Baltic Dry Index. 1122 -40 Brent Crude 56.72
Eurasian Snow cover. (How bad will
winter be?)
"We
shouldn't pour cold water on everything.
We, the eight or nine players in global investment banking, have a very
good future."
Deutsche
Bank, CEO Josef Ackermann. Davos, January 2007.
It is the final Fed week of 2016, and
the Fed’s talking chair and others have all but said that they will raise their
key interest rate by a tiny, almost meaningless, quarter of one percent. If
they do it, it’s only meaning is to signal that the three and a half decade
bond bull market bubble is over, but the bond bear hasn’t yet actually arrived.
Depending on what happens next to Trumpmania, once “the Donald” actually takes
power, the bond bear might sleepily emerge from deep hibernation, or come
roaring out starving and looking for prey.
So while we await the two day Fedster
meeting, we open with the roof falling in on derivatives gambling junkie
Deutsche Bank. Why would Germany want to bailout a bunch of thieving, crooked
gamblers like this? Come to think of it, why do these lying, cheating, stealing
banksters still have banking licences?
Why did I take up stealing? To live better, to own things I couldn't afford, to acquire this good taste that you now enjoy and which I should be very reluctant to give up.
The Silver Mafia, with apologies to Cary Grant. To Catch A Thief.
In Chats, Silver ‘Mafia’ Traders Flexed Muscle, Drew Blades
by Christian BerthelsenAs early as 2008, one of its traders began conspiring with a trader at Fortis Bank, via electronic chat, to manipulate prices, according to court documents filed by silver investors seeking to broaden their claims that the market was rigged.
“Cant wait for another day when we get the bulldozer out of the garage on gold and sil,” the Fortis trader wrote on Feb. 25, 2008. “Haha yeah,” responded the Deutsche Bank trader, in a chat-room transcript included in court papers.
The two traders’ correspondence -- as the Fortis trader moved to HSBC Holdings Plc and then Standard Chartered Plc over five years -- are part of a cache of chat-room transcripts that for the first time provide an inside look at how traders allegedly fixed silver prices. The documents were provided to silver investors as part of a $38 million settlement in April between them and Deutsche Bank over allegations of market manipulation. In the documents filed last week in Manhattan federal court, the investors told a judge that the transcripts offer convincing evidence to warrant new claims against other banks.
Deutsche Bank declined to comment on the documents; it
neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing as part of its settlement.
Representatives from HSBC, Standard Chartered and BNP Paribas SA, which
acquired Fortis Bank in 2009, also declined to comment.
A judge in October dismissed the investors’ claims against UBS Group AG because there was no evidence its traders participated in the daily London Fix call. She said the plaintiffs could seek to file a new complaint, which they are now asking to do. Peter Stack, a UBS spokesman, said the bank finds “no merit to the plaintiff’s allegations” and “will vigorously defend against them.”
Representatives for Barclays Plc and the other banks named in the court documents as having participated in manipulating the silver market from 2007 to 2013 declined to comment, as did the lawyer for the plaintiffs, Vincent Briganti.
More
‘3, 2, 1, Boom’ -- Silver-Fixing Allegations in a Dozen Chats
by Andrew MartinThe bank provided the documents to the investors after settling a lawsuit accusing it of rigging markets in precious-metals. As part of the accord in April, the bank paid $38 million and turned over more than 350,000 pages of documents and 75 audio tapes. The investors now want to use the chats to win permission from a judge to file a new complaint against other banks.
The traders aren’t named in the chats now in court filings; instead, they are identified by their bank, such as UBS Trader A. The chats have not been edited for spelling or grammar:
‘Here We Go’
UBS and Deutsche Bank silver traders agreed to follow the “11 o’clock” rule where they would short silver at 11 a.m., timing their trades with a countdown sequence, according to court papers. From a Feb. 8, 2011 chat:“Here we go here we go,” wrote a Deutsche Bank trader.
A UBS trader: “gogogogogoggog.”
“Dude...near the high,” the Deutsche trader responded. “Im gonna ramp it...that my plan...u?”
“If 53 breaks imam go guns blazing,” the UBS trader wrote.
“Yeah...exactly...as in on the break of 53..it’s the 3 2 1 boom.”
UBS Group AG said last week it will “vigorously” fight the new allegations in court papers.
Bend Silver
On Oct. 15, 2010, a UBS trader wrote, “Gonna bend this silver lower.”A Deutsche Bank trader responded, “Oh dear. my boss just said he bought some.”
The UBS trader said, “I have to be sneaky then.”
Then later, “Had to really work that one. told u I’d bend it lower for u.”
Recruit Others
On June 8, 2011, a UBS trader wrote about the need to recruit others to their network of silver riggers, according to the new court documents.“Im gonna sell a lil more we need to grow our mafia a lil get a third position involved,” the UBS trader wrote.
A Deutsche Bank trader responded, “OK calling barx” (Barclays; a bank representative declined to comment).
----Stop-Loss
Traders at UBS conspired with Deutsche Bank so often to trigger stop-loss orders that they referred to themselves as “Stop Busters,” according to the court filing.“And if you have stops...oh boy,” the UBS trader wrote on June 8, 2011.
The Deutsche Bank trader responded, “HAHA...who ya gonna call!...STOP BUSTERS...deh deh deh deh dehdehdeh deh deh deh deh dehdehdeh.”
‘We’ll Sell’
On Aug. 22, 2007, a Deutsche Bank trader-submitter wrote to an unnamed acquaintance at Fortis Bank, “Seems some buying pre sil fix in the systems.”The Fortis banker responded, “We’ll sell 70’s together.”
“At this rate mate we can sell 11.80’s both mkts are as thin as Ive ever seen them in my 5 years,” the Deutsche Bank trader-submitter said. “Ill be a light seller on the fix so watch your screen.”
More
We close the start of Fed Week, with an
update from the Liar’s and Cheat’s cartel and their friends. From January 1st,
everyone’s going to play by the new rules, no honest, cross their little black
hearts and hope to die? The betting book opens on who will be the first to
cheat and when.
Below, US frackers and Canadian tar
sand producers get a “Get out of Jail” card.
Oil Surges as Saudis Eye Deeper Cuts While Non-OPEC Joins Deal
by Ben Sharples and Perry Williams
Oil jumped to the highest since July
2015 after Saudi Arabia signaled it’s ready to cut output more than earlier
agreed while non-OPEC countries including Russia pledged to pump less next
year, strengthening the coordinated commitment by the world’s largest producers
to tighten supply.
Futures rose as much as 5.8 percent in
New York and 6.6 percent in London. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said
Saturday the biggest crude exporter will “cut substantially to be below” the
target agreed last month with members of OPEC. Al-Falih’s comments followed a
deal by eleven non-OPEC countries including Mexico
to join forces with the group and trim output by 558,000 barrels a day next
year, the first pact between the rivals in 15 years.
Futures in New York have gained about 20 percent since the Organization
of Petroleum Exporting Countries announced Nov. 30 it will cut production for
the first time in eight years. Saudi Arabia, which led OPEC’s decision in 2014
to pump at will, is leading efforts to take back control of the market. The
OPEC and non-OPEC plan encompasses countries that pump 60 percent of the
world’s crude, but excludes major producers such as the U.S., China, Canada,
Norway and Brazil.
“This is a very powerful message that producers want to balance the
market,” said Chris Weston, chief market strategist in Melbourne at IG Ltd. “As
a statement of intent, this is about as bullish as it gets.”
More
Saudis Signal Deeper Cuts After Deal With Non-OPEC Countries
December 10,
2016 — 7:45 AM EST December 10, 2016 — 3:24 PM EST
Saudi Arabia signaled it’s ready to cut oil production more than
expected, a surprise announcement made minutes after Russia and several
non-other OPEC countries pledged to curb output next year.
Taken together, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’s
first deal with its rivals since 2001 and the Saudi comments represent a
forceful effort by producers to wrest back control of the global oil market,
depressed by persistent oversupply and record inventories.
"This is shock and awe by Saudi Arabia," said Amrita Sen,
chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd. in London. "It shows the
commitment of Riyadh to rebalance the market and should end concerns about OPEC
delivering the deal."
Oil prices have surged more than 15 percent since OPEC announced Nov. 30
it will cut production for the first time in eight years, rising this week
briefly above $55. The price rise has propelled the shares of energy groups
from Exxon Mobil Corp. to shale firms such as Continental Resources Inc.
Riyadh agreed with OPEC on Nov. 30 to cut its production to 10.06
million barrels a day, down from a record high of nearly 10.7 million barrels
in July.
"I can tell you with absolute certainty that effective Jan. 1 we’re
going to cut and cut substantially to be below the level that we have committed
to on Nov. 30," Saudi oil minister Khalid al-Falih said after today’s
meeting.
The Saudi minister said he was ready to cut below the psychologically
significant level of 10 millions barrels a day -- a level it has sustained
since March 2015 -- depending on market conditions.
Al-Falih made his announcement after
non-OPEC countries agreed to reduce production by 558,000 barrels a day,
suggesting he had been waiting for the deal before committing to further cuts.
The non-OPEC reduction is equal to the anticipated demand growth next year in
China and India, according to data from the International Energy Agency.
The OPEC and non-OPEC pact encompasses
countries that pump 60 percent of the world’s oil, but excludes major producers
such as the U.S., China, Canada, Norway and Brazil.
---- Russia pledged to cut output by
300,000 barrels a day next year, down from a 30-year high last month of 11.2
million barrels a day. Mexico agreed to cut 100,000 barrels, Azerbaijan by
35,000 barrels and Oman by 40,000 barrels.
Mexico’s contributions would be made
through “managed natural decline," delegates said, meaning it won’t cut
output deliberately and rather let production fall as its aging fields yield
less. Other countries such as Azerbaijan will probably follow the same route.
The use of natural decline as part of the non-OPEC deal is likely to dampen its
impact.
More
Saudi hits new oil output record in November amid OPEC cut talk
The world's top oil exporter told the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries it pumped 10.72 million barrels per day in November, an OPEC source said, an increase from 10.625 million bpd in October.
In July, the kingdom's production was 10.67 million bpd, the previous high.
Iraq said its November output at 4.8 million bpd, up from 4.776 million bpd in October, an OPEC source said, as oil exports reached a record high of 4.051 million bpd.
Gulf OPEC member Kuwait reported its output at 2.9 million bpd in November, lower than its 3 million bpd in October, while the United Arab Emirates kept its output virtually steady at 3.195 million bpd, according to official figures reported to OPEC.
Saudi Arabia has pledged to reduce its output to 10.058 million bpd as part of an OPEC cut deal reached on Nov. 30 to lower the group's total production level to 32.5 million bpd.
The latest rise in November's supply means Saudi Arabia, OPEC's biggest producer, will have a bigger task in complying with a plan to cut supply starting in 2017 - its first production-reduction deal since 2008.
Saudi crude exports have been high in recent months, reaching 7.812 million bpd in September, while output has stayed at elevated levels despite the usual seasonal decline in winter when domestic consumption of crude burning for power is less.
A Reuters survey estimated Saudi production in November at 10.45 million bpd due to reduced crude use in power plants for air-conditioning, and lower refiner processing.
A Platts OPEC survey in November estimated Saudi oil production at 10.52 million bpd.
OPEC and non-OPEC producers on Saturday reached their first deal since 2001 to curtail oil output jointly and ease a global glut after more than two years of low prices that overstretched many budgets and spurred unrest in some countries.
With the deal finally signed after almost a year of arguing within OPEC and mistrust in the willingness of non-OPEC Russia to play ball, the market's focus will now switch to compliance with the agreement.
More
“The
world is a place that’s gone from being flat to round to crooked.”
Mad
Magazine.
At the Comex silver depositories Friday
final figures were: Registered 37.32 Moz, Eligible 142.13 Moz,
Total 179.45 Moz.
Crooks and Scoundrels Corner
The bent, the seriously bent, and the totally
doubled over.
Iran buys Boeing planes, but will President Trump
block it and gift the deal to Airbus?
Iran signs $16.6 billion deal for 80 Boeing planes: IRNA
The agency quoted Farhad Parvaresh, the chairman of Iran's flag carrier, as saying that the 10-year deal included 50 Boeing 737 aircraft and 30 777 planes.
Boeing said in June it had signed a tentative agreement to sell 100 jets to IranAir after Iranian statements about the deal.
IRNA said that Fletcher Barkdull, a Boeing regional director, was in
Tehran for the signing ceremony. The agency quoted Barkdull as saying that the
deal was worth $16.6 billion and had been approved by the U.S. government.
In November, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill intending
to block the sale of commercial aircraft to Iran, that would bar the U.S.
Treasury from issuing licenses that U.S. banks would need to finance sales of
commercial aircraft.
Congressional Republicans are making efforts to counter last year's
nuclear accord between Iran, the United States and other world powers, that
eased sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
The Boeing deal would help modernize and expand the Iran's ageing fleet,
kept going by smuggled or improvised parts after decades of sanctions.
"It's strange that men should take up crime when there are
so many legal ways to be dishonest. “
Al
Capone
Solar & Related Update.
With events
happening fast in the development of solar power and graphene, I’ve added this
section. Updates as they get reported. Is converting sunlight to usable cheap
AC or DC energy mankind’s future from the 21st century onwards? DC?
A quantum computer next?
Super-flexible liquid crystal device for bendable and rollable displays
Date: December 9, 2016
Source: Tohoku University
Summary: A super flexible liquid crystal (LC) device has been
developed, in which two ultra-thin plastic substrates are firmly bonded by
polymer wall spacers.
Researchers at Tohoku University have developed a super flexible liquid
crystal (LC) device, in which two ultra-thin plastic substrates are firmly
bonded by polymer wall spacers.
The team, led by Professor Hideo Fujikake and Associate Professor
Takahiro Ishinabe of the School of Engineering, hopes the new organic materials
will help make electronic displays and devices more flexible, increasing their
portability and all round versatility. New usage concepts with flexibility and
high quality display could offer endless possibilities in near-future
information services.
Previous attempts to create a flexible display using an organic
light-emitting diode (OLED) device with a thin plastic substrate were said to
be promising, but unstable. The plastic substrates are poor gas-barriers for
oxygen and water vapor, and the OLED materials can seriously be damaged by
their gasses. As for flexible OLEDs, there has also been no device fabrication
technology established so far for large-area, high-resolution and low-cost
displays.
To overcome these challenges, Fujikake's research team decided to try
making existing LC displays flexible by replacing the conventional thick glass
substrates, which are both rigid and heavy, with the plastic substrates,
because LC materials do not deteriorate even for poor gas barrier of flexible
substrates.
Flexible LC displays have many advantages, such as established
production methods for large-area displays. The material itself, which is
inexpensive, can be mass produced and shows little quality degradation over
time.
More
The monthly Coppock Indicators finished November
DJIA: 19124
+53 Up NASDAQ: 5324 +41 Up. SP500: 2198 +58 Up
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