Baltic Dry Index. 2203 +90 Brent Crude 83.52
Spot Gold 2082 US 2 Year Yield 4.54 -0.10
"To err is human, but to really foul
things up you need a computer or NATO".
With apologies, attributed to too many.
In
the global stock casinos, the Greatest Disconnect AI mania enters yet another
week. Driven by Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO,) the technology stocks feeding
frenzy presses on to ever crazier heights.
Another
October1987, March 2020, September 2008, looms, if WW3 doesn’t start first.
Japan’s
Nikkei smashes 40,000 barrier after Wall Street benchmarks hit record highs;
China ‘Two Sessions’ meeting in focus
UPDATED SUN, MAR 3 2024 11:49 PM EST
Japan’s Nikkei 225 crossed
the 40,000 mark on Monday, gaining 0.46% and setting a new record high after
the S&P500 and
the Nasdaq Composite hit
fresh all-time highs on Friday.
The broader Topix fell 0.12%,
retreating from its all-time hit on Friday.
Investors will also be watching
China’s “Two Sessions” meetings today, with the CSI 300 edging 0.1% lower after
opening higher. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell
0.2%.
The “Two Sessions” refer to the
concurrent annual meetings of China’s legislature, the National People’s
Congress, and the country’s top political advisory body, the Chinese People’s
Political Consultative Conference.
At the meetings, China premier Li
Qiang is expected to deliver the government’s work report, which details
economic and policy goals for the world’s second-largest economy, including its
gross domestic product growth target.
India’s Nifty 50 rose — led by energy stocks —
to a new record for the third straight day.
South Korea’s Kospi rose
1.27%, while the small cap Kosdaq was up 1.03%. South Korean markets returned
for trading after a long weekend.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was
down 0.14%, after hitting an all-time closing high of 7,745.6 on Friday.
On the commodities front, oil
prices rose slightly, with West Texas
Intermediate crude
prices briefly crossing the $80 mark for the first time in four months as oil
heavyweights Saudi Arabia and Russia, alongside other key OPEC+ producers, said
they would extend
voluntary crude supply cuts until the end of the second
quarter.
On Friday in the U.S., the tech-heavy Nasdaq
advanced 1.14% to 16,274.94, notching a new high of 16,302.24 during the
session. A day earlier, the index closed at its first record since November
2021.
The S&P 500 added
0.80% to 5,137.08 for its first close above the 5,100 threshold, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained
0.23%.
Asia
markets live updates: Nikkei record, oil price, OPEC+ (cnbc.com)
U.S. stock futures are little changed after
Nasdaq rallies to record high: Live updates
UPDATED SUN, MAR 3 2024 6:56 PM EST
U.S. stock
futures were little changed Sunday night after the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite
posted a record-high Friday, breaking its 2021 record, as stocks attempt to
continue their weeks-long rally.
Futures
tied to the S&P 500 fell
marginally, while Nasdaq-100 futures ticked
slightly lower. Futures tied to
the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped
47 points, or 0.1%.
Stocks have been racing higher,
fueled by enthusiasm over artificial intelligence, with the Nasdaq soaring to
an all-time high on Friday—making it the last of the major stock indexes to
reach a record close this year. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq last week
reached their seventh weekly gain in eight, while the Dow ended the week in the
red.
“The recent rally has driven the
share of market cap in stocks with extremely high valuations to levels similar
to those reached during the euphoria of 2021,” David Kostin, Goldman Sachs
chief U.S. equity strategist, wrote in a Friday note. “But the prevalence of
extreme valuations today looks far less widespread than in 2021 after adjusting
for market concentration.”
With markets having digested a
better-than-expected earnings season and a hotter-than-expected consumer price
index report, investors now are turning their attention back to inflation.
This week, investors will look
for clues about the future direction of interest rates from Federal Reserve
Chair Jerome Powell’s monetary policy updates to the House of Representatives
on Wednesday and to the Senate on Thursday.
The ADP Employment Survey and
January job openings data will be released on Wednesday, providing further
insight into the labor market. Manufacturing and nonfarm payrolls data for
February will also be released on Friday.
Stock
market today: Live updates (cnbc.com)
Finally,
more on NATO’s insane rush to start WW3. After French President Macron last
week confirmed that British troops are already in Ukraine targeting and firing
the Storm Shadow missiles sent to Ukraine, with French troops doing the same
with their version of Storm Shadow, SCALP.
Now
comes confirmation from Germany of their top Generals planning an attack on
Russia’s Crimean Bridge.
Criminal
madness that if ever WW3 started, it threatens the end of most of Russia, NATO
Europe, Canada and the USA, and most likely Israel and Iran.
And
for what? A senile old man in Washington? A fantasy dresser in Ottawa? A man in
office in London, but not in power? A wannabe Napoleon in Paris? A non-entity
in Berlin? A Norwegian war monger in NATO Brussels? Are hundreds of millions to die for them?
Secret call by German air force chief who claimed
British troops were 'on the ground' in Ukraine is intercepted by Russian spies
March 3, 2024
- Call bugged by Russian spies
after officials used an unsecured telephone line
- The breach could compromise
Britain and France 's arms transfers to Ukraine
A German air force chief has revealed
secret UK operations in Ukraine after discussing highly sensitive military
secrets on a telephone line.
A
call between the Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz and senior Luftwaffe officers
was bugged by Russian spies after they used an unsecured telephone line to
discuss military planning.
The talks included confirmation that the
British military is deployed in Ukraine and important details on the transport
of British Storm Shadow missiles to the country.
German Chancellor Olaf
Scholz confirmed a recording released by Russia's state broadcaster was
genuine and described the security breach as 'very serious'.
The breach could compromise Britain and France 's arms transfers
to Ukraine and hamper the vital use of cruise missiles by Kyiv in its war against
Russia.
More
Germany Confirms Leaked
Audio Of Its Top Generals Discussing Blowing Up The Crimean Bridge
SATURDAY, MAR 02, 2024 - 07:35 PM
In a huge development and absolute smoking
gun revelation, the government of Germany has
confirmed the authenticity of a leaked audio recording file published
by Russia's state-backed RT. The leak was first published by RT
Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan, who described that she received it from
Russian security officials.
It first appeared under the headline "Alleged audio of German officers discussing Crimean
Bridge attack leaked" - as it
featured top ranking Germany military officials in a private discussion
of "a potential German operation to bomb the Crimean Bridge
in Russia," as it was initially described by RT. Russian media is
now openly admitting that the call was in fact intercepted by Russia. Moscow is
now saying this shows "direct" German involvement in the war.
The audio could have easily been dismissed in
the West as simply Russian-sourced propaganda or even an AI fake; however, in
an unexpected development the highest levels of the German government have now
confirmed that the audio is indeed real and Berlin launched an investigation
into the "serious" breach of secured communications.
"What is being reported is a very serious
matter and that is why it is now being investigated very carefully, very
intensively and very quickly," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in Rome.
Germany's military has also confirmed
the leaked recording, but officials
have avoided weighing in the actual content of what was said pending an internal investigation:
A German defense ministry spokeswoman
confimed to AFP that the ministry believes a conversation in the air force division was
"intercepted".
"We are currently unable to say for
certain whether changes were made to the recorded or transcribed version that
is circulating on social media," the spokeswoman said. Experts consulted
by Der Spiegel magazine said they
believed the recording was authentic.
Germany’s Ministry of Defense said per the
country's dpa: "According to our assessment, a
conversation within the Air Force was intercepted. We cannot currently
say with certainty whether changes have been made to the recorded or written
version that is circulating on social media."
AFP further writes that "Topics include
aiming the missiles at targets such as a key bridge over the Kerch
strait linking the Russian mainland to Crimea, which was annexed
by Russia in 2014."
More
Storm Shadow / SCALP Long-Range, Air-Launched,
Stand-Off Attack Missile
The Storm Shadow / SCALP is a long-range, air-launched, stand-off attack missile offered by France-based MBDA Systems primarily for the UK and French armed forces. It is derived from the MBDA Systems’ Apache anti-runway missile.
The missile is intended to strike high-valued
stationary assets such as airbases, radar installations, communications hubs
and port facilities. The Storm Shadow can engage the targets precisely in any
weather conditions during day and night. The long range and low attitude
combined with subsonic speed make the Storm Shadow a stealthy missile.
The Storm Shadow is also in service with the air
forces of Egypt, India, Italy, Greece, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab
Emirates (UAE). It is referred to as Black Shaheen in the UAE Air Force
service.
The Storm Shadow can be integrated into Tornado
GR4, Tornado IDS, Saab Gripen, Mirage 2000, Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon and
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft. In March 2021, the missile was
launched by UK Royal Air Force’s Eurofighter Typhoon for the first time on
operations against the Islamic State in Iraq.
More
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.
Brace for impact of
Japan’s technical recession
Weak
consumer spending in the East Asian country has led to more conservative
capital expenditure which may have an impact on demand for Malaysian products,
says an economist.
Ameer Fakhri02 Mar 2024, 7:30am
PETALING JAYA:
Japan’s recent slip into technical recession and economic stagnation will have
an impact on Malaysian exports to the East Asian country, according to an
economist.
Japan, a trade-dependent
country, is facing stagnation due to an economic slowdown in China, Geoffrey
Williams, an economist at Malaysia University of Science and Technology, said.
China, which is
Japan’s largest trading partner, is still grappling with the consequences of
the Covid-19 pandemic and its strict lockdown policy.
The economic
stagnation in Japan has led to a weakening of consumer spending, Williams told
FMT Business.
“As a result,
businesses are becoming more conservative in capital spending as they are not
so confident of future growth in sales,” he said.
Capital expenditure
in Japan declined by 0.1% in the last quarter of 2023 compared with the third
quarter. This was the third consecutive decline for the year.
Williams said this
will cause a slowdown in the production line and that will lead to a drop in
demand for Malaysian products.
“This is already a
trend, particularly in the export of raw materials such as liquefied natural
gas (LNG), electrical and electronic products and crude petroleum, all of which
saw a decline last year,” he said.
Malaysian exports to
Japan for the period from January to October last year amounted to RM129.86
billion, a 14.1% decline from the same period in 2022.
In October, the
volume of trade between Malaysia and Japan saw a 19.5% year-on-year decline.
Official data
released on Feb 15 shows that Japan has slipped behind Germany to become the
world’s fourth largest economy.
The East Asian giant
was second only to the US, the world’s largest economy, for decades before it
slipped into third place behind China in 2010.
A technical recession
is a condition where the GDP shrinks for two consecutive quarters.
More
Brace for impact of Japan’s technical recession | Free
Malaysia Today (FMT)
Wildfires ravage cattle country, threatening
Texas’ agriculture economy
Texas wildfires have
consumed acres of agricultural land, killing thousands of livestock, destroying
crops and exacerbating challenges lingering from last year’s drought.
BY ALEJANDRA MARTINEZ MARCH 1, 2024
The largest wildfire in Texas
history has devastated the state’s agriculture, blazing through more than 1
million acres of land in the Panhandle, killing thousands of livestock,
destroying crops and gutting infrastructure.
The agriculture industry, a big driver of the
state’s economy, was already facing pressures from prolonged and widespread drought that
forced ranchers to manage smaller herds,
contributing to a decrease in beef production
nationally. The series of wildfires in the Panhandle this week is
another blow as many ranchers tried to rebuild their herds and operations
during the cooler months of the year.
Over 85% of the state’s cattle
population is located on ranches in the Panhandle, according to the
Texas Department of Agriculture. In 2021, agriculture accounted for 9% of Texas' gross state
product, adding $186.1 billion to the state's economy, according to
Texas A&M’s Agrilife Extension report.
While numbers on how many cattle
were lost in the fires are unknown, experts say ranchers will face significant
economic pressure from the damage.
----The fires have left little food
or water for livestock. Some farmers lost everything. Property fences are gone.
Hundreds of miles of power lines have burned, leaving no electricity to pump
water from wells — which farmers rely on to hydrate their cattle. And it will
take years for the land to recover and grow new vegetation for livestock in the
area. Feed stores are already seeing many people in need of cattle food.
Wade Maul, 53, had never seen a fire like this
one — a massive dark plume with no end.
The owner of Maul Feed and Seed in
Pampa said ranchers' hay supply has burned up and lots of people are in
desperate need to feed cows and other animals that didn't get injured.
More
Texas
wildfires devastate state’s agriculture economy | The Texas Tribune
Covid-19 Corner
This section will continue until it becomes unneeded.
My advice to scientists questioning the Covid consensus?
More people are on your side than you realise
March
2, 2024
The label “lockdown sceptic”
was once a badge of shame used to denounce anyone who questioned punitive Covid restrictions as
a heartless granny killer.
What a difference four years
makes.
Now the majority of scientists believe that more attention should
have been paid to the true cost of
lockdowns, with only half thinking the action was always justified.
Perhaps this is the benefit
of hindsight talking. But what is clear is that few were brave enough to put their heads above the parapet at the time for fear of damaging their careers.
It’s not
how science should work and we need more gumption from our best minds. But it
is a striking indication of how thoughtful reflection has been replaced by
activism and dogma in the very institutions that should be the champions of
free speech
Universities – which have
lurched alarmingly to the Left in the last few decades – are now so mired in
groupthink that even the most liberal academics struggle to be heard inside
such a noisy echo chamber.
Covid was a good example. Much of the pro-lockdown narrative was
controlled by a small group of scientists who effectively organised themselves
into a politically driven movement that sought to influence policy.
Independent Sage, a group of
largely Left-wing academics which regularly called for ongoing restrictions,
was put together with help from The Citizens, a group founded by Carole Cadwalladr, a Guardian and Observer journalist and activist.
The group,
which was allowed an unconscionable amount of airtime by the BBC and Sky News,
confused the public, with many people believing they were hearing from real
Sage scientists.
----As early as 2020, Prof Carl Heneghan, of Oxford
University, warned that lockdown would bankrupt the country and leave a
catastrophic health legacy.
He roughly estimates that,
based on a £400 billion UK Covid spend, more than 13 million lives would have
needed to be saved by measures to justify the eye-watering costs.
Prof Neil Ferguson, of
Imperial College, predicted 500,000 deaths could occur but only if politicians
took no action at all, and that figure was thought highly unlikely by many
scientists.
More
CDC Drops 5-Day
Isolation Requirement for COVID-19 As Pandemic Threat Wanes
‘We’re
in a new place and that’s fantastic,’ says CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen, noting
that the COVID-19 threat has fallen significantly.
3/1/2024 Updated: 3/1/2024
People who
test positive for COVID-19 don’t need to isolate for five days anymore,
according to updated guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), which said that COVID-19 has become similar to—and in some
cases less severe than—the common flu.
The new guidance, updated on March
1, says that the threat from COVID-19 has fallen to become more similar to that
of other respiratory viruses, and so rather than providing additional
virus-specific guidelines, the CDC is opting for a “unified, practical
approach.”
This unified
approach recommends that people with symptoms of COVID-19 (and other
respiratory viruses) should stay home and away from others until at least 24
hours after their fever has resolved and their overall symptoms are getting
better.
“This
recommendation addresses the period of greatest infectiousness and highest
viral load for most people, which is typically in the first few days of illness
and when symptoms, including fever, are worst,” the CDC said in the new
guidelines.
The changes do
away with the CDC’s previous recommendations for people with COVID-19 symptoms
to isolate from others for at least five days.
“This is
similar to longstanding recommendations for other respiratory illnesses,
including influenza,” the agency said.
The CDC pointed
to substantial improvement in various COVID-19 metrics, including “far fewer”
people getting seriously ill and complications like multisystem inflammatory
syndrome in children becoming less common.
“Data indicate
rates of hospitalizations and deaths are down substantially, and that
clinically COVID-19 has become similar to, or even less severe in hospitalized
people, than influenza and RSV,” the CDC noted, adding that its new guidelines
are “tailored to the current level of risk posed by COVID-19.”
In further
justifying its shift to the new guidelines, which basically treat COVID-19 like
any other respiratory virus, the CDC said that many people with respiratory
virus symptoms often don’t know which pathogen is causing their symptoms, so a
unified approach is more practical.
More
CDC
Drops 5-Day Isolation Requirement for COVID-19 As Pandemic Threat Wanes | The
Epoch Times
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.
Graphene - where is our promised wonder material?
Thu, 29 February 2024 at
11:44 pm GMT
Graphene is
considered one of the most important breakthroughs in material science since
its discovery. This “wonder material” was widely overhyped, and still hasn’t
lived up to its potential. We can now see more concrete and realistic
applications hitting the market — not those out of this world promises like the
space elevator. What if we could cut down carbon emissions from cement
production by 20% and make cheaper and more powerful EV batteries using
graphene? Is graphene finally starting to deliver on the promise?
Graphene is a
hexagonal honeycomb lattice made up of a single layer of carbon atoms. It’s a
physical form of carbon with a molecular bond length of 0.142 nanometres and
each atom is connected to three more around it by bonds that are very tight.
Graphene essentially has only two dimensions, and if we stack several layers of
it on top of each other, we can turn it into graphite.
The “wonder
material,” as graphene is often called, is one of the thinnest materials that
we know of and the lightest compound ever discovered (weighing around 0.77
mg/m²). Graphene is also one of the strongest compounds (between 100-300 times
stronger than steel), as well as one of the best heat and electricity
conductors at room temperature (it has an electrical conductivity 70% higher
than copper). You can see why so many people hailed it as the next
technological revolution.
Research on
graphene started in 1947 by physicist Philip R. Wallace, but it was only
discovered by researchers from the University of Manchester in the United
Kingdom in 2004 by Geim and Novoselov. They used a sticky tape to peel flakes
from a lump of graphite, separating the layers until they were only one atom
thick. The discovery was so revolutionary that they were awarded the Nobel
Prize in 2010.
Although it
has all of the characteristics to be an excellent material in theory,
manufacturing defect-free graphene is often too expensive. Its price can vary a
lot based on the manufacturing conditions, and the methods for the
mass-production of this material haven’t been cost-effective.It’s something
that often happens to discoveries in the lab. Bringing it to market and
producing it cheaply at scale can be extremely difficult.
Even though
the best physical properties of graphene can be achieved using the peeling
method proposed by Geim and Novoselov, it isn’t the most effective and feasible
way to produce tons of graphene. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is one of the
main processes utilized to produce graphene. This procedure consists of
synthesizing graphene on a substrate, often copper foil, but it’s still a
challenge to produce long sheets of this material at scale.
However, one
example of a partnership trying to push this boundary is the joint venture
formed between the Chinese company, Hangzhou Cable Co, and the University of
New South Wales that’s trying to manufacture graphene power cables. The cables
could reduce electricity leakages, lowering electricity costs and carbon
emissions while improving the quality of grid transmission. The technology
developed by the university could save about 275 TWh in theory. While that’s
very interesting, it has yet to come out of the lab.
More
Graphene
- where is our promised wonder material? (yahoo.com)
A computer programmer’s wife
asks him to go to the store. She says "Get a gallon of milk. If they
have eggs, get 12."
The programmer returns with 12
gallons of milk.
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