Oil and Gas Price Hikes Are a Central Banker Scam

Reiterating what was posted here Sunday in the Weekend Wrap, a recent article by Lance Roberts at Real Investment Advice, brings home the bacon in detail, of how the bottom 80% of all US workers, i.e., earners, is carrying a high debt burden that today cannot even cover basic necessities.

The consumer squeeze is in focus after the attacks on a Saudi oilfield and the Abqaiq refinery, which, according to most sources, will affect five percent of global oil supply. Somehow, cutting off five percent of global supply magically raises oil prices 15 percent.

Without anybody knowing exactly who is behind the attacks, many fingers are being pointed toward Iran, naturally, since the Iranians are fighting a proxy war with Saudi Arabia in Yemen. MoonofAlabama.com has a solid account with photos of how the attack might have been staged, who was behind it and future implications.

From a central banker's perspective, the attack and subsequent rise in the global price of oil could not be more opportune on a number of fronts. First, in desperate need of inflation, the bankers get the gift of core inflation in both PPI and CPI. Second, the rise in the price of oil, translated to gas at the pump and some home heating fuel, will show up in the convoluted GDP calculations, just in time for the third quarter and also adding a boost to the fourth if high prices persist.

Further down the road, high input prices and consumer prices for oil and gas should put the brakes on the economy eventually, putting a dent in discretionary spending which could spark a recession in 2020, just in time for the November US elections. Sure, higher prices and profits are good for some, for a while, but eventually, high gas prices act effectively as a tax on all consumers.

If you happen to be a central banker, this sounds great, doesn't it?

There are also political and financial aspects to the story. The attacks come right on the heels of President Trump's firing of John Bolton, the infamous neocon whose penchant for war with Iran was no secret. Conspiracy theorists believe this was long-ago planned, but Bolton's removal as National Security Advisor to the president was the trigger.

There's also the upcoming IPO of Saudi Aramco to consider. Initially, following the attack, the Saudis hinted that they would delay their long-awaited IPO, but now, a day beyond, they say they will forge ahead as planned. At issue is valuation. The Saudis believe the company should be worth $2 trillion at IPO, while the consensus among bankers handling the deal have the figure closer to $1.5 trillion. A lasting boost in the price of oil would naturally add to the valuation, bringing it closer to the level desired by the Saudis, who, after all, have control of the flow of oil, but not the price.

With no culprit positively identified, the entire affair looks to be highly organized - from the accuracy of the missiles and/or drones employed in the attack to the coordinated record trading in the oil futures pits - and the work of people or nations with an agenda. While this may appear far fetched to some, the power of the globalist banking cartel is well-known and could be pulling all the strings behind the scenes. It is not outside the realm of possibility that deep state globalists staged the attacks and price surge. It's also possible the the attacks were completely faked, just to get the price of oil higher.

There has been a glut of global oil supply since the US embarked on its fracking and shale output, becoming the world leader a few years ago. Russia is also pumping like mad, as are most of the OPEC nations. The amount of oil on world markets is so large that even small disruptions should not affect price - which has been falling for over a year - very much, but, in this case, it did.

While there isn't much the general population as a whole can do about higher gas prices outside of mass protests (a likelihood in Europe), there are a few actions the average motorist can take.

• Plan driving trips - organize your schedule to include multiple stops, thus reducing the amount of gas used rather than making individual trips for each task
• Seek lower prices - use online resources like GasBuddy.com to find the lowest prices in your area.
• Ride-sharing - organize with neighbors, friends and co-workers to share rides heading in similar directions.
• Drive smarter - slower speeds, properly inflated tires, and good driving habits can significantly reduce your fuel usage.
• Avoid wasted trips - deciding whether or not a trip is an absolute necessity can cut your overall fuel consumption considerably.

You don't have to buy into the price panic the global banking cartel seeks to impose upon you. As an end-user, you have to power of decision and information at your fingertips to help make wise choices. Share information with your friends, relatives and co-workers. A loose band of informed citizens can thwart the intentions the central bankers. Reduced demand should result in lower prices, eventually.

Most of all, don't buy into the media hype over gas prices, recession or any other narrative (like climate change) that the media water-carriers throw at you.

At the Close, Monday, September 16, 2019:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 27,076.82, -142.70 (-0.52%)
NASDAQ: 8,156.40, +2.86 (+0.04%)
S&P 500: 2,994.17, -3.79 (-0.13%)
NYSE Composite: 13,107.98, -16.36 (-0.12%)

Stocks Churn Higher; Currency Backed by Gold or Silver Is Possible

Churning continued on Wednesday, wiping up the losses from Tuesday. The up-and-down action in stocks is likely to continue for the near term, and quite possibly the longer term, as Fed officials and their global central banking brethren have severe solvency problems.

There is no abatement in the mammoth bond rally which has sent sovereign debt into negative yields in much of the developed world. The US has thus far escaped negativity, though the 10-year-note continues to dive, heading below a yield of 1.46% on Wednesday. The slow, grinding erosion of yield in bonds is a symptom of dying currencies. Negative interest yields will be discovered to be both symptoms AND causes of death. The Japanese yen is likely to die first, then the euro, followed by capitulation of the US dollar.

Evisceration of capital will be complete, widespread, and unrelenting as central banks cannot contain the over-saturation of debt, of individuals, companies, and governments. A new currency will be needed to replace the failed ones, and it's likely to be global and crypto.

Any country with the nerve to create and back its own currency with anything tangible will attract both the ire of central bankers (with attendant name-calling and possible military intervention) and the interest of investors seeking not just yield, but safety and security.

With global currencies facing serious headwinds, there has been talk of gold or silver-backed currencies from Greece to Mexico to Canada. Naysayers contend that there isn't enough of the precious metals to suitably service global commerce, though that argument depends entirely upon control of gold and silver prices. If the central banking cartel were to lose control of pricing via their deviate trading in the futures markets, the metals would explode exponentially. Gold might reach $5000 or $10,000 per ounce, silver would be priced in hundreds of dollars.

The solution is partial backing with precious metals. Sovereign governments issuing national currencies could readily assign a percentage of such to be backed by either gold or silver, or both, with the backing in a percentage of anywhere from 10% to 40% of the buck, loonie, yen, what have you.

Thus, the metals prices would not necessarily skyrocket beyond reason and debt would no longer be part of the formula for currency. While such a scenario may be a financial fantasy for now, history favors such, though the future, shaped by the current regime, would have to be radically different from the present state.

At the Close, Wednesday, September 4, 2019:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 26,355.47, +237.45 (+0.91%)
NASDAQ: 7,976.88, +102.72 (+1.30%)
S&P 500: 2,937.78, +31.51 (+1.08%)
NYSE Composite: 12,796.32, +132.92 (+1.05%)

Stocks Post Gains As Turkey Currency Crisis Moves Off Front Page

Stocks rebounded sharply on Tuesday, ending a series of lower closes which saw the Dow drop four straight sessions.

Gains were made in response to the Turkey story moving off page one and onto the list of disturbing problems in the global economy. For what it's worth, thanks to the widespread use of computer algorithms, 21st century stock markets have become more a kind of knee-jerk referendum on current financial and political news, as opposed to the 20th century model with discounted future earnings.

Thus, measurements such as p/e ratios are shunned in favor of more momentum-style observations and manipulations and old models for valuations are routinely disregarded as old hat. In conjunction with the dominant 24-hour news cycle, trading in robust markets such as are available in the US and other developed countries has become a day-to-day operation for many of the greater brokerages.

No longer content with 10-20% annual returns, the proliferation of options, futures, ETFs and other market-distorting, derivative opportunities offer potential for hedging, pair trades, and a myriad of other exotic strategies, schemes, and systems.

Thus, when a currency fails, such as happened in Venezuela and is currently underway in Turkey, markets are prone to react with immediacy before returning to the status quo.

That's the story with today's gains, though the larger issue remains unresolved. The markets have had their say and now move on to the next big thing. This manner of shoulder-shrugging complacency is what makes markets more and more fragile, as, with each big event that has an initial response but no resolution, the underlying morass of problematic financial issues piles higher and higher.

Since the financial crisis of 2008-09, markets have increasingly operated inside a vacuum, fitted with appropriate blinders to geo-political changes and financial disruptions. It's assumed that central banks, which now control almost all of global finance, can handle any issues that may pop up, either with massive buying, interest rate adjusting, or soothing words from the top-most chiefs.

It's an odd way to make a buck, but that's the norm, for now.

Dow Jones Industrial Average August Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
8/1/18	25,333.82	-81.37	-81.37
8/2/18	25,326.16	-7.66	-89.03
8/3/18	25,462.58	+136.42	+55.05
8/6/18	25,502.18	+39.60	+94.65
8/7/18	25,628.91	+126.73	+221.38
8/8/18	25,583.75	-45.16	+176.22
8/9/18	25,509.23	-74.52	+101.70
8/10/18	25,313.14	-196.09	-94.39
8/13/18	25,187.70	-125.44	-219.83
8/14/18	25,299.92	+112.22	-107.61

At the Close, Tuesday, August 14, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,299.92, +112.22 (+0.45%)
NASDAQ: 7,870.89, +51.19 (+0.65%)
S&P 500: 2,839.96, +18.03 (+0.64%)
NYSE Composite: 12,835.31, +71.65 (+0.56%)

Central Banks Have Complete Control Over Global Economies, Governments

US stock indices had their best showing of the new year on Thursday, with all the averages reaching new all-time highs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is higher by 875 points in just the first eight sessions of 2018. That is extraordinary. It is so extraordinary that, at that pace - of a little more than 100 points per day - the Dow average would nearly double in value this year.

The gain would be over 20,000 points, putting the Dow Jones average somewhere in the range of 45,000 by year's end. In percentage terms, it would be up 80%. Anybody who has over 100,000 invested in stocks and is making less than $80,000 this year might as well take the year off. Why work when your money is doing so much of the heavy lifting?

Of course, that's a speculation. The Dow won't gain 80% this year, or will it?

Is the economy that good? Are US companies making that much money, that they are severely undervalued today?

Or, are central banks intervening in stock markets with money created out of thin air?

For answers, or, at least, hints, to the answers, see yesterday's post, or, any of the posts from the past eight or nine years which have tags or labels "central banks", "central bankers", or, "Federal Reserve."

At the Close, Thursday, January 11, 2018:
Dow: 25,574.73, +205.60 (+0.81%)
NASDAQ: 7,211.78, +58.21 (+0.81%)
S&P 500: 2,767.56, +19.33 (+0.70%)
NYSE Composite: 13,210.77, +104.17 (+0.79%)

Central Banks Exert Control By Boosting Prices Day After Huge Declines

As mentioned in the opener of yesterday's post, forget about trying to apply fundamentals to this market. It is hopelessly rigged.

A commentator on a message board elsewhere explained the phenomenon of yesterday's jawboning-inspired selloff aptly. To wit: it's a charade by the central bankers to provide an easier entry point for which to make even more money boosting overpriced stocks.

Ergo, today's whipsaw. If the reader has half a brain, no further explanation is necessary.

There will be no crash until deemed useful for the central bankers in charge of the stock market.

Cynical? Yes. On the mark? Likely.

At the Close, 6/28/17:
Dow: 21,454.61, +143.95 (0.68%)
NASDAQ: 6,234.41, +87.79 (1.43%)
S&P 500 2,440.69, +21.31 (0.88%)
NYSE Composite: 11,812.80, +95.88 (0.82%)

Stocks Rage into the Close; PPT Mentioned on CNBC

Good stuff on Zero Hedge, when Asher Edelman brought up the PPT (Plunge Protection Team) on CNBC's "Fast Money."

People really don't mention the Plunge Protection Team much anymore, ever since the Fed and their central bank cohorts began their financial asset buying spree in 2009. The Fed money-printing machine puts the PPT (otherwise known as the President's Working Group on Financial Markets) to shame.

The Federal Reserve added liquidity to markets by directly intervening through outright asset purchases of mortgage-backed securities and treasury bills and notes. Known as Qualitative Easing (QE), those in the know simply call it "money printing" or "creating money out of thin air." Both are correct, and, despite all the best intents of Keynesian economics, those actions are supposed to create inflation, which has occurred in stocks, housing and elsewhere, but not in the many and varied consumer staples and discretionary items.

Most consumer prices (and incomes) have somewhat stagnated since the Great Financial Crisis of 2008-09, and, with the Fed threatening another rate increase in June, they probably won't be moving soon. The dislocations in the housing market and the massive transfer of wealth from the poor and middle classes to the very rich, however, have been direct results of Fed action.

So, it's somewhat funny that the commentator would single out the PPT, though he's probably spot on in his general assessment. The bigger issue would be the almost total control of the equity markets by key players, notably, central banks and large commercial firms, i.e., Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, et. al.

Whatever method was in play today, it certainly worked wonders as stocks levitated after 2:00 pm ET into the close.

At The Close, 5/24/17:
Dow: 21,012.42, +74.51 (0.36%)
NASDAQ: 6,163.02, +24.31 (0.40%)
S&P 500: 2,404.39, +5.97 (0.25%)
NYSE Composite: 11,621.23, +16.61 (0.14%)

Coincidence Or Conspiracy? The Art Cashin - Fearless Rick Echo Chamber

Not one to expectantly toot one's own horn, Money Daily continues to display some market sense, the latest iteration being the confluence of the weekly market recap post from Sunday, February 26, Dow At Record Highs 11 Staight Sessions; Eye On PPT, Central Bank Intervention dovetailing with legendary floor trader Art Cashin's commentary at King World News the same day.

In the nearly 15-minute audio, Cashin, Director of Floor Operations for UBS, touched (near the end of the broadcast) on the very same subject matter as Money Daily, namely, central bank intervention in markets.

Like Fearless Editor and Publisher, Rick Gagliano, Cashin - undeniably a more expert analyst than our own - sees intervention as unsettling to markets, comparing the intrusion to a rigged poker game, and sees danger in such action. As is the usual case, Mr. Cashin plows some new ground as well, coining the phrase "intellectual civil war" in describing the conditions in Northern vs. Southern Italy and touching upon other established, mostly European nations.

In defense of his moderate style, Cashin opines that his success has been largely based upon, quoting him,

...because the first thing I do when I enter a room is look for the exit signs.

Good stuff, indeed, and well worth a listen.

Keeping in mind central bank intervention, i.e., buying at all-time highs, the Dow made a new record close for the 12th straight session, that, in itself, should be cause for alarm... the one that never goes off at market tops (Old Wall Street saying: "they never ring the bell at the top").

The Dow has never closed higher for 13 straight sessions, the most recent run tying the mark set in January 1987, which, as market observers know well, was the precursor of one of the most devastating crashes in market history.

At the Close, 2.27.17:
Dow: 20,837.44, +15.68 (0.08%)
NASDAQ: 5,861.90, +16.59 (0.28%)
S&P 500: 2,369.75, +2.41 (0.10%)
NYSE Composite: 11,558.35, +17.06 (0.15%)

Bubble Superfecta: Dow, NASDAQ, S&P 500, NYSE Composite All Close At New Records

As the week comes to a stunning close, it's official, every market in America is officially in deep into bubble territory.

Consider that the major indices all closed at all-time highs today and that the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up a whopping 2200 points since election day, November 8, 2016. That amounts to a gain of just over 12% in three months. At that rate of ascent, 22,000 on the Dow should be a no-brainer by the end of 2017.

Nothing other than stupidity, other people's money, greed, and momentum were needed to foment one of the most rapid rises in the history of the Dow. The other indices have surely been along for the ride; even the broad measure of the entire NYSE Composite cracked to a record close today.

Not to suggest that a reversal is imminent (been that way for 6 years at least), but for some perspective, let's examine where these markets were at the depths of the Great Financial Crisis (GFC), on March 9, 2009.

Dow: 6,547.05
NASDAQ: 1,268.64
S&P 500: 676.53
NYSE Composite: 4,226.31

In the span of eight years, during what has ostensibly been the weakest recovery after a recession since the Great Depression, the Dow and S&P have more than tripled, the NASDAQ has more than quadrupled, and the poor old NYSE Comp. is just short of tripling.

So, if you missed it you missed it, but there still may be time to get in. Nobody knows where this is going to end, but we can all thank Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen for oodles of free cash injections worldwide (QE), zero interest rate policy (ZIRP) and the most reckless economic policies the world has ever witnessed.

It's still ongoing, though. The ECB and BOJ are still pumping money into their markets, and, unless you missed it, none other than the Swiss National Bank holds more than $64 billion in US equities.

Who said these central bankers don't know what they're doing?

Enjoy the weekend!

At the Close, Friday, February 10, 2017:
Dow: 20,269.37, +96.97 (0.48%)
NASDAQ: 5,734.13, +18.95 (0.33%)
S&P 500: 2,316.10, +8.23 (0.36%)
NYSE Composite: 11,377.72, +50.04 (0.44%)

For the Week:
Dow: +197.91 (0.99%)
NASDAQ: +67.36 (1.19%)
S&P 500: +18.68 (0.81%)
NYSE Composite: +50.04 (0.44%)