USA Turns To Perfidy. Roubles, Gold, Silver, Oil.

 Baltic Dry Index. 1659 -29     Brent Crude 64.05

Spot Gold  4601                        Spot Silver 85.18

US 2 Year Yield 3.54 unch.

US Federal Debt. 38.601 trillion US GDP 31.059 trillion.

On June 24, 1968, thousands of people swarmed assay offices in the United States, anxious to unload their holdings of silver certificates. The U.S. Treasury had deemed this the final date on which the certificates could be exchanged for silver bullion. People camped out overnight to ensure that they would beat the deadline, and the resulting lines stretched for hours. Life Magazine covered the story, and offered a history of silver certificates in the United States.

Historical Echoes: The Demise of Silver Certificates - Liberty Street Economics

(1n 1968, silver traded between $1.90 and $2.65 per ounce.)

 Like it or not, under Trump 2.0, we have entered an increasingly lawless world, fast moving on from capitalism, what little was left of it after Greenspan’s banksterism October 1987, to a Trumpian command economy, increasingly resembling the old USSR economy.

Nothing good for most of us lies in a command economy.

For now, the stock casinos are ignoring the swift drift, but gold, silver and the currency markets aren’t.

2026 looks increasingly likely to be one of those historic transformational years.  Fiat currencies anyone? USSR Roubles?

Stock futures slip ahead of consumer inflation report, bank earnings: Live updates

Updated Tue, Jan 13 2026 7:45 PM EST

Stock futures ticked lower Monday night as investors awaited the release of consumer inflation data and key bank earnings results.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 65 points, or about 0.1%. S&P 500 futures slipped 0.2%, while Nasdaq 100 futures also declined 0.3%.

The consumer price index report due Tuesday is expected to give a fuller picture of prices after disruptions caused by the prolonged U.S. government shutdown last fall. Economists expect the report to show prices rose 2.7% in the twelve months ending in December, according to Dow Jones consensus estimates. That would be in line with the lower-than-expected November CPI results.

Eyes are on the CPI after the December jobs report reflected a slightly weakening, yet stable, labor market that likely encouraged the Federal Reserve to hold off on interest rate cuts. Fed funds futures are pricing in two quarter point cuts this year, starting in June, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

“Investors will likely be watching closely to see whether the recent disinflationary momentum can be sustained now that the BLS has resumed normal operations,” said Angelo Kourkafas, senior global strategist at Edward Jones. “In recent months, goods prices have risen from relatively low levels, likely reflecting tariff‑related cost pass. By contrast, services inflation has shown encouraging signs of gradual moderation. We expect cooling labor‑market conditions to contribute to further easing in services inflation over the course of 2026.”

Investors are also watching for JPMorgan’s fourth-quarter earnings results set to release before market open Tuesday. The bank will kick off a slew of quarterly reports expected from major financial institutions, such as Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, in the coming days.

Hank Smith, head of investment strategy at Haverford Trust, expects bank earnings to come out strong. Major banks should benefit from tailwinds such as accelerating economic growth, deregulation and strong lending with a steeper yield curve adding to profitability, he said.

Monday’s regular trading session saw the S&P 500 and the 30-stock Dow hit fresh records as investors moved past news of the Department of Justice’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. The Russell 2000 index also reached an all-time high.

Powell, whose term as chair is up in May, said the investigation is yet another attempt by President Donald Trump to pressure the Fed’s monetary policy. Trump has relentlessly called for significantly lower interest rates. The stock market has largely brushed off Trump’s attempts to pressure the Fed, as the central bank cut its benchmark interest rate three times in late 2025 to support its dual mandate.

Separately, the U.S. president called to cap credit card rates for one year at 10%, which weighed on bank shares in regular trading.

Trump on Monday evening also said that any country doing business with Iran will face a 25% U.S. tariff rate.

6 Hours Ago

Trump says any country doing business with Iran will face 25% U.S. tariff

President Donald Trump on Monday said any country doing business with Iran will face a 25% tariff “on any and all business being done with the United States of America.”

That new tariff on imports from Iran’s trading partners is “effective immediately,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “This Order is final and conclusive. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he wrote.

Further details about the tariff announcement were not immediately clear. A White House official declined to answer CNBC’s questions about the president’s social media post. The apparent effort by Trump to economically isolate Iran comes as the oil-rich Middle Eastern country struggles to suppress an ongoing swell of massive anti-government protests.

Stock market today: Live updates

Gold tops $4,600/oz as Fed uncertainty fans safe-haven rush

Published Mon, Jan 12 2026 12:04 AM EST Updated Mon, Jan 12 2026 3:18 PM EST

Gold hit a record above $4,600 per ounce on Monday and silver reached a fresh peak as investors piled into safe-haven assets after uncertainty deepened over a Trump administration criminal probe into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Spot gold was up 2.2% at $4,609.58 per ounce, after earlier hitting a record high of $4,629.94. U.S. gold futures for February delivery settled 2.5% higher at $4,614.70.

“Elevated uncertainty plays directly into the gold market, (and) every week we seem to have another area of uncertainty added,” said Michael Haigh, global head of commodities research at Societe Generale.

The backdrop underpinning the rally looked unlikely to reverse anytime soon, he added. Gold surged more than 64% last year, its best performance since 1979, while silver logged its strongest year on record with a 146.8% gain.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has intensified pressure on the Fed, threatening to indict Chair Jerome Powell over his comments on a building renovation project, an act Powell called a “pretext” to gain control over rate cuts Trump seeks.

Powell’s term ends in May. The Trump administration is expected to interview BlackRock’s Rick Rieder as a potential candidate to succeed him, Fox News reported.

The Fed is expected to hold rates steady at its January 27–28 meeting, after cutting them by 75 basis points last year. However, markets are still pricing in two further rate cuts later this year, boosting appetite for non-yielding assets like gold.

Geopolitical tensions also remained elevated as Trump weighed potential responses to a deadly crackdown on protests in Iran, following his removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and floating the idea of acquiring Greenland.

Spot silver hit an all-time high of $85.75, and was later up 6.9% at $85.437 per ounce.

Gold and silver “go together”, said Ned Naylor-Leyland, gold and silver fund manager at Jupiter Asset Management, but “when silver captures flow, (it) really runs because it’s a smaller channel and it’s more sensitive to the flows in and out”.

Spot platinum climbed 3.5% to $2,351.78 per ounce, while palladium gained 3.3% to $1,875.68.

Gold tops $4,600/oz as Fed uncertainty fans safe-haven rush

In other news.

U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane

Even accepting the Trump administration’s claim that there is an armed conflict with suspected drug runners, the laws of war bar “perfidy.”

Jan. 12, 2026

The Pentagon used a secret aircraft painted to look like a civilian plane in its first attack on a boat that the Trump administration said was smuggling drugs, killing 11 people last September, according to officials briefed on the matter. The aircraft also carried its munitions inside the fuselage, rather than visibly under its wings, they said.

The nonmilitary appearance is significant, according to legal specialists, because the administration has argued its lethal boat attacks are lawful — not murders — because President Trump “determined” the United States is in an armed conflict with drug cartels.

But the laws of armed conflict prohibit combatants from feigning civilian status to fool adversaries into dropping their guard, then attacking and killing them. That is a war crime called “perfidy.”

Retired Maj. Gen. Steven J. Lepper, a former deputy judge advocate general for the United States Air Force, said that if the aircraft had been painted in a way that disguised its military nature and got close enough for the people on the boat to see it — tricking them into failing to realize they should take evasive action or surrender to survive — that was a war crime under armed-conflict standards.

“Shielding your identity is an element of perfidy,” he said. “If the aircraft flying above is not identifiable as a combatant aircraft, it should not be engaged in combatant activity.”

The aircraft swooped in low enough for the people aboard the boat to see it, according to officials who have seen or been briefed on surveillance video from the attack. The boat had turned back toward Venezuela, apparently after seeing the plane, before the first strike.

Two survivors of the initial attack later appeared to wave at the aircraft after clambering aboard an overturned piece of the hull, before the military killed them in a follow-up strike that also sank the wreckage. It is not clear whether the initial survivors knew that the explosion on their vessel had been caused by a missile attack.

More

U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane - The New York Times

Sweden 'highly critical' of US rhetoric on Greenland and Denmark, says PM

January 11, 20261:10 PM GMT

SALEN, Sweden, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Sweden is highly critical of the "threatening rhetoric" against Greenland and Denmark from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on Sunday.

Kristersson said in a speech on Sunday that the rules-based world order was under greater threat than for many decades.

"We are highly critical of what the United States is now doing and has done in Venezuela, in regards to international law, and probably even more critical of the rhetoric that is being expressed against Greenland and Denmark," he said at an annual security conference in northern Sweden.

"On the contrary, the United States should thank Denmark, which has been a very loyal ally over the years."

President Donald Trump said on Friday that the U.S. needs to own Greenland to prevent Russia or China from occupying it in the future. He has repeatedly said that Russian and Chinese vessels are operating near Greenland, something Nordic countries have rejected.

Sweden 'highly critical' of US rhetoric on Greenland and Denmark, says PM | Reuters

International law applies to everyone, including US, says German finance minister

January 11, 2026 9:01 AM GMT

BERLIN, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The principles of international law apply to everyone, including the United States, German Finance Minister and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said on Sunday, in reference to President Donald Trump's threats to seize Greenland.

"It is solely up to Denmark and Greenland to decide about Greenland's future. Territorial sovereignty and integrity must be respected," Klingbeil said ahead of his departure to Washington for a meeting of finance ministers from the Group of Seven advanced economies.

A U.S. military seizure of the mineral-rich Arctic island from Denmark, a long-time ally, would send shockwaves through NATO and deepen the divide between Trump and European leaders.

"We increase security in the Arctic together as NATO allies, not in opposition to one another," Klingbeil said.

ACCESS TO CRITICAL MINERALS WILL BE G7 FOCUS

Monday's G7 meeting will focus on access to critical minerals as Western countries seek to reduce their dependence on China given moves by Beijing to impose strict export controls on rare earths.

Klingbeil said Germany has a strong interest in expanding international cooperation in this area in order to strengthen security of supply, reduce dependencies and ensure reliable economic framework conditions.

"That is why it is important that we consult with our international partners and - wherever possible - act together," he said.

China dominates the critical minerals supply chain, refining between 47% and 87% of copper, lithium, cobalt, graphite and rare earths, according to the International Energy Agency.

International law applies to everyone, including US, says German finance minister | Reuters

Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland by force make him no better than Vladimir Putin

12 January 2026

You can tell a lot about a place by its name.

The Inuit name for Greenland – Inuit Nunaat – translates as “land of the people”. And those hardy souls living on the world’s largest island are proud of their homeland.

So when Donald Trump claims he wants to buy Greenland, it comes across as a huge insult to the local population.

The Record sent our chief reporter Mark McGivern to Nuuk, the island’s tiny capital, to speak with residents and hear first-hand what they make of the US President’s aggression. A straw poll carried out by our man in Greenland among locals in Nuuk found them almost unanimous in their ­opposition to Trump.

The threat of using force against a population of only 55,000 has gone down particularly badly. This is a hard-working, self-sufficient community that has no need for an ­overlordship imposed by Washington.

Greenland, a sovereign part of the Kingdom of Denmark, is already part of Nato. American businesses are already free to invest in the island and its ­abundant mineral wealth.

There’s no doubt it is of massive ­strategic importance – especially as new shipping lanes open up as the polar ice cap shrinks.

But that does not mean the people who live there should be treated like cattle to be bought and sold.

The island already enjoys a large degree of autonomy. It should be up to Greenlanders to decide their own future.

Trump’s threats to seize a peaceful country by force make him no better than Vladimir Putin, whose war of aggression in Ukraine has sickened ­right-thinking people around the world.

Global peace, security and freedom are at risk from these two men.

Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland by force make him no better than Vladimir Putin

Global Inflation/Stagflation/Recession Watch.

Given our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians, inflation now needs an entire section of its own.

US ‘risks 1970s-style inflation crisis’ over Fed investigation

12 January 2026 12:38pm

The US is at risk of a 1970s-style inflation crisis, economists have warned after the Federal Reserve was hit with a criminal investigation that threatens its independence.

Swiss private bank Berenberg warned the value of the dollar could fall and investors may shun US debt if they think the independence of the Fed has been eroded.

Gold hit a record high, Wall Street stocks fell and the US currency slumped today after the Department of Justice served grand jury subpoenas against Jerome Powell.

Mr Powell said the US president’s desire to influence interest rates was the reason for the legal action, which officially concerns the Fed chair’s testimony to the Senate Banking Committee last June on a renovation project at the central bank, which has spiralled over budget.

He said: “The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president.”

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates three times at the end of last year but Mr Powell had indicated that rates would likely remain on hold, at least in the short term, as policymakers assess the latest data on the American economy.

Berenberg US economist Atakan Bakiskan said lowering interest rates in the face of higher inflation could trigger a situation similar to that seen in the 1970s, a period known as the Great Inflation when consumers faced double-digit price increases.

He said: “If the Fed pursues an ultra-accommodative monetary policy despite higher inflation, the result could resemble the 1970s in a worst-case risk scenario.

“Moreover, if the Fed acts on politics rather than data, foreign investors could pull back on financing the US debt and seek new safe havens.”

Mr Bakiskan added the market “may be too complacent” on the risks associated with the legal action, after US Treasury bond yields – the return investors demand to buy US government debt – rose only slightly today.

US ‘risks 1970s-style inflation crisis’ over Fed investigation – latest updates

Former Fed Chairs Condemn US Targeting of Powell

January 12, 2026 at 11:27 PM GMT

Three former heads of the US Federal Reserve and four former Treasury secretaries in Democratic and Republican administrations decried a criminal probe ordered up by the Trump administration into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, the latest unprecedented escalation under Donald Trump and one which they warned will further undermine the central bank’s independence.

“This is how monetary policy is made in emerging markets with weak institutions, with highly negative consequences for inflation and the functioning of their economies more broadly,” the former officials said. “It has no place in the United States, whose greatest strength is the rule of law, which is at the foundation of our economic success.” Former Fed Chairs Janet Yellen, Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan, the only three living past chairs, signed the statement. A few Republicans on Capitol Hill voiced concern about the administration’s move against Powell as well, a rare break with more common expressions of unswerving party support.

“Sell America” sentiment rippled through markets on Monday morning, but even the administration’s globally destabilizing attack on Powell—ostensibly over a renovation project—wasn’t enough to convince equity investors anything major was awry. Wall Street managed to recover by day’s end. —Natasha Solo-Lyons and David E. Rovella

Ex-Fed Chairs Condemn Powell Probe: Evening Briefing Americas - Bloomberg

Technology Update.

With events happening fast in the development of solar power and graphene, among other things, I’ve added this section. Updates as they get reported.

Lithium-ion battery suspected cause of EMR Leeds fire

Firefighters were called to a fire at EMR’s Leeds Cross Green recycling facility late on the evening of 6 January 2025, with nearby residents advised to keep doors and windows closed due to a large smoke plume.

January 8, 2026

Firefighters were called to a fire at EMR’s Leeds Cross Green recycling facility late on the evening of 6 January 2025, with nearby residents advised to keep doors and windows closed due to a large smoke plume.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (WYFRS) confirmed that crews were alerted at around midnight to a fire at the scrapyard on Knowsthorpe Road in Cross Green, Leeds.

At the height of the incident, eight fire engines and one aerial ladder platform were in attendance as firefighters worked to bring the blaze under control.

In its first update, WYFRS advised: “All residents in the area around the site are being asked to keep doors and windows closed due to a large smoke plume. Please avoid the area.”

The fire service later confirmed that the response had scaled down overnight, with four crews remaining on site. Relief crews were due to take over during the day on 7 January to continue damping down and checking for hotspots.

‘No injuries were sustained’

EMR has confirmed the incident, stating that the fire broke out at approximately 10.30pm on 6 January.

----Lithium-ion battery behind blaze

According to EMR, initial investigations indicate that a lithium-ion battery was the cause of the fire.

The spokesperson added: “Lithium-ion batteries are responsible for more than 1,000 fires in the UK waste sector each year.

“Despite our stringent quality assurance measures, these hazardous items continue to pose a significant risk to recycling operations globally.

“We remain committed to reducing the risks associated with lithium-ion batteries by working closely with our customers, partners, and battery manufacturers.”

The Environmental Services Association (ESA) has warned of the surge in battery-related incidents, recently describing the situation as reaching “epidemic levels”.

Lithium-ion cells can ignite when damaged or crushed, common occurrences in mixed waste streams. Once compromised, the batteries can enter thermal runaway, rapidly reaching extreme temperatures capable of igniting surrounding materials.

Lithium-ion battery suspected cause of EMR Leeds fire - letsrecycle.com

Next, the world global debt clock. Nations debts to GDP compared.

World Debt Clocks (usdebtclock.org)

Gold and Silver have always had value, never gone to zero. Can you say the same for stocks and bonds?

Mark Skousen

Updated. US Rates On Hold? Chairman Powell Prosecuted? Gold, Silver, Oil.

Baltic Dry Index. 1688 -30     Brent Crude 63.48

Spot Gold  4595                        Spot Silver 84.21

US 2 Year Yield 3.54 +0.05

US Federal Debt. 38.597 trillion US GDP 31.056 trillion.

The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists.

Ernest Hemingway

Update 8 AM GMT.

Gold breaches $4,600/oz as Powell-Trump rift stokes safe-haven demand

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Gold broke through $4,600/ounce for the first time on Monday, while silver also hit a record high, as investors snapped up safe-haven assets due to heightened geopolitical uncertainties and a criminal probe into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Spot gold jumped 1.4% to $4,572.36 per ounce by 0619 GMT. Bullion hit a record high of $4,600.33 earlier in the day.

U.S. gold futures for February delivery firmed 1.8% to $4,583.20.

"So, between events in Iran, and potential U.S. involvement, and the (Fed) chair being the focus of a criminal probe... U.S. futures turned lower on the Powell news, which was a green light for gold to take a run higher," said Tim Waterer, KCM Trade's chief market analyst.

Powell said on Sunday the Trump administration had threatened him with a criminal indictment over Congressional testimony, an action the Fed Chair called a "pretext" to further pressure the central bank into lowering rates. This sent the dollar and U.S. equity futures lower.

Though Goldman Sachs pushed back its forecast for Fed rate cuts on Sunday, it is now expecting two 25-basis-point reductions in June and September 2026 instead of the earlier anticipated moves in March and June.

Non-yielding assets tend to do well in a low-interest-rate environment and during geopolitical or economic uncertainties.

"If things remain as they are, I think (silver) prices will be soon pushing towards $90/oz... while there is still policy uncertainty and now there are some restrictions from China of which we are (yet) to see the impact," said ANZ commodity strategist Soni Kumari.

More

Gold breaches $4,600/oz as Powell-Trump rift stokes safe-haven demand | Reuters

The President Trump war on Fed Chairman Powell over interest rates and an independent central bank escalated over the weekend and in a way that will only escalate rest of the world long term dollar flight.

In America and the UK, the media is hard at work conditioning the public for intervention in Iran.

Gold silver and crude oil are all trading higher. How long before crude oil stops trading in US dollars?

Asia-Pacific markets rise after key Wall Street indexes ended last week on record highs

Published Sun, Jan 11 2026 6:55 PM EST

Asia-Pacific markets rose Monday following Wall Street gains from last week after a U.S. job report showed that unemployment rate fell, signaling resilience in the labor market.

Investors will be keeping an eye on oil prices as Iran entered a third week of protests, which have seen more than 500 people killed, according to a U.S.-based rights group. President Donald Trump is reportedly weighing options for intervention in Iran, according to multiple reports Sunday.

Brent crude futures reversed course to fall to $63.05 per barrel, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declined 0.49% to $58.83 per barrel, as of 10 a.m. Singapore time (9 p.m. ET Sunday).

Spot gold prices rose more than 1.6% to hit all-time high of $4,581.29 per ounce.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.38%.

South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.11%, and the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 0.96%. Shares of Hyundai Glovis soared as much as 8% after analysts raised their price target for the South Korean logistics company.

Robot-maker Boston Dynamics, in which Hyundai Glovis owns an 80% stake, announced a partnership with Google DeepMind last Monday to integrate AI into humanoid robots.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and mainland China’s CSI 300 opened slightly below the flatline.

Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. On Sunday, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s coalition partner, Hirofumi Yoshimura, said that she may call an early general election. His comments come after domestic media reported that Takaichi was considering a snap election in February, citing government sources.

The Japanese yen weakened sharply Monday, hitting a one-year low of 158.19 against the greenback.

U.S. equity futures were flat in early Asian hours, ahead of a flurry of key economic data and earnings reports throughout the week.

On Friday stateside, the S&P 500 closed up 0.65% to 6,966.28, a fresh record close. It also notched a new all-time intraday high in the session.

The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.81% to 23,671.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 237.96 points, or 0.48%, to end at 49,504.07, scoring a new closing record as well.

Asia-Pacific markets: Oil, Iran protests, Hang Seng Index, CSI 300

Wall Street Week Ahead

Jan. 11, 2026 6:03 AM ET

Wall Street has a busy week ahead that will see the start of the earnings season and a host of economic data.

Major U.S. banks take the spotlight as they gear up for their quarterly results. Investors will hear from the biggest lender, JPMorgan (JPM), on Tuesday, followed by number-two lender Bank of America (BAC) on Wednesday, along with Wells Fargo (WFC) and Citi (C), and Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) on Thursday.

Looking at the economic calendar, traders will receive the December consumer price index report on Tuesday, followed by the delayed November producer price index report on Wednesday. The U.S. retail sales report for November is also set for Wednesday.

Finally, market participants will hear from some Federal Reserve speakers this week, including Governor Stephen Miran, Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, and Vice Chair Philip Jefferson. The Fed's Beige Book will be published as well.

Wall Street Week Ahead | Seeking Alpha

Federal Prosecutors Open Investigation Into Fed Chair Powell

The investigation, which is said to center on renovations of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters in Washington, signals an escalation in the long-running clash between President Trump and the chair.

Jan. 11, 2026

The U.S. attorney’s office in the District of Columbia has opened a criminal investigation into Jerome H. Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, over the central bank’s renovation of its Washington headquarters and whether Mr. Powell lied to Congress about the scope of the project, according to officials briefed on the situation.

The inquiry, which includes an analysis of Mr. Powell’s public statements and an examination of spending records, was approved in November by Jeanine Pirro, a longtime ally of President Trump who was appointed to run the office last year, the officials said.

The investigation escalates Mr. Trump’s long-running feud with Mr. Powell, whom the president has continually attacked for resisting his demands to slash interest rates significantly. The president has threatened to fire the Fed chair — even though he nominated Mr. Powell for the position in 2017 — and raised the prospect of a lawsuit against him related to the $2.5 billion renovation, citing “incompetence.”

Mr. Trump told The New York Times in an interview last week that he had decided on who he wants to replace Mr. Powell as Fed chair. He is expected to soon announce his decision. Kevin A. Hassett, Mr. Trump’s top economic adviser, is a front-runner for the top job. While Mr. Powell’s term as chair ends in May, his term as a governor runs through January 2028. Mr. Powell has not disclosed whether he plans to stay on at the central bank beyond this year.

Mr. Powell, in a rare video message released by the Fed, acknowledged on Sunday that the Justice Department had served the central bank with grand jury subpoenas days earlier. He described the investigation as “unprecedented” and questioned the motivation for the move, even as he affirmed that he carried out his duties as chair “without political fear or favor.”

The Fed chair warned that the investigation signaled a broader battle over the Fed’s independence. “The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president,” Mr. Powell added. “This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions — or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation.”

More

Federal Prosecutors Open Investigation Into Fed Chair Powell - The New York Times

Oil edge up as Iran supply risk counters Venezuela export resumption

Published Mon, Jan 12 2026 12:07 AM EST

Oil prices edged higher on Monday as escalating protests in Iran sparked concerns about supplies from the OPEC producer, while efforts to resume oil exports from Venezuela and expectations the market will be oversupplied this year limited gains.

Brent crude futures climbed 5 cents to $63.39 a barrel by 0433 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $59.16 a barrel, up 4 cents.

Both contracts rose more than 3% last week to clinch their biggest weekly rise since October as Iran’s clerical establishment intensified its crackdown on the biggest demonstrations since 2022.

While a premium has formed in oil prices in recent days, the market is still underestimating the geopolitical risk from a wider Iran conflict that may impact oil shipments at the Strait of Hormuz, Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Marquee.

“The market is saying show me the disruption to supply before materially responding,” he added.

The civil unrest in Iran has killed more than 500 people, a rights group said on Sunday.

“There have also been calls for workers in the oil industry to down tools amid the protests,” ANZ analysts led by Daniel Hynes said in a note.

“The situation puts at least 1.9 million barrels per day of oil exports at risk of disruption,” they added.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene if force is used on protesters.

The president is expected to meet senior advisers on Tuesday to discuss options for Iran, a U.S. official told Reuters on Sunday.

Still, Venezuela is expected to resume oil exports soon following the ouster of President Nicolas Maduro as Trump said last week the government in Caracas is set to turn over as much as 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil to the United States.

That has set off a race among oil companies to find tankers and assemble operations to ship the crude safely from vessels and dilapidated Venezuelan ports, four sources familiar with the operations said.

Trafigura said in a meeting with the White House on Friday that its first vessel should load in the next week.

More

Oil edge up as Iran supply risk counters Venezuela export resumption

In other news.

Trump calls for one-year cap on credit card interest rates at 10%

January 10, 2026 4:08 AM GMT

WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he was calling for a one-year cap on credit card interest rates at 10% starting on January 20 but he did not provide details on how his plan will come to fruition or how he planned to make companies comply.

Trump also made the pledge during the campaign for the 2024 election that he won but analysts dismissed it at the time saying that such a step required congressional approval.

Lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican Parties have raised concerns about high rates and have called for those to be addressed. Republicans currently hold a narrow majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

There have been some legislative efforts in Congress to pursue such a proposal but they are yet to become law and in his post Trump did not offer explicit support to any specific bill.

Opposition lawmakers have criticized Trump, a Republican, for not having delivered on his campaign pledge.

"Effective January 20, 2026, I, as President of the United States, am calling for a one year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates of 10%," Trump wrote on Truth Social, without providing more details.

"Please be informed that we will no longer let the American Public be 'ripped off' by Credit Card Companies," Trump added.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat in the Senate Banking Committee, said Trump's call was meaningless without a bill being passed by Congress.

"Begging credit card companies to play nice is a joke. I said a year ago if Trump was serious I'd work to pass a bill to cap rates," Warren said, while criticizing Trump's attempts to gut the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on details of the call from Trump, but said on social media without elaborating that the president was capping the rates.

Some major U.S. banks and credit card issuers like American Express (AXP.N), opens new tab, Capital One Financial Corp (COF.N), opens new tab, JPMorgan (JPM.N), opens new tab, Citigroup (C.N), opens new tab and Bank of America (BAC.N), opens new tab did not respond to a request for comment.

Some banking advocacy groups said in a joint statement that a 10 percent interest rate cap would "reduce credit availability" and "only drive consumers toward less regulated, more costly alternatives."

The statement came from the Consumer Bankers Association, Bank Policy Institute, American Bankers Association, Financial Services Forum and Independent Community Bankers of America.

LAWMAKERS HAVE RAISED CONCERNS ABOUT RATES

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, a fierce Trump critic, and Senator Josh Hawley, who belongs to Trump's Republican Party, have previously introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at capping credit card interest rates at 10% for five years. This bill explicitly directs credit card companies to limit rates as part of broader consumer relief legislation.

Democratic U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna have also introduced a House of Representatives bill to cap credit card interest rates at 10%, reflecting cross-aisle interest in addressing high rates.

Billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman, who endorsed Trump in the last elections, said on X the U.S. president's call was a "mistake."

Last year, the Trump administration moved to scrap a credit card late fee rule from the era of former President Joe Biden.

The Trump administration had asked a federal court to throw out a regulation capping credit card late fees at $8, saying it agreed with business and banking groups that alleged the rule was illegal. A federal judge subsequently threw out the rule.

Trump calls for one-year cap on credit card interest rates at 10% | Reuters

Global Inflation/Stagflation/Recession Watch.

Given our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians, inflation now needs an entire section of its own.

US job growth stuck at stall speed in December; unemployment rate dips to 4.4%

January 9, 2026 7:23 PM GMT

WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. employment growth slowed more than expected in December amid job losses in the construction, retail and manufacturing sectors, but a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.4% suggested the labor market was not rapidly deteriorating.

The Labor Department's closely watched employment report on Friday also showed solid wage growth last month, bolstering economists' expectations the Federal Reserve would leave interest rates unchanged at its January 27-28 meeting.

Economists have blamed sluggish job growth on President Donald Trump's aggressive trade and immigration policies, which they say have reduced both demand for and supply of workers.

Businesses are also holding back on hiring, unsure of their staffing needs as they invest heavily in artificial intelligence. The economy is experiencing a jobless expansion, with growth and worker productivity surging in the third quarter, which was partly attributed to AI.

"All roads lead to the unemployment rate ... it should douse the Fed's recent urgency to backstop a weakening labor market," said Olu Sonola, head of U.S. economic research at Fitch Ratings. "That said, the weak job-growth story can't be brushed aside. Hiring is still stuck in stall speed, and job growth in the cyclical parts of the economy isn't sending a comforting signal."

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 50,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised rise of 56,000 in November, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a gain of 60,000 jobs after a previously reported increase of 64,000 in November.

Job losses in October were revised higher to 173,000, the most in nearly five years and the result of federal government employees who took deferred buyouts, from the previously estimated 105,000. Job losses have averaged 22,000 over the past three months, underscoring the loss of momentum in the labor market.

Economists said negative quarterly payrolls were unusual outside a recession. They described the labor market as being stuck in a "low-hire, low-fire" mode.

Only 584,000 jobs were added in 2025, averaging about 49,000 positions per month. That figure was less than a third of the 2 million jobs created in 2024, when employment gains averaged about 168,000 positions per month.

"Throughout the year, persistent policy headwinds weighed on business sentiment and curtailed hiring, prompting many firms to remain cautious and prioritize cost control and flexibility in response to an unpredictable operating environment," said Lydia Boussour, senior economist at EY-Parthenon.

Job gains were narrow, with the share of industries reporting growth falling to 50.8% from 55.6% in November.

More

US job growth stuck at stall speed in December; unemployment rate dips to 4.4% | Reuters

Fed seen on longer rate-cut pause after December jobs data

January 9, 2026 7:55 PM GMT

Jan 9 (Reuters) - A drop in the unemployment rate may ease concerns at the U.S. central bank about labor market weakness, with traders betting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has delivered his last interest rate cut before his term ends in May and leaving any further policy easing in the hands of whomever President Donald Trump taps as Powell's successor.

The unemployment rate fell to 4.4% last month from a revised 4.5% in November, the U.S. Labor Department reported on Friday, even as employers added 50,000 jobs in the month. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a gain of 60,000.

Powell led the Fed into reducing its benchmark overnight interest rate by three quarters of a percentage point last year in a bid to keep the job market from softening further, even as his more hawkish colleagues argued that doing so could slow or even imperil progress on bringing down above-target inflation.

The latest job market data appears to give the central bank a bit of breathing room to leave short-term borrowing costs where they are to keep up the pressure on inflation, as Powell last month signaled policymakers are inclined to do at least in the near term.

December's modest job growth is "very much in line with the businesses I am talking to, which is that the low-hire environment continues," Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin told reporters, noting the reluctance to hire is due to uncertainty about the economy and also to higher productivity that allows firms to get by with less labor.

While it is an "uncomfortable" fact that hiring is concentrated in only a narrow set of industries, he said he feels labor supply and job growth are in reasonable balance. That view suggests he's not in a rush to cut rates to support the job market.

Traders of rate futures tied to the Fed's policy rate now see just a 44% chance of a rate cut by April, versus about even odds previously, with a resumption of rate cuts in June seen as the far more likely scenario.

More

Fed seen on longer rate-cut pause after December jobs data | Reuters

Technology Update.

With events happening fast in the development of solar power and graphene, among other things, I’ve added this section. Updates as they get reported.

Interesting, but can it work in the real world?

New battery idea gets lots of power out of unusual sulfur chemistry

Rather than being used as a storage material, the sulfur gives up electrons.

John Timmer – 7 Jan 2026 16:02 

Anyone paying attention to battery research sees sulfur come up frequently. That’s mostly because sulfur is a great storage material for lithium, and it could lead to lithium batteries with impressive power densities. But sulfur can participate in a wide range of chemical reactions, which has made it difficult to prevent lithium-sulfur batteries from decaying rapidly as the sulfur forms all sorts of unwanted materials. As a result, despite decades of research, very few lithium-sulfur batteries have made it to market.

But a team of Chinese researchers has managed to turn sulfur’s complex chemistry into a strength, making it the primary electron donor in a sodium-sulfur battery that also relies on chlorine for its chemistry. The result, at least in the lab, is an impressive energy per weight with extremely inexpensive materials.

Sulfur chemistry

Sulfur sits immediately below oxygen on the periodic table, so you might think its chemistry would look similar. But that’s not the case. Like oxygen, it can participate in covalent bonding in biological chemistry, including in two essential amino acids. Also, like oxygen, it can accept electrons from metals, as seen in some atomically thin materials that have been studied. But it’s also willing to give electrons up, forming chemical compounds with things like chlorine and oxygen.

It’s that last feature the researchers behind the new paper are most interested in. Pure sulfur forms an eight-atom complex that can give up 32 total electrons under the right conditions. The trick was finding the right conditions.

The system had a cathode of pure sulfur and an anode that was simply a strip of aluminum that acted as a current collector. The electrolytes the researchers tested contained a lot of aluminum, sodium, and chlorine (typically something like eight Molar aluminum chloride and a 4.5 Molar solution of some sodium salt). The aluminum helps stabilize the foil at the anode, while the other two chemicals participate in the reactions that power the battery.

When the battery starts discharging, the sulfur at the cathode starts losing electrons and forming sulfur tetrachloride (SCl₄), using chloride it stole from the electrolyte. As the electrons flow into the anode, they combine with the sodium, which plates onto the aluminum, forming a layer of sodium metal. Obviously, this wouldn’t work with an aqueous electrolyte, given how powerfully sodium reacts with water.

High capacity

To form a working battery, the researchers separated the two electrodes using a glass fiber material. They also added a porous carbon material to the cathode to keep the sulfur tetrachloride from diffusing into the electrolyte. They used various techniques to confirm that sodium was being deposited on the aluminum and that the reaction at the cathode was occurring via sulfur dichloride intermediates. They also determined that sodium chloride was a poor source of sodium ions, as it tended to precipitate out onto some of the solid materials in the battery.

The battery was also fairly stable, surviving 1,400 cycles before suffering significant capacity decay. Higher charging rates caused capacity to decay more quickly, but the battery did a great job of holding a charge, maintaining over 95 percent, even when idled for 400 days.

More

New battery idea gets lots of power out of unusual sulfur chemistry - Ars Technica

UK engineering firm plunges into administration - valued at £300m

10 January 2026

A British engineering company once valued at £3million has plunged into administration after months of uncertainty. Versarien plc, which makes graphene for the clothing, automotive and aerospace sectors, confirmed it appointed joint administrators on January 6, coming at a "great loss for the district, county and country," according to its former CEO and founder. It follows a turbulent few years for the company, marked by struggling finances and a legal battle with its founder.

A statement from Versarien on January 6 said: "Following the company's announcement on December 19, 2025, that a second notice of intention to appoint administrators had been filed in the High Court of Justice, the company now confirms that it has today appointed Andrew Knowles and Andrew Poxon of Leonard Curtis as joint administrators of the parent company, Versarien Plc."

More

UK engineering firm plunges into administration - valued at £300m

Next, the world global debt clock. Nations debts to GDP compared.

World Debt Clocks (usdebtclock.org)

In a time of universal deceit - telling the truth is a revolutionary act.

George Orwell