Japanese Bloodbath After BoJ Disappoints – Nikkei Drops 1000 Points, USDJPY Crashes
from Zero Hedge
If there was a sign that nothing else matters but central bank largess, this was it. The moment The Bank of Japan statement hit and proclaims “unchanged” a vacuum hit USDJPY and Japanese stocks. Reflecting that Japan’s economy has “continued a moderate recovery trend” which is utter crap given the quintuple-dip recession, Kuroda and his cronies said they will “add easing if necessary” and apparently that is not now. Not so much as a higher ETF purchase or moar NIRP.. and the aftermath is carnage – NKY -1000 points and USDJPY crashed to a 108 handle!!
No Additional Stimulus from Bank of Japan; Negative Rate Holds
Central bank’s inaction comes amid growing economic woes
by Takashi Nakamichi and Megumi Fujikawa
Market Watch
TOKYO — The Bank of Japan left its main policy unchanged Thursday, brushing aside calls for more stimulus from the markets, but it introduced a measure offering aid to areas devastated by recent earthquakes.
The central bank kept its asset purchase target at 80 trillion yen ($718 billion) a year, a measure aimed at putting more money into circulation to stimulate growth and inflation. The BOJ’s policy board voted 8-1 in favor of maintaining the target.
The BOJ also left unchanged a deposit rate of minus 0.1% — charged on some deposits held by commercial banks — through a 7-2 vote. The subzero rates went into effect in February as part of stepped-up efforts by Tokyo to spur economic activity and price growth by driving down various borrowing costs. The dissenters on the vote called for the bank to return the rate to the previous plus 0.1%.
The Wisdom of Jesse Livermore as Gold and Silver Hold Recent Gains After Fed Statement
from King World News
On the heels of today’s Fed’s statement, gold and silver continued to hold on to recent gains. KWN is publishing more wisdom from Jesse Livermore and it was the email below that was the trigger.
More incredible wisdom from Jesse Livermore below, but first the email…
“Fleck- I think you are right. Everyone is calling to buy the miners on a pullback. I just read one call on PAAS specifically for a major buy point below $10 which I guess could happen but with so many thinking the same thing doubtful it will. I thought the recent 7% pullback was a good buy point but who knows. I just know in a couple years it will be much higher. Never thought sitting in a position could be this difficult. That 5 year drubbing in the miners has really brainwashed me to want to sell.
Gold vs Gold Miners
by Nick Barisheff
Gold Seek
For thousands of years, gold has been used as money, a store of wealth, fought over and sought after. Over the last 45 years, Western populations have had a mixed impression of gold. A minority of the population understands that gold is a monetary asset that should be held as wealth insurance. A larger percentage of the population is confused about gold because of mainstream sources of information. Many people consider gold a risky investment when in fact gold bullion is not an investment at all, but rather money itself. Just like any fiat currency held in a vault, gold does not pay interest or dividends. Investors often look upon gold mining companies in the same light as physical gold bullion. Gold mining shares are investments, and can be good tactical investments from time to time. However, the characteristics of gold bullion and gold miners are very different. In some ways, those differences are similar to the difference between an insurance policy and shares of an insurance company.
Silver Supply Trouble Shows Why Rally Momentum Is Building
by Luzi-Ann Javier
Bloomberg.com
More good news for silver bulls: there’s supply trouble brewing.
Output from mines will fall for the first time since 2011, while demand for the metal in uses including industrial products and jewelry is heading for a fourth straight gain, supporting prices, according to CPM Group. The market is entering what is “likely to be a pivotal year,” the New York-based researcher said in its “Silver Yearbook 2016.”
[…] Production is declining just as signs of stabilization in China’s economy fuel optimism for stronger global demand, helping drive a 24 percent rally in silver this year through Monday that topped gold’s performance. Both metals are benefiting from increased expectations that the Federal Reserve will be slow to raise interest rates this year amid concerns that slowing global growth will spill over into the U.S. That’s boosted demand for gold and silver as stores of value, after prices for each slid for three straight years through 2015.
Global Recession in 2016 and Beyond – The Obvious Evidence
by Rajveer Rawlin
Market Oracle
Definition of a Recession:
The textbook definition of a recession is two quarters of negative GDP growth. Some examples of recessions include the great depression of the 1930’s, the dotcom crash of 2000 and the great recession of 2008.
Causes of a Recession:
Recessions are caused by several factors. These include:
– Hyper Inflation
– Deflation
– Prolonged Fall in Exchange Rates
– Credit Crunches
– Collapsing Consumer Confidence
– Collapsing Asset Prices
– Collapsing Global Trade
– Bust following Excessive Speculation – e.g., Property Market in Japan -1989
Death and Destruction in Iraq, Extensive US War Crimes: Apocalypse in Mosul in the Guise of Bombing ISIS
by Felicity Arbuthnot
Global Research
“The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants.” (Albert Camus 1913-1960.)
On 1st May 2003, George W. Bush stood in a dinky little flying suit on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln and in a super stage managed appearance told the lie of the century: “Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the Battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed. And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country.” (1)
The illegal occupation and decimation of Iraq continued until December 2011. In June 2014 they returned to bomb again in the guise of combating ISIS. As the thirteenth anniversary of Bush’s ridiculous appearance with a vast “Mission Accomplished” banner behind him, Iraq is largely in ruins, Iraqis have fled the murderous “liberation” and it’s aftermath in millions and there are over three million internally displaced.
UN Rejects Israel’s Claim To The Golan Heights As Top Rabbis Await The Messiah’s Imminent Arrival
by Michael Snyder
End of the American Dream
The UN Security Council has unanimously rejected Israel’s claim to sovereignty over the Golan Heights, and this is likely to cause tensions in the Middle East to rise even higher. On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boldly declared “that the Golan Heights will remain under Israel’s sovereignty permanently.” After close to 50 years of control over the Golan Heights, this should not have been much of a shock. But the Arab world immediately went into an uproar, and the UN Security Council has taken action. In a unanimous decision, the UN Security Council has announced that Israel’s claims to the Golan Heights are “null and void and without international legal effect.”
Is This Making Kids Dumb?
by Bill Bonner
Daily Reckoning
GUALFIN, Argentina – No major meltdown in the stock market yesterday. Au contraire, stock prices generally moved up.
But our focus this week is on the real, the concrete – things that matter. Like cold feet. We have only a few days more at the ranch; we have to pay attention to them.
And there is so much to pay attention to!
Everything Matters
“I read that kids today spend nearly eight hours a day on their cellphones and computers,” said Elizabeth yesterday. “I wonder what that does to their minds.”
But He’s Not a Doctor!
by Karl Denninger
Market-Ticker.org
Absolutely. I’ve never claimed to be a physician, or to have a degree in anything — nutrition, medicine or otherwise.
Nonetheless, I reproduce the following verbatim received this evening:
I previously wrote after 2 weeks following your eating lifestyle article on Feb 13 to share my astonishing results in such a short time. 62, sedentary, yada yada. Health marginally bad and getting worse.
Now at 9 weeks. Went for checkup this week. A1c down a full point; trigylcerides down 25 points, have lost 17 pounds (and never hungry), good cholesterol up 20%, bad down 20%, just like you said would happen. Aches and pains gone—it wasn’t old age, rather my ****ty lifestyle!
Fed Holds Rates Steady
by Paul-Martin Foss
Mises.org
As expected, the Federal Open Market Committee decided today to maintain its target federal funds rate at between 0.25 and 0.50 percent. Another rate hike is expected at the earliest at the June FOMC meeting, with the August meeting being a more likely candidate for a rate hike. Language in the FOMC statement was largely unchanged, with the exception of noting that economic growth has slowed, the labor market has improved, and household spending has moderated. The FOMC also removed language referring to inflation picking up, which would lead us to believe that they still think the rate of increase in inflation is, in their eyes, sub-optimal or slowing. The FOMC also removed language about global economic developments posing risks, instead stating that the Committee would continue to closely monitor global economic and financial developments. Kansas City Fed President Esther George dissented from the FOMC’s decision yet again, favoring an increase in the target federal funds rate to 0.50 to 0.75 percent. We wouldn’t expect much market reaction to today’s announcement, as it was already expected and should have been priced in. Expect more reaction to the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy announcement tomorrow.
Harvey Organ’s Daily Gold & Silver Report – 2016.04.27
FOMC results: nothing of importance/Big news is sthat the OI on silver continues to set new records: today 206,748 contracts or 1.03 billion oz
by Harvey Organ
Harvey Organ’s Blog
[…] Today we got a little surprise in that gold rebounded from its lows to close at $1249.20 at comex closing time and silver was up 18 cents at $17.29 The comex options expiry had little effect on both metals. In silver, we now have an all time high in silver OI at 206,748 which represents 1.03 billion oz. Generally when you get a record high OI, you also have high prices for your commodity.
Please remember that even though comex options have expired we still have London’s LBMA and OTC to contend with. They expire on Friday morning.
Let us have a look at the data for today.
Andrew Hoffman – The Battle For $1250 Gold
from Financial Survival Network
Where’s It Going Wednesdays with Andrew Hoffman:
April 27th (today) – a day of Central bank infamy?
The Myth of “QE to Infinity”
The Ultimate Chinese Finger Trap
Silver 2016 – the Cartel’s last stand
China vs. the Gold Cartel – No Contest!
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It Took Me a Year to Close This Deal (But it Was Worth It)
by Simon Black
Sovereign Man
After a mind-numbing, year-long process, one of the longest business deals I’ve ever been involved with in my entire life finally closed a few days ago.
I couldn’t be more excited.
Through Sovereign Man’s parent company, we purchased a wonderful, Australia-based business that’s been around for over 20 years and is a pretty iconic brand in the country.
Plus, it’s had a long history of profitability and zero debt, so it’s a safe, stable source of cashflow.
The European Union Always Was a CIA Project, as Brexiteers Discover
EU creator Jean Monnet was Roosevelt’s eyes and ears in Europe. Some called him a US agent
by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Telegraph.co.uk
Brexiteers should have been prepared for the shattering intervention of the US. The European Union always was an American project.
It was Washington that drove European integration in the late 1940s, and funded it covertly under the Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon administrations.
[…] While irritated at times, the US has relied on the EU ever since as the anchor to American regional interests alongside NATO.
There has never been a divide-and-rule strategy.
Trump’s Skepticism of US Military-Industrial Complex Is Hopeful Sign
by Daily Bell Staff
The Daily Bell
Trump’s World to watch as Trump outlines his foreign policy … Critics have accused the Republican front-runner of bigotry and posing a danger to U.S. national security. Many foreign policy and defense advisers say his views are worrying, mingling isolationism and protectionism, with calls to force U.S. allies to pay more for their defense and proposals to impose punitive tariffs on some imported goods. – Reuters
Former Congressman Ron Paul lost the GOP presidential nomination in large part due to his stance on US military foreign involvement. Now the GOP, which is the engine of the US military-industrial complex, faces a similar challenge in the potential presidency of Donald Trump.
Trump’s stance, like Ron Paul’s before him, has been significantly skeptical of US foreign wars. Even the sprawling overseas occupation of the US military has come into question during his campaign.
What Global Growth Rebound? Ports Quiet, Containerships Losing Steam
by Costas Paris at the Wall Street Journal
David Stockman’s Contra Corner
At a logistics park bordering Shanghai’s port last month, the only goods stored in a three-story warehouse were high-end jeans, T-shirts and jackets imported from the U.K. and Hong Kong, most of which had sat there for nearly two years.
Business at the 108,000-square-foot floor warehouse dwindled at the end of 2015 after several Chinese wine importers pulled out, said Yang Ying, the warehouse keeper, leaving lots of empty space. The final blow came after a merchant turned away a shipment in December at the dock.
“The client told the ship hands, just take the wine back to France,” Ms. Yang said. “Nobody wants it.”
The Beginning of a Dollar Crash?
by Michael Covel
Daily Reckoning
I live in Asia and travel the continent quite a bit.
So I’ve been a big fan of the strong dollar in recent years.
The greenback has gone a long way in this part of the world.
Flights… hotels… restaurants…
It seems like everything’s been on sale.
But now it looks like the party might be over.
The greenback is now in a downtrend.
Facebook Desktop Ad Collapse Confirmed
by Karl Denninger
Market-Ticker.org
Before you rush out to play with the bulls in the name post-earnings you might consider this: Basically all of their ad revenue is now from mobile.
Mobile is an incredibly difficult proposition over time. Oh sure, you get away with a lot of ads (and thus money) right up front, but mobile users have a tiny little screen and they pay for the data they consume, sometimes by the byte and always have some sort of cap on it.
Further, there’s a huge problem that is coming more and more to the forefront: Granular permissions are now showing up on more and more devices in the Android space; “M” and beyond has it and will continue to. “Take it or leave it”, the former model for Android until Marshmallow was released, is gone forever in the mobile space when it comes to allowing applications to get access to data on your phone and Android is and has been on the vast majority of smartphone handsets.
Holding Interest Rates Steady, Fed Tones Down Concerns Over Global Economy
Fed statement did just enough to show in which direction panel’s bias still lies, says economist
by Greg Robb
Market Watch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The Federal Reserve voted Wednesday to leave interest rates unchanged but kept their options open for a move in June.
For the third time since the start of the year, Chairwoman Janet Yellen and her colleagues voted to keep the federal funds rate in a range of 0.25-0.5%.
In its carefully calibrated statement, the Fed said moderated previous expression of concern about global financial and economic developments. The new statement said it was monitoring them. In March, it called these areas risks to the U.S. economy.
More Greece “Uncertainty”: Default Looms in July, EU Rejects Greek Emergency Summit
by Mike ‘Mish’ Shedlock
Mish Talk
Greek tax revenues are running well under expectations. A default looms in July unless the creditors give more money to Greece so that Greece can pay back the creditors. As convoluted as that sounds, that’s precisely the way this madness works.
The creditors demand still more austerity but Tsipras said “no”. Instead, Tsipras seeks an emergency meeting, but European Commission president Donald Tusk said “no” to that proposal.
Supposedly this standoff represents “renewed uncertainty”.
Dennis Hastert Sentenced to 15 Months for Non-Crime of Improper Cash Withdrawals
by Ryan McMaken
Mises.org
Former U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert probably deserves to be in prison more than many people who are already there. But the way he’s going to get there spells bad news for ordinary, peaceful Americans.
Today, Hastert was sentenced to 15 months in prison for the made-up “crime” of structuring, which is a situation in which a person withdraws cash from a bank in amounts designed to not trigger mandatory reporting on the withdrawals to federal agents.
In other words, it’s a crime to comply with the law in America. If you change your activities to adhere to the letter of the law, that’s a crime.
The only way you would know this, however, is to read today’s articles on Hastert’s sentencing very, very carefully.