Baltic Dry Index. 602 +03 Brent Crude 55.05
LIR Gold Target in 2019: $30,000. Revised due to QE programs.
True, governments can reduce the rate of interest
in the short run, issue additional paper currency, open the way to credit
expansion by the banks. They can thus create an artificial boom and the
appearance of prosperity. But such a boom is bound to collapse soon or late and
to bring about a depression.
Ludwig
von Mises.
Today we open with more sign
of a developing crash landing in China. The Greenspan-Bernanke-Yellen era of
malinvestment under thr Great Nixonian Error of fiat money, is deep into the
ending.
Weak demand weighs on China factory, services firms in March, more easing seen
The official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, edged up to 50.1 in March from February's 49.9.
Although that was stronger than 49.7 predicted by analysts in a Reuters poll, it was barely above the 50-point level that separates an expansion in activity from a contraction, suggesting factory activity remains tepid at best.
In another sign that businesses faced lackluster demand, a separate survey of China's services sector showed the official non-manufacturing PMI fell to 53.7 from February's 53.9, hugging a one-year low of 53.7 struck in January.
"Demand in local and foreign markers remained on the soft side, so manufacturing businesses faced a degree of downward pressure," said Zhao Qinghe, a senior analyst at a research center linked to the statistics bureau.
The services sector was the lone bright spot in China's slowing economy last year, expanding strongly and creating more jobs even as activity in the factory sector fizzled.
But activity readings have been uneven in recent months, hurt in part by a sagging housing market, raising concerns that service companies may be finally succumbing to the broader economic downdraft.
Indeed, a separate private survey of China's manufacturing sector showed on Wednesday that it contracted in March after two months of recovery.
The final HSBC/Market China Manufacturing PMI came in at 49.6, slightly higher than a preliminary "flash" reading of 49.2 but still below 50.
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Next, Iceland threatens to undo
the Rothschild bankster model. Money is simply too important to be left to
derivatives gambling crazed, “too big to fail” banksters. I’m not convinced
this is the solution though. I think they analysed the wrong problem. The
problem is the Great Nixonian Error of fiat money. We have to get back to a rational
system based on metallic money, and the end of too big to fail. Below that,
Bernocchio v David Stockman.
“The
U.S. government has a technology, called a printing press (or, today, its
electronic equivalent), that allows it to produce as many U.S. dollars as it
wishes at essentially no cost…We conclude that under a paper-money system, a
determined government can always generate higher spending and hence positive
inflation.”
Dr.
Ben Bernanke. 2002
Iceland looks at ending boom and bust with radical money plan
Icelandic government suggests removing the power of commercial banks to create money and handing it to the central bank
By AFP 8:18PM BST 31 Mar 2015
Iceland's government is
considering a revolutionary monetary proposal - removing the power of
commercial banks to create money and handing it to the central bank.
The proposal, which would be a
turnaround in the history of modern finance, was part of a report written by a
lawmaker from the ruling centrist Progress Party, Frosti Sigurjonsson, entitled
"A better monetary system for Iceland".
"The findings will be an
important contribution to the upcoming discussion, here and elsewhere, on money
creation and monetary policy," Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson
said.
The report, commissioned by the
premier, is aimed at putting an end to a monetary system in place through a
slew of financial crises, including the latest one in 2008.
According to a study by four
central bankers, the country has had "over 20 instances of financial
crises of different types" since 1875, with "six serious multiple
financial crisis episodes occurring every 15 years on average".
Mr Sigurjonsson said the problem
each time arose from ballooning credit during a strong economic cycle.
He argued the central bank was
unable to contain the credit boom, allowing inflation to rise and sparking
exaggerated risk-taking and speculation, the threat of bank collapse and costly
state interventions.
In Iceland, as in other modern
market economies, the central bank controls the creation of banknotes and coins
but not the creation of all money, which occurs as soon as a commercial bank
offers a line of credit.
The central bank can only try to
influence the money supply with its monetary policy tools.
Under the so-called Sovereign
Money proposal, the country's central bank would become the only creator of
money.
"Crucially, the power to
create money is kept separate from the power to decide how that new money is
used," Mr Sigurjonsson wrote in the proposal.
"As with the state budget,
the parliament will debate the government's proposal for allocation of new
money," he wrote.
More
Central Banking Refuted In One Blog—–Thanks Ben!
by David Stockman •
logger Ben’s work is already
done. In his very first substantive post as a civilian he gave away all the
secrets of the monetary temple. The Bernank actually refuted the case for
modern central banking in one blog.
In fact, he did it in one
paragraph. This one.
A similarly confused
criticism often heard is that the Fed is somehow distorting financial markets
and investment decisions by keeping interest rates “artificially low.” Contrary
to what sometimes seems to be alleged, the Fed cannot somehow withdraw
and leave interest rates to be determined by “the markets.” The Fed’s actions
determine the money supply and thus short-term interest rates; it
has no choice but to set the short-term interest rate somewhere.
Not true, Ben. Why not ask
the author of the 1913 Federal Reserve Act and legendary financial statesman of
the first third of the 20th century—–Carter Glass.
The then Chairman of the House
Banking and Currency Committee did not refer to the new reserve system as
a “banker’s bank” because he was old-fashioned or unschooled in finance.
The term evoked the essence of the Fed’s original mission. Namely, to
passively rediscount good commercial collateral (receivables and inventory loans) brought
to its window by member banks—priced at a penalty spread
floating above the market rate of interest.
Notwithstanding Bernanke’s
spurious claim that the Fed has to “set the short-term rate somewhere”, the
reserve system designed by Congressman Glass was authorized to do no such
thing. It had no target for the Federal funds rate; no remit to
engage in open market buying and selling of securities; and, indeed, no
authority to own or discount government bonds and bills at all.
Instead, its job was to passively
respond to the ebb and flow of trade and industry on main street as mediated
through the commercial banking system. If business conditions were robust,
interest rates would rise on the free market in order to balance the demand for
working capital loans and long-term debt financing with the available supply of
private savings.
In that environment, commercial
banks wishing to expand their loan books beyond what could be supported by
their deposits and reserves ( the latter generally amounted to between 9%
and 15% of deposits), could “rediscount” their loans for cash at a penalty
rate. Likewise, solvent banks holding good commercial collateral which faced
unexpected or untimely deposit redemptions could borrow cash in the same
manner in lieu of liquidating their loan books. The entire purpose of the
original Fed’s rediscounting tool was to augment liquidity in the banking
system at market determined rates of interest.
This modus operandi was the
opposite of today’s monetary central planning model. Back then,
the rediscount window at each of the twelve Reserve Banks had no
remit except the humble business of examining collateral.
More
In Grexit news, Goldie who helped
create the Greek mess by helping them fudge the books for euro entry, now says
that the “damage has be done.” They ought to know better than anyone.
“Call
it the Goldman Sachs test. If this is something Goldman would do to its
clients, don't do it."
Felix
Salmon.
Greek stalemate to last until after Easter as Goldman Sachs warns of costly Grexit
Investment bank says "damage has been done" as creditors continue to squeeze Athens for more reforms in return for cash
Greece's bail-out stalemate
showed no signs of easing after a long weekend of delay and frustration for
Athens officials in Brussels.
Representatives of the Greek
government returned to the country on Tuesday having failed to seal an
agreement on the economic reforms they will need to carry out in order to
satisfy the demands of its international lenders and unlock €7.2bn in bail-out
funds.
European Union president Donald
Tusk said he was not hopeful a deal would now be completed before Easter,
estimating a more realistic target of the end of April.
Greece celebrates Easter in
accordance with the Orthodox calendar, over the weekend of April 10-13, which
could delay any potential final meeting of the Eurogroup for two weeks.
The deadlock continued as investment
bank Goldman Sachs warned the hiatus had already caused significant damage to
the Greek economy.
Capital flight, which has reached
an estimated €15.2bn over the last three months, has resulted in a
"tightening in financial conditions" and "is a severe shock for
an economy," Goldman strategists said in a note to clients
---- Members of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers are now due to discuss Greece's proposals at a teleconference on Wednesday.
Creditors are continuing to demand the Leftist government carry out more in the way of drastic wage and pension cuts to reduce its spending bill.
But in a draft version of the circulated proposals, the anti-austerity government only laid out a number of revenue-raising measures such as clamping down on illegal smuggling, tax evasion, and imposing a tax on some Greek islands.
A defiant Greek prime minister told parliamentarians on Monday, he was not willing to "unconditionally submit" to the stranglehold of the country's creditors and would not impose further recessionary measures on the economy.
More
We close for today with yet
another setback for the American War Party. Russian sanctions or not, some see
great opportunity in an ill wind. Shades of Rothschild’s “buy when there’s
blood in the streets” perhaps.
Hamleys opens its largest toy store in Moscow despite economic crisis
(Reuters) - British toy store
Hamleys opened its largest shop in the world on Tuesday in central Moscow
despite an economic downturn in Russia that is forcing buyers to cut back on
spending.
Launched amid fanfare after seven
years of renovation work in what was the Soviet-era department store Detsky Mir
(Children's World), the new shop covers 6.750 square meters and features a
rocket made of nearly two million Lego bricks.
"We want to open much more
in Russia. We consider it a fantastic market for children's toys retail sales,
a growing market," Hamley's chief executive Gudjon Reynisson told Reuters
at the opening ceremony attended by officials including Moscow mayor and close
Kremlin ally, Sergei Sobyanin.
Reynisson's
upbeat comments contrast with growing economic hardship in Russia because of
low prices for oil, its main export, as well as a slide in its rouble currency
and Western economic sanctions imposed over the turmoil in Ukraine.
----
A Hamleys representative in Russia, Yevgeni Butman, said the toy store was now
the second-largest in the world after a Toys R Us shop in New York.
More
One
of the queries Quakers are asked to consider, is: "Do you maintain strict
integrity in your business transactions and in your relations with individuals
and organizations? Are you personally scrupulous and responsible in the use of
money entrusted to you, and are you careful not to defraud the public
revenue?"
Probably
why there a no Quakers on Wall Street or in the City.
At the Comex silver
depositories Tuesday final figures were: Registered 70.57 Moz, Eligible 106.08
Moz, Total 176.65 Moz.
Crooks and Scoundrels Corner
The bent, the seriously bent, and the totally
doubled over.
Today, in a world suffering from a surfeit of wars,
an update from planet earth’s newest war. One that in any slight miscalculation
can lead to another oil price shock.
Heavy clashes on Saudi-Yemeni border; Hadi government pleads for troops
ADEN |
(Reuters) - Saudi troops clashed with Yemeni Houthi fighters on Tuesday in
the heaviest exchange of cross-border fire since the start of a Saudi-led air
offensive last week, while Yemen's foreign minister called for a rapid Arab
intervention on the ground.Saudi Arabia has been leading a coalition of Arab states since last Thursday in an air campaign against the Shi'ite Houthis, who emerged as the most powerful force in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country when they seized Yemen's capital last year.
The Saudis say their aim is to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who left the country last week. The Houthis are allied with Saudi Arabia's regional foe Iran, and backed by army units loyal to longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was pushed out three years ago after "Arab Spring" demonstrations.
The conflict has brought civil war to a country already on the verge of chaos and forced Washington to evacuate its personnel from one of the main battlefields in the covert U.S. drone war against al Qaeda.
Residents and tribal sources in north Yemen reported artillery and rocket exchanges along several stretches of the Saudi border. Explosions and heavy gunfire were heard and Saudi helicopters flew overhead, they said.
In the southern port of Aden, Houthi fighters and allied army units pressed an offensive against forces loyal to Hadi, trying to capture the last remaining major stronghold of the absent president's forces.
At least 36 people were killed when Houthi forces shelled Hadi loyalists in Aden. Jets from the Saudi-led coalition bombed Houthi positions near the airport.
Further west, Houthi fighters entered a coastal military base overlooking the Red Sea's strategic Bab el-Mandeb strait, local officials said, when soldiers of the 17th Armoured Division opened the gates to the facility.
The Bab el-Mandeb shipping
lane, which connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea, is a
vital energy gateway for more than 3 million barrels of oil passing daily to
Europe, Asia and the United States.
Hadi's rump government, now based
in Saudi Arabia, called for Riyadh to escalate the air war into an invasion.
Asked by an interviewer on
pan-Arab television channel al-Arabiya Hadath whether he sought an Arab ground
intervention, Yemeni Foreign Minister Riyadh Yaseen responded: "Yes, we
are asking for that, and as soon as possible, in order to save our
infrastructure and save Yemenis under siege in many cities."
Saudi authorities say they have
gathered troops along the border in preparation for any possible ground
offensive, but have given no timetable to send them in. Pakistan has also said
it is sending troops to support Saudi Arabia.
---- In the east of the country, on the border between Shabwa and Marib province, at least 15 Houthi gunmen and their allies were killed in a clash with tribal fighters, local sources said.
The Houthis are backed by
military units still loyal to Saleh, himself a member of their Zaidi sect, who
fought to crush the Houthis while in power but has now allied with them.
More
"We need only take our heads out of the sand to see clearly that interventionism not only has failed to provide the promised something-for-nothing, but has led to all sorts of undesirable consequences. Indeed, many are just beginning to realize that we are moving towards disaster even though we have been on a wrong heading for decades."
Leonard Read
The monthly Coppock Indicators finished February
DJIA: +120 Down. NASDAQ: +213 Down. SP500: +169 Down.
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