A point that needs to be made: This fight over whether to shut down the government for a few days is chicken-scratch.
It's low-stakes poker compared to the fight over the debt ceiling, which must be resolved by May 8, in just over a month.
Several GOPers have already said they won't raise it without some "significant" concessions from The White House on the future of spending, and whatever good will John Boehner has to burn up in getting a budget passed will be taken directly from the appetite the GOP had in raising the debt ceiling.
The consequences are way more severe, potentially, than the shutdown of government. At the most extreme, it could lead to default. And if you figure that the market goes into a tizzy at the suggestion of, say, Greece defaulting, then the impact of the US should be easy to comprehend.
There's no doubt that Boehner doesn't want a disastrous outcome, but his challenge is in getting his more radical compatriots to come along with him.
So enjoy the theater of what we're seeing now. It's just the opening band.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-debt-ceiling-debate-2011-4#ixzz1IsAxIIQP
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Confirmation on Israel War Threat
Submitted by: Francis Soyer
4/7/11
In response the the headline just posted on Zero Hedge that a Netanyahu Spokesman made an announcement that all out war could begin as early as tonight within Gaza I have gotten confirmation from Al Jazeera that "Violence erupts across Gaza Border"
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/04/20114713475225620.html
This is a very serious development and has the potentional if this does in fact occur to crush equity indices. Hence defensive trading advised.
Netanyahu Spokesman Says War May Break Out Between Israel And Gaza As Early As Tonight
Just to make the clusterflock complete the following news from BBC Newsfile crosses the tape: "The Ma'an News Agency website in Arabic at 1631 gmt on 7 April posts the following "urgent" caption: "[Ofir] Gendelman [spokesman for the office of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu] Tells Ma'an: I do not rule out the possibility that Israel will wage war on Gaza tonight." Or, more metaphorically, the proverbial flame in a fireworks store. Surely this last straw will send the S&P limit [up
down] until someone has the brilliant idea that Bernanke can print his way out of that one as well.
More as we see it.
down] until someone has the brilliant idea that Bernanke can print his way out of that one as well.
More as we see it.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Geithner warns U.S. to hit debt ceiling by May 16
(Reuters) - The United States will hit the legal limit on its ability to borrow no later than May 16, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Monday, ramping up pressure on Congress to act to avoid a debt default.
"The longer Congress fails to act, the more we risk that investors here and around the world will lose confidence in our ability to meet our commitments and our obligations," Geithner said in a letter to congressional leaders.
"Default by the United States is unthinkable."
Previously, the Treasury had forecast that the $14.3 trillion statutory debt limit would be reached between April 15 and May 31. As of Friday, Treasury borrowing stood just $95 billion from the ceiling.
Some Republican lawmakers have sought to use the need to raise the debt limit as a lever to pressure the Obama administration into agreeing on large-scale budget cuts.
The debt-limit showdown comes as Congress struggles to complete a spending package that would keep the government operating beyond Friday.
Republicans are seeking to use that bill to enact deep spending cuts and lawmakers are focusing on a proposal to trim this year's budget by $33 billion, a relatively small amount compared with a projected $1.4 trillion deficit.
Geithner said a failure to raise the debt ceiling in a timely way would push interest rates higher and spark "a financial crisis potentially more severe than the crisis from which we are only starting to recover."
Both Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke have said a failure to raise the ceiling could have "catastrophic consequences."
BUYING TIME
As the government nears the debt ceiling, the Treasury has authority to take certain extraordinary measures to postpone the date the United States would default on its obligations.
However, those actions would be exhausted after about eight weeks and there would be "no headroom" to borrow after July 8, Geithner said.
Some lawmakers have called for legislation to force the Treasury to first pay interest on U.S. bonds before other obligations, such as unemployment benefits and Social Security and Medicare payments, as a way to stave off a debt default.
They have also asked Treasury whether financial assets such as the country's gold reserves or the government's portfolio of student loans could be sold to avoid raising the debt ceiling.
Treasury has rejected the proposals as unworkable.
"The longer Congress fails to act, the more we risk that investors here and around the world will lose confidence in our ability to meet our commitments and our obligations," Geithner said in a letter to congressional leaders.
"Default by the United States is unthinkable."
Previously, the Treasury had forecast that the $14.3 trillion statutory debt limit would be reached between April 15 and May 31. As of Friday, Treasury borrowing stood just $95 billion from the ceiling.
Some Republican lawmakers have sought to use the need to raise the debt limit as a lever to pressure the Obama administration into agreeing on large-scale budget cuts.
The debt-limit showdown comes as Congress struggles to complete a spending package that would keep the government operating beyond Friday.
Republicans are seeking to use that bill to enact deep spending cuts and lawmakers are focusing on a proposal to trim this year's budget by $33 billion, a relatively small amount compared with a projected $1.4 trillion deficit.
Geithner said a failure to raise the debt ceiling in a timely way would push interest rates higher and spark "a financial crisis potentially more severe than the crisis from which we are only starting to recover."
Both Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke have said a failure to raise the ceiling could have "catastrophic consequences."
BUYING TIME
As the government nears the debt ceiling, the Treasury has authority to take certain extraordinary measures to postpone the date the United States would default on its obligations.
However, those actions would be exhausted after about eight weeks and there would be "no headroom" to borrow after July 8, Geithner said.
Some lawmakers have called for legislation to force the Treasury to first pay interest on U.S. bonds before other obligations, such as unemployment benefits and Social Security and Medicare payments, as a way to stave off a debt default.
They have also asked Treasury whether financial assets such as the country's gold reserves or the government's portfolio of student loans could be sold to avoid raising the debt ceiling.
Treasury has rejected the proposals as unworkable.
Soros advises Obama to use forceful measures to override the will of the people
By Ed Lasky for American Thinker
George Soros funds the Center for American Progress, which has been characterized as Barack Obama’s Ideas Factory. John Podesta, its head, led the transition team when Barack Obama became President. The Center has also become a hiring hall for the Obama team, filling its positions with former employees (among these was controversial Van Jones — who now is back at the Center).
Apparently, George Soros and his Center are upset that the American people placed a roadblock in their plans when we rose up and painted the nation red. The Center now is providing a blueprint of ways Barack Obama can do an end run around the people’s will by resorting to methods that will strike many of us as being improper-to say the least. Relying on executive orders, interpretation of regulations, rule -making and the like they are collectively a recipe for even more power being assumed by President Obama.
From Tuesday’s Politico Playbook:
[The] Center for American Progress today is releasing a report, “Power of the President,” proposing 30 executive actions the president can take to advance progressive change in the areas of energy, the economy, health care, education, foreign policy, and national security. “The following authorities can be used to ensure progress on key issues facing the country today: Executive orders, Rulemaking, Agency management, Convening and creating public-private partnerships , Commanding the armed forces, Diplomacy.
The New York Times fleshes out these proposals with some suggestions about policy changes across the board. The ideology of George Soros shines through the Center’s report as it justifies this forceful approach to circumvent Congress when it states that:
[The] legislative battles that Mr. Obama waged during his first two years – notably on health care and financial regulatory reform – have created a weariness among the general public with the process of making laws. And it hints it has not helped Mr. Obama politically in the process.
In other words, when Congress passed a variety of laws Americans became dismayed by the horse-trading and bribes that were resorted to by Democrats to impose these policies on us. Instead of compromise and listening to the American people, Soros counsels that more forceful measures should be used to override the will of the American people.
And this is the man the Democratic Party has as their sugar daddy and who various Democratic leaders over the years have defended and praised (for example, as shown by this letter from 11 Democratic lawmakers).
He is certainly a dictatorial daddy.
George Soros funds the Center for American Progress, which has been characterized as Barack Obama’s Ideas Factory. John Podesta, its head, led the transition team when Barack Obama became President. The Center has also become a hiring hall for the Obama team, filling its positions with former employees (among these was controversial Van Jones — who now is back at the Center).
Apparently, George Soros and his Center are upset that the American people placed a roadblock in their plans when we rose up and painted the nation red. The Center now is providing a blueprint of ways Barack Obama can do an end run around the people’s will by resorting to methods that will strike many of us as being improper-to say the least. Relying on executive orders, interpretation of regulations, rule -making and the like they are collectively a recipe for even more power being assumed by President Obama.
From Tuesday’s Politico Playbook:
[The] Center for American Progress today is releasing a report, “Power of the President,” proposing 30 executive actions the president can take to advance progressive change in the areas of energy, the economy, health care, education, foreign policy, and national security. “The following authorities can be used to ensure progress on key issues facing the country today: Executive orders, Rulemaking, Agency management, Convening and creating public-private partnerships , Commanding the armed forces, Diplomacy.
The New York Times fleshes out these proposals with some suggestions about policy changes across the board. The ideology of George Soros shines through the Center’s report as it justifies this forceful approach to circumvent Congress when it states that:
[The] legislative battles that Mr. Obama waged during his first two years – notably on health care and financial regulatory reform – have created a weariness among the general public with the process of making laws. And it hints it has not helped Mr. Obama politically in the process.
In other words, when Congress passed a variety of laws Americans became dismayed by the horse-trading and bribes that were resorted to by Democrats to impose these policies on us. Instead of compromise and listening to the American people, Soros counsels that more forceful measures should be used to override the will of the American people.
And this is the man the Democratic Party has as their sugar daddy and who various Democratic leaders over the years have defended and praised (for example, as shown by this letter from 11 Democratic lawmakers).
He is certainly a dictatorial daddy.
Sprott Physical Gold Trust Announces Follow On, Will Sequester Another $300 Million In Physical; PSLV Next?
It's a good thing that unlike the silver market, which continues to be in backwardation (see chart), the gold market is fully supplied. Otherwise the just released news from Sprott Asset Management that his Physical Gold Trust (PHYS) is pursuing a $300 million follow on would finally send gold breaking out to $2,000, where it will be sooner or later anyway. Amusingly, contrary to various other blogs' expectations that Sprott is top ticking the market with selling shareholder shelf statements, Sprott is doing just the opposite: "certain funds managed by Sprott Asset Management LP, have agreed to purchase no less than $115 million of Units in this Offering." So yeah, no top tick here. Still, the news that Sprott is about to mop up another $300 million in physical gold from the market will likely send gold quite higher. It appears to have already had an impact on silver, which jumped by $20 cents to another 31 year high on the news, as the market now likely expects a follow on offering in PSLV as well imminently.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - 04/04/11) - Sprott Physical Gold Trust (the "Trust") (TSX:PHY.U - News)(NYSE:PHYS - News), a trust created to invest and hold substantially all of its assets in physical gold bullion and managed by Sprott Asset Management LP, announced today that it has launched a follow-on offering of transferable, redeemable units of the Trust ("Units") in an aggregate amount of up to $340 million at a price of $12.54 per unit (the "Offering"). Certain lead investors, including certain funds managed by Sprott Asset Management LP, have agreed to purchase no less than $115 million of Units in this Offering.
The Trust will use the net proceeds of this Offering to acquire physical gold bullion in accordance with the Trust's objective and subject to the Trust's investment and operating restrictions described in the prospectus related to this Offering. Under the trust agreement governing the Trust, the net proceeds of the Offering per unit must be not less than 100% of the most recently calculated net asset value per Unit of the Trust prior to, or upon determination of, pricing of the offering.
The Units are listed on the NYSE Arca and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols "PHYS" and "PHY.U", respectively. The Offering will be made simultaneously in the United States and Canada by Morgan Stanley and RBC Capital Markets.
The press releaseTORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - 04/04/11) - Sprott Physical Gold Trust (the "Trust") (TSX:PHY.U - News)(NYSE:PHYS - News), a trust created to invest and hold substantially all of its assets in physical gold bullion and managed by Sprott Asset Management LP, announced today that it has launched a follow-on offering of transferable, redeemable units of the Trust ("Units") in an aggregate amount of up to $340 million at a price of $12.54 per unit (the "Offering"). Certain lead investors, including certain funds managed by Sprott Asset Management LP, have agreed to purchase no less than $115 million of Units in this Offering.
The Trust will use the net proceeds of this Offering to acquire physical gold bullion in accordance with the Trust's objective and subject to the Trust's investment and operating restrictions described in the prospectus related to this Offering. Under the trust agreement governing the Trust, the net proceeds of the Offering per unit must be not less than 100% of the most recently calculated net asset value per Unit of the Trust prior to, or upon determination of, pricing of the offering.
The Units are listed on the NYSE Arca and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols "PHYS" and "PHY.U", respectively. The Offering will be made simultaneously in the United States and Canada by Morgan Stanley and RBC Capital Markets.
Saudi Oil Minister Says Crude To Hit $300 If Turmoil Spreads To Saudi
Saudi Arabia Goes M.A.D.:
Saudi Oil Minister Says Crude To Hit $300 If Turmoil Spreads To Saudi
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/05/2011 08:45 -0400
The strategy of Mutual Assured Destruction has worked so well in the "developed" world (thank you Hank Paulson, Tim Jeethner, Clearinghouse Association et al), it is time to see it in application in the "developing." In an attempt to preempt US doubts about intervening (on the proper side) in the case of escalations in Saudi Arabia (and with the possibility of Yemen becoming a potential Al Qaeda hotbed rising by the hour, this is non-trivial) the former Saudi oil minister Sheikh Zaki Yamani told Reuters on Tuesday that "Oil prices could leap to $200 to $300 a barrel if Saudi Arabia is hit by serious political unrest." We are confident he was merely talking in a very, very hypothetical scenario. After all why scaremonger in a world in which everything is under control?
From Reuters:
"If something happens in Saudi Arabia it will go to $200 to $300," he said.
"I don't expect this for the time being, but who would have expected Tunisia?" he added.
Asked whether the United States was likely to succeed in cutting its dependence on Saudi oil, he said: "From the 1950s, American presidents have been saying this."
U.S. President Barack Obama last week proposed to cut oil imports by a third over 10 years.
Than again with math Ph.D.'s continuing to (front) run US stock markets, and unable to make the mathematical leap between $108 oil and a 4% full year GDP forecast by Goldman (soon to be cut to 1.5%), we are confident $300 oil will have no material impact on stocks, until such time as the Globex hikes margin requirements on the ES which will be the catalyst for the next market crash.
Saudi Oil Minister Says Crude To Hit $300 If Turmoil Spreads To Saudi
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/05/2011 08:45 -0400
The strategy of Mutual Assured Destruction has worked so well in the "developed" world (thank you Hank Paulson, Tim Jeethner, Clearinghouse Association et al), it is time to see it in application in the "developing." In an attempt to preempt US doubts about intervening (on the proper side) in the case of escalations in Saudi Arabia (and with the possibility of Yemen becoming a potential Al Qaeda hotbed rising by the hour, this is non-trivial) the former Saudi oil minister Sheikh Zaki Yamani told Reuters on Tuesday that "Oil prices could leap to $200 to $300 a barrel if Saudi Arabia is hit by serious political unrest." We are confident he was merely talking in a very, very hypothetical scenario. After all why scaremonger in a world in which everything is under control?
From Reuters:
"If something happens in Saudi Arabia it will go to $200 to $300," he said.
"I don't expect this for the time being, but who would have expected Tunisia?" he added.
Asked whether the United States was likely to succeed in cutting its dependence on Saudi oil, he said: "From the 1950s, American presidents have been saying this."
U.S. President Barack Obama last week proposed to cut oil imports by a third over 10 years.
Than again with math Ph.D.'s continuing to (front) run US stock markets, and unable to make the mathematical leap between $108 oil and a 4% full year GDP forecast by Goldman (soon to be cut to 1.5%), we are confident $300 oil will have no material impact on stocks, until such time as the Globex hikes margin requirements on the ES which will be the catalyst for the next market crash.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Frontrunning: April 4
Frontrunning: April 4
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2011 07:51 -0400
•Goldman lowers Q1 GDP, sees rest of year outlook as "messy: (Zero Hedge)
•GOP Aim: Cut $4 Trillion (WSJ)
•Trichet Seen Burying Ailing Nations With Interest-Rate Rise (BusinessWeek)
•ECB criticised over expected rate rise (FT)
•Important for China arbs: BOC HK Cuts Yuan Deposit Interest Rate (Bloomberg)
•In Tripoli, Growing Murmurs Of Dissent (WSJ)
•Inflation Surge May Cause Hike in Won, Rates (Korea JoongAng)
•Us Foreign Policy "Shocker": U.S. Shifts to Seek Removal of Yemen’s Leader, an Ally (NYT)
•Next Problem for Oil: Nigerian Elections (WSJ)
•Geithner Says Strict Policy on Currency Hurts China (NYT)
•China closes half the nation's dairies (Telegraph)
•Ireland to Push for Better Bailout Terms (WSJ)
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2011 07:51 -0400
•Goldman lowers Q1 GDP, sees rest of year outlook as "messy: (Zero Hedge)
•GOP Aim: Cut $4 Trillion (WSJ)
•Trichet Seen Burying Ailing Nations With Interest-Rate Rise (BusinessWeek)
•ECB criticised over expected rate rise (FT)
•Important for China arbs: BOC HK Cuts Yuan Deposit Interest Rate (Bloomberg)
•In Tripoli, Growing Murmurs Of Dissent (WSJ)
•Inflation Surge May Cause Hike in Won, Rates (Korea JoongAng)
•Us Foreign Policy "Shocker": U.S. Shifts to Seek Removal of Yemen’s Leader, an Ally (NYT)
•Next Problem for Oil: Nigerian Elections (WSJ)
•Geithner Says Strict Policy on Currency Hurts China (NYT)
•China closes half the nation's dairies (Telegraph)
•Ireland to Push for Better Bailout Terms (WSJ)
Ron Paul on Legal Tender Laws, Coin Shortages, Interest Rates, Municipal Bonds, the Gold Standard
Ron Paul on Legal Tender Laws, Coin Shortages, Interest Rates, Municipal Bonds, the Gold Standard
Commodity Online News has an interesting article regarding a new bill introduced by Ron Paul to repeal legal tender laws, an investigation of the coin shortage, and Paul's positions on interest rates and a return to the gold standard.
Ron Paul to probe US Mint Coin shortage
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has one question for the U.S. Mint: why is there a coin shortage? He is aiming to get to the bottom of this during a scheduled April 7 hearing of his U.S. House Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy to examine the bullion programs at the U.S. Mint.
“We are going to try and find out what the Mint has done so they can give us a better answer as to why there is a shortage. Why can’t they keep the supply of coins up?” said the congressman in an exclusive interview with Kitco News.
Part of the problem lies in manufacturing the blanks, said Paul. The blank planchets are not made at the Mint, which hasn't had the production capacity for this stage of the minting process since the budget cuts of 1981.
“Looks like we don’t even get (all) blank coins made in the U.S. – there is a contract with a foreign company, which makes no sense at all,” said the congressman.
Free Competition in Currency Act of 2011
In March, Paul introduced H.R. 1098, the Free Competition in Currency Act of 2011, which would repeal legal tender laws in order to prohibit taxation on gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium bullion. The bill has been referred to the House Committees on Financial Services, Ways and Means, and Judiciary.
A staunch critic of the Federal Reserve, Paul said that instead of arguing his case for the Fed to close down tomorrow, he’s arguing the fact it should not hold a monopoly. “They have a monopoly on a type of money that isn’t even constitutional,” he said.
“We would use no force, nobody has to use gold and silver coins,” said Paul. Rather, he said the Fed does use force. “They are a cartel and they make us use Federal Reserve notes,” he said.
Gold Standard
A common assumption is that Paul is calling for a return to a gold standard. He clarified, saying he is not so inflexible. “I wouldn’t be overly rigid and say, ‘you must have a gold standard, you must go back to what we had.’ Our gold standard was imperfect, even though it worked better than the paper standard,” he said.
Lawmakers in several states, including Tennessee, Virginia, New Hampshire and South Carolina, have introduced bills to look into minting their own currencies in the event of a complete breakdown of the U.S. Federal Reserve. In Georgia, a bill to make the state only use gold and silver is in committee.
Utah has received the most media attention on this subject as the House and Senate have passed HB317, which would recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender and exempt them from certain state tax liability.
“Governments over the many, many centuries have always demanded monopoly control over money. Even when gold and silver were principally used in the economies, they still wanted monopolies,” Paul said.
Hence, he is not confident that any Utah law would be allowed to stand. “Well, they are going to fight it tooth and nail. They are not going to go along with this even though we have the law and Constitution on our side and it should appeal to all Americans to have competition.”
Interest Rate Hikes and Municipal Bond Defaults
Regarding U.S. interest rate hikes, Paul said they are going to be gradual and steady but they are indeed coming. “The next big shoe to fall will be interest rates going up on municipal bonds -- that means a lot of these bonds will start defaulting,” he said.
There is more in the article including a discussion on another run for president. I hope he does run even though he has little chance of winning.
His issues are important ones and they merit adoption. The first step, however, is more awareness, and his running for president would do just that.
Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
Commodity Online News has an interesting article regarding a new bill introduced by Ron Paul to repeal legal tender laws, an investigation of the coin shortage, and Paul's positions on interest rates and a return to the gold standard.
Ron Paul to probe US Mint Coin shortage
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has one question for the U.S. Mint: why is there a coin shortage? He is aiming to get to the bottom of this during a scheduled April 7 hearing of his U.S. House Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy to examine the bullion programs at the U.S. Mint.
“We are going to try and find out what the Mint has done so they can give us a better answer as to why there is a shortage. Why can’t they keep the supply of coins up?” said the congressman in an exclusive interview with Kitco News.
Part of the problem lies in manufacturing the blanks, said Paul. The blank planchets are not made at the Mint, which hasn't had the production capacity for this stage of the minting process since the budget cuts of 1981.
“Looks like we don’t even get (all) blank coins made in the U.S. – there is a contract with a foreign company, which makes no sense at all,” said the congressman.
Free Competition in Currency Act of 2011
In March, Paul introduced H.R. 1098, the Free Competition in Currency Act of 2011, which would repeal legal tender laws in order to prohibit taxation on gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium bullion. The bill has been referred to the House Committees on Financial Services, Ways and Means, and Judiciary.
A staunch critic of the Federal Reserve, Paul said that instead of arguing his case for the Fed to close down tomorrow, he’s arguing the fact it should not hold a monopoly. “They have a monopoly on a type of money that isn’t even constitutional,” he said.
“We would use no force, nobody has to use gold and silver coins,” said Paul. Rather, he said the Fed does use force. “They are a cartel and they make us use Federal Reserve notes,” he said.
Gold Standard
A common assumption is that Paul is calling for a return to a gold standard. He clarified, saying he is not so inflexible. “I wouldn’t be overly rigid and say, ‘you must have a gold standard, you must go back to what we had.’ Our gold standard was imperfect, even though it worked better than the paper standard,” he said.
Lawmakers in several states, including Tennessee, Virginia, New Hampshire and South Carolina, have introduced bills to look into minting their own currencies in the event of a complete breakdown of the U.S. Federal Reserve. In Georgia, a bill to make the state only use gold and silver is in committee.
Utah has received the most media attention on this subject as the House and Senate have passed HB317, which would recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender and exempt them from certain state tax liability.
“Governments over the many, many centuries have always demanded monopoly control over money. Even when gold and silver were principally used in the economies, they still wanted monopolies,” Paul said.
Hence, he is not confident that any Utah law would be allowed to stand. “Well, they are going to fight it tooth and nail. They are not going to go along with this even though we have the law and Constitution on our side and it should appeal to all Americans to have competition.”
Interest Rate Hikes and Municipal Bond Defaults
Regarding U.S. interest rate hikes, Paul said they are going to be gradual and steady but they are indeed coming. “The next big shoe to fall will be interest rates going up on municipal bonds -- that means a lot of these bonds will start defaulting,” he said.
There is more in the article including a discussion on another run for president. I hope he does run even though he has little chance of winning.
His issues are important ones and they merit adoption. The first step, however, is more awareness, and his running for president would do just that.
Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
Friday, April 1, 2011
From Recession to Expansion: A Policymaker’s Perspective" - More Hawkishness From Philly Fed's Plosser
Comment: Francis Soyer 04/01/11
And this below is confirmation that the Folks at the Fed are Brain Dead. Just dont get it..... Wow
From Recession to Expansion: A Policymaker’s Perspective" - More Hawkishness From Philly Fed's Plosser
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/01/2011 08:16 -0400
Some highlights from the just released Philly Fed president's speech, bringing yet more hawkishness into the equation:
•Says stronger rebound in economy, inflation may require aggressive policy action
•Must not be too sanguine in believing time to tighten is long way off
•Recovery will continue at a moderate pace
•US economy growing 3.5% annually this year and next
•Prospects in labour markets have improved in recent months
•Expects inflation to be about 2% over the course of 2011... so not the 8.3% which is the accurate number? Odd.
And this below is confirmation that the Folks at the Fed are Brain Dead. Just dont get it..... Wow
From Recession to Expansion: A Policymaker’s Perspective" - More Hawkishness From Philly Fed's Plosser
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/01/2011 08:16 -0400
Some highlights from the just released Philly Fed president's speech, bringing yet more hawkishness into the equation:
•Says stronger rebound in economy, inflation may require aggressive policy action
•Must not be too sanguine in believing time to tighten is long way off
•Recovery will continue at a moderate pace
•US economy growing 3.5% annually this year and next
•Prospects in labour markets have improved in recent months
•Expects inflation to be about 2% over the course of 2011... so not the 8.3% which is the accurate number? Odd.
JPMorgan's Dimon Warns of Regulatory 'Nail' in Coffin
Submitted by: Francis Soyer
04/01/11
Francis is posting this one because the pattern with the banking system before the rabbit gets pulled out of the hat so to speak is usually telegraphed in advance. In this case Dimon is speaking not so much about the Frank Dodd regulations which may look good on paper but in real terms are toothless proposed regulations is talking more to the point on the implementation of BASEL III. BASEL III is the new banking reserve requirements as dictated by the BIS (Bank for International Settlements) the hub of central banking power. This testimony by Dimon is basically a telegraph so that when the global finanicial system collapse occurs and IT WILL over the next 20 months basically he gets his get out of jail free card for being able to say I told you so....
Published: Thursday, 31 Mar 2011
1:50 AM ET By: Tom Braithwaite, Financial Times
Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, launched a broadside against financial regulation on Wednesday, warning that new capital rules could be “the nail in our coffin for big American banks.”
Regulators are negotiating international capital standards for the biggest banks but the chief executive of JP Morgan Chase [JPM 46.10 -0.35 (-0.75%) ] said setting the new requirements too high, or allowing overseas banks to calculate their asset base differently, could disadvantage US banks and was already stifling economic growth.
“If you want to set it so high that no big bank ever goes bankrupt... I think that would greatly diminish growth,” he told a US Chamber of Commerce conference.
Too large a disparity in capital requirements between Europe and the US would mean “you’re pretty much putting the nail in our coffin for big American banks,” he said.
Urging regulators to make a quick decision, he said the uncertainty meant banks were already restricting their lending, nervous of the “anger and the shrillness – and Switzerland says it’s got to be 19 percent and people in the UK say it’s got to be 15 percent.”
“If you think that’s helping growth, it’s not,” Mr. Dimon said, adding that a 7 percent capital ratio would be adequate.
Mr. Dimon’s comments come as Wall Street executives and Republican members of Congress are starting to attack regulation as anger at the financial industry subsides.
On Tuesday, Alan Greenspan, the former Federal Reserve chairman, wrote in the Financial Times that the Dodd-Frank financial reforms risked creating “the largest regulatory-induced market distortion since America’s ill-fated imposition of wage and price controls in 1971”.
Spencer Bachus, the Republican chairman of the House financial services committee, has said that regulators are there to “serve” the banks and warned the Treasury not to hurt Goldman Sachs’ [GS 158.60 -0.47 (-0.3%) ] shareholders when it writes new rules implementing Dodd-Frank. Restrictions on debit card fees charged to retailers are also coming under attack in Congress.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wal-Mart US CEO To America: "Prepare For Serious Inflation"
To those who think that buying food in the corner deli is becoming a luxury, we have five words: you ain't seen nuthin' yet. U.S. consumers face "serious" inflation in the months ahead for clothing, food and other products, the head of Wal-Mart's U.S. operations warned Wednesday talking to USA Today. And if Wal-Mart which is at the very bottom of commoditized consumer retail, and at the very peak of avoiding reexporting of US inflation by way of China is concerned, it may be time to panic, or at least cancel those plane tickets to Zimbabwe, which is soon coming to us.
Don’t Believe the Chart, the US Dollar is Dropping Like a Stone
I want to take a moment to address the US Dollar’s collapse.
The US Dollar which most investors follow is the US Dollar index. This represents the US Dollar’s value against a basket of major currencies: the Euro, Japanese Yen, etc.
Think about that for a moment: the way we measure the US Dollar’s value is against a collection of other un-backed paper currencies all issued by over-indebted, bankrupt nations.
In other words, its nonsense.
Case in point, the Euro comprises over 50% of the US Dollar index. What’s the Euro? A currency backed by a loose group of bankrupt nations with maybe two solvent members in the bunch. Greece has already asked for an extension on its bailout repayments (like they’re ever going to repay anything), Spain is bankrupt, ditto for Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and others.
As for the more solvent European members (Germany and maybe France) their political leaders are getting crushed in the elections because NOBODY who actually works for a living (or has a working brain) wants in on the Euro.
So in Europe we’ve got one perhaps two solvent countries that are supposed to bailout 5+ insolvent ones (like that’s even possible). And the solvent countries are comprised of people who want no part of the Euro.
Man, now that’s what I call a real currency.
In simple terms, to claim the Euro is a viable currency is pure insanity. And yet, this “currency” comprises 50% of the US Dollar index (not as though the Yen or US Dollar are worthwhile either).
My point in all of this is that measuring the greenback using the Euro is insane. 100% totally insane. Which is why claiming the US Dollar is not collapsing is BS. If you actually go outside the US (which 99% of commentators don’t) you’ll find that the US Dollar is worth much less than the Dollar index is telling you.
I was recently on a trip to South America looking at real estate. While there I was told repeatedly by developers that they didn’t want to sign a contract in US Dollars. Instead they wanted to do it in the local currency. This has NEVER happened before during my trips abroad (even as recently as 2009).
When I pushed for having contracts based in Dollars, the price went up EVERY week.
The reason? The US Dollar is falling in relation to the local currency on a daily basis.
So here are local businessmen, (not economists or analysts), people who actually work for a living, refusing to accept US Dollars during business transactions.
That alone should tell you just where the US Dollar stands on the international stage.
In plain terms, the US Dollar crisis is already underway. If you ignore the stupid headlines and pay attention to the real world you can already see it. Prices of goods are EXPLODING higher. It’s being hidden because retailers are downsizing the size of their packages OR packing less goods in the same space (look inside any cereal box or other dry good and you’ll find that at best it’s 75% full).
So if you think things are fine because the US Dollar chart shows we still have a few lines of support, you’re being mislead. The US Dollar is worth far, far less than the chart shows you. So if you want to prepare yourself for a currency crisis you need to move now.
On that note, if you’re getting worried about the future of the stock market and have yet to take steps to prepare for the Second Round of the Financial Crisis… I highly suggest you download my FREE Special Report specifying exactly how to prepare for what’s to come.
I call it The Financial Crisis “Round Two” Survival Kit. And its 17 pages contain a wealth of information about portfolio protection, which investments to own and how to take out Catastrophe Insurance on the stock market (this “insurance” paid out triple digit gains in the Autumn of 2008).
Again, this is all 100% FREE. To pick up your copy today, got to http://www.gainspainscapital.com and click on FREE REPORTS.
Prepare Now!
Graham Summers
The US Dollar which most investors follow is the US Dollar index. This represents the US Dollar’s value against a basket of major currencies: the Euro, Japanese Yen, etc.
Think about that for a moment: the way we measure the US Dollar’s value is against a collection of other un-backed paper currencies all issued by over-indebted, bankrupt nations.
In other words, its nonsense.
Case in point, the Euro comprises over 50% of the US Dollar index. What’s the Euro? A currency backed by a loose group of bankrupt nations with maybe two solvent members in the bunch. Greece has already asked for an extension on its bailout repayments (like they’re ever going to repay anything), Spain is bankrupt, ditto for Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and others.
As for the more solvent European members (Germany and maybe France) their political leaders are getting crushed in the elections because NOBODY who actually works for a living (or has a working brain) wants in on the Euro.
So in Europe we’ve got one perhaps two solvent countries that are supposed to bailout 5+ insolvent ones (like that’s even possible). And the solvent countries are comprised of people who want no part of the Euro.
Man, now that’s what I call a real currency.
In simple terms, to claim the Euro is a viable currency is pure insanity. And yet, this “currency” comprises 50% of the US Dollar index (not as though the Yen or US Dollar are worthwhile either).
My point in all of this is that measuring the greenback using the Euro is insane. 100% totally insane. Which is why claiming the US Dollar is not collapsing is BS. If you actually go outside the US (which 99% of commentators don’t) you’ll find that the US Dollar is worth much less than the Dollar index is telling you.
I was recently on a trip to South America looking at real estate. While there I was told repeatedly by developers that they didn’t want to sign a contract in US Dollars. Instead they wanted to do it in the local currency. This has NEVER happened before during my trips abroad (even as recently as 2009).
When I pushed for having contracts based in Dollars, the price went up EVERY week.
The reason? The US Dollar is falling in relation to the local currency on a daily basis.
So here are local businessmen, (not economists or analysts), people who actually work for a living, refusing to accept US Dollars during business transactions.
That alone should tell you just where the US Dollar stands on the international stage.
In plain terms, the US Dollar crisis is already underway. If you ignore the stupid headlines and pay attention to the real world you can already see it. Prices of goods are EXPLODING higher. It’s being hidden because retailers are downsizing the size of their packages OR packing less goods in the same space (look inside any cereal box or other dry good and you’ll find that at best it’s 75% full).
So if you think things are fine because the US Dollar chart shows we still have a few lines of support, you’re being mislead. The US Dollar is worth far, far less than the chart shows you. So if you want to prepare yourself for a currency crisis you need to move now.
On that note, if you’re getting worried about the future of the stock market and have yet to take steps to prepare for the Second Round of the Financial Crisis… I highly suggest you download my FREE Special Report specifying exactly how to prepare for what’s to come.
I call it The Financial Crisis “Round Two” Survival Kit. And its 17 pages contain a wealth of information about portfolio protection, which investments to own and how to take out Catastrophe Insurance on the stock market (this “insurance” paid out triple digit gains in the Autumn of 2008).
Again, this is all 100% FREE. To pick up your copy today, got to http://www.gainspainscapital.com and click on FREE REPORTS.
Prepare Now!
Graham Summers
Silver Set For All Time Record Quarterly Close - Gold To Silver Ratio On Way To 17 To 1 As Per 1980?
From GoldCore
Silver Set For All Time Record Quarterly Close - Gold To Silver Ratio On Way To 17 To 1 As Per 1980?
Gold and silver have consolidated on yesterday’s gains as inflation, geopolitical and eurozone debt concerns support. Silver has risen above its 31 year record closing price of yesterday and looks set to target new record nominal intraday highs above $38.16/oz.
‘Poor man’s gold’ is set for a record nominal quarterly close which will be bullish technically and set silver up to target psychological resistance at $40/oz and then the nominal high of $50.35/oz . Silver’s record quarterly close was $32.20/oz on December 31st, 1979.
While silver is up 22 percent this year and is heading for a ninth straight quarterly advance, its fundamentals remain very sound. With gold above its nominal record of 1980, poor man’s gold continues to be seen as offering better value. To the masses in India, China and Asia, silver is the cheap alternative to gold and an attractive store of value and hedge against inflation and debasement of paper currencies.
Increasing global investment and industrial demand in the very small and finite silver bullion market is a recipe for higher prices. Thus, as we have long asserted the gold silver ratio is likely to revert to its long term average of 16 to 1.
A return to a ratio of 16 to 1 is likely due to basic supply and demand and the geological fact that there are 16 parts of silver for every one part of gold in the earth’s crust.
The fact that a huge amount of silver has been used in industrial applications and consumer items since the industrial revolution of the 19th century makes a return to the 16 to 1 ratio likely in the long term.
$40/oz silver may offer psychological resistance and could see profit taking but those buying silver are strong hands who rightly believe that silver will very likely reach its 1980 nominal high of $50.35/oz. Real silver bulls believe that silver may reach its inflation adjusted high of $150/oz (see Financial Times Infographic below).
A tiny minority of retail investors have begun to look at silver but it remains largely the preserve of the smart money, a very small amount of hard money advocates in the U.S. and of store of value buyers in Asia. Much of the price gains seen recently may be due to banks closing out some of their massive concentrated short positions which are being investigated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom & Doom report, said investors should have from 10 to 20 percent of their portfolio in gold as an inflation hedge.
“I want to buy more gold,” said Faber in an interview in Mexico City today. “Each time that I see Mr. Bernanke, and each time Mr. Tim Geithner opens his mouth, I feel like buying more gold and silver.”
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke kept plans to buy $600 billion of Treasuries through June. Bernanke said last month the U.S. needs faster employment growth for a sufficient time before policy makers can be assured the economic recovery has taken hold. Meanwhile the bank will seek to hold borrowing costs “exceptionally low.”
Under current U.S. monetary policy “gold will go up substantially,” Faber said. “I own gold as an insurance policy, because I think the whole system will collapse one day.”
(Bloomberg) -- Bolivia Protesters Halt Operations at San Cristobal Silver Mine
Sumitomo Corp.’s silver, zinc and lead mine in Bolivia has been halted since last week by a strike, the mining ministry said. Workers at the San Cristobal mine are demanding better health care, a government official, who can’t be named because of ministry policy, said today by telephone.
Sumitomo’s San Cristobal, in southwestern Bolivia’s mineral-rich region of Potosi, is the world’s third-largest silver mine and the sixth-biggest zinc mine.
(Bloomberg) -- Gold Heads for 10th Quarterly Gain on Investment Haven Demand
Gold headed for a 10th straight quarterly rise, the longest in three decades, as turmoil in the Middle East, fighting in Libya and Japan’s nuclear crisis increased demand for an investment haven. Bullion for immediate delivery advanced 0.3 percent to $1,427.13 an ounce at 5:28 p.m. in Melbourne, taking the quarterly gain to 0.5 percent. The June-delivery contract in New York rose 0.3 percent to $1,428.50, heading for a 0.5 percent quarterly rise.
“There is a lot of uncertainty around the globe in terms of political events,” David Lennox, a Sydney-based resource analyst at Fat Prophets, said by phone today. Fighting could escalate in Libya, while there is uncertainty surrounding Bahrain and the nuclear crisis in Japan, he said.
Gold reached a record $1,447.82 an ounce on March 24 amid tension in northern Africa and the Middle East and after a March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan killed thousands and caused radiation to leak from a nuclear plant. Libyan rebels were forced to retreat this week by troops loyal to Muammar Qaddafi after earlier advances were helped by U.S.-led air strikes.
“We are now starting to see that the air strikes may not be completely effective against Qaddafi, and that’s going to raise the next bar,” Lennox said.
Gold advanced for nine consecutive quarters through Dec. 31, 2010, partly because investors bought the metal as a hedge against dollar and euro weakness. Gains were limited this quarter on signs the U.S. economy is improving, boosting investor appetite for higher-yielding assets like stocks.
‘Upward Advance’
“In nominal terms it has been a pretty steady upward advance, but it has come off a period prior to 2000 where we basically had 20 years of flat gold prices,” Ben Westmore, an analyst at National Australia Bank Ltd. in Melbourne, said today.
Companies in the U.S. added 201,000 workers in March, a sign the labor market may be strengthening, according to figures from ADP Employer Services yesterday. Employment increased by a revised 208,000 in February, said the report, which is based on payrolls.
Economists project a Labor Department report tomorrow will show the jobless rate held at 8.9 percent. It has fallen by 0.9 percentage point over the last three months, the biggest decline since 1983.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.7 percent yesterday and is up 5.6 percent this quarter. “Buoyant equities and a positive U.S. ADP employment report removed some of the safe-haven premium” in the gold market, Mark Pervan, head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., wrote in a note today.
Silver for immediate delivery climbed 0.4 percent to $37.62 an ounce, heading for a 22 percent rise this quarter, the ninth straight quarterly gain. The metal has more than doubled in the past year and reached a 31-year high of $38.165 on March 24. Immediate-delivery platinum was little changed at $1,773.90an ounce and palladium gained 0.7 percent to $758.75 an ounce.
(Bloomberg) -- Six Arrested in Bundesbank Euro Coin-Forgery Scam, Prosecutors Say
Six people were arrested in a probe over 29 metric tons of forged euro coins that were cashed in at the Bundesbank, German prosecutors said.
The suspects received 1-euro and 2-euro coins from workshops in China where destroyed coins were remade, Doris Moeller-Scheu, a spokeswoman for Frankfurt prosecutors, said in an e-mailed statement today. No employees of Germany’s central bank are suspected of wrongdoing.
The Bundesbank is the only central bank in Europe that exchanges damaged coins without charging a fee, according to Moeller-Scheu. The money must be returned in bags that hold 1,000 euros worth of coins.
“The Bundesbank controls the value mainly by weighing, and does occasional visual sample test,” Moeller-Scheu said. “Then the money value is transferred to an account of the presenter or he can withdraw it from a Bundesbank account.”
Four suspects are of Chinese descent, according to the statement. They were helped by flight attendants who transported the coins in their hand luggage, for which no weigh limit applies, Moeller-Scheu said.
Lufthansa was informed that some individual employees are being investigated, Deutsche Lufthansa AG spokesman Peter Schneckenleitner said in an interview. He said the company wouldn’t comment on prosecutors’ probes.
The 29 metric tons of coins were imported between 2007 and 2010, representing a nominal value of 6 million euros, Moeller- Scheu said.
Silver Set For All Time Record Quarterly Close - Gold To Silver Ratio On Way To 17 To 1 As Per 1980?
Gold and silver have consolidated on yesterday’s gains as inflation, geopolitical and eurozone debt concerns support. Silver has risen above its 31 year record closing price of yesterday and looks set to target new record nominal intraday highs above $38.16/oz.
‘Poor man’s gold’ is set for a record nominal quarterly close which will be bullish technically and set silver up to target psychological resistance at $40/oz and then the nominal high of $50.35/oz . Silver’s record quarterly close was $32.20/oz on December 31st, 1979.
While silver is up 22 percent this year and is heading for a ninth straight quarterly advance, its fundamentals remain very sound. With gold above its nominal record of 1980, poor man’s gold continues to be seen as offering better value. To the masses in India, China and Asia, silver is the cheap alternative to gold and an attractive store of value and hedge against inflation and debasement of paper currencies.
Increasing global investment and industrial demand in the very small and finite silver bullion market is a recipe for higher prices. Thus, as we have long asserted the gold silver ratio is likely to revert to its long term average of 16 to 1.
A return to a ratio of 16 to 1 is likely due to basic supply and demand and the geological fact that there are 16 parts of silver for every one part of gold in the earth’s crust.
The fact that a huge amount of silver has been used in industrial applications and consumer items since the industrial revolution of the 19th century makes a return to the 16 to 1 ratio likely in the long term.
$40/oz silver may offer psychological resistance and could see profit taking but those buying silver are strong hands who rightly believe that silver will very likely reach its 1980 nominal high of $50.35/oz. Real silver bulls believe that silver may reach its inflation adjusted high of $150/oz (see Financial Times Infographic below).
A tiny minority of retail investors have begun to look at silver but it remains largely the preserve of the smart money, a very small amount of hard money advocates in the U.S. and of store of value buyers in Asia. Much of the price gains seen recently may be due to banks closing out some of their massive concentrated short positions which are being investigated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
NEWS
(Bloomberg) -- Faber Says Investors Should Hold Gold Amid U.S. Monetary Policy Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom & Doom report, said investors should have from 10 to 20 percent of their portfolio in gold as an inflation hedge.
“I want to buy more gold,” said Faber in an interview in Mexico City today. “Each time that I see Mr. Bernanke, and each time Mr. Tim Geithner opens his mouth, I feel like buying more gold and silver.”
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke kept plans to buy $600 billion of Treasuries through June. Bernanke said last month the U.S. needs faster employment growth for a sufficient time before policy makers can be assured the economic recovery has taken hold. Meanwhile the bank will seek to hold borrowing costs “exceptionally low.”
Under current U.S. monetary policy “gold will go up substantially,” Faber said. “I own gold as an insurance policy, because I think the whole system will collapse one day.”
(Bloomberg) -- Bolivia Protesters Halt Operations at San Cristobal Silver Mine
Sumitomo Corp.’s silver, zinc and lead mine in Bolivia has been halted since last week by a strike, the mining ministry said. Workers at the San Cristobal mine are demanding better health care, a government official, who can’t be named because of ministry policy, said today by telephone.
Sumitomo’s San Cristobal, in southwestern Bolivia’s mineral-rich region of Potosi, is the world’s third-largest silver mine and the sixth-biggest zinc mine.
(Bloomberg) -- Gold Heads for 10th Quarterly Gain on Investment Haven Demand
Gold headed for a 10th straight quarterly rise, the longest in three decades, as turmoil in the Middle East, fighting in Libya and Japan’s nuclear crisis increased demand for an investment haven. Bullion for immediate delivery advanced 0.3 percent to $1,427.13 an ounce at 5:28 p.m. in Melbourne, taking the quarterly gain to 0.5 percent. The June-delivery contract in New York rose 0.3 percent to $1,428.50, heading for a 0.5 percent quarterly rise.
“There is a lot of uncertainty around the globe in terms of political events,” David Lennox, a Sydney-based resource analyst at Fat Prophets, said by phone today. Fighting could escalate in Libya, while there is uncertainty surrounding Bahrain and the nuclear crisis in Japan, he said.
Gold reached a record $1,447.82 an ounce on March 24 amid tension in northern Africa and the Middle East and after a March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan killed thousands and caused radiation to leak from a nuclear plant. Libyan rebels were forced to retreat this week by troops loyal to Muammar Qaddafi after earlier advances were helped by U.S.-led air strikes.
“We are now starting to see that the air strikes may not be completely effective against Qaddafi, and that’s going to raise the next bar,” Lennox said.
Gold advanced for nine consecutive quarters through Dec. 31, 2010, partly because investors bought the metal as a hedge against dollar and euro weakness. Gains were limited this quarter on signs the U.S. economy is improving, boosting investor appetite for higher-yielding assets like stocks.
‘Upward Advance’
“In nominal terms it has been a pretty steady upward advance, but it has come off a period prior to 2000 where we basically had 20 years of flat gold prices,” Ben Westmore, an analyst at National Australia Bank Ltd. in Melbourne, said today.
Companies in the U.S. added 201,000 workers in March, a sign the labor market may be strengthening, according to figures from ADP Employer Services yesterday. Employment increased by a revised 208,000 in February, said the report, which is based on payrolls.
Economists project a Labor Department report tomorrow will show the jobless rate held at 8.9 percent. It has fallen by 0.9 percentage point over the last three months, the biggest decline since 1983.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.7 percent yesterday and is up 5.6 percent this quarter. “Buoyant equities and a positive U.S. ADP employment report removed some of the safe-haven premium” in the gold market, Mark Pervan, head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., wrote in a note today.
Silver for immediate delivery climbed 0.4 percent to $37.62 an ounce, heading for a 22 percent rise this quarter, the ninth straight quarterly gain. The metal has more than doubled in the past year and reached a 31-year high of $38.165 on March 24. Immediate-delivery platinum was little changed at $1,773.90an ounce and palladium gained 0.7 percent to $758.75 an ounce.
(Bloomberg) -- Six Arrested in Bundesbank Euro Coin-Forgery Scam, Prosecutors Say
Six people were arrested in a probe over 29 metric tons of forged euro coins that were cashed in at the Bundesbank, German prosecutors said.
The suspects received 1-euro and 2-euro coins from workshops in China where destroyed coins were remade, Doris Moeller-Scheu, a spokeswoman for Frankfurt prosecutors, said in an e-mailed statement today. No employees of Germany’s central bank are suspected of wrongdoing.
The Bundesbank is the only central bank in Europe that exchanges damaged coins without charging a fee, according to Moeller-Scheu. The money must be returned in bags that hold 1,000 euros worth of coins.
“The Bundesbank controls the value mainly by weighing, and does occasional visual sample test,” Moeller-Scheu said. “Then the money value is transferred to an account of the presenter or he can withdraw it from a Bundesbank account.”
Four suspects are of Chinese descent, according to the statement. They were helped by flight attendants who transported the coins in their hand luggage, for which no weigh limit applies, Moeller-Scheu said.
Lufthansa was informed that some individual employees are being investigated, Deutsche Lufthansa AG spokesman Peter Schneckenleitner said in an interview. He said the company wouldn’t comment on prosecutors’ probes.
The 29 metric tons of coins were imported between 2007 and 2010, representing a nominal value of 6 million euros, Moeller- Scheu said.
San Francisco Mint to strike silver bullion
To join West Point Mint in striking American Eagles
By Paul Gilkes-Coin World Staff
March 28, 2011 8:00 a.m.
Article first published in 2011-04-11, News section of Coin World
Because of the continued unprecedented demand for American Eagle silver bullion coins and an increased numismatic production load at the West Point Mint, some American Eagle production is being shifted to the San Francisco Mint.
Tom Jurkowsky, director of the U.S. Mint’s Office of Public Information, confirmed March 23 that trial strikes are currently being produced at the San Francisco Mint, with full-scale, temporary production to begin sometime in May.
The trial strikes are being produced to ensure that the quality of the American Eagle silver bullion coins struck at the San Francisco Mint replicate the quality of those produced at the West Point Mint, according to Jurkowsky.
The 2011 production will be the first time in more than a decade that American Eagle silver bullion coins will be produced at both the West Point and the San Francisco Mints. American Eagle silver bullion coins were produced at both facilities from 1989 through 2000 inclusive. All American Eagle silver bullion coin production was moved strictly to the West Point Mint in 2001.
The bullion coins do not bear the Mint mark of the facility where the coins were struck.
The San Francisco Mint’s inclusion in American Eagle silver bullion coin production in 2011 is necessary in part because Mint officials anticipate sales in 2011 being from 28 percent to nearly 43 percent higher than the record 2010 sales of 34,662,500 silver bullion coins. Other contributing factors to the decision are production, at the West Point Mint, of Proof versions of both the 2011 U.S. Army and 2011 Medal of Honor gold $5 half eagles, and of up to 2 million National September 11th Memorial and Museum 1-ounce, .999 fine silver medals authorized under Public Law 111-221.
“Demand for silver bullion remains at unprecedented levels,” Jurkowsky said.
“If it continues at the rate we have seen over the last two months, it could reach a level of between 45 million and 50 million coins in calendar year 2011. The Mint at West Point has done a fantastic job in meeting demand over the last several years and as we made plans for calendar 2011 production, we saw that the legislation in effect for 2011 added additional products to the West Point portfolio (the 9/11 Medal and both the Army and Medal of Honor commemorative coins),” Jurkowsky said.
“So our plan was to see how silver demand played out in the first quarter of calendar year 2011, knowing that we had press capacity available at San Francisco if needed.”
Because the San Francisco Mint is completing its production of coins for 2011 sets containing Proof coins, “there is a window of opportunity to have San Francisco produce some silver bullion before 2012 production begins in late summer 2011, so we are conducting silver bullion trial strikes at San Francisco now,” Jurkowsky said. “Production would include using the same dies, the same methods and same packaging [as used at the West Point Mint]. We do not expect a visible difference between the two coins.
Jurkowsky continued: “If still warranted, we plan to begin production of up to a few hundred thousand per week in San Francisco in late May to early June, running through the summer. Our authorized purchasers have expressed interest in [picking up the coins at a San Francisco location], but the overall allocation methodology will be done weekly and include West Point volumes in the weekly allocation calculation.
“There are several logistical issues to resolve before any final decisions are made to pursue this initiative.
“Simply stepping back, we feel that exploring use of another facility is good management and may be another way to better meet the needs of our customers,” he said. ■
By Paul Gilkes-Coin World Staff
March 28, 2011 8:00 a.m.
Article first published in 2011-04-11, News section of Coin World
Because of the continued unprecedented demand for American Eagle silver bullion coins and an increased numismatic production load at the West Point Mint, some American Eagle production is being shifted to the San Francisco Mint.
Tom Jurkowsky, director of the U.S. Mint’s Office of Public Information, confirmed March 23 that trial strikes are currently being produced at the San Francisco Mint, with full-scale, temporary production to begin sometime in May.
The trial strikes are being produced to ensure that the quality of the American Eagle silver bullion coins struck at the San Francisco Mint replicate the quality of those produced at the West Point Mint, according to Jurkowsky.
The 2011 production will be the first time in more than a decade that American Eagle silver bullion coins will be produced at both the West Point and the San Francisco Mints. American Eagle silver bullion coins were produced at both facilities from 1989 through 2000 inclusive. All American Eagle silver bullion coin production was moved strictly to the West Point Mint in 2001.
The bullion coins do not bear the Mint mark of the facility where the coins were struck.
The San Francisco Mint’s inclusion in American Eagle silver bullion coin production in 2011 is necessary in part because Mint officials anticipate sales in 2011 being from 28 percent to nearly 43 percent higher than the record 2010 sales of 34,662,500 silver bullion coins. Other contributing factors to the decision are production, at the West Point Mint, of Proof versions of both the 2011 U.S. Army and 2011 Medal of Honor gold $5 half eagles, and of up to 2 million National September 11th Memorial and Museum 1-ounce, .999 fine silver medals authorized under Public Law 111-221.
“Demand for silver bullion remains at unprecedented levels,” Jurkowsky said.
“If it continues at the rate we have seen over the last two months, it could reach a level of between 45 million and 50 million coins in calendar year 2011. The Mint at West Point has done a fantastic job in meeting demand over the last several years and as we made plans for calendar 2011 production, we saw that the legislation in effect for 2011 added additional products to the West Point portfolio (the 9/11 Medal and both the Army and Medal of Honor commemorative coins),” Jurkowsky said.
“So our plan was to see how silver demand played out in the first quarter of calendar year 2011, knowing that we had press capacity available at San Francisco if needed.”
Because the San Francisco Mint is completing its production of coins for 2011 sets containing Proof coins, “there is a window of opportunity to have San Francisco produce some silver bullion before 2012 production begins in late summer 2011, so we are conducting silver bullion trial strikes at San Francisco now,” Jurkowsky said. “Production would include using the same dies, the same methods and same packaging [as used at the West Point Mint]. We do not expect a visible difference between the two coins.
Jurkowsky continued: “If still warranted, we plan to begin production of up to a few hundred thousand per week in San Francisco in late May to early June, running through the summer. Our authorized purchasers have expressed interest in [picking up the coins at a San Francisco location], but the overall allocation methodology will be done weekly and include West Point volumes in the weekly allocation calculation.
“There are several logistical issues to resolve before any final decisions are made to pursue this initiative.
“Simply stepping back, we feel that exploring use of another facility is good management and may be another way to better meet the needs of our customers,” he said. ■
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
A Look at Europe and the Collapse of the EU by Nigel Farage
Submitted by: Francis Soyer 3/30/11
Hats off to Nigel Farage for exposing the REAL EU agenda and two key players responsible for the shite show with Portugal, Spain etc.
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