CONTRACTS FOR 70,000 OZ OR 2.177 TONNES OF GOLD TO WHICH WE ADD (APRIL 4) : 250 CONTRACTS FOR 25,000 OZ OR .777 TONNES, APRIL 7 ISSUANCE OF 280 CONTRACTS FOR 28,000 OZ OR .8709 TONNES THEN APRIL 9 484 CONTRACTS FOR 48400 OZ OR 1.5054 TONNES AND FINALLY MONDAY MORNING APRIL 14 AT 200 CONTRACTS FOR 20,000 OZ OR .5816 TONNES AND NOW APRIL 24: 600 CONTRACTS FOR 60,000 OZ OR 1.866 TONNES AND NOW APRIL 25 187 CONTRACTS FOR 18700 OZ OR .5816 TONNES//NEW FINAL TOTAL ISSUANCE FOR APRIL: 8.3571 TONNES!!. APRIL ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK MEANS WE NOW HAVE 5 CONSECUTIVE MONTHS FOR EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE. THESE DELIVERIES WERE ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELIVERY CYCLE.
MAY ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = ZERO SO FAR!
HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED LAST MONTH; FINAL GOLD STANDING FOR APRIL:
APRIL: 201.573 TONNES +(8.3571 EX FOR RISK// FOR APRIL DELIVERY MONTH =209.953 TONNES OF THE GOLD. THIS IS THE 2ND HIGHEST AMOUNT OF DELIVERY GOLD WHICH FOLLOWS THE HIGHEST EVER ON AN ACTIVE MONTH GOLD DELIVERY BEING FEB 2025 AT 256.607 TONNES..
ANALYSIS MAY DELIVERY MONTH GOING FROM FIRST DAY NOTICE// MAY COMEX CONTRACT
WE HAVE LOST A STRONG SIZED TOTAL OF 23.838 PAPER TONNES FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES, ACCOMPANYING OUR INITIAL GOLD TONNAGE STANDING FOR MAY FIRST RECORDED AT 28.945 TONNES ON FIRST DAY NOTICE. WE HAD A MASSIVE 1049 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP FOR 104,900 OZ OR 3.2628 TONNES. THIS QUEUE JUMP IS CENTRAL BANKS JUMPING AHEAD OF US MORTALS DEMANDING GOLD FOR THEIR RESERVES. THUS NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 49.822 TONNES OF GOLD.
THUS MAY STANDING FOR GOLD SO FAR: 46.687 TONNES
ALL OF THIS HUGE STANDING WAS ACCOMPLISHED DESPITE OUR LOSS IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $30.30
WE HAD A SMALL 503 CONTRACTS REMOVED FROM THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST (CROOKS)//PRELIMINARY TO FINAL. AND THIS IS TOTALLY INSANE AS WELL.
NET LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES 8167 CONTRACTS OR 816.700 0Z (25.402 TONNES)
confirmed volume WEDNESDAY 389,124.. contracts: GOOD volume////
a)) out of ASAHI 32,016.960 oz b) Out of Brinks: 341,925.880 oz (10,635 kilobars) c) Out of HSVC enhanced: 95,796.750 oz (239 London good delivery bars) d) Out of JPMorgan: 482.265 oz (15 kilobars) e) Out of JPMorgan enhanced: 133,827.320 oz (334 London good delivery bars)
total weight/withdrawal: 604,049.155 oz (18.788 tonnes of gold) absolutely huge
Deposit to the Dealer Inventory in oz
0 ENTRIES
Deposits to the Customer Inventory, in oz
we have 1 customer entry
i)Into Stonex enhanced: 3981.000 oz
10 London good delivery bars.
weight:.1238 tonnes
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No of oz served (contracts) today
1005 notice(s) 100,500 OZ 3.126 TONNES
No of oz to be served (notices)
67 contracts 6700 OZ 0.2083 TONNES
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month
15,951 notices 1,595,100 oz 49.614 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
dealer deposits: 0 entry
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we have 1 customer entry
i)Into Stonex enhanced: 3981.000 oz
10 London good delivery bars.
weight:.1238 tonnes
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withdrawals/ customer (eligible category)
withdrawals:
4 entries
a) out of Brinks 96,453.000 oz (3000 kilobars)
b) Out of HSBC enhanced: 72,613.125 oz (181 London good delivery bars)
c) Out of JPMorgan: 241,549.015 oz
d) Out of Manfra: 144,030.830 oz (4480 kilobars)
total weight/withdrawal: 554,645.970 oz (17,25 tonnes of gold) absolutely huge
adjustments: 0//
AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR MAY
THE FRONT MONTH OF MAY STANDS AT 1072 CONTRACTS FOR A LOSS OF 1117 CONTRACTS. WE HAD 2121 CONTRACTS SERVED ON WEDNESDAY SO WE GAINED A HUGE 1049 CONTRACTS AND THUS WE WITNESS A MASSIVE 104,900 OZ QUEUE JUMP FOR 3.2628 TONNES.
JUNE LOST A HUMDINGER OF 22,250 CONTRACTS TO 283,553. JUNE BECOMES OUR NEW FRONT MONTH AND THIS MONTH WILL BE A WHOPPER OF A DELIVERY MONTH. THE FRBNY IS QUITE NERVOUS LOOKING AT JUNE OI.
JULY GAINED 597 CONTRACTS TO STAND AT 1200
We had 1005 contracts filed for today representing 100,500 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 558 notices issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 1005 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 48 notice(s) was (were) stopped (received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account
To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for MAY /2025. contract month, we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (15,951 X 100 oz ) to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAY (x1072 CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today (1005 x 100 oz per contract) equals 1,601,800 OZ OR 49.822 TONNES
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the MAY contract month: No of notices filed so far (15,951 x 100 oz +we add the difference for front month of MAY (1072 OI} minus the number of notices served upon today (1005 x 100 oz) which equals 1,601,800 OZ OR 49.822 TONNES
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING FOR MAY.: 49.822 TONNES WHICH IS HUGE FOR THIS NON ACTIVE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH IN THE CALENDAR. FEBRUARY HAD THE HIGHEST DELIVERY FOR ANY MONTH AND APRIL WAS SECOND..
JPMorgan has a total silver weight: 214.018million oz/502.80 oz million or 42.56%
TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 166.981 MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 502.800Million oz
CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR MAY
silver open interest data:
FRONT MONTH OF MAY /2025 OI: 987 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FOR A GAIN OF 73 CONTRACTS. WE HAD 146 NOTICES FILED ON WEDNESDAY SO WE GAINED 219 CONTRACTS WHICH UNDERWENT A STRONG QUEUE JUMP OF 1.095 MILLION OZ WHERE THESE BOYS HAVE DECIDED TO TAKE DELIVERY OVER HERE. I MUST REPORT WE HAD 0 EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE. THUS THE NEW TOTAL REMAINS AT TWO ISSUANCES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK IS 12.93 MILLION OZ.
JUNE SAW A LOSS OF 54 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 3183 CONTRACTS.
JULY LOST 2144 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 109,220
TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 230 or 1.150 MILLION oz
CONFIRMED volume; ON WEDNESDAY 140,261 monstrous//
AND NOW MAY DELIVERIES:
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in MAY. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 13,581 X5,000 oz = 67.905 MILLION oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAY (987) AND the number of notices served upon today (230 )x (5000 oz)
Thus the standings for silver for the MAY 2025 contract month: (13,581) Notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of MAY(987) minus number of notices served upon today (230)x 5000 oz equals silver standing for the MAY contract month equating to 71.690 MILLION OZ . THEN WE MUST ADD OUR NEW 12.93 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK. NEW TOTAL STANDING FOR SILVER: 84.62 MILLION OZ
New total standing: 54.830 million oz which is huge for this active delivery month of MAY.
We must also keep in mind that there is considerable silver standing in London coming from our longs in New York that underwent EFP transfers.
There are 166.981million 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
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
MAY 8 WITH GOLD DOWN $82.60 TODAY// SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.23 TONNES OF GOLD WITHDRAWN FROM THE GLD/ ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.67 TONNES
MAY 7 WITH GOLD DOWN $30.30 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.96 TONNES
MAY 6 WITH GOLD UP $101.55 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 6.32 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.96 TONNES
MAY 5 WITH GOLD UP $77.95 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.13 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 944.28 TONNES
MAY 2 WITH GOLD UP $ 18.40 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.15 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 945.41 TONNES
MAY 1 WITH GOLD DOWN $ 92,45 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.87 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 944.26 TONNES
APRIL30 WITH GOLD DOWN $14.05 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 0.86 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 947.13 TONNES
APRIL29 WITH GOLD DOWN $13.45 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.27 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 946.27 TONNES
APRIL28 WITH GOLD UP $50.20 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.27 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 946.27 TONNES
APRIL25 WITH GOLD DOWN $49.95 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A MASSIVEV WITHDRAWAL OF 3.911 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 948.56 TONNES
APRIL24 WITH GOLD UP $54.90 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 952.471 TONNES
APRIL23 WITH GOLD DOWN $124.55 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 9.47 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 949.70 TONNES
APRIL22 WITH GOLD DOWN $7,75 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 6.89 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 957.17 TONNES
APRIL21 WITH GOLD UP $98.70 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.88 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 952.28 TONNES
APRIL17 WITH GOLD DOWN $14.85 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 4.02 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 957.17 TONNES
APRIL16 WITH GOLD UP $12.90 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 953.15 TONNES
APRIL15 WITH GOLD UP $106.35 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 953.15 TONNES
APRIL14 WITH GOLD DOWN $16.90 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 3.44 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 953.15 TONNES
APRIL11 WITH GOLD UP $67.70 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 13.48 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 949.71 TONNES
/APRIL10 WITH GOLD UP $100.00 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.86 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 937.09 TONNES
APRIL9 WITH GOLD UP $83.50 TODAY// MEGA HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 11.171 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 936.23 TONNES
APRIL8 WITH GOLD UP $17.50 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 6.02 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 926.78 TONNES
APRIL3 WITH GOLD DOWN $27.85 TODAY// SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 0.57 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 931.94 TONNES
APRIL2 WITH GOLD UP $10.00 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.01 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 931.37 TONNES
APRIL1 WITH GOLD DOWN $3.55 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 933.38 TONNES
MARCH 31 WITH GOLD UP $31.60 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 2.29 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 931.94 TONNES
MARCH 28 WITH GOLD UP $31.60 TODAY// SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF .29 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 929.65 TONNES
MARCH 27 WITH GOLD UP $31.60 TODAY// SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF .29 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD. ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 929.65 TONNES
MARCH 26 WITH GOLD UP $31.60 TODAY// NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 929.36 TONNES
MARCH 25 WITH GOLD UP $13.90 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.44 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/ ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 929.07 TONNES
MARCH 24 WITH GOLD DOWN $6.10 TODAY// HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: A DEPOSIT OF 20.08 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD///INVENTORY RESTS AT 930.51 TONNES
GLD INVENTORY: 937.67 TONNES, TONIGHTS TOTAL
SILVER
MAY 8 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.16/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:NO CHANGE IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.783 MILLION OZ
MAY 7 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.54/NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.783 MILLION OZ
MAY 6 WITH SILVER UP $0.92 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A HUG WITHDRAWAL OF 2.818 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.783 MILLION OZ
MAY 5 WITH SILVER UP $0.08 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A SMALL DEPOSIT OF 0.117 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 450.602 MILLION OZ
MAY 2 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.19 /MASSIVE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 4.545 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 450.424 MILLION OZ
MAY 1 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.43 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 0.683 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 454.972 MILLION OZ
APRIL30 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.65 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 2.364 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 454.289 MILLION OZ
APRIL29 WITH SILVER UP $0.30 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A DEPOSIT OF 3.229 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 451.925 MILLION OZ
APRIL28 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.03 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.136 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.696 MILLION OZ
APRIL25 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.44 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A MASSSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 3.639 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.832 MILLION OZ
APRIL24 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.01 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A MASSSIVE DEPOSIT OF 4.771 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 452.471 MILLION OZ
APRIL23 WITH SILVER UP $0.65 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV:A MASSSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 6.27 MILLIO9N OZ FROM THE SLV ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 447.70 MILLION OZ
APRIL22 WITH SILVER UP $0.15 /NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: ////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 453.426 MILLION
APRIL22 WITH SILVER UP $0.30 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 0.545 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 453.426 MILLION
APRIL21 WITH SILVER UP $0.15 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 0.545 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 453.426 MILLION
APRIL17 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.56 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A DEPOSIT OF 1.183 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 453.426 MILLION
APRIL16 WITH SILVER UP $0.70 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 3.002 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV////: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 452.243 MILLION
APRIL15 WITH SILVER UP $0.07 /NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 449.241 MILLION
APRIL14 WITH SILVER UP $0/23 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.273 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 449.241 MILLION
APRIL11 WITH SILVER UP $1.18 /BIG CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 1.911 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 449.71 MILLION
APRIL10 WITH SILVER UP $0.18 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDDRAWAL OF 0.501 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 447.603 MILLION
APRIL9 WITH SILVER UP $0.96 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 0.683 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.104 MILLION
APRIL8 WITH SILVER UP $0.35 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A DEPOSIT OF 1.137 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 447,421 MILLION
APRIL3 WITH SILVER DOWN $1.84 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.138 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 446.830 MILLION
APRIL2 WITH SILVER UP 0.15 /SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV A WITHDRAWAL OF .364 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 447.968 MILLION
APRIL1 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.36 /NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.332 MILLION
MARCH 31 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.28 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A STRONG DEPOSIT OF 0.91000 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.332 MILLION
MARCH 28 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.21 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV” A STRONG WITHDRAWAL OF 1.092 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 447.422 MILLION
MARCH 27 WITH SILVER UP $.60 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV” A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 6.369 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.514 MILLION
MARCH 26 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.21 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV” A MASSIVE WITHDRAWAL OF 6.369 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 448.514 MILLION
MARCH 25 WITH SILVER UP $0.63 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 13.649 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 454.883 MILLION
MARCH 24 WITH SILVER UP $0.04 /HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV: A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.728 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV// //INVENTORY AT SLV RESTS AT 441.234 MILLION
CLOSING INVENTORY 448.783 MILLION OZ//
PHYSICAL GOLD/SILVER COMMENTARIES
1/ PETER SCHIFF/SCHIFF GOLD/MIKE MAHARRY
PETER SCHIFF
MISH SHEDLOCK
2, EGON VON GREYERZ
ALASDAIR MACLEOD
3. C Powell and Gata dispatches
4. ANDREW MAGUIRE PODCAST 221
LIVE FROM THE VAULT NO 221 WITH ANDREW MAGUIRE
5B GLOBAL COMMODITY ISSUES/FOOD IN GENERAL//FREIGHT/COMMODITIES:COMMODITY//RARE EARTHS
6 CRYPTOCURRENCY NEWS
ASIA TRADING THURSDAY MORNING WEDNESDAY NIGHT
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 9.33 PTS OR 0.280%
//Hang Seng CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37%
// Nikkei CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37% //Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP .26%
//Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED DOWN AT 7.2367 OFFSHORE CLOSED DOWN AT 7.2379 / Oil UP TO 58.66 dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP TO 61.60 Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL GREEN
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING ABOVE LEVEL OF OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING :/ONSHORE YUAN DOWN TRADING AT 7.2367 AND WEAKER//OFF SHORE YUAN TRADING DOWN 7.2378 AGAINST US DOLLAR/ AND THUS WEAKER
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 DOWN TO 7.2367 (CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY MANIPULATED)
OFFSHORE YUAN: DOWN TO 7.2379 (CCP MANIPULATED)
SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 9.33 PTS OR 0.28%
HANG SENG CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37%
2. Nikkei closed UP 148.97 PTS OR .41%
3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL GREEN
USA dollar INDEX UP TO 99.99// EURO RISES TO 1.1287 DOWN 16 BASIS PTS
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +1.337//Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 144.95…… 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 DOWN CHINESE ONSHORE YUAN: DOWN OFFSHORE: DOWN
3f Japan is to buy INFINITE TRILLION YEN worth of BONDS. Japan’s GDP equals 5 trillion USA
Japan to buy 100% of all new Japanese debt and NOW they will have OVER 50% of all Japanese debt.
3g Oil UP for WTI and DOWN FOR UP this morning
3h European bond buying continues to push yields lower on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund YIELD DOWN TO +2.5075/Italian 10 Yr bond yield DOWN to 3.576 SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD DOWN TO 3.158%
3i Greek 10 year bond yield DOWN TO 3.331
3j Gold at $3344.65 Silver at: 32.33 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $50.00//AFTER 28.40
3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble DOWN 1 AND 72 /100 roubles/dollar; ROUBLE AT 82.25
3m oil into the 58 dollar handle for WTI and 61 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 144.95// 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 1.337% 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 0.8263 as the Swiss Franc is still rising against most currencies. Euro vs SF: 0.9327 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: 4.313 UP 4 BASIS PTS…
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.807 UP 4 BASIS PTS/
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 3.8223 UP 3 BASIS PTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 38.64
10 YR UK BOND YIELD: 4.5080 UP 5 PTS
10 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 3.098 DOWN 5 BASIS PTS
5 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 2.707 DOWN 4 PTS
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2a New York OPENING REPORT
Futures, Global Markets Jump On Trump Trade Deal With UK
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 08:24 AM
US equity futures storm higher, and are back to their post-Liberation Day highs on positive trade news (Imminent “comprehensive” trade agreement with UK the first of his promised deals; removal of chip export restrictions) and a neutral Fed (economy has strength to wait to see trade war impact hit hard data) even as China again reiterated that the US should cancel unilateral tariffs ahead the first official meeting between the countries this weekend amid reports the US is considering exempting child-related goods from its 145% tariffs on China. As of 8:00am ET, S&P futures rose 0.9% while Nasdaq futures are 1.2% higher, both near session highs. Elsewhere FTSE +40bps, DAX +1.2%, CAC +1%, Shanghai +28bps, Hang Seng +37bps, Nikkei +41bps. Intel rose more than 3% in premarket trading, while peers such as Nvidia and Micron also gained on news Trump will rescind restrictions regulating the export of semiconductors to various countries. Outside of tariffs, Norway and Sweden central banks left rates unch (expected) while we get the BoE this morning (25bps cut expected). US Bond yields are 4-5bp higher across the curve and USD is poised to have its best day 6 sessions with DXY +50bp. Today’s macro data focus is on jobless claims, NY Fed 1-year inflation expectations, and labor costs.
In premarket trading, Mag 7 stocks climb as the Trump administration plans to rescind some Biden-era AI chip curbs as part of a broader effort to revise global semiconductor trade restrictions (Nvidia +1.6%, Alphabet +1.9%, Meta +2%, Tesla +1.3%, Apple +1%, Amazon +1.6%, Microsoft +0.9%). Cryptocurrency-exposed stocks rise as Bitcoin approaches the $100,000 mark for the first time since February as global trade tensions show signs of easing. AppLovin climbs 14% after the AI-powered advertisement platform reported first-quarter results that beat expectations. Arm Holdings tumbled 9% after giving a disappointing sales forecast for the current quarter, stoking concerns about a tariff-fueled slowdown for the chip industry. Here are some other notable premarket movers:
Carvana (CVNA) rises 4% after the online used-car retailer doubled its profits in the first quarter with record vehicle volume.
Coherent (COHR) gains 6% after the semiconductor device company reported third-quarter results that beat expectations
Dave Inc. (DAVE) rises 28% after the digital banking services company boosted its revenue and adjusted Ebitda forecast for the full year, surpassing expectations.
Eli Lilly (LLY) drops 1.5% and AbbVie (ABBV) dips 1.7% following a Politico report that President Donald Trump plans to revive an effort to dramatically slash drug costs by tying the amount the government pays for some medicines to lower prices abroad.
Fortinet (FTNT) tumbles 8% after the security software company reported its first-quarter results and gave an outlook
Fluence Energy Inc. (FLNC) falls 15% after the provider of energy storage systems cut its total revenue guidance range for the full year, a reduction of $700m at the midpoint.
Fortinet (FTNT) tumbles 14% after the security software company reported its first-quarter results that Jefferies says missed “elevated investor expectations.”
Krispy Kreme Inc. (DNUT) falls 19% after saying the company will no longer pay quarterly cash dividends in order to pay down its debt and focus on growth.
Magnite Inc. (MGNI) rises 11% after the advertising technology company reported first-quarter results that beat expectations on profitability metrics. It also said it was taking a cautious approach in its outlook given tariff-related uncertainty, a move analysts support.
MercadoLibre (MELI) climbs 8% after the e-commerce and fintech giant beat analysts’ expectations in the first quarter of the year, delivering strong growth in its credit portfolio.
Peloton Interactive Inc. (PTON) falls 4% after reporting that revenue sank 13% last quarter, marking the third straight year-on-year decline in sales.
Shopify Inc. (SHOP) slips 8% after projected sales in the current quarter that just met expectations, suggesting steep tariffs on goods from China present a challenge.
Tapestry Inc. (TPR) gains 9% after the handbag maker raised its annual outlook, shrugging off broader concerns about worsening consumer sentiment and the trade war.
Tutor Perini Corp. (TPC) climbs 15% after the construction company boosted its year profit outlook. First quarter revenue increased 19% from the year-ago period and beat estimates.
Global markets were lifted after Trump administration’s plan to rescind some Biden-era curbs on chipmakers and news of a trade agreement with Britain, which followed news that US and Chinese officials will meet this weekend to discuss trade. Investors are waiting to see if crippling levies mooted by Trump will be negotiated down, averting lasting damage to economic growth and corporate profits.
“The fear has been of higher prices, company profit margins being squeezed, and the economy going into recession as a result of higher tariffs,” said Kenneth Broux, a strategist at Societe Generale. “If you start unwinding all of that, it’s got to be bullish for risk assets.”
In the UK, gilt yields rose about five basis points, reversing an earlier slide, after the BOE reduced interest rates to 4.25% in a decision made before the US trade deal was announced. However, the BOE upgraded its annual growth forecast for 2025 while two officials voted not to cut rates this time due to inflation risks and a recent easing in financial conditions.
For Neil Birrell, chief investment officer at Premier Miton Investors, the split BOE vote “goes to show the scale of the uncertainty that exists amongst a key group, namely the actual setters of policy. It’s going to be difficult to make a call on future policy on the back of that.”
Meanwhile, while there was little international fallout from the conflict between India and Pakistan, investors were monitoring signs of escalation. Pakistan’s main equity index shed as much as 8.8%, while India’s Nifty 50 Index lost as much as 01.1%. The Indian rupee slid over 1% against the dollar.
The trade headlines also lifted Europe’s Stoxx 600 index by about 0.9%, as tech, industrials and travel are the best-performing European sectors. Chip stocks including ASML were among the top gainers. Siemens Energy rose after it said the impact of tariffs was going to be limited, while Danish container giant Maersk declines after cutting its forecast amid trade war. Britain’s domestically focused FTSE 250 index rose to a two-month high. Here are the biggest winners:
Siemens Energy shares gain as much as 4.1%, touching a record high, shrugging off US tariff chaos and saying the effect of import duties on its bottom line will be small.
Adecco shares gain as much as 4.3% after the Swiss staffing company posts a top line beat in a mixed set of first-quarter results.
Puma shares jump as much as 6%, hitting their highest level in almost two months, after the sportswear retailer delivered a small sales beat and reiterated its guidance for the year.
Rheinmetall shares rise as much as 2% to a new record after the German firm’s weapon and ammunition sales for the first quarter beat the average analyst estimate.
Novonesis shares rise as much as 4.3% after the Danish biotechnology firm reported strong results for the first quarter, including a small beat on organic sales growth.
J. Martins shares advance as much as 6.3% after retailer maintained Ebitda margin for 1Q even as an unfavorable calendar with a late Easter slowed same-store sales in Poland.
Argenx shares drop as much as 9.5% after the biotech firm reported Vyvgart sales for the first quarter that were slightly weaker than JPMorgan analysts had been expecting.
Maersk shares fall 2.2% after the Danish container giant’s earnings beat was overshadowed by it cutting its forecast for the global transport market rattled by trade war.
Zurich Insurance shares slip as much as 1.4% as Switzerland’s largest insurer cautioned that prices are moderating in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and North America even as it reported solid results for the first quarter.
Amadeus shares fall as much as 3.6% after the travel IT services provider reported sales and Ebitda that missed estimates.
Centrica shares drop as much as 8%, the most since last July, after analysts warned the British Gas-owner’s AGM update suggests there is downside risks to consensus numbers for this year.
Zealand Pharma shares fall as much as 5.9% after the Danish drug developer released results for the first quarter which Van Lanschot Kempen analysts said were “uneventful.”
Earlier in the session, stocks in Asia declined, on course to end a four-day run of gains, as earnings caution in Japan outweighed optimism over signs of easing trade tensions. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.6%, reversing an earlier 0.3% gain. Japanese firms Nintendo Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. were among the biggest drags, with the carmaker expecting a $1.3 billion profit hit in just two months on tariffs. Nintendo projected weaker-than-expected initial sales of the Switch 2. Trading was halted in Pakistan after its benchmark KSE-30 Index slumped on intensifying military conflict with India. Indian stocks were slightly lower. Markets were in the green in Hong Kong, China and South Korea as signs of progress in trade negotiations supported sentiment. The confirmation of US-China trade talks starting this weekend, and Thursday’s report that the US is about to announce a deal with the United Kingdom, boosted optimism that the global tariff war has entered a de-escalation stage. Foreign investor flows into Asian stocks excluding China and Japan reached $3 billion so far this week, according to Bloomberg-compiled data.
In FX, the dollar was 0.2% higher against a basket of peers, benefiting also from the Federal Reserve’s signal that it’s in no hurry to ease monetary policy. The Fed held interest rates steady as expected on Wednesday, and warned that higher tariffs could raise inflation and unemployment. The pound climbed after the Bank of England cut interest rates as expected, but stuck to signaling “gradual and careful” moves in the coming months.
In rates, treasuries are cheaper across the curve as US stock futures rally; rate-sensitive two-year Treasury yields rose about five basis points as traders trimmed the odds of a July cut to around 80%. US yields are 3bp-4bp higher across maturities with intermediate tenors leading losses, flattening 5s30s spread by 1.5bp and unwinding a portion of Wednesday’s steepening move. 10-year at 4.30%, just off day’s high. Supply also a factor, with an auction of 30-year bonds ahead at 1pm New York time. Gilt futures fell to session lows after Bank of England cut rates to 4.25% as expected in a three-way split. UK front-end yields cheaper by about 5bp, flattening the gilt curve after the BOE rate decision. The week’s Treasury auction cycle concludes with $25 billion 30-year new issue, following strong demand for 10-year notes Tuesday. WI 30-year yield near ~4.795% is about 2bp richer than last month’s, which stopped through by 2.6bp. Investors will now monitor weekly jobless data, which is expected to show claims slipped marginally in the latest week to 230,000.
In commodities, oil climbs 1.4% higher to near $58.86. Bitcoin rose toward the $100,000 mark for the first time since February. Spot gold falls about $10 to near $3,350/oz.
Looking ahead, the US economic calendar includes 1Q nonfarm productivity and weekly jobless claims (8:30am), March wholesale inventories (10am) and April New York Fed 1-year inflation expectations (11am)
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 mini +1%
Nasdaq 100 mini +1.4%
Russell 2000 mini +1.3%
Stoxx Europe 600 +0.5%
DAX +1.2%
CAC 40 +0.8%
10-year Treasury yield +4 basis points at 4.31%
VIX -1 points at 22.52
Bloomberg Dollar Index +0.3% at 1225.78
euro little changed at $1.129
WTI crude +1% at $58.67/barrel
Top Overnight News
President Trump is expected to announce a framework of a trade deal with the U.K. on Thursday, the first in what the White House hopes is a series of trade agreements since it imposed tariffs against allies and adversaries. Trump said there would be a press conference in the Oval Office at 10 a.m. WSJ
Pakistan said it shot down 12 drones from India that had killed one civilian and injured four soldiers. India’s rupee weakened 1%. BBG
Ukraine has discussed ways to pressure Russia into agreeing to a 30-day ceasefire with U.S., French, British and German senior officials, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s top aide said on Thursday, part of a flurry of diplomacy to try to end the war. RTRS
US President Trump’s big announcement is regarding a Medicare drug plan, according to Politico.
US President Trump posted “We are making great progress on “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill.” Our Economy is doing well, but it’s going to BOOM in a way never seen before. We are going to do NO TAX ON TIPS, NO TAX ON SENIORS’ SOCIAL SECURITY, NO TAX ON OVERTIME, and much more. It will be the biggest Tax Cut for Middle and Working Class Americans by far, and it is time for Main Street to WIN. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
White House said the Treasury and Commerce departments have formulated plans for a sovereign wealth fund, but no final decisions have yet been made.
China is considering largely scrapping its pre-sales model for homes, people familiar said. The move aims to address the country’s housing crisis, but may exacerbate cash flow pressure on developers. BBG
The BOJ can’t ignore the potential downside risks to prices stemming from US tariffs, Kazuo Ueda said. BBG
The Bank of England cut interest rates by a quarter point to 4.25% as Donald Trump’s global trade war weighs on UK growth, in a decision that split senior officials into three groups and was made before the US President hinted at an imminent deal to lower tariffs on British exports. BBG
Brazil’s central bank raised its interest rate by a half-point to 14.75%, the highest level since 2006. Policymakers kept their options open for either another hike or a pause at its next decision. BBG
GOOGL +2% … Google issued statement overnight, responding to AAPL’s intraday comments on search traffic: We continue to see overall query growth in Search. That includes an increase in total queries coming from Apple’s devices and platforms. More generally, as we enhance Search with new features, people are seeing that Google Search is more useful for more of their queries — and they’re accessing it for new things and in new ways, whether from browsers or the Google app, using their voice or Google Lens. We’re excited to continue this innovation and look forward to sharing more at Google I/O.”
Trump tapped Casey Means to be the next US surgeon general after his prior nominee was withdrawn. The health app founder is a vocal critic of the pharmaceutical industry and Big Food. BBG
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks were mostly higher amid some trade optimism and following the mildly positive handover from Wall St where price action was choppy in the aftermath of the FOMC meeting as the Fed kept the FFR at 4.25-4.50%, as expected, and noted that risks to the economic outlook increased further, while Fed Chair Powell reiterated a wait-and-see approach and ruled out a pre-emptive cut during the presser. ASX 200 marginally gained amid strength in gold miners, industrials and tech but with the upside capped by weakness in the top-weighted financial sector after Big 4 bank ANZ’s earnings. Nikkei 225 was underpinned by recent currency weakness and trade deal optimism, although a return to the 37,000 level remained elusive. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp remained positive following the previous day’s PBoC’s policy loosening, but with further upside in the mainland limited after recent comments from US President Trump, who was unwilling to lower tariffs to get China to the table.
Top Asian News
HKMA maintained its base rate at 4.75%, as expected, in lockstep with the Fed.
BoJ Minutes from the March 18th-19th Meeting reiterated they are to raise rates if the economic outlook is realised and a member said it’s appropriate to pay close attention to the new US policies and their impact on the global economy. Furthermore, a member said the BoJ would need to be particularly cautious when considering the timing of the next rate hike as downside risks stemming from US policies had rapidly heightened, while a member said that even with heightened uncertainties, it did not warrant BoJ to be always cautious and the BoJ may face a situation where it should act decisively.
China is weighing housing market overhaul to curb pre-sales, via Bloomberg
European bourses (STOXX 600 +0.3%) opened mostly firmer and have traded with an upward bias throughout the European morning. European sectors are mixed; Tech takes the top spot, joined closely by Industrials whilst Healthcare lags. Tech benefits from post-earning strength in Infineon (+3%) – despite missing on headline metrics and highlighting that it sees 2025 rev. slightly lower Y/Y due to tariff impact. US equity futures (ES +0.8%, NQ +1%) are broadly in the green, in-fitting with the broader risk tone as markets await Trump’s trade announcement.
Top European News
UK PM Starmer is expected to promise on Thursday that his government will deliver a defence dividend for voters, framing an increase in military spending forced by a US shift away from underwriting Europe’s security, as an economic opportunity, according to Reuters.
Sky’s Coates says his sources are confirming that the US-UK trade deal claims are correct. Will be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive.
NIESR lowered its UK 2025 GDP growth forecast to 1.2% from 1.5%, while it said Chancellor Reeves looks set to miss her budget targets again, partly due to the economic impact from her tax increase on employers, which raises the prospect of more tax hikes.
Swedish Riksbank Rate 2.25% vs. Exp. 2.25% (Prev. 2.25%); it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast. This could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward.
Norges Bank Key Policy Rate 4.5% vs. Exp. 4.5% (Prev. 4.5%); outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
FX
DXY saw an uptick in early European trade, taking the index back above the 100 threshold; no obvious driver was seen behind the move at the time. Last night’s FOMC policy announcement had little follow-through into the USD with the Fed keeping rates unchanged as expected whilst noting that risks to the economic outlook increased further and risks to both sides of the mandate have risen. From a trade perspective, attention is on the details of the expected upcoming UK trade deal announcement whereby the agreement will be eyed as a proxy of what is to come. DXY has hit a new high for the week at 100.20.
EUR is fractionally softer vs. the USD with Eurozone newsflow on the light side. On the trade front, the EU is set to announce today a provisional list of tariffs against the US which will be enforced if talks with the US fail. EUR/USD has reverted back to a 1.12 handle and hit a fresh low for the week at 1.1271.
JPY is softer on account of the positive risk sentiment which has stemmed from hopes on the trade front. BoJ Minutes was a non-event given it recaps the March meeting. USD/JPY has ventured as high as 144.51.
GBP is a touch softer vs. the USD but to a lesser degree than peers amid increased optimism on the trade front with the US and UK expected to announce a trade deal later today. That being said, it is worth noting that the announcement is set to be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive, according to Sky News. Attention now turns to Thursday’s BoE meeting, which is expected to see policymakers deliver a 25bps rate cut; focus will be on any potential tweaks to guidance. Morgan Stanley expects the “gradual and careful” language to be removed to provide the MPC “space to accelerate cuts if needed”.
Antipodeans are both slightly softer vs. the USD with domestic newsflow from Australia and New Zealand on the light side.
SEK is a touch softer in the aftermath of the Riksbank policy announcement which saw the central bank stand pat on rates as expected. The accompanying statement noted that “it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast”, adding that this “could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward”. However, the Bank did stress the uncertainty surrounding the outlook. EUR/SEK has been as high as 10.9424 but is yet to approach its 50DMA to the upside at 10.9491.
Little follow-through seen in the NOK after the Norges bank stood pat on rates at 4.5% as expected. The accompanying statement noted that restrictive monetary policy is still needed, adding that, if the policy rate is lowered prematurely, prices may continue to rise rapidly. However, the outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.2073 vs exp. 7.2385 (Prev. 7.2005).
Brazil Central Bank hiked the Selic rate by 50bps to 14.75%, as expected with the decision unanimous, while it stated that additional caution is needed for the next meeting and the scenario also demands flexibility to incorporate data that impact the inflation outlook. Furthermore, the BCB said it will remain vigilant and the calibration of the appropriate tightening of the monetary policy will continue to be guided by the objective of bringing inflation back to the target in the relevant horizon.
Fixed Income
The Fed’s decision to keep rates steady (as expected) and Powell stressing a wait-and-see approach to policy, sparked some two-way action in USTs – before then extending a little lower into the APAC session. As for today, US President Trump saying he will announce a trade deal (with the UK) today has managed to boost the risk tone. USTs currently a touch into the red but above yesterday’s low in a 111-11 to 111-19 band. Ahead, weekly jobless claims are due before the NY Fed SCE, in March it showed an increase in near-term inflation expectations and a slight moderation further out alongside an expected deterioration in the labour market. A 30yr auction is also scheduled.
Gilts opened bang on the unchanged mark and despite an initial slip to a 93.35 low, comfortably above Wednesday’s 92.79 base, the benchmark has since been on a gentle grind higher despite the constructive risk tone as participants prepared for upcoming UK-specific risk events. Holding around its 93.54 session peak. Awaiting Trump’s 15:00BST press conference for details on a trade announcement which has since been confirmed to be between the US and UK. But before that, attention will be on the BoE where rates are expected to be cut by 25bps in a unanimous decision though the magnitude could be subject to dovish dissent.
Bunds are softer, in-fitting with USTs and the constructive risk tone. In contrast to the US and UK, newsflow for the bloc has been a little lighter. No move to a surprisingly strong set of German Industrial data for March this morning. At the low end of a 131.35 to 131.65 band.
Crude is bid, but off best as the USD fights back in the European morning (see FX). Currently holding around the mid-point of today’s parameters which are just under USD 1/bbl in size and in very familiar levels from the last few days/weeks. At best, WTI and Brent got just above the USD 58.50/bbl and USD 61.50/bbl marks but failed to make any further ground as the DXY picked back up above the 100.00 mark.
Gold is under pressure as the risk tone is supported by Trump’s trade announcement, an event we now know relates to the UK, and also the discussed recovery in the USD. Currently trading in a USD 3,320.68-3,414.50/oz range.
Copper has been rangebound since APAC trade after the pressure seen on Wednesday with 3M LME Copper basically holding at the bottom end of yesterday’s USD 9.36-9.47k band.
PBoC is reportedly to allow local lenders to purchase more USD to fund increased gold import quotas, via Reuters citing sources.
Citi revises its 0-3 month point price for Brent to USD 55/bbl (prev. 60/bbl). No US-Iran deal and escalatory action could see prices return to USD +70/bbl.
Iraq sets the June Barah medium crude OSP to Asia at plus USD 0.45/bbl to Oman/Dubai average, Europe minus USD 3.20bbl vs. dated Brent, North and South America minus USD 0.75/bbl vs. ASCI, according to SOMO.
Kazakhstan (Apr) oil and condensate daily output +6.5% to 277k tons, according to Interfax; production in May seen at similar levels to April.
US Event Calendar
8:30 am: 1Q P Nonfarm Productivity, est. -0.75%, prior 1.5%
8:30 am: 1Q P Unit Labor Costs, est. 5.1%, prior 2.2%
8:30 am: May 3 Initial Jobless Claims, est. 230k, prior 241k
8:30 am: Apr 26 Continuing Claims, est. 1895k, prior 1916k
10:00 am: Mar F Wholesale Inventories MoM, est. 0.5%, prior 0.5
DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
In a Trump 2.0 world it often seems like the news flow doesn’t really get going until after the US market closes and today is another example of that as overnight Mr Trump has teased that a “major trade deal” will be announced today at 10am DC time (15:00 BST). This must be the very big announcement he flagged on Tuesday. The media are all lining up behind the deal being with the UK. Given that full trade deals take years to negotiate, this will likely be a framework and it will be interesting to see whether the 10% baseline tariff stays as that will provide an important template for negotiations with other countries and a good guide to the long-term tariff strategy of the US.
Asian equity markets and European/UK futures are responding positively to the news that comes a couple of days before trade talks between Washington and Beijing over the weekend. Across the region, the Hang Seng (+1.10%) is leading gains with the CSI (+0.75%) and the Shanghai Composite (+0.38%) also higher. Elsewhere, the Nikkei (+0.28%), the KOSPI (+0.49%) and the S&P/ASX 200 (+0.21%) are also edging higher. S&P 500 (+0.84%) and NASDAQ 100 (+1.16%) futures are building on a strong close that we will discuss below. Euro Stoxx futures are +0.80% and FTSE futures +0.75%. Sterling is around half a percent higher.
This news has slightly overshadowed the Fed last night, where as widely expected, the FOMC kept the fed funds rate on hold for a third meeting running at 4.25-4.50%, while sticking to a patient tone amid heightened uncertainty. The prepared statement noted that uncertainty had “increased further” as risks of both “higher unemployment and higher inflation have risen”. In the press conference Chair Powell acknowledged opposing pressures on its dual mandate stemming from larger-than-expected tariffs announced so far and offered little guidance on the policy path ahead. Powell emphasized the elevated uncertainty but also noted that the economy remains resilient and repeated that policy is well positioned to respond, while pushing back on the idea of pre-emptive rate cuts. Our US economists continue to expect the next rate cut to come in December, with risks tilted towards earlier cuts if unemployment rises more sharply. See their full reaction here.
Rates initially saw a moderate rally following the Fed decision, but this then reversed as Powell emphasised a wait-and-see approach. The next rate cut is now 80% priced by the July meeting while the amount of Fed cuts priced by December declined by -3.1bps yesterday to 78bps, though this move had already played out pre-FOMC. 2yr Treasury yields were little changed (-0.6bps to 3.78%), while 10yr yields declined -2.6bps to 4.27%. This morning in Asia, Treasury yields have reversed higher again with 2yr (+2.3bps) and 10yr (+1.9bps) yields settling at around 3.80% and 4.29% respectively as we go to print.
Equities saw a muted response to the Fed decision, but the S&P 500 managed to post a +0.43% gain by the close thanks to a late rally following a Bloomberg report that the Trump administration is planning to rescind Biden-era AI chip curbs as part of a broader move to revise semiconductor trade restrictions. The reporting helped the Philadelphia semiconductor index rise +1.74% on the day, with Nvidia +3.10% higher.
However, the overall Mag-7 underperformed (-0.26%) as Alphabet (-7.26%) and Apple (-1.14%) lost ground following comments by a senior Apple executive that the company was “actively looking at” revamping its Safari web browser to focus on AI-powered search engines. The comments came amid a DoJ lawsuit against Alphabet that could threaten the companies’ partnership that makes Google the default offering in Apple’s browser. In addition to highlighting the anti-trust cases against big tech, the news is a reminder that while the Mag-7 stocks have benefited immensely from AI optimism, their existing business models also face risks from AI-driven disruption.
Ahead of the Fed’s decision, European markets experienced a risk-off move, with the STOXX 600 (-0.54%) posting its biggest decline in four weeks. The moves occurred across the continent, and even the FTSE 100 (-0.44%) moved lower, ending its record winning run of 16 consecutive gains. A remarkable stat. Let’s see what today’s trade deal does for the UK. Otherwise, France’s CAC 40 (-0.91%) saw a particular underperformance, losing ground for a third day running, and Germany’s DAX was down -0.58%. And the risk-off tone was echoed on the rates side, as yields on 10yr bunds (-6.6bps), OATs (-6.4bps) and BTPs (-7.9bps) all took a sharp turn lower. The moves also got a boost from the latest decline in oil prices, with Brent crude down -1.66% on the day to $61.12/bbl. The peak this year was $82.03/bbl on January 15.
Looking forward, central banks will stay in the spotlight today, as the Bank of England are announcing their own policy decision. It’s widely expected they’ll deliver a 25bp cut today, which would take the Bank Rate down to 4.25%, and continue the pattern of quarterly rate cuts that we’ve had since August. As with the Fed, it’s their first decision since Liberation Day, so all eyes will be on the new forecasts, and our UK economist thinks that meaningful changes are likely. He expects them to cut their growth projections as the unfolding trade shock hits GDP. And he also sees the inflation forecasts being revised lower thanks to stronger sterling and lower energy prices.
Finally on the geopolitical side, there’s been increasing market attention on the situation between India and Pakistan. In terms of the latest, Pakistan said yesterday that they would retaliate against India’s air strikes, and Pakistan’s KSE-100 equity index closed -3.02% lower. By contrast, Indian equities have been much less affected, and the NIFTY 50 index was up +0.14%. This morning, the NIFTY 50 (-0.04%) is fairly flat. The situation has raised fears about an escalation between the two counties, and it represents another example of how the Global South is likely to prove increasingly important for the global backdrop.
To the day ahead, and one of the main highlights will be the Bank of England’s latest policy decision, along with the subsequent press conference with Governor Bailey. Separately, the Bank of Canada will release their Financial Stability Report, and we’ll hear from Governor Macklem too. Elsewhere, US data releases include the weekly initial jobless claims, as well as nonfarm productivity for Q1.
2 b European opening report
Stocks gain and DXY tops 100.00 ahead of Trump’s UK-US trade announcement; BoE due – US Market Open
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 05:33 AM
Equities complex broadly positive in anticipation of US President Trump’s deal announcement; NQ +1.3%.
DXY back above 100, EUR/USD slips onto a 1.12 handle, GBP eyes UK-US trade deal and BoE.
Gilts edge higher into the BoE and Trump’s announcement, USTs & Bunds slip slightly.
USD pickup weighs on gold whilst crude remains focused on geopolitical developments.
Looking ahead, US Jobless Claims, Wholesale Sales & NY Fed SCE, BoE Policy Announcement, BoE DMP, BoE’s Bailey & BoC’s Macklem, Supply from the US. Earnings from Coinbase, Cloudflare, Draftkings, Affirm, Shopify, ConocoPhillips, Warner Bros Discovery.
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TARIFFS/TRADE
US President Trump posted on Truth “Big News Conference tomorrow [Thursday] morning at 10:00 A.M., The Oval Office, concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY. THE FIRST OF MANY!!!”. It was reported shortly after by NYT that the US is to announce a trade deal with the UK on Thursday.
EU capitals reportedly want retaliation against US President Trump to be delayed to avoid a NATO clash, according to the FT.
EUROPEAN TRADE
EQUITIES
European bourses (STOXX 600 +0.3%) opened mostly firmer and have traded with an upward bias throughout the European morning.
European sectors are mixed; Tech takes the top spot, joined closely by Industrials whilst Healthcare lags. Tech benefits from post-earning strength in Infineon (+3%) – despite missing on headline metrics and highlighting that it sees 2025 rev. slightly lower Y/Y due to tariff impact.
US equity futures (ES +0.8%, NQ +1%) are broadly in the green, in-fitting with the broader risk tone as markets await Trump’s trade announcement.
DXY saw an uptick in early European trade, taking the index back above the 100 threshold; no obvious driver was seen behind the move at the time. Last night’s FOMC policy announcement had little follow-through into the USD with the Fed keeping rates unchanged as expected whilst noting that risks to the economic outlook increased further and risks to both sides of the mandate have risen. From a trade perspective, attention is on the details of the expected upcoming UK trade deal announcement whereby the agreement will be eyed as a proxy of what is to come. DXY has hit a new high for the week at 100.20.
EUR is fractionally softer vs. the USD with Eurozone newsflow on the light side. On the trade front, the EU is set to announce today a provisional list of tariffs against the US which will be enforced if talks with the US fail. EUR/USD has reverted back to a 1.12 handle and hit a fresh low for the week at 1.1271.
JPY is softer on account of the positive risk sentiment which has stemmed from hopes on the trade front. BoJ Minutes was a non-event given it recaps the March meeting. USD/JPY has ventured as high as 144.51.
GBP is a touch softer vs. the USD but to a lesser degree than peers amid increased optimism on the trade front with the US and UK expected to announce a trade deal later today. That being said, it is worth noting that the announcement is set to be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive, according to Sky News. Attention now turns to Thursday’s BoE meeting, which is expected to see policymakers deliver a 25bps rate cut; focus will be on any potential tweaks to guidance. Morgan Stanley expects the “gradual and careful” language to be removed to provide the MPC “space to accelerate cuts if needed”.
Antipodeans are both slightly softer vs. the USD with domestic newsflow from Australia and New Zealand on the light side.
SEK is a touch softer in the aftermath of the Riksbank policy announcement which saw the central bank stand pat on rates as expected. The accompanying statement noted that “it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast”, adding that this “could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward”. However, the Bank did stress the uncertainty surrounding the outlook. EUR/SEK has been as high as 10.9424 but is yet to approach its 50DMA to the upside at 10.9491.
Little follow-through seen in the NOK after the Norges bank stood pat on rates at 4.5% as expected. The accompanying statement noted that restrictive monetary policy is still needed, adding that, if the policy rate is lowered prematurely, prices may continue to rise rapidly. However, the outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.2073 vs exp. 7.2385 (Prev. 7.2005).
Brazil Central Bank hiked the Selic rate by 50bps to 14.75%, as expected with the decision unanimous, while it stated that additional caution is needed for the next meeting and the scenario also demands flexibility to incorporate data that impact the inflation outlook. Furthermore, the BCB said it will remain vigilant and the calibration of the appropriate tightening of the monetary policy will continue to be guided by the objective of bringing inflation back to the target in the relevant horizon.
The Fed’s decision to keep rates steady (as expected) and Powell stressing a wait-and-see approach to policy, sparked some two-way action in USTs – before then extending a little lower into the APAC session. As for today, US President Trump saying he will announce a trade deal (with the UK) today has managed to boost the risk tone. USTs currently a touch into the red but above yesterday’s low in a 111-11 to 111-19 band. Ahead, weekly jobless claims are due before the NY Fed SCE, in March it showed an increase in near-term inflation expectations and a slight moderation further out alongside an expected deterioration in the labour market. A 30yr auction is also scheduled.
Gilts opened bang on the unchanged mark and despite an initial slip to a 93.35 low, comfortably above Wednesday’s 92.79 base, the benchmark has since been on a gentle grind higher despite the constructive risk tone as participants prepared for upcoming UK-specific risk events. Holding around its 93.54 session peak. Awaiting Trump’s 15:00BST press conference for details on a trade announcement which has since been confirmed to be between the US and UK. But before that, attention will be on the BoE where rates are expected to be cut by 25bps in a unanimous decision though the magnitude could be subject to dovish dissent.
Bunds are softer, in-fitting with USTs and the constructive risk tone. In contrast to the US and UK, newsflow for the bloc has been a little lighter. No move to a surprisingly strong set of German Industrial data for March this morning. At the low end of a 131.35 to 131.65 band.
Crude is bid, but off best as the USD fights back in the European morning (see FX). Currently holding around the mid-point of today’s parameters which are just under USD 1/bbl in size and in very familiar levels from the last few days/weeks. At best, WTI and Brent got just above the USD 58.50/bbl and USD 61.50/bbl marks but failed to make any further ground as the DXY picked back up above the 100.00 mark.
Gold is under pressure as the risk tone is supported by Trump’s trade announcement, an event we now know relates to the UK, and also the discussed recovery in the USD. Currently trading in a USD 3,320.68-3,414.50/oz range.
Copper has been rangebound since APAC trade after the pressure seen on Wednesday with 3M LME Copper basically holding at the bottom end of yesterday’s USD 9.36-9.47k band.
PBoC is reportedly to allow local lenders to purchase more USD to fund increased gold import quotas, via Reuters citing sources.
Citi revises its 0-3 month point price for Brent to USD 55/bbl (prev. 60/bbl). No US-Iran deal and escalatory action could see prices return to USD +70/bbl.
Iraq sets the June Barah medium crude OSP to Asia at plus USD 0.45/bbl to Oman/Dubai average, Europe minus USD 3.20bbl vs. dated Brent, North and South America minus USD 0.75/bbl vs. ASCI, according to SOMO.
Kazakhstan (Apr) oil and condensate daily output +6.5% to 277k tons, according to Interfax; production in May seen at similar levels to April.
UK RICS Housing Survey (Apr) -3.0 vs. Exp. -5.0 (Prev. 2.0)
UK Halifax House Prices YY (Apr) 3.2% vs. Exp. 2.60% (Prev. 2.80%, Rev. 2.9%); MM (Apr) 0.3% vs. Exp. -0.1% (Prev. -0.5%)
UK BBA Mortgage Rate (Apr) 7.21% (Prev. 7.23%)
German Trade Balance, EUR, SA (Mar) 21.1B vs. Exp. 19.1B (Prev. 17.7B); Imports MM SA (Mar) -1.4% vs. Exp. 0.4% (Prev. 0.7%); Exports MM SA (Mar) 1.1% vs. Exp. 1.0% (Prev. 1.8%); Industrial Output MM (Mar) 3.0% vs. Exp. 0.8% (Prev. -1.3%)
Spanish Ind Output Cal Adj YY (Mar) 1.0% (Prev. -1.9%)
NOTABLE EUROPEAN HEADLINES
UK PM Starmer is expected to promise on Thursday that his government will deliver a defence dividend for voters, framing an increase in military spending forced by a US shift away from underwriting Europe’s security, as an economic opportunity, according to Reuters.
Sky’s Coates says his sources are confirming that the US-UK trade deal claims are correct. Will be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive.
NIESR lowered its UK 2025 GDP growth forecast to 1.2% from 1.5%, while it said Chancellor Reeves looks set to miss her budget targets again, partly due to the economic impact from her tax increase on employers, which raises the prospect of more tax hikes.
Swedish Riksbank Rate 2.25% vs. Exp. 2.25% (Prev. 2.25%); it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast. This could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward.
Norges Bank Key Policy Rate 4.5% vs. Exp. 4.5% (Prev. 4.5%); outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
NOTABLE US HEADLINES
US President Trump’s big announcement is regarding a Medicare drug plan, according to Politico.
US President Trump posted “We are making great progress on “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill.” Our Economy is doing well, but it’s going to BOOM in a way never seen before. We are going to do NO TAX ON TIPS, NO TAX ON SENIORS’ SOCIAL SECURITY, NO TAX ON OVERTIME, and much more. It will be the biggest Tax Cut for Middle and Working Class Americans by far, and it is time for Main Street to WIN. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
White House said the Treasury and Commerce departments have formulated plans for a sovereign wealth fund, but no final decisions have yet been made.
GEOPOLITICS
“The Trump administration has held talks in recent days with Arab countries to promote a humanitarian aid distribution project in the Gaza Strip, according to two Western diplomats speaking to the Post.”, via Amichai Stein on X
Ukraine Air Force said Russia launched guided bombs at Ukraine’s Sumy region on three occasions on Thursday.
South Korea reported that North Korea fired multiple short-range missiles and that North Korea’s missile launch may have been to test performance for export.
CRYPTO
Bitcoin is on a stronger footing today and has climbed to around USD 99.5k; next eyeing the round USD 100k mark.
APAC TRADE
APAC stocks were mostly higher amid some trade optimism and following the mildly positive handover from Wall St where price action was choppy in the aftermath of the FOMC meeting as the Fed kept the FFR at 4.25-4.50%, as expected, and noted that risks to the economic outlook increased further, while Fed Chair Powell reiterated a wait-and-see approach and ruled out a pre-emptive cut during the presser.
ASX 200 marginally gained amid strength in gold miners, industrials and tech but with the upside capped by weakness in the top-weighted financial sector after Big 4 bank ANZ’s earnings.
Nikkei 225 was underpinned by recent currency weakness and trade deal optimism, although a return to the 37,000 level remained elusive.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp remained positive following the previous day’s PBoC’s policy loosening, but with further upside in the mainland limited after recent comments from US President Trump, who was unwilling to lower tariffs to get China to the table.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
HKMA maintained its base rate at 4.75%, as expected, in lockstep with the Fed.
BoJ Minutes from the March 18th-19th Meeting reiterated they are to raise rates if the economic outlook is realised and a member said it’s appropriate to pay close attention to the new US policies and their impact on the global economy. Furthermore, a member said the BoJ would need to be particularly cautious when considering the timing of the next rate hike as downside risks stemming from US policies had rapidly heightened, while a member said that even with heightened uncertainties, it did not warrant BoJ to be always cautious and the BoJ may face a situation where it should act decisively.
China is weighing housing market overhaul to curb pre-sales, via Bloomberg
2c Asia opening report
Stocks gain and DXY tops 100.00 ahead of Trump’s UK-US trade announcement; BoE due – US Market Open
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 05:33 AM
Equities complex broadly positive in anticipation of US President Trump’s deal announcement; NQ +1.3%.
DXY back above 100, EUR/USD slips onto a 1.12 handle, GBP eyes UK-US trade deal and BoE.
Gilts edge higher into the BoE and Trump’s announcement, USTs & Bunds slip slightly.
USD pickup weighs on gold whilst crude remains focused on geopolitical developments.
Looking ahead, US Jobless Claims, Wholesale Sales & NY Fed SCE, BoE Policy Announcement, BoE DMP, BoE’s Bailey & BoC’s Macklem, Supply from the US. Earnings from Coinbase, Cloudflare, Draftkings, Affirm, Shopify, ConocoPhillips, Warner Bros Discovery.
2. Listen to this report in the market open podcast (available on Apple and Spotify)
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TARIFFS/TRADE
US President Trump posted on Truth “Big News Conference tomorrow [Thursday] morning at 10:00 A.M., The Oval Office, concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY. THE FIRST OF MANY!!!”. It was reported shortly after by NYT that the US is to announce a trade deal with the UK on Thursday.
EU capitals reportedly want retaliation against US President Trump to be delayed to avoid a NATO clash, according to the FT.
EUROPEAN TRADE
EQUITIES
European bourses (STOXX 600 +0.3%) opened mostly firmer and have traded with an upward bias throughout the European morning.
European sectors are mixed; Tech takes the top spot, joined closely by Industrials whilst Healthcare lags. Tech benefits from post-earning strength in Infineon (+3%) – despite missing on headline metrics and highlighting that it sees 2025 rev. slightly lower Y/Y due to tariff impact.
US equity futures (ES +0.8%, NQ +1%) are broadly in the green, in-fitting with the broader risk tone as markets await Trump’s trade announcement.
DXY saw an uptick in early European trade, taking the index back above the 100 threshold; no obvious driver was seen behind the move at the time. Last night’s FOMC policy announcement had little follow-through into the USD with the Fed keeping rates unchanged as expected whilst noting that risks to the economic outlook increased further and risks to both sides of the mandate have risen. From a trade perspective, attention is on the details of the expected upcoming UK trade deal announcement whereby the agreement will be eyed as a proxy of what is to come. DXY has hit a new high for the week at 100.20.
EUR is fractionally softer vs. the USD with Eurozone newsflow on the light side. On the trade front, the EU is set to announce today a provisional list of tariffs against the US which will be enforced if talks with the US fail. EUR/USD has reverted back to a 1.12 handle and hit a fresh low for the week at 1.1271.
JPY is softer on account of the positive risk sentiment which has stemmed from hopes on the trade front. BoJ Minutes was a non-event given it recaps the March meeting. USD/JPY has ventured as high as 144.51.
GBP is a touch softer vs. the USD but to a lesser degree than peers amid increased optimism on the trade front with the US and UK expected to announce a trade deal later today. That being said, it is worth noting that the announcement is set to be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive, according to Sky News. Attention now turns to Thursday’s BoE meeting, which is expected to see policymakers deliver a 25bps rate cut; focus will be on any potential tweaks to guidance. Morgan Stanley expects the “gradual and careful” language to be removed to provide the MPC “space to accelerate cuts if needed”.
Antipodeans are both slightly softer vs. the USD with domestic newsflow from Australia and New Zealand on the light side.
SEK is a touch softer in the aftermath of the Riksbank policy announcement which saw the central bank stand pat on rates as expected. The accompanying statement noted that “it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast”, adding that this “could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward”. However, the Bank did stress the uncertainty surrounding the outlook. EUR/SEK has been as high as 10.9424 but is yet to approach its 50DMA to the upside at 10.9491.
Little follow-through seen in the NOK after the Norges bank stood pat on rates at 4.5% as expected. The accompanying statement noted that restrictive monetary policy is still needed, adding that, if the policy rate is lowered prematurely, prices may continue to rise rapidly. However, the outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.2073 vs exp. 7.2385 (Prev. 7.2005).
Brazil Central Bank hiked the Selic rate by 50bps to 14.75%, as expected with the decision unanimous, while it stated that additional caution is needed for the next meeting and the scenario also demands flexibility to incorporate data that impact the inflation outlook. Furthermore, the BCB said it will remain vigilant and the calibration of the appropriate tightening of the monetary policy will continue to be guided by the objective of bringing inflation back to the target in the relevant horizon.
The Fed’s decision to keep rates steady (as expected) and Powell stressing a wait-and-see approach to policy, sparked some two-way action in USTs – before then extending a little lower into the APAC session. As for today, US President Trump saying he will announce a trade deal (with the UK) today has managed to boost the risk tone. USTs currently a touch into the red but above yesterday’s low in a 111-11 to 111-19 band. Ahead, weekly jobless claims are due before the NY Fed SCE, in March it showed an increase in near-term inflation expectations and a slight moderation further out alongside an expected deterioration in the labour market. A 30yr auction is also scheduled.
Gilts opened bang on the unchanged mark and despite an initial slip to a 93.35 low, comfortably above Wednesday’s 92.79 base, the benchmark has since been on a gentle grind higher despite the constructive risk tone as participants prepared for upcoming UK-specific risk events. Holding around its 93.54 session peak. Awaiting Trump’s 15:00BST press conference for details on a trade announcement which has since been confirmed to be between the US and UK. But before that, attention will be on the BoE where rates are expected to be cut by 25bps in a unanimous decision though the magnitude could be subject to dovish dissent.
Bunds are softer, in-fitting with USTs and the constructive risk tone. In contrast to the US and UK, newsflow for the bloc has been a little lighter. No move to a surprisingly strong set of German Industrial data for March this morning. At the low end of a 131.35 to 131.65 band.
Crude is bid, but off best as the USD fights back in the European morning (see FX). Currently holding around the mid-point of today’s parameters which are just under USD 1/bbl in size and in very familiar levels from the last few days/weeks. At best, WTI and Brent got just above the USD 58.50/bbl and USD 61.50/bbl marks but failed to make any further ground as the DXY picked back up above the 100.00 mark.
Gold is under pressure as the risk tone is supported by Trump’s trade announcement, an event we now know relates to the UK, and also the discussed recovery in the USD. Currently trading in a USD 3,320.68-3,414.50/oz range.
Copper has been rangebound since APAC trade after the pressure seen on Wednesday with 3M LME Copper basically holding at the bottom end of yesterday’s USD 9.36-9.47k band.
PBoC is reportedly to allow local lenders to purchase more USD to fund increased gold import quotas, via Reuters citing sources.
Citi revises its 0-3 month point price for Brent to USD 55/bbl (prev. 60/bbl). No US-Iran deal and escalatory action could see prices return to USD +70/bbl.
Iraq sets the June Barah medium crude OSP to Asia at plus USD 0.45/bbl to Oman/Dubai average, Europe minus USD 3.20bbl vs. dated Brent, North and South America minus USD 0.75/bbl vs. ASCI, according to SOMO.
Kazakhstan (Apr) oil and condensate daily output +6.5% to 277k tons, according to Interfax; production in May seen at similar levels to April.
UK RICS Housing Survey (Apr) -3.0 vs. Exp. -5.0 (Prev. 2.0)
UK Halifax House Prices YY (Apr) 3.2% vs. Exp. 2.60% (Prev. 2.80%, Rev. 2.9%); MM (Apr) 0.3% vs. Exp. -0.1% (Prev. -0.5%)
UK BBA Mortgage Rate (Apr) 7.21% (Prev. 7.23%)
German Trade Balance, EUR, SA (Mar) 21.1B vs. Exp. 19.1B (Prev. 17.7B); Imports MM SA (Mar) -1.4% vs. Exp. 0.4% (Prev. 0.7%); Exports MM SA (Mar) 1.1% vs. Exp. 1.0% (Prev. 1.8%); Industrial Output MM (Mar) 3.0% vs. Exp. 0.8% (Prev. -1.3%)
Spanish Ind Output Cal Adj YY (Mar) 1.0% (Prev. -1.9%)
NOTABLE EUROPEAN HEADLINES
UK PM Starmer is expected to promise on Thursday that his government will deliver a defence dividend for voters, framing an increase in military spending forced by a US shift away from underwriting Europe’s security, as an economic opportunity, according to Reuters.
Sky’s Coates says his sources are confirming that the US-UK trade deal claims are correct. Will be a “heads of terms” agreement, rather than a full deal, but substantive.
NIESR lowered its UK 2025 GDP growth forecast to 1.2% from 1.5%, while it said Chancellor Reeves looks set to miss her budget targets again, partly due to the economic impact from her tax increase on employers, which raises the prospect of more tax hikes.
Swedish Riksbank Rate 2.25% vs. Exp. 2.25% (Prev. 2.25%); it is somewhat more probable that inflation will be lower than that it will be higher than in the March forecast. This could suggest a slight easing of monetary policy going forward.
Norges Bank Key Policy Rate 4.5% vs. Exp. 4.5% (Prev. 4.5%); outlook implies that the policy rate will most likely be reduced in the course of 2025.
NOTABLE US HEADLINES
US President Trump’s big announcement is regarding a Medicare drug plan, according to Politico.
US President Trump posted “We are making great progress on “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill.” Our Economy is doing well, but it’s going to BOOM in a way never seen before. We are going to do NO TAX ON TIPS, NO TAX ON SENIORS’ SOCIAL SECURITY, NO TAX ON OVERTIME, and much more. It will be the biggest Tax Cut for Middle and Working Class Americans by far, and it is time for Main Street to WIN. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
White House said the Treasury and Commerce departments have formulated plans for a sovereign wealth fund, but no final decisions have yet been made.
GEOPOLITICS
“The Trump administration has held talks in recent days with Arab countries to promote a humanitarian aid distribution project in the Gaza Strip, according to two Western diplomats speaking to the Post.”, via Amichai Stein on X
Ukraine Air Force said Russia launched guided bombs at Ukraine’s Sumy region on three occasions on Thursday.
South Korea reported that North Korea fired multiple short-range missiles and that North Korea’s missile launch may have been to test performance for export.
CRYPTO
Bitcoin is on a stronger footing today and has climbed to around USD 99.5k; next eyeing the round USD 100k mark.
APAC TRADE
APAC stocks were mostly higher amid some trade optimism and following the mildly positive handover from Wall St where price action was choppy in the aftermath of the FOMC meeting as the Fed kept the FFR at 4.25-4.50%, as expected, and noted that risks to the economic outlook increased further, while Fed Chair Powell reiterated a wait-and-see approach and ruled out a pre-emptive cut during the presser.
ASX 200 marginally gained amid strength in gold miners, industrials and tech but with the upside capped by weakness in the top-weighted financial sector after Big 4 bank ANZ’s earnings.
Nikkei 225 was underpinned by recent currency weakness and trade deal optimism, although a return to the 37,000 level remained elusive.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp remained positive following the previous day’s PBoC’s policy loosening, but with further upside in the mainland limited after recent comments from US President Trump, who was unwilling to lower tariffs to get China to the table.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
HKMA maintained its base rate at 4.75%, as expected, in lockstep with the Fed.
BoJ Minutes from the March 18th-19th Meeting reiterated they are to raise rates if the economic outlook is realised and a member said it’s appropriate to pay close attention to the new US policies and their impact on the global economy. Furthermore, a member said the BoJ would need to be particularly cautious when considering the timing of the next rate hike as downside risks stemming from US policies had rapidly heightened, while a member said that even with heightened uncertainties, it did not warrant BoJ to be always cautious and the BoJ may face a situation where it should act decisively.
China is weighing housing market overhaul to curb pre-sales, via Bloomberg
3 .ASIA
3A NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
3B JAPAN
3C CHINA
Goodwill Gesture Before Trade Talks? China Airlines Places Order For 14 Boeing 777 Jets
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 08:05 AM
Just two days before U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is set to meet his Chinese counterpart for the first round of trade talks in Switzerland, Boeing revealed a new order for widebody jets from a Chinese state-owned airline—presumably a calculated gesture of goodwill ahead of negotiations.
Boeing announced that China Airlines has become the “newest 777X customer with an order for 10 777-9 passenger and four 777-8 Freighter airplanes.”
“In addition to the firm order, which was booked in March 2025 and was posted as unidentified on Boeing’s orders and deliveries website, the airline has options to purchase five 777-9s and four 777-8 Freighters,” the plane manufacturer said, adding, “With this order, China Airlines joins an exclusive group of global airlines that have ordered the passenger and freighter variants of the 777X family.”
About one month ago, when the U.S. and China unleashed a tit-for-tat tariff war, eventually placing 145% levies on Chinese goods entering the U.S. and a 125% rate on U.S. goods entering China, Juneyao Airlines delayed the delivery of a widebody aircraft from Boeing. This delay was suspected to be part of Beijing’s non-tariff countermeasures (including limiting Hollywood film imports, etc…).
Boeing’s order announcement comes days before Bessent, who has become the point person in trade negotiations, will sit down with top Chinese trade negotiators in Switzerland to begin the first round of a fair trade.
“The negotiations will begin on Saturday,” Bessent said in testimony before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.
During a Fox News interview, Bessent emphasized: “We don’t want to decouple” with China, adding, “What we want is fair trade.”
The key takeaway: China Airlines’ order of Boeing 777Xs looks like a kind gesture of goodwill ahead of this weekend’s trade talks. Though the order was officially booked in March, Beijing could have easily delayed or canceled it if preliminary trade talks (at U.S. Treasury) were headed in the wrong direction. Instead, the timing suggests momentum may be building toward a breakthrough.
Goldman chief economist Jan Hatzius recently outlined what a potential breakthrough in U.S.-China trade talks might entail.
All good news so far…
4..EUROPEAN AFFAIRS//UK /SCANDINAVIAN AFFAIRS
UK/USA NEW TRADE DEAL;
Should be a good deal for the USA as UK has aluminium plants and steel plants plus a good car industry
(zerohedge)
Trump To Reveal “Major Trade Deal” Between US-UK
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 07:20 AM
Yet another signal that the trade war has hit its peak came overnight, as President Trump took to Truth Social to tease a “big news conference” Thursday morning, where he plans to unveil a “major deal.” As U.S. markets began coming online, Trump continued promoting what he called “a very big and exciting day” for U.S.-U.K. trade. The official announcement is expected around 1000 A.M. ET.
Late Thursday night, the president wrote on Truth Social:
Big News Conference tomorrow morning at 10:00 A.M., The Oval Office, concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY. THE FIRST OF MANY!!!
Around 0542 ET, he posted again:
This should be a very big and exciting day for the United States of America and the United Kingdom. Press Conference at The Oval Office, 10 A.M. Thank you!
Trump continued in a separate post around 0608 ET:
The agreement with the United Kingdom is a full and comprehensive one that will cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come. Because of our long time history and allegiance together, it is a great honor to have the United Kingdom as our FIRST announcement. Many other deals, which are in serious stages of negotiation, to follow!
Then followed by:
“The Golden Age of America is coming!”
A resolution to the US-UK trade spat would be the Trump administration’s first step in renegotiating trade worldwide.
Last month, the U.S. imposed a 10% tariff on most imported goods from the UK as part of the baseline tariff it imposed on all nations. On March 12, the administration also imposed a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports.
UK officials would most likely want to see the 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum completely removed. If this is part of the upcoming trade deal, the UK could then give concessions on a digital tax it levies on Silicon Valley tech giants.
Trump’s series of Truth Social posts provided fresh tailwinds for equity markets overnight in Europe.
Goldman analyst Jasmin Schneider told clients:
Europe trading firmly in the green this morning (SXXP +70bps, SX5E +1.3%) on progress surrounding US-UK trade talks and some solid earnings on the tape. The big focus overnight on trade talks between the U.S. and UK: *TRUMP: TRADE DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT `THE FIRST OF MANY’. Trump is expected to announce a limited trade agreement with the UK later today (UKX +30bps), which may signal the direction of the U.S. president’s global trade war. Our EU Tariffs Exposed basket (GSXETRFS +1.2%) and UK Consumption names (GSXEUKCO +1.7%) trading well with the deal likely to focus on reducing tariffs on cars and steel, and may include discussions on tech, AI, and digital trade (BBG).
Across the Atlantic, equity futures are also higher, with hopes that the US-UK trade deal will be the first of many resolutions.
Goldman analyst Rich Privorotsky’s take on the developing trade situation:
Will be watching to see what the shape of the UK deal looks like as it could serve as a global template. Into the weekend the market should grow hopeful for a temperature reduction in the China/U.S. escalation. Although I’m a long term bearish on U.S./China trade relations, I’m of the opinion that U.S. corporates have a degree of urgency in reducing the 100%+ tariffs imposed (can’t replace supply quickly). Think the landing zone is something back to the 30-50% mark and that will be the travel and arrive event.
“The negotiations will begin on Saturday,” Bessent said in testimony before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.
Goldman offered some good news last week: Peak trade war.
Goldman chief economist Jan Hatzius noted earlier this week: “The mood music with China has improved, and we expect the U.S. tariff rate on China to drop from around 160% to around 60% relatively soon. (China is likely to reduce tariffs on the U.S. by a similar amount.)”
Earlier this week, attendees at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills warmed up to Trump’s trade war but wanted to see near-term trade deals. KKR co-founder George Roberts told the audience: “Stay calm and carry on.”
end
BANK OF ENGLAND
Bank of England cuts rates and Trump calls Powell a fool
(zerohedge)
In ‘Divided’ Decision, BoE Cuts Rates, Plays Down Tariff Fears; Trump Trounces “FOOL” Powell For No Fed Cut
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 08:32 AM
Ahead of an expected trade deal between US and UK, the Bank of England cut rates by 25bps to 4.25% (as expected) this morning.
However, the divided decision surprised markets by showing a more cautious-than-expected approach toward easing monetary policy.
Five members of the BOE’s Monetary Policy Committee voted for a quarter-point cut, while two wanted a larger half-point reduction.
Another two voted to hold rates steady.
The committee held its guidance that easing should continue to be “gradual and careful” in light of volatility in the global economy caused by Trump’s sweeping tariffs.
“Inflationary pressures have continued to ease so we’ve been able to cut rates again today,” Governor Andrew Bailey said in a statement accompanying the decision.
“The past few weeks have shown how unpredictable the global economy can be. That’s why we need to stick to a gradual and careful approach.”
Today’s guidance may have disappointed market expectations partly because investors had overstated the role tariffs would play in the bank’s decision-making, economists at ING suspect.
They wrote:
“While the added uncertainty and weaker outlook for global growth will become a headwind, the reality is that the direct impact of US tariffs so far looks very limited — particularly if Britain is granted sizable carveouts from US President Donald Trump’s sectoral tariffs later today.”
The pound is stronger following the BoE, but has been choppy since the initial FT headlines and later confirmation that a trade deal is imminent:
Gilt yields remain up across the curve, with the increases skewed towards the short end given its sensitivity to monetary policy.
The Fed’s lack of rate-cut (following China’s cut and now BoE’s cut), prompted a further outburst from President Trump
“Too Late” Jerome Powell is a FOOL, who doesn’t have a clue. Other than that, I like him very much! Oil and Energy way down, almost all costs (groceries and “eggs”) down, virtually NO INFLATION, Tariff Money Pouring Into the U.S. — THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF “TOO LATE!” ENJOY!
Notably, amid the panic in the US over tariffs and (hyped) inflation, BoE policymakers had worried that tariffs could push prices higher but are now more confident that those risks will be avoided.
The BOE now estimates tariffs will lower U.K. inflation by 0.2 percentage points in two years.
Finally, traders are still pricing in another two rate cuts from the BoE this year.
If that comes to pass, that would result in 100 basis points of easing in 2025 – pretty much bang in line with the guidance from Governor Bailey late last year.
EUROPE/CHINA
Tesla Sales Plunge In Both China And Europe, Despite Surge In Overall EV Adoption
Wednesday, May 07, 2025 – 01:40 PM
Tesla’s China-made vehicle sales dropped sharply in April, bucking the trend of strong growth among major Chinese EV competitors, according to CNEVPOST.
According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla sold 58,459 vehicles last month (including exports), down 5.96% year-over-year and 25.84% from March’s 78,828 units. From January to April, Tesla China’s total sales fell 18.31% year-over-year to 231,213 units.
The report says that in contrast, local rivals posted strong gains. Nio delivered 23,900 vehicles in April—up 53% from a year ago and nearly 59% from March. Xpeng reported 35,045 deliveries, its second-best month ever, up 273% year-over-year. Li Auto delivered 33,939 units, a 32% annual increase. Xiaomi EV also reported over 28,000 deliveries in April, highlighting growing domestic competition as Tesla’s momentum stalls.
Tesla is also facing a sharp downturn in Europe, with April 2025 sales collapsing across nearly all major markets. Once a regional EV leader, the company is now seeing year-over-year declines of over 50% in France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and the UK. In Germany—Europe’s largest car market—Tesla’s sales fell 46% despite a surge in overall EV adoption, ARS Technica wrote.
The report says that even in the UK, where battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations rose 8.1%, Tesla’s sales plummeted 62%, registering only 512 vehicles out of more than 24,000 BEVs sold.
This decline comes amid growing competition from Chinese and European EV makers, a limited and aging product lineup, and negative public sentiment, fueled in part by CEO Elon Musk’s political associations and controversial public persona. Recent efforts like the Model Y refresh have failed to reverse the trend. Only Italy and Norway showed any growth, underscoring how widespread Tesla’s European struggles have become.
GLJ Research’s Gordon Johnson put out a note this week suggesting the automaker was in “big trouble” demand-wise and said even the stock’s most ardent bulls are starting to recognize it.
The report argues that Tesla’s stock price—currently trading at a steep valuation compared to its peers—is under serious threat due to deteriorating fundamentals, particularly falling car sales, which make up 86% of its revenue.
Despite narratives that Tesla is more than a car company, failed ventures into solar, trucks, and batteries reinforce the fact that vehicle sales remain its core business. Even longtime Tesla bulls are beginning to express concern, noting that without a rebound in sales, particularly in key markets like China and Europe, investor confidence will continue to erode.
Johnson says numbers out of China and Europe are far below expectations and raise serious doubts about Tesla’s ability to meet even conservative delivery estimates. The report concludes that unless Tesla can rapidly turn around its auto business, especially as hype around events like the June 1 robotaxi announcement fades, the stock could be poised for a substantial downward revaluation.
END
EU/UKRAINE/RUSSIA
Von der Leyen Calls On EU To Hasten Ukrainian Entry As Blow To Putin
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 02:45 AM
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is calling for the fast-tracking of EU accession talks for Ukraine, though we can imagine quietly behind the scenes other European officials aren’t looking forward to the day that one of the world’s most corrupt countries joins the bloc.
Speaking at a Europe Day event on Wednesday, von der Leyen urged for the process to start this year, in 2025, in order to “help Ukraine stand strong” and “defy Putin’s intimidations” – according to a readout.
“Today, I would like to focus on how we can do so, and on three priorities for our action,” she said. “First, support Ukraine’s defense. Second, complete the phase-out of Russian fossil fuels. And third, accelerate Ukraine’s accession path to our Union.”
She then emphasized that Brussels is “working hard with Ukraine to open the first cluster of accession talks, and to open all clusters in 2025.”
The Kremlin last year said that it is open to Ukraine joining the EU, but stressed that the question of joining NATO remains an impossibility, and that Moscow will never allow it.
Still, at around same time the EU question was raised, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had asserted that the EU itself, which is supposed to be a purely economic and politically-linked bloc, is “becoming militarized at a record pace.”
Meanwhile, the European Union has of late seemed much more open about its willingness to sabotage Trump efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine.
The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas last week told the Financial Times in an interview that the bloc will not recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea under any circumstances. Really, this should be the most obvious and ‘easiest’ concession to make, but alas Brussels is saying no!
The White House is seeking to pressure the Zelensky government to get to the negotiating table fast, and the quickest and easiest concession would be expected to center on letting go of Crimea, which Moscow declared part of the Russian Federation after a 2014 popular referendum.
“I can’t see that we are accepting these kind of things. But we can’t speak for America, of course, and what they will do,” Kallas had said. “On the European side, we have said this over and over again… Crimea is Ukraine.”
“There are tools in the Americans’ hands that they can use to put the pressure on Russia to really stop this war,” Kallas continued. “President Trump has said that he wants the killing to stop. He should put the pressure on the one who is doing the killing.”
This has basically been the Ukrainian government’s position all along as well. For this reason, she said Brussels and other European capitals are still focused on “working with the Americans and trying to convince them why the outcome of this war is also in their interest, that Russia doesn’t really get everything that it wants.” But again, Crimea should be the easiest issue.
END
GERMANY
Germany’s New Chancellor Slams US Meddling, Defends Crackdown On ‘Far-Right’
After the Trump administration condemned Germany’s slide into tyranny and anti-democratic actions against the Alternative for Germany (AfD), the new German government under Friedrich Merz is now openly criticizing the U.S. for pointing out these tyrannical methods.
Realizing that there is serious potential for conflict between Washington and Berlin, Merz says he will speak to the U.S. government.
Merz criticized the voices from parts of the U.S. government that supported the AfD during the federal election campaign and recently criticized the party’s classification as right-wing extremist by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
The current main point of contention is the powerful domestic spy agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) and its decision to classify the Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” party. Merz said the U.S.’s comments were “absurd observations of the Federal Republic of Germany,” and that “I’ve actually always had the feeling that America is able to distinguish very clearly between extremist parties and parties of the political center.”
The BfV operates with modern Stasi-like powers but wields a far greater technological arsenal. Under the new designation, the BfV can now legally surveil all AfD members without a warrant, including reading their emails and chats. It can also flood the AfD party with informants and take action against civil servants who are members of the party.
The fact that the AfD is the largest opposition party in the country and that there are now efforts underway to ban the party is causing serious alarm in the United States, which is calling the German government’s path forward authoritarian and undemocratic. Most notably, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it “tyranny in disguise.”
Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That’s not democracy—it’s tyranny in disguise.
What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD—which took second in the recent election—but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies…
Perhaps the best analogy would be if the U.S. government suddenly declared the Democratic Party a “confirmed extremist” party because it promotes open borders, and under Biden, effectively brought millions of more illegal migrants into the country. Then, a Republican-appointed spy chief surveilled all members of the Democratic Party without a warrant, was able to send informants into the party, and could fire teachers, judges, and police officers who were members of the party.
If such a scenario occurred, the liberal EU and mainstream press would be the first ones to scream about “tyranny” and a new “authoritarian” reality in the United States, with Germany at the top of the list.
Merz, on the other hand, seems dismissive of the U.S. critiques. He said he will speak with Donald Trump and establish contacts with the White House, but Merz may be in store for a chilly reception.
In regard to Trump, Merz said: “We don’t know each other personally yet.”
However, he said at the end of June, he will meet with Trump at the NATO summit in The Hague and “perhaps even sooner.” He said they “talk openly with each other.”
“As Europeans, we have something to offer; together we are even bigger than the United States of America,” said Merz.
“We can do something, we are united, largely anyway. That will be my message to the American government.”
“I did not interfere in the American election campaign and did not take sides unilaterally for one party or the other,” said Merz.
However, democratic backsliding in Germany is a grave concern for the entire world, and there are fears that a ban of the AfD could come sooner than later. In such a scenario, millions of voters would be denied their democratic rights.
Not everyone in the CDU, or its sister party, the Christian Socialist (CSU), is on the same page though.
CSU leader Markus Söder is warning against an AfD ban, saying it should only serve as a “wake-up call” to change government policies. He said he is not sure the BfV report is sufficient for a ban.
The air force undertook a joint counterstrike of the Houthis in Yemen along with the US on Monday night following the ballistic missile strike near Ben-Gurion Airport on Sunday.During the strike, about 20 fighter jets were part of the attack, during which 50 munitions were dropped on Houthi targets in total.This is the sixth Israeli airstrike on the Houthis since July 2024, following over 400 attacks by the Iranian proxy on Israel over the course of the war.Just before 9 p.m., the IDF formally acknowledged attacking the Houthis around the Hodeidah seaport on the Red Sea coast, approximately 2,000 km. away.Targets included the port, which the IDF noted serves as a major source of income for the Houthi regime. “The Hodeidah seaport is used to transfer Iranian weapons, equipment for military needs, and other terrorist needs.”
IAF fighter jet en route to strike Houthi terrorists in Yemen, May 5, 2025. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)
In addition, the military said, “The Bajil concrete factory east of the city of Hodeidah was attacked, which serves as an important economic resource for the Houthi terrorist regime and is used to build tunnels and military infrastructure.” Next, the IDF stated, “The Houthi terrorist regime has been operating for the past year and a half under Iranian direction and funding in order to harm Israel and its allies, undermine the regional order, and disrupt global freedom of navigation. The IDF is determined to continue to act and strike forcefully at anyone who poses a threat to the residents and citizens of the State of Israel, and at whatever distance is required.”Earlier in the evening, the US coordinated with Israel its own strike against the Houthis at Sanaa. Israel’s last counterstrike against the Houthis was on January 11, before US President Donald Trump took office.Since then, Israel has hoped that over 1,000 airstrikes by the US under Trump would be sufficient to stop Houthi attacks on Israel without Jerusalem getting directly involved.
The largest coordinated airstrikes
However, the Houthis’ successful hit near Ben Gurion shook up that calculation.
As with Monday night’s attack in Yemen, on January 11, more than 20 Israeli aircraft partook in dropping around 50 munitions on terror targets in Yemen.During that attack, Israel’s air force, in coordination with the United States and Britain, conducted what were the largest coordinated airstrikes of the war against the Houthis in Yemen up until that time, targeting a Houthi power station and two ports used by the Iran-backed group.
The targets Israel struck included military infrastructure sites at Hezyaz power station, and military infrastructure in the Hodeidah and Ras Issa ports on the Western coast.The coalition was expected to attack weapons facilities, control and command bases, and underground places, while Israel struck the Houthis’ economic facilities, which have military and civilian use, such as ports, airports, and power plants.Airstrikes on Yemen’s port of Ras Issa targeted oil storage facilities in the vicinity of the shipping berths, and no merchant vessels were reported to have been damaged, British security firm Ambrey said.According to reports, the 12 strikes north of the capital were conducted by the US and UK on underground infrastructure belonging to the Houthis.
A strike also reportedly hit Sana’a’s main square during the weekly protests at the time in support of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
ISRAEL HAMAS
US proposes temporary administration to oversee post-war Gaza, sources say – report
According to the preliminary discussions, there would be no fixed timeline for how long such a US-led administration would last.
By REUTERSMAY 7, 2025 17:00Updated: MAY 7, 2025 17:5
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump seen over Gaza destruction (illustration)(photo credit: ABED RAHIM KHATIB/FLASH90, REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE, TOMER APPELBAUM/POOL)
The United States and Israel have discussed the possibility of Washington leading a temporary post-war administration of Gaza, according to five people familiar with the matter.
The “high-level” consultations have centered around a transitional government headed by a US official that would oversee Gaza until it had been demilitarized and stabilized, and a viable Palestinian administration had emerged, the sources said.
According to the discussions, which remain preliminary, there would be no fixed timeline for how long such a US-led administration would last, which would depend on the situation on the ground, the five sources said.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to discuss the talks publicly, compared the proposal to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq that Washington established in 2003, shortly after the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
The authority was perceived by many Iraqis as an occupying force, and it transferred power to an interim Iraqi government in 2004 after failing to contain a growing insurgency.
Palestinian houses stand badly damaged during the ongoing Israeli military operation, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip, December 18, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/Stringer TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)
Other countries would be invited to take part in the US-led authority in Gaza, the sources said, without identifying which ones. They said the administration would draw on Palestinian technocrats but would exclude Islamist group Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, which holds limited authority in the occupied West Bank.
Islamist group Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, sparked the current war when its militants stormed into southern Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and capturing another 251.
The sources said it remained unclear whether any agreement could be reached. Discussions had not progressed to the point of considering who might take on core roles, they said.
The sources did not specify which side had put forward the proposal nor provide further details of the talks.
In response to Reuters’ questions, a State Department spokesperson did not comment directly on whether there had been discussions with Israel about a US-led provisional authority in Gaza, saying they could not speak to ongoing negotiations.
“We want peace, and the immediate release of the hostages,” the spokesperson said, adding that: “The pillars of our approach remain resolute: stand with Israel, stand for peace.”
No response yet from Israel
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment.
In an April interview with Emirati-owned Sky News Arabia, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he believed there would be a “transitional period” after the conflict in which an international board of trustees, including “moderate Arab countries,” would oversee Gaza with Palestinians operating under their guidance.
“We’re not looking to control the civil life of the people in Gaza. Our sole interest in the Gaza Strip is security,” he said, without naming which countries he believed would be involved. The foreign ministry did not respond to a request for further comment.
Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run Gaza government media office, rejected the idea of an administration led by the United States or any foreign government, saying the Palestinian people of Gaza should choose their own rulers.
The Palestinian Authority did not respond to a request for comment.
The risks involved
A US-led provisional authority in Gaza would draw Washington deeper into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and mark its biggest Middle East intervention since the Iraq invasion.
Such a move would carry significant risks of a backlash from both allies and adversaries in the Middle East, if Washington were perceived as an occupying power in Gaza, two of the sources said.
The United Arab Emirates – which established diplomatic relations with Israel in 2020 – has proposed to the United States and Israel that an international coalition oversee Gaza’s post-war governance. Abu Dhabi conditioned its involvement on the inclusion of the Western-backed Palestinian Authority and a credible path toward Palestinian statehood.
The UAE foreign ministry did not respond to questions about whether it would support a US-led administration that did not include the PA.
Israel’s leadership, including Netanyahu, firmly rejects any role in Gaza for the Palestinian Authority, which it accuses of being anti-Israeli. Netanyahu also opposes Palestinian sovereignty.
Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel would expand its attacks in Gaza and that more Gazans would be moved “for their own safety.” Israel is still seeking to recover 59 hostages being held in the enclave. Its offensive has so far killed more than 52,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health ministry data.
Some members of Netanyahu’s right-coalition have called publicly for what they describe as the “voluntary” mass migration of Palestinians from Gaza and for the reconstruction of Jewish settlements inside the coastal enclave.
But behind closed doors, some Israeli officials have also been weighing proposals over the future of Gaza that sources say assumes that there won’t be a mass exodus of Palestinians from Gaza, such as the US-led provisional administration.
Among those include restricting reconstruction to designated security zones, dividing the territory and establishing permanent military bases, said four sources, who include foreign diplomats and former Israeli officials briefed on the proposals.
END
ISRAEL HAMAS
Goal of Israel’s new Gaza plan conquest and long-term boots on ground – analysis
The new operation is dubbed “Gideon’s Chariots” and it is supposed to defeat Hamas and lead to the hostages being freed.
The security cabinet passed a new plan for the war in Gaza that envisions taking control of territory and conquering parts of or all of Gaza. Israel’s leadership has said that the goal now is to hold ground.
Its plan also envisages having Gazan civilians move to an area where they can receive humanitarian aid and be separated from Hamas.
This is a bold, ambitious plan. However, like all plans, it may not survive contact with the enemy. This is because Hamas is still burrowed deep throughout central Gaza and Gaza City.
Dubbed Gideon’s Chariots, this operation is supposed to defeat Hamas and lead to the hostages being freed. The operation will apparently wait until after US President Donald Trump visits the Middle East in May.
Then the IDF, which will supposedly have been bolstered by thousands of reservists, will go into Gaza. There will be a large evacuation of the entirety of the population from areas of fighting to Gaza’s southern region.
Palestinians make their way as they flee their homes, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip March 25, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa)
IDF to remain in conquered areas
Unlike the past, “the IDF intends to remain in any area that is conquered to prevent terrorism from returning. It will handle cleansed locations according to the Rafah model, where all threats were eliminated, and it became part of the security zone,” a security source said.
There are different views regarding what will occur once these goals are achieved. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that it is important for people to stop being afraid to use the word “occupation.” The operation’s goal will be occupation and conquest, with long-term boots on the ground.
Some optimists believe Israel has finally made the decision it should have made back in October 2023, as the move could result in clearing Hamas and removing it.
However, there is still no clear alternative to Hamas in Gaza. Nature abhors a vacuum. In a vacuum of power, it is unclear if Hamas will simply return or find a way to insert itself among civilians who are evacuated.
The other question is whether this operation will be the game changer that some hope it will be. Will Israel remove Hamas and then control Gaza indefinitely?
Will this turn the clock back to 2004, before Israel’s 2005 Disengagement from the Gaza Strip?
In those days, the IDF controlled Gaza, but it did not have boots on the ground everywhere. Generally, the IDF did not seek to patrol the cities but rather defended the Jewish communities. After the Disengagement, there were no more Jewish communities to protect.
The new operation will involve the IDF being deployed in areas of Gaza in a way that it was not deployed there before.
The army has had a policy over the last decades of not remaining in Palestinian urban areas. In the West Bank, it carries out raids but does not remain there. The military does not deal with civilians or administer aid.
However, the operation in Gaza appears to envision the IDF having a larger hand in dealing with these issues. This is a major departure that would return the IDF to a role that is not even at 2004 levels, but something similar to the 1990s or 1980s.
Back then, the IDF was deployed in Arab areas in the West Bank and Gaza because the Oslo Accords had not yet created the Palestinian Authority nor the autonomy it later enjoyed in running Arab cities.
That said, there is also a chance that this new operation will not take place, and instead, there is some deal.
However, it does appear as though some people think that this operation will happen, and they want Israel to begin a long-term control or occupation of Gaza.
This would essentially unify Gaza with Israel and the West Bank.
What does Hamas think?
Hamas had committed so many atrocities on October 7 that it knew Israel would return to Gaza. The terrorist organization’s objective was to end the process of Israel “managing” or “shrinking” the conflict.Hamas has always thrived on war and conflict. It was founded in the late 1980s during the First Intifada to profit from the conflict.
The terrorist organization thrived in the 1990s, opposing the Oslo peace process using bombings. In the Second Intifada, it once again gained influence through warfare. After the Disengagement in 2005, Hamas took over Gaza. However, it found itself under siege and contained there.
Hamas has been plotting how to escape Gaza since the 2009 war in Gaza. It moved its key leaders to Doha, a US ally.It then received funding from Doha via Israel. It was able to lull Israel into a false sense of security, which ended when it decided to launch its invasion on October 7, 2023.
The terrorist organization wanted to use the war to take over the West Bank. It held the belief that, via hostage deals, it could drag out the war for years and slowly gain popularity.
Hamas also estimates that the Palestinian Authority’s head, Mahmoud Abbas, is not likely to survive much longer, since he is nearing 90 years old.
This would give Hamas what it wants in the West Bank. Backed by Doha and Turkey, along with Iran and perhaps Russia or China, it could then catapult itself into the West Bank. It wants Gaza reunited with the West Bank.
As such, Hamas may hope that the new Israeli operation continues and that Gaza is unified with the West Bank.Israel’s policy since 2007 has been to keep Hamas-run Gaza separate from the PA-run West Bank.
Top officials have said that they do not want Hamas or the PA running Gaza. However, so far, a third polity has not been found to administer the area.
The new operation does not seem to have a vision for who will govern the civilian areas. There is a fresh initiative to get humanitarian aid to Gaza’s civilians that is supposed to bypass Hamas.
How will Hamas members who dress as civilians be kept out of this new system? Many hurdles remain.
END
ISRAEL HAMAS
Thousands Of Unexploded Israeli Bombs In Gaza Provide Hamas With Weapons
Hamas is using some of the thousands of unexploded bombs that now litter Gaza as weapons against the invading Israeli forces. Most Hamas munitions are created from cannibalizing dud bombs dropped by Israel.
According to Israeli media, the country’s military estimated early this year that there were at least 3,000 unexploded bombs in Gaza. An Israeli officer explained that the munitions will be used by Hamas. “The situation we’ve reached is not normal. Tens of tons of explosives are lying in Gaza, waiting for Hamas,” they said.
The true number of unexploded bombs could be higher. The IDF has dropped about 40,000 bombs on Gaza since October 7, 2023. A typical dud rate is 10%; however, the Israeli military still uses some Vietnam-era missiles that could push the rate of bombs that fail to explode to 20%.
Haaretz estimates that the value of unexploded bombs is in the tens of millions of dollars.
A former Israeli official explained to The New York Timesin January 2024 that Hamas makes most of their munitions from bombs dropped on Gaza that do not detonate.
“Unexploded ordnance is a main source of explosives for Hamas,” said Michael Cardash, the former deputy head of the Israeli National Police Bomb Disposal Division and an Israeli police consultant. “They are cutting open bombs from Israel, artillery bombs from Israel, and a lot of them are being used, of course, and repurposed for their explosives and rockets.”
The armed wing of Hamas, the al-Qassam Brigades, has teams trained to recover the unexploded bombs, including 2,000-pound weapons. It also has the ability to break down the Israeli munitions and repurpose them as rockets, RPGs, and IEDs.
Salvaged Israeli bombs have been turned into lethal munitions by Hamas since October 7. In December 2023, remnants of an unexploded Israeli bomb were used to kill 10 soldiers, while Haaretz reports that in January, an IDF tank was destroyed by a Hamas IED created from an undetonated bomb.
While Israel has laid waste to the Strip over the past 19 months, US and Israeli intelligence have acknowledged that Hamas has retained most of its tunnel network and has recruited at least as many fighters as it has lost.
Tel Aviv recently announced a mass call-up of its reserve forces and expanded military operations in Gaza to the full occupation of the territory.
END
ISRAEL HAMAS
At least 21 hostages alive, authorities concerned about status of three add’l hostages, source says
All relevant information in the possession of the IDF’s Missing Persons Unit is passed on to the hostage’s family by an intelligence officer.
Thousands of Israelis call for immediate release of the hostages that are held in Hamas captivity in Gaza, outside the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv in March.(photo credit: GILI YAARI /FLASH90)
At least 21 hostages are alive, and three more are considered living although there are serious concerns for their lives, an Israeli source familiar with the details told The Jerusalem Post Thursday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday shared the same figures in a video shared on the prime minister’s official social media.
The previous day, US President Donald Trump said that three hostages had died in captivity. “They said that only 24 are living, and I now correct… I say 21 because as of today, it’s 21. Three have died. So this, this is a terrible situation,” Trump told reporters at a press conference.
The three include one Israeli and two foreign nationals. There have been no signs of life from them since shortly after October 7. Their families have been updated on the situation since then.
Hamas is holding 59 hostages. Thirty-five of them have been officially confirmed deceased. Thirty-two of them are Israelis, and three are foreign nationals.
The family of hostage Edan Alexander outside the home of Ron Dermer in Jerusalem on Sunder, April 13, 2025. (credit: YAIR PALTI)
Contact with hostage families
The families of the hostages are continuously and thoroughly updated about the condition of their loved ones.
All relevant information in the possession of the IDF’s Missing Persons Unit is passed on to the hostage’s family by an intelligence officer who works regularly with the family.
Hostage families are routinely invited to briefings by the Prisoners and Missing Persons Division, and military liaison officers and representatives from the Hostage, Missing and Returned Persons Directorate work with them in the civilian domain.
Contact with the families of the foreign hostages is maintained continuously through the relevant embassies.
Israel supports their families in the same way that Israeli hostage families are supported.
END
ISRAEL /USA/OPINION
Donald Trump – friend or foe to Israel? – comment
As far as events in the Middle East are concerned, Donald Trump is peaking loudly while so far carrying a limp stick.
By DAVID BRINNMAY 8, 2025 14:38Updated: MAY 8, 2025 14:40
US PRESIDENT-ELECT Donald Trump delivers remarks in Palm Beach, Florida last week.(photo credit: BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS)
The 26th president of the US, Teddy Roosevelt, is remembered among other things for his iconic line and philosophy – “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”
The current leader of the free world, Donald Trump, must have misread (or more likely misheard) that advice, because, at least as far as events in the Middle East are concerned, he’s speaking loudly while so far carrying a limp stick.
Just this week, he teased about life and death issues as if they were a promo for his old TV show, The Apprentice, and he was trying to boost the ratings.
Meeting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday, he coyly said that he would soon be making “one of the most important announcements that have been made in many years about a certain subject,” and that it would be “very positive.”
“It’s not about trade, it’s about something else — but it’s going to be a truly earth-shattering and positive development for this country and for the people of this country,” he said later.
The flags of Israel and the US are seen at a table during a meeting between officials from the two countries. (credit: REUTERS/KEN CEDENO)
Speculation in the diplomatic community suggests that he was referring to an international aid mechanism for the Gaza Strip that he plans to announce during his Middle East trip next week.
Others speculate that iit has to do with a strategic agreement with Saudi Arabia, that may or may not include Israel. Trump has been intent on bringing the Saudis into the Abraham Accords, but N12 reported on Wednesday that a senior American official delivered sharp criticism to Israel over its stance in the hostage negotiations and warned that the United States is prepared to finalize a regional agreement with Saudi Arabia, even without Israeli participation.
That goes hand in hand with Trump’s decision earlier this week to hang Israel out to dry regarding the Houthis.
Trump’s Oval Office announcement on Tuesday night, stating that his administration had reached an agreement with the Houthis, under which they would cease attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the US would halt its strikes against them. The terrorists’ continued attacks on Israel were deemed outside of the agreement, as a missile launched on Wednesday toward Israel testified.
“We were completely shocked. Israel was not informed before Trump made the statement,” an Israeli official told the Post’s Amichai Stern, who added that “America First” was Trump’s election promise, and this principle appears to be applied in the Houthi agreement.
To top off Trump’s disconnect with Israel, he disclosed on Wednesday, without checking with his Israeli partners, that only 21 of the presumed 24 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza are still alive.
Whether one thinks that he’s the responsible one and doing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s dirty work, or that he overstepped his bounds and interfered in an internal Israeli issue, it’s a head-scratching move that fits just right into Trump’s shoot-from-the-hip approach, no matter where the shrapnel lands.
From his boasts to take control of Gaza and evict the Palestinians to his promise to return all of the hostages, Trump’s first 100 days regarding Israel have been a lot of hot air.
It’s a sorry state of affairs, as much reflective of the equally sorry state of Israel’s government, when the families of the hostages have to appeal directly to Trump to intervene for their loved ones’ release.
But it’s unclear if he has the ability, or the desire, to move forward and carry out his threats to turn Hamas and Gaza into a living hell.
Since the last ceasefire that began on January 19 and lasted 42 days, with 33 Israeli hostages and five Thai captives released, there has been no movement toward another ceasefire that would see more hostages released. It’s not even clear how much the Trump administration had to do with that agreement, with much of the legwork carried out by the Biden administration.
Although US special envoy Steve Witkoff still seems to be involved in negotiations along with Qatari and Egyptian involvement, it seems like Trump, seeing the possibilities of a coveted ‘deal’ becoming more remote as both Israel and Hamas dig in their heels, is losing interest.
Soundbite teasers
Giving soundbite teasers of a monumental announcement in an environment that is so fraught with misery and anguish is not only irresponsible, it’s cruel – akin to Netanyahu announcing on a Friday last month that he would be making a major statement on Saturday night, thus keeping the hostage families in a hellish limbo (No, it wasn’t about the hostages).
If we know anything from diplomatic goings on in the Middle East, nothing is final until it’s final. And dropping a trailer for such a vital issue can only be considered self-serving on behalf of a president who is desperate to make a deal… any deal.
The bottom line of Trump’s erratic behavior toward Israel is that, at the end of the day, he is only concerned with one thing: Donald Trump.
HEZBOLLAH
IDF strikes Hezbollah tunnel network in southern Lebanon
Lebanon and Hezbollah had agreed to a ceasefire in November, which halted the fighting and mandated that southern Lebanon be free of Hezbollah fighters and weapons.
Smoke billows from Nabatieh district, following Israeli strikes, according to two Lebanese security sources, as seen from Marjayoun, in southern Lebanon, May 8, 2025.(photo credit: REUTERS/KARAMALLAH DAHER)
The IDF struck Hezbollah terror infrastructure in southern Lebanon, including a network of tunnels, the IDF confirmed Thursday afternoon.
The IDF struck Hezbollah terrorists, weapons, and tunnel shafts, which were part of a significant underground project that, due to IDF strikes, has been rendered inoperable. The military said that these sites are in direct violation of the understanding between Lebanon and Israel.
Israel conducted 14 strikes in the Nabatieh area, two Lebanese security sources told Reuters, in one of Israel’s most intense bombardments since a ceasefire brokered by the US in November.
On Tuesday, the IDF said that Hezbollah’s Bader Unit commander, terrorist Adnan Muhammad Sadiq Harb, was killed by an Israeli air force strike in the same area.
As part of his role, he advanced the rehabilitation of Hezbollah’s terrorist capabilities and assisted in efforts to rehabilitate terrorist infrastructure south of the Litani River. He also transferred weapons to different Hezbollah units across Lebanese territory.
People work at the damaged site in the aftermath of Israeli strikes in Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon, April 28, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/MOHAMED AZAKIR)
In April, Israel struck a southern Beirut building that it said it was being used to store precision missiles belonging to the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon
Lebanon and Hezbollah had agreed to a ceasefire in November, which halted the fighting and mandated that southern Lebanon be free of Hezbollah fighters and weapons.
This is a developing story.
end
SYRIA
he will try for sanction relief:
Jet-Setting Jihadi Jolani In Paris: From ISIS To The Elysee Palac
Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa (aka. Abu Mohammad al-Jolani) arrived in Paris on Wednesday for his first official visit to a European country since declaring himself interim leader, state news agency SANA reported. He was issued formal invitation by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Sharaa, or Jolani, is still at this very moment a designated terrorist according to the United States and several other countries. The FBI dropped its long-running ten million dollar bounty on his head, but the terror designation still stands.
The Syrian leader’s ruling Islamist faction – Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) – has been conducting sectarian attacks on ethno-religious minorities in Syria. Thousands of Alawites, Druze, and Christians have been killed and/or driven from their homes.
All the while, Sharraa has sought to claim before international cameras that he’ll ensure equality for non-Muslims as well as women, but the actions of his HTS gangs are the opposite.
The Syrian leader will seek to press President Macron on sanctions relief and funds for the war-ravaged country’s reconstruction. France, it should be remembered, was part of the US-Gulf coalition behind the decade-long covert push for regime change in Syria targeting Assad.
Macron has meanwhile expressed hope for a “new, free, and stable Syria that respects all components of its people.” This is darkly ironic, given Jolani first came back to Syria from Iraq as a high-ranking ISIS emissary early in the Syria conflict.
🧵1/ Macron is about to welcome Syria’s “new president,” Ahmed al-Sharaa, to Paris.
You might know his name. Not his body count.
Meet al-Jolani, “former” al-Qaeda Emir. While the West cashes in, Syria bleeds — its worst sectarian massacre in a decade. 👇 pic.twitter.com/lq1VslroJb
He started in ISIS, founded Al-Qaeda in Syria (al-Nusra Front), and is now jet-setting off to the Elysee Palace.
Whatever London or Washington PR firm is advising Damascus, they thought it good for al-Qaeda linked HTS leader Jolani to shoot some hoops this week… for ‘normalcy’ or something:
Syria is upside down, the people are poor & miserable, militias committing massacres, Israel is bombing the hell out of the country.
Regional Middle East observer Kevork Almassian summed up the Paris trip, amid ongoing HTS attacks on Druze communities in Syria’s south and Damascus suburbs, and attacks on Alawites along the coast, in saying…
So, Emmanuel Macron has no problem with a self-appointed President who just committed genocide and ethnic cleansing. The land of “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.”
IRAN
ISRAEL/SAUDI ARABIA/
US official: If Israel doesn’t wake up, US will advance Saudi deal without it – report
The official said that Trump is growing frustrated with Israel’s approach and that he intends to push on with a deal, regardless of Israel’s position.
President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shaking hands while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on (illustrative).(photo credit: BANDAR ALGALOUD/COURTESY OF SAUDI ROYAL COURT/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS, Canva, REUVEN KASTRO, SHUTTERSTOCK)
A senior American official delivered unusually sharp criticism of Israel’s conduct in hostage negotiations and warned that the United States is prepared to finalize a regional agreement with Saudi Arabia, even without Israeli participation, N12 reported on Wednesday.
According to the report, the remarks were made during a meeting Monday night between the official and the families of hostages held by Hamas.
According to several people who attended, the US official said that Washington is growing increasingly frustrated with Israel’s approach to the stalled talks.
“If until now they paid the price of not ending the war, today the price will be much heavier for Israel — and not just for the hostages,” the official reportedly told participants. “President Trump is determined to move forward with a significant deal with Saudi Arabia, even without Israeli involvement. The ceasefire agreement with the Houthis is just a prelude, and if Israel doesn’t come to its senses, even the ‘Deal of the Millennium’ will happen without it.”
The meeting was convened in an effort to break the ongoing deadlock in negotiations for the hostages’ release. Family members of those still held in Gaza said they were hoping the meeting would lead to increased international pressure on decision-makers to advance the talks.
CALLING FOR the release of Israelis still in Hamas captivity, at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square in April 2025. (credit: FLASH90)
The official, whose name was not disclosed, expressed support for the families’ position that continued military operations could endanger the hostages’ lives — a position that stands in contrast to current Israeli government policy, which views sustained military pressure as a tool to force concessions.
The official said that the United States views its strategic realignment with Saudi Arabia as a priority.
‘We hope Israel will board the historic train’
“We hope Israel will board the historic train that has already left the station,” the official said. “But the US will not wait at the platform.”
The comments appeared to leave the families shaken, the report noted. Several said afterward they were alarmed not only by the message itself, but also by what they described as a shift in tone from an ally traditionally seen as backing Israel unconditionally.
If finalized without Israeli input, the Saudi deal, which the Trump administration has described as a framework for stabilizing the region and curbing Iranian influence, could significantly reshape the diplomatic landscape, sidelining Jerusalem at a critical moment.
END
SAUDI ARABIA/USA
Saudi Arabia Pressed Trump To Stop Attacks On Yemen Ahead Of Visit
Saudi Arabia has been lobbying the US to stop all US attacks on Yemen ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit to the kingdom, warning that it would create an “embarrassing situation” for Riyadh and the US, Middle East Eye can reveal.
Saudi Arabia has resisted the US bombing campaign in Yemen since the Biden administration began strikes in 2024, but their insistence that attacks stop picked up last week as they became more concerned about the scope of the strikes, two US officials told MEE on the condition of anonymity. “Trump appears to be meeting a Saudi ‘ask’ to stop strikes ahead of his visit,” one of the US officials told MEE.
“The pressure from the Saudis to end this has intensified since last week. They told us that attacks on Yemen while POTUS is there would be playing with fire,” the official added, using an acronym for the US President.
Trump announced on Tuesday that “effective immediately”, the US would stop bombing Yemen. The officials could not confirm whether Trump was swayed by the Saudi lobbying alone or decided to stop the campaign based on his calculations.
The US strikes also came under intense criticism from some of Trump’s closest allies, such as media personality Tucker Carlson and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Shortly before Trump’s announcement, Greene mocked the entire premise of the campaign, writing, “I’ve never seen a Houthi. Nor has anyone else I know.”
Trump says he will ‘honour’ his word with Houthis
Trump said the Houthis informed the US on Monday night that “they don’t want to fight anymore, they just don’t want to fight”.
“We will honour that. We will stop the bombings,” Trump said, saying that the group promised not to attack ships.
Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi confirmed Trump’s announcement on X, adding that his country had been mediating a “ceasefire” between the US and the Houthis. “In the future, neither side will target the other, including American vessels, in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, ensuring freedom of navigation and the smooth flow of international commercial shipping,’ al-Busaidi wrote on X.
Arab and US officials told MEE that Saudi Arabia has been fiercely “pre-negotiating” Trump’s visit. Saudi Arabia wants to focus on economic deals and military sales, Arab officials say.
MEE reported last week that Riyadh sought assurances from the US it would keep discussions of normalization with Israel off the agenda during Trump’s visit.
Saudi Arabia says it needs to see steps toward the creation of a Palestinian state and a ceasefire in Gaza before it recognizes Israel.
Israel bombs Sanaa same day as US ‘ceasefire’
The “ceasefire” between the US and the Houthis could also reveal deeper schisms between Trump and Israel. Trump announced his halt in attacks the same day Israel pummeled Sanaa airport.
Neither Trump nor Oman’s foreign minister made any mention of the Houthis stopping their attacks on Israel in their announcements. Over the weekend, a Houthi ballistic missile hit a parking lot close to Terminal three at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, sending shockwaves through Israel.
Saudi Arabia has been deeply sceptical of the US bombing campaign against the Houthis since it began under the Biden administration in 2024.
All the narratives are wearing off. Vietnam was a pointless war and we lost. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Afghanistan was a waste. And we gained nothing from any of those wars. Saudi Arabia has nuclear weapons and the 19 terrorists from 9/11 were all Saudis.…
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) May 6, 2025
Yemen descended into civil war in 2014 when the Iran-aligned Houthis seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. A year later, Saudi Arabia led a coalition of Arab states, including the United Arab Emirates, to restore the internationally recognized government.
The Saudi-led coalition launched thousands of air strikes on Yemen, which failed to dislodge the Houthis but resulted in hundreds of thousands of civilian deaths and a major humanitarian crisis. The Houthis responded by lobbing missiles and drones at civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Saudi Arabia and the Houthis struck a truce in 2022. Although technically expired, the two sides have refrained from attacking each other. The Saudis’ efforts to reach a political settlement with the Houthis have been complicated by the group’s attacks on international shipping and US and Israeli strikes.
RUSSIA VS UKRAINE/EUROPE/USA
US, Russia Discussing Restoring Gas Flows To Europe As Key To Grand Ukraine Deal
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 02:05 PM
The Trump administration is pushing forward with seeking to forge a peace deal in Ukraine, despite recent warnings it could give up trying to mediate if progress isn’t made, as well as seeking to repair bilateral US-Russia relations.
“With a frost covering Europe’s energy relations with Russia, officials from Washington and Moscow have held discussions about the U.S. helping to revive Russian gas sales to the continent,” Reuters has cited eight sources to say.
Europe, other than a couple holdout countries like Hungary and Slovakia, drastically slashed its Russian gas imports soon after February 2022 and the start of the Ukraine war. Gazprom subsequently posted a $7 billion loss in 2023.
Russian gas coming back online to the continent is being presented as a key incentive by Washington:
Sources close to the bilateral discussions said carving out a renewed role for Moscow in the European Union’s gas market could help cement a peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Though much of Europe has sought alternative supply, some buyers have remained, and industry officials say more could return once a peace deal is agreed.
As Russia’s economy was hit hard the loss of most of Europe’s gas market three years ago, it has increasingly solidified its partnership and dependence on China for energy and industrial trade.
We reported earlier Thursday that Presidents Xi and Putin discussed Russia’s Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline project in Moscow ahead of Victory Day events. However, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak specified the two leaders avoided the somewhat contentious question of avoiding the pipeline’s transit through Mongolia. Russia plans to boost supplies of oil, gas, and LNG to China, Bloomberg has noted Thursday.
Russia currently supplies 19% of Europe’s demand, mostly LNG, down from 40% in terms of prewar levels.
As for progress on Ukraine peace, Vice President JD Vance just offered some thoughts in Munich:
Washington wants to move away from the “obsession” with a 30-day ceasefire proposed by Ukraine, US Vice President J.D. Vance has said. The US is more interested in shaping a durable peace agreement with Moscow, he told a Munich Leaders Meeting on Wednesday.
Ukraine had floated a one-month ceasefire as a counter to Russia’s 72-hour truce proposal to mark the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.
However, Moscow has rejected Kiev’s plan, arguing that Ukrainian troops, which have been on the backfoot for months, would use it to regroup and strengthen their military posture.
Vance stressed that the US remains interested in a “long-term settlement” of the conflict rather than a short-term one.
“We’ve tried to move beyond the obsession with the 30-day ceasefire and more on the what would the long-term settlement look like? And we’ve tried to consistently advance the ball,” the vice president said, warning the Russians to make the necessary concessions.
“Certainly, the first peace offer that the Russians put on the table, our reaction to it was you’re asking for too much,” he said. “But this is how negotiations unfold.”
6. GLOBAL ISSUES//COVID ISSUES/VACCINE ISSUES/HEALTH ISSUE
KEVIN W…….
Well over 100 days RFK has done and said nothing. Trump has not said a word why? His finger prints are all over the crime scene so there will be no investigation ever..
Global Growth Bellwether Maersk Slashes Container Market Outlook
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 09:45 AM
Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk posted solid first-quarter growth but issued a stark warning, slashing its 2025 outlook for the global transport market amid mounting macroeconomic headwinds, primarily driven by President Trump’s ongoing trade war with China.
Maersk warned about “increased uncertainty leading to a more cautious container volume growth outlook” because of the trade war, which has caused container volumes between China and the US to slide in recent weeks.
“Maersk maintains its full-year 2025 guidance of underlying EBITDA of USD 6-9bn, underlying EBIT of USD 0-3bn and free cash flow of at least negative USD 3.0bn,” the shipper said.
However, it revised the global container market volume growth for 2025 to between -1% and 4% because of the trade disruption between the US and China.
It added: “Maersk expects to grow in line with the market. The disruption in the Red Sea is expected to continue throughout the rest of the year.”
In an earlier interview, Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc told Bloomberg TV that the trade war “is mostly a US-China issue, the rest of the world continues unabated.”
Clerc pointed out that the 145% tariffs on Chinese goods entering the US and the 125% tariffs on US goods entering China have already “taken a bite” out of the container market in April, and volumes in China-US trade have plunged “30% to 40% in both directions.”
He noted that Maersk is one of the least exposed shippers on China-US and/or US-China shipping lanes because most of its sailings are between Asia and Europe.
“The outlook for global container demand over the remainder of the year remains highly uncertain, shaped by a rapidly evolving trade policy landscape and increasing recession risks in the US,” Maersk said.
It still views the second quarter as one full of growth, “particularly if shippers capitalize on the 90-day pause of reciprocal tariffs by frontloading shipments and building inventories.”
UBS analyst Cristian Nedeclu anticipates a 5% year-over-year decline in containerized freight volumes at the Port of Los Angeles on a four-week rolling basis in May. He also flagged a sharp drop in capacity utilization on inbound vessels, which is currently hovering around 50%—well below the typical 85–90% range.
The Port of Los Angeles serves as a vital artery in the American economy, channeling the flow of Chinese goods that keep supply chains humming, shelves stocked, and factories moving. However, risks of shortages of low-inventory Chinese goods are mounting.
Maersk’s warning coincided with those of Toyota, Mitsubishi Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo Cars, Ford, and General Motors about levies that have sent the global auto industry into a tailspin.
past time that RFK Jr. (Bobby Jr.) (HHS) & Marty Makary (FDA) pull, remove the COVID Malone Sahin Weissman BioNTech Pfizer et al. mRNA vaccine from market for children, there is ZERO basis! No need!
Children have near zero risk, and this was always the case. We can find none, not one, healthy child, US child, across the 5 years of the fraud PCR-manufactured fake non-pandemic, who got exposed, who got severely ill or died, not one!
Moreover, with a focus on children, “The estimated IFR is close to zero for children and young adults.” The global data is unequivocal that “deaths from Covid are incredibly rare” in children.
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What is the rationale for this and what is the basis? Why was there be a push to vaccinate six-month-old babies? Vaccinate two-year-old infants? Vaccinate six-year-old children? Ten-year-old children? Via an experimental Malone Bourla Bancel Moderna Pfizer et al. mRNA vaccine that delivers genetic code into your cells instructing it to produce a mock portion of the virus? (if we accept that COVID was real).
The published evidence is conclusive that the risk of severe illness or death from Covid-19 in children was always and is almost nil (statistical zero) and this evidence has/had accumulated for well over 5 years now; it is clear that children bring a potent, robust, broadly protective INNATE immune system (first line of defense, B-1 cells, innate antibodies and natural killer cells (NK cells)) and are/were at very low risk of spreading the infection to otherchildren, of spreading to adults as seen in householdtransmission studies, or of taking it home or becoming ill, or dying, and this is settled scientific global evidence. Children are/were less at risk of developing severe illness courses, and also were/are far less susceptible and likely to spread and drive SARS-CoV-2 (references 1, 2, 3, 4). We knew this. Despite what our inept and corrupted crooked medical doctors told us in conspiracy with our governments and health agency officials. This implied that any mass injection/inoculation or even clinical trials on children with such near zero risk of spread and illness/death was contraindicated, unethical, and potentially associated with significant harm.
The risk-benefit discussion for children with these mRNA injections is a very different one than that for adults. This was always the case given the differential in baseline risk especially as to age and healthiness. The fact is that this was a completely novel and experimental injection therapy with no medium or long-term safety data (or even definitive effectiveness data). Malone and Bourla and Fauci et al. and those in the Trump and Biden administration were silent when it mattered to tell us the truth. We moved forward with the vaccination of our children without the proper safety testing, ethical discussion, cost-effectiveness analysis etc., and thus we have presented them with potentially catastrophic risk long-term, including deaths in some.
A team of Johns Hopkins researchersreported that when they prior looked at a group of about 48,000 children in the US infected with the virus, they found no (zero) Covid deaths among the healthy kids. Dr. Makary (present FDA Commissioner) indicated that his team “worked with the non-profit FAIR Health to analyze approximately 48,000 children under 18 diagnosed with Covid in health-insurance data from April to August 2020…after studying comprehensive data on thousands of children, the team “found a mortality rate of zero among children without a pre-existing medical condition such as leukemia.”
With this background, that was stable, as to near zero risk, we knew of the very low risk to children in the first place, but wanted scientific documentation (molecular/biological) of why this low risk existed, to help support our arguments against these injections in our children. The evidence presented below (including on the risk of the injection itself) may help explain why children are and never were candidates for the Malone Bourla Pfizer et al. mRNA vaccines (here and here) and may well be (are) immune and could have always been considered “fully vaccinated.”
Parents must be brave always and be willing to assess drugs and vaccines in their children purely from a benefit versus risk position and ask themselves: ‘If my child has little if any risk, near zero risk of severe sequelae or death from this COVID (or whatever is is/was), and thus no benefit from the Malone Bourla Pfizer mRNA vaccine, yet there could be potential harms and as yet unknown harms from the vaccine, then why would I subject my child to such a mRNA vaccine?’ And in the presence of the potential risks, as well as the fact that a vaccine for COVID is simply not indicated in children, why would a loving parent allow their child to be vaccinated with continued still-experimental vaccines? The children should live normally, and if exposed to COVID (or similar) we can rest assured that in the vast majority of cases, they will have no to only mild symptoms while at the same time developing naturally acquired immunity, and harmlessly; an immunity that is definitely superior to that which might be caused by a vaccine. This approach would also accelerate the development of the much-needed herd immunity.
I am lost for words as to why the HHS (RFK Jr.), CDC, NIH, FDA etc. have not completely removed the mRNA vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna etc. from the market, given the time they have had at lead, and continue to demand that children as young as 6 months old be vaccinated with these deadly mRNA vaccines. As per CDC vaccine guide below.
‘Huge Win for MAHA’: Trump Dumps Surgeon General Nominee, Taps Top MAHA LeaderPresident Donald Trump on Wednesday dumped Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, his nominee for U.S. Surgeon General, and instead tapped Dr. Casey Means, a leader in the “Make America Healthy Again” movement.Means, author of “Good Energy,” is a Stanford University-trained surgeon who pivoted to pursue public health from a radically different perspective than the current medical establishment.“I am pleased to announce that …READ THE FULL REPORT
Disney Threw a Fit Over ‘Don’t Say Gay’ in Florida. It’s Building a Park Where Being Gay Is Illegal.A few years ago, the Walt Disney Company threw a tantrum over Florida’s inaccurately nicknamed “Don’t Say Gay” law that bolstered parental rights in education.Now, the entertainment behemoth is building its first new theme park in 15 years in — wait for it — Abu Dhabi, a city where homosexuality is illegal.Turns out the bottom line matters!Disney’s theme parks are …READ THE FULL REPORT
AOC Dared Tom Homan to Come After Her for Helping Illegals. Here’s His Response.Trump administration border czar Tom Homan responded to far-Left Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), after she dared Homan to come after her for helping illegal immigrants evade law enforcement.AOC, during a town hall on Friday, challenged Homan to refer her to the Department of Justice for “using her free speech rights” to advise illegal immigrants on how to avoid law enforcement, …READ THE FULL REPORT
Investigators Reveal Disturbing New Detail from Hudson River Helicopter Crash That Killed 6The doomed tourist helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River last month, killing six people, erupted with “loud bangs” before breaking apart into three pieces, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report Wednesday.Witnesses told the NTSB that they heard the loud noises coming from the New York Helicopter Tours chopper as it was flying over the Hudson …READ THE FULL REPORT
GOP Florida Senator Suddenly Passes Out While Speaking at Press ConferenceRepublican Florida State Sen. Ileana Garcia passed out while speaking at a press conference held by Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday.Garcia was speaking about environmental legislation when she suddenly turned to DeSantis to let him know she was not feeling well.“Governor, forgive me,” Garcia said. “I’ve gotta sit down because I am not feeling well.”Seconds later, Garcia slumped over and …READ THE FULL REPORT
MICHAEL EVERY/PHIL MAREY/OR OTHER EXECS //RABOBANK
7.OIL AND NATURAL GAS ISSUES/GLOBAL/ENERGY/
LNG Is A Key Bargaining Chip In Tariff Talks With Asian Nations
Wednesday, May 07, 2025 – 09:20 PM
Asian nations are ramping up energy imports from the U.S. to gain leverage in tariff talks with President Trump, though concessions in areas like autos and agriculture may prove harder to secure, according to a new report from Nikkei.
“Asian trading partners have been the most forthcoming in terms of doing the deals,” said Scott Bessent, Trump’s chief tariff negotiator, pointing to India, South Korea, and Japan.
Negotiations are underway with Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, and India ahead of the July 9 deadline, after the U.S. paused tariffs for 90 days in April. Except for China—which has retaliated—over 100 countries are engaging to avoid fallout.
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is a key bargaining chip. Asian economies are pledging more imports of U.S. LNG, which is expected to see demand rise as countries shift from coal. “In the longer term, Asia could buy more U.S. LNG for future decades,” said Alex Froley of ICIS.
The Nikkei report says that Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam are expanding LNG purchases, while Indonesia may focus on other fuels like LPG and crude oil. Some are eyeing a potential $44 billion LNG project in Alaska. Bessent hinted that a “big energy deal” there involving “the Japanese and perhaps the Koreans, perhaps the Taiwanese” could influence tariffs.
South Korea is coordinating a visit to Alaska, and Taiwan’s CPC signed a non-binding letter to participate. Japan’s JERA called it “one of the promising procurement sources,” though cost remains a barrier.
Automotive trade remains tense. Trump has criticized the lack of U.S. cars in Asia. Japan had a $48 billion auto surplus with the U.S. in 2024. While Tokyo may ease crash-test rules and expand preferential treatment for imports, actual gains are doubtful. “It’s difficult to drive large and powerful American cars on narrow Japanese streets,” said Takashi Imamura of Marubeni Institute.
Japan’s automakers already produce extensively in the U.S. “Trump’s complaints may be just a ploy to have the upper hand in the overall negotiations,” Imamura added.
In agriculture, the U.S. is pushing for expanded exports of rice, soybeans, and corn. Japan is a key target, though Tokyo refuted claims of a “700%” tariff on rice. Political resistance is strong, particularly ahead of Japan’s upper-house elections.
Still, Japan and South Korea are already top buyers of U.S. rice, pork, and wheat. “Asia already relies on the U.S. for agricultural imports like soybeans, wheat and corn,” said Keisuke Sano of Nomura Research Institute. But broader shifts will be slow: “It will take more time, as that requires a change in culture,” he noted.
Thailand is exploring expanded U.S. imports but faces opposition from farmers and environmental groups.
South Korea is also leveraging shipbuilding. Its Hyundai Heavy Industries signed an MOU with Huntington Ingalls to explore U.S. shipyard investments. The U.S., once a global shipbuilding leader, now seeks Asian investment to revive the industry. “We’ve got to look at all options,” said U.S. Navy Secretary John Phelan.
Security spending may factor in too. Trump called the U.S.-Japan defense treaty “one-sided” and wants allies to pay more. Before an April 16 meeting, Trump said Japan was negotiating both tariffs and “the cost of military support.” Later, he clarified the military issue was “another subject” but repeated that allies “have gone rich” while the U.S. “has been ripped off.”
Defense imports may be included in deals. Taiwan’s President Lai pledged “additional arms procurements” to help reduce its trade gap with the U.S., according to the report.
We noted that India is the nation most likely to announce the first major trade deal with the Trump admin not only because of Apple’s decision to shift all US-focused iPhone production from China to India, but because India and China have a bit of a regional superpower rivalry between them, with the former recently surpassing the latter as the world’s most populous country (China is facing a crippling demographic crisis in several decades that would rival Japan’s), and with ambitions to overtake China’s GDP over the next 2 decades.
Case in point, Indian trade negotiators are planning to showcase the country’s large pipeline of Boeing plane orders and the potential for more to come as they seek a favorable deal with the US, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. In the absence of a deal, Indian goods exports to the US face up to 26% levies after Trump’s 90-day pause on implementation of reciprocal tariffs ends in July.
The plan is to get Indian carriers’ existing orders and under-negotiation deals with the American planemaker counted in discussions for a bilateral trade pact that could potentially shield the country from higher US tariffs.
Along with Air India, Akasa Air-operator SNV Aviation and SpiceJet have placed a combined order for 590 aircraft worth $67 billion with Boeing in recent years. With deliveries and payments for 506 of those planes staggered over several years, India wants to highlight how these private purchases would serve to narrow the more than $47 billion trade surplus New Delhi runs with Washington — a key gripe of President Donald Trump.
India is taking President Trump up on his offer for reciprocal free trade, proposing zero-for-zero tariffs on specific goods like pharmaceuticals, steel, and automobile components.
This has electrified President Trump’s base—the reciprocal tariffs are working! India’s coming to the table!
Sorry to burst your bubble: America will not benefit from free trade with India—or any other Third World country.
Why?
One word:
Externalities.
President Trump would be wise to remember that tariffs are not about moving factories from China to India—they’re about moving factories back to America.
Hunting Unicorns
Real international free trade—much like real communism—has never been tried. Why? It’s impossible.
The reality that economists & libertarians refuse to recognize is that different countries are different. And not just different in a nominal sense—different in real and practical ways that prevent economic integration.
First, America and India have different levels of economic development that cannot be reconciled without seriously rebalancing the factors of production.
The average annual wage in America is $63,000, while the average annual wage in India is just $2,500—the average American earns 25x more than the average Indian. Labor is often the largest input cost for making products, accounting for approximately 30–35% of the cost of American manufacturing—and it’s an even higher proportion in many service industries.
If America and India traded freely, India’s low wages would undercut America’s labor market—either Americans will need to accept lower wages domestically, or the factories will relocate to India to take advantage of dirt-cheap labor.
How do we know this will happen? The exact same thing happened after China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001.
In 2001, the average annual wage in America was $30,846, while the average annual wage in China was just $1,127—the average American earned 27x more than the average Chinese. What happened when American workers competed with Chinese workers? American factories moved to China, and wages stagnated.
The pace of offshoring was harrowing. Since 2001, more than 60,000 factories have moved abroad, killing over 5 million manufacturing jobs. This has decimated America’s industrial capacity and hollowed out local communities. And no, robots and automation had nothing to do with this process, in case you were curious.
In fact, the process has been going on even earlier than 2001. America has run global trade deficits every year since 1974. The cumulative value of these deficits is $25 trillion, after adjusting for inflation. This has decoupled wages for American workers from their productivity—even though workers produce more value, they aren’t paid for it. Why? Because the wages are suppressed by competition with cheap foreign labor.
Notice how the price differentials respecting America and China in 2001 and America and India today are almost identical. Why do we think the result will be different this time around?
From India With Love
In addition to obvious market asymmetries like the price of labor, the cost of doing business in India is lower because of externalities. Essentially, there are many costs of doing business in America that are baked into the final price of a product, such as the costs of environmental remediation, labor standards, and upholding higher quality control standards.
These costs are not baked into the price of Indian products. Instead, the costs of pollution or abusive labor standards are externalized to the environment or society at large.
But of course, we always pay the piper. Rather than pay 10 cents more per spatula, we live with plastic trash from India floating up on American beaches or mercury poisoning the fish we eat—we may not pay the price at the store, but we certainly pay it with our health and with our soul—all for the sake of “cheap” goods.
Often, foreign goods are not actually cheaper than American goods: they simply do not reflect the full cost of production. For this reason, America cannot produce goods as cheaply as China or India—not unless we are willing to destroy our standard of living—not unless we are willing to sacrifice our environment—not unless we are willing to outlaw morality in the name of business and sell our very soul for profit.
No. Reducing the cost of business to compete with India on price is simply not desirable. Nor is it possible.
Remember, even if America allowed manufacturers to externalize all costs, our economy is structurally distinct from India’s. In America, private corporations dominate the market. Although these corporations are large, and many are owned by the same few investment firms—like BlackRock—they remain private entities.
This is not the case in India, where the state is crafting a cohesive industrial policy designed to industrialize the country. Part of this policy appears to be to piggyback on America’s consumer market when it comes to strategic industries, like steel or pharmaceuticals—just like China.
Ultimately, the only way to protect America’s market from asymmetrical competition from countries like China or India is to price in these externalities by imposing protective tariffs. This is discussed in detail in my book Reshore: How Tariffs Will Bring Our Jobs Home & Revive the American Dream.
The Shock and Awe of Reality
Different countries have different levels of economic development, legal systems, tax structures, histories, geographies, languages, cultural and business norms, and demographics. All of these differences can create market asymmetries that are simply not relevant domestically.
At best, free traders can reduce tariffs and other visible trade barriers, like taxes, transportation costs, and legal disharmonies. However, they cannot uproot the sort of cultural norms and political corruption that make doing business in India—or China, or Mexico, or Italy—different than doing business in America.
Ultimately, America’s interests are not served by moving industry from China to India. The industry needs to come home. Let’s not make the same mistake with India that we did with China—say no to free trade and raise the tariff walls
PAKISTAN/INDIA
Pakistan Says It Killed Up To 50 Indian Soldiers In Fresh Border Clashes
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 09:10 AM
In the latest along the war-ready Indian-Pakistan border, the Pakistan’s military says it has downed 25 Indian drones over its territory, while India in in turn is announcing it thwarted a Pakistani drone and missile attack on its military.
The official Pakistani death toll after the Wednesday missile ‘retaliatory’ attacks on Punjab province and Pakistan-administered Kashmir yesterday is at least 31 killed and dozens more wounded. Heavy artillery fire across the Line of Control (LOC) has remained steady, but the kind of feared wider and out of control all-out war has yet to be sparked.
On the other side, the last 48 hours of hostilities has resulted in at least 13 people killed in Indian-administered Kashmir, with others wounded due to Pakistani fire.
India’s ‘Operation Sindor’ to avenge the 26 tourists killed last month’s terror attack has been called an ‘act of war’ by Pakistani leaders. Islamabad has denied any involvement in supporting or harboring the gunmen, amid repeat Indian accusations.
As for the newest major Indian drone attack, it mainly targeted the second-largest city of Lahore, and India’s government hailed that the operation successfully took out air defense radars at several locations. However, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif rejected this, saying there was no damage, amid an ongoing fog of war where it’s hard for international observers to confirm much.
But as for a much bigger claim which has yet to be confirmed or substantiated, Al Jazeera reports that “Attaullah Tarar, the Pakistani information minister, has said the country’s armed forces have killed 40 to 50 Indian soldiers in the exchanges along the Line of Control dividing Indian- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.” The assertions were made before legislators in the National Assembly.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s latest words suggest New Delhi is still seeking to prevent escalation, claiming that all our air strikes were against “carefully selected terror targets” and that Indian drones and shelling have only hit sites connected to “incidents of cross-border terror in India and terrorist infrastructure.”
And provocatively, he alleged that Pakistan has been “using religious sites as a cover to train terrorists” – which strongly suggests India’s assaults on Pakistan-administered Kashmir will continue, given the presence of armed Islamist factions. Much of this was directed at rejecting Pakistan’s claim that Indian air strikes have damaged the vital Neelam-Jhelum dam.
But the question of disinformation, and the motive for India’s ‘counterterror’ strikes, have been called “domestic theater” by one regional analyst:
Yet as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors escalate hour by hour, with Pakistan accusing India of launching a wave of drones into its territory on Thursday, military and geopolitical analysts question whether India’s approach serves as a deterrent against armed groups eager to target it. They argue that New Delhi’s actions are more symbolic and aimed at addressing its domestic audience rather than tactical advancement in the so-called “fight against terror”.
“This is all a domestic theatre,” said Ajai Sahni, executive director of South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), a platform that tracks and analyses armed attacks in South Asia. “The Indian strikes [in Pakistan] have no deterrent value.”
A steady spread of the border conflict…
Markets in India and Pakistan have again closed in the red, with India’s benchmark stock market indices – the Sensex and Nifty – having fallen around half a percent in trade.
Pakistan’s Karachi Stock Exchange was halted Thursday, with the benchmark KSE100 index losing more than 6% in trade. Amid the uncertainty the Indian rupee has slipped more than a percent against the US dollar.
END
THIS AFTERNOON
Reports Of Huge India-Pakistan Jet Dogfight; Blackout Across Jammu & Kashmir
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 12:52 PM
Update(1252ET): While there’s been no official confirmation, a Pakistani official has described major aerial engagements above Jamu and Kashmir Thursday. Newsweek writes based on a CNN report:
Some 125 Indian and Pakistani fighter jets battled for over an hour in one of the biggest dogfights in recent history, according to a Pakistani security source quoted by CNN.
If the numbers of aircraft were confirmed, it would make it one of the largest air battles since World War Two.
According to more of the unverified claims:
The “dog fight” between Pakistani and Indian fighter jets, which Pakistani officials say downed five Indian planes, was one of the “largest and longest in recent aviation history,” a senior Pakistani security source told CNN. The Pakistani claim has not been corroborated and could not be immediately verified by Newsweek.
What is certain is that the last 24 hours have seen intense artillery fire exchanges, as well as drone strikes and intercepts, amid a ratcheting situation between the nuclear-armed rivals.
Purported video footage of Kashmir amid blackout and anti-air fire overhead…
#Confirmed Pakistan launched multiple rockets targeting the Stavari area and Jammu Airport. A blackout has been reported across Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Army was fully prepared and had anticipated such a move. It appears Pakistan is recklessly pushing itself toward… pic.twitter.com/StLu7kVMmf
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/USA: 1.1287 DOWN 0.0016 PTS OR 16 BASIS POINTS
USA/ YEN 144.95 UP 1.080 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 1.3262 DOWN .0028 OR 28 BASIS PTS
USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3881 UP 0.0044 (CDN DOLLAR DOWN 44 BASIS PTS)
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE UP 9.33 PTS OR 0.28%
Hang Seng CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP .26%
// EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL GREEN
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL GREEN
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG CLOSED UP 84.04 PTS OR .37%
/SHANGHAI CLOSED UP 9.33 PTS OR 0.28%
AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.26%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED UP 148.97 PTS OR .41%
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE RED
Gold very early morning trading: 3336.30
silver:$32.40
USA dollar index early THURSDAY morning: 99.99 UP .55 BASIS POINTS FROM WEDNESDAY’s CLOSE.
The USA/Yuan CNY DOWN AT 7.2353, CNY ON SHORE ..CHINA MUST DEVALUE TO GOLD
THE USA/YUAN OFFSHORE DOWN TO 7.2336:
TURKISH LIRA: 38.63 EXTREMELY DANGEROUS LEVEL/DEATH WATCH/HYPERINFLATION TO BEGIN.//
the 10 yr Japanese bond yield at +1.341
Your closing 10 yr US bond yield UP 1 in basis points from WEDNESDAY at 4.285% //trading well ABOVE the resistance level of 2.27-2.32%)
USA 30 yr bond yield 4.775 DOWN 0 in basis points /11:00 AM
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 3.814 UP 2 BASIS PTS.
GOLD AT 11;00 AM 3365.00
SILVER AT 11;00: 32.64
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 DOWN 27.72 PTS OR 0.32%
GERMAN DAX: CLOSED UP 236.73 pts or 1.02%
FRANCE: CLOSED UP 67.60 pts or 0.89%
Spain IBEX CLOSED UP 8.50 pts or 0.06 %
Italian MIB: CLOSED UP 654.41or 1.71%
WTI Oil price 58.93 11 EST/
Brent Oil: 62.08 11:00 EST
USA /RUSSIAN ROUBLE /// AT: 82.41 ROUBLE DOWN 1 AND 79/ 100
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD; +2.4930 UP 1 BASIS PTS.
UK 10 YR YIELD: 4.5325 UP 3 BASIS POINTS
CDN 10 YEAR RATE: 3.1661 UP 1 BASIS PTS.
CDN 5 YEAR RATE: 2.773 UP 2 BASIS PTS
CLOSING NUMBERS: 4 PM
Euro vs USA 1.1215 DOWN 0.0088 OR 88 BASIS POINTS//
British Pound: 1.3237 DOWN .0052 OR 52 basis pts/
BRITISH 10 YR GILT BOND YIELD: 4.6000 UP 14 FULL BASIS PTS//
JAPAN 10 YR YIELD: 1.339
USA dollar vs Japanese Yen: 146.14 UP 2.28 BASIS PTS
USA dollar vs Canadian dollar: 1.3927 UP 0.0091 BASIS PTS CDN DOLLAR DOWN 91 BASIS PTS
West Texas intermediate oil: 59.94
Brent OIL: 62.86
USA 10 yr bond yield UP 4 BASIS pts to 4.382
USA 30 yr bond yield UP 7 PTS to 4.844%
USA 2 YR BOND: UP 10 PTS AT 3.897%
CDN 10 YR RATE 3.226 UP 5 BASIS PTS
CDN 5 YEAR RATE: 2.827 UP 6 BASIS PTS
USA dollar index: 100.56 UP 1.12 BASIS POINTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 38.63 GETTING QUITE CLOSE TO BLOWING UP/
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIA//// ROUBLE: 82.41 DOWN 1 AND 75/100 roubles
GOLD $3293.55 (3:30 PM)
SILVER: 32.32 (3:30 PM)
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: UP 284.85 OR 0.62%
NASDAQ 100 UP 195.59 PTS OR 0.98%
VOLATILITY INDEX: 22.45 DOWN 1.10 PTS OR 4.67%
GLD: $ 304.63 DOWN 6.12 PTS OR 1.97%
SLV/ $29.46 DOWN 0.03 PTS OR OR 0.10%
TORONTO STOCK INDEX// TSX INDEX: CLOSED UP 128.78 OR 0.53%
end
TRADING today ZEROHEDGE 4 PM: HEADLINE NEWS
Bitcoin & Big-Tech Soar As Beijing, Brits, & Better Data Spark Bond Bloodbath
AFTERNOON BIG NEWS
USA DATA
Initial Jobless Claims Refuse To Weaken In Face Of CEO Dissonance
by Tyler Durden
Thursday, May 08, 2025 – 08:41 AM
So, are CEOs all talk?
After a brief spike last week, initial jobless claims are back in their four year range at 228k – at the same level as in Q4 2021…
Last week’s spike – largely driven by New York – has now been erased – largely driven by New York…
Continuing claims fell back below the 1.9 million American Maginot Line once again…
Continuing jobless claims across The Deep TriState are back up near post-DOGE highs…
But initial claims across the three states have stopped rising as various lawsuits halt layoffs across federal agencies.
USA ECONOMIC NEWS
World’s Largest Jewelry Brand Says Reshoring US Production “Simply Won’t Work”
Wednesday, May 07, 2025 – 11:00 PM
Pandora Jewelry CEO Alexander Lacik spoke with Bloomberg TV’s Anna Edwards on Wednesday about the potential for re-shoring production from Asia to the U.S. in response to President Trump’s trade war. But the head of the world’s largest jewelry company offered a blunt assessment: Pandora has no plans to overhaul its supply chain.
Edwards asked Lacik: “So, a third of Pandora’s business comes from the U.S., which means you’re quite exposed to tariffs since you produce 95% of your jewelry in Thailand. You have plans to open a site in Vietnam, but there’s a 46% tariff on products coming from Vietnam into the U.S. So, Alexander, does this have you looking at other production locations?”
Lacik responded, “If I wanted to build another plant somewhere, it would take roughly three years to get something up and running. You would actually need to go to places where there is a tradition of crafting. I have almost 15,000 craftspeople working for Pandora in Thailand at the moment. Those craftspeople have many years of tradition in doing crafted jewelry.”
Here’s one of Pandora’s Thailand factories…
“So it’s not so easy, just – it’s not like moving a machine from one place to another. So, first of all, finding the skilled people who can do the jewelry for us would be the first protocol,” Lacik said,
He was very blunt: “So if you look at labor costs, if I were to consider going to the US, in terms of economics, that equation wouldn’t work for us.”
The takeaway from the world’s largest jewelry company—which designs, manufactures, and markets hand-finished pieces from Southeast Asia—is that it has no plans to abandon its ultra-low-cost manufacturing hubs. That means Pandora will either absorb the tariffs or pass the added costs on to consumers.
"It's not like moving a machine from one place to another"
For what it’s worth, one could argue that Americans can live without Pandora jewelry. Instead, consider buying gold and silver coins or bars—real stores of value.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sat down with Newsmax’s Greta Van Susteren Tuesday evening and exposed the dirtiest trick in the American food system.
He says corporations hijacked an FDA loophole called “GRAS” to quietly flood our food with untested chemicals – without ever proving they were safe.
And the consequences didn’t take long to show up.
In the late 1980s and early ’90s, something strange started happening in America. Chronic illness was on the rise. Obesity rates soared. Autoimmune diseases became more common.
It felt like the health of the nation was unraveling.
According to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., that wasn’t a coincidence. It was the result of a corporate takeover.
“At that time… the tobacco industry took over the food industry,” he said.
“By the early 1990s, the two biggest food companies in the world were R.J. Reynolds and Philip Morris.”
The same companies that had perfected the art of chemical addiction through cigarettes were now running the food system. And Kennedy says they brought the same playbook with them.
“They began moving scientists from the endeavor of making tobacco more addictive to developing new lab ingredients that would make food addictive.”
That’s when everything changed.
What had once been real food—grown, cooked, and served—became something else entirely. A highly engineered product designed not to nourish, but to keep people hooked.
The health consequences were immediate. But behind it all, there was something even more insidious: the regulatory system meant to protect Americans had already been compromised.
“Those chemicals were largely untested because of the capture of the FDA by the food and drug industries,” Kennedy warned.
The public trusted the FDA. But the FDA, Kennedy says, had already been captured by the very industries it was supposed to regulate.
It began with a story most people never heard—and a turning point most never noticed.
In the late 1980s and early ’90s, something strange started happening in America.
Chronic illness was on the rise. Obesity rates soared. Autoimmune diseases became more common.
Kennedy revealed how the food industry hijacked a decades-old FDA loophole—one that allowed a flood of untested chemicals into our diets.
It started back in the 1940s, when the FDA first began regulating food.
At the time, they made one reasonable exception: ingredients with a long history of safe use—like wheat, eggs, and dairy—wouldn’t need testing.
“When the FDA first began regulating foods in the 1940s, it exempted food ingredients that had been used for generations—like wheat, eggs, and dairy,” Kennedy said.
“They didn’t require testing for those.” But decades later, that narrow exemption was quietly weaponized.
“The food industry later captured that label and applied it to every new chemical they wanted to add.”
Instead of testing new additives, companies simply claimed they were “generally recognized as safe.” And the FDA, Kennedy said, went along with it.
The result? America now has more than 10,000 approved food ingredients. Europe? Just 400.
“In the U.S., chemicals are never safety tested before being added to food,” he said.
Some of those ingredients are derived from petroleum. Others mimic the flavor of strawberries or blueberries, without providing a single nutrient. And they’re not just empty calories.
“These chemicals hijack the brain and trick the body into eating more food while getting less nutrition.” That’s not just unhealthy—it’s unprecedented.
“We are now the fourth most obese country in the world,” Kennedy said, “yet for the first time in history, obesity is often accompanied by malnutrition.”
Think about that for a second.
“The people who are most obese are also malnourished. That’s never been seen before in human history.”
Then came the dirtiest trick of all.
Kennedy revealed how the food industry hijacked a decades-old FDA loophole—one that allowed a flood of untested chemicals into our diets.
It started back in the 1940s, when the FDA first began regulating food.
But Kennedy isn’t just exposing the problem—he’s taking action.
For decades, food companies have been allowed to slip harmful ingredients into our food. That may finally change.
In March, Secretary Kennedy directed the FDA to begin dismantling the very loophole that made this possible.
He instructed Acting FDA Commissioner Sara Brenner to “take steps to explore potential rulemaking to revise its Substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Final Rule and related guidance to eliminate the self-affirmed GRAS pathway,” according to an HHS press release.
Translation: no more rubber-stamping chemicals without oversight.
HHS also announced plans to work with Congress to pass new legislation that would formally close the GRAS loophole.
As of now, the timeline for these changes remains unclear—HHS did not respond when asked how soon they plan to act.
h
Read the full article here: Kennedy Takes Aim at FDA Loophole That Allows Unsafe Ingredients in Food https://t.co/ATmlhWDFaz
“The team here is extraordinary. A lot of people are coming to HHS now because they see an intergenerational opportunity to change the way we do things, and we’re moving fast.”
He outlined several major steps already underway.
“We’ve announced a ban on all petroleum-based synthetic food dyes. We’ve changed the GRAS standards so people can’t rubber-stamp chemicals into food anymore.”
“We’re reviewing chemicals already in our food.”
“We’ve launched Operation Stork Speed to ensure mothers can get the healthiest milk for their children.”
The system was rigged. But now, the tide is turning. And this time, it’s the people—not the corporations—who are finally calling the shots.
Kennedy wrapped it all up with a hopeful message.
“The team here is extraordinary. A lot of people are coming to HHS now because they see an intergenerational opportunity to change the way we do things—and we’re moving fast.”
California is home to some of the widest gaps between mortgage payments and rental costs in the nation, meaning it is increasingly harder to buy a home compared to renting one, according to analysts.
The California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) reported on April 21 that the gap between monthly costs of buying a bottom-tier home versus renting a bottom-tier home has reached levels not seen since the mid-2000s housing bubble, with the growth attributed to higher home prices and higher mortgage rates.
“Historically, people would rent, save money, and then buy a house. But, if the rents are high and the prices of houses are even higher, then there’s really no hope,” Joel Kotkin, a fellow in urban studies at Chapman University, told The Epoch Times.
“Buying is becoming more and more difficult, unless you have inherited wealth, or if you have money from overseas.”
A study by Bankrate published on April 23 highlighted the growing affordability challenges in the state’s largest metropolitan areas, where coastal cities lead the country in cost disparities between owning and renting.
Bankrate compared average monthly rent to average monthly mortgage payments across the 50 largest U.S. metropolitan areas, and revealed that cities in California are at the top of the list when it comes to expensive home ownership, especially when compared to rents.
San Francisco has a buy-rent gap of 190.7 percent, making it home to the largest gap nationwide. The typical monthly mortgage payment in San Francisco was around $8,882, up 4.7 percent year-over-year, while the typical rent is $3,055, down 1.7 percent year-over-year.
San Jose comes in a close second on the list, where homeowners fork over mortgage payments that are 185.6 percent higher than rent. The typical mortgage payment is $9,438, up 10.5 percent year-over-year, with rent coming in around $3,305, down 1.3 percent year-over-year.
Los Angeles and San Diego have seen a similar trend. Mortgage payments in Southern California’s largest metro areas are 88.5 percent and 79.9 percent higher than rent, respectively, landing them sixth and ninth compared to other U.S. metros included in the study.
Bankrate’s study attributes high cost gaps between renting and owning a home to skyrocketing home prices because of low housing supply, as well as high mortgage rates, which average nearly 6.90 percent for a 30-year fixed loan nationwide as of April 24.
“ If you’re in the coastal markets, you have to consider this home as a very long-run solution,” Skylar Olsen, Zillow’s chief housing economist, said in a statement. “In California, people famously leave their homes to their children. There are very long tenures in these really expensive markets for that reason.”
California Housing Costs
California homes are around twice as expensive as the typical American home, reported the California LAO, citing Zillow data. A mid-tier home in California costs around $789,000 in 2025, compared to the U.S. average of $361,000.
According to the California Association of Realtors (CAR), the median California home price in March 2025 was $884,350.
In a July 2024 report from Zillow, for 117 cities across California, a typical starter home costs $1 million or more.
Los Angeles’s median home price is just over $1 million, reports Redfin. Meanwhile, San Francisco and San Jose report higher median home prices, at more than $1.3 million and $1.4 million, respectively.
Mid-tier home monthly payments reached nearly $5,900 a month in March 2024, making for an 82 percent growth in prices since January 2020, reported the California LAO. Bottom-tier home payments reached more than $3,500 per month, representing an 87 percent increase since January 2020.
CAR reports that a mere 17 percent of households could afford a median-priced home in early 2024. California home prices are forecasted by CAR to increase 4.6 percent in 2025.
Homeownership rates have fallen in California, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, where the current home ownership rate is 55.9 percent, compared to the national average of 65.2 percent. Homeownership in the state peaked at 60.2 percent in 2006.
Meanwhile, according to the LAO, the monthly rent for a two-bedroom home in California in 2024 was $2,225 compared to the $1,400 national average.
The California Housing Partnership found in 2024 that renters in Los Angeles need to make $48.04 per hour—2.9 times Los Angeles’s minimum wage—in order to afford the average rent of $2,498.
The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) reported that renters comprise a 44 percent share of households in California compared to 35 percent in the rest of the country. Save for two other states, more California renters spend over half of their income on rent than any other state.
Lack of Homeownership
Amid the rising prices, 70 percent of Californians believe children today will fare worse than their parents financially, according to a 2024 PPIC statewide survey.
The survey found 29 percent of Californians skipped meals or ate less food in order to save money within the prior year, while 17 percent used CalFresh (food stamp) benefits. Moreover, 20 percent put medical care on hold as a result of financial constraints.
According to Mark Schniepp, director of The Economic Forecast, the main issue is housing.
“But there’s not much we can do about it outside of building more of it,” Schniepp told The Epoch Times in an email. “However we are unlikely to be able to build enough, given current regulations in place and current zoning.”
“The Coastal Act, CEQA, land costs and many local regulations prevent developing housing,” he added.
Kotkin agreed state policies have contributed to a lack of affordable housing, which makes it difficult to build in places that would otherwise be cheaper.
“What essentially is approved is increasingly high density and expensive in the inner city,” Kotkin said.
The bottom line, he said, is that home ownership is an important part of preparing for retirement. If you own a house, then you can stay there once you retire, because you probably have paid it off.
“The house is an asset,” he said.
“[Owners] can borrow against it, they can sell, and then they can have a comfortable retirement.”
However, if an increasing number of people are forced to rent, “people will generally look to the state, or some other institution, to take care of them, because they have nothing of their own,” Kotkin said.
“They’re going to rent for life, which means that when they retire, they’re not going to have any assets. They’re going to be dependent on state transfer payments.”
He sees such dependency as incompatible with democracy.
“Democracy is built on the fact that there’s some degree of independence on the part of a large part of the population,” he said. “If you own a house, you have a certain degree of autonomy that maybe you can think in a different way than if you are dependent on the fact that your landlord may decide to increase the rent 50 percent.”
VICTOR DAVIS HANSON
USA/ANTISEMITISM//HAMAS// REPORT
KING NEWS
The King Report May 8, 2025 Issue7488
Independent View of the News
On Wednesday, the PBoC cut its 7-day reverse repo rate from 1.5% to 1.4% and reduced banks’ Reserve Requirement Ratio (RRR) 50bps.
@j_fishback: It’s not the Fed vs. Trump. It’s the Fed vs. the Truth. The truth is that oil prices are down, inflation is down, and the Fed’s own models say that they should lower interest rates. But let’s be clear: President Trump doesn’t need the Fed to do anything. He’s already secured $8 trillion in new investments in our country in the first hundred days.The Fed *should* lower rates, but if they don’t, it won’t stop Trump’s economic momentum.
Google tumbled as much as 9.4% after Apple SVP of services Eddy Cue testified in court that Google searches in Apple browsers have declined for the first time because people are migrating to AI. Cue stated that Apple is considering reformulating Safari to focus on AI-powered search engines due to the potential end of its Google deal and industry changes.
Google stock sinks on report Apple plans to integrate AI search into Safari browser Cue’s comments came during Google-parent Alphabet’s antitrust trial… During the trial it was revealed that Google pays Apple $20 billion a year to use its search engine as the default search option in Safari. Cue said that Apple saw a drop in searchers in Safari for the first time last month, attributing the move to customers increasingly opting for AI-based search options… https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-stock-sinks-on-report-apple-plans-to-integrate-ai-search-into-safari-browser-155545131.html
@epictrades1: GOOGL When the core business that produces 95% of cash flow has true competition for the first timein decades nobody cares about its “cheap” valuation.
ESMs soared on Tuesday night after reports that China and the US would hold trade talks this weekend. After hitting a daily high of 5689.75 at 18:07 ET, ESMs retreated moderately and traded sideways until they broke down at 8:03 ET. After hitting 5632.50 at 9:38 ET, ESMs rallied to 5656.25 at 10:20 ET.
ESMs then sank after the Google-Apple news hit the tape. ESMs fell to 5620.00 at 11:12 ET. The rally for the FOMC Communiqué release and Powell’s presser then commenced. ESMs rallied to 5655.75 at 13:13 ET and then resynced most of the rally by sinking to 5624.75 at 13:55 ET. The known world expected no Fed policy change and Powell to remain antagonistic to Trump.
FOMC Communique Highlights As expected, the Fed kept the fed funds rate unchanged at 4.25% to 4.5%. Uncertainty about the economic outlook has increased further. The risks of higher inflation and higher unemployment have increased. “Inflation remains somewhat elevated.” (Despite CPI, PPI, oil, food, and gasoline declines!) Economic activity continues to expand at a “solid pace” (Despite negative GDP!) The surge in imports affected the GDP data. Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement May 07, 2025 https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20250507a.htm
The FOMC Communique clearly shows that the Fed is looking for excuses to NOT lower rates and will help Powell vex Trump. So, ESMs tumbled to 5596.00 at 14:08 ET.
About the same time, Trump said he will not lower tariffs on China to facilitate the trade talks.
CNBC’s Brian Sullivan and Rick Santelli stated that it is hard to square the fact that the Fed did a jumbo rate cut less than two months before the election and another 25bp rate cut in December when the economy was stronger, and inflation was higher – and now the Fed claims to see higher inflation and a strong economy – even though inflation data and GDP show the exact opposite. They also aver that the Fed reputation and credibility have taken big hits due to this.
CNBC’s Steve Leisman, a Fed sycophant, dissented. Leisman got to ask Powell the first question.
ESMs rebounded to 5619.75 at 14:27 ET as traders prepared for Powell’s 14:30 ET presser.
Powell Press Conference Highlights Despite uncertainty, the economy remains strong. Labor is at or near maximum employment (Excuse to NOT cut rates) Net exports complicated GDP data Consumers and businesses report lower sentiment. The labor market is NOT a source of inflationary pressure. Longer-term inflation expectations remain anchored. The inflationary effects of tariffs could be short lived; it depends on the size of tariffs. Fed is “well positioned to wait for greater clarity.” Don’t need to be in a hurry to adjust rates.
Powell Q&A Highlights Underlying inflation picture is good, slightly above 2% target. We won’t make progress on goals this year if tariffs stay. Trump’s calls to cut rates doesn’t affect us at all. “There’s a lot of thinking that we went on too long with QE… we didn’t want a sharp tightening at a time when we thought the economy was still vulnerable, so we did hold onto a long time for QE.” I can’t say how much of a rise in the unemployment rate is tolerable. Rising unemployment and inflation “would be a complicated and challenging judgment…” The Fed doesn’t have the tools to adjust supply chain issues. (What about Covid rate cuts?)
@zerohedge: Powell asked about the tools the Fed has to address supply-chain disruptions. “We don’t have that at all,” he says. That’s odd: in 2021 the Fed vowed rates would be at 0 until 2024 because of covid supply chain disruptions.
During Powell’s Q&A, ESMs rose to 5649.00 at 14:57 ET. ESMs then rolled over. Powell finished his Q&A at 15:19 ET; ESMs fell to 5611.25 at 15:35 ET. The late manipulation pushed ESMs to 5675.00 at 15:43 ET. But once again traders had to liquidate to each other; ESMs sank to 5627.25 at 15:50 ET. A final manipulation pushed ESMs to 5656.50 at the NYSE close.
@dailychartbook: “According to the National Association of Realtors, first-time homebuyers made of just 24% of recent transactions. That’s the lowest on record since the NAR has been collecting this data since 1981.” https://x.com/dailychartbook/status/1919784223642128856
@AnnaEconomist: Belatedly reading Kevin Warsh’s (rumored lead candidate of next Fed chair) speech (or…”love letter” to the Fed) from group of 30….a few quick reactions: 1) He used many hard words. Will foreigners and normal people understand what he is saying? 2) He said a) he doesn’t find fed’s data dependency of real value, b) he find near term forecasting “distracting” c) forward guidance has little role to play in normal times. So….. what is he planning to use to guide monetary policy? Opaque words shrouded in high minded sophistication that nobody understands?
Bernanke blatantly exploited ‘forward guidance’ to manipulate the stock market higher. Each time Ben or another Fed academic appeared and talked dovish, stocks would jump. The practice continued long after the US recovered from the Great Financial Crisis of 2008-2009. The ability to move markets supercharged the massive egos of Fed academics that are generally worthless in the real world.
If Fed officials were mandated to go quietly into the night, massive egos would crash.
Positive aspects of previous session USMs rallied smartly; gold retreated moderately; Oil & gasoline declined sharply. The DJIA rallied smartly; the DJTA and S&P 500 Index rallied modestly.
Negative aspects of previous session Fangs declined sharply on Google. This forced Nasdaq to decline. ESMs had another late decline. The Fed issued a blatantly political communique that was more hawkish than warranted. What’s left of Fed credibility is circling the drain.
Ambiguous aspects of previous session How will Trump respond to the Fed?
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]: 5621.54 Previous session S&P 500 Index High/Low: 5654.73; 5578.64
Fox’s @ChadPergram: GOP FL Sen Rick Scott on Fox Business: Jay Powell is a disaster. The balance sheet, the assets of the Federal Reserve are worth one trillion dollars less than the liabilities. We are losing a hundred billion dollars a year right now. This is all under Jay Powell… we know we’ve had the accusations of insider trading, right? He’s building a two and a half billion dollar, two and half billion-office building. We had Silicon Valley Bank fail. No accountability. There’s no review of insider trading of Federal Reserve board members. No one must have done anything wrong on Silicon Valley bank failing. No accountability. So, Jay Powell’s got to go. We’ve got to get an independent inspector general to hold Jay Powell and whoever the chairman is, whoever the board members, hold them accountable. It’s what we do in business. We always have independent auditors…
@j_fishback: The problem with Fed Chair Jerome Powell is that he thinks he’s better than everyone else—including the President of the United States… Yahoo Finance’s Jennifer Schonberger asked Powell a simple question: Why hasn’t he met with President Trump since his re-election?He met with Trump during the first term. Obama met with his Fed chair. So did Bush. So did Clinton. Powell’s response? “I never will. I wouldn’t do that; there’s never a reason for me to ask for a meeting…” He’s the chairman of the Federal Reserve. Trump is the duly elected President of the United States. Both share responsibility for the direction of the U.S. economy. President Trump is rolling out a bold economic agenda: deregulation, trade reform, energy independence, and fiscal streamlining. These are not side issues—they directly affect the Fed’s economic forecasts and rate decisions. Wouldn’t it make sense for Powell to say: “Mr. President, I’d like to better understand your agenda. Let’s talk about what you’re doing. I’ll share what I’m seeing. Maybe we can clear up some confusion.”… But let’s stop pretending Jerome Powell is apolitical. In June 2020, at the height of the BLM riots, Powell said America needed to recover from “racial injustice.” That wasn’t monetary policy—it was left-wing ideology. So don’t lecture anyone about political independence. What’s really happening is this: the Fed isn’t independent from politics. It’s independent from reality. https://x.com/j_fishback/status/1920211689322258820
Biden memo let feds target Americans for ‘non-criminal behavior’ before Catholics, parents probed The now declassified strategic plan provided the foundation for Biden-era agencies to target conservatives, and anyone who appeared to resist or dissent from the Biden/Harris agenda… Legal experts and lawmakers told Just the News on Tuesday they were deeply concerned the Biden-era memo substantially lowered the standard to “concerning” behavior instead of criminality, potentially jeopardizing civil liberties and giving license to weaponize police powers against Americans who had different views than the governing administration on issues like the Second Amendment and COVID-19. https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/declassified-biden-admin-domestic-terror-memo-authorized-agencies
If people are NOT prosecuted for egregious unconstitutional actions, what will stop the practice?
Trump warns Iran over nuclear sites: We can ‘blow ‘em up nicely or blow ‘em up viciously’https://trib.al/LAdpCOR
Today – With the hawkish Fed Communique having no effect on the markets, traders will shift focus to the looming US-China trade talks. We’d guess that traders are more concerned about getting caught short or out of the market if the trade talks are constructive than if they fail.
ESMs are -8.50; NQMs are -26.50; and USMs are +2/32 at 20:43 ET.
Expected econ data: March Consumer Credit $9.287B; FOMC Communique 14:00 ET; Powell 14:30 ET
S&P Index 50-day MA: 5561; 100-day MA: 5784; 150-day MA: 5818; 200-day MA: 5747 DJIA 50-day MA: 41,142; 100-day MA: 42,412; 150-day MA: 42,703; 200-day MA: 42,227 (Green is positive slope; Red is negative slope)
S&P 500 Index (5631.26 close) – BBG trading model Trender and MACD for key time frames Monthly: Trender is positive; MACD is negative – a close below 5447.29 triggers a buy signal Weekly: Trender and MACD arenegative– a close above 5987.57 triggers a buy signal Daily: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 5430.47 triggers a sell signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 5668.34 triggers a buy signal
@paulsperry_: In huge new anti-Trump escalation, the radical Soros-funded group INDIVISIBLE that’s attacked GOP townhalls+Tesla lots is mobilizing foot soldiers to disrupt Trump’s military parade June 14 w/ marches in 100s of cities. Rachel Maddow shared its map for “mass protests.”
President Trump’s Most Loyal Supporters – Victor Davis Hanson At the end of President Donald Trump’s first 100 days, there were a number of polls that came out. Most of them were liberal and most of them were negative… some of them who have a much more reliable history—such as the Rasmussen poll, the Insider Advantage poll, the Trafalgar poll—they all had Donald Trump, at the end of 100 days, with either roughly 50-50 approval ratings or even slightly above that… One of the daily Rasmussen polls… there were 39% of black Americans that expressed support for Donald Trump. That’s an astonishing number. Given that 95% of the news coverage, according to the Media Research Center, has been negative… But even more astonishing is the ethnic constituency that expressed the highest approval of Donald Trump’s first 100 days was the Hispanic community. In fact, far above the so-called white community. The Democratic Party had told us that closing the border and stopping the illegal entry of 10 to 12 million illegal aliens during the Biden administration—that was deeply unpopular to the Hispanic community. And then, the deportations of illegal aliens like Kilmar Abrego Garcia, for example, or Eduardo Flores-Ruiz that was in Judge Hannah Dugan’s courtroom, whom she tried to hide. He was the assaulter of three people, including women. This was supposed to be deeply unpopular. But it actually has the opposite effect… the price, the cost, the toll fell most heavily on Hispanic communities… Why would so-called white people poll much more negatively against Trump’s first 100 days than Hispanics? It’s because the white elite had created an agenda under the Biden and Obama administration that was elitist… That is the trademark of the professional bicoastal classes. And they’re interested in issues that are not existential—at least not every day existential. By that I mean global warming, the Green New Deal, transgendered men in women’s sports, international organizations—the U.N. But they’re not interested in what the Hispanic working classes are interested in. And that’s affordable gasoline, affordable power bills, good-paying jobs, schools that allow their children to be competitively educated, safety in their neighborhoods… https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/05/06/president-trumps-most-loyal-supporters-the-hispanic-community/
Child-rapist migrant who fled Brazil found living at Massachusetts daycare home: ‘Terrifying’https://trib.al/v3hst5c
@bonchieredstate: A U.S. senator flew to El Salvador to have drinks with a deported illegal immigrant and alleged MS-13 member. Now, Abrego-Garcia’s business partner has confirmed he paid the “Maryland Dad” to human traffic other illegal aliens. Just incredible optics for Democrats.
@RNCResearch: Biden says he stepped away from the race because he “was so successful. Who’s going to tell him?https://t.co/zQW3zTiuxD
GOP @RepMarkHarrisNC: The federal government will pay 90% of the healthcare costs for an unemployed 30-year-old living with their parents. But an impoverished single mom with another baby on the way? Only 50-70%.Obamacare exploded Medicaid and turned its priorities backward.https://t.co/XdJdaLj0ib
GOP @RepRalphNorman: Thanks to Obamacare expansions, states get a higher federal match for covering able-bodied adults than they do for the truly vulnerable. That’s backwards. It’s time to put children, the elderly, and the disabled FIRST. That’s what Medicaid was meant for.
GOP @Rep_Clyde: Obamacare expanded Medicaid far beyond its intended purpose. In many cases, the federal government pays states MORE to cover ABLE-BODIED adults than the vulnerable, such as pregnant women and disabled children. This is simply unsustainable—and it’s up to Congress to fix it.
@TheBabylonBee: Trump Promises to Negotiate Peace in India as Soon as They Take Him Off Holdhttps://t.co/2XQfD2OrRd
When President Trump returned to the White House, he didn’t just get to work cleaning up Joe Biden’s mess—he set his sights on dismantling decades of entrenched bureaucratic bloat, waste, and corruption. With a relentless series of executive orders and policy directives, Trump reignited his mission to drain the swamp—this time with laser precision and zero patience for the status quo.
Predictably, the left went into full-blown panic mode. Liberal legal groups immediately launched a barrage of lawsuits, cherry-picking friendly courts in a shameless attempt to stall Trump’s agenda. They’re terrified of losing control over the bloated regulatory state they’ve used for years to push policies they could never pass through Congress.
But that strategy just hit a major roadblock. In a landmark ruling on Saturday, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals handed the Trump administration a decisive legal victory—one that could fundamentally change how activist judges and forum-shopped cases interfere with executive authority.
“This is a huge victory for President Trump and his Article II powers granted in the United States Constitution. It’s also a victory for US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) and VOA,” Kari Lake told Fox News Digital. Lake now serves as a USAGM senior advisor to the Trump administration. “We are eager to accomplish President Trump’s America First agenda which has always been to modernize and make our government efficient while cutting waste, fraud, and abuse.”
The appeals court’s 2-1 ruling Saturday emphasized the judiciary’s deference to executive authority in matters concerning federal employment and contractual decisions.
The court noted that the district court likely lacked jurisdiction to interfere with the administration’s personnel actions and funding decisions, particularly regarding grant agreements with non-federal entities like Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.
This ruling Trump’s March 14 executive order (EO), which aimed to dismantle USAGM operations.
This ruling effectively reins in district courts that have been sidestepping proper jurisdictional channels in cases challenging Trump administration actions. The decision serves as a clear reminder that courts themselves must operate within their prescribed legal boundaries.
According to Margot Cleveland, senior legal correspondent for The Federalist, the D.C. Circuit’s ruling hinges on a critical point: jurisdiction, which has sweeping implications. As Cleveland explains, many of the legal challenges being hurled at the Trump administration involve employment decisions—precisely the kind of disputes Congress has explicitly said federal district courts have no authority to adjudicate.
harveyorganblog.com 
