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Articles by Luc X. Ifer
De-Dollarization Continues: China, Iran To Eliminate Greenback From Bilateral Trade
The more Washington lashes out in anger at those who will not bow to the unipolar world order, the more the rest of the world fights back. As the launch of its Yuan/Gold-settled oil futures looms, China is escalating its de-dollarization scheme further by seeking a bilateral rial-yuan agreement with Iran. As a reminder, nothing lasts forever...
Sweden's New Government Censorship Exposed
Authored by Judith Bergman via The Gatestone Institute, In the report, placing the word "refugees" in quotation marks, as well as "unaccompanied children," is supposedly an expression of "hate". (Many, if not most, migrants classified as "unaccompanied children" have turned out to be grown men).
Majority Of White Americans Say They Face Discrimination
A new NPR poll finds that a majority of white Americans believe they face discrimination in America today... "If you apply for a job, they seem to give the blacks the first crack at it," said 68-year-old Tim Hershman of Akron, Ohio, "and, basically, you know, if you want any help from the government, if you're white, you don't get it.
Fire Breaks Out On The Roof Of The New York Fed
Dozens of firefighters are fighting a blaze which broke out on the top of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, NBC New York reports. The fire broke out sometime before 8:40 p.m. on the roof of the 14-story building at 33 Liberty St. in Lower Manhattan, the location of the world's biggest gold vault as Simon Gruber knows too well. Manhattan: *2 Alarm Fire* Box 061 at 33 Liberty St, heavy fire of a federal reserve bank. Fire on the roof.
US "Confirms" N.Korea Has ICBM-Ready Nuclear Warheads
First thing this morning we reported that according to a 500-page report by the Japanese Defense Ministry, North Korea may now be in possession of a miniature nuclear warhead. That said, the report did not move the market because the Japanese report was largely inconclusive and did not claim with certainty that this is the case.
What's Triggering The Left Now? Soon You Won't Be Allowed To Say "Patriot"
Authored by Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com, There was a time when liberals and conservatives both agreed on one thing. They both used to love their country. Though they differed on what values and policies would be best for their homeland, they still had that shred of common ground. That’s clearly no longer the case.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, & Bahrain Cut Diplomatic Ties, Shut All Borders With Qatar
Just days after president Trump left the region, a geopolitical earthquake is taking place in the Middle East tonight as the rift between Qatar and other members of the (likely extinct) Gulf Cooperation Council explodes with Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt cutting all diplomatic ties with Qatar accusing it of "speading chaos," by funding terrorism and supporting Iran. The dispute between Qatar and the Gulf's Arab countries started over a purported hack of Qatar's state-run news agency.
How Is This Not A Recession? Ford To Slash 10% Of Global Workforce
Having admitted in March that "used car prices will drop for years" and amid near-record inventories, a so-called 'plateau' in car sales, and soaring auto-loan losses, WSJ is reporting that Ford is planning substantial cuts to its global workforce amid CEO Mark Fields’s drive to boost profits and address the auto maker’s sliding stock price, according to people briefed on the plan. With near record high inventories of 3.9 million vehicles... Demand tumbling...
'Anonymous' Issues Ominous World War 3 Warning: "The Citizens Will Be The Last To Know"
Using their signature Guy Fawkes character, the infamous hacktivist group Anonymous has issued an ominous new video - warning people around the world to "prepare" for World War 3 as the US and North Korea continue to move "strategic pieces into place" for battle. All the signs of a looming war on the Korean Peninsula are surfacing... we’re watching as each country moves strategic pieces into place... but unlike past world wars...
Alberta Warns Trump Of Retaliation If Energy Sanctions Begin
Authored by Zainab Calcuttawala via OilPrice.com, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley warned U.S. President Donald Trump that he would face the wrath of the northern nation’s many allies if the freshman president begins employing energy trade restrictions with Canada. Notley is currently in China, negotiating her country’s trade policies with the Asian giant.
America Is No Longer Top Dog: Chinese Military "Reaching Near-Parity" With The West
Submitted by Daniel Lang via SHTFPlan.com, The United States military is without a doubt the most technologically advanced force on the planet, and has been since at least World War II. Most Western nations are likewise, heavily dependent on advanced technology. When the West wins wars, it’s not because of moxy or numbers or cunning. It’s because we can detonate our enemies from miles away on a whim. In response, our rivals have spent decades trying to compensate with those aforementioned traits.
Schwarzenegger: I Wanted To "Smash Trump's Face"
The bizarre feud between Donald Trump and Arnold Schwarzenegger resumed on Monday, when the former California Govenor told Men's Journal in an interview published Monday that he wanted to "smash [Trump's] face." Arnold's outburst was the latest retaliation by the former Terminator star after Trump mocked his ratings as the new host of "The Celebrity Apprentice," which have been well below those of the president when he hosted the NBC reality show.
Highlights From The Trump, Merkel Call: NATO, Terrorism, Mid-East Conflicts, Russian Relations
Concluding a busy Saturday, in addition to speaking on the phone to Japan's prime minister Abe, and Russia's president Putin calling for "establishing real coordination of U.S. and Russian actions in order to defeat ISIS and other terrorist groups in Syria” as well as discussing the importance of "restoring business ties", Trump also prepared to sign three also on to sign three executive orders dealing with the reorganization of the NSC, focusing on cyberthreats to the US and a crackdown on...
Clinton Family Friend Charged After Threatening To Kill Donald Trump On Twitter
51 year-old Florida resident, Dominic Puopolo, who was arrested by Miami Beach police Tuesday for allegedly threatening President-elect Donald Trump online is, according to The Daily Mail, is a member of a prominent northeast family close to Bill and Hillary Clinton. Puopolo reportedly admitted to posting a video to Twitter, under his handle @JesusChrist1701, saying: "Yes, I will be at the review stand at the inauguration and I am going to kill President-elect Trump...
Identity Of "Former Intelligence Officer" Who Prepared The Trump Dossier, Has Been Revealed
While we learned earlier that John McCain was responsible for handing over the 35-page "dossier" of compromising, if arguably fake, revelations about Trump's connections to Russia over to the FBI, the identity of the actual creator, who was said to be an ex-British intelligence service, remained a mystery. No longer.
Glenn Greenwald Slams The 'Unverified Claims' Of The Democrat-Cheered Deep State's War With Trump
In January, 1961, Dwight Eisenhower delivered his farewell address after serving two terms as U.S. president; the five-star general chose to warn Americans of this specific threat to democracy: “In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex.
It's Not Just The Russians: Ex-CIA Chief Claims "More Than One Country Involved" In US Hacks
Following Trump's earlier Tweet, the following from current House intelligence chair and a former CIA chief seem very notable... "I think the possibility that there’s more than one country involved is really there," warned former CIA Director James Woolsey during a recent CNN interview, suggesting that political hacks in the U.S. could be the work of more than one foreign country. Former CIA director James Woolsey: Possibility that more than one country is involved in hacking is there.
Loonie Tumbles After Canadian Economy Unexpectedly Crashes Back Into Contraction
After 4 straight quarters of MoM growth in GDP, the Canadian economy plunged 0.3% in Q4 (considerably worse than the 0.0% expectations) despite a resugenece in crude prices. The Loonie is tumbling, back at 5-week lows, as manufacturing shrank a shocking 2.0% YoY - most since 2013. Goods-producing sector fell 1.3% m/m in Oct. Service-producing sector rose 0.1% m/m in Oct.
Mr. Putin Comes To Washington? "If Trump Invites Me, Of Course I'll Come"
Putin is a liar and a traitor. Putin sells real and valuable Russian oil for Russia's enemy's illegal and fraudulent money (read Article 1, Section 10 of the United States Constitution), the US Dollar of which the Euro, the Yen and the Yuan are derivatives -- in other words, the same thing. If Putin were not a traitor to Russia, he would ask for Roubles or gold instead of accepting Dollars and currencies which are derivatives of the US Dollar, or Dollars with different images on them.
Trump: "If Russia Was Hacking, Why Did White House Only Complain After Hillary Lost?"
With the nation gripped by the thoroughly unsubstantiated "Russian hacking" scandal, which last night escalated to include Putin himself according to an NBC report which provided nothing new, Trump threw himself in the fray on Thursday morning when he raised more questions on Twitter about Russia's reported role in cyber attacks on U.S. political parties and individuals as well as the timing of the White House's response under President Barack Obama.
US Sends 200 More Troops To Syria Days After Obama Lifts Ban On Arms Supplies To Rebels
With Assad on the verge of retaking Aleppo, and with it, regaining full control in the ongoing Syrian proxy war, we asked last week in "With Assad On Verge Of Historic Victory, Syrian Rebels Request A Ceasefire" how long before the US intervenes in an attempt to derail the sudden Syrian (and Russian) momentum.
In China, Nobody Wants To Be A Bagholder
With the frenzied speculation that drove levels and volumes in Chinese commodities off the charts having dawned on everyone from Cramer to Chinese Securities regulators as 'not real', it appears everyone is scrambling to not be the bagholder for this bubble as authorities crackdown on Chinese asset managers pooling retail investor funds, warning of the rise of "ponzi schemes." While nobody knows for sure how much of the trading surge has been driven by individuals, but the evidence suggests...
Saudi Arabia Gives First Glimpse Of Oil Strategy Under New Minister
Following the biggest news of this weekend, the (anticipated) resignation/termination of Saudi Arabia's longstanding oil minister Ali al-Naimi, everyone has been wondering about what comes next and how this development will impact the price of oil. We laid out our preliminary thoughts as follows: Ultimately this is not about the new oil minister: this is about Prince Mohammed taking full control over Saudi oil.
As UK Housing Bubble Bursts, Barclays Unleashes 100% LTV Mortgages Again
Just a month after the UK's luxury housing bubble burst, it appears the nice friendly bankers at Barclays are looking for some scapegoats to flip their condos to. In London, as Bloomberg reported, demand has slumped so badly that developers are offering discounts of up to 20% for their newly constructed homes. And just as the case was in Manhattan, it’s a result of the UK putting in a speed bump.
You'll Never Guess Who's Been Buying This Rally...
Futures are looking weak again. Traders gunned for 2,100 on the S&P 500 last week. They briefly touched that level, but there was no follow through for the obvious reason: no one with a brain believes this rally . We’ve broken above the downward trendline established by a series of lower highs in 2015. However, there’s a decent space between here and the all-time highs that has yet to be filled. And with momentum waning, it’s quite possible this move was a false breakout.
Who Is The Ravenous Buyer Of All Those Energy Stocks? Here Is The Surprising Answer
While one can blame algos and "macros" for snapping up oil the commodity, as Morgan Stanley did recently, another question is who is the relentless buyer of energy stocks to a level that makes little sense from a forward P/E multiple. The answer may have been revealed earlier today in Bank of America's breakdown of what smart money investors were doing.
It's Now Cheaper To 'Buy' A Dry Bulk Freight Tanker Than A Starbucks Coffee
Just 3 short months ago, we detailed how - thanks to the collapse in China's growth and massive commodity inventory gluts, the cost of renting a Dry Bulk Tanker was less than the cost of renting a ferrari for a day... As Bloomberg reported at the time, Rates for Capesize-class ships plummeted 92 percent since August to $1,563 a day amid slowing growth in China.
Crude Slides After Russia Warns Of Production Increase: "Was Never Ready To Cut Output"
Perhaps upset at the weekend's development, Russia has decided to rattle the global crude complex cage. Amid hopes of a freeze, Russia's energy minister Alexander Novak has reversed course and stated that Russia could "in theory" increase oil output and "was never ready to cut production." It appears things are rapidly breaking down between Russia and The Kingdom - which perhaps explains Obama's rapidly arranged trip to kiss the ring in Riyadh.
China Sends Fed A Warning: Devalues Yuan By Most In 2 Months
With the USD Index stretching to its longest winning streak of the year, jawboned by numerous Fed speakers explaining how April is 'live' (and everyone misunderstood the dovishness of Yellen), it appears that The PBOC wanted to send a message to The Fed - Raise rates and we will unleash turmoil on your 'wealth creation' plan.
"Brexit" - What Else Is Wrong With The European Union?
Submitted by Josephine Bacon via The Gatestone Institute, There is a joke going around the internet it how the European Union works (or doesn't): Why are EU Regulations so long? Maybe because they have to be translated into the 18 official languages? Interpreters also have to be found who can work into and from those languages at the European Parliament. The translation budget is massive. One of the official languages currently is Irish.
"Worse May Be To Come" As US Services Slump Into Contraction, Business Confidence At Record Lows
From the narrative-destroying 49.8 preliminary print for US Services PMI (the lowest since the government shutdown in 2013), today's final February Services PMI printed an even worse 49.7 (below 50.0 expectations) even as stocks have soared in the last 2 weeks. Business confidence tumbles to its lowest since Aug 2010 (record lows). This drops the composite PMI to a dismal 50.0, implying negative GDP growth in Q1.
This Is What Happens To Gold When Citizens Lose Faith In Fiat Currency
It appears, first slowly and now quickly, the world is realizing that Alan Greenspan was right after all: "Gold is a currency. It is still, by all evidence, a premier currency. No fiat currency, including the dollar, can match it." As Nick Laird exposes, gold prices are running away in the weakest countries first... It can never happen here though, right? Source: Sharelynx
GOLD Breaks Its Multi-Year Downtrend: The Asian Connection
In our column last week we were warning you about Deutsche Bank’s problems and potential issues with its derivatives portfolio and its capital structure. The story continued to unfold in the past week and Deutsche Bank was pushed into a corner as more and more investors started to lose confidence in the bank. A plan to buy back $5.4B in debt in a desperate move to reassure the capital markets.
The Best Leading Indicator For Recession Is Flashing Red, JPMorgan Warns
Away from the endless chattering of talking heads proclaiming that "they do not see any recession on the horizon" despite the manufacturing segment of the economy collapsing, JPMorgan notes that in fact the three best leading indicators for recession are: Credit spreads, yield curve shape, and profit margins. Unfortunately for The Fed and its congregation, JPM warns credit spreads are not giving a positive signal.
Slumlord? How Warren Buffett's Clayton Homes Intentionally Targets & Preys Upon Minorities & Poor People
Managers and executives, she said, dismissed her concerns; she recalled one replying, “It doesn’t really matter as long as we get the money.” She continued to raise concerns, writing in an email to Clayton’s director of marketing that when she spoke to new borrowers, “there were many things they were not made aware about during the sale.” Through a spokesperson earlier this month, Buffett declined to discuss racial issues at Clayton Homes, and a reporter who attempted to contact him at his...
The Downside Domino Effect Of The Auto "Recovery"'s Potemkin Village On Wheels
When most people can’t afford to buy things outright, the cost of money – interest – becomes even more important than the cost of the things themselves. For the past eight years, interest rates have been held down to 3 or 4 percent (or even less, in some cases) such that it costs almost nothing to borrow money.
Caught On Tape: Russian Fighter Jets Destroy Huge ISIS Oil Convoy In Transit To Turkey
One month ago, after a farcial year-long campaign to "destroy" ISIS, which achieved absolutely nothing but made the Islamic State grow bigger and stronger, culminating with the numerous terrorist attacks in the month of November, former CIA deputy director Michael Morell told Charlie Rose on PBS that the reason the US had never actually gone after the lifeblood of the ISIS regime, its oil supply chain, infrastructure and products, was because "we didn’t want to do environmental damage, and we...
Turkey Drops "Independence" From Central Bank Mandate As NATO's Favorite Autocrat Strikes Again
In the nearly six months since summer elections saw AKP lose its absolute parliamentary majority in Turkey after a strong showing at the ballot box by the pro-Kurdish HDP, it’s been interesting to watch how the central bank has reacted (or, more appropriately, “not” reacted) to periods of weakness in the lira.
So Who's Really Sponsoring ISIS?
There are many explanations, but one perhaps stands out: the West’s abject dependence on terror-toting Muslim regimes, largely to maintain access to Middle East, Mediterranean and Central Asian oil and gas resources. ISIS, in other words, is state-sponsored?—?indeed, sponsored by purportedly Western-friendly regimes in the Muslim world, who are integral to the anti-ISIS coalition.
Janet Yellen Is Not "Doing God's Work" If She Raises Rates Before May
While Janet Yellen has made herself ill from stressing over whether she should or should not raise rates (in December... or ever) as she weighs the economy, the market, and her credibility, Representative Brad Sherman just dropped another huge weight on her shoulders. During Yellen's testimony this morning, having expressed notable hawkishness towards a December hike, Sherman told Yellen that God does not want her to raise interest rates until May.
Crude Jumps Back Above $50 As US Oil Rig Count Declines For 6th Straight Week
Following last week's biggest rig count decline in 5 months, Baker Hughes reports a smaller decline of 9 oil rigs this week to 605 - the lowest since July 2010. WTI Crude was trading just below $50 as the data printed and jumped above it on the rig count drop. *U.S. OIL RIG COUNT DOWN 9 TO 605, BAKER HUGHES SAYS WTI Crude, having slipped off its lows back below $50 ahead of the rig count data, jumpe dback above it... Charts: Bloomberg
Why Has Labor's Share Of GDP Declined For 40 Years?
This long-term erosion of earned income and household finances does not enable "growth" that is based on rising spending and borrowing. Why Has Labor's Share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) been declining for 40 Years? The question cuts right to the heart of the core socio-economic issues of our era: the decline of secure work and the explosive rise of wealth and income inequality.
Third Greek Bailout Suddenly In Jeopardy: Creditors Warn Cash May Be Delayed If Elections Don't Go As Desired
Just when everyone was convinced that the main "risk off" event of the summer, namely the Greek bailout, was safely tucked away and that having abdicated its sovereignty to its creditors and Germany in particular, who now hold the Greek banking system hostage courtesy of draconian capital controls, that Greece would continue to receive its monthly cash allotment just so it could repay creditors from its first two bailouts and would not make headlines for the foreseeable future , Market News...
Massive Explosion Rocks Chinese Port City, Martial Law Declared (7 Dead, 400 Hospitalized)
It appears that carry trades are not the only thing blowing up in China. A massive explosion, fireball, and mushroom cloud can be seen at chemical storage facility in the Chinese port town of Tianjin... The explosion could be seen from space... Series of explosions in Tianjin, northern China, caused a huge mushroom cloud and triggered shockwaves that could be felt miles away Reportedly caused by flammable cargo, videos from the scene show a dramatic fireball exploding near the site of a fire.
Fed Accidentally Released "Dovish" Confidential Market-Moving Forecasts, Blames "Glitch"
First The 'unaudited' Fed leaks its FOMC minutes. Then they leak 'inside-information' to Nikkei's latest addition, Medley Global advisors (and remain "above the law" with regard consequences. And now, The Fed admits it leaked full blown confidential economic projections (due to a code glitch), whose summary assessment is shown below as per the leaked file.
Risk Off: FX Carry Trades Tumble, Euro Opens Under 1.10; USDJPY Under 121
With nearly 60% of the Greek refrendum vote counted, and the No's leading by a landslide 61%, it is clear that the Troika's gambit failed, unless as Goldman wrote and we first noted, it was the ECB's intention to force a Grexit all along, thus permitting the ECB to engage in more QE: QE which would in Goldman's estimation, push the EURUSD down 7 big figures and further toward parity, sending global stocks soaring in one last central bank-inspired hurrah.
IMF Humiliates Greece, Repeats It Will Keep Funding Ukraine Even If It Defaults
One week ago, we were stunned to learn just how low the political organization that is the mostly US-taxpayer funded IMF has stooped when, a day after its negotiators demonstratively stormed out of the Greek negotiations with "creditors", Hermes' ambassador-at-large Christone Lagarde said that the IMF "could lend to Ukraine even if Ukraine determines it cannot service its debt." In other words, as Greece struggles to avoid a default to the IMF on debt which was incurred just so German banks...
Putin Unexpectedly Calls Obama: What Did They Talk About?
Nearly a year since the last phone call between Obama and Putin, most of which happened at the request of the US president to provide sound-ops for the US media as part of the US "pacifist" intervention in the Ukraine civil war instigated by the US State Department, earlier today in an unexpected development, it was Putin who made an impromptu phone call to Obama.
Greek GDP: The Shocking Reality Vs IMF Forecasts; And Who Is To Blame For The Greek Implosion
With a Greek default, shortly followed by a Grexit, a collapse of the "irreversible union" (but... but... "political capital"), and ultimately the end of the latest European monetary union experiment (the latest in a long and illustrious series of prior failures) now seemingly imminent, the blame game has begun. As the NYT noted overnight "the recriminations that would then fly would be so bitter that they would inflict a second round of damage." But who is really to blame?
Game Over For Greek Banks: Depositors Yank €2 Billion In Past Three Days
At this point, regardless of whether Greece miraculously cobbles a last minute deal together and gets just enough funds to pay back the near-term debt maturities (long-term can be found here): ... to the IMF, it is too late to save the Greek bank system.
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