MARCH 16/THE BANKS CONTINUE TO WHACK OUR PRECIOUS METALS DESPITE THE WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST: GOLD CLOSED DOWN $60.45 TO $4995.90 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.57 TO $80.52//HOWEVER PLATINUM BUCKED THAT TREND RISING BY $51.80 TO $2109.40 JOINING PALLADIUM WHICH WAS ALSO UP $25.50 TO $1609.00/GOLD COMMENTARY TONIGHT COURTESY OF ALASDAIR MACLEOD AND MATHEW PEIPENBURG////IN DEPTH COMMENTARIES ON THE MIDDLE EAST WAR WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE USA BOMBING KHARG ISLAND//NEWSWIZE//OIL UPDATES ESPECIALLY WITH THAT HIT//USA DATA RELEASES//KING NEWS/SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT//
072 C GOLDMAN 65 099 H DEUTSCHE BANK AG 315 190 H BMO CAPITAL MARKETS 233 363 H WELLS FARGO SECURITI 277 555 C BNP PARIBAS SEC CORP 142 624 C BOFA SECURITIES 166 624 H BOFA SECURITIES 405 657 C MORGAN STANLEY 464 661 C JP MORGAN SECURITIES 516 709 C BARCLAYS 653 732 C RBC CAP MARKETS 851 905 C ADM 25
TOTAL: 2,056 2,056 MONTH TO DATE: 9,698
JPMORGAN STOPPED 516/2056
MARCH
GOLD: NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR MARCH/2026: 2056 CONTRACTs NOTICES FOR 205,600 OZ or 6.395 TONNES
total notices so far: 9698 contracts for 969,800 OR 30.1648 tonnes)
CME CORRECTED
FOR MARCH
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
SILVER NOTICES: 804 NOTICE(S) FILED FOR 4.02 MILLION OZ /
total number of notices filed so far this month : 8108 CONTRACTS (NOTICES) for 40.540 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 $60.45 INVESTORS SWITCHING TO SPROTT PHYSICAL (PHYS) INSTEAD OF THE FRAUDULENT GLD
HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD INVENTORY AT THE GLD:: A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 4.327 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD/.
INVENTORY RESTS AT 1071.565 TONNES
SLV/
WITH NO SILVER AROUND AND SILVER DOWN $0.57 AT THE SLV: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV/A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.536 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV//
CLOSING INVENTORY RESTS AT:
CLOSING INVENTORY: 497.056 MILLION OZ
Let us have a look at the data for today
SILVER//OUTLINE
SILVER COMEX OI FELL BY A HUGE SIZED 814 CONTRACTS TO 115,029 AND STALLING ON ITS MARCH TO THE RECORD HIGH OI OF 244,710, SET FEB 25/2020, AND THIS SMALL SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI WAS ACCOMPLISHED DESPITE OUR $3.83 LOSS IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY’S // TRADING. WE ARE NOW RISING FROM THE ABSOLUTE LOW POINT IN OI // SILVER AT 112,874
NOW ON A NET BASIS OUR SPECULATORS HAVE REVERTED BACK TO GOING LONG. THE FRBNY ON A NET BASIS IS PROVIDING THE NECESSARY PAPER TO OUR LONGS AND THEN HUGE NUMBERS OF LONGS LEFT STANDING TENDER FOR PHYSICAL AT 4 PM EACH NIGHT. BECAUSE OF THE HUGE SHORTFALL IN PHYSICAL SILVER IN LONDON THERE IS A LOTTERY TO SEE WHO GETS ANY OF THE PHYSICAL SILVER AVAILABLE THAT WHICH THEY ARE OBLIGATED TO DELIVER. THEY WAIT PATIENTLY FOR THEIR PHYSICAL METAL AND IF NOBODY GETS ANY THEY THEN COME BACK THE NEXT DAY AND SO ON. THIS IS IN LONDON, THE HOME OF PHYSICAL SILVER!!
IT WAS SOME OF OUR SILVER SPECULATORS THAT WERE BRUTALLY BEATEN UP AT THE SILVER COMEX THIS PAST MONTH AS THEY GOT RINSED OUT BADLY AT LAST MONTH’S RAID ON FIRST DAY NOTICE FOR THE FEB CONTRACT/.HOWEVER, WE FINALLY ARE NOW MOVING TO A MUCH HIGHER BASE IN SILVER PRICING SURPASSING THE $70.00 SILVER PRICE BARRIER TO A HIGH DEGREE, AND NOW READY TO ATTACK AGAIN, OUR LAST MAJOR HURDLE OF $100.00 SILVER.
WE HAVE A SMALL SIZED LOSS OF 99 TOTAL CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES AS THE CME NOTIFIED US OF A HUGE SIZED 715 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE.. WE HAD SOME LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS IN COMEX TRADING WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY TRADING///DESPITE OUR LOSS IN PRICE ALONG WITH A HUGE 1145 T.A.S. ISSUANCE!! / THEY DESPERATELY AGAIN TODAY 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 $100.00 AND TO QUELL ADDITIONAL DERIVATIVE LOSSES TO OUR BANKERS’ MASSIVE TOTALS). THEY SUCCEEDED ON FRIDAY WITH SILVER’S STRONG LOSS IN PRICE
THE PRICE FINISHED STILL MASSIVELY ABOVE THE MAGIC NUMBER OF $70.00 SILVER SPOT PRICE BUT BELOW THE $100.00 MARK CLOSING AT $81.09 DOWN 3.83 WE ARE NOW WITNESSING HAVING MANY HUGE T.A.S ISSUANCES // TODAY’S WAS AT A HUGE SIZED 1145 T.A.S. CONTRACTS !!. THE CROOKS ARE BECOMING MORE DESPERATE TO STOP SILVER BREAKING ABOVE THE 100.00 DOLLAR MARK!!.MAMMOTH SIZE T.A.S ISSUANCES ARE BECOMING THE NORM AT THE COMEX NOW!!
THERE IS NO NEXT LINE IN THE SAND ONCE THE 100.00 DOLLAR SILVER IS PIERCED AGAIN. WE HAD A HUGE SIZED 715 CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUANCE ACCOMPANIED BY OUR HUGE SIZED 1562 CONTRACT T.A.S ISSUANCE WHICH WILL BE USED IN TODAY’S TRADING//RAID AS THEY PLAY AN INTEGRAL PART IN OUR COMEX TRADING TRYING TO CONTAIN ANY SILVER PRICE RISE.
IN ESSENCE WE HAD A SMALL LOSS OF 99 CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES IWTH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $3.89. WE HAD HUGE GOVERNMENT (FRBY) COMEX CONTRACTS TRADING ALL WEEK AND A MAJOR PORTION WILL BE REMOVED BY DAYS END. (I RECORD THIS FOR YOU ON A DAILY BASIS). THE STICKY SPECULATOR LONGS STILL REMAIN STOIC EVEN ON OUR HUGE PRICE FALLS. THE NON STICKY SPECULATORS WERE WIPED OUT WITH OUR HUGE FEB 24TH RAID!! BUT NOT DURING THIS WEEK AS THE RAID WAS A FAILURE SO THEY TRIED AGAIN FRIDAY AND AGAIN FAILURE! .EASTERN CENTRAL BANKERS (LIKE CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA AND CHINA) AND LARGE INDUSTRIAL USERS LIKE SAMSUNG CONTINUE ON THE LONG SIDE AS THEY WILL TENDER FOR THE BADLY NEEDED PHYSICAL 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, THROUGHOUT MONTH. TOTAL TAS ISSUED ON FRIDAY NIGHT//SATURDAY MORNING: A STRONG SIZED 689 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 FRBNY BANKERS).
THE PROBLEM OF COURSE IS THAT THE CROOKS DO NOT LIQUIDATE THE TAS AS ONE UNIT, BUT SELL THE SHORT SIDE FIRST AND THEN LIQUIDATE THE LONG 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 NOW ORDERED THE BANKS TO REDUCE ITS NEW LEVEL OF 1.1 TRILLION DOLLARS IN GOLD/SILVER DERIVATIVES.
THUS:
INITIAL STANDING FOR JANUARY: 22.915 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 1.185 MILLION OZ QUEUE JUMP//NEW NORMAL STANDING ADVANCES TO 49.445 MILLION OZ// TO WHICH WE ADD OUR FIRST EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR .100 MILLION OZ//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 49.545 MILLION OZ!!
INTIAL STANDING FOR FEBRUARY/SILVER: 13.505 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S HUGE 0.005 MILLION OZ QUEUE JUMP / : NEW STANDING FOR SILVER AT THE COMEX ADVANCES TO 25.180 MILLION OZ. BUT WE MUST ADD OUR FIRST EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 25 CONTRACTS FOR .125 MILLION OZ AND THEN OUR SECOND EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF .0600 MILLION OZ TO OUR THIRD HUGE 2.825 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK!!
INITIAL STANDING FOR MARCH: A SURPRISINGLY LOW 31.076 MILLION OZ/ FOLLOWED BY A STRONG QUEUE JUMP OF 573 CONTRACTS OR 2.865 MILLION OZ/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 42.560 MILLION OZ
WE HAD:
/ HUGE COMEX OI LOSS+// HUGE SIZED 715 EFP ISSUANCE CONTRACTS (/ VI) A HUGE NUMBER OF T.A.S. CONTRACT ISSUANCE 1145 CONTRACTS
I AM NOW RECORDING THE DIFFERENTIAL IN OI FROM PRELIMINARY TO FINAL: ADDED 3 SILVER CONTRACT//
HISTORICAL ACCUMULATION OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS FEB.. ACCUMULATION
TOTAL CONTRACTS for 11 DAY(S), total 7678contracts: OR 38.390 MILLION OZ (698 CONTRACTS PER DAY)
TOTAL EFP’S FOR THE MONTH SO FAR: 38.390 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: 28.975 MILLION OZ (ISSUANCE WILL BE QUITE SMALL THIS MONTH)
JUNE: 81.065 MILLION OZ
JULY: 50.925 MILLION OZ (QUITE SMALL)
AUGUST: 59.455 MILLION OZ (QUITE SMALL)
SEPT. 50.510 MILLION OZ.(QUITE SMALL)
OCT; 82.020 MILLION OZ (WILL BE STRONG THIS MONTH)/ OCC WANTS TO REIN IN THESE ISSUANCES!
NOVEMBER: 36.425 MILLION OZ
DEC: 45.765 MILLION OZ
JANUARY 2026: 134.270 MILLION OZ (WILL BE A VERY STRONG MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL!)
FEB : 82.130 MILLION OZ
MARCH: 38.390 MILLION OZ
RESULT: WE HAD A STRONG SIZED DECREASE IN COMEX OI SILVER COMEX CONTRACTS OF 814 CONTRACTS WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE OF $3.83 IN SILVER PRICING AT THE COMEX// FRIDAY,. THE CME NOTIFIED US THAT WE HAD A HUGE SIZED CONTRACT EFP ISSUANCE 715 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR MAY, AND 0 CONTRACTS ISSUED FOR ALL OTHER MONTHS) WHICH EXITED OUT OF THE SILVER COMEX TO LONDON AS FORWARDS. INITIAL STANDING 31.176 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 2.865 MILLION OZ QUEUE JUMP //STANDING ADVANCES TO 42.560 MILLION OZ. DESPITE HUGE SILVER DELIVERIES DURING THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS, THIS PAST WEEK, WE HAVE REACHED OUR ABSOLUTE LOW POINT IN SILVER COMEX OI. (112,874). TODAY IT ADVANCED A LITTLE BIT TO 115,854. RAIDS WILL ACCOMPLISH NOTHING FOR OUR CROOKS AS LONGS WILL BE QUITE STICKY!!
LAST 11 MONTHS OF SILVER DELIVERIES
WE FINISHED APRIL WITH A STRONG SILVER OZ STANDING OF 16.050 MILLION OZ NORMAL DELIVERY , PLUS OUR 4.00 MILLION EX FOR RISK
FINAL STANDING APRIL: 19.965 MILLION OZ
AND MAY:
NEW STANDING FOR MAY FINISHES AT: 75.615 MILLION OZ. (INCLUDES 5,000 OZ EFP TRANSFER TO LONDON + 12.93 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE/PRIOR.//NEW TOTAL STANDING 88.540 MILLION OZ
AND JUNE: FINAL 16.995 MILLION OZ
AND JULY: 46.720 MILLION OZ//
AUGUST: 4.70 MILLION OZ INITIAL STANDING PLUS TODAY;S 5,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP //NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 10.960 MILLION OZ
SEPTEMBER: 68.040 MILLION OZ NORMAL DELIVERY(INCLUDES ALL QUEUE JUMPING AND EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFERS) PLUS 3.0 MILLION OZ EX FOR RISK = 71.040 MILLION OZ. (THIS IS THE FIRST AND ONLY ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR SILVER SINCE MAY.)
OCTOBER: 39.565 MILLION OZ OF NORMAL DELIVERY INCLUDES ALL QUEUE JUMPING
PLUS
2.110 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK//TOTAL OZ STANDING IN OCT ADVAN
NOVEMBER: INITIAL STANDING AT 11.575 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 195,000 OZ QUEUE JUMP WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 9.155 MILLION OZ//STANDING ADVANCES TO 19.670 MILLION OZ/
DECEMBER: INITIAL AMOUNT STANDING FOR DELIVERY: 49.33 MILLION OZ// FOLLOWED BY ANOTHER STRONG 835,000OZ QUEUE JUMP+ DEC. FIRST EXCHANGE FOR RISK 0F .850 MILLION OZ + LAST WEEK.S 495,000 OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK AND THEN A 3RD ISSUANCE IF 1.00MILLION OZ THEN FINALLY DEC 249ISSUANCE OF 1.35 MILLION OZ EXCHANGE FOR RISK//NEW TOTAL EX FOR RIS IS 3.685 MILLION OZ // STANDING ADVANCES TO 68.415 MILLION OZ//
JANUARY: INITIAL STANDING 22.915 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 1.185 MILLION OZ QUEUE JUMP//NORMAL STANDING ADVANCES TO 49.445 MILLION OZ// TO WHICH WE ADD OUR FIRST EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 0.100 MILLLION OZ//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 49.545 MILLION OZ
FEB: 13.399 MILLION OZ IS OUR INITIAL STANDING FOR SILVER! TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT QUEUE JUMP FOR 5,000 OZ AND THEN ADD OUR 3 EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR 3.010 MILLION OZ STANDING ADVANCES TO 28.190 MILLION OZ!!
MARCH: INITIAL AMOUNT OF SILVER STANDING IS 31.076 MILLION OZ FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 2.865 MILLION OZ QUEUE //NEW TOTAL STANDING ADVANCESTO 42.560MILLION OZ
THE NEW TAS ISSUANCE FRIDAY NIGHT (1145 WILL BE PUT INTO “THE BANK” TO BE COLLUSIVELY USED NO DOUBT WITH FUTURE TRADING!
WE HAD 804 NOTICE(S) FILED TODAY FOR 4.02 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. THE SILVER COMEX IS NOW ON A MASSIVE SIEGE LOOKING FOR PHYSICAL SILVER!!
GOLD//OUTLINE
IN GOLD, THE COMEX OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A STRONG SIZED 3918 OI CONTRACTS UP TO 419,030 OI AND CLOSER 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 ARE STILL CLOSE TO OUR NADIR OI IN COMEX BUT 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 MAMMOTH 4836 CRIMINAL CONTRACTS // (AND OUR ONE REGULATOR OF THE CFTC REMAINS QUIET.
WE HAD A STRONG SIZED LOSS IN COMEX OI (3918 ONTRACTS) . THIS LOSS OCCURRED WITH OUR HUGE FALL IN PRICE OF $61.90/ FRIDAY///.
LAST 10 MONTHS OF GOLD DELIVERIES: (MAY THROUGH TO /FEB)
MAY: SUMMARY FOR MAY TONNES WHICH STOOD FOR DELIVERY:
FINAL STANDING FOR MAY: 70.174 TONNES OF GOLD TO WHICH WE ADD 1. MONDAY’S (MAY 19) 6.221 TONNES EXCHANGE FOR RISK , 2. THEN WE ADD: 1.35 TONNES TO LAST WEEK”S. THEN WE ADD 3. 1.55 TONNES TO EQUAL 9.591 TONNES// NEW EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 9.591 TONNES WHICH MUST BE ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELIVERY SCHEDULE OF 80.644 TONNES. THUS STANDING FOR MAY INCREASES TO 90.235 TONNES OF GOLD
2 JUNE CONTRACT MONTH: 93.085 TONNES OF GOLD (WHICH INCLUDES ALL QUEUE JUMPING AND 0 EX FOR RISK)
3.JULY INITIIAL STANDING FIRST DAY NOTICE: 17.847 TONNES. PLUS TODAY’S 0 TONNES QUEUE JUMP + 1.555 TONNES EX FOR RISK + 2.195 TONNES EX FOR RISK TODAY = 41.106 TONNES STANDING
4. AUGUST: 60.547 TONNES OF INITIAL GOLD FIRST DAY NOTICE FOLLOWED BY THE NET MONTH’S QUEUE JUMP OF 47.2312 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD THE FOLLOWING EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE RECEIVED FOR THE MONTH: 5.4432 TONNES EX FOR RISK/AUG 7 , AUG 11: 2.413 TONNES EX FOR RISK AND AUG. 12 OF 2.637 TONNES EX FOR RISK//AUG 25: 9.107 TONNES , AUGUST 26: 9.1010 TONNES AND NOW AUGUST 27: 9.0699 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 107.5117 TONNES OF GOLD NORMAL STANDING (INCLUDES ALL MONTHLY QUEUE JUMPS/EX FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFERS//) +44.696 TONNES EX.FOR RISK = 152.208 TONNES
5.SEPT: INITIAL 8.093 TONNES OF GOLD PLUS TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 0.4883 TONNES PLUS 2.2827 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK TODAY//NEW TOTAL EX. FOR RISK/MONTH = 22.923//NEW TOTAL STANDING FOR GOLD SEPT ADVANCES TO = 48.801 TONNES!!
6.OCTOBER: 90.012 TONNES OF INITIAL GOLD STANDING WITH TODAY’S TINY 0.00311 TONNES QUEUE JUMP WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS DURING OCT OF 76.1656 TONNES
THEN WE MUST ADD OUR 14.553 TONNES OF OUR ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK/6 OCCASIONS//NEW TOTAL OF GOLD STANDING ADVANCES TO 197.5141 TONNES OF GOLD.
7.NOVEMBER BEGINS WITH 15.651 TONNES INITIALLY STANDING FOR DELIVERY FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 2.323 TONNES FOLLOWED BY ALL PREVIOUS QUEUE JUMPS IN OF OF 21.3775 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR TWO EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE OF 4.5596 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 43.9716 TONNES OF GOLD.
8. DECEMBER BEGINS WITH INITIAL STANDING OF 83.813 TONNES OF GOLD FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 0.0TONNE QUEUE JUMP WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF: 37.163 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 115.390 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR 4 EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR DECEMBER OF 6.587 TONNES/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 121.977 TONNES
9. JANUARY: INITITAL STANDING: 13.785 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR FIRST EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFER OF 0.08709 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 30.7117TONNES //NEW TOTAL QUEUE JUMPS 30.7117//NORMAL DELIVERY OF GOLD ADVANCES TO 36.8958 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 22.315 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 59.2108 TONNES.
FEB; INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY: 93.567 TONNES OF GOLD TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT 0.0248 TONNES 0.1555 TONNES QUEUE JUMP TO 41.2082 TONNES/ NEW NET QUEUE JUMP INCREASES TO 41.233 TONNES// AND THEN WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK: 10,080 CONTRACTS OR 31.251 TONNES//NEW STANDING REDUCES TO 157.878 TONNES
MARCH:: INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY: 8.099 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S STRONG 2.388 TONNES QUEUE JUMP – CME CORRECTED GOLD ADDITION OF 5.832 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 32.604 TONNES/
E.F.P. ISSUANCE/FOR OPENING MARCH. GOLD CONTRACT
THE CME RELEASED THE DATA FOR EFP ISSUANCE AND IT TOTALED A STRONG SIZED 3062 CONTRACTS:
The NEW COMEX OI FOR THE GOLD COMPLEX RESTS AT 410,030AND WE NOW WITNESSING A LOWER COMEX OI BUT WITH AN EXTREMELY HIGH PRICE OF GOLD.//NOW ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO FLEECE. THIS LEVEL ADVANCES FROM ITS DECADES LOW OI AT 404,829.
SILVER ALSO HAS AN ULTRA SMALL SIZED COMEX OI OF 115,029CONTRACTS// GAINING A BIT FROM THURSDAY’S (MARCH 5) ALL TIME LOW OF 112,878 CONTRACTS.
IN ESSENCE WE HAVE A STRONG GAIN IN TOTAL CONTRACTS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 3980 CONTRACTS WITH 918 CONTRACTS INCREASED AT THE COMEX// AND A STRONG SIZED 3062 EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL OI CONTRACT ISSUANCE WHICH NAVIGATED OVER TO LONDON.
THUS TOTAL OI LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES OF 856 CONTRACTS.. WE HAD THE FOLLOWING TAS CONTRACTS INITIATED (ISSUED): A FAIR SIZED BUT CRIMINAL 1822CONTRACTS AND THESE ISSUANCES ARE GENERALLY USED TO INITIATE A RAID WHEN CALLED UPON LIKE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY . THE CROOKS MUST BE DESPERATE! THIS ENDS THE 5 DAYS IN A ROW OF A MEGA HUGE T.A.S ISSUANCE .
GOLD PRICE ON FRIDAY FELL BY $61.40
CALCULATIONS ON GAIN/LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES
WE HAD A STRONG SIZED ISSUANCE IN EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICALS CONTRACT(3062) ACCOMPANYING THE SMALL SIZED GAIN IN COMEX OI OF 918 CONTRACTS/TOTAL GAIN FOR OUR THE TWO EXCHANGES: 3980 CONTRACTS..
WE HAVE 1) NOW RETURNED TO OUR NORMAL FORMAT OF BANKER (FRBNY) GOING ON THE SHORT SIDE AND NEWBIE SPECULATORS GOING TO THE LONG SIDE// . ,2.) STRONG FINAL STANDING FOR GOLD FOR FEBRUARY AND VERY STRONG FOR MARCH:
FEB; INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY: 93.567 TONNES OF GOLD TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT QUEUE JUMP OF 0.012 TONNES TO ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS//NEW QUEUE JUMP TOTALS INCREASES: 41.233 TONNES// /// TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR 31.251 TONNES//NEW STANDING FINISHED AT 157.878 TONNES
MARCH:: SMALL INITIAL STANDING FOR GOLD FOR MARCH AT 8.099 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 2.865TONNES QUEUE JUMP -CME ADDITION OF 5.832 TONNES//ERROR/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 32.604TONNES OF GOLD./
FINAL STANDING FOR GOLD, JANUARY CONTRACT AT 59.2108 TONNES OF GOLD
FEBRUARY: INITIAL STANDING FOR GOLD: 157.878 TONNES!! WHICH INCLUDES ALL QUEUE JUMPING, THREE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL TRANSFERS TO LONDON AND OUR SIX ISSUANCES EXCHANGE FOR RISK!!
MARCH: INITIAL STANDING AT 8.099 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 2.865 TONNES QUEUE JUMP +-CME ADDITION OF 5.832 TONNES ERROR//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 32.604TONNES/
3) SOME T.A.S. LIQUIDATION AND SOME GOVT LIQUIDATION // WITH A HUGE FALLOF EQUITY SHARES/MARCH 13 HAVING 1)A $61.40COMEX PRICE FALL AND YET WE HAD 2) NEWBIE SPEC SHORTS GOING LONG AGAIN ON A NET BASIS, + EASTERN CENTRAL BANKERS WERE PILING INTO THE LONG SIDE AS WE HAD A STRONG SIZED GAIN OF 3980CONTRACTS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES AND AS WELL A STRONG AMOUNT OF GOLD WILL STAND FOR DELIVERY IN MARCH. (32.604TONNES). //, CENTRAL BANKERS TENDERED FOR PHYSICAL WITH THEIR PURCHASES OF CONTRACTS../ ALSO, 3)STICKY GOLD’S LONGS WERE REWARDED FRIDAY EVENING AS THEY EXERCISED EFP’S FROM LONDON TO TAKE DELIVERY OF BADLY NEEDED PHYSICAL
4)A SMALLSIZED COMEX OI GAIN 5) V) STRONG SIZED ISSUANCE OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL GOLD (13062 AND A MEGA FAIR T.A.S. ISSUANCE (1822) FOR RAID PURPOSES
ACCUMULATION OF EFP’S GOLD AT J.P. MORGAN’S HOUSE OF BRIBES: (EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL) FOR THE MONTH OF JAN :
TOTAL EFP CONTRACTS ISSUED: 38,022 CONTRACTS OR 3,802,200OZ OR 118.264 TONNES IN 11TRADING DAY(S) AND THUS AVERAGING: 3456EFP CONTRACTS PER TRADING DAY
TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA AS TO THE SIZE OF THESE EFP TRANSFERS : THIS MONTH IN11TRADING DAY(S) IN TONNES: 118.264 TONNES
TOTAL ANNUAL GOLD PRODUCTION, 2025, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD EX CHINA EX RUSSIA: 3555 TONNES
THUS EFP TRANSFERS REPRESENTS 118.364TONNES DIVIDED BY 3550 x 100% TONNES = 3.335% 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:2023 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 2024: 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
2025: AND NOW 2026
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. STRONG THIS MONTH
MAY: 113.499 TONNES OF GOLD EFP ISSUANCE//QUITE SMALL THIS MONTH
JUNE: 97.79 TONNES OF GOLD EFP ISSUANCE/EXTREMELY SMALL
JULY : 150.877 TONNES// QUITE SMALL
AUGUST: 175.86 TONNES A LOT LARGER THIS MONTH.
SEPT. 116.13 TONNES VERY SMALL
OCT. 252.72 TONNES//CERTAINLY MUCH LARGER THIS MONTH/VERY STRONG
NOV: 124.74 TONNES
DEC: 190.04 TONNES//GOOD SIZED THIS MONTH FINAL.
TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUED FOR YEAR 2025: 2,026.20 TONNES (LOWER THAN LAST YR 2,569.00 TONNES
JANUARY: 209.08 TONNES ( (WILL BE A STRONG MONTH FOR EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL)
FEB. 176.35 TONNES (WHICH IS A FAIR ISSUANCE)
MARCH: 118.364 TONNES//WILL BE VERY STRONG ISSUANCE THIS MONTH
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SPREADERS:
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
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:
SILVER:
1.TODAY WE HAD THE OPEN INTEREST AT THE COMEX IN SILVER FELL BY A HUGE SIZED 814 CONTRACTS OI TO 115,029 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 112,794 CONTRACTS THIS MONTH( MARCH 4/2026)
EFP ISSUANCE 715 CONTRACTS
OUR CUSTOMARY MIGRATION OF COMEX LONGS CONTINUE TO MORPH INTO LONDON FORWARDS AS OUR BANKERS USED THEIR EMERGENCY PROCEDURE TO ISSUE:
MAY 715 CONTRACTS and 0 ALL OTHER MONTHS: ZERO. TOTAL EFP ISSUANCE: 0 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 817 CONTRACTS AND ADD TO THE 717 E.FP. ISSUED
WE OBTAIN A SMALL SIZED LOSS OF 99 OF OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FROM OUR TWO EXCHANGES DESPITE OUR HUGE LOSS OF $3.83
THUS IN OUNCES, THE LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES TOTALS 0.510 MILLION PAPER OZ
OCCURRED WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE.OF $3.83
2.ASIAN AFFAIRS MARCH 16 /2025
HANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 29.65 PTS OR 0.71%
HANG SENG CLOSED UP 287.40PTS OR 1.13%
Nikkei CLOSED DOWN 122.11 PTS OR 0.23%
//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.26%
//Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED UP 6.9000
/ OFFSHORE CLOSED UP AT 6.8942 Oil DOWN TO 96,98dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP TO 102.486Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL DEEPLY IN THE RED
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING 6.9000// OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING UP TO 6.8942//ONSHORE YUAN TRADINGBELOW OFF SHORE AND UP ON THE DOLLAR// / AND THUS STRINGERER//OFF SHORE YUAN TRADING UP AGAINST US DOLLAR/ AND THUS STRONGER
1. COMEX DATA//AMOUNTS STANDING//VOLUME OF TRADING/INVENTORY MOVEMENTS
GOLD
LET US BEGIN:
THE TOTAL COMEX GOLD OPEN INTEREST FELL BY A STRONG SIZED 3918 CONTRACTS U TO 423,866 OI , (UP FROM DECADES ALL TIME LOW OF 404,829), WITH OUR HUGE LOSS IN PRICE OF $61.40 WITH RESPECT TO FRIDAY’S // TRADING/ //COMEX CLOSING TIME:… WE LOST ZERO NET LONGS, DESPITE THAT HUGE PRICE LOSS FOR GOLD . AND AS YOU WILL SEE BELOW, OUR LOSS IN PRICE ALSO HAD A STRONG NUMBER OF EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ISSUED (3062).
WE HAD SOME T.A.S. LIQUIDATION DURING FRIDAY’S TRADING/RAID. IT SEEMS THAT THE SPECULATORS STARTED AGAIN TO GO MASSIVELY LONG THIS MONTH AFTER A BRIEF PERIOD OF GOING NET SHORT AT THE BEGINNING OF FEBRUARY.
CENTRAL BANKS ALSO TENDERED THEIR NEW LONG CONTRACTS AT THE END OF THE DAY FOR PHYSICAL GOLD. YOU CAN VISUALIZE THIS WITH THE MASSIVE AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING AT THE COMEX FOR THIS MARCH CONTRACT MONTH!!
YOU WILL NOTICE THAT THE COMEX OI IS NOW MOVING AWAY FROM ITS ALL TIME LOW POINT IN OI OF 404,829 AND FROM THIS POINT, OI WILL RISE BUT IT WILL BE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR THE CROOKS TO FLEECE OUR NEWBIE SPEC LONGS. THE ALL TIME LOW OF COMEX OI IS 390,000 CONTRACTS WHICH OCCURRED IN 2001 WITH GOLD AROUND $260. FROM CHINA WE LEARN THAT TODAY, THE GOLD LEASE RATE IS NOW AROUND 1 TO 2 %.(SILVER IS AT 7%). WITH AN OI OF 419,030 THERE IS LITTLE ROOM FOR THE CROOKS TO RAID OUR NEWBIE SPECULATORSWHO ARE VERY STICKY AT THIS POINT.
WE THUS HAD A TOTAL LOSS IN OI ON BOTH OF OUR EXCHANGES, THE COMEX AND LONDON’S EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL EQUATING TO 856 CONTRACTS (OR 2.276 TONNES) WITH THE HUGE LOSS IN PRICE, FRIDAY.
THEN WE WERE NOTIFIED OF A ZERO CONTRACT EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE IN GOLD CONTRACTS FOR 0 OZ OR 0 TONNES OF GOLD. DURING THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH. WE HAVE HAD TWO IDENTICAL MONSTER 3,000 CONTRACT ISSUED FOR THE SAME 9.33 TONNES OF GOLD, AND THESE ARE THE HIGHEST EVER IN TONNAGE EVER ISSUED BY THE COMEX. ALTOGETHER THE TOTAL ISSUANCE THUS FAR FOR FEB NOW REMAINS AT SIX.(31.251 TONNES)
A LITTLE HISTORY OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK DECEMBER THROUGH TO MARCH:
IN DECEMBER WE HAVE RECORDED 5 ISSUANCES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK/4 FOR DEC AND THE LAST ONE ON DEC 31 FOR JANUARY. WE NOW HAVE 3 CHOICES FOR THE RECIPIENT OF THIS ISSUANCE AND IT MUST BE A CENTRAL BANK. YOU WILL RECALL THAT THE BUYER ASSUMES THE RISK OF THAT DELIVERY. (THUS TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR THE MONTH OF DECEMBER IS 6.56 TONNES/4 OCCASIONS.
MONTH OF JANUARY/EXCHANGE FOR RISK
IN JANUARY THEY HAVE 6 TOTAL ISSUANCE : 3.446 TONNES EARLY, THEN JAN 9 ISSUANCE OF 9,331 TONNES AND THEN JAN 16: 0.1996 TONNES JAN 26: 1.499 TONNES, JAN 27: 3.160 AND FINALLY JAN 29: 4.659 TONNES TONNES//TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK JANUARY 22.315 TONNES WHICH WAS ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELVERIES.
AND FEBRUARY:
FEB EXCHANGE FOR RISK: NOW 6 ISSUANCES: 10,080 CONTRACTS FOR 1,008,000 OZ OR 31.251 TONNES!
HERE ARE THE CHOICES FOR THE RECIPIENT OF THOSE ISSUANCES:
1 THE CENTRAL BANK OF ENGLAND. BUT THEY RECEIVED CLEARANCE THAT THEIR GOLD IS BACK SO IT IS NOT LIKELY THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO ADD TO THEIR RESERVES.
2. THE CENTRAL BANK OF THE USA: THE FED. LOGICAL CHOICE AS THEY CLAMOUR TRYING TO REDUCE THEIR 106+ TONNES OF SHORTAGE. HOWEVER THEY SEEM NOT TO BE IN A HURRY TO COVER THEIR HUGE SHORTFALL
3. THE CENTRAL BANK OF CHINA AS THEY BATTLE WITS WITH THE USA.
TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK FOR DECEMBER IS 6.56 TONNES AND THIS WAS ADDED TO OUR NORMAL DELIVERY TOTALS..
THE JANUARY ISSUANCE OF 17.656 TONNES WAS ADDED TO OUR DAILY DELIVERY TOTALS!!
FEBRUAY ISSUANCES 6 FOR; 31.251 TONNES !! AND THIS WAS ADDED TO OUR DELIVERY TOTALS FOR THIS MONTH.
MARCH: ZERO ISSUED SO FAR!
DETAILS ON OUR NEW MARCH COMEX CONTRACT MONTH//
IN TOTAL WE HAD A SMALL SIZED LOSS ON OUR TWO EXCHANGES OF 856 CONTRACTS DESPITE OUR HUGE LOSS IN PRICE. HOWEVER, OUR FRIENDLY PHYSICAL LONDON BOYS HAD ANOTHER FIELD DAY AGAIN THROUGHOUT THIS WEEK AS THEY WERE READY FOR THE FRBNY.S CONTINUED ORCHESTRATED ATTACKS VERY EARLY IN THE COMEX SESSIONS AS THEY TRIED TO ABSORB EVERYTHING IN SIGHT FROM THEIR DAILY ATTACKS. LONDONERS EXERCISED THEIR BOUGHT CONTRACTS FOR PHYSICAL GOLD VIA THE EXCHANGE FOR PHYSICAL ROUTE AND THANKED THE FRBNY AND OUR SHORT SPECULATORS FOR THE THOUGHTFULNESS.
LONDON ANNOUNCED EARLY IN THE YEAR (AND SCARCITY CONTINUES TO THIS DAY) 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 OTHER CENTRAL BANKS, AND COMEX BANKS HAVE BEEN PAPERING THEIR LOSSES (DERIVATIVE) WITH KILOBAR ENTRIES. BOTH COMEX AND LBMA ARE WITNESSING MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF GOLD LEAVING THEIR VAULTS.
THE LIQUIDATION OF T.A.S. CONTRACTS THROUGHOUT THE MONTHS OF JUNE THROUGH MARCH/ CONTINUES 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. TODAY’S NUMBER IS A FAIR SIZED T.A.S ISSUANCE CONTRACTS .THE CME NOTIFIES US THAT THEY HAVE ISSUED 1822 T.A.S CONTRACTS ENDING OUR 5 STRAIGHT DAY OF MEGA ISSUANCES . THESE WILL BE USED FOR RAID PURPOSES TO STOP GOLD’S RISE AND TO TEMPER HUGE LOSSES IN OTC DERIVATIVE BETS AND IT WAS IN FULL FORCE DURING THIS WEEK WITH ANOTHER RAID CALLED FOR ON FRIDAY.
IT SURE LOOKS LIKE THE BIS HAS SOMEHOW LOOKED THE OTHER WAY WITH ITS GOLD SWAPS WITH THE FRBNY AS THIS ENTITY FOR THE FED REFUSES THE BIS MARCHING ORDERS TO COVER AND THAT MAY EXPLAIN THE STRONG NUMBER OF T.A.S. ISSUANCES IN DECEMBER , JANUARY AND THROUGHOUT FEBRUARY TO GO ALONG WITH OUR HUGE NUMBER OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUED DURING THESE MONTHS INCLUDING FEBRUARY’S 6 EXCHANGE FOR RISK WHICH ALSO INCLUDED TWO MONSTER 9.3312 TONNE ISSUANCE (FEB 10 AND FEB 12). TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK/FEB EQUALS 31.251 TONNES!! OTHER CENTRAL BANKS ARE PAYING ATTENTION AS THEY TAKE DELIVERY OF HUGE AMOUNTS OF PHYSICAL GOLD.
FOR MARCH NO EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE SO FAR.. BUT DELIVERIES OF GOLD THESE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS HAVE BEEN HUGE:
FOR EXAMPLE:
HERE IS A SUMMARY OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY ON OUR LAST 11 MONTHS:
FOR APRIL AT 209 TONNES
2. AND THIS CONTINUED INTO MAY WITH FINAL STANDING AT 90.23 TONNES.
3. JUNE WHICH IS A HUGE DELIVERY MONTH , FINAL STANDING WAS RECORDED AT A STRONG 93.085 TONNES. //(TOTAL NET QUEUE JUMPING FOR THE JUNE MONTH: 31.027 TONNES.)
4. IN JULY WE HAD HUGE DELIVERY NOTICES ESPECIALLY FOR A NON ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH WITH INITIAL STANDING AT 17.947 TONNES PLUS MANY QUEUE JUMPS + 3.75 TONNES EX FOR RISK = 41.106 TONNES OF GOLD // FINAL TOTAL TONNES STANDING JULY: 41.106 TONNES
5. FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST:
INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR AUGUST: 60.547 TONNES PLUS THE MONTHS HUGE QUEUE JUMPS OF 47.2312 TONNES +44.696 TONNES EX FOR RISK (7 ISSUANCES) //NEW STANDING 152.208 TONNES WHICH IS MONSTROUS!!!
6. FINAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR SEPT; INITIAL STANDING; 2,602 CONTRACTS OR 260,200 OZ FOR 8.093 TONNES OF GOLD FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 0.4883 TONNES QUEUE JUMP TO GO ALONG WITH TODAY’S 1.244 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE TODAY AND // TOTAL EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE SEPT: 22.923 TONNES//NEW TOTALS STANDING ADVANCES TO 48.801 TONNES OF GOLD!!!
7. OCTOBER:
OCTOBER: INITIAL STANDING FOR GOLD: 90.164 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR LATEST OCT 30 QUEUE JUMP OF 0.00311 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS OCT 29 QUEUE JUMP OF .4096 WHICH FOLLOWS; OCT 28 QUEUE JUMP OF .5069 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS OCT 27 OF 0.3048 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS: OCT 24 OF 0.8615 TONNES, FOLLOWING OCT 23 QUEUE JUMP OF 1.695 TONNES OCT 22 JUMP OF 8.622 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS OCT 21: 3.8600 TONNES TO OCT 20 QUEUE JUMP OF 7.695 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWED OCT 17 RECORD SETTING: 12.031 TONNE QUEUE JUMP WHICH FOLLOWED THURSDAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 8.326 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWED WEDNESDAY;S 6.469 WHICH FOLLOWED ALL PREVIOUS QUEUE JUMPS OF 42.549 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR TOTAL 4679 EXCHANGE FOR RISK CONTRACTS ON 6 OCCASIONS FOR 467,900 OZ OR 14.553 TONNES.! TOTAL STANDING ADVANCES TO 197.511 TONNES OF GOLD
SUMMARY FOR OCTOBER STANDING:
NOVEMBER WHERE INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING IS REGISTERED AT 15.651 TONNES OF GOLD FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 2 TONNES AND FOLLOWED BY ALL OTHER NOV QUEUE JUMPS OF 21.3775 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR TWO EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE FOR 4.5596 TONNES.
DECEMBER: INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY IN THIS ACTIVE MONTH IS 83.813 TONNES FOLLOWED BY TODAY’S 0.XXXX TONNES QUEUE JUMP. THIS FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPING: 37.163 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 115.390 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR FOUR EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE OF 6.559 TONNES//NEW STANDING THUS INCREASES TO 121.977 TONNES
JANUARY: INITITAL STANDING: 13.785 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR QUEUE JUMP OF 0.000 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 30.7117TONNES //NEW TOTAL QUEUE JUMPS 30.7117//NORMAL DELIVERY OF GOLD ADVANCES TO 36.8958 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 22.315 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 59.2108 TONNES.
FEBRUARY: . FEBRUARY: INITIAL STANDING: 93.566 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT QUEUE JUMP OF 0.0248 TONNES WHICH MUST BE ADDED ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 41.2087 TONNES QUEUE JUMP//TOTAL QUEUE JUMP FOR FEB::ADVANCES TO 41.233 TONNES///STANDING ADVANCES TO 126.628 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 31.251 TONNES/NEW STANDING RISES TO 157.879 TONNES
MARCH: INITIAL STANDING FOR GOLD: 8.099 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT STRONG QUEUE JUMP OF 2.382 TONNES MINUS CME ADDITION OF 5.832 TONNES//NEW STANDING FOR GOLD ADVANCES TO: 32.604TONNES
HERE ARE THE AMOUNTS THAT STOOD FOR DELIVERY IN THE PRECEDING 48 MONTHS 2021-2
DEC 2021: 112.217 TONNES
NOV. 8.074 TONNES
OCT. 57.707 TONNES
SEPT: 11.9160 TONNES
AUGUST: 80.489 TONNES
JULY 7.2814 TONNES
JUNE: 72.289 TONNES
MAY 5.77 TONNES
APRIL 95.331 TONNES
MARCH 30.205 TONNES
FEB ’21. 113.424 TONNES
JAN ’21: 6.500 TONNES.
TOTAL YEAR 2021 (JAN- DEC): 601.213 TONNES
YEAR 2022: STANDING FOR GOLD/COMEX
JANUARY 2022 17.79 TONNES
FEB 2022: 59.023 TONNES
MARCH: 36.678 TONNES
APRIL: 85.340 TONNES FINAL.
MAY: 20.11 TONNES FINAL
JUNE: 74.933 TONNES FINAL
JULY 29.987 TONNES FINAL
AUGUST:104.979 TONNES//FINAL
SEPT. 38.1158 TONNES
OCT: 77.390 TONNES/ FINAL
NOV 27.110 TONNES/FINAL
Dec. 64.000 tonnes
(TOTAL YEAR 656.076 TONNES)
2023:STANDING FOR GOLD/COMEX
JAN/2023: 20.559 tonnes
FEB 2023: 47.744 tonnes
MAR: 19.0637 TONNES
APRIL: 75.676 tonnes
MAY: 19.094 TONNES + 1.244 tonnes of exchange for risk = 20.338
JUNE: 64.354 TONNES
JULY: 10.2861 TONNES
AUGUST: 38.855 TONNES(INCLUDING .6842 EXCHANGE FOR RISK)
SEPT: 15.281 TONNES FINAL
OCT. 35.869 TONNES + 1.665 EXCHANGE FOR RISK =37.0355 tonnes
DEC. 47.073 + 4.634 TONNES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK = 51.707 TONNES
TOTAL 2023 YEAR : 436.546 TONNES
2024/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
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COMEX GOLD TRADING BEGINNING MARCH,. CONTRACT;
THE SPECS/HFT WERE SUCCESSFUL IN LOWERING GOLD’S PRICE( IT FELL BY A HUGE $61.90 )
WE HAD SOME T.A.S. SPREADER LIQUIDATION FRIDAY // COMEX SESSION// WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE BUT OUR SPECULATORS REMAIN RELENTLESS POURING INTO THE COMEX STARTING TO BUILD ON ITS OI // BUT WITH OTHER EASTERN CENTRAL BANKS TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL EVERY NIGHT WHICH ALSO EXPLAINS THE HUGE NUMBER OF TONNES OF GOLD THAT STOOD FOR GOLD FOR FEBRUARY’S ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH (157 TONNES) AND ALSO MARCH’S STANDING OF 32+ TONNES.
FRIDAY NIGHT//SATURDAY MORNING
THE CROOKS COULD NOT STOP OTHER CENTRAL BANK LONGS, SEIZING THE MOMENT, THEY EXERCISED AGAIN FOR PHYSICAL IN A BIG WAY TENDERING FOR PHYSICAL FRIDAY EVENING/SATURDAY MORNING AND THUS OUR HUGE NUMBER OF GOLD CONTRACTS STANDING FOR DELIVERY AT THE COMEX. CENTRAL BANKERS WAIT PATIENTLY FOR THE GOLD
A LITTLE REVIEW OF GOLD STANDING THESE PAST 7 MONTHS:
STANDING FOR GOLD OCT THROUGH TO MARCH:
ANALYSIS// OCT DELIVERY MONTH GOING FROM FIRST DAY NOTICE// OCT COMEX CONTRACT TO FINALIZATION OCT 31:
OCT AT 90.164 TONNES TO BE FOLLOWED BY ALL PREVIOUS QUEUE JUMPS OF 75.696 TONNES WHICH WE ADD OUR 14.553 TONNES EX FOR RISK/6 OCCASIONS:
/ TOTAL STANDING 197.551 TONNE/OCTOBER FINAL//ABSOLUTELY A MONSTER DELIVERY FOR A NORMALLY QUIET OCT MONTH
2. AND NOW NOVEMBER:
NOVEMBER BEGINS WITH A HUGE 15.651 TONNES INITIALLY STANDING FOR DELIVERY FOLLOWED BY OUR TODAY’S QUEUE JUMP OF 2.323 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWED ALL OTHER NOVEMBER QUEUE JUMPS OF 21.3775 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR TWO ISSUANCES OF EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 4.5596 TONNES..
NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 43.9716 ONNES OF GOLD.
3. AND NOW DECEMBER:
3. DECEMBER: INITIAL AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR DELIVERY: 83.813 TONNES FOLLOWED BY A 0 CONTRACT QUEUE JUMP FOR NIL OZ OR 0.000 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS OTHER DEC QUEUE JUMPS OF: 0 TONNES///STANDING ADVANCES TO 115.390 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR FOUR EXCHANGE FOR RISK ISSUANCE OF 6.559TONNES/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 121.977TONNES
4. JANUARY:
9. JANUARY: INITITAL STANDING: 13.785 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR QUEUE JUMP OF 0.000 TONNES WHICH FOLLOWS ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 30.7117TONNES //NEW TOTAL QUEUE JUMPS 30.7117//NORMAL DELIVERY OF GOLD ADVANCES TO 36.8958 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 22.315 TONNES//NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 59.2108 TONNES.
10. FEBRUARY: INITIAL STANDING: 93.566 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR LATEST QUEUE JUMP OF 0.0298 TONNES TO WHICH THIS IS ADDED TO ALL OTHER QUEUE JUMPS OF 41.2082 / NEW QUEUE JUMP ADVANCES TO: 41.233 TONNES//STANDING ADVANCES TO: 126.628 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR SIX EXCHANGE FOR RISK OF 10,080 CONTRACTS FOR 1,008,000 OZ OR 31.251 TONNES/NEW STANDING ADVANCES TO 157.879 TONNES
MARCH: INITIAL STANDING: 8.099 TONNES TO WHICH WE ADD OUR NEXT STRONG QUEUE JUMP 2.388 MINUS CME ERROR OF 5.832 TONNES// GOLD STANDING ADVANCES TO: 32.604 TONNES/
ALL OF THIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH OUR LOSS IN PRICE TO THE TUNE OF $44.25
WE HAD A HUGE 4836 CONTRACTS REMOVED TO THE COMEX TRADES TO OPEN INTEREST (CROOKS)//PRELIMINARY TO FINAL. AND THIS IS TOTALLY INSANE
NET LOSS ON THE TWO EXCHANGES : 856 CONTRACTS OR 85,600 OZ OR 2.276TONNES
i) Out of Brinks; 58,257.612 oz (1812 kilobars) ii) Out of JPMORGAN enhanced: 96,906.750 oz or 242 Good London delivery bars!!
total tonnes removed: 155,164.362 oz 4.82 tonnes
Deposit to the Dealer Inventory in oz
0 ENTRY
Deposits to the Customer Inventory, in oz
DEPOSITS/CUSTOMER
0 ENTRY
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No of oz served (contracts) today
2056 CONTRACTS
OR 205,600 OZ
6.395TONNES OF GOLD
No of oz to be served (notices)
810contracts 81000 OZ 2.519 TONNES
Total monthly oz gold served (contracts) so far this month
9698 notices 969800 oz 30.1648 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
DEPOSITS/CUSTOMER
0 ENTRY
0 entry
customer withdrawals:
2 ENTRIES
i) Out of Brinks; 58,257.612 oz (1812 kilobars) ii) Out of JPMORGAN enhanced: 96,906.750 oz or 242 Good London delivery bars!!
this is London bars removed from London but debited to Comex JPMorgan.
total tonnes removed: 155,164.362 oz 4.82 tonnes
comex is draining of gold/.
they are draining the comex of gold
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ADJUSTMENTs
ADJUSTMENTS 3
adjustments: / / 3// Dealer to customer:
a) Brinks: 1253.889 oz
b) 100 oz HSBC
c) JPMorgan 21,733.134 oz
net gold leaving registered comex: 22,887.025 oz or 0.7118 tonnes
COMEX IS DRAINING GOLD
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chaos inside the comex
AMOUNT OF GOLD STANDING FOR MARCH//CME CORRECTED/HUGE INCREASE IN GOLD STANDING!!
THE FRONT MONTH OF MARCH STANDS AT 2865 CONTRACTS FOR A GAIN OF 318 CONTRACTS. WE HAD
450 CONTRACTS SERVED ON FRIDAY, SO WE GAINED A HUGE 768 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 76,800 OZ WILL STAND FOR DELIVERY AT THE COMEX. THE TONNAGE EQUATES TO 2.388TONNES . THIS IS A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF GOLD WILLING TO STAND AS CENTRAL BANKERS CLAMOUR FOR OUR ANCIENT METAL OF KINGS ON THIS SIDE OF THE PLANET
APRIL IS THE NEXT LARGEST DELIVERY MONTH AND IT LOST 608 CONTRACTS DOWN TO 201,339 CONTRACTS. APRIL IS NOW THE NEW FRONT MONTH FOR DELIVERY OF GOLD. APRIL IS GENERALLY A VERY STRONG DELIVERY MONTH
MAY LOST 49 CONTRACTS TO AN OI OF 847
JUNE IS A HUGE DELIVERY MONTH AND HERE THE OI ROSE BY A STRONG 5780CONTRACTS UP TO AN OI OF 146,268
We had 2056 contracts filed for today representing 205600 oz
Today, 0 notice(s) were issued from J.P.Morgan dealer and 0 notices issued from their client or customer account. The total of all issuance by all participants equate to 2056 contract(s) of which 0 notices were stopped (received) by j.P. Morgan dealer and 516 notice(s) was (were) stopped (received) by J.P.Morgan//customer account
To calculate the INITIAL total number of gold ounces standing for MAR. /2026. contract month, we take the total number of notices filed so far for the month (9698) to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MAR (XXX CONTRACTS) minus the number of notices served upon today 2056 x 100 oz per contract) equals 1,050,800 OZ OR (32.604 Tonnes of gold)
thus the INITIAL standings for gold for the MAR contract month: No of notices filed so far (9698 x 100 oz +we add the difference for front month of MAR (XXXX OI} minus the number of notices served upon today (2056)x 100 oz) which equals 1,050,800 OZ OR 32.604TONNES//
THEY REMOVED THAT EXTRA ADDITION OF GOLD STANDING
new total of gold standing in MAR is 32.604TONNES//
TOTAL COMEX GOLD STANDING FOR MARCH 32.604TONNES TONNES WHICH IS NOW MEGA HUGE FOR THIS NORMALLY VERY NON ACTIVE ACTIVE DELIVERY MONTH OF MARCH.
confirmed volume FRIDAY confirmed 195,280 poor
COMEX GOLD INVENTORIES/CLASSIFICATION
NEW PLEDGED GOLD:
241,794.285 oz NOW PLEDGED /HSBC 5.94 TONNES
204,937.290 OZ PLEDGED MANFRA 3.08 TONNES
83,657.582 PLEDGED JPMorgan no 1 1.690 tonnes
265,999.054, oz JPM No 2
1,152,376.639 oz pledged Brinks/
Manfra: 33,758.550 oz
Delaware: 193.721 oz
International Delaware:: 11,188.542 oz
total pledged gold: 1,746,898.591 oz 54.34 tonnes pledged gold lowers
total inventories in gold declining rapidly
total pledged gold: 1,746,898.591 tonnes oz 54.34 tonnes
TOTAL OF ALL GOLD ELIGIBLE AND REGISTERED GOLD 32,396,397.809 oz
TOTAL REGISTERED GOLD 16,672,633.196 or 518.588 Tonnes
TOTAL OF ALL ELIGIBLE GOLD 15,723,764.613 oz//eligible gold leaving hand over fist
REGISTERED GOLD THAT CAN BE SERVED UPON 14,925,735 oz ((REG GOLD- PLEDGED GOLD)=
464.25 Tonnes // (declining rapidly)
total inventories in gold declining rapidly
SILVER COMEX
MARCH DELIVERY MONTH
MARCH 16 2026
INITIAL/
Silver
Ounces
Withdrawals from Dealers Inventory
NIL oz
Withdrawals from Customer Inventory
6 entries
i) Out of Asahi: 853,646.630 oz ii) Out of Brinks 30,360.240 oz iii) Out of cnt: 216,028.372 oz iv) Out of Int. Delaware 95,274.680 oz v) Out of JPMorgan: 644,860.802 oz vi) Out of Loomis: 302,805.802 oz
total withdrawal: 2,146,976.632 oz
the comex is being drained of silver
Deposits to the Dealer Inventory
0 ENTRY
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Deposits to the Customer Inventory
DEPOSIT ENTRIES/CUSTOMER ACCOUNT
ENTRIES: 1 i) into Customer account: Delaware 6030.300 oz
total deposit: 6030.300 oz
No of oz served today (contracts)
804 CONTRACT(S) ( 4.020 MILLION OZ
No of oz to be served (notices)
404 Contracts (2.02 MILLION oz)
Total monthly oz silver served (contracts)
8108 contracts 40.540 MILLION oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Dealers inventory this month
NIL oz
Total accumulative withdrawal of silver from the Customer inventory this month
DEPOSITS INTO DEALER ACCOUNTS
nil
DEPOSIT ENTRIES/CUSTOMER ACCOUNT
ENTRIES: 1
i) into Customer account: Delaware
6030.300 oz
total deposit: 6030.300 oz
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withdrawals: customer side/eligible
6 entries
i) Out of Asahi: 853,646.630 oz ii) Out of Brinks 30,360.240 oz iii) Out of cnt: 216,028.372 oz iv) Out of Int. Delaware 95,274.680 oz v) Out of JPMorgan: 644,860.802 oz vi) Out of Loomis: 302,805.802 oz
total withdrawal: 2,146,976.632 oz
the comex is being drained of silver
the comex is being drained of silver
adjustments: / / 2//dealer to customer acct:
a) Asahi 4,948.600 oz
b) Loomis: 4945.700 oz
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TOTAL REGISTERED SILVER: 78.952 MILLION OZ//.TOTAL REG + ELIGIBLE. 339.582 Million oz
registered silver dropping in numbers
CALCULATIONS FOR THE NEW STANDING FOR SILVER FOR MARCH
silver open interest data:
FRONT MONTH OF MARCH /2026 OI: 1208 OPEN INTEREST CONTRACTS FOR A GAIN OF 333 CONTRACTS.
WE HAD 240 NOTICES FILED ON FRIDAY SO WE GAINED 573 CONTRACTS OR AN ADDITIONAL 2.865 MILLION OZ OF SILVER WILL TRY FOR DELIVERY OVER HERE AS A BANKER ASSISTED QUEUE JUMP.
APRIL, THE NEW FRONT MONTH SAW A GAIN OF 7 CONTRACTS UP TO 1979 CONTRACTS
MAY SAW A 1370 CONTRACT LOSS DOWN TO 76,234 CONTRACTS.
JUNE SAY A GAIN OF 20 CONTRACTS UP TO 365 OI CONTRACTS.
TOTAL NUMBER OF NOTICES FILED FOR TODAY: 804 or 4.020 MILLION oz
CONFIRMED volume; ON FRIDAY 57,553 poor+++//
AND NOW MARCH. DELIVERIES:
To calculate the number of silver ounces that will stand for delivery in MARCH. we take the total number of notices filed for the month so far at 8108 X5,000 oz = 40.540 MILLION oz
to which we add the difference between the open interest for the front month of MARCH (1208) AND the number of notices served upon today (804)x (5000 oz)
Thus the standings for silver for the MARCH 2026 contract month: (804)Notices served so far) x 5000 oz + OI for the front month of MARCH(1208) minus number of notices served upon today (804 )x 5000 oz equals silver standing for the FEB..contract month equating to 42.560 MILLION OZ.
NEW STANDING: 42.560 MILLION OZ WHICH IS STILL LOWISH FOR A GENERALLY HUGE DELIVERY MONTH OF MARCH.
New total standing: 42.560 million oz.
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 ONLY 78.952 million oz of registered silver
JPMorgan as a percentage of total silver: 151,582/338,482.million: 44.47%
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.
BOTH GLD AND SLV ARE MASSIVE FRAUD
MAR 16/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $60.45 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 4/327 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1071/.565 TONNES
MAR 13/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $61.40 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A HUGE WITHDRAWAL OF 1.428 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1075.852 TONNES
MAR 12/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $49.25 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 3.715 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1077.28 TONNES
MAR 11/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $70.55 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 2.858 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1073.565 TONNES
MAR 10/2026/WITH GOLD UP $137.75 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:ANOTHER MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 2.614 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1070.707 TONNES
MAR 9/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $53.80 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:ANOTHER MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 2.573 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1073.321 TONNES
MAR 6/2026/WITH GOLD UP $77.25 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:ANOTHER MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 5.144 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1075.894 TONNES
MAR 5/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $49.00 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 18.032 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1081.038 TONNES
MAR 4/2026/WITH GOLD UP $9.55 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.545 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1099.07 TONNES
MAR 3/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $188.75 TODAY/SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A SMALL DEPOSIT OF 0.35 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1101.36 TONNES
MAR 2/2026/WITH GOLD UP $71.00 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A HUGE DEPOSIT OF 3.23 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1101,13 TONNES
FEB 27/2026/WITH GOLD UP $52.50 TODAY/SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A SMALL DEPOSIT OF 0.28 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1097.90 TONNES
FEB 26/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $30.25 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A MASSIVE DEPOSIT OF 11.45 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1097.62 TONNES
FEB 25/2026/WITH GOLD UP $48.40 TODAY/SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A SMALL WITHDRAWAL OF 0.300 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1086.17 TONNES
FEB 24/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $47.40 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A MASSIVE PAPER DEPOSIT OF 7.72 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD// /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1086.47 TONNES
FEB 23/2026/WITH GOLD UP $148.25 TODAY/NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1078.75 TONNES
FEB 20/2026/WITH GOLD UP $79.75 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A DEPOSIT OF 3.14 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1078.75 TONNES
FEB 19/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $9.00 TODAY/NO CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD: /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1075.61 TONNES
FEB 18/2026/WITH GOLD UP $102.60 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.43 TONNES OF GOLD OUT OF THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1075.61 TONNES
FEB 17/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $136.55 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A DEPOSIT OF 0.86 TONNES OF GOLD INTO THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1077..04 TONNES
FEB 13/2026/WITH GOLD UP $94.30 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 5.140 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1076.18 TONNES
FEB 12/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $143.65 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A DEPOSIT OF 2.000 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1081.32 TONNES
FEB 11/2026/WITH GOLD UP $63.65 TODAY/SMALL CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.34 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1079.32 TONNES
FEB 10/2026/WITH GOLD DOWN $46.80 TODAY/HUGE CHANGES IN GOLD AT THE GLD:A DEPOSIT OF 3.43 TONNES OF GOLD FROM THE GLD/ /// ///INVENTORY RESTS AT 1079.66 TONNES
MAR 16 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.57: HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 2.536 MILLION OZ FROM THE SLV/.. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 497.056 MILLION OZ.
MAR 13 WITH SILVER DOWN $3.83: NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// . ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 499.592
MAR 12 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.51 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// ANOTHER MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 3.713 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 499.592 MILLION OZ
MAR 11 WITH SILVER DOWN $3.96 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// ANOTHER MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 1.812 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 503.305 MILLION OZ
MAR 10 WITH SILVER UP $5. HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 1.63 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 505.117 MILLION OZ
MAR 9 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.30 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 1.54 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 506.747 MILLION OZ
MAR 6 WITH SILVER UP $2.02 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MONSTER WITHDRAWAL OF 5.526 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 508,287 MILLION OZ
MAR 5 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.98 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.097 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 512.726 MILLION OZ
MAR 4 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.21 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A DEPOSIT OF 2.545 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 513.813 MILLION OZ
MAR 3 WITH SILVER DOWN $5.27 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 2/899 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 511.268 MILLION OZ
MAR 2 WITH SILVER DOWN $3.87 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 3.352 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 514.167 MILLION OZ
FEB 27 WITH SILVER UP $5.54 SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A DEPOSIT OF 0.544 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 517.519 MILLION OZ
FEB 26 WITH SILVER DOWN $4.05 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 0.906 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 516.975 MILLION OZ
FEB 25 WITH SILVER UP $3.43 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A FRAUDULENT PAPER DEPOSIT OF 8.923 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 517.881 MILLION OZ
FEB 24 WITH SILVER UP $0.55 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A FRAUDULENT PAPER DEPOSIT OF 10.056 MILLION OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 508.958 MILLION OZ
FEB 23 WITH SILVER UP $4.89 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A FRAUDULENT WITHDRAWAL OF 0.951 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 498.902 MILLION OZ
FEB 20 WITH SILVER UP $4.85 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MASSIVE AND FRAUDULENT WITHDRAWAL OF 3.035 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 499.853 MILLION OZ
FEB 19 WITH SILVER DOWN $0.23 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MASSIVE AND FRAUDULENT WITHDRAWAL OF 5.798 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 502.888 MILLION OZ
FEB 18 WITH SILVER UP $4.02 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A MASSIVE AND FRAUDULENT WITHDRAWAL OF 11.325 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 508.686 MILLION OZ
FEB 17 WITH SILVER DOWN $4.39 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 4.253 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 515.753 MILLION OZ
FEB 13 WITH SILVER UP $2.35 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A WITHDRAWAL OF 1.994 MILLION OZ OUT OF THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 520.011 MILLION OZ
FEB 12 WITH SILVER DOWN $8.78 SMALL CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A DEPOSIT OF 635,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 522.005 MILLION OZ
FEB 11 WITH SILVER UP $3.89 HUGE CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV// A DEPOSIT OF 815,000 OZ INTO THE SLV. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 521.370 MILLION OZ
FEB 10 WITH SILVER DOWN $2.21 NO CHANGES IN SILVER INVENTORY AT THE SLV//. ./ :INVENTORY RESTS AT 520.555 MILLION OZ
Like many Americans, I grew up playing a fair amount of baseball. Part of this involved trying to hit a little round ball with the equivalent of a modified, wooden stick.
Like asset prices and market forces, this little white ball, thrown by a pitcher 60 feet away, could sink, curve or speed by you in bewildering and often embarrassing ways.
Sometimes, however, we hitters of that ball would be blessed with what is called a “fat pitch”—that is, a ball thrown so comfortably straight, clear and trackable that it was effectively impossible to miss.
Below, I’ll show why the set-up we are currently seeing in the global silver market is precisely that: A fat pitch.
Prior Silver Curve Balls
Of course, silver markets, like baseball players, have also seen a lot of curve balls and crazy swings.
We saw recent versions of this in December of 2025, when the COMEX price-fixers, with a little help from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, or CME, raised margin prices to force a mass-selloff (i.e. price-fall) of the metal.
When that pitch failed, the COMEX threw another, far more effective margin hike (or “curve ball”) in late January of 2026 to openly engineer the single-worst silver price crash in 44 years.
The reasons for these tricky pitches at the COMEX were obvious. The big players (i.e., banks) going net-short silver were literally dying under the weight of silver’s rising price moves.
Not so coincidently, the CME/COMEX then initiated another, more effective, margin hike and thereby bailed the insider banks out of the mother of all short-squeezes.
There was no price discovery, but blatant price manipulation, as fixed/rigged as the 1919 World Series. (Ironically, both the CME and the cheating, 1919 White Sox hailed from Chicago…)
But as I argued in January, such a rigged game was nothing new. The COMEX has been playing it for decades, from defeating the Hunt Brothers’ silver bid in the 1980’s (with a sell-only trick) to crushing the “Reddit mob’s” attempt to bring honest demand (and pricing) to silver in 2021.
In short, the COMEX, and the banks who effectively self-regulate it, threw a lot of curve balls which were difficult to beat.
But as we enter the 2026 macro playing field, it is the COMEX itself which is about to strike out, and this bodes extremely well for silver.
Here’s why.
Silver: About to Hit a Homerun
The set-up for silver is now nothing short of extraordinary. In fact, it is unprecedented.
At 30,000 feet, the big picture remains the same. That is, as currencies are debased to monetize unsustainable sovereign debt levels, monetary metals like silver outshine dying paper currencies.
It’s really that simple.
But the more nuanced, and often misunderstood, tailwinds for silver are a bit more complicated, though entirely clear once you know where to look.
And the first place to look is at the COMEX itself, where silver (like gold) has been manipulated downwards for decades. We’ve covered the motives, means and symptoms of this COMEX price fix in greater detail elsewhere.
What is worth noting here, however, is critical. That is, once the physical silver leaves the COMEX, the artificial price-fixing charade ends, and silver naturally rips higher.
Paper Claims vs. Physical Demand
Traditionally, for example, paper claims on silver (and gold) never resulted in actual delivery out of the COMEX. Instead, the contracts were simply rolled over or cash-settled.
But those days are ending.
As of this writing, there are more paper claims (“open interest) on the COMEX silver exchange than there are actual ounces of “registered” silver to meet delivery. In fact, there’s only about 80 million ounces on hand to meet over 570 million ounces of delivery demand.
That’s a levered mismatch of 7:1 at the COMEX.
If we then consider the larger silver market itself, including ETF silver, derivative claims, futures contracts, etc., many analysts in the commodity space are quoting the number of paper silver claims to actual silver ounces at a ratio of 350:1.
Read that last line again.
No Chairs Left
If one were to think of the paper silver market as a game of musical chairs in which the “music” represents the actual amount of physical silver available and the “chairs” represents the number of paper claims on it, the supply & demand ratios above make it mathematically clear that once the music stops, there’ll be very chairs left standing with silver.
Or stated more simply, percolating physical silver demand is about to hit a supply shock, which means silver is poised to skyrocket.
And if you look at the COMEX silver flows, you’ll quickly discover that the music is slowing down.
January applications for silver deliveries at the COMEX, for example, came in at 40M ounces, which was 40X the normal delivery rate.
A more recent delivery took 20% off the COMEX inventory in a week. (I have no proof, but I’m guessing the buyer here was JP Morgan…)
Looming Delivery Failure
At this exit pace, it’s at least plausible that the COMEX could see a bald failure of physical delivery within 90 days.
But this, of course, would only happen if one assumed the COMEX wouldn’t declare some kind of emergency in the interim, which we can be almost sure they will…
Nevertheless, the screws are now undeniably tightening on this New York exchange in ways we’ve never seen before.
This classic mismatch of supply and demand in the silver space is unprecedented, and whether the price-fixers in New York like it or not, supply and demand forces still matter, and they can be powerful forces…
Supply Deficits Colliding with Rising Demand
For example, and as most silver investors know, this metal has seen five consecutive years of supply deficits at 200M ounces/year, now aggregating to a deficit of nearly 1 billion ounces. China’s recent export restrictions for silver, moreover, aren’t helping supply flows.
Meanwhile, in the silver future’s market, we are seeing backwardation, a fancy way of saying that current prices are higher than future prices, which is a screaming signal of high demand colliding with low supply.
These factors help explain why the current lease rate for silver is at 8% levels, whereas for the bulk of my entire investing career, the lease rate had never surpassed 1%– until now.
Combine such evidence of a supply shock with silver’s rising industrial demand (60% of silver’s demand is industrial) in everything from solar panels to the missiles now cris-crossing Middle Eastern skies, and we see all the makings of a historical price hike in the metal.
After all, the silver supply can’t be magically increased with just the touch of a button. 70% of silver production comes as a byproduct of other mining.
This means there’s no silver supply miracle on the horizon.
And Then There’s War…
What IS filling our horizon, however, is the fog of war and hence the fog of oil. Supply shocks matter to oil just as much as they do to any asset, including silver.
As crude oil rises thanks to tightening flows in the Strait of Hormuz, so does inflation, and for every $10.00 rise in oil, we see a 0.1% rise in even our otherwise openly bogus inflation scale.
And as inflation rises, as it will, the monetary profile of silver just gets another tailwind as an anti-fiat metal.
Back to Baseball
Which brings me back to my original point and metaphor.
When one combines silver’s monetary profile with its rising industrial demand in a backdrop of historical supply deficits, COMEX delivery failures, rising lease prices, futures market backwardation, and all that is inherently backward as to war and rising oil, we arrive at what comes to nothing more than an unprecedented “fat pitch” for silver.
Trump believed Iran would be a walkover, as does the mainstream media. But geopolitical experts beg to differ, and by her actions to protect herself from the fall out, so does China.
The chart above shows that priced in gold, oil is only at 26% of its long-term value, suggesting that in real terms it should rise by 300% to return to pre-Bretton Woods prices in real terms, last seen as recently as 2014. Dollar debasement will only add to this.
It is against this background that we must consider the consequences of the effective closure of the Straits of Hormuz. At the current gold/dollar exchange rate, that would be an oil price of about $400.
This is not so much a forecast, more an indication of what has been unleashed by the Trump administration attacking Iran. It will probably go down in history as the most stupid decision ever taken by a US president, and that’s saying something. Iran is about the size of Western Europe and populated by 93 million angry people — angry not with their own theocrats but with America, which they brand as Satan. And they have an army of a million soldiers.
Including a decentralised command structure, Iran has the ultimate porcupine defence strategy which cannot be defeated and held by an invading force. The lessons of Vietnam and Afghanistan seem to have taught the Americans nothing.
Kick a hornet’s nest and everyone gets stung. But these Iranian hornets are smart — very smart. Geopolitical experts who have studied Iran, many having had their own boots on the ground, are unanimous in the thrust of their analysis. They tell us that so far Iran has deployed old missiles to take out US, Israeli, and neighbouring Arabs interceptors which are now depleted. There are almost none left to deal with the next Iranian attacks. More modern Iranian hypersonic missiles, which, according to Alastair Crooke, travel at between Mach 7 and 8, are unstoppable by any defence shield — not that they now exist.
Crooke makes the point that the US expected and planned for a short war, initially no more than a weekend. But Iran has been planning for the likelihood of a US attack for the last 23 years and accumulated increasingly advanced weaponry ever since. And because it is well hidden below ground and spread around the country, attacks by America and Israel have left Iran’s military power intact. US and Israeli attacks have focused on civilians in the cities, causing little damage to the military infrastructure.
Trump reckoned that he could take control of Hormuz. Now he must be having some doubts, because he has requested NATO allies to help. But for those stupid enough to do so, it will be another Gallipoli. While this is not going to be a short war, Iran planned to ensure it is long, years if necessary, to drive Satanic Americans away from the region forever.
Iran’s planning and preparation are reflected in pressure being applied on those of its neighbours that host US bases. Russia’s foreign secretary Lavrov pithily described the position of these sheikdoms: that they cannot ride two camels at once. As Iran’s more modern missiles intensify accurate attacks on them, all those US bases will cease to function and some of the sheikdoms will as well.
To ram the point home, we can expect the Houthis in Yemen to block the Red Sea at the Bab-el Mandeb narrows, closing off tanker access from the Indian Ocean to Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu pipeline terminal. And the next phase of Iran’s missile attacks will probably take out Israel’s military facilities with precision.
China knew this was coming
To geopolitical experts it is clear that Iran will win this undeclared war, changing the region forever. The US will almost certainly be forced to reduce and even remove its military presence. But before the US is defeated, it will face an acute funding and financial crisis.
For evidence that this outcome was anticipated by China, we note that on February 9 Chinese banks and other holders of US treasury debt were told to sell it. And just to make sure, China has positioned its 30,000-ton maritime intelligence platform near Oman expressly to give Iran accurate pictures of regional military activity and precise bombing locations. Together with Iran’s destruction of key US radar installations in the region, this gives Iran an important advantage.
The Chinese are forward planners. We know that they have accumulated large quantities of gold and silver off-balance-sheet over decades. Gold in particular will be used to back renminbi transactions settled through China’s CIPS platform. China is prepared for a dollar collapse and can set a gold standard at any time. While the Americans are making fools of themselves, China is quietly undermining the dollar’s future and the West’s dollar-based financial system by her actions. Now that the dollar’s future is clarifying, yields on US treasuries will rise sharply, which has already begun. And the dollar itself is already nosediving, priced in real money, which is gold. The logarithmic chart below says it all:
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JESSE COLUMBO
3.CHRIS POWELL AND HIS GATA DISPATCHES:
4. ANDREW MAGUIRE AND LIVE FROM THE VAULT PODCASTS
5. COMMODITY REPORT//
ASIAN AFFAIRS MARCH 16/2026
YOUR EARLY CURRENCY VALUES/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGS MONDAY MORNING.7:30 AM
SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 29.65 PTS OR 0.71%
HANG SENG CLOSED UP 287.40PTS OR 1.13%
Nikkei CLOSED DOWN 122.11 PTS OR 0.23%
//Australia’s all ordinaries CLOSED UP 0.26%
//Chinese yuan (ONSHORE) CLOSED UP 6.9000
/ OFFSHORE CLOSED UP AT 6.8942 Oil DOWN TO 96,98dollars per barrel for WTI and BRENT UP TO 102.486Stocks in Europe OPENED ALL DEEPLY IN THE RED
ONSHORE USA/ YUAN TRADING 6.9000// OFFSHORE YUAN TRADING UP TO 6.8942//ONSHORE YUAN TRADINGBELOW OFF SHORE AND UP ON THE DOLLAR// / AND THUS STRINGERER//OFF SHORE YUAN TRADING UP AGAINST US DOLLAR/ AND THUS STRONGER
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
YOUR EARLY CURRENCY VALUES/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN AND EUROPEAN BOURSE MOVEMENTS/AND INTEREST RATE SETTINGS MONDAY MORNING.7:30 AM
ONSHORE YUAN: CLOSED UP AT 6.9000
OFFSHORE YUAN: UP TO 6.8942
1.HANG SANG UP 287.40 POINTS OR 1.13%
2. Nikkei closed DOWN 122.11 PTS OR 0.23%
WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE OIL UP 96.98
BRENT; 102.86
3. Europe stocks SO FAR: ALL RED
USA dollar INDEX DOWN TO 99.73 /// EURO RISES TO 1.1473UP 58 BASIS PTS
3b Japan 10 YR bond yield: RISES TO. +2.282 UP 2 FULL BASIS PTS/ VERY TROUBLESOME//Japan buying 100% of bond issuance)/Japanese YEN vs USA cross now at 159.21… JAPANESE YEN NOW FALLING AS WE HAVE NOW REACHED THE ENDING OF THE YEN CARRY TRADE AGAIN AND THE REPATRIATION OF YEN DENOMINATED BONDS TRADING IN THE USA/EUROPE. JAPAN 30 YR BOND YIELD: 3.558UP 3 FULL BASIS PTS. AND STILL VERY TROUBLESOME
3c Nikkei now ABOVE 17,000
3d USA/Yen rate now well ABOVE the important 120 barrier this morning
3e Gold DOWN /JAPANESE Yen UP CHINESE ONSHORE YUAN: 6.9000(UP) AND OFFSHORE: UP AT 6.8942
3f Japan is to buy INFINITE TRILLION YEN worth of BONDS. Japan’s GDP equals 5 trillion USA
Japan to buy 100% of all new Japanese debt and NOW they will have OVER 50% of all Japanese debt.
3g Oil DOWN for WTI and BRENT UP this morning
3h European bond buying continues to push yields HIGHER on all fronts in the EMU. German 10yr bund YIELD UP TO +2.9676 Italian 10 Yr bond yield DOWN to 3.746 SPAIN 10 YR BOND YIELD DOWN TO 3.456
3i Greek 10 year bond yield UP TO 3.762
3j Gold at $5017.90 Silver at: 79.36 1 am est) SILVER NEXT RESISTANCE LEVEL AT $100.00
3k USA vs Russian rouble;// Russian rouble DOWN 1 AND 14/100 roubles/81.16
3m oil (WTI) into the 96 dollar handle for WTI and 102 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 159.24 10 YEAR YIELD AFTER FIRST BREAKING .54% LAST YEAR NOW EXCEEDS THAT LEVEL TO 2.282% UP 2 BASIS PTS STILL ON CENTRAL BANK (JAPAN) INTERVENTION//YEN CARRY TRADE IS NOW UNWINDING//YEN BOND TRADING OVERSEAS REPATRIATED.//JAPAN 30 YR: 3.558 UP 63PTS..: USA/SF this 0.7881 as the Swiss Franc . Euro vs SF: 0.9041
USA 10 YR BOND YIELD: 4.258 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS…
USA 30 YR BOND YIELD: 4.890 DOWN 2 BASIS PTS/
USA 2 YR BOND YIELD: 3.701 DOWN 1 BASIS PTS
USA DOLLAR VS TURKISH LIRA: 44.18 DOWN 1 BASIS PTS/LIRA GETTING KILLED
10 YR UK BOND YIELD: 4.7670 DOWN 3 PTS
30 YR UK BOND YIELD: 5.453UDOWB 4 BASIS PTS
10 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 3.508 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
5 YR CANADA BOND YIELD: 3.063 DOWN 3BASIS PTS.
1a New York Opening report
1b European opening report
WTI underperforms as US urges faster output; US equities gain while DXY pulls back – Newsquawk US Market Open
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 07:06 AM
US President Trump said he ordered a strike that wiped out every military target on Kharg Island, where Iran exports nearly all of its oil, but left the oil infrastructure intact; Crude holds around USD 100/bbl.
US President Trump’s administration plans as soon as this week to announce a coalition to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, although they are still discussing if such operations would begin before or after hostilities have ended, WSJ reported.
Trump also said he was expecting China to help unblock the Strait of Hormuz before he travels to Beijing, while he stated that he may delay the trip but didn’t say for how long, according to FT.
European equities mixed, CBK GY gains following UCG IM takeover bid; US equity futures rebound.
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EUROPEAN TRADE
EQUITIES
European bourses are mixed to start the week as the Middle East conflict remains the dominant macro theme. The FTSE 100 outperforms as oil majors gain with crude above USD 100/bbl, while the FTSE MIB lags after Amplifon declines on news it will acquire GN Store Nord’s hearing unit for DKK 17bln.
European Sectors are also mixed. Energy leads as Brent holds above USD 100/bbl, with Real Estate also firmer as Segro gains following a broker upgrade and UK Rightmove house prices rise M/M. Basic Resources initially underperformed as spot gold dips below USD 5,000/oz, while Banks remain pressured.
US equity futures trade firmer (ES/NQ/RTY +0.3-0.4%) as a softer dollar lifts risk sentiment despite elevated crude prices, with the DXY easing from YTD highs, although traders look ahead to the FOMC on Wednesday.
UniCredit (UCG IM) has launched a voluntary exchange offer for Commerzbank (CBK GY) but does not expect to achieve control. Offer looks to exceed the 30% stake. Offer represents a EUR 30.80/shr price, a 4% premium.
AMD (AMD) and Samsung (005930 KS) are reportedly in negotiations on a contract for AMD to allocate volume to Samsung’s leading-edge foundry process, edaily reported citing sources. “Industry sources indicate that the visit will cover discussions on long-term supply agreements spanning commodity DRAM and NAND flash in addition to broader memory categories”.
DXY is marginally softer as the index takes a breather after reclaiming the 100.00 level, while traders brace for a heavy central bank week and monitor Middle East tensions. US President Trump is reportedly seeking a coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and weighing the seizure of Iran’s Kharg Island, while also warning NATO and calling on China to help secure the waterway. DXY trades in a narrow 100.18–100.48 range after Friday’s 99.59–100.54 band. The FOMC is widely expected to leave rates unchanged at 3.50–3.75% on Wednesday, with markets not pricing a cut until Q4 2026.
EUR/USD rebounds from around a seven-month low amid the softer dollar but remains below 1.1500 (1.1414–1.1456 range) amid quiet Eurozone newsflow and geopolitical uncertainty. The pair remains within Friday’s 1.1411–1.1530 range. The ECB is expected to keep rates unchanged at 2.0% on Thursday, though higher energy prices have pushed market pricing slightly more hawkish, with a 25bp hike now fully priced by year-end.
GBP/USD edges higher alongside the weaker dollar after recently hitting a year-to-date low. UK ministers are set to announce a GBP 50mln support package for households facing the energy shock from the Iran conflict, while the UK is also exploring an EU tuition fee cut to reset post-Brexit relations. The BoE is expected to keep the Bank Rate at 3.75% on Thursday, though energy-driven inflation risks have prompted a more hawkish repricing.
USD/JPY is choppy in the absence of Japanese data, with comments from Japanese Finance Minister Katayama stating authorities are ready to take decisive FX steps if needed. The pair trades within 159.17–159.75, inside Friday’s 159.01–159.76 range. The BoJ this week is expected to keep rates unchanged at 0.75%, although markets still price a possible hike by June.
Antipodeans outperform. NZD/USD leads gains despite mixed domestic data, while AUD/USD reclaims the 0.7000 level ahead of the RBA decision tomorrow, where the central bank is widely expected to deliver another rate hike.
FIXED INCOME
USTs are slightly firmer as Treasuries digest the weekend’s modest geopolitical escalation and higher energy prices. Futures trade in a narrow 111-12+ to 111-21+ range, but remain near recent lows at the bottom of March’s 111-11 to 114-06 band and close to the January and February troughs of 111-06+ and 111-08+ as markets await a busy central bank week.
Bunds edge higher in quiet trade, with gains of around nine ticks in narrow sub-20 tick ranges. Focus in Europe centres on energy-related meetings this week, including a press conference later today that could discuss EU-wide measures to stabilise energy markets and updates on proposals for a “coalition of the willing” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Gilts outperform after gapping higher by 26 ticks and extending gains to an 88.84 peak, leaving futures up just over 30 ticks at best. The move reflects partial recovery after Gilts had previously underperformed peers during the Middle East-driven energy shock.
COMMODITIES
Crude Futures extend gains as markets digest weekend escalation in the Iran conflict and fresh risks to regional energy infrastructure. WTI trades above USD 100/bbl within a USD 96.74–102.44/bbl range, while Brent hovers around USD 105/bbl (USD 102.04–106.50/bbl), however WTI narrowly underperforms Brent futures on news US called for oil producers to increase output to combat surging global energy prices. The US conducted strikes on military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, from where most Iranian oil exports originate, though oil infrastructure was left intact. Prices also rise after reports the UAE’s Fujairah port was struck with loadings suspended, while Saudi Crown MBS reportedly urged Washington to maintain military pressure on Iran. Meanwhile, Trump says China should help reopen the Strait of Hormuz ahead of a planned Beijing visit.
Nat Gas is firmer alongside the broader energy complex as geopolitical risks underpin prices, with front-month Dutch TTF near EUR 52/MWh.
Spot Gold is flat in choppy trade within a USD 4,967.77–5,036.01/oz range as the metal tracks USD movements while traders monitor oil-driven inflation risks ahead of a heavy central bank week.
Base Metals are softer across the board. Copper recovers from Friday’s lows but upside is capped by cautious risk sentiment. Meanwhile, Aluminium Bahrain begins a phased shutdown of Reduction Lines 1–3 (around 19% of its 1.62mln-tonne annual capacity) in response to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Senior US administration official acknowledges that prices will continue to rise but admits there is little the government can currently do at the moment, according to a CNN reporter.
Oil executives warned the Trump administration the energy crisis will likely worsen and that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz might push up oil prices further, according to WSJ.
Morgan Stanley lifts its Brent price forecasts as far out as H2-2027. USD/bbl. Q2-2026 110.00 (prev. 80.00). Q3-2026 90.00 (prev. 70.00). Q4-2026 80.00 (prev. 65.00). H1-2027 70.00 (prev. 65.00). H2-2027 70.00 (prev. 65.00).
TRADE/TARIFFS
US and Chinese officials held candid and constructive talks in Paris on Sunday and agreed to enhance stability in the trade relationship, according to sources familiar with the talks, while the sides met for six hours and will resume talks on Monday. US Treasury Secretary Bessent and USTR Greer raised the need for China to buy more Boeing aircraft, US coal, oil and gas, while US and Chinese officials discussed solutions to difficulties faced by some American firms in obtaining rare earths. Talks will continue on a technical level on Monday.
China responded to US allegations of forced labor in the Section 301 probe and has lodged a formal representation with the US over the investigation.
Indian Trade Secretary said the US-India trade deal will be signed when the US re-establishes global tariff rates. The US is working on recreating global tariff architecture.
Indian Trade Secretary said exports to West Asia have been impacted by the Middle East situation; India is considering measures to support exports to the Middle East.
UK Rightmove House Prices YY (Mar) -0.2% (Prev. 0.0%).
UK Rightmove House Prices MM (Mar) 0.8% (Prev. 0.0%).
CENTRAL BANKS
Fed Chair nominee Warsh does not have a confirmed hearing scheduled in the Senate Banking Committee, Semafor reported citing sources.
GEOPOLITICS
MIDDLE EAST
US President Trump said he ordered a strike that wiped out every military target on Kharg Island, which is where Iran exports nearly all of its oil from, but left the oil infrastructure intact which he would reconsider if Iran interferes with the safe passage of ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
US President Trump said he is hearing that Iran’s new Supreme Leader Khamenei may be dead, and that it is not clear if Iran has laid mines in the Strait of Hormuz, while he also stated that he is not ready to make a deal with Iran because the terms aren’t good enough yet. Furthermore, Trump said recent strikes on Kharg Island demolished most of the island and commented that they “may hit it a few more times just for fun”.
US President Trump posted that they have destroyed 100% of Iran’s military capability and that many countries will send warships to help keep the Strait of Hormuz open and safe.
US President Trump said they have had strong results in Iran and he does not believe Iran is ready to negotiate, but will be ready to negotiate at some point. Trump also said the US is talking to other countries about policing the Strait of Hormuz and cannot say which countries will help yet, while a few countries would rather not get involved. Furthermore, he called on NATO to help and thinks China should come in to help on the Strait of Hormuz.
US President Trump seeks a Hormuz coalition and is weighing seizing Iran’s critical oil depot on Kharg Island — a move that would require US boots on the ground — if tankers remain bottled up in the Persian Gulf, according to US officials cited by Axios.
US President Trump warned that NATO faces a very bad future if US allies fail to assist in opening up the Strait of Hormuz, according to FT.
US lawmakers have begun talking about a supplemental funding bill for the Iran war, Punchbowl reports; package could have a USD 100bln or greater price tag, according to sources.
Israel’s IDF has launched a focused ground operation in southern Lebanon, including a build-up of forces in order to capture more forward lines, N12 reported.
Israeli Home Front notifies of a missile attack from Iran targeting areas in central Israel.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Araqchi says no messages have been exchanged with the US and that Tehran has not asked for a ceasefire as the “war needs to end in a way that ensures it does not happen again”.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Baghaei says parties not involved in the war have had vessels pass through Hormuz with coordination and permission from Iran’s military. The Strait of Hormuz is only closed to the enemies of Iran.
The Iranian Army Spokesperson said the support centre of the USS Ford in the Red Sea are considered as targets, Al Arabiya reported.
Iran’s media operations centre warns residents in specific areas of Dubai and Doha of possible attacks in the coming hours, while it stated that US military personnel are hiding in locations in Doha and Dubai and urges residents to evacuate immediately.
Oil loading at UAE’s Fujairah suspended after the port was hit, Bloomberg sources report.
UAE’s Fujairah port was hit and the damage is being assessed, Bloomberg reported citing sources.
Multiple locals are said to confirm smoke rising in the vicinity of Dubai International Airport, but it is unclear what has been targeted, according to Faytuks News.
Explosions heard in Bahrain’s skies as air defences intercept an Iranian attack, according to Sky News Arabia.
Missile bombardment targets US military base for logistical support at Baghdad airport, according to Al-Haddath.
The meeting of European foreign ministers will discuss the protection of sea lanes and the Strait of Hormuz, Al Jazeera sources report.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE
Russia’s Kremlin says we are open to continuing Ukraine negotiations and that US President Trump has not lost interest, instead he recommended Ukrainian President Zelensky make a deal
CRYPTO
Bitcoin briefly extends above USD 74k but has since come off best levels.
APAC TRADE
APAC stocks mostly declined amid cautiousness at the start of a busy week of central bank activity and following the continued conflict after the US struck military targets in Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub, but left oil infrastructure intact.
ASX 200 was led lower by mining, materials, resources and tech, while the RBA kicked off its two-day policy meeting, where the central bank is widely expected to hike rates for the second consecutive meeting amid inflationary pressures.
Nikkei 225 retreated amid losses in utilities and electric names due to the ongoing energy-related uncertainty, despite Japan beginning its emergency oil release, while the Japanese data calendar is quiet to start the week, but begins to pick up on Tuesday, and the BoJ are also set to conduct a policy meeting later in the week.
Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were mixed as participants digested stronger-than-expected activity data for China, and with US-China trade talks in Paris on Sunday said to be constructive and will resume today. However, there were also comments from US President Trump, who called for China to help open the Strait of Hormuz and suggested a potential delay to the Trump-Xi summit scheduled later this month.
NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES
China’s stats bureau’s spokesperson expects consumption to rise steadily this year as policy measures gain traction, but noted that more support is needed.
Japanese Finance Minister Katayama said prepared to take decisive steps on FX.
NOTABLE APAC DATA RECAP
Indian WPI Inflation YoY (Feb) Y/Y 2.13% (Prev. 1.81%).
Chinese Retail Sales YoY (Jan-Feb) Y/Y 2.8% vs Exp. 2.6% (Prev. 0.9%).
Chinese Industrial Production YoY (Jan-Feb) Y/Y 6.3% vs Exp. 5.3% (Prev. 5.2%).
Chinese Fixed Asset Investment (YTD) YoY (Jan-Feb) Y/Y 1.8% vs Exp. -5.0% (Prev. -3.8%).
Chinese Unemployment Rate (Feb) 5.3% (Prev. 5.1%).
Chinese House Price Index MM (Feb) -0.3% (Prev. -0.4%).
Chinese House Price Index YoY (Feb) Y/Y -3.2% (Prev. -3.1%).
New Zealand Composite NZ PCI (Feb) 50.5 (Prev. 52.5).
New Zealand Services NZ PSI (Feb) 48.0 (Prev. 50.9, Rev. From 50.7).
1 c Asian report
2.a NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA
/SOUTH KOREA
3. CHINA/TAIWAN
4. EUROPEAN AND SCANDINAVIAN AFFAIRS
AMSTERDAM/HOLLAND
Blast hits Jewish school in Amsterdam, mayor calls it targeted attack
The bombing is the second attack against a Jewish target in the Netherlands this week, after an explosive device detonated at a synagogue in the center of Rotterdam on Thursday.
A photograph taken on March 14, 2026 shows a police car parked outside a Jewish school, in Amsterdam, where an explosion was reported overnight.(photo credit: Michel van Bergen / ANP / AFP via Getty Images)ByREUTERS, AARON GLICKMARCH 14, 2026 08:32Updated: MARCH 14, 2026 13:43
An explosion damaged a Jewish school in Amsterdam early on Saturday, causing no injuries, in what the city’s mayor described as a deliberate attack against the Jewish community, Dutch news agency ANP reported.
The explosion at the school in an upscale residential neighborhood on Amsterdam’s south side caused only limited damage, Mayor Femke Halsema said in a press release, as police and firefighters arrived quickly at the scene.
“This is a cowardly act of aggression against the Jewish community,” Halsema said.Unmute
“Jewish people in Amsterdam are increasingly confronted with antisemitism. This is unacceptable.”
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten called the attack in Amsterdam “horrible” and said it understandably caused “fear and anger” in the Jewish community.
Vehicles outside a Jewish school following an explosion that caused minor damages, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, March 14, 2026. (credit: REUTERS/Bart Meijer)
“The safety of Jewish institutions has our full attention,” he said in a post on X.
Four arrested after explosion at Rotterdam synagogue
Security at synagogues and Jewish institutions in the Dutch capital had already been heightened ahead of the attack, as the bombing was the second attack against a Jewish target in the Netherlands in recent days.
It comes after an explosive device detonated at a synagogue in the center of Rotterdam on Thursday, causing no injuries.
Four suspects in Thursday’s bombing were apprehended later that day when police stopped a car that was driving suspiciously close to another synagogue. A new Shi’ite terror group, calling itself Ashab Al Yamim, claimed responsibility for the attack.
In neighboring Belgium, an explosion caused a fire at a synagogue in Liege on Monday.
Earlier this week, a synagogue in Michigan was targeted during a vehicle-ramming incident involving an active shooter. Additionally, several synagogues in Canada have also faced attacks, including targeted shootings, over the past month.
END
GERMANY
German Police Raid AfD Lawmaker’s Home Over Years-Old Social Media Posts
Police and prosecutors in Munich carried out searches on Friday morning at the private residence and Bavarian State Parliament office of AfD lawmaker René Dierkes, reportedly in connection with alleged insults and social media posts dating back several years.
Dierkes, 34, who represents the Munich-East constituency in the Bavarian State Parliament, said the investigation concerns satirical posts and memes published roughly two years ago on his X account by a staff member who has since left his employment. He said authorities are also examining an alleged insult attributed to him by a former party member, which reportedly dates back five years.
In a statement released after the search, Dierkes described the investigation as politically motivated and accused rivals of attempting to discredit him.
“The background is posts on my X account that are about two years old and were written by an employee who no longer works for me,” he said, adding that an internal party rival who previously sought public office had launched “a defamation campaign against my person.”
“I will take action against this political witch hunt,” he said.
According to reporting from Bild, police officers appeared at both Dierkes’ Munich residence and his parliamentary office as part of the operation. The exact legal basis for the search was initially unclear, and the Munich public prosecutor’s office had not immediately issued a detailed statement explaining the move.
AfD state chairman Stephan Protschka sharply criticized the action, suggesting it reflected political bias by authorities.
“It is supposedly about alleged insults. In my view, this is a humiliating decision by the authorities against the opposition,” Protschka told Bild.
The search has raised additional questions because the Bavarian State Parliament did not formally vote to lift Dierkes’ parliamentary immunity beforehand.
According to Bild, investigators proceeded under a “simplified procedure,” a legal mechanism that allows searches without a prior parliamentary vote in certain cases.
Dierkes, who was elected to the Bavarian legislature in October 2023 and serves as chairman of the AfD’s Munich-East district association, has been under observation by Bavaria’s domestic intelligence service since April 2025.
The monitoring followed a review by the Bavarian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which concluded that surveillance was “proportionate.”
According to a response by the Bavarian state government to parliamentary inquiries from Green and Social Democratic lawmakers, officials identified statements by Dierkes that allegedly promoted “an ethnic concept of the people contrary to human dignity” and demanded “remigration in an unconstitutional manner,” as cited by BR24 last year.
Authorities also cited his significant reach on social media and his role as a prominent figure within the AfD’s regional leadership structure.
The social media reach point is contentious — Dierkes has just 6,800 followers on X and 5,600 followers on Facebook.
Dierkes has firmly rejected the state office’s interpretation of his remarks and threatened legal action last year.
A Turkish-Kurdish schoolgirl is said to have been groped by nine boys of Arab descent in the back room of a Berlin youth center in Gropiusstadt, Neukölln. It then came out that she was raped in November, in the youth center garden. A scandal has erupted after it was reported that the youth center staff did not file a police report, reportedly out of fear that the suspects would be labeled as the “typical Muslims.”
For months, there were already troubling reports from Berlin youth center in the multicultural neighborhood of Neukölln: involving unwanted embraces, girls having their breasts and buttocks touched without consent, and being pulled onto boys’ laps.
All of these incidents were allegedly happening in plain sight of staff.
Then, in January, the incident involving the mass groping of the Turkish-Kurdish victim occured by the nine boys, with each one taking turns molesting her while one boy stood guard in the doorway. They only stopped when a staff member walked in.
Three days later, the girl admitted to staff something worse had happened to her. She had already been raped in November — in the youth center’s garden, in the evening. Afterwards, she crouched in a corner for hours. When she finally tried to leave the area, the entire area was locked. She had to climb over the fence to get out, breaking her ankle in the process.
The assault had also been filmed. The boy, known by the nickname Medi, 17, allegedly used the footage as a weapon.
“I want to see you here every Monday, or I’ll send this to your parents.” Once word of the video spread, other boys in the group began taunting her: “You’re letting yourself be screwed.” They also wanted the girl to introduce them to her 14-year-old sister.
A cover-up because the suspects were Muslim?
Now, the youth center is in the crosshairs for its unbelievable response.
Reportedly, instead of going to the authorities, female visitors were given a “safeword” to use whenever they felt threatened. In addition, the door in the back room was removed from its hinges. The employees refused to go to the police even as colleagues from other facilities applied pressure to do so. The internal justification, according to sources who spoke with Bild newspaper, was a desire to keep things quiet so the young people would not be immediately labeled: “typical Muslims.”
Youth State Secretary Falko Liecke, 53, of the Christian Democrats (CDU), was blunt in his response when approached by Bild.
“It’s outrageous that the Muslim perpetrators are apparently being protected here to avoid stigmatizing them, while the victim is being abandoned. This attitude is completely unacceptable.” He announced he was examining whether child protection laws had been violated.
Parents had to go to the police after authorities failed to act
The girl eventually sought help outside the facility due to their refusal to go to the police.
A supporter of the girl spoke with her parents, who took the news of what happened to their daughter extremely hard. Together with a police prevention officer, they went to the State Criminal Police Office, where the girl gave a video statement so she would not have to recount the events repeatedly.
Officers moved quickly to seize the suspect’s mobile phone. Her father filed a formal complaint against the alleged rapist and also submitted online complaints against those responsible at the facility and the officials who failed to act.
The head of the youth welfare office had been informed as early as Jan. 29. The Neukölln administration’s explanation to Bild as to why no report was filed was that “the youth welfare office did not file a report because they do not know the names of either the victim or the perpetrator.”
Liecke responded to their excuse, saying: “This case was clearly intended to be swept under the rug for political reasons. It wasn’t even put on the agenda at the district office, even though it should have been. Neither the youth welfare office nor the responsible city councilor filed any reports with the police. This is a scandal and must have consequences.”
Neukölln Mayor Martin Hikel, of the far-left Social Democrats (SPD), said he saw no grounds for disciplinary action against the Left Party youth councilor with political responsibility for the case, on the basis that she was only informed by her own welfare office on March 2.
He nonetheless acknowledged the gravity of the situation:
“This shocking case shows that the structures and processes within the youth welfare office require a self-critical internal review. In this context, a survey on the topic of sexual assaults in youth recreation facilities would be advisable in order to develop systematic improvements. The district office will discuss this.”
Hamas sends secret letter to Mojtaba Khamenei, mocks Gulf states, refuses disarmament
The secret letter follows a more public statement made by Hamas on Saturday, in which the terrorist group urged Iran not to target neighboring Gulf countries.
Gunmen stand guard at the funeral of Marwan Issa, a senior Hamas deputy military commander who was killed in an Israeli airstrike during the conflict between Israel and Hamas, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in the central Gaza Strip, February 7, 2025.(photo credit: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed)ByTZVI JASPERMARCH 16, 2026 02:58Updated: MARCH 16, 2026 02:59
Hamas encouraged Iran to “activate all fronts” in a secret letter sent to the regime’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, KAN News reported on Sunday.
The secret letter followed a more public statement made by Hamas on Saturday, in which the terrorist group urged Iran not to target neighboring Gulf countries.
“While the group affirms Iran’s right to respond to this aggression by all available means in accordance with international norms and laws, it calls upon our brothers in Iran not to target neighboring countries,” Hamas stated in its more measured public response.
The secret letter, on the other hand, presented a far less diplomatic face of Hamas, announcing its intention not to allow itself to be disarmed.
“The Hamas movement stands today with all its weight behind your wise leadership in the face of the ‘Zionist-American’ anarchy,” Hamas proclaimed.
Hamas terrorists gather during a public event in Khan Younis, Gaza, on February 1, 2025. (credit: MOIZ SALHI/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
It also dismissed those Gulf countries that had undergone normalization processes with Israel, calling them part of a “losing camp.”
“They didn’t even dare to protect those who found shelter in their bases,” the letter said, seemingly mocking the Gulf countries, such as Yemen, in which US soldiers have been killed by Iranian missiles during Operation Epic Fury.
Hamas determined to see future victories under Iranian leadership
The letter also promised Hamas’ unwavering support for Iran, alongside “our brothers in the resistance axis in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq.”
“We’ll forge, under your leadership, the next victories,” Hamas told Khamenei in the letter.
The Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, responding to the letter on X/Twitter, pronounced it a “smoking gun.”
“Proof the Palestinians betray their Arab brothers it declared, pointing to Hamas calling other Gulf states “weak.”
end
ISRAEL VS HEZBOLLAH
IDF strikes Hezbollah terrorists carrying rockets into south Lebanon weapons depot
The IDF warned that Hezbollah was making military use of ambulances and medical facilities, accusing the terror group of exploiting protected civilian infrastructure for operational purposes.
The IDF struck Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon on Friday after identifying them transporting rockets into a weapons storage facility in the al-Majadel area, the military stated on Saturday morning.
The suspects were spotted carrying the rockets into the warehouse, the IDF said, prompting the Israel Air Force to strike the site within a “matter of minutes,” killing the operatives and damaging the facility.
The military said it would “continue to operate with determination” against Hezbollah, accusing the Iran-backed terror group of deliberately attacking Israel on Tehran’s behalf.
The action comes as the IDF said it struck about 110 Hezbollah command centers since the beginning of Operation Roaring Lion, adding to a previous statement that claimed over 350 Hezbollah terrorists and commanders killed in current operation so far. The IDF said it “severely damaged the organization’s command and control capabilities, its financial situation, and the weapons in its possession.”
The military added that Hezbollah “systematically embeds its infrastructure within the civilian population across Lebanon. This is another example of the organization’s cynical exploitation of Lebanese civilians for its terrorist activities.”
Smoke from a building in the center of the city which has been hit by the IDF after an evacuation order on March 12, 2026 in Beirut, Lebanon. (credit: Adri Salido/Getty Images)
IDF says Hezbollah is using ambulances for military purposes
Earlier on Saturday, the IDF warned that Hezbollah was making military use of ambulances and medical facilities, accusing the terror group of exploiting protected civilian infrastructure for operational purposes.
“We warn that the military use of medical facilities and ambulances must stop immediately,” IDF Arabic Spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee said in a statement.
“We stress that if this conduct does not cease, Israel will act in accordance with international law against any military activity carried out by the Hezbollah terrorist organization using those facilities and ambulances,” Adraee added.
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#عاجل ‼️انذار خطير: في إطار أنشطته الارهابية يقوم حزب الله باستخدام سيارات الإسعاف استخدامًا عسكريًا واسعًا.
🔸نحذّر انه يجب التوقف فورًا عن الاستخدام العسكري للمرافق الطبية وسيارات الإسعاف ونؤكد أنه في حال عدم التوقف عن هذا النهج فإن إسرائيل ستعمل وفقًا للقانون الدولي ضد أي… pic.twitter.com/FAI9xbHtI1
US strikes Kharg Island in Iran, Tehran’s ‘crown jewel,’ Trump says in Truth statement
According to US President Donald Trump’s announcement, the strikes were focused on military targets on the island and avoided the oil installations.
US President Donald Trump talks to the media upon his arrival at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, US, March 11, 2026.(photo credit: REUTERS/KEVIN LAMARQUE)ByJERUSALEM POST STAFFMARCH 14, 2026 01:35Updated: MARCH 14, 2026 13:48
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) struck Kharg Island, one of Iran’s main oil terminals, US President Donald Trump announced on Friday.
“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island. Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision. During my First Term, and currently, I rebuilt our Military into the Most Lethal, Powerful, and Effective Force, by far, anywhere in the World. Iran has NO ability to defend anything that we want to attack — There is nothing they can do about it! Iran will NEVER have a nuclear weapon, nor will it have the ability to threaten the United States of America, the Middle East or, for that matter, the World! Iran’s Military, and all others involved with this Terrorist Regime, would be wise to lay down their arms, and save what’s left of their country, which isn’t much! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP
According to Trump’s announcement, the strikes were focused on military targets on the island and avoided the oil installations, which provide a naval exit for almost 90% of the Iranian oil exports. However, Trump threatened to attack the installations if Iran interferes with shipping operations in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Our weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the world has ever known, but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen not to wipe out the oil Infrastructure on the island,” Trump said. “Should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
CENTCOM later confirmed Trump’s remarks, saying “US forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets” in a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island.
The strike destroyed naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and multiple other military sites, the US military said in a post on X.
In a subsequent post, Trump also said: “Iran had plans of taking over the entire Middle East, and completely obliterating Israel. Just like Iran itself, those plans are now dead.”
Trump says Israel-US goals might not be fully aligned
Trump’s comments came minutes after he talked to reporters at Joint Base Andrews while leaving Air Force 1. There, he said that the US and Israel’s goals for the war in Iran might “be a little different.”
He also said that the US Navy will begin escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz “very soon” and that the Iranian Navy “is gone.”
“The situation in Iran is going very well. A lot of big hits today… We’re in very good control,” he said and added, “Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone. Most of their military is gone… Just about everything is gone, and you’ll see that.”
CENTCOM shares images of B-2 bombers in operation
The latest release from CENTCOM focused on operations conducted by B-2 stealth bombers, the US’s most modern bomber, but did not mention the targeting of Kharg Island.
B-2 stealth bombers takeoff to conduct a mission during Operation Epic Fury, delivering long-range fire to not only eliminate the threat from the Iranian regime today, but also eliminate their ability to rebuild in the future. pic.twitter.com/ebyUYNnOLo
“B-2 stealth bombers take off to conduct a mission during Operation Epic Fury, delivering long-range fire to not only eliminate the threat from the Iranian regime today, but also eliminate their ability to rebuild in the future,” CENTCOM’s statement said.
END
Trump Crosses Iran’s ‘Red Line’ By Heavy Bombing Of Kharg Island, Endangering Energy Assets Across Region
Saturday, Mar 14, 2026 – 12:01 AM
In what could prove to be a major step up the escalation ladder in the two-week-old US-Israeli war on Iran, President Trump on Friday evening (notably after US market closure) announced that US Central Command had carried out a major bombing raid on Kharg Island, which handles upwards of 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports. Importantly, Iran has previously warned that an attack on the island would cross a red line, and precipitate Iranian attacks on energy infrastructure up and down the Persian Gulf.
Perhaps with that previous Iran warning in mind — and to allay the fears of US allies in the region who don’t want to see their energy facilities go up in smoke — Trump emphasized that the attack was focused on military assets:
“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.
Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
Iran’s FARS news agency confirmed the attack, saying at least 15 explosions were heard as it unfolded. FARS reports that targets included air defense assets, a naval base, an airport control tower and a helicopter hangar associated with Iranian Offshore Oil Company. The Trump administration released video highlights from the bombing raid:
Trump’s threat to “reconsider” the decision not to damage the energy infrastructure on the island if Iran continues to shut down the Strait of Hormuz will surely cause deep concern among Gulf allies and everyone else who’s wary of the looming global economic catastrophe that will unfold if the Persian Gulf energy shutdown persists.
With Iran apparently bent on imposing a devastating cost for the US-Israeli war — one that will deter future attacks — there’s little reason to think Tehran is going signal “all clear” on the strait anytime soon.
Five miles long and situated 15 to 20 miles off the mainland-Iranian coast, Kharg Island is essential to Iran’s export of petroleum. Facilities there have continued to operate throughout the war, with at least 10 tankers hauling off nearly 19 million barrels since the US-Israeli surprise attack on Feb 28. Iran has, however, sought to add a small measure of export-facility diversification, by reopening energy exports at the Jask terminal, which is southeast of the Straight of Hormuz, in the Gulf of Oman.
END
U.S. Bombs Kharg Island, Gateway of Iran’s Oil Trade
by VBL
Saturday, Mar 14, 2026 – 9:01
GFN – WASHINGTON: U.S. forces carried out a large-scale bombing raid on Iran’s Kharg Island late Friday under orders from President Donald Trump, striking military installations on the strategic oil-export hub while deliberately avoiding damage to energy infrastructure that handles most of Iran’s crude shipments.
The strike represents a significant escalation in the two-week conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran, targeting the island that serves as the primary gateway for Iranian oil exports to global markets. Kharg Island sits roughly 15 to 20 miles off Iran’s Persian Gulf coast and processes the overwhelming majority of the country’s seaborne crude shipments.
President Trump announced the operation after U.S. markets closed, describing it as one of the most powerful bombing raids conducted in the region and emphasizing that American forces deliberately limited the targets to military facilities.
“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East and totally obliterated every military target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.”
“Our weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the world has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen not to wipe out the oil infrastructure on the island.”
“However, should Iran, or anyone else, interfere with the free and safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
ran’s semi-official FARS news agency reported that at least fifteen explosions were heard across the island during the strike. Iranian media indicated that air-defense installations, a naval base, an airport control tower, and helicopter facilities linked to offshore oil operations were among the targets.
Video released by the U.S. government showed large explosions near the island’s airfield complex.
Footage has now been published by President Donald J. Trump showing today’s strikes against Iranian military targets on Kharg Island in the Northern Persian Gulf, which acts as a port hub for the export of up to 90% of oil products leaving Iran. In the footage, strikes can be… pic.twitter.com/WH3iWw74sE
The attack occurred against a backdrop of rising tension around the Strait of Hormuz, a maritime corridor through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supply typically passes. Iranian officials have previously warned that any strike on Kharg Island would cross a strategic red line and could prompt retaliatory attacks against energy infrastructure throughout the Persian Gulf.
Despite the military escalation, Kharg’s oil-export facilities appear to have remained operational immediately after the strike. Tanker tracking data indicates that at least ten vessels have loaded roughly nineteen million barrels of crude from the island since the beginning of the current conflict.
Iran has attempted limited diversification of export routes by reopening shipments from the Jask terminal in the Gulf of Oman, located southeast of the Strait of Hormuz, though Kharg remains the country’s dominant export outlet.
Earlier Friday, Trump told reporters the U.S. Navy would begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz in response to mounting threats to commercial shipping.
“It will happen soon, very soon.”
In a later message posted online, the president framed the operation as part of a broader effort to counter Iranian regional ambitions.
“Iran had plans of taking over the entire Middle East and completely obliterating Israel. Those plans are now dead.”
Pentagon officials confirmed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved the deployment of a Marine Expeditionary Unit to the region earlier in the day. Such a force typically includes roughly 5,000 Marines and sailors operating from multiple naval vessels.
For global energy markets, the key question now centers on Iran’s response. Tehran has previously warned that attacks on its energy infrastructure could trigger strikes against oil and gas facilities across the Gulf, a scenario that analysts say could push crude prices sharply higher and threaten global supply chains.
Markets and policymakers are now watching whether Iran interprets the strike, which avoided direct damage to oil terminals, as a limited military action or as the opening phase of a broader campaign targeting the country’s export system.
Continue reading for a detailed explanation of the strategic importance of Kharg Island as broken down by JPMorgan’s “Flash Oil Note”
Trump weighing US boots on the ground to seize Iran’s Kharg Island oil depot – report
The potential capture of the oil depot would require, in a first for the ongoing US Operation Epic Fury, American troops to step foot on Iranian soil.
A picture taken on March 12, 2017, shows an oil facility in the Khark Island, on the shore of the Gulf.(photo credit: Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)BySAM HALPERNMARCH 16, 2026 13:56Updated: MARCH 16, 2026 14:21
US President Donald Trump is considering seizing Iran’s Kharg Island oil depot should tankers remain unable to advance from the Persian Gulf, Axios reported on Monday, citing four sources familiar with the matter.
The island is one of Iran’s main oil export terminals, and any attempt to seize the depot would, for the first time in the ongoing US Operation Epic Fury, require American troops to enter Iranian territory.
So far, US military action against Iran has been limited to strikes launched from the air and from positions outside Iranian territory. Among them were the Friday strikes carried out by US Central Command on Kharg Island.
Former pro-Palestinian activist from Stanford explains why she left the movement
“The United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post at the time.
Trump added in his announcement that the strikes avoided the island’s oil installations.
A picture taken on March 12, 2017, shows a view of an oil facility in the Khark Island, on the shore of the Gulf. (credit: Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump reportedly planning coalition to escort ships through Strait of Hormuz
The officials also told Axios that the American president is working to build a coalition of countries to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and is looking to officially announce it this week, Axios reported on Monday, citing four sources familiar with the matter.
The strait runs along the Iranian coast and is a critical avenue for global shipping.
The Axios report mirrors another Wall Street Journal report, which, citing US officials, also said that the Trump administration intends to announce as soon as this week that multiple countries have agreed to join the coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The American outlet noted that the White House declined to comment on the announcement, while countries have so far avoided committing to join efforts to escort ships through the Strait.
Japan and Australia said on Monday they were not planning to send navy vessels to the region for the purpose of escorting ships through the strait.
A German government spokesperson also reiterated on Monday that Germany would not take military action to keep the Strait of Hormuz.
“As long as this war continues, there will be no participation, not even in any effort to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by military means,” the spokesperson said.
Nevertheless, Trump has announced on Truth Social that the US, along with several other countries affected by “Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait,” would be sending warships to keep the Strait “open and safe.”
Further, in a Sunday interview with the Financial Times, the president threatened NATO, warning that it would have a “very bad” future if US allies failed to assist in opening the Strait of Hormuz.
On Saturday, Trump said the US will open the Strait of Hormuz “one way or another” and would “be bombing the hell out of shoreline.”
END
Reuters contributed to this report.
ISRAEL IRAN
Israel strikes Iran space research site as Katz says campaign entering ‘decisive stretch’
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saturday morning that Israel was “entering the decisive stretch” in its campaign in Iran.
The IDF destroyed an Iranian regime site used for space research, along with a central air defense production plant on Friday night, the military said on Saturday.
The latest wave of strikes was part of an ongoing effort to deepen damage to the Iranian regime’s core military systems and capabilities, according to the IDF.
Acting on IDF intelligence, the Israel Air Force (IAF) struck dozens of regime-linked sites across Tehran, including the regime’s main space research center.
The IDF described the center as housing strategic laboratories used for the research and development of military satellites intended for “surveillance, intelligence collection, and directing fire toward targets across the Middle East.”
Israeli jets also targeted several sites used to manufacture air defense systems, the IDF said, including what it called a central production facility. “The strike significantly degrades the Iranian terror regime’s ability to rehabilitate its aerial defense array,” the military stated.
Israeli Air Force fighter jet seen in central Israel, March 10, 2026 (credit: NATI SHOHAT/FLASH90)
According to the military, the operation forms part of what it described as a deeper phase of strikes aimed at degrading the Iranian regime’s central capabilities and foundations.
Israel entering ‘decisive stretch in Iran’
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saturday morning that Israel was “entering the decisive stretch” in its campaign in Iran.
In remarks made during a security assessment with senior defense officials and cited by Hebrew media, Katz said the campaign against Iran was “escalating” and that Israel was entering a “decisive stretch that will continue for as long as necessary.”
Earlier Saturday, Israel issued an evacuation order for an industrial area located west of the city of Tabriz in Iran, noting that it will “conduct operations in this area in the coming hours.”
On Friday, the IDF said it completed 20 waves of strikes across western and central Iran, targeting over 150 regime sites, including missile sites and launchers, drone facilities, defense systems, and weapons production sites.
Tobias Holcman contributed to this report.
END
ISRAEL IRAN UPDATES
Five Air Force Refueling Planes Struck In Iranian Missile Attack On Saudi Arabia
Friday, Mar 13, 2026 – 11:50 PM
Summary:
Five US Air Force refueling planes were struck and damaged on the ground at Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia: WSJ
Over 3 million people forcibly displaced by US-Israeli war on Iran: UN
Iran reportedly approves Indian government sending two liquefied petroleum tankers through Hormuz
Japan-based USS Tripoli and its attached Marines headed toward Middle East
WSJ says Pentagon sends Marine expeditionary unit to Middle East. Oil jumps higher
Pentagon has just confirms two additional deaths in Thursday’s downing of a KC-135 refueling tanker aircraft over Western Iraq: all six US crewmembers are deceased.
Trump and the Pentagon claim the US and Israel are “totally destroying” Iran as the war enters day 14, with Trump warning Tehran to “watch what happens” and “I am killing them” and “what a great honor it is to”
Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is reportedly alive but wounded, “damaged,” and “disfigured”
France and Italy open talks with Iran in hope of securing safe Hormuz Strait passage, FT reporting
Hegseth briefing: US and Israel have hit more than 15,000 enemy targets since conflict began
Several senior Iranian officials have been openly marching through the streets of Tehran today even amid smoke from US-Israeli bombing lingers in background.
CENTCOM: four of six crew members aboard a US refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq have died. Active search and rescue operation underway
Strategic risks remain high as Iran reportedly begins laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, though oil eased slightly after India said one tanker successfully exited the strait.
Five U.S. Air Force refueling planes were struck and damaged on the ground at Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia, according to two U.S. officials.
The tankers were hit during an Iranian missile strike on the Saudi base in recent days, the officials said. U.S. Central Command declined to comment. The tankers were damaged but not fully destroyed and are being repaired, one of the officials said. No one was killed in the strikes.
The news brings the total number of Air Force refueling planes damaged or destroyed to at least seven.
* * *
Reuters contributed to this report.
With More Marines & Warships En Route, Fox Corners Trump On Iran Victory Plan & Off-Ramp
Friday, Mar 13, 2026 – 03:59 PM
Summary:
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem says the group is fighting an existential battle against Israel as displacement crisis in Lebanon deepens: AJ
Over 3 million people forcibly displaced by US-Israeli war on Iran: UN
Iran reportedly approves Indian government sending two liquefied petroleum tankers through Hormuz
Japan-based USS Tripoli and its attached Marines headed toward Middle East
WSJ says Pentagon sends Marine expeditionary unit to Middle East. Oil jumps higher
Pentagon has just confirms two additional deaths in Thursday’s downing of a KC-135 refueling tanker aircraft over Western Iraq: all six US crewmembers are deceased.
Trump and the Pentagon claim the US and Israel are “totally destroying” Iran as the war enters day 14, with Trump warning Tehran to “watch what happens” and “I am killing them” and “what a great honor it is to”
Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is reportedly alive but wounded, “damaged,” and “disfigured”
France and Italy open talks with Iran in hope of securing safe Hormuz Strait passage, FT reporting
Hegseth briefing: US and Israel have hit more than 15,000 enemy targets since conflict began
Several senior Iranian officials have been openly marching through the streets of Tehran today even amid smoke from US-Israeli bombing lingers in background.
CENTCOM: SIX of six crew members aboard a US refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq have died. Active search and rescue operation underway
Strategic risks remain high as Iran reportedly begins laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, though oil eased slightly after India said one tanker successfully exited the strait.
END
END
Trump Claims “Many Countries” Will Send Warships As US “Bombing The Hell Out Of Shoreline” To Reopen Hormuz
Saturday, Mar 14, 2026 – 01:58 PM
Summary:
US strikes on Kharg Island escalate war as Trump claims allies sending warships to Hormuz: Trump said US forces “obliterated” military targets on Kharg Island but warned Iran’s critical oil infrastructure could be the.
Iran vows bigger regional retaliation: IRGC warned the UAE that US “hideouts” there are now “legitimate targets”; UAE oil port hit, and US Embassy in Baghdad catches fire after apparent drone strike.
Heavy casualties and explosions in Iran ongoing: US-Israeli strikes have killed about 1,450 people in Iran since February 28, while “huge blasts” were reported in central Tehran after mass rallies where some Iranian leaders walked the streets in defiance.
Oil war and extreme risk unfolds, US gas prices up: disrupted Hormuz shipping and ongoing chaos has driven US gasoline prices up 23%
Lebanon ground and air Israel-Hezbollah war: Major Israeli strikes in Lebanon, especially on Beirut have killed at least 826 people.
Trump rejected efforts by Middle Eastern allies to hold talks aimed at ending the war in Iran, according to Reuters.
Oman attempted several times to open a line of communication, but the US administration has made clear it’s not interested.
Iran rejects the possibility of a ceasefire until strikes end.
UAE suspended loading operations at a key energy export hub after a drone strike and fire on Saturday.
Iran threatened to reduce US-linked oil facilities to a pile of ashes.
Israel is running “critically low” on interceptors, according to Semafor.
Iranian Foreign Minister Says Hormuz Chokepoint open to any country except for US and Israel.
* * *
Update(1955ET):
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke earlier with MS NOW about the current status of the world’s most critical maritime energy chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz, which remains paralyzed.
Araghchi told the outlet, “As a matter of fact, the Strait of Hormuz is open,” adding, “It is only closed to tankers and ships belonging to our enemies—those who are attacking us and their allies. Others are free to pass.”
According to Bloomberg AIS ship-tracking data, both the entrance and exit of the Hormuz chokepoint remain clogged with tankers. Traffic flows were still muted as of 19:50 ET.
Reuters reported earlier today that two Indian-flagged tankers carrying liquefied petroleum gas crossed the narrow waterway.
“They crossed the Strait of Hormuz safely early this morning and are en route to India,” Indian Ports Minister Rajesh Kumar Sinha said.
* * *
Update(1358ET):
The semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that U.S.-based Citibank branches in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain’s capital, Manama, were targeted by drones overnight, suggesting that civilian infrastructure has not been spared in the U.S.-Iran conflict.
From data centers to skyscrapers to water desalination plants, it now appears that IRGC drone strikes are spilling over into Gulf financial infrastructure. Tasnim reported that some banks pulled staff from buildings, shifted operations remotely, and that Citibank temporarily suspended certain in-person activities in the UAE.
A Missile/drone has reportedly struck the Dubai office of Citibank, one of the largest US financial institutions operating in the Persian Gulf
Tasnim noted that Citi is a major node in the dollar system, especially in the Gulf region, where it handles oil trade finance, dollar settlements, and services for sovereign wealth funds and multinational corporations.
* * *
END
Trump ‘Not Ready’ For Iran Deal; US Urges Citizens To Flee Iraq, Iran Arrests 100s Of ‘Spies’
Sunday, Mar 15, 2026 – 12:15 PM
Summary:
Iranian retaliation accelerates, including use of cluster munitions, especially against Israel
Gulf countries reported new attacks Sunday morning, a day after Iran called for the evacuation of three major ports in the United Arab Emirates.
Iran says it targeted U.S. forces at Saudi base with missiles
Israel reportedly running low on missile interceptors
World’s largest Aluminum smelter shutdown
Iran arrests 500 accused of spying for Israel amid escalating conflict
Araghchi said the strait was only shut to US ships and those of its allies
Trump not ready to reach a deal with Iran yet
Days after President Trump told reporters that Iran has “shot everything they have to shoot” and has “nothing left,” Iran continues to rain retaliatory fire down on the region. Amid fresh imagery of fires burning around Tel Aviv, Saturday also brought a report that the Israel Defense Forces are running critically low on missile interceptors.
Meanwhile, in another indication that what was supposed to be a speedy, regime-change-triggering attack on Iran is mushrooming into a conflict consuming much of the region, the US government is urging every one of its citizens in Iraq to flee Iraq as quickly as possible. That advisory comes after a second damaging assault was carried out by Iran-allied militias against the American embassy in Baghdad.
Citing unnamed US officials, Semafor reported that Israel informed its American partners that its ballistic missile interceptor supply was critically low. Both US and Israeli supplies had been severely diminished in last summer’s 12-day war on Iran — with the Pentagon burning through a quarter of its THAAD interceptors. It appears the two countries had launched this year’s surprise attack on the false assumption that the resulting warfare would be brief. One of the officials claimed that American supplies were not running low, but US forces reportedly used interceptors valued at $2.4 billion in just the first five days after attacking Iran.
Working to run down the IDF’s interceptor supplies even faster, Iran has increasingly been using cluster munitions in its attacks on Israel. These release 24 to 80 11-pound bomblets at high altitude, making interception all the more difficult. Over Saturday night, more mayhem rained down on Israel from Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia. While Israeli censorship and AI make it challenging to find authentic imagery, Grok says this is legit:
Earlier on Saturday, the US embassy in Iraq came under fire, and the Kataib Hezbollah militia claimed responsibility. In January, the group’s chief warned the United States against attacking Iran, saying, “We affirm to the enemies that war against the [Islamic] Republic will not be a walk in the park. But rather, you will taste the bitterest forms of death, and nothing will remain of you in our region.” No injuries were reported in Saturday’s attack.The Emirati consulate in Iraqi Kurdistan was also hit — the second strike in the last week.
* * *
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* * *
Two Iraqi security officials told AP that a helipad at the US compound was hit. While AP’s sources said the strike used “missiles,”Agence France-Presse said the militia used a drone. Video also showed a structure atop an embassy building was set ablaze. Comparing the video to pre-attack imagery, observers concluded the structure was a radome — a weatherproof shell covering radar and communications equipment. A nearby Counter Rocket, Artillery and Mortar (C-RAM) system, which spews 20mm or 35mm rounds at incoming fire, appeared to have been unscathed. However, to the extent the C-RAM relied on the equipment in the radome, its usefulness may have been diminished if not neutralized.
After the attack, the State Department told Americans to get out of the country. “U.S. citizens should leave Iraq now,” said the US State Department in a security alert. Noting that Iraqi airspace is closed and commercial flights unavailable, the advisory told endangered Americans to use “overland routes to Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.” It also warned about violent protests against the US government, and said “terrorist militia groups have encouraged and conducted indiscriminate attacks on U.S. citizens.”
In another Saturday development, Trump used claimed that other countries “will be sending War Ships” to the region to “keep the Strait [of Hormuz] open and safe.” However, after saying “will,” he meagerly applied the word “hopefully” to the notion that China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and others” would commit naval assets. Italy’s Meloni has already declared her country “won’t be part of an illegal war,” and there’s no indication any other country is about to send their ships into an Iranian gauntlet guarded by cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, drones and armed speedboats.
END
DUBAI UK
British Tourist Faces Prison Sentence In UAE For Filming Iranian Missiles
A British tourist is among about 20 people who are facing charges in the UAE for filming Iranian attacks on Dubai, as America’s Gulf Arab allies are taking steps to censor the impact of the war.
According to The Guardian, the 60-year-old man is being charged with a law that prohibits sharing material that can endanger public security. The report said that he is still facing charges despite deleting the video immediately when he was asked to.
The charge carries a penalty of up to two years in prison, and many could face similar charges for simply sharing videos of missile attacks that have already been published online.
“The charges sound extremely vague but serious on paper. In reality, the alleged conduct could be something as simple as sharing or commenting on a video that is already circulating online,” said Radha Stirling, the head of Detained in Dubai.
“Under UAE cybercrime laws, the person who originally posts content can be charged, but so can anyone who reshapes, reposts, or comments on it,” Striling added.
In the immediate aftermath of the US and Israel launching the war with Iran on February 28, videos of counterattacks in Gulf countries were widespread on social media, but they became scarce once the Arab governments began cracking down.
Israel has also imposed tight restrictions on the dissemination of information about Iranian missile strikes, as it did during the 12-Day War in June 2025.
END
IRAN
END
ROBERT H
THIS IS A GAME CHANGER IF TRUE
Whiplash347 on X: “The U.S. just deployed a weapon that was supposed to stay classified for another decade THE US JUST DEPLOYED “SOFT KILL” ELECTRONIC WARFARE IN IRAN → NO BULLETS, NO BOMBS, TOTAL DESTRUCTION America just revealed a capability most people didn’t know existed. https://t.co/u4aR72wnoG” / X
This is reality.
Back in the 80’s we played around with a device under Star Wars under Reagan. I stopped the development after it worked on Seagulls realizing what it could do. It is not novel or new.
Back then we realized that a battlefield could be totally immobilized leaving an opponent paralyzed or dead and the use of their equipment to push forward. Think tanks facing you whereby the crews are immobilized and you use their equipment. Apart from eliminating an opponent you reduced the need for supply lines as the equipment of the opponent was the supply. There are variants of this far more deadly and effective.
The U.S. just deployed a weapon that was supposed to stay classified for another decade
🚨🚨🚨 THE US JUST DEPLOYED "SOFT KILL" ELECTRONIC WARFARE IN IRAN → NO BULLETS, NO BOMBS, TOTAL DESTRUCTION 🚨🚨🚨
Ukrainian Drones Damage, Set Fire To One Of Russia’s Biggest Oil Terminals On Black Sea
Sunday, Nov 02, 2025 – 11:05 AM
Another Ukrainian drone attack targeting Russia’s oil export infrastructure has occurred Sunday, which saw one of Russia’s main Black Sea oil ports set ablaze.
A tanker and another ship was also set ablaze at Tuapse, one of the biggest oil terminals on the Black Sea. Russian emergency services in the region said, “As a result of the drone attack on the port of Tuapse on the night of November 2, two foreign civilian ships were damaged.”
“The buildings and infrastructure of the terminal” had sustained damage, it said – though noted there were no casualties among the crews of the ships and that all fires had been extinguished.
The Tuapse Black Sea oil terminal and an oil refinery is controlled by Russia’s biggest oil company Rosneft – which has been targeted by the newest US Treasury sanctions last month.
According to Reuters, “The export-oriented Tuapse plant, which has a processing capacity of 240,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), produces naphtha, fuel oil, vacuum gasoil and high-sulphur diesel. It mainly supplies China, Malaysia, Singapore and Turkey.”
The Russian defense ministry said that more broadly the country’s anti-air defenses were able to intercept a little over 280 drones during the assault on various regions of Russia.
Ukraine’s General Staff boasted that its drones landed five hits on the Tuapse port and oil export infrastructure. Ukrainian media has meanwhile hailed the recent attacks on Russian oil refineries and terminals as putting a sizeable dent in Moscow’s war funding:
Russia’s exports of refined fuels have dropped to levels unseen since the war began, as the country’s energy trade is hit by a combination of shutdowns at major refineries and escalating Western sanctions, according to a report by Bloomberg on Oct. 30.
Citing Vortexa Ltd. figures, the outlet reported that overall seaborne oil product shipments amounted to 1.89 million barrels a day in the first 26 days of October, marking the lowest volume recorded since early 2022.
Although diesel exports edged higher, weaker loadings of naphtha and fuel oil – particularly from the Baltic ports affected by strikes on the Ust-Luga terminal – pulled overall shipments down. Bad weather may also have slowed port activity.
Russia for its part has been punishing Ukraine in equal measure, with the month of October alone seeing hundreds of missile strikes, and over 5000 drones sent against Ukrainian cities their energy grids.
END
ISRAEL/USA/IRAN
Israel Expects Iran War To Continue At Least Into April, Lebanon Conflict Longer
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 09:45 AM
The White House has struggled to present the American public and the world with a clear timeline or precise strategy on Operation Epic Fury, but Israel has seemed clearer on signaling it is settling in for a longer war.
Israel is bracing for its war with Iran to stretch well into April, even as officials quietly concede the government in Tehran is unlikely to collapse, according to Israeli media.
This has Israel has expanded its attacks not just to Iran’s oil and energy sites, but more broadly to its defense industrial sector, wanting to see even Tehran’s ability to manufacture new missiles utterly destroyed.
And according to Ynet, “At the same time, the idea of encouraging public unrest inside Iran has not been abandoned, though officials acknowledge uncertainty about how effective such efforts might be.”
“We continue to strike regime targets, mainly in Tehran. We are entering the decisive phase. We are aiming to bring the people out into the streets. It’s not only us – the Americans are also working toward that,” an Israeli official stated.
“Not everything can be controlled, but everything possible is being done to make it succeed. The regime must be weakened as much as possible, including the Basij,” the official added. “We are striking them and killing them in the thousands.”
Israeli officials have further made clear they have assets on the ground, or Iranians who have helped spot IRGC/Basij checkpoint and security locations. Israel’s military has publicized some instances of active strikes on these locations.
As for whether targeting information is actually being communicated by anti-regime Iranians, this could just be Israeli propaganda intent on sowing discord and suspicions among the Iranian populace.
Still, Israeli officials have admitted they are skeptical that street protests alone could topple the Iranian government. Over in Washington, President Trump apparently thought ‘decapitation strikes’ would quickly result in some kind of rapid uprising in the streets and change of government, but that didn’t appear even close to happening.
On the White House’s series of miscalculation as this war is in week three with no signs of an off-ramp, Robert D. Kaplan has written in Foreign Affairs:
The biggest U.S. foreign policy fiascos happened because policymakers were obsessed with regional and global consequences they often could not properly manage, and thus ignored critical conditions on the ground. In Vietnam, U.S. leaders overlooked the history and nature of Vietnamese nationalism; in Iraq, it was sectarianism. Tuchman has encouraged leaders to trust area specialists more than grand strategists or democracy promoters. Sophisticated and specific cultural knowledge, she has observed, is much more useful than metrics and shadowy schemes.
Middle-sized wars often stem from misunderstandings about the place intervention is meant to help. The key, then, is for the intervening country to know what it is getting itself into. This may seem easy, but it can be the hardest part of policymaking. Bringing up cultural matters and differences is tricky because it can easily be misconstrued as prejudice, which pushes people to avoid critical conversations about realities on the ground. But it is such discussions that can keep a superpower out of trouble.
Meanwhile, as far as a timeline, Israeli leaders have admitted that it’s renewed war with Hezbollah is expected to outlast the conflict with Iran. Hezbollah has been launching missiles on northern Israel, while IDF ground forces have moved in, also as Beirut continues to get pounded from the air.
END
SUMMARY SUNDAY AND MONDAY
Allies Balk As Trump Pushes Joint Military Action To Reopen Hormuz – Iran Says No Ceasefire On Table
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 08:50 AM
Summary:
Trump declares ‘victory’ while simultaneously urging coalition help: President Trump claimed the US has “essentially defeated Iran” and vowed “we will finish the job,” while pressing NATO allies and other countries to join a naval coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran rejects ceasefire and signals escalation: Iranian FM dismissed any truce, saying Tehran wants the war to end in a way that ensures enemies “never again think of repeating these attacks,” adding Iran has “sent no messages and do not request a ceasefire.”
US weighing major escalation at Kharg Island: The White House is considering seizing Iran’s main oil export hub on Kharg Island, a move that would require US boots on the ground.
Europe reluctant to join Hormuz operation, Germany outright rejects it alongside Italy and Greece: Trump warned of a “very bad” future for NATO if allies don’t help reopen the strait. UK also says it won’t be ‘NATO-led’.
Regional attacks and oil shock intensify: Iran continues missile and drone strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure and US-aligned states, while Israeli forces launched “wide-scale” strikes. Saudi Arabia, Dubai continue to get hit.
* * *
President Trump and his top officials spent the weekend on the one hand touting the Iran campaign a decisive military win and supposed success, while on the other racing to assemble a naval coalition to force open Tehran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, all the while imploring other countries for help. Europe appears deeply reluctant, with some key NATO countries already slamming the door on this prospect.
“As far as I’m concerned, we have essentially defeated Iran,” President Trump said in some of latest remarks aboard Air Force One. “They want to negotiate badly, as they should, but I don’t think they’re ready to do what they have to do… We will finish the job,” he claimed.
But then on Monday Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected calls for a ceasefire, insisting Tehran intends to impose steep and bloody costs on the aggressors. “The reason we say we do not want a ceasefire is not because we are seeking war, but because this time this war must end in such a way that our enemies never again think of repeating these attacks,” Araghchi said at a press conference.
“I think they have already learned a good lesson and understood what kind of nation they are dealing with.” He also dismissed reports that Iran had quietly sought negotiations: “As we have said many times and I reiterated last night in an interview with an American network, we have sent no messages and do not request a ceasefire.”
Still, Trump is pressing forward on plans for NATO to send allied ships. According to US officials cited in The Wall Street Journal, there are plans for as soon as this week to announce that multiple countries have agreed to join a coalition escorting ships through the strait. All of this, and especially a timeline, still seems up in the air.
And separately per Axios, the White House is simultaneously considering the far more aggressive option of seizing Iran’s main oil export hub on Kharg Island, after much of it has been subject of heavy US bombing, which started overnight Friday, but reportedly left oil terminals and vital export infrastructure in place.
There remains widespread speculation that this is what the multi-thousand strong Marine Expeditionary Force currently en route is all about, raising the states even higher. A direct Kharg Island seizure would require American boots on the ground – already asIran’s retaliatory blockade of the narrow strait has sent oil and gas prices climbing as a major share of global crude supply remains effectively frozen.
Trump on NATO and Iran:
Whether we get support or not, but I can say this — and I said it to them — we will remember. pic.twitter.com/uki36COerk
This is apparently what’s behind Trump’s growing urgency – and some might day desperation – for allies to step up, with the US president having told European leaders there could be a “very bad” future for NATO if member states fail to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Financial Times. But by the looks of it most of Europe wants to avoid what’s looking like a recipe for another quagmire in the Middle East. Ironically, Iran is bordered by two countries which were subject of over two decades of US-led war and occupation.
For example, after Italy had earlier made very clear it will have no involvement, Al Jazeera reports:
The war in Iran has nothing to do with NATO, a German government spokesperson says, adding that Germany would not take part in the war nor in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open through military means.
“As long as this war continues, there will be no participation, not even in any effort to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by military means,” the spokesperson said. Greece also will not engage in any military operations in the Strait of Hormuz, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said.
And Britain too while signaling openness says it won’t be NATO-led:
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday Britain would not be drawn into a wider war in Iran but would work with allies on a “viable collective plan” to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz, though he acknowledged that would not be a simple task.
…Starmer told a press conference that reopening the strait was the only way to stabilize energy markets, and that he was talking to allies in Europe, the Gulf and the U.S. on a plan to secure freedom of navigation. He said it would not be a NATO-led mission.
Iran meanwhile continues to send missile and drones on America’s gulf allies and energy infrastructure, with Saudi Arabia saying it intercepted 61 drones over its territory since midnight, though potential impact sites of projectiles what got through weren’t immediately disclosed.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the regime is not in a war of survival, telling @margbrennan the regime is “stable and strong enough.”
“We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans, because we were talking with them when they decided to attack us, and… pic.twitter.com/AQdyeWBiFu
Flights at Dubai International Airport have been suspended after a fuel take went up on flames. “An Iranian drone attack ignited a fuel tank at Dubai International Airport early Monday, authorities said, as Tehran continued to strike civilian infrastructure across the Persian Gulf,” Washington Post reports. Fujairah has also been hit again.
The Israeli military has said Monday it has begun “wide-scale wave of strikes targeting infrastructure” in the Iranian cities of Tehran, Shiraz, and Tabriz simultaneously. It has vowed to keep hitting Iran “as long as needed” – suggesting no quick end amid the war’s third week.
But Israel also faces unprecedented bombardment by Iran’s sophisticated missile and drone arsenal. Israel’s Health Ministry has newly announced that at least 3,369 people, including civilians and military personnel, have been wounded and injured – with many hospitalized – since the war’s start. At least a dozen people have been killed, but the true numbers could be significantly higher as Israel’s military has censored a lot of wartime information.
Below is a running death toll via Turkish media as of Sunday:
IRAN – The most recent death toll, reported by state media on Monday, was at least 1,270 people. But Iran’s ambassador to the U.N. said on March 6 that at least 1,332 people had been killed since the war began. There has been no clarification of the discrepancy. It was not clear if those figures include at least 104 people that the Iranian military said were killed in a U.S. attack on an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka’s coast on March 4.
LEBANON – At least 850 people have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to Lebanese authorities. The World Health Organization said at least 98 of those killed were children.
IRAQ – At least 30 people have been killed, according to Iraqi health authorities. Most of those were members of the Shi’ite Popular Mobilization Forces. One foreign crew member was killed in an attack on tankers near an Iraqi port, according to port security officials.
ISRAEL – Twelve people have been killed, including nine people in an Iranian missile strike on Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem on March 1, according to Israel’s ambulance service. The Israeli military said two of its soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon.
UNITED STATES – Thirteen service members have been killed. Six were confirmed dead after a U.S. military refueling aircraft crashed over Iraq, the U.S. military said, while seven others have been killed in action during operations against Iran.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Six people have been killed in Iranian attacks, according to the UAE’s defense ministry.
KUWAIT – Authorities have reported six deaths – including two people killed in Iranian attacks, two interior ministry officers and two army soldiers.
SYRIA – Four people were killed when an Iranian missile struck a building in the southern Syrian city of Sweida on February 28, state news agency SANA said.
OMAN – Two people were killed in a drone strike on an industrial zone in Sohar province, marking the first fatalities inside the country, which has been hosting mediation talks between the U.S. and Iran. One person died earlier when a projectile hit a tanker off the coast of Muscat, the vessel’s manager said.
SAUDI ARABIA – Two people were killed when a projectile fell on a residential location in Al-Kharj city, southeast of the capital Riyadh.
BAHRAIN – Two people were killed in two separate Iranian attacks, with the most recent hitting a residential building in the capital Manama, according to the interior ministry.
FRANCE – One French soldier was killed and six others were wounded after a drone attack in northern Iraq, where they were providing counterterrorism training
END
MONDAY AFTERNOON
Trump Says US “Hammering Iran’s Ability To Threaten Shipping”, Warns Xi Summit Could Slip If Beijing Bails
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 12:30 PM
Summary:
Trump reiterates military campaign continuing in full force, main efforts to Iran’s threat to shipping
Trump presses for multinational Hormuz escort coalition as allies hesitate; Bessent says US allowing limited Iranian, Chinese, and Indian tanker transits “for now” to stabilize global supply.
Bessent downplays link to Trump-Xi summit, calling any potential delay “logistical” due to Iran war coordination needs.
Trump floated delaying March 31–April 2 Beijing meeting unless China helps reopen Strait fully, citing Beijing’s heavy reliance on Gulf oil.
Europe reluctant to join Hormuz operation, Germany outright rejects it alongside Italy and Greece: Trump warned of a “very bad” future for NATO if allies don’t help reopen the strait. UK also says it won’t be ‘NATO-led’.
Iran rejects ceasefire, vows prolonged defense; selective Hormuz policy continues, with traffic still down 70-90% and only “friendly” vessels passing safely.
Gulf energy infrastructure under ongoing attack; regional proxies (Houthis, others) threaten further disruptions to bypass routes.
* * *
Trump says US “Hammering Iran” to Ease Shipping Concerns
President Trump has provided an update on the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iran, describing it as continuing in full force over the past several days.
“They have been literally obliterated … their leaders are gone”: President Donald Trump discusses the war in Iran and the Middle East and says the U.S. and Israel are “doing what should have been done many years ago.” More: https://t.co/w1oXVmv975pic.twitter.com/cOs3scdVqv
He claimed significant successes, including striking more than 7,000 targets across Iran, decimating the country’s anti-aircraft equipment, and achieving a 95% reduction in Iran’s drone attack capabilities.
Trump emphasized that Iran’s missile and drone manufacturing plants have been heavily targeted, leaving the country with few missiles remaining and severely hampered ability to produce more: “hammering Iran’s ability to threaten shipping.”
Trump highlighted specific actions against Iran’s naval and strategic assets, noting the destruction of more than 30 mine-laying ships and strikes on Kharg Island – described as largely destroyed except for the oil pipes area.
He warned that with one simple order, the remaining oil infrastructure there could be eliminated, underscoring efforts to undermine Iran’s capacity to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
He expressed uncertainty about whether mines have already been deployed in the strait and strongly urged other nations, including China and Japan, to assist in securing the waterway, noting that some countries have shown little enthusiasm for helping.
These comments reflect Trump’s portrayal of a highly effective and intensifying operation amid the broader U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, while shifting some responsibility for regional stability to international partners.
Hormuz ‘Selected Disruption’
The Iran war and Strait of Hormuz crisis remain in a tense selective-disruption phase rather than full closure, with Brent crude pulling back today (around $102 after earlier spikes) as markets digest weekend strikes and fresh US comments. The US precision bombing on Kharg Island hit only military assets (mines, missiles, air defenses) – leaving the oil export terminal (up to 90% of Iran’s loadings) untouched and operational. As Rabobank notes, “Trump was at pains to be clear that oil infrastructure was not targeted, but the implicit threat that it could be is an unsubtle one,” with Trump later joking about further strikes “just for fun.”
Tanker crossings via the Hormuz with AIS transponders. Now we’ve reported that some tankers have been turning off their transponders to go stealth through the waterway.
Latest Bloomberg ship-tracking data shows the Strait, on either side, is a massive parking lot of tankers. This could take weeks, if not longer, to unclog.
The USS Tripoli (light carrier with ~2,500 Marines and F-35Bs) has been redeployed to the Persian Gulf, fueling speculation about potential boots-on-ground roles (securing Kharg or clearing northern approaches), which Rabobank flags as a “major escalation.” Limited Iranian attacks hit US-aligned Gulf oil assets over the weekend, and Fujairah port saw fresh strikes today. Iran’s selective policy holds: traffic is still down 70-90%, but “friendly”/neutral vessels (Iranian, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani) continue limited transits. The standout today remains the Pakistan National Shipping Corp tanker Karachi (Abu Dhabi crude) safely crossing with full AIS active — the clearest non-Iranian success yet.
Diplomacy & China
On the diplomatic front,Treasury Secretary Scott Bessenttold CNBC’s Squawk Box this morning that the US is deliberately “allowing Iranian oil tankers to transit the Strait of Hormuz” and is “fine” with some Indian and Chinese ships moving through “for now… to supply the rest of the world.” He highlighted “more and more of the fuel ships start[ing] to go through” and a possible “natural opening” the Iranians are permitting – a tactical concession to stabilize global supply while full escorts remain “militarily” off the table for now.
🇺🇸🇮🇷 U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the Strait of Hormuz:
“The Iranian ships have been getting out already, and we’ve let that happen to supply the rest of the world. We've seen Indian ships go out now… we also believe some Chinese ships have gone out” pic.twitter.com/QswYbQDh3m
Bessent said crude oil prices should fall “much lower” than $80 per barrel after the war is over, adding that when the war is over, the “world will be safer and we will be better supplied.”
Glimmers of de-escalation persist, per Rabobank: Hamas (an Iranian proxy) called for Iran to cease attacks on neighbors (speculated as an off-ramp signal), Iran struck passage deals with India/Bangladesh, and FM comments framed the strait as “not closed to anyone other than the US, Israel and their allies.” Yet counters are loud – Houthis threaten Red Sea escalation (risking Saudi’s 5-7 mn bbl/day bypass pipeline), Trump rebuffs ceasefire (Iran demands US withdrawal + reparations), and prediction markets price ceasefire odds before month-end at just 14%. The WSJ reports the US is forming an international naval escort coalition, with Trump demanding “about seven” countries help.
That said, by the looks of it most of Europe wants to avoid what’s looking like a recipe for another quagmire in the Middle East. Ironically, Iran is bordered by two countries which were subject of over two decades of US-led war and occupation.
For example, after Italy had earlier made very clear it will have no involvement, Al Jazeera reports:
The war in Iran has nothing to do with NATO, a German government spokesperson says, adding that Germany would not take part in the war nor in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open through military means.
“As long as this war continues, there will be no participation, not even in any effort to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by military means,” the spokesperson said. Greece also will not engage in any military operations in the Strait of Hormuz, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said.
And Britain too while signaling openness says it won’t be NATO-led:
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday Britain would not be drawn into a wider war in Iran but would work with allies on a “viable collective plan” to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz, though he acknowledged that would not be a simple task.
…Starmer told a press conference that reopening the strait was the only way to stabilize energy markets, and that he was talking to allies in Europe, the Gulf and the U.S. on a plan to secure freedom of navigation. He said it would not be a NATO-led mission.
The dominant pressure point is US-China leverage. Rabobank nails it: “Trump wants Hormuz open again. Xi wants guarantees that Gulf oil will continue to flow to Chinese refineries, Chinese industrial producers will have markets to sell to, and Chinese consumers will have food to import.” Speaking with FT on Sunday, Trump floated delaying the March 31–April 2 Beijing summit unless China helps reopen the strait, paraphrasing Connally: “it’s our war, but it’s your problem.” Bessent walked this back today as purely “logistical” (Trump may need to stay in DC for war coordination), not direct pressure — but the linkage and China’s heavy Gulf-oil dependence remain crystal clear. For Xi, the summit could become the moment Beijing quietly directs Tehran to ease restrictions… or risk Kharg-style escalation hammering China’s import-dependent industrial economy.
Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointment of hardliner Mohsen Rezaei as military adviser adds hawkish continuity on the Iranian side. Overall, markets see a bullish crude tone from risks but “glimmers” of hope; the situation stays highly fluid — watch for coalition announcements, next tanker flows, or any Iranian response in the coming hours.
Tanker traffic on the key shipping lane in the Strait remains paralyzed. Last week, tankers began broadcasting “Chinese” on AIS as one way to transit the waterway.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported earlier that a Pakistan-flagged Aframax called “Karachi” hugged the Iranian coast in the Strait unscathed. It sailed from Fujairah in the UAE last month and now has a port call in Pakistan, according to ship-tracking data.
END
Trump says Iran Wants To Make Deal & they are “Talking”; Israel Won’t Use A Nuke
President Trump said Monday that “numerous countries have told me they’re on the way” to help fully open the Strait of Hormuz – but at this moment it’s unknown who these countries are. He has said Secretary of State Rubio will soon announce, but with no date given.
Trump has also freshly stated of Iranian leadership after the initial decapitation strikes followed by two weeks of heavy bombing that “We don’t even know their leaders,” stressing that they might all be dead. He specifically mentioned that new Ayatollah Khamenei might be dead, but it’s ultimately unknown. He further claimed “They are negotiating” but Trump doesn’t know if Tehran is ready yet for some kind of deal to bring an end to the conflict. Oil prices immediately dropped on these headlines. And on this front, he reiterated that “when this is over, oil prices are going to go down very, very rapidly” once the war concludes.
Another couple of interesting points included mention of the Iranian opposition: “they can be brave but they are not stupid,” Trump said. Also on Israel, Trump assures it “would not use a nuclear weapon.”
Trump says US “Hammering Iran” to Ease Shipping Concerns
President Trump has provided an update on the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iran, describing it as continuing in full force over the past several days.
He claimed significant successes, including striking more than 7,000 targets across Iran, decimating the country’s anti-aircraft equipment, and achieving a 95% reduction in Iran’s drone attack capabilities.
Trump emphasized that Iran’s missile and drone manufacturing plants have been heavily targeted, leaving the country with few missiles remaining and severely hampered ability to produce more: “hammering Iran’s ability to threaten shipping.”
Trump highlighted specific actions against Iran’s naval and strategic assets, noting the destruction of more than 30 mine-laying ships and strikes on Kharg Island – described as largely destroyed except for the oil pipes area.
He warned that with one simple order, the remaining oil infrastructure there could be eliminated, underscoring efforts to undermine Iran’s capacity to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
He expressed uncertainty about whether mines have already been deployed in the strait and strongly urged other nations, including China and Japan, to assist in securing the waterway, noting that some countries have shown little enthusiasm for helping.
These comments reflect Trump’s portrayal of a highly effective and intensifying operation amid the broader U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, while shifting some responsibility for regional stability to international partners.
END
MONDAY AFTERNOON
Trump says Iran Wants To Make Deal & they are “Talking”; Israel Won’t Use A Nuke
President Trump said Monday that “numerous countries have told me they’re on the way” to help fully open the Strait of Hormuz – but at this moment it’s unknown who these countries are. He has said Secretary of State Rubio will soon announce, but with no date given.
Trump has also freshly stated of Iranian leadership after the initial decapitation strikes followed by two weeks of heavy bombing that “We don’t even know their leaders,” stressing that they might all be dead. He specifically mentioned that new Ayatollah Khamenei might be dead, but it’s ultimately unknown. He further claimed “They are negotiating” but Trump doesn’t know if Tehran is ready yet for some kind of deal to bring an end to the conflict. Oil prices immediately dropped on these headlines. And on this front, he reiterated that “when this is over, oil prices are going to go down very, very rapidly” once the war concludes.
🚨 POTUS: "You can't let the most violent, vicious country in the last 50 years have a nuclear weapon. The Middle East will be gone. Israel will go first. And they'll certainly take a shot at us… our act together. Iran is a nation of great terror."pic.twitter.com/9D82hQLdWp
Another couple of interesting points included mention of the Iranian opposition: “they can be brave but they are not stupid,” Trump said. Also on Israel, Trump assures it “would not use a nuclear weapon.”
Trump says US “Hammering Iran” to Ease Shipping Concerns
President Trump has provided an update on the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iran, describing it as continuing in full force over the past several days.
“They have been literally obliterated … their leaders are gone”: President Donald Trump discusses the war in Iran and the Middle East and says the U.S. and Israel are “doing what should have been done many years ago.” More: https://t.co/w1oXVmv975pic.twitter.com/cOs3scdVqv
He claimed significant successes, including striking more than 7,000 targets across Iran, decimating the country’s anti-aircraft equipment, and achieving a 95% reduction in Iran’s drone attack capabilities.
Trump emphasized that Iran’s missile and drone manufacturing plants have been heavily targeted, leaving the country with few missiles remaining and severely hampered ability to produce more: “hammering Iran’s ability to threaten shipping.”
Trump highlighted specific actions against Iran’s naval and strategic assets, noting the destruction of more than 30 mine-laying ships and strikes on Kharg Island – described as largely destroyed except for the oil pipes area.
He warned that with one simple order, the remaining oil infrastructure there could be eliminated, underscoring efforts to undermine Iran’s capacity to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
He expressed uncertainty about whether mines have already been deployed in the strait and strongly urged other nations, including China and Japan, to assist in securing the waterway, noting that some countries have shown little enthusiasm for helping.
These comments reflect Trump’s portrayal of a highly effective and intensifying operation amid the broader U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, while shifting some responsibility for regional stability to international partners.
END
Echoes Of Iraq: Mainstream Media ‘Deja Vu’ Over Framing Of The War On Iran
“Why we should go to war” ran the headline of a Guardian article in February 2003 by the commentator Julie Burchill. In it, she explained to the Guardian’s liberal readers why a pro-war attitude in the run-up to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s invasion of Iraq should be welcomed.
“If you really think it’s better for more people to die over decades under a tyrannical regime than for fewer people to die during a brief attack by an outside power, you’re really weird and nationalistic and not any sort of socialist that I recognise,” wrote Burchill.
Another article published in April 2003, after the invasion started, criticised anti-war “doomsters”, claiming “the people of Iraq have been unchained from appalling torture and tyranny” as a result of US-UK action.
Despite claims of the BBC’s anti-war bias from Downing Street, academic analysis proved that it was in fact more reliant on government and military sources than other sources.
It was also the least likely to quote sources of Iraqi or independent origin, such as the Red Cross, which might contradict official narratives that underplayed Iraqi casualties. Two decades after Iraq, how much has changed?
Many media outlets have issued mea culpas for their parroting of US and British propaganda lines in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq but when it comes to the latest conflict in Iran, it seems clear that that introspection did not lead to lasting change.
Media analysts Middle East Eye spoke to say that once again the media is failing in its coverage of the current US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Coverage by news outlets is perhaps more tentative in its support for war given the lessons editors have learnt after Iraq, but many of the same issues keep turning up.
Leaving out unflattering details
The bombardment of Iran by Israel and Washington has already led to more than 1200 deaths, including 165 people, almost all schoolchildren aged between seven and 12, killed by US “double-tap” strikes on a school.
Such strikes are designed to take out medics and civilians arriving at the scene to help victims in a delayed double explosion. Declassified UK reported a Scottish weapons factory helped to make missiles allegedly used in the attack, which the UN education agency, Unesco, described as a “grave violation of international law”.
So far, no mainstream media have reported on this UK link to the attack. Instead media outlets have repeatedly raised doubts about who was behind the attack.
One BBC headline from 28 February read “At least 153 dead after reported strike on school, Iran says”. Analysts have pointed out the use of the passive voice, lack of a named aggressor, and implication of doubt regarding the reliability of the source.
It was a New York Times report that first revealed the US as the likely culprits behind the attack – a conclusion that has since become firmer as evidence comes out, despite Washington’s reluctance to accept responsibility.
Elsewhere, Sky News called Iran’s bombing of Israel a “horror story”, but has avoided the use of similar language to describe the plight of Iranians living under US bombardment.
An article in The Telegraph justified US-Israeli attacks by accusing critics of “erasing the history of the regime’s terror”. Nonetheless, this time round the lack of a persuasive reason for the war from the Trump administration has meant a break from the cohesive media narrative that accompanied the Iraq war.
According to Ali Alavi, lecturer in Middle Eastern and Iranian Studies at SOAS, while the 2003 invasion of Iraq followed the “shock of 9/11, when much of the western political class and media converged around a single security narrative about Saddam Hussein”, the response to the war on Iran “appears much more fragmented”.
He said that the coverage is “less uniformly aligned with political messaging” with a “lack of consensus” around the framing and justification for the war.
Part of this stems from the fact that the Trump administration has been characteristically chaotic in establishing the aims of the war: with conflicting narratives around “regime change”, preventing nuclear capabilities and taking out an immediate threat.
WMDs and other lies
During the lead-up to the Iraq War, press reporting repeated the so-called “45-minute claim” on how long it would take Saddam Hussein’s non-existent weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) to reach the UK.
Most notably, the Sun ran a sensationalist headline “Brits 45 mins from doom” following the publication of the September 2002 dossier which served as justification for Prime Minister Tony Blair’s invasion of Iraq the following year.
Similarly, The Sunday Telegraph pumped out headlines like “UN inspectors uncover proof of Saddam’s nuclear bomb plans” and “UN gives Iraq last chance to disarm” to pave the way for the illegal invasion.
The BBC was attacked by Blair’s government for raising concerns that the intelligence dossier about Iraq’s WMDs had been “sexed up” by the prime minister’s office. The subsequent fallout led to resignations from the BBC’s chairman and director general.
However, the publication of the Chilcot report in 2016 later vindicated their claims that Blair and his director of communications, Alastair Campbell, had exaggerated the threat posed by Saddam Hussein.
The inquiry found Iraq posed “no imminent threat” and British intelligence agencies had produced “flawed information” about the alleged WMDs.
Fast forward to 2026 and Israeli officials are claiming they launched a “pre-emptive attack against Iran” while Trump cited an “imminent threat” to the US, despite Pentagon briefings directly contradicting the narrative that Iran would strike unprovoked.
The claims that Iran poses an existential threat have been repeated in British mainstream media and Iran’s supposed nuclear weapons ambitions are spoken of as a matter of fact. For example, The Times ran a story on Thursday with the headline “How close is Iran to building a nuclear weapon?”
“US-Israeli attacks are targeting Tehran’s atomic program once more, suggesting Trump’s bunker-busting bombs last year did not entirely obliterate the threat,” the article continues. What the article fails to mention is that Iran had just made major concessions in settlements regarding its nuclear program.
Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who has been mediating the process, told CBS News that negotiators from the US and Iran had made “substantial progress” and that a nuclear “deal is within our reach”, just one day before the US and Israel attacked the region.
Iran agreed to blend existing stockpiles of enriched uranium to their “lowest level possible” and grant inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) “full access” to its nuclear sites.
Meanwhile, Israel refuses to acknowledge its own nuclear programme, has rejected IAEA inspections, and, unlike Iran, is not part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Rarely mentioned is the fact that western states have been intervening in the region, including militarily, before weapons of mass destruction were ever an issue.
In 1953, US and British intelligence operatives organised a coup against Iran’s democratically elected leader, Mohammad Mosaddegh after he nationalised Iran’s oil. The Shah’s rule was strengthened and the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (now known as BP) resumed its control of Iranian oil.
The CIA also helped overthrow Iraq’s president, Abdul-Karim Qasim, the general who deposed the western-allied Iraqi monarchy, in a 1963 coup.
When the Shah was overthrown during the 1979 Iranian revolution, the US backed Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, providing arms and intelligence to fight the newly anti-western Iran. Britain and Germany supplied Saddam with equipment and materials for the manufacture of chemical weapons during the war.
When Saddam Hussein no longer supported western interests and became the new bete noire by invading Kuwait in 1990, the US led a war against Iraq.
Embedded journalists
Catriona Pennell, professor of Modern History and Memory Studies at Exeter, told MEE that, in 2003, during “a perceived moment of crisis, the press tended to support the national cause… transmitting information on behalf of governments, rather than acting as a critical filter.”
Media analysts found that less than 10 percent of news stories covering the Iraq war featured controversial issues such as “civilian casualties and antiwar protest”. Under six percent focused on “the rationale for war”, with the vast majority of reporting being “event-driven” by “embedded journalists” accompanying military personnel on the ground.
For academic Gholam Khiabany, who teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London, the fact that the media are reporting on Iran largely from inside Tel Aviv is telling.
“The camera-angle is from Israel and from Washington rather than Iran,” he explained, likening it to the media’s coverage of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, which emphasised death toll figures came from the “Hamas-run health ministry” to imply they were unreliable.
According to Philip Seib, professor of Journalism and Public Diplomacy at the University of Southern California, while “cinematic but simplistic news coverage bolstered the early support for the invasion” in Iraq, the argument of “Iran as an existential threat to the United States exists only in the troubled brain of Donald Trump”.
Opposition to the Iraq war grew steadily, culminating in the two-million-person march in February 2003 organised by Stop the War.
Public Skepticism
Lindsey German, co-founder of Stop the War, which recently organised the 50,000-strong London demonstration against attacks on Iran on Saturday, said that the Independent and the Daily Mirror were the only major British outlets to highlight widespread opposition to the Iraq war.
The aftermath of Iraq – British military losses, vast Iraqi civilian casualties, the absence of WMDs – has contributed to a more cautious response from Keir Starmer, whose popularity is lower than even Blair’s worst moments.
“The legacy of Iraq weighs very heavily on the Labour government,” German told MEE, noting Starmer frames support for US and Israeli attacks as being for “defensive purposes”, despite criticism from both Blair and Trump.
Trump is also a much less credible source when it comes to justifying bombing civilians in the name of Iranian women’s freedom, given his extensive ties to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, track record of misogynistic comments, and allegations of sexual assault involving underage girls.
NEW – Trump on Iran: "We support gays, but they throw gays off the buildings… we have to wipe out the evil. It's an evil curse. They're evil people." pic.twitter.com/vpO4KsRRUG
While the media might maintain a lot of the narrative cohesion that accompanied the Iraq War, the same cannot be said about the general public in both the US and UK.
Recent YouGov polling indicates that a majority (59 percent) of the British public oppose US military action against Iran and only eight percent want the UK “actively joining” attacks. More than half of Americans also oppose the war on Iran, with opposition to the use of ground troops rising to 74 percent, according to the pollster Quinnipiac.
Des Freedman, professor of media and communications at Goldsmiths University, told MEE “the clear fact is that the media do not represent these views and cater overwhelmingly to the most hawkish voices in government”.
These voices he said issue “a cacophony of noise that we have to move to a war footing and increase the defense budget, even if that means shredding public services”.
The chaos surrounding Trump has “allowed sections of the media to report more critically and to focus on the lack of military planning on the part of the US, justifying the UK not playing a more defensive role”.
Nevertheless, Freedman noted, as with Iraq, “very few journalists ask the key questions about how any of this can be justified in international law.”
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Trump Launches Strikes Against Key Iranian Oil Hub, Issues WarningPresident Trump recently ordered military action against Kharg Island, crucial for Iran’s oil exports, while signaling potential further strikes if threats to U.S. shipping continue. The operation aimed to pressure the Iranian regime without targeting economic assets.READ THE FULL REPORT
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MICHAEL EVERY/OR OR PICTON/GIFFIN OR RABOBANK EXECUTIVE/COMMENTARY ON WORLDLY AFFAIR
The Wrath Of Kharg
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 10:45 AM
By Ben Picton, Senior Market Startegist at Rabobank
Brent crude is bid again this morning as markets digest the dump of news over the weekend relating to the Iran war. On the bullish side for crude was the US decision to bomb Iranian military assets on Kharg Island – the Persian Gulf port where up to 90% of Iranian oil exports are typically loaded onto tankers. Announcing the strikes via Truth Social, President Trump was at pains to be clear that oil infrastructure was not targeted, but the implicit threat that it could be is an unsubtle one. Trump later said that the US may conduct further strikes on the island “just for fun”.
News also emerged over the weekend that the USS Tripoli has been redeployed from the Western Pacific to the Persian Gulf. The Tripoli is a light aircraft carrier with a complement of 2,500 marines and an F35B stealth fighter air wing. Speculation is rife that the marines could be used to secure oil infrastructure on Kharg Island, or perhaps to help clear the mountains north of the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian belligerents (the latter seems less likely). Either would be a case of ‘boots on the ground’ and interpreted as a major escalation. Iranian officials have said over the weekend that they would respond in kind to any attacks on their oil infrastructure. Indeed, there were further limited attacks on oil assets of US-aligned Gulf states over the weekend, which may explain the bid tone in Brent this morning and a lift in the forward curve since this time last week.
A bizarre intervention in the war came from Hamas, who called for Iran to cease attacks on regional neighbors. Hamas is well-known as an Iranian proxy, so there is some speculation circulating that this may be an attempt from the Iranian side to begin to engineer an off-ramp. Coupled with news last week that Iran had struck agreements with India and Bangladesh to allow crude cargoes to pass, and comments from the Iranian Foreign Minister over the weekend that the Strait was not closed to anyone other than the US, Israel and their allies, there appears to be some cautious optimism in markets this morning that glimmers of hope for an end to hostilities are emerging. AUD and NZD are both trading higher, spot gold is down to almost $5,000/oz and bitcoin is catching a bid.
However, ‘glimmers’ is the operative word. While Hamas was calling for Iran to end strikes on neighboring states the Houthis (another Iranian proxy) were giving signs that they are ready to escalate against shipping being diverted into the Red Sea to load crude cargoes at the Saudi port of Yanbu. Disruptions to Red Sea shipping – which the Houthis have proven adept at over the years – would close off the release valve of the Saudi East-West pipeline that is capable of redirecting 5-7mn bbl/day to offset the ~18-20mn bbl/day supply interruption.
There is also the fact that South Korea and Japan – both major destinations for Gulf energy cargoes – would likely be considered US allies and therefore not allowed to receive crude shipments under the terms of the Iranian toll road. Trump himself has rebuffed suggestions of a ceasefire over the weekend, saying that he is not yet ready to end the war because the terms offered by Iran are not good enough. Iranian officials deny that any terms have been offered at, beyond the US’s withdrawal from the Middle East and payment of reparations. No wonder Trump isn’t keen. Prediction markets are this morning implying odds of a ceasefire before month end of just 14%, down from 21% on Friday.
There are glimmers of hope in other areas. The Wall Street Journal is this morning reporting that the United States is set to announce the formation of an international coalition to provide naval escorts to tankers transiting Hormuz. Some commentators on X have already observed that this would run counter to Donald Trump’s recent shot at UK PM Starmer, where he said that the US doesn’t need allies who only turn up after the war is won (the British might have their own thoughts on allies who arrive late to wars). Nevertheless, there does seem to be a plan developing, though both South Korea and Japan have signalled caution about deploying warships to the Gulf as China resumes military exercises around Taiwan after a 10-day hiatus.
Speaking of China, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are currently meeting with Chinese officials, including Vice Premier He Lifeng, in Paris to discuss trade. The talks come ahead of a much anticipated Trump-Xi summit in Beijing on March 31st and are expected to lay the groundwork for that meeting. Early reports suggest that the American side asked China to buy more Boeing aircraft, and US coal and gas. With Qatari liquified natural gas exports currently out of the market, and the Chinese economy approximately 50% dependent on imports for its domestic needs, it should be an easy sell. Japan’s Industry Minister has also recently reached out to Australia to urge a ramping up of LNG production, though this will take time and is sure to face opposition from environmentalists in Australia.
The timing of the Trump-Xi meeting is interesting. Trump will be headed to Beijing with Chinese influence having recently been ejected by America power in Venezuela, Cuba and the Panama Canal. The strikes on Kharg Island – which is the main port of origin for a large slice of China’s oil imports – also raises the prospect of Chinese influence in central Asia being severely curtailed. The US is a mostly self-sufficient net energy exporter who suddenly occupies several key maritime chokepoints for Chinese energy imports. The message to Beijing couldn’t be more clear: if you attempt to leverage rare earth supply chains against US interests, the US will leverage energy supply chains against Chinese interests. Regular readers would be aware that we have argued the logic of this for the last 18 months.
So, again we see that economic statecraft is employed to create supply chain pressure to get what you want. To appreciate this disruptive power fully, it must be recognised that the Iran crisis goes far beyond energy and the supply shock will reverberate through everything from petrochemicals, to agriculture to pharmaceuticals and beyond. China’s industrial dominance therefore becomes an Achilles heel in a global economic shock. For a comprehensive accounting of the likely impacts, see this excellent piece produced by the RaboResearch Food and Agribusiness team.
Trump wants Hormuz open again. Xi wants guarantees that Gulf oil will continue to flow to Chinese refineries, Chinese industrial producers will have markets to sell to, and Chinese consumers will have food to import. Trump thinks he has the upper hand in this negotiation and so on Sunday night he told media that he could seek to delay the Beijing summit and that he expected China to help open the Strait of Hormuz. He is playing hard to get, and trying to put all of the pressure on Xi to force a resolution. To paraphrase Nixon’s Treasury Secretary John Connally: “it’s our war, but it’s your problem.”
So, could the upcoming summit be the moment where we see Beijing issue the directive to its allies in Tehran to end the blockade? For Xi it may be a choice between that, or suffering the wrath of Kharg on the Chinese industrial economy.
7. OIL ISSUES/NATURAL GAS/ENERGY ISSUES/GLOBAL
Trump Claims “Many Countries” Will Send Warships As US “Bombing The Hell Out Of Shoreline” To Reopen Hormuz
Saturday, Mar 14, 2026 – 01:58 PM
Summary:
US strikes on Kharg Island escalate war as Trump claims allies sending warships to Hormuz: Trump said US forces “obliterated” military targets on Kharg Island but warned Iran’s critical oil infrastructure could be the.
Iran vows bigger regional retaliation: IRGC warned the UAE that US “hideouts” there are now “legitimate targets”; UAE oil port hit, and US Embassy in Baghdad catches fire after apparent drone strike.
Heavy casualties and explosions in Iran ongoing: US-Israeli strikes have killed about 1,450 people in Iran since February 28, while “huge blasts” were reported in central Tehran after mass rallies where some Iranian leaders walked the streets in defiance.
Oil war and extreme risk unfolds, US gas prices up: disrupted Hormuz shipping and ongoing chaos has driven US gasoline prices up 23%
Lebanon ground and air Israel-Hezbollah war: Major Israeli strikes in Lebanon, especially on Beirut have killed at least 826 people.
Trump rejected efforts by Middle Eastern allies to hold talks aimed at ending the war in Iran, according to Reuters.
Oman attempted several times to open a line of communication, but the US administration has made clear it’s not interested.
Iran rejects the possibility of a ceasefire until strikes end.
UAE suspended loading operations at a key energy export hub after a drone strike and fire on Saturday.
Iran threatened to reduce US-linked oil facilities to a pile of ashes.
Israel is running “critically low” on interceptors, according to Semafor.
* * *
Update(1358ET):
The semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that U.S.-based Citibank branches in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain’s capital, Manama, were targeted by drones overnight, suggesting that civilian infrastructure has not been spared in the U.S.-Iran conflict.
From data centers to skyscrapers to water desalination plants, it now appears that IRGC drone strikes are spilling over into Gulf financial infrastructure. Tasnim reported that some banks pulled staff from buildings, shifted operations remotely, and that Citibank temporarily suspended certain in-person activities in the UAE.
A Missile/drone has reportedly struck the Dubai office of Citibank, one of the largest US financial institutions operating in the Persian Gulf
Tasnim noted that Citi is a major node in the dollar system, especially in the Gulf region, where it handles oil trade finance, dollar settlements, and services for sovereign wealth funds and multinational corporations.
* * *
Update(1255ET): While it’s unclear whether this is born of desperation or it’s “all part of the plan”…President Trump said Saturday he wants other countries to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz alongside the United States to break Iran’s chokehold on one of the globe’s most critical oil arteries.
Posting on Truth Social Saturday, he claimed that other countries “will be sending War Ships” to the region – then added he “hopefully” expects major economies to step in; however, there doesn’t appear to be any ‘help’ on the horizon. In fact it could be the opposite, after Italy’s Meloni declared her country “won’t be part of an illegal war”.
“Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint, will send Ships to the area so that the Hormuz Strait will no longer be a threat by a Nation that has been totally decapitated,” Trump wrote. But he also simultaneously made clear the US is not waiting around:
“In the meantime, the United States will be bombing the hell out of the shoreline, and continually shooting Iranian Boats and Ships out of the water,” he said. “One way or the other, we will soon get the Hormuz Strait OPEN, SAFE, and FREE!”
Despite declaring that “100% of Iran’s Military capability” has been destroyed, Trump warned Tehran could still create chaos in the narrow passage – as is indeed still playing out Saturday. This after overnight the key oil export hub of Kharg Island was heavily bombed (see below).
“It would be easy for them to send a drone or two, drop a mine, or deliver a close range missile somewhere along, or in, this Waterway, no matter how badly defeated they are,” Trump stated further. He’s also claimed the US Navy will begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz “very soon” – at a moment a Marine Expeditionary Force is en route from Japan, which could take a week or less
END
THEN: THIS WILL NOT BE SATISFATORY TO THE USA:
(THE CRADLE)
Iran Mulls Allowing Tankers Through Strait Of Hormuz If Trade Conducted In Yuan
Iran is considering allowing a “limited number” of oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on the condition that the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan, CNN has reported.
A senior Iranian official told the US news outlet that Tehran is working on a new plan to manage tanker traffic through the strategic waterway on Iran’s southern coast.
Iran has effectively sealed off the strait, allowing only its own and Chinese ships to pass. Before the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28, at least 20 percent of the world’s oil flowed through it.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it will attack vessels linked to “aggressor nations,” such as the Gulf states that allow the US and Israel to use their territory for attacks on the Islamic Republic. The IRGC announced that the world should prepare for oil prices “reaching $200.”
For decades, most international oil has been traded in US dollars. The earnings from oil sales by Gulf countries, known as “petrodollars,” were mostly reinvested into the US economy through the purchase of sovereign bonds issued by the US Treasury.
Since Washington imposed economic sanctions on Moscow in 2022 following the start of the war in Ukraine, sanctioned Russian oil has increasingly been sold in rubles.
For years, China has used a covert, barter-style financial system to help pay Iran for oil, circumventing US sanctions. The system allows Iran to ship crude oil to China, while Chinese state-owned firms carry out infrastructure projects in Iran as payment.
Two tankers carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) passed through the Strait of Hormuz early Saturday morning and are heading towards India, according to an Indian foreign ministry official speaking with CNN.
Iran’s ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, told India Today that Iran allowed Indian vessels to travel through the strait, without providing details of how they obtained permission.
India heavily depends on imported LPG and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from West Asia. The South Asian nation has experienced shortages of both fuels since the US-Israeli conflict with Iran started two weeks ago.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday, CNN noted. During the conversation, Modi reiterated that the “unhindered transit of goods and energy” remained one of India’s top priorities.
The UN has warned that restrictions on shipping through the strait could have dire effects on the world economy, including on food production.
“When ships stop moving through that Strait, the consequences travel fast,” said Tom Fletcher, the UN’s under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs.
“Food, medicine, fertilizer, and other supplies become harder to move and more expensive to deliver,” he added.
Along with surging oil prices, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused fertilizer costs to rise by up to a third. If the strait remains closed, reduced fertilizer use could lead to lower harvests and potential food shortages worldwide in the coming year.
END
Major UAE Fujairah Port In Flames As Iran Vows Escalation For Kharg Island Attack
by Tyler Durden
Saturday, Mar 14, 2026 – 12:15 PM
Upon the overnight major US attack on Iran’s key oil hub of Kharg island, here’s what Iran’s military is threatening to do by way of response and escalation – which was also entirely predictable:
“If Iran’s oil, economic, or energy infrastructure is attacked, we will immediately destroy energy and economic infrastructure across the region belonging to companies with American shareholders or ties to the U.S.” –IRGC spox
🚨🇮🇷🇺🇸 Iranian IRGC spokesperson:
"If Iran’s oil, economic, or energy infrastructure is attacked, we will immediately destroy energy and economic infrastructure across the region belonging to companies with American shareholders or ties to the U.S."pic.twitter.com/STVoSds9qthttps://t.co/Ew1rDVyi3N
Iran continues launching widespread missile and drone attacks on Israel and neighboring Gulf Arab states and has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has vowed that any US site or any country hosting it will feel pain. “This war proved one thing quite clearly: American bases in our region do not protect anyone – they are a threat,” he wrote on X. “America sacrifices everyone for Israel and does not care about anyone but Israel.”
He added, “Anyone clothed by the US is literally NAKED!” And in fact this retaliation is already in progress on Saturday.
A missile struck a helipad inside the US Embassy compound in Baghdad, and debris from an intercepted Iranian drone hit an oil facility in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has informed the United Arab Emirates that US “hideouts” are “legitimate targets” after the US struck Iran’s Kharg island. —Al Jazeera
Associated Press images meanwhile showed a column of smoke rising over the embassy compound in the Iraqi capital and a fire at the Fujairah port, offering confirmation.
Plumes of black smoke can been seen rising from the UAE’s port of Fujairah, the country’s only oil export outside the Strait of Hormuz.
The local government confirms that Iranian drones targeted the area, says that damage was from falling debris. pic.twitter.com/fQU139cgPy
President Trump had said late Friday that the US military “obliterated” targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, home to the primary terminal handling the country’s oil exports.
Additionally, an American official said 2,500 additional Marines and an amphibious assault ship are heading to the Middle East – though it remains unclear on if they will actually enter the strait, or what their mission will ultimately be.
⚡️Another video of the damage done to the U.S embassy in Baghdad following a drone strike pic.twitter.com/jxmFK3Ot6j
But ‘mission creep’ is already happening at rapid pace, as the White House refuses to publicize an exit plan or offramp (if there even is one).
END
Trump Plans ‘Hormuz Coalition,’ Says Xi Summit Could Be Delayed If China Doesn’t Help
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 07:45 AM
Brent crude futures are trading around $103 a barrel early Monday morning amid U.S. strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub. Concerns about tanker congestion in the Strait of Hormuz, however, appear to be easing.
A flurry of weekend headlines suggests that the Trump administration is racing to reopen the Hormuz chokepoint and avert a further energy shock in global markets. According to a new Axios report, plans for a multinational naval coalition could be unveiled as soon as this week.
Hormuz Tanker Traffic
In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. and allied countries would send warships to the Hormuz area to reopen commercial shipping lanes. He called on China, France, Japan, South Korea, and the U.K. to help.
On board Air Force One later that day, he told reporters he “demands” that NATO countries and other nations heavily dependent on Gulf crude oil and other product imports help with the naval operation.
“We are talking to other countries about policing the straits. It will be nice to have other countries policing with us. We will help. We are getting a good response,” Trump said.
In a Sunday interview with the Financial Times, the president warned that he could delay his upcoming summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping if Beijing does not participate in the naval coalition.
Trump told FT, “It’s only appropriate that people who are the beneficiaries of the strait will help to make sure that nothing bad happens there.”
“If there’s no response or if it’s a negative response, I think it will be very bad for the future of NATO,” he added.
While Beijing has yet to publicly respond to Trump’s request, the state-run Global Times rejected Trump’s plan to spread the risk “of a war that Washington started and can’t finish.” GT explained on Sunday night why Beijing wouldn’t join the naval coalition.
“Crowding a volatile waterway with warships from multiple nations doesn’t create security. It creates flashpoints. If any single vessel were struck, the consequences could rapidly spiral beyond anyone’s control,” GT said. This is “more a carefully structured transfer of risk.”
Bloomberg noted, “A delay to the summit could suit Beijing. China had previously proposed that Trump arrive at the end of April to allow more time for preparations, according to a person familiar with the matter,” adding, “Such a postponement would allow for more discussion on security and diplomatic issues, including self-ruled Taiwan, which have so far not featured prominently on the planning agenda.”
The Iran-US conflict adds yet another layer of tension ahead of the Trump-Xi summit. Both sides are expected to wrap up trade talks in Paris on Monday, with potential areas of agreement in tariffs, agriculture, energy purchases, fentanyl, and Taiwan.
END
TAKE KHARG ISLAND AND THE GAME IS OVER!!
Allies Balk As Trump Pushes Joint Military Action To Reopen Hormuz – Iran Says No Ceasefire On Table
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 08:50 AM
Summary:
Trump declares ‘victory’ while simultaneously urging coalition help: President Trump claimed the US has “essentially defeated Iran” and vowed “we will finish the job,” while pressing NATO allies and other countries to join a naval coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran rejects ceasefire and signals escalation: Iranian FM dismissed any truce, saying Tehran wants the war to end in a way that ensures enemies “never again think of repeating these attacks,” adding Iran has “sent no messages and do not request a ceasefire.”
US weighing major escalation at Kharg Island: The White House is considering seizing Iran’s main oil export hub on Kharg Island, a move that would require US boots on the ground.
Europe reluctant to join Hormuz operation, Germany outright rejects it alongside Italy and Greece: Trump warned of a “very bad” future for NATO if allies don’t help reopen the strait. UK also says it won’t be ‘NATO-led’.
Regional attacks and oil shock intensify: Iran continues missile and drone strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure and US-aligned states, while Israeli forces launched “wide-scale” strikes. Saudi Arabia, Dubai continue to get hit.
* * *
President Trump and his top officials spent the weekend on the one hand touting the Iran campaign a decisive military win and supposed success, while on the other racing to assemble a naval coalition to force open Tehran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, all the while imploring other countries for help. Europe appears deeply reluctant, with some key NATO countries already slamming the door on this prospect.
“As far as I’m concerned, we have essentially defeated Iran,” President Trump said in some of latest remarks aboard Air Force One. “They want to negotiate badly, as they should, but I don’t think they’re ready to do what they have to do… We will finish the job,” he claimed.
But then on Monday Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected calls for a ceasefire, insisting Tehran intends to impose steep and bloody costs on the aggressors. “The reason we say we do not want a ceasefire is not because we are seeking war, but because this time this war must end in such a way that our enemies never again think of repeating these attacks,” Araghchi said at a press conference.
“I think they have already learned a good lesson and understood what kind of nation they are dealing with.” He also dismissed reports that Iran had quietly sought negotiations: “As we have said many times and I reiterated last night in an interview with an American network, we have sent no messages and do not request a ceasefire.”
Still, Trump is pressing forward on plans for NATO to send allied ships. According to US officials cited in The Wall Street Journal, there are plans for as soon as this week to announce that multiple countries have agreed to join a coalition escorting ships through the strait. All of this, and especially a timeline, still seems up in the air.
And separately per Axios, the White House is simultaneously considering the far more aggressive option of seizing Iran’s main oil export hub on Kharg Island, after much of it has been subject of heavy US bombing, which started overnight Friday, but reportedly left oil terminals and vital export infrastructure in place.
There remains widespread speculation that this is what the multi-thousand strong Marine Expeditionary Force currently en route is all about, raising the states even higher. A direct Kharg Island seizure would require American boots on the ground – already asIran’s retaliatory blockade of the narrow strait has sent oil and gas prices climbing as a major share of global crude supply remains effectively frozen.
Trump on NATO and Iran:
Whether we get support or not, but I can say this — and I said it to them — we will remember. pic.twitter.com/uki36COerk— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 16, 2026
This is apparently what’s behind Trump’s growing urgency – and some might day desperation – for allies to step up, with the US president having told European leaders there could be a “very bad” future for NATO if member states fail to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Financial Times. But by the looks of it most of Europe wants to avoid what’s looking like a recipe for another quagmire in the Middle East. Ironically, Iran is bordered by two countries which were subject of over two decades of US-led war and occupation.
For example, after Italy had earlier made very clear it will have no involvement, Al Jazeera reports:
The war in Iran has nothing to do with NATO, a German government spokesperson says, adding that Germany would not take part in the war nor in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open through military means.
“As long as this war continues, there will be no participation, not even in any effort to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by military means,” the spokesperson said. Greece also will not engage in any military operations in the Strait of Hormuz, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said.
And Britain too while signaling openness says it won’t be NATO-led:
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday Britain would not be drawn into a wider war in Iran but would work with allies on a “viable collective plan” to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz, though he acknowledged that would not be a simple task.
…Starmer told a press conference that reopening the strait was the only way to stabilize energy markets, and that he was talking to allies in Europe, the Gulf and the U.S. on a plan to secure freedom of navigation. He said it would not be a NATO-led mission.
Iran meanwhile continues to send missile and drones on America’s gulf allies and energy infrastructure, with Saudi Arabia saying it intercepted 61 drones over its territory since midnight, though potential impact sites of projectiles what got through weren’t immediately disclosed.
Flights at Dubai International Airport have been suspended after a fuel take went up on flames. “An Iranian drone attack ignited a fuel tank at Dubai International Airport early Monday, authorities said, as Tehran continued to strike civilian infrastructure across the Persian Gulf,” Washington Post reports. Fujairah has also been hit again.
The Israeli military has said Monday it has begun “wide-scale wave of strikes targeting infrastructure” in the Iranian cities of Tehran, Shiraz, and Tabriz simultaneously. It has vowed to keep hitting Iran “as long as needed” – suggesting no quick end amid the war’s third week.
But Israel also faces unprecedented bombardment by Iran’s sophisticated missile and drone arsenal. Israel’s Health Ministry has newly announced that at least 3,369 people, including civilians and military personnel, have been wounded and injured – with many hospitalized – since the war’s start. At least a dozen people have been killed, but the true numbers could be significantly higher as Israel’s military has censored a lot of wartime information.
Below is a running death toll via Turkish media as of Sunday:
IRAN – The most recent death toll, reported by state media on Monday, was at least 1,270 people. But Iran’s ambassador to the U.N. said on March 6 that at least 1,332 people had been killed since the war began. There has been no clarification of the discrepancy. It was not clear if those figures include at least 104 people that the Iranian military said were killed in a U.S. attack on an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka’s coast on March 4.
LEBANON – At least 850 people have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to Lebanese authorities. The World Health Organization said at least 98 of those killed were children.
IRAQ – At least 30 people have been killed, according to Iraqi health authorities. Most of those were members of the Shi’ite Popular Mobilization Forces. One foreign crew member was killed in an attack on tankers near an Iraqi port, according to port security officials.
ISRAEL – Twelve people have been killed, including nine people in an Iranian missile strike on Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem on March 1, according to Israel’s ambulance service. The Israeli military said two of its soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon.
UNITED STATES – Thirteen service members have been killed. Six were confirmed dead after a U.S. military refueling aircraft crashed over Iraq, the U.S. military said, while seven others have been killed in action during operations against Iran.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Six people have been killed in Iranian attacks, according to the UAE’s defense ministry.
KUWAIT – Authorities have reported six deaths – including two people killed in Iranian attacks, two interior ministry officers and two army soldiers.
SYRIA – Four people were killed when an Iranian missile struck a building in the southern Syrian city of Sweida on February 28, state news agency SANA said.
OMAN – Two people were killed in a drone strike on an industrial zone in Sohar province, marking the first fatalities inside the country, which has been hosting mediation talks between the U.S. and Iran. One person died earlier when a projectile hit a tanker off the coast of Muscat, the vessel’s manager said.
SAUDI ARABIA – Two people were killed when a projectile fell on a residential location in Al-Kharj city, southeast of the capital Riyadh.
BAHRAIN – Two people were killed in two separate Iranian attacks, with the most recent hitting a residential building in the capital Manama, according to the interior ministry.
FRANCE – One French soldier was killed and six others were wounded after a drone attack in northern Iraq, where they were providing counterterrorism training.
The Trump White House has been angered by media headlines and reports saying the war is expanding and escalating across the region, but the above widening casualties point to this precisely being the case, as Washington continues to struggle to define objectives, timeline, or even what ‘winning’ looks like.
END
ROBERT H/..
DUBAI
Regardless of what we do not see. Infrastructure is being destroyed now on a selective basis. The hit to commerce in the region is wide spread and lasting. For example without fuel at an airport there is no way to get jets in and out without fuel. And replacement of such fuel tanks is not an overnight exercise. The airport in Dubai is out of commission for some time. Having planes there means little if you cannot fuel them
Cuba’s National Electrical System has suffered what the country’s Energy Ministry called a “total disconnection,” and the causes are being investigated. This comes as Trump’s blockade of crude oil imports to the Caribbean island has reduced fuel stockpiles to dangerously low levels.
“A total disconnection of the SEN has occurred. The causes are being investigated, and protocols for restoration are being activated,” the Energy Ministry said on X around 1400 ET.
Earlier, we reported that Trump is in talks with Cuba and that a deal could be reached soon.
Over the weekend, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel publicly admitted for the first time that Havana was in talks with Washington.
* * *
As Aldgra Fredly detailed earlier for The Epoch Times, U.S. President Donald Trump said on March 15 that the United States is in talks with Cuba and expects to reach a deal with the communist-ruled country soon.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that “something will happen with Cuba pretty quickly,” and that Washington will decide on Cuba after dealing with the war in Iran.
Trump on Jan. 11 told Cuba to strike a deal after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in a Jan. 3 operation. Cuba has long been a close ally of Maduro’s regime and has relied on Venezuela’s oil supply for decades.
After Maduro’s ouster, interim Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodríguez redirected oil deliveries to the United States.
“Cuba also wants to make a deal, and I think we will pretty soon either make a deal or do whatever we have to do,” Trump told reporters on March 15. “And so, we’re talking to Cuba, but we’re going to do Iran before Cuba.”
On Jan. 29, Trump signed an executive order imposing tariffs on any country that “directly or indirectly provides oil to Cuba,” a move that exacerbated fuel shortages in the Caribbean island nation.
In his order, Trump accused the Cuban regime of aligning itself with “hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors,” including Russia, China, and Iran, as well as U.S.-designated foreign terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said on March 13 that his government has been negotiating with U.S. officials to identify and resolve any bilateral issues between the two nations.
“These conversations have been aimed at seeking solutions, through dialogue, to bilateral differences that exist between the two nations,” Bermúdez said, according to a statement posted by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla on social media. “There are international factors that have facilitated these exchanges.”
Bermúdez said his officials have expressed that negotiations must be held “on the basis of equality and respect for the political systems of both states,” as well as their sovereignty.
“This is a matter that unfolds as part of a very sensitive process that is conducted with seriousness and responsibility, as it affects the bilateral relations between the two nations and requires enormous efforts to find solutions and create spaces for understanding that allow us to move away from confrontation,” he said.
Trump said last week that Cuba currently faces severe humanitarian challenges amid disruptions in imported oil and is eager to negotiate with the United States. He also said there could be a “friendly takeover” of the nation, but also said that “it may not be a friendly takeover.”
END
YOUR EARLY CURRENCY/GOLD AND SILVER PRICING/ASIAN CLOSING MARKETS AND EUROPEAN BOURSE OPENING AND CLOSING/ INTEREST RATE SETTINGS MONDAY MORNING 6;30AM//OPENING AND CLOSING
OPENING LEVELS OF CURRENCIES// AND CLOSING ASIAN STOCK MARKET AND OPENING EUROPEAN STOCKS:6 AM EST
EURO VS USA DOLLAR: 1.1473 UP 0.0058
USA/ YEN 159.21 DOWN 0.454NOW TARGETS INTEREST RATE AT 1.75% AS IT WILL BUY UNLIMITED BONDS TO GETS TO THAT LEVEL…//YEN STILL FALLS//END OF YEN CARRY TRADE BEGINS AGAIN DEC 2024/Bank of Japan raises rates by .25% TO 1.75 ..TAKAICHI NEW PM AS YIELDS RISE//JAPAN DEEPLY IN TROUBLE WITH RISING RATES AND A FALLING YEN!!
GBP/USA 1.3261 UP 0.0053 OR 53 BASIS PTS
USA/CAN DOLLAR: 1.3690 DOWN0.0021 CDN DOLLAR UP 21 BASIS PTS//
Last night Shanghai COMPOSITE CLOSED DOWN 29.65 PTS OR 0.71%
Hang Seng CLOSED UP 287.40 PTS OR OR 1.13%
AUSTRALIA CLOSED UP 0.26%
// EUROPEAN BOURSE: ALL RED
Trading from Europe and ASIA
I) EUROPEAN BOURSES: ALL RED
2/ CHINESE BOURSES / :Hang SENG CLOSED UP 287.40 PTS OR 0.13%
/SHANGHAI CLOSED DOWN 28.65 PTS OR 0.71%
AUSTRALIA BOURSE CLOSED UP 0.26%
(Nikkei (Japan) CLOSED DOWN 122.11PTS OR 0.23%
INDIA’S SENSEX IN THE GREEN
Gold very early morning trading: 4995.00
silver:$78.81
USA DOLLAR VS TRY (TURKISH LIRA): 44.18
USA DOLLAR VS RUSSIAN ROUBLE: 81.16 ROUBLE// DOWN 1 ROUBLE AND 16 BASIS PTS
UK 10 YR BOND YIELD: 4.7670 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
UK 30 YR BOND YIELD: 5.4530 DOWN 4 BASIS PTS
CDN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.506 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
CDN 5 YR BOND YIELD; 3.062 DOWN 3 BASIS PTS
USA dollar index early MONDAY MORNING: 99.77 DOWN 34 BASIS POINTS FROM FRIDAY’s CLOSE
MONDAY MORNING NUMBERS ENDS
And now your closing MONDAY NUMBERS 10.00 AM
Portuguese 10 year bond yield: 3.70% DOWN 6 in basis point(s) yield
JAPANESE BOND 10 yr YIELD: +2.282% UP 2 FULL POINTS BASIS POINTS /JAPAN losing control of its yield curve/
JAPAN 30 YR: 3.557 UP 3 BASIS PTS//
SPANISH 10 YR BOND YIELD: 3.421 DOWN 7 in basis points yield
ITALY 10 YR BOND: 3.705 DOWN 8 points in basis points yield ./ THE ECB IS QE’ ING ITALIAN BONDS (
GERMAN 10 YR BOND YIELD: 2.9305 DOWN 5 BASIS PTS
IMPORTANT CURRENCY CLOSES : MID DAY MONDAY
Closing currency crosses for day /USA DOLLAR INDEX/USA 10 YR BOND YIELD/10:00 AM
Euro/USA 1.1499 UP 0.0072 OR 72 basis points
USA/Japan: 159.13 DOWN 0.543 OR YEN IS UP 54 BASIS PTS// HIGHLY INFLATIONARY TO JAPAN
Great Britain 10 YR RATE 4.7450 DOWN 8 BASIS POINTS //
GREAT BRITAIN 30 YR BOND; 5.418 DOWN 8 BASIS POINTS.
REAR VIEW: Trump says Iran wants to make a deal, they are talking to our people & war will end soon; Trump reportedly seeks a Hormuz coalition and is weighing seizing Iran’s oil depot on Kharg Island; Loadings at the UAE’s Fujairah port have reportedly resumed after being hit; Iraq said it issued tenders to export oil via ports in Syria and Jordan; Bessent says US-China trade meetings in Paris “very good”; BoC headline Y/Y prints below 2%; UK reportedly to raise steel tariffs to 50% in new strategy; US & Iran reportedly in contact in recent days; NVDA touts USD 1trln of demand through 2027.
COMING UP: Data: Italian HICP Final (Feb), German/EZ ZEW Economic Sentiment Index (Mar), US ADP Employment Weekly, Japanese Trade Balance (Feb). Event: RBA Policy Announcement. Speakers: RBA’s Bullock; ECB’s Nagel. Supply: Japan, UK, US.
2. Trial Newsquawk’s premium real-time audio news squawk box for 7 days
MARKET WRAP
Stocks were firmer on Monday while oil prices moved lower. The US did strike Kharg Island over the weekend, but avoided any oil infrastructure. Meanwhile, US President Trump reiterated he thinks the war could be over soon, while suggesting Iran has been speaking to the US. It was later revealed that Iran’s Foreign Minister had been texting US Special Envoy Witkoff about ending the war, seeing oil settle at lows. The lower oil prices helped support T-notes across the curve, but sell-side commentary was also supportive, with Goldman noting that risks around yields are increasingly tilted to the downside. In FX, it was a risk-friendly picture with the Dollar lagging and cyclical outperforming while attention turns to a plethora of central bank activity this week, including Fed, BoJ, RBA, BoE, ECB and SNB. Elsewhere, US/China trade talks over the weekend went well, but there is uncertainty regarding Trump’s visit to China amid the Iran war, which may see the meeting delayed. Nvidia (NVDA) CEO gave his keynote speech at the GTC (still ongoing), with NVDA shares closing green but off earlier highs. One of the highlights was Huang’s forecast of USD 1tln in demand through 2027 (vs the USD 500bln in demand from 2025 through to 2026), seeing the stock hit highs, but it swiftly pared.
US
NY FED: Business activity was little changed in New York State in March. The headline general business conditions index fell seven points to -0.2. New orders increased modestly, while shipments declined. Unfilled orders rose, delivery times lengthened, and supply availability was slightly worse. Inventories increased. Employment rose modestly and the average workweek edged up. The pace of input price increases declined significantly, but remained elevated, while the pace of selling price increases was little changed. Firms remained optimistic that conditions would improve in the months ahead, and capital spending plans strengthened. Despite the fall in the headline, analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics highlight that “the average of the components that correspond to those that make up the headline index for the ISM manufacturing survey picked up slightly, driven in part by improvements in new orders and employment.”
INDUSTRIAL/MANUFACTURING PRODUCTION: IP rose 0.2% in February, above the expected 0.1% (prev. 0.7%). Manufacturing output rose 0.2% (prev. 0.8%), mining output +0.8% (prev. 0.9%), and utilities output -0.6% (prev. 0.1%). Capacity utilisation was flat at 76.3%. Oxford Economics notes that there are a couple of factors that will cushion the blow to industrial production from the fallout of the US/Israel-Iran war. 1) “Incoming source data for Q1 suggest no sudden stop in the AI investment cycle”, 2) “One Big Beautiful Bill Act has increased the after-tax return on capital investments”.
FIXED INCOME
T-NOTE FUTURES (M6) SETTLED 15+ TICKS HIGHER AT 111-28+
T-notes rise across the curve as oil prices slide. At settlement, 2-year -4.9bps at 3.680%, 3-year -5.8bps at 3.689%, 5-year -6.6bps at 3.802%, 7-year -6.8bps at 3.996%, 10-year -6.3bps at 4.220%, 20-year -6.0bps at 4.834%, 30-year -5.1bps at 4.857%.
THE DAY: T-notes were firmer across the curve on Monday as oil prices eased with seemingly no fresh escalations in the war, while Trump looks to secure the Strait of Hormuz through a coalition, albeit details remain light. Regarding the movement higher in yields over recent weeks, Goldman Sachs thinks risks around yields are increasingly tilted to the downside. The desk revised their front-end yield forecasts to reflect a later profile of Fed cuts, but sees yields ending the year slightly lower than previously, with their end-2026 forecasts of 3.2% 2y and 4.1% 10y UST yields below the forwards. Morgan Stanley had also been talking about the potential demand destruction induced reversal towards lower rates. The sell-side commentary and move lower in crude prices seemingly supported T-Note trade on Monday amid a lack of key data, while attention turns to the Fed on Wednesday. On data, US Industrial Production slightly beat expectations alongside the Manufacturing output; meanwhile, the NY Fed manufacturing survey disappointed expectations. Although geopolitics remains in focus, there are plenty of central bank decisions due this week, including the Fed, BoJ, BoE, ECB, and SNB.
SUPPLY
Notes
US to sell USD 13bln of 20-year bonds on March 17th and USD 19bln of 10-year TIPS on March 19th; all to settle March 31st
Bills
US sold 6-month bills at a high rate of 3.570%, B/C 2.64x; sold 3-month bills at right rate of 3.610%, B/C 2.94x
US to sell USD 86bln of 6-week bills and USD 50bln of 52-week bills on March 17th; all to settle March 19th.
STIRS/OPERATIONS
Fed Rate Cut Pricing: March 0bps (prev. 0bps), April 0bps (prev. 0bps), June 3.9bps (prev. 4.4bps), December 24.1bps (prev. 20.4bps).
NY Fed RRP op demand at 0.58bln (prev. 0.43bln) across 9 counterparties (prev. 4) on March 16th
SOFR at 3.65% (prev. 3.65%), volumes at USD 3.164tln (prev. USD 3.112tln) on March 13th
EFFR at 3.64% (prev. 3.64%), volumes at USD 92bln (prev. USD 99bln) on March 13th
CRUDE
WTI (J6) SETTLED USD 5.21 LOWER AT 93.50/BBL; BRENT (K6) SETTLED USD 2.93 LOWER AT 100.21/BBL
The crude complex was lower, as the Middle East war rages on, albeit with no major escalation over the weekend while crude was hit into settlement on reports that Witkoff and FM Araghchi have been texting. Trump said he ordered a strike that wiped out every military target on Kharg Island, where Iran exports nearly all of its oil, but left the oil infrastructure intact. On the Strait of Hormuz, which remains essentially closed, Trump’s admin plans as soon as this week to announce a coalition to escort ships, although they are still discussing if such operations would begin before or after hostilities have ended. In later remarks, on potential Strait of Hormuz coalition, the President remarked that Rubio will announce the countries in the coalition later, and some are fairly local, but caveated that it takes a while to get to the Hormuz. Trump also added, when asked about a deal with Iran, that Iran wants to make a deal, and they are talking to our people. Prior to these remarks, benchmarks saw downside as Trump once again reiterated that the Iranian war will end soon. Elsewhere, IEA’s Birol was on the wires, but added little new, as he noted despite the huge release, still have a large stockpile, and can do more later, if required. Ahead of settlement, pressure was seen in crude to see the complex settle at lows after Israel’s Channel 12 reported that US Special Envoy Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi were in contact over text messages. WTI traded between USD 92.97-102.44/bbl and Brent USD 99.54-106.50/bbl, as focus, as expected, remains around the Middle East conflict.
EQUITIES
CLOSES: SPX +1.05% at 6,702, NDX +1.13% at 24,655, DJI +0.83% at 49,946, RUT +0.96% at 2,504.
SECTORS: Technology +1.39%, Consumer Discretionary +1.34%, Communication Services +1.02%, Financials +0.87%, Industrials +0.85%, Health +0.75%, Real Estate +0.72%, Utilities +0.57%, Materials +0.57%, Energy +0.38%, Consumer Staples +0.07%.
EUROPEAN CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 +0.44% at 5,742, Dax 40 +0.57% at 23,570, FTSE 100 +0.60% at 10,323, CAC 40 +0.31% at 7,936, FTSE MIB +0.05% at 44,338, IBEX 35 +0.19% at 17,093, PSI -0.15% at 9,130, SMI +0.49% at 12,882, AEX +0.61% at 1,008
STOCK SPECIFICS:
National Storage Affiliates (NSA) to be acquired by Public Storage (PSA) for USD 41.68/shr in a USD 10.5bln deal.
Nebius (NBIS) signed $12bln AI capacity deal w/ META; Meta to spend up to $27bln over 5yrs on AI deal.
Sable Offshore (SOC) ordered to restore ops. at Santa Ynez Unit & Santa Ynez Pipeline System.
Meta (META): Techzine reported that META denies rumours of sweeping layoffs to fund AI, which could affect up to 20% of its workforce.
Alibaba (BABA) plans to launch an agentic AI service for Cos. based on its Qwen model.
Venture Global (VG): DoE authorised an immediate 13% increase in exports from the Plaquemines LNG terminal in Louisiana.
Blue Owl Capital (OWL) Board unanimously urged shareholders to reject minority tender offer from Cox Capital Partners & Saba Capital Management for up to 8mln shares, worth c. $ 30mln.
Ford (F) authorised repurchases of up to 31.7mln shares under an anti-dilutive buyback programme.
Dollar Tree (DLTR): EPS, rev. beat & sees annual sales largely below expected.
FX
The Dollar was lower to start the week, retracing some of the hefty gains seen last week amid the Middle East conflict, and was largely at the whim of oil prices. Over the weekend and today, there have been plenty of headlines/updates surrounding the topic, but nothing too escalatory. Trump did announce that the US struck Kharg Island, but avoided any oil infrastructure. Meanwhile, when Trump was asked about a deal with Iran, he said Iran wants to make a deal, and they are talking to our people. Further reports from Channel 12 suggested that Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi and US Envoy Witkoff are reportedly in contact over text messages in recent days – apparently about ending the war. Elsewhere, traders await the upcoming Fed confab on Wednesday, where they are widely expected to leave rates unchanged, albeit with dissents.
G10 FX was firmer across the board, with Antipodeans the clear outperformers and supported by risk sentiment, but also ahead of the expected RBA hike overnight. There was little currency-specific newsflow on Monday, as price action was largely dominated by oil. However, modest weakness was seen in the CAD after cooler-than-expected inflation data for February, which comes prior to the BoC meeting on Wednesday. This week, there is a deluge of central bank decisions, including RBA, BoC, Fed, BoE, BoJ, ECB and SNB, amongst others.
In EMFX, Chinese data impressed overnight as retail sales and IP both surpassed expectations. Regarding US/China relations, Bessent said US-China trade meetings in Paris were “very good”, and that we will see whether the Trump China visit goes as planned, but it is false to say that the trip may be delayed due to the Iran conflict. Meanwhile, China’s Trade Negotiator Li, in talks with the US, spoke about a possible extension of tariff suspensions and other matters.
USA DATA RELEASES
US Industrial Production Rises For 4th Straight Month In February
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 09:23 AM
After a strong gain in January, US Industrial Production continued to expand in February, rising 0.2% MoM (better than expected +0.1%) – the fourth straight month of gains with Production up 1.44% YoY…
Source: Bloomberg
Manufacturing output also beat expectations, rising 0.2% MoM in February.
Durable manufacturing output edged up 0.1 percent, with mixed results across categories; the index for motor vehicles and parts posted the largest gain, and the index for machinery posted the largest loss.
Nondurable manufacturing output rose 0.2 percent, with gains in the production of chemicals, of plastic and rubber products, and of paper products outweighing declines in the output of petroleum and coal products and of food, beverage, and tobacco products. The output of other manufacturing (publishing and logging) rose 1.3 percent.
Mining output increased 0.8 percent in February, following a 0.9 percent increase in January. The output of utilities fell 0.6 percent in February, reflecting no change in the index for electric utilities and a 4.7 percent drop in the index for natural gas utilities.
Source: Bloomberg
Capacity Utilization printed 76.3 (better than expected)…
…maintaining the positive trend since Trump’s second term began.
USA ECONOMIC REPORTS
War, Oil And Debt: Which Threats To The US Economy Are Legit?
It’s the magic number, the line that’s not supposed to be crossed; when a nation’s public debt finally exceeds its GDP. Historically speaking, it’s not a sign of doom like many economists suggest. Numerous countries have sustained for decades with a ratio of well over 100% and many other factors have to be considered before it’s officially time to panic. Of course, there are some cautionary tales.
Greece and Argentina are two examples. A number of developing countries shave been hit with precipitous decline after they hit the 100% mark. In the case of the US, having access to the world reserve currency changes the dynamic dramatically. Debt does not act like debt in an environment where global trade and investment is mostly is priced in dollars and you control the ability to print those dollars at will.
That said, the recent historic milestone has many people suddenly worried about the state of the US system and the precarious nature of the geopolitical landscape going into the future.
Gross national debt for the US crossed the 100% mark back in 2012. The official public debt touched 101% last month. This factor combined with the inflation of the Biden era and the geopolitical uncertainty of the Trump era has the media talking out loud about the kind of crisis we alternative economists have been warning about for quite some time.
It’s certainly an startling change; alternative economists are no longer the voice in the wilderness. But let’s consider for a moment WHY the mainstream has decided to adopt a crisis posture after so many years of ignoring the obvious.
It’s Okay To Talk About A Crash If It Can Be Blamed On Trump
The corporate media has a clear economic bias; optics must be good for establishment endorsed leaders and optics must remain bad for any political leaders on the naughty list. Regardless of what a person might think of Trump’s presidency so far, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that the media spins his every move into a negative, even when he succeeds beyond expectations.
The tariffs are a perfect example – After Trump announced his aggressive strategy to counter outsourcing, the media and Democrats asserted that an unprecedented inflationary disaster was inevitable. This never happened.
They claimed consumers would have to eat the cost of the trade taxes on international corporations. This didn’t happen either. In reality, the CPI barely budged in response to tariffs. Why? Because companies are absorbing the higher costs (as I and some other economists predicted).
The retail markups on goods made overseas are substantial. International conglomerates have plenty of room to take the hit while avoiding raising prices on the shelf. Trump knows this, and anyone who has studied export markets knows this. Yet, the demonization campaign against tariffs was absolutely frantic.
This is just one example of a false threat; an imagined crisis fabricated for the sake of political interests rather than the for sake of protecting the American people. It’s important to be able to discern between very real economic dangers and false narratives designed to target and scapegoat.
Suddenly The Mainstream Is Noticing US Debt
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), a Washington-based fiscal watchdog, released a sweeping new report this week warning that policymakers are “woefully underprepared” to handle the next recession or financial shock.
They assert that the national debt crossing the 100% benchmark is one signal among many that the US cannot handle a surprise destabilization event, though they note that interest payments on that debt are the greater concern. By 2036, according to Congressional Budget Office projections, debt is on track to reach 120% of GDP with interest swallowing $0.26 of every dollar the government takes in.
The report also warned about rising inflation dangers associated with monetary policy. This falls in line with reports of tensions between Trump and the Federal Reserve, but corporate news sources are painting the Fed as a kind of “wayward institution” stuck in the middle of a bad situation they have nothing to do with. In reality, the Fed is the cause of most of our nation’s debt and inflation problems; they enable the money printing bonanza and they are unaccountable to the American public.
Fortune Magazine has tied threats of inflation and debt accumulation to the Iran war, and Bloomberg has published articles lamenting an inevitable “wave of global inflation” due to the conflict. I find this fascinating given the media’s refusal to accept that inflation existed after the 2020 election. Bloomberg even asserted that rising inflation was a “mirage” and Fortune reprinted those claims.
The question is not what Trump will do in the face of a crisis event; rather, we must ask what the Fed will do? Will they raise rates again to mitigate inflationary pressure, or will they turn the money printers back on to stave off any potential deflationary consequences. Given their track record, it is likely the Fed will inflate, but high interest rates at this time could also be devastating.
With the GOP ostensibly in control of the government the bankers might be able to divert all blame onto conservatives policies, and to me this is the real concern. Will the Fed pull the plug on the economy simply because they have a convenient scapegoat?
Geopolitical Black Swan Or Minor Blip On The Radar?
Over the past couple years I have warned extensively about war with Iran, specifically in relation to the Strait of Hormuz and the 20% of global oil shipments that travel through it every year. The war itself is superfluous; I have little doubt that the US can and will destroy the majority of Iranian military infrastructure within a couple months. The greater danger is how easy it will be for insurgent elements to keep the strait closed using simple guerrilla tactics.
It doesn’t take much to block up the narrow strait and threaten global oil prices. Securing it would have to be a top priority of the Trump Administration, which seems to be the case given Trump’s latest statements. Troops on the ground are unavoidable to ensure the Hormuz remains clear, and this is going to ruffle a lot of feathers.
The strait is the only legitimate geopolitical leverage Iran has against the US, but not in the way many people assume. It is true that IF the Hormuz remains contested for more than a couple months, the economic effects could cascade into the markets and cause serious instability. However, this instability will initially affect the East, not the West.
Only 7% of US oil imports and 6% of European oil imports pass through the Hormuz. In comparison around 50% of China’s oil imports and 40% of India’s imports rely on the strait. The hardest hit, however, will be Japan, with over 70% of their oil imports relying on ships passing through the Hormuz. And, as most economists know, Japan’s markets are deeply intertwined with US markets through the Yen carry trade.
In Japan, ongoing oil-driven inflation could pressure the Bank of Japan to tighten policy through rate hikes or reduced bond buying. This narrows the carry trade differential, eroding carry profits and potentially triggering an unwind. In other words, it will no longer be cheap for investors to borrow Yen at near zero rates and then buy assets in the US.
Prices would have to rise considerably in order to trigger such a cascade, though. It’s important to note that the panic over an impending energy crisis is currently based on speculation and not legitimate shortages.
When an actual crisis occurs, we’ll know it. When shale oil drillers in the US ramp up production because they KNOW the high prices can sustain them, then it’s time to worry. When we see sustained weekly gas price spikes of 10%-20%, then it’s time to worry. If foreign countries initiate a large scale dump of the dollar as the petro currency, then it’s time to worry.
The war itself would have to carry on for many months to create these conditions and I’m not convinced yet that this will be the case. The expectation among many on the political left (and among libertarians) is that the war in Iran will carry on for years because that’s what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I have to ask this question, though: Has anyone considered the possibility that those wars lasted for decades because they were DESIGNED to go on for decades? Who decided the objectives? Who decided the parameters for success? Who decided that occupation was necessary? It was establishment Neo-cons and Democrats that created the necessity of occupation out of thin air. “Defeating the enemy” became a secondary concern.
The length of the Iran war will not be decided by the current Iranian regime, it will be decided by Trump. If the only objective is to destroy Iran’s ability to project military power and to secure the Hormuz (and avoid occupation of the greater territory), then the war will be short and there will be no energy crisis.
This is not my endorsement of the war in general, just the facts. There are much bigger threats to the US economy and the global economy than Iran right now.
The Real Danger
Iran has the potential to become a “linchpin” disaster, but the conditions are not right for one yet. For now, I continue to believe that the most significant danger to the global economy and the US economy is still the European oligarchy and their push for war with Russia over Ukraine. Any move by the Europeans to deploy troops to the region could result in a large scale war that would dwarf the events in Iran and completely derail already fragile economic structures.
If you’re worried about global Armageddon, look to Ukraine, not Iran.
The largest secondary hazard is domestic. NGO funded leftist riots, terror attacks and movements to burn the country to the ground in the name of Marxist “deconstruction” are more perilous to the US than most of the populace understands. Add to this the increasing number of Islamic terror attacks and we’ve got a recipe for civil breakdown. Internal insurgencies would have to be handled by the armed citizenry rather than sitting around and relying on the government to do everything.
Then you have the Federal Reserve and the Catch-22 policy conundrum. The central bankers could, theoretically, collapse the US economy at any given moment using the sudden whiplash of a large rate hike or a large stimulus program. The financial system would not be able to adapt this time. With Trump in office I would argue that the bank is MORE likely to do this.
There is a fine line between vigilance and hysteria. We have to be careful not to blackpill ourselves into oblivion over events like tariffs or the war in Iran. That said, there are indeed very real catalysts brewing within geopolitics and on the home front. At bottom, there are people out there that desperately WANT the US to collapse.
For them, every crisis is an opportunity to push their agenda forward whether those crises are engineered or not. By extension, some threats are fabricated and exaggerated to conjure up a public frenzy, manipulate popular opinion and destroy the US from within. Knowing what is real and what is illusion is essential to our nation’s survival.
END
Supply Chain Layoffs Spread Across Warehouses, Factories And Rail Terminals
A wave of layoffs across U.S. supply chains — from EV battery plants and auto parts factories to warehouses and rail terminals — has affected nearly 4,000 workers in recent weeks, according to company announcements and WARN filings across multiple states.
Recent WARN filings and company announcements show job cuts across at least a dozen companies in states including California, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, Ohio, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Alabama.
The largest layoffs in the recent wave are coming from the automotive and industrial supply chain. SK Battery America said it laid off 958 workers — about 37% of its workforce — at its electric vehicle battery plant in Commerce, Georgia, citing shifting EV demand as automakers reassess production plans.
Meanwhile, bankrupt auto parts manufacturer First Brands Group announced major workforce reductions, including 572 layoffs across three facilities in Brownsville, Texas, and 333 jobs cut at a plant in Fayetteville, Tennessee, as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring.
In food manufacturing, Campbell’s said it will cut 205 jobs at its Paris, Texas plant as it repurposes the facility to focus on sauce production. Technology services firm Bluum USA also filed notice it will close its Irving, Texas distribution facility, eliminating 60 jobs as part of a restructuring.
Distribution centers and warehouses reduce staff
Several logistics and distribution operators have announced layoffs tied to restructuring, contract losses or network consolidation.
Third-party logistics provider Saddle Creek Logistics Services plans to lay off 151 workers at a warehouse facility in Bessemer, Alabama.
GEODIS Logistics will eliminate 105 jobs at a facility in Ashville, Ohio, after a client ceased operations at the site.
GXO Logistics also filed notice that it will shut down operations for a client at its West Jefferson, Ohio, warehouse, affecting 102 workers.
In California, CJ Logistics America announced 71 layoffs at a warehouse facility in Fontana scheduled for April 30.
Rail and intermodal logistics hit by contract losses
Intermodal logistics operator Parsec LLC is closing multiple rail cargo handling facilities after losing key customer contracts.
The company will shut down a Columbus, Ohio, intermodal terminal, eliminating 115 jobs by May 1.
A WARN filing with Ohio regulators shows the layoffs will affect loader operators, mechanics, warehouse staff and management roles.
Parsec is also closing a Jacksonville, Florida facility after losing a major customer contract.
In North Charleston, South Carolina, Parsec is shutting down an intermodal logistics operation at the Norfolk Southern terminal, eliminating 39 jobs.
Parcel network restructuring leads to FedEx closure
Package delivery giant FedEx is closing a facility in Pittston, Pennsylvania, affecting 63 employees as part of its “Network 2.0” initiative aimed at consolidating package pickup, transportation and delivery operations.
The company said the effort is designed to simplify its network through a “one van, one neighborhood” delivery model intended to improve efficiency.
Manufacturing and trucking supply chain layoffs
Manufacturing operations tied to heavy-duty trucking and industrial supply chains are also reducing staff.
Furniture manufacturer Ashley Furniture Industries is laying off 266 workers at a manufacturing center in Mesquite, Texas, according to a WARN notice filed with the state on Wednesday.
Commercial Vehicle Group, which produces seating systems used by truck manufacturers such as Freightliner and Mack, will lay off 76 workers at its Bostrom Seating plant in Piedmont, Alabama, amid softer demand in truck and construction markets.
In Ohio, Boelter Companies is closing its Custom Deco manufacturing facility in Toledo, affecting 63 workers.
Grocery and produce closures add more layoffs
Retail grocery and food distribution operations are also contributing to the job losses.
Several California grocery locations are shutting down:
Food 4 Less #364, Inglewood — 64 employees affected.
Produce distributor FreshKO Produce Services will close a facility in Fresno, eliminating 58 jobs.
Meanwhile, a Walgreens distribution center in Houston is slated to close, affecting 159 workers, as the retailer consolidates its distribution network.
Recent layoffs and closures across supply chain companies
KING NEWS
The King Report March 16, 2026 Issue 7700
Independent View of the News
Trump on Friday night raised the stakes on Iran: Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island… for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision… Iran has NO ability to defend anything that we want to attack… Iran will NEVER have a nuclear weapon, nor will it have the ability to threaten the United States of America, the Middle East or, for that matter, the World! Iran’s Military, and all others involved with this Terrorist Regime, would be wise to lay down their arms, and save what’s left of their country, which isn’t much!… Iran had plans of taking over the entire Middle East, and completely obliterating Israel. JUST LIKE IRAN ITSELF, THOSE PLANS ARE NOW DEAD!
Kharg Island Oil Terminal is crucial to Iran’s oil exports; it processes about 90% of its crude oil.
Pentagon approves deployment of a Marine “expeditionary unit” of approximately 2,500 Marines to the Middle East – WSJ (To secure Kharg Island and control most of Iran’s oil exports?)
@MattWolking: Donald Trump in a 1988 interview, 38 years ago: “I’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools. One bullet shot at one of our men or ships, and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it.”
Trump on Saturday morn: “Many Countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe…” https://x.com/RealAmVoice/status/2032821975815516541/photo/1
Trump says he’ll be ‘bombing the hell’ out of Iran after regime threatens to abduct US military staff following Kharg Island ‘obliteration’https://t.co/4r2RO84bKZ
On Saturday, DJT rebuffed Oman and Egypt’s offers to negotiate a truce with Iran.
Iran’s FM said any country except the US and Israel can pass through the Strait of Hormuz (Iran blinked). The USA and Israel don’t get oil via the Persian Gulf.
Q4 GDP 0.7%, 1.4% expected; Consumption 2.0%, 2.4% expected GDP Price Index 3.8%, 3.6% expected; Jan Personal Income 0.5%, Spending 0.3%
Jan PCE Price Index 0.3% m/m & 2.8% y/y, 0.3% m/m & 2.9% y/y expected Core PCE Price Index 0.4% m/m, 2.7% q/q, & 3.1% y/y as expected
March UM Sentiment 55.5, 54.6 expected; Current Conditions 57.8, 54.9; Expectations 54.1, 54.4 expected; 1-yr Inflation 3.4%, 3.7% expected; 5-10-year Inflation 3.2%, 3.4% consensus
Iran Military Spokesman: “If there is the slightest attack on Iran’s energy infrastructure and ports, we will set the region’s oil and gas on fire.”
@IranIntl_En: Iran’s armed forces are facing acute supply shortages, rising desertions and deepening friction between the regular army (Artesh) and the Revolutionary Guards, according to informed sources who described a military system under growing strain as the war intensifies. https://t.co/8vK5XO9V5W
The Guardian’s @patrickwintour: Trump has given Israel roughly a week to show that it can bring home regime change in Iran… “Israeli micro-drones and UAVs began targeting IRGC, Basij, and Law Enforcement checkpoints in several cities including Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, and Shiraz. “Under conditions where keeping streets under control is a key element for preserving the survival of the entire regime, targeting the suppressors at checkpoints is in fact a strike against the last protective shields of the Islamic Republic.”… This is Netanyahu’s best and probably last chance to fulfil a decades long plan to destroy the regime… he is working against a clock and the oil price.
The IDF reportedly pounded IRGC sites in Tehran on Friday afternoon ET.
Reuters: Meta is planning sweeping layoffs that could affect 20% or more of the company…
The NY Fang+ Index declined sharply on Friday morning. Meta was -3.83% near 12:45 ET; Broadcom was -3.71%; Apple was -1.71%; Palantir was -1.69%; and Microsoft was -1.69%.
ESHs rallied to 6711.75 (+34.25) at 21:09 ET on the removal of US sanctions on Russian oil. Then they tumbled to a daily low of 6640.00 (-33.50) at 4:12 ET. Persistent buying, probably for the Friday Rally, propelled ESHs to a daily high of 6737.50 (+60.00) at 9:45 ET. The Pro Dump appeared; ESHs fell to 6691.265 at 10:16 ET. Traders buying for the expected 2nd-Hr Reversal took ESHs to 6716.00 at 10:30.
Alas, aggressive sellers resurfaced; ESHs intractably fell to a daily low of 6634.50 (-43.00) at 13:50 ET. The Friday Afternoon Rally moved ESHs to 6662.00 at 14:51 ET. Alas, as we warned in Friday’s missive, “few pros will want to be long over the weekend.” ESHs sank to 6627.00 at 15:43 ET and were 6629.25 at the NYSE close.
@AZ_Intel_: Federal judge James Boasberg blocked subpoenas served by the Justice Department to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in a probe purportedly tied to the central bank’s renovation, writing in a court filing that “a mountain of evidence suggests” the move was meant to pressure him into backing lower interest rates or resigning. – NBC (How does Boasberg keep getting DJT cases?)
US Attorney for DC Pirro: “According to the US Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, certainly higher than the court that Boasberg is on, a Grand Jury, every grand jury, has broad discretion to ‘investigate merely on suspicion the law is being violated, or because it wants assurance the law is not being violated.’ And so this decision today by Judge Boasberg runs directly afoul of the highest court’s admonition, that courts and judges must not and CANNOT saddle grand juries with mini-trials and preliminary showings that impede a prosecutor’s investigation, and thus frustrate the public’s interest in the fair and expeditious administration of justice.” https://x.com/nicksortor/status/2032543788581740776
Positive aspects of previous session The DJUA, due to gas stocks, rallied 10.91 points; the DJTA rallied 20.92 points The dollar soared; Precious metals fell sharply.
Negative aspects of previous session Bonds were -15/32 at 16:00 ET; energy commodities rallied sharply The NY Fang+ Index got hammered. Brent oil closed above $100 for the 2nd straight session.
Ambiguous aspects of previous session When will Trump loose patience with the Iran War?
Today – This is Expiry Week and Fed Week. Traders want to play for the upward bias Fed Week and the Expiry Week manipulation. However, geopolitical events have weighed on stocks for the past few weeks.
Add in the usual Sunday night buying for the expected Monday Rally, and you have the reason for equity futures rebounding sharply from early losses on Sunday night. June (M) is the front month for futures.
ESMs opened at 6656.00 (-19.75) then rallied to 6712.50 (+26.75) at 19:01 ET. NQMs opened at 24491.50 (-114.25) and then jumped to 24,708.00 (+102.25) at 19:02 ET. Oil and Gas are down a tad.
Expected Economic Data: March Empire Mfg. 3.9; Feb Industrial Production 0.1% m/m, Mfg. Production 0.2%, Capacity Utilization 76.2%; March NAHB Housing Market Index 37
S&P Index 50-day MA: 6884; 100-day MA: 6842; 150-day MA: 6750; 200-day MA: 6604 DJIA 50-day MA: 48,985;100-day MA: 48,254; 150-day MA: 47,410; 200-day MA: 46,461 (Green is positive slope; Red is negative slope)
S&P 500 Index (6632.19 close) – BBG trading model Trender and MACD for key time frames Monthly: Trender and MACD are positive – a close below 6035.78 triggers a sell signal Weekly: Trender is positive; MACD is negative – a close below 6458.06 triggers a sell signal Daily: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 6836.54 triggers a buy signal Hourly: Trender and MACD are negative – a close above 6677.53 triggers a buy signal
Trump warns NATO faces ‘very bad future’ if allies fail to help US in Iran: FT
Cuban president confirms talks with US after Trump floated ‘friendly takeover’https://trib.al/d9FXzW6 (Large protests across Cuba against the communist regime appeared over the weekend.)
@EndWokeness: This is not getting enough attention: 3 days ago, Muhi Mohamad Najm went into an elementary school in Klein, TX. He was armed, wearing tactical gear. Thankfully, security stopped him. https://x.com/EndWokeness/status/2032500583358230737
First photo of Michigan terrorist who tried to murder Jewish toddlers — as it’s revealed his brothers were Hezbollah – “He applied for naturalization on October 20, 2015, and was granted U.S. citizenship on February 5, 2016, under the Obama administration.” He had been on law enforcement’s radar at least since 2019, sources said… https://nypost.com/2026/03/13/us-news/first-photo-of-michigan-shooter-who-tried-to-murder-jewish-toddlers/
Ex-Clinton Advisor @Mark_Penn: With two terror attacking the US today it’s time for enough Democratic Senators to again crossover and fund DHS and TSA without delay. Once again Schumer is trying to keep his job with counterproductive maneuvers that accomplish nothing but please his base. This is now too serious and too dangerous to keep delaying further and these employees can’t keep working without pay.
@MAGAVoice: A day after voting AGAINST funding DHS, MI Sen now wants it funded after a Terrorist attack on her State. Elissa Slotkin is finally waking up. https://x.com/MAGAVoice/status/2032525857382953271
Migrant who shoved Air Force vet onto subway tracks in NYC was previously deported FOUR timeshttps://t.co/TlQLadrS4A
Illegal alien’s violent tussle with federal officer leads to multiple charges after suspected Biden-era entryhttps://t.co/aspt4g111n
@greg_price11: The victim of the terrorist attack at Old Dominion has been identified as Lt. Col. Brandon Shah– a Professor of Military Science and the leader of the university’s ROTC program. He was a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Atlantic Resolve. His awards included two Bronze Stars, Senior Army Aviator Badge, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal with Valor, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the Joint Service Achievement Medal. https://x.com/greg_price11/status/2032235907269513698 @bonchieredstate: He did multiple tours valiantly fighting Islamists for his country and survived, only to come home and be murdered by an Islamist who was let in so some moronic politicians could virtue signal about diversity being our strength.
@bennyjohnson: Norfolk Commonwealth’s Soros-backed Attorney Ramin Fatehi ridiculously blames the lack of gun control for the shooting at Old Dominion University in Virginia on Thursday… Fatehi doesn’t mention the ISIS-inspired shooting suspect, 36-year-old Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, in this rant… https://t.co/WA1QqrdB04
@RepRileyMoore: This horrific pattern of naturalized citizens committing acts of terrorism against the American people must end. I will introduce a bill to denaturalize and deport any naturalized citizen who: commits an act of terrorism – plots to commit an act of terrorism – joins a terrorist organization – or otherwise aides and abets terrorism against the American people. @MEMRIReports: Dearborn Henry Ford Community College Professor Ali Akbar Shdid: Trump Made a Huge Mistake by Killing Our Leader Ali Khamenei, We Are Going to Continue on His Path, We Are Going to Hold His Blood and Ideology and Teach It to Our Children https://x.com/MEMRIReports/status/2028132058661314981
@BarronTNews_: A wanted fugitive just killed by Dallas SWAT after pulling a gun on officers was Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s security. Let that sink in. A fugitive with multiple aliases working security for a Democrat in Congress. What kind of people are these politicians surrounding themselves with? Absolutely insane.https://x.com/BarronTNews_/status/2032799936496959943
Mamdani administration inks $1.9B, 3-yr contract to house homeless in NYC hotels https://trib.al/iz7I24m
@TheChiefNerd: Zohran Mamdani Says Raising Taxes on the Rich Will Stop People from Leaving NYC “We already see an exodus of working and middle class New Yorkers. So I don’t have a hesitation in asking those who make the most amount of money … to pay a little bit more so that everyone can actually stay in this city.” https://t.co/9O9XCS2R8f
Mamdani Wants New York Estate Tax Threshold Cut 90% to $750,000… from more than $7 million… and raise the top estate tax rate from 16% to 50%… – BBG
Billionaire Uber co-founder reveals he’s joined exodus from Californiahttps://trib.al/MWD6CtE
@WallStreetApes: CBS News is doing real journalism. A Skokie (IL) woman claimed she and her 5 coworkers were detained by federal agents after they got off their flight at Chicago O’Hare from Turkey They said ICE sent them to detention centers. CBS investigated and learned it was ALL A LIE… We’ve also found that Naqvi pled guilty to making a false police report in a sexual assault case downstate… https://x.com/WallStreetApes/status/2032592877315043502
Turley: Seventh Circuit Delivers Sharp Rebuke to Chicago District Judge (Obama appointee) Over Her “Constitutionally Suspect” Orders Against the Trump Administration The panel criticized Sara Ellis for limiting the operation of federal officers in Chicago, saying that she “effectively established the district court as the supervisor of all Executive Branch activity in the city of Chicago.”… It made clear that “federal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch” and that the district court “likely abused its discretion by issuing such a sweeping injunction.” The decision not to simply dismiss this case was clearly meant to send a message not only to Judge Ellis but also to other such judges who are exceeding their authority in seeking to limit Trump policies and programs. https://jonathanturley.org/2026/03/10/seventh-circuit-delivers-sharp-rebuke-to-chicago-district-judge-over-her-constitutionally-suspect-orders-against-the-trump-administration/
All Members of Texas Antifa Cell Convicted in First Federal Terrorism Trial Nine defendants accused of a July 4, 2025 ambush on a Texas ICE facility faced charges including providing support to terrorists and attempted murder of federal officers.. https://www.ngocomment.com/p/all-members-of-texas-antifa-cell
Late-night hosts mocked US and allies 94% of time following Operation Epic Fury: surveyhttps://t.co/TSRWTsJ6Pe
@TheChiefNerd: O’REILLY: “Why do you think Trump is so vilified by the Kimmel’s, the Colbert’s … Why do they hate him so much?” (comedian/actor) SCHNEIDER: “Liberal women that have lost their minds are controlling these men, and these guys have no more balls … Kimmel has been de-balled by his wife.” https://t.co/zwEHBerUk8
SWAMP STORIES FOR YOU TONIGHT
Boasberg’s Law: Why The Quashing Of The Powell Subpoenas Leaves More Questions Than Answers
Last week, Chief Judge James Boasberg delivered a blow to the criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell by tossing out grand jury subpoenas. Boasberg declared the investigation overtly political and coercive, without any criminal predicate. The decision is a rare rejection of a duly issued grand jury subpoena at this stage of an investigation. In my view, he was premature and could face a difficult appeal in In re Grand Jury Subpoenas, Bd. of Governors of the Federal Reserve System v. U.S.
I have previously expressed skepticism about the investigation into Powell and share concerns about the alleged use of the criminal justice system to pressure the Federal Reserve Board. However, the question is when a court can make such a judgment at this stage of the investigation. Prosecutors are generally entitled to make their case and these subpoenas sought potential evidence of waste or corruption.
Boasberg has long been one of the most vocal critics of President Donald Trump on the bench, including a series of orders to stop the deportation of immigrants to El Salvador and, recently, an order for their return. He was also the subject of an ethics complaint by the Administration over statements made at a judicial conference that portrayed President Trump as a threat to the rule of law. (For the record, I opposed the effort to impeach Judge Boasberg).
In the latest controversy, Boasberg rejected the premise of the criminal investigation of Powell:
“The case thus asks: Did prosecutors issue those subpoenas for a proper purpose? The Court finds that they did not. There is abundant evidence that the subpoenas’ dominant (if not sole) purpose is to harass and pressure Powell either to yield to the President or to resign and make way for a Fed Chair who will.”
Judge Boasberg quotes Trump’s personal attacks on Powell after he continued to refuse to lower interest rates. These include signature all-caps attacks from the President:
“Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell has done it again!!! He is TOO LATE, and actually, TOO ANGRY, TOO STUPID, & TOO POLITICAL, to have the job of Fed Chair. He is costing our Country TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS …. Put another way, ‘Too Late’ is a TOTAL LOSER, and our Country is paying the price!”
Boasberg noted over 100 such postings, including “‘Too Late’ Jerome Powell is costing our Country Hundreds of Billions of Dollars. He is truly one of the dumbest, and most destructive, people in Government …. TOO LATE’s an American Disgrace!”
He also noted a menacing statement by the President that, if the Fed does not cut rates, “I may have to force something.”
This is not the first time that the President’s social media postings have been used as evidence against Administration policies in federal cases.
Many of us have criticized the President over personal attacks on judges or other officials.
However, courts generally do not impute an unlawful motive to criminal investigations or prosecutions if there is an otherwise valid purpose or allegation.
Judge Boasberg dismisses any such possibility of a valid purpose, writing:
“The case thus asks: Did prosecutors issue those subpoenas for a proper purpose? The Court finds that they did not. There is abundant evidence that the subpoenas’ dominant (if not sole) purpose is to harass and pressure Powell either to yield to the President or to resign and make way for a Fed Chair who will.
On the other side of the scale, the Government has offered no evidence whatsoever that Powell committed any crime other than displeasing the President. The Court must thus conclude that the asserted justifications for these subpoenas are mere pretexts. It will therefore grant the Board’s Motion to Quash. It will also grant the Board’s Motion to Partially Unseal the Motion to Quash, related briefing, and this Opinion….”
Once again, I do not fault the court for skepticism, but I do have serious concerns over his timing and his own possible bias in issuing such a ruling.
The Administration has an active but still early criminal investigation into the massive spending on renovations to the Federal Reserve building. To that end, the Justice Department served two subpoenas on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, seeking records about the renovations of the Board’s buildings as well as Powell’s prior congressional testimony on those renovations. The Board filed a Motion to Quash, contending that the subpoenas are a raw play to force Powell to resign or to bend to the will of the President.
After reading the Boasberg opinion, my concerns only increased. At every juncture, Judge Boasberg ends his analysis with conclusory statements about his perception of the real motivation behind the case. That is a dangerous propensity for an Article III judge who must separate the politics from the merits in such challenges. In this case, Boasberg simply concluded that politics was the merits.
The court notes, correctly, that there are prior cases where grand jury subpoenas have been found improper if they are simply “fishing expeditions” or targeting “targets of investigation out of malice or an intent to harass.” They can also be quashed if prosecutors are seeking to meddle with an official’s duties. Such cases are very rare and the cited cases do not seem dispositive or even particularly helpful in the instant case.
The problem is that the main precedent relied on by the court suggests that this opinion is not just premature but itself an example of bias.
The court relies on Trump v. Vance to support the authority to quash an indictment. However, that case involved state prosecutors using grand-jury subpoenas financial records of President Trump and his businesses. Without actually ruling on whether the subpoenas were proper, the Court warned that state DAs cannot use grand-jury subpoenas to “interfer[e] with a President’s official duties.”
That case presented a threshold problem of state officials using the grand jury to target a president with obvious concerns over the Supremacy Clause. Judge Boasberg rightly noted that the clear import is that “a government official cannot do indirectly what she is barred from doing directly ….”
However, this is not something that the Justice Department is “barred from doing directly.” It has stated that the over-budget renovations raise concerns over fraud and wrongdoing. That is squarely within the jurisdiction of the Executive Branch.
Judge Boasberg cited cases such as NRA of Am. v. Vullo, 602 U.S. 175, 190 (2024) as an example of the bar on doing indirectly what you are barred from doing directly. However, like Vance, that case only makes this opinion stand out more. The case involved a New York state official using her powers to pressure banks and other companies not to do business with the NRA. That is manifestly different from the context in which prosecutors seek to enforce duly issued subpoenas to investigate possible fraud or waste in the criminal system.
Judge Boasberg then veers significantly from these cases with a series of conclusory remarks. He virtually mocks the suggestion that the Administration is acting in light of the massive costs and overruns, noting “buildings often go over budget.” Yet that does not mean federal officials are therefore barred from launching investigations into such matters.
The court further stresses that budget overruns “standing alone, hardly suggests that a crime occurred.” The question, again, is whether the required threshold is showing. The costs of the federal building are breathtaking and arguably unprecedented in terms of square foot expenditures. The court does not explain what showing is necessary to commence a criminal investigation. This is an early subpoena seeking basic documentary evidence.
The court notes that inspectors general have authority to investigate overruns and waste, adding that there was no such finding in this case. However, once again, the question is why that is relevant to the question before the Court. The IG may indeed be a better avenue for investigation, but there is nothing legally that forestalls an investigation by the Justice Department.
Once again, Judge Boasberg has voiced concerns shared by many on the basis of this criminal investigation. However, that is speculation in commentary. Judge Boasberg is not a talking head. He is a federal judge who must decide whether, despite such personal suspicions or inclinations, the court can bar otherwise valid grand jury subpoenas issued in an early stage of investigation.
The irony is that, while castigating the prosecutors for a lack of evidence, Judge Boasberg relies on dubious evidence to establish that political harassment is the dominant motivation. Quoting all-caps postings of the President does not offer evidence of a sole or dominant motive in an investigation. It is itself speculative and presumptive.
While Judge Boasberg notes that, “[w]ith varied improper purposes popping up on different occasions, it is clear that such purposes cannot be reduced to a fixed and exhaustive list,” he does not offer any clarity on when an investigation into fraud or waste would be demonstrably valid in its earliest stages. The court acknowledges that the Supreme Court has held there is no need for the Government to establish probable cause as the basis for issuing a grand-jury subpoena.
So that is the standard here other than Judge Boasberg’s suspicions based on public statements from the President?
The court merely states
“What the Court must determine is whether the Board is correct in its inference. In other words, what is these subpoenas’ dominant purpose? A mountain of evidence suggests that the dominant purpose is to harass Powell to pressure him to lower rates.”
That dominant purpose is far from evident. There is no evidence that Powell will yield to the pressure to lower rates, and many of us have noted that this would be a particularly ham-handed effort to get him to do so. From what we have seen, Powell has little to fear from this inquiry on a personal level. If anything, the improper purpose would seem like raw retaliation. However, there is also the pesky claim in the grand jury and captured in these subpoenas that the Administration believes that there is fraud or waste – and the possibility of false testimony. How would the court know at this stage that such claims are meritless or fraudulent? More importantly, what would stop future courts from rendering the same inferential judgment on presidents that they oppose?
Rather than answer that question, Boasberg returns to all-caps posts about how much the President despises Powell and wants him gone. The problem is that both positions could be true. The President could want Powell gone while the Justice Department could want to investigate waste and fraud.
For example, Boasberg quotes Trump as saying “we’re thinking about bringing a gross incompetence, what’s called a gross incompetence lawsuit, it’s gross incompetence, against Powell . . . I’d love to fire him. Maybe I still might.”
The problem is that Trump could believe that Powell is grossly incompetent and that he allowed massive overruns on this project. Boasberg just assumes that Trump wants Powell gone and even makes a veiled analogy to King Henry II signaling to his henchmen to kill Thomas Becket:
“In sum, the President spent years essentially asking if no one will rid him of this troublesome Fed Chair.”
(In this modern remake, apparently the murderous King is Trump, the saintly Becket is Powell, and the henchman is Pirro).
What is particularly disturbing is how the court dismisses the independent ethical duty of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro to have a good-faith basis for seeking such subpoenas.
Judge Boasberg writes:
“True, most of the evidence above speaks to the motives of the President, not the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Yet judges ‘are not required to exhibit a naiveté from which ordinary citizens are free.’ Dep’t of Com. v. New York, 588 U.S. 752, 785 (2019) (quotation marks omitted). The U.S. Attorney was appointed by the President and can be fired by him. Her peer one district over was recently pushed out for refusing to prosecute the President’s opponents.”
This, for me, was the final abandonment of objectivity where assumptions become reality. By dismissing Pirro’s independent motivation, Boasberg leaves the weight of his own evidence as a string of social media posts. He ignores a major push by the administration to seek out government waste and fraud, which began with the DOGE efforts and was recently followed by the appointment of a “tsar” to root out fraud in federal programs. There is no serious debate that this Administration has made combating fraud and waste a priority and has taken unprecedented steps to investigate and prosecute such wrongdoing. Yet the court suggests that Pirro is merely clinging to her job by blindly carrying out the President’s demands.
None of this means that the court would lack the authority or a possible basis to dismiss this action at a later stage. My primary concern is the timing and the court’s presumptive analysis at this early stage. I fail to see a discernible standard in this case that would inform future courts or officials … other than presidents should not post in all caps or troll officials. While Judge Boasberg chastises the Justice Department for yielding too readily to its impulses, this opinion seems strikingly impulsive in critical aspects.
The Justice Department is appealing this opinion. We may see greater clarity on the underlying standard as the case works toward the Supreme Court.
A JOKE!!! THEY ARE SUING FOR THE RIGHT TO BE GIVEN JUNK FOOD? OVER NUTRIOUS FOODS?
SNAP Recipients Claim Trump Trying To “Destabilize Food Access”, Sue Feds Over Junk Food Ban
Monday, Mar 16, 2026 – 01:05 PM
The Make America Healthy Again agenda just found its first serious legal challenger. This week, five food stamp recipients filed suit in Washington, D.C., federal court demanding the right to spend taxpayer-funded SNAP benefits on candy, soda, and energy drinks.
The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over its growing list of “food restriction” waivers, which Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins began approving back in May 2025. Since then, 22 states have signed on, each with their own specific list of banned items — generally soda, energy drinks, candy, and pre-packaged desserts.
Both Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have championed the waivers as a concrete step toward addressing chronic disease and redirecting taxpayer money toward genuinely nutritious food.
“The Trump Administration is unified in improving the health of our nation. America’s governors have proudly answered the call to innovate by improving nutrition programs, ensuring better choices while respecting the generosity of the American taxpayer,” Rollins said last year.
“Each waiver submitted by the states and signed is yet another step closer to fulfilling President Trump’s promise to Make America Healthy Again.”
The lawsuit claims they had no right to do this.
The five plaintiffs. residents of Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia, and represented by the law firm Shinder Cantor Lerner, argue in their complaint that the restrictions “destabilize food access” for SNAP participants in the 22 affected states.
They claim the USDA exceeded its legal authority by approving the waivers without soliciting public input, establishing proper evaluation metrics, or engaging those directly impacted by the waivers first, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
The lawsuit further contends that the relevant section of the Food and Nutrition Act only authorizes pilot projects designed to “enhance the efficiency” or improve the delivery of benefits — and that banning specific food items accomplishes neither.
“SNAP is a critical lifeline for millions of families and households, and Congress has established clear guardrails for how the program must operate across the country,” Jeffrey Shinder, founding partner at Shinder Cantor Lerner, claimed in a statement to Newsweek.
“The USDA is attempting to bypass those strict guardrails by empowering states to curtail access to SNAP in ways that will create significant hardship on recipients and retailers. We urge the Court to halt this attack on SNAP, which threatens millions of individuals’ access to essential food assistance nationwide.”
The plaintiffs claim they or their family members rely on the restricted foods to manage health conditions such as diabetes and allergies, or to obtain energy boosts for daily life.
The claim that sugary drinks and candy are medically necessary for diabetics runs directly counter to established dietary guidance. One plaintiff argues that her state’s waiver would restrict her daughter to only three “safe” foods and beverages — one of which is bottled water.
The plaintiffs also argue that confusion is another problem impacting SNAP recipients.
“We are focused on litigating the case we filed yesterday and securing relief for the plaintiffs already before the Court. At the same time, we remain open to expanding the case to challenge similar waivers in additional states. SNAP serves as an essential support system for millions of families,” added Meegan Hollywood, a partner at the firm.
“The waivers create confusion at checkout and force retailers to apply standards that are vague and unworkable. A program that millions of families rely on cannot operate amid confusion and uncertainty. Our complaint details how these policies are already harming recipients in multiple states and undermining the very families SNAP is meant to support.”
That framing assumes junk food is a non-negotiable line item. Recipients who want soda and candy remain free to purchase them — with their own money.
GREG HUNTER…MARTIN ARMSTRONG
Oil Could Test $200; Martin Armstrong Warns Attacking Iranian Water Supplies Could Bring Out Nukes
What do we have? Oil, gold and silver spiking in price, and violent exchanges between Iran, the United States and many other countries in the Middle East.
The water shortage is so bad that there has been water rationing in Tehran for months. This water rationing was part of the reason there were huge protests in Iran a few months ago. Armstrong explains:
“Part of the protests (in Iran) were about water rationing. The Islamic Republic Guard were called the ‘water mafia.’ They control the water.
It’s kind of like North Korea. If you want to be fed, you join the army. All food goes to the army first, and water will also go to the military first.”
Remember, they are water rationing in Iran now, and they don’t have a lot left. So, what happens if the US, Israel and other Persian Gulf nations knock out what’s left of Iran’s water? What happens if Iran is completely out of water? Armstrong says:
“Personally, I would ask Pakistan for a nuke. Look, you are talking about the death of a country. When you get to that point, if you’ve got a nuke, you are going to use it.”
So, what happens if the dams and reservoirs are bombed and Iran is completely cut off from water? Armstrong says:
“If you do that, is that a war crime because you are wiping out the average population and civilians? Would you do that? This is a mess. It’s a complete mess.”
On the other side, what happens if Iran knocks out all the Persian Gulf oil refineries? Armstrong says:
“If I were Iran, I would attack all the oil refineries of the neighboring states. You do that, and you will bring the entire West to its knees. The US only gets about 3% of our oil from the Middle East. You would wipe out Europe for sure.”
Armstrong sees gold going as high as “$8,800 an ounce . . . and silver $150 per ounce. . .. Oil could test $200 a barrel. . .. It’s going to get worse this summer, and it’s a 250-year drought cycle in Iran. I wrote about this on my site.”
In closing, Armstrong says, “Winston Churchill said, ‘In time of war, truth is very precious, and it needs a bodyguard of lies to protect it.’”
There is much more in the 54-minute interview.”
Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog as he goes One-on-One with Martin Armstrong to talk about the volatility that got kicked into high gear with the bombing of Iran for 3.10.26.
Catherine Austin Fitts (CAF), publisher of “The Solari Report,” has been pushing gold (and silver) as an investment for the past few years. The record high price, even though both have come down in price a bit, has proven her right–again. Now, there is an overpowering change getting ready to hit the world. CAF says, “What I call the Rothchild syndicate wants programmable money, and they don’t want anybody stopping it. . .. That’s number one. The second thing is most people do not understand what is coming in terms of what the distributive ledger technology is going to do, what it is going to do to the currency markets, to the stock and bond markets. It is bubble economics and also control. . .. We are talking about something that is entirely demonic. Let me give you a few examples: Mr. Smith, this is the government calling, and we know you have three children. We want one of them transgendered. You can choose which one, but if you don’t transgender one of them, we will turn off your money, and you won’t be able to feed your other children.” (more…)
harveyorganblog.com 
