TACO Thursday: Trump Rolls Back Tariffs on Asian Promises, Frameworks; Fed Cuts rates 0.25%; Government Shutdown Nears One Month

Via its FOMC, the Fed, as expected, cut the federal funds target rate by 25 basis points, from 4.00-4.25% to 3.75-4.00%.

Markets didn't respond significantly until Chairman Jerome Powell mentioned at his press conference that another 0.25% cut in December wasn't a sure bet. Stocks slumped on his comments, but immediately began to rise once he stopped talking.

Later in the evening - which was morning in South Korea - President Trump met with China's President, Xi Jinping, for about 90 minutes, both coming away looking somewhat satisfied. Trump left immediately afterwards on Air Force One, heading back to Washington.

On the plane trip, trump characterized the meeting as a "12" on a scale of 1 to 10. That's all well and good, but what actually was accomplished by his four-day trip to the Far East was mere posturing and posing without any concrete agreements.

The president made a boatload of comments about how well things were going (everybody's used to the braggadocio by now), but the trip produced little more than memorandums of understanding, frameworks, vague commitments with a swath of countries on a variety of issues - from rare earth deals to tariffs - lots of promises devoid of details.

Even the heavily-publicized meeting with Xi on Thursday produced little in the way of concrete solutions. Essentially, China agreed to slow their roll on rare earth mineral regulations, the U.S. agreed to knock general tariffs back to 47% from 57%, and there was some kind of understanding about China slowing the flow of fentanyl precursors and buying some soybeans from U.S. farmers.

It was all fairly vague and nebulous. Trump could have accomplished as much by phone, or, he might as well have never started his whole tariff regime in the first place, since he promised to roll back most of them during his trip. Essentially, China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Malaysia paid the president extensive lip service.

Notably, Trump did not meet with anybody from either India or Indonesia, two BRIICS members. Indonesia joined BRICS earlier this year (January 7) and is a major miner and refiner of rare earth minerals. North Korea's Kim Jong Un didn't even want to talk to him. Meanwhile, Russia continues to pound Ukraine into dust. Putin and Trump aren't talking. The Alaska Summit? Poof. It's gone, having produced nothing, just like, it's suspected, this Asian jaunt.

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

-- William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act 5, Scene 5

In card-playing terms, Trump bluffed and nobody blinked. The "trillions" the U.S. was expecting to rake in from tariffs will subsequently be reduced to "billions" and Americans will end up paying more for everything imported. Thank you, Mr. President. Now do India, Brazil, and Canada. And, while you're demonstrating your incredible negotiating skills, how about opening up the government that's been shut down for nearly a month. In case you haven't noticed, that's your government, the United States government, the one behind the "America First" agenda.

It was sure enough a TACO Thursday for Trump. His tariff policies have produced some revenue - the government collected some $151 billion through the end of September, with expectations of $3 trillion over the next ten years. While that sounds good, even great, one has to consider the overlaying context that federal expenditures will top $7 trillion this year and the deficit is expected to be north of $2 trillion. If tariffs produce $500 billion (they likely won't) in revenue in fiscal 2026, that's all well and good, but hardly sufficient. Americans will pay more for most goods and services, making them poorer, decreasing the amount of taxes that they pay.

Looks like a wash, almost. And, that's if the Supreme Court doesn't rule against Trump's tariffs later in November.

As Money Daily has been saying for the past few weeks, Trump's bombastic style is all for show. It's about how great America is, when it's actually been in decline for decades. Trump's tariffs and "re-shoring" plans for increasing domestic manufacturing aren't going to solve most of its basic problems: inflation, inflation, and inflation. The tariffs, along with the Fed lowering interest rates, actually stoke inflation.

For all the talk, the country is going in reverse.

America First is a complete sham, a meme, a bumper-sticker talking point for the government, the media, and Wall Street.

At the Close, Wednesday, October 30, 2025:
Dow: 47,632.00, -74.37 (-0.16%)
NASDAQ: 23,958.47, +130.98 (+0.55%)
S&P 500: 6,890.59, -0.30 (-0.00%)
NYSE Composite: 21,525.93, -163.62 (-0.75%)

Trump Trade Deals Reside on Sandy Foundations, False Hopes and Dreams; China Deal Awaits; Senate Says "No Chips for You" to 40 Million Americans

Bombastic as ever, President Trump has had so much success at making deals during his whirlwind trip to the Far East, one marvels at his brilliance while wondering why he took so long to secure these monumental pacts on the international trading platform.

"We did reach a deal on trade," Trump told reporters at a dinner in South Korea. No additional details about the agreement were provided, and neither the White House nor South Korean officials have issued an official statement outlining the terms.

Trump called his meetings with South Korea "tremendous" and said he had "pretty much finalized a trade deal," adding, "I think we came to a conclusion on a lot of very important items."

Well, perhaps, as concrete goes, all of these "deals" are still in the mixing state, the sand and water more or less a slurried mush at present and the Thai, Malay, Viet, and Korean officials are snickering behind Mr Big's back. That's likely the case, as all this posturing and posing and taking pictures of foreign leaders with Trump stationed in the middle of them - despite the fact that he doesn't even belong in a group of "Southeast Asians" or even just plain "Asians" - is all for the benefit of the usual unsuspecting, fawning, MAGA crowd who hangs on every utterance of the pulchritudinous, porcine president.

Scrupulous examination of the struck deals over the past few days indicate a nearly absence of substance, the words on the official-looking proclamations barely worth the fine linen papers upon which they're written. But, with a few deft strokes of the presidential pen - most likely a Sharpie™ that Trumps' sons, Eric and Don Jr. will sell on eBay or some crypto exchange as an NFT for millions - the public is assuaged and Wall Street assured that the American enterprise will continue to grow and prosper under the inspired leadership of the greatest president since, well, George Washington, as Mr. Trump like to fashion himself.

It's almost over. The Far East fantasy tour finishes on Thursday with the highly-anticipated deal Mr. Trump will make with China, all of China. Not just the coastal areas, or the shipping ports, but the entire land mass which occupies a rather enormous portion of Asia will succumb to Trump’s desire for world domination.

Mr. Trump's mission impossible - which will self-destruct only moments after the invisible ink dries on whatever papers are signed by him and whatever representatives of China's ruling party are designated - is to convince President Xi Jinping to stop sending precursor chemicals for fentanyl to America, stop buying oil from Russia, make life easier of U.S. enterprises doing business in China, accept 15-45% tariffs on anything they export to America, buy shiploads of soybeans from American farmers, and sell the U.S. copious amounts of refined rare earth minerals with which the U.S. military can make weapons by which to obliterate China and its BRICS allies.

If those requirements seem a bit over the top, it's best to be cognizant of the president's uncanny, almost spiritual ability to make the sharpest "America First" deals with every country on the planet (or, at least talk like he does). Trump will return to the United States triumphant, trade wars averted or won, the mantle of success and victory upon his broad shoulders.

At the same time, his government, back home in Washington D.C., can't even keep the lights on, the whole institution burdened by no less than $38 trillion in unpayable debts, shut down for more than four full weeks, and about to deny some 41 or 42 million Americans their monthly allowance for potato and corn chips, salsa, sodas, cookies, ice cream and maybe a couple of lobster tails and steaks.

Some 700,000 federal employees have been working without pay for a month. In some circles, that's known as slavery. In America, it's called paying it forward, or, as the case may be, just putting it on the government's tab.

Considering that Mr. Trump attends their conference with this kind of background baggage, China's diplomats and officials will no doubt acquiesce to his every demand.

But, before Trump's triumphant trade tour concludes, the Federal Reserve, which is not federal in any sense nor does it have any reserves - only debts - is set to issue its policy statement, assuredly to lower the federal funds target rate from 4.00-4.25% to a range of 3.75-4.00% at 2:00 pm ET today. That, of course, will send stocks soaring, along with gold and silver, especially since the pair of precious metals have been sufficiently beaten down over the past two weeks. Not so for the stock market, which has run up a string of advances befitting assets that actually have value, of which, as we know from the current reading of the Shiller PE at 41.18, stocks are significantly stretched.

BTW: the Shiller PE (CAPE) is closing in fast toward the record of 44.19, set back in the halcyon days of the dotcom boom, in December 1999.

Wealth and prosperity, so easily come by, can just as quickly disappear. But, having learned nothing from booms and busts of the 1920s and 30s, and as recently as 2000-01 and 2008-09, investors are blindsided and blinkered, praying for the best and hoping the worst of their fears remain unrealized.

The show goes on. Get more popcorn.

At the Close, Tuesday, October 28, 2025:
Dow: 47,706.37, +161.78 (+0.34%)
NASDAQ: 23,827.49, +190.04 (+0.80%)
S&P 500: 6,890.89, +15.73 (+0.23%)
NYSE Composite: 21,689.55, -100.08 (-0.46%)

Trump, U.S. Government, Wall Street, Media Gaslighting Americans Over Trade, Shutdown, SNAP, and Crypto; China Has Not Formally Agreed to Meet

Americans are being gaslit as never before by the president, congress and the mainstream and financial media over the continuing trade disputes with China and the government shutdown, which is nearing a critical period, now having reached four weeks.

Everyone in Washington - and especially the Trump administration - was caught off-guard when China imposed restrictions on rare earth exports last month. China has the world's largest reserves of rare earth minerals and accounts for 90% of worldwide processing of the various metals that are significant in the production of automobiles, military weaponry, and electronics.

President Trump, his aides and administration, along with the mainstream media continue to promote the narrative that the president is going to meet with Chinese president Xi Jinping "on the sidelines of the APEC" summit in South Korea. That's according to the president and his staff. China has made no formal statement that the two leaders are to meet this week or at any other time. If there was going to be an actual meeting of the minds, China would have arranged much more carefully-planned engagement than a “sideline” meeting between Xi and Trump.

Even if there is a meeting, it will have little to no lasting value and settle nothing between the world’s two largest economies.

There's the real possibility that China's leadership will not agree to a meeting with President Trump, by Xi or any other high-ranking officials. Treasury Secretary Bessent made the rounds on the Sunday talk shows, spouting off about "progress" and a "framework" for negotiations over trade policies, though nothing even remotely substantial has been announced.

At the ASEAN summit in Malaysia this weekend, Trump signed a variety of "deals" with various coutnries from Southeast Asia, including Cambodia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Prime Minister Modi of India made a point of not attending the conference in person, expressly to avoid meeting with Trump.

These summits - ASEAN and APEC - are meetings of Asian countries. The United States is a sideshow. They were no doubt invited, but the U.S. plays no pivotal role in any trade relationship with any of these countries, other then the imposition of tariffs and sanctions against any number of them.

Asia and the BRICS have turned completely away from the West. Germany's foreign minister was told not to come to China, as there was nothing to discuss, according to Chinese authorities. A similar message is being telegraphed to Trump and the United States. Even North Korean president Kim has not extended any invitation to Trump.

Trump has also been falsely claiming that India has agreed to reduce the amount of oil it imports from Russia in response to recent sanctions placed on Russia’s two largest oil producers. Nothing could be further from the truth. He’s also suggested that China will be importing less Russian oil, though China has said no such thing.

Wall Street has been adding points and percentages to all-time highs on all of the major indices, pushing the narrative of a trade "deal" soon to be worked out between China and the U.S., despite evidence to the contrary. Meanwhile, congress has allowed the government shutdown to extend to the second-longest on record. Beginning November 1, funds for SNAP, or food stamps, will run out, shutting off roughly 42 million Americans from the program. This will affect every state, yet congress continues to drag its feet on the issue and others, such as pay for the military, air-traffic controllers and about 700,000 federal employees who have been working without pay since the shutdown began, October 1st. It's grandstanding at a high level, without any hint of being resolved.

Since Trump has been busily arranging "deals" on rare earth minerals with every country - including Australia - that he can find, Money Daily asked Bing's AI bot, co-pilot:

How long does it take to develop rare earth mines and develop processing facilities?

Here's what AI said:

Typical timelines — short answer:

Mine development: 7–15 years from discovery to first commercial production.

Processing facility (commercial scale): 3–10 years from permitting to full-rate operations.

Pilot or demonstration plant: 1–3 years to build and commission, used to de-risk commercial scale decisions.

Stages and typical duration

Exploration and resource definition: 1–5 years; includes drilling, assays, and resource modeling.

Pre-feasibility and feasibility studies: 1–3 years; engineering, metallurgy, and economic modeling.

Permitting and environmental review: 2–6+ years; dependent on jurisdiction, complexity of tailings/waste treatment, and consultation needs.

Financing and off-take/partnership agreements: 1–3 years; often runs in parallel with engineering and permitting.

Detailed engineering and construction: 2–4 years for a mine or processing plant; larger, more complex hydrometallurgical plants can take longer.

Commissioning and ramp-up to commercial production: 6–18 months for initial output; up to several years to reach steady-state recovery and product quality.

Major factors that lengthen or shorten timelines

Regulatory environment and permitting complexity — stricter regimes and lengthy environmental review add years.

Metallurgical complexity of the ore — unusual mineralogy or need for complex separations increases testing, pilot work, and design time.

Availability of capital and partnerships — secured financing and industrial partners accelerate schedules.

Local infrastructure and supply chain — remote sites without roads, power, or water require added construction time.

Community engagement and Indigenous consultation — meaningful consultation and agreements can extend timelines but are critical to project viability.

Policy support and defense/strategic programs — government incentives or strategic prioritization can compress timelines through funding and fast-track permitting

Benchmarks and recent examples

Pilot processing plants to re-establish domestic capability have been built and commissioned in roughly 1–3 years in the U.S. context.

National and regional strategies to create full processing hubs show multi-year to decade-long timeframes from project start to operational domestic supply chains.

Practical implications for planning

Budget for multi-year lead times and staged investments that move from lab tests → pilot plant → commercial plant.

Prioritize early metallurgical test work and pilot validation to reduce technical risk and accelerate permitting and financing.

Engage regulators, communities, and potential customers early to shorten non-technical delays.

Sources:

Center For Strategic & International Studies (CSIS)

Rare Eart Exchanges

National Defense Magazine

Essentially, Money Daily is calling BS on all of this, in addition to the recent slaughter in gold and silver markets, just as both precious metals had advanced to record levels, out-pacing every other asset. While gold and silver have been slapped down, bitcoin and crypto are being heavily promoted in the media and online, with many of the usual carnival barkers, including President Trump's sons, Don Jr. and Eric touting their own crypto endeavors.

The U.S., $38 trillion in debt, hopes to repair the damage its done to itself by paying off the interest with stablecoins or some other form of crypto-currency while the rest of the world heads inexorably to money backed by gold and possibly, silver.

Stocks have been on a tear recently, and, with earnings season in full swing, gains on the S&P, Dow, and NASDAQ are heading for nose-bleed levels.

There will be hell to pay when no deal is made with China and 42 million Americans are deprived of benefits they've been receiving for years, in order to EAT.

The government is playing with marked cards. Americans will pay a heavy price for a government that has no concrete plans and politicians whose main focus is on enriching themselves and getting re-elected.

At the Close, Monday, October 27, 2025:
Dow: 47,544.59, +337.47 (+0.71%)
NASDAQ: 23,637.46, +432.59 (+1.86%)
S&P 500: 6,875.16, +83.47 (+1.23%)
NYSE Composite: 21,789.63, +91.57 (+0.42%)

WEEKEND WRAP: Trump in Asia, Wasting Everybody's Time; Government Shutdown in 26th Day; Food Stamps Cut Off November 1?

There's quite a bit going on this week following one in which gold and silver got taken down a notch or two, President Trump raised tariffs on Canada because they aired a commercial featuring former President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs, the U.S. shot down a few more "drug boats" in the Caribbean and the Pacific, CPI inflation at three percent was deemed "good" by Wall Street, the media and the government, and the government shutdown became the second-longest in U.S. history.

That's just for openers. The upcoming week will feature President Trump trying to persuade countries in Asia to do business with the U.S., including a meeting with China's Xi Jinping, and a rate cut at the FOMC meeting Tuesday, with the policy decision 2:00 pm ET Wednesday. Halloween is Friday. Lots of tricks, maybe some treats.

42 million Americans are hoping the federal government reopens so they can get food stamps for November, though the Senate doesn't seem to be in much of a rush to do anything besides posture and point fingers at each other.

Bloomberg headline: Trump Unveils Flurry of Asia Trade Deals Ahead of Xi Meeting

However, should one actually read the story (Money Daily did), as it reveals the lie:

"The US president dangled exemptions from his reciprocal tariff regime on key exports from Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia..."

"It’s a step in the right direction but there’s still considerable uncertainty out there,” said Peter Mumford, who covers Southeast Asia at risk consultancy Eurasia Group, citing questions on the rules of origin for reciprocal agreements, sectoral tariffs and transshipment levies. “And none of these are legally binding agreements too. They’re all quite flexible agreements."

Trump claims to have reached agreements lifting tariffs on a wide swath of goods from Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia, and made deals for preferential treatment on rare earths with Thailand and Malaysia. Bloomberg's own analyst offered this: "Absent specific commitments, the deal’s impact may not outlast the summit," said Adam Farrar, a geo-economics analyst at Bloomberg Economics.

"He [Trump] also expressed optimism during a meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva that they could easily strike a trade agreement, as the Latin American country seeks to reduce the 50% tariff on many of its goods."

Note that they may have met, but there's still no deal. BRICS countries are beginning to unify and stand against Trump and his tariff regime. A planned meeting with Russia's President, Vladimir Putin, in Budapest, was scuttled due to Trump's imposition of sanctions against Russian oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft.

For his part, prior to the meeting, Lula said this: "I am fully prepared to defend Brazil's interests and show that there was a mistake on the tariffs imposed on Brazil."

Trump is attempting to use leverage with Southeast Asian countries against China. It's a strategy that is not likely to reap benefits. There is talk in certain circles that President Xi won't meet with Trump at all. India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, skipped the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, specifically to avoid meeting with Trump, who has placed 50% tariffs on Indian exports to America.

There's a good chance that the meeting with Xi will not take place at all. China has made no official commitment about the meeting, which is supposed to take place on Thursday (or now, Thursday or Friday) on the sidelines of the APEC conference in South Korea.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is with Trump on the Far East trip, continued meetings with Chinse counterparts, saying the talks were, "constructive, far-reaching and in-depth," adding that they give the nations "the ability to move forward to set the stage for the leaders meeting in a very positive framework."

In other words, they got squat. Mainstream Western media is all propaganda, much of it just plain lies, especially Bloomberg.

Stocks

Stocks had another solid week, and should benefit from a deluge of earnings from some of the biggest names in tech and a number of Dow stocks.

Monday, October 27: (before open) Keurig Dr. Pepper (KDP); (after close) Avis (CAR), Rambus (RMBS), Whirlpool (WHR), Waste Management (WM), Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY)

Tuesday, October 28: (before open) United Health (UNH), Corning (GLW), UPS (UPS), HSBC (HSBC), DR Horton (DHI), Royal Caribbean (RCL), PayPal (PYPL), SoFi (SOFI); (after close) Cheesecake Factory (CAKE), Seagate (STX), Visa (V), Electronic Arts (EA)

Wednesday, October 29: (before open) Etsy (ETSY), ADP (ADP), Phillips 66 (PSX), Caterpllar (CAT), Boeing (BA), Verizon (VZ), CVS Health (CVS); (after close) Carvana (CVNA), Chipolte Mexican Grill (CMG), Alphabet (GOOG), Meta (META), Microsoft (MSFT)

Thursday, October 30: (before open) Advance Auto Parts (AAP), Comcast (CMCSA), Merck (MRK), Eli Lilly (LLY); (after close) Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), Coinbase (COIN), Reddit (RDDT), Microstrategy (MSTR)

Friday, October 31: (before open) Chevron (CVX), ExxonMobil (XOM), Charter Communications (CHTR), Colgate-Palmolive (CL)

The Shiller PE (CAPE) closed out the week at 40.58, chasing the number from the dotcom bubble, December, 1999, of 44.14).

Treasury Yield Curve Rates

Date	1 Mo	1.5 mo	2 Mo	3 Mo	4 Mo	6 Mo	1 Yr
09/19/2025	4.19	4.16	4.14	4.03	3.98	3.81	3.60
09/26/2025	4.22	4.20	4.17	4.02	4.00	3.83	3.67
10/03/2025	4.24	4.17	4.11	4.03	3.96	3.82	3.64
10/10/2025	4.19	4.16	4.10	4.02	3.96	3.81	3.60
10/17/2025	4.18	4.15	4.08	4.00	3.95	3.79	3.56
10/24/2025	4.11	4.06	4.02	3.93	3.89	3.76	3.58

Date	2 Yr	3 Yr	5 Yr	7 Yr	10 Yr	20 Yr	30 Yr
09/19/2025	3.57	3.56	3.68	3.88	4.14	4.71	4.75
09/26/2025	3.63	3.66	3.76	3.96	4.20	4.74	4.77
10/03/2025	3.58	3.59	3.72	3.90	4.13	4.69	4.71
10/10/2025	3.52	3.52	3.65	3.83	4.05	4.60	4.63
10/17/2025	3.46	3.47	3.59	3.78	4.02	4.58	4.60
10/24/2025	3.48	3.49	3.61	3.79	4.02	4.56	4.59

With the next FOMC this week (October 28-29), yields continue front-running the expected 25 basis point cut (maybe 50) and another one in December (Dec. 9-10), with one month bills at their lowest yield since 12/29/2022 (4.04%). The Fed, figuring they've convinced enough people that three percent inflation is close enough to their two percent target, will cut at least 0.25%, bringing the federal funds target rate to 3.75-4.00%. Applying their usual guesstimate of how badly they wish to screw American consumers, that should be enough for this month, with another 0.25% coming off next month.

Not that it matters that stocks are at an all-time high, unemployment remains near historic lows under five percent and inflation has re-ignited.

The Fed has pretty poor aim. With all the monetary tools at its disposal, it can't even hit its own targets.

2s-10s spreads dipped to +54 while full spectrum gapped up to +48. Demand for treasuries remains strong, despite BRICS and de-dollarization efforts, the slack pick-up home grown.

Spreads:

2s-10s
2025
1/3: +32
1/10: +37
1/17: +34
1/24: +36
1/31: +36
2/7: +20
2/14: +21
2/21: +23
2/28: +25
3/7: +33
3/14: +29
3/21: +31
3/28: +38
4/4: +33
4/11: +52
4/17: +53
4/25: +55
5/2: +50
5/9: +49
5/16: +45
5/23: +51
5/30: +52
6/6: +48
6/13: +45
6/20: +48
6/27: +56
7/3: +47
7/11: +53
7/18: +56
7/25: +49
8/1: +54
8/8: +51
8/15: +58
8/22: +58
8/29: +64
9/5: +59
9/12: +50
9/19: +57
9/26: +57
10/3: +45
10/10: +53
10/17: +56

Full Spectrum (30-days - 30-years)
2025
1/3: +38
1/10: +54
1/17: +41
1/24: +40
1/31: +36
2/7: +32
2/14: +32
2/21: +31
2/28: +13
3/7: +24
3/14: +25
3/21: +23
3/28: +26
4/4: +5
4/11: +38
4/17: +44
4/25: +40
5/2: +41
5/9: +46
5/16: +52
5/23: +68
5/30: +59
6/6: +69
6/13: +67
6/20: +69
6/27: +66
7/3: +51
7/11: +59
7/18: +65
7/25: +55
8/1: +32
8/8: +37
8/15: +44
8/22: +41
8/29: +51
9/5: +49
9/12: +40
9/19: +54
9/26: +55
10/3: +47
10/10: +43
10/17: +42

Oil/Gas

Following President Trump slapping sanctions on Russian oil, WTI crude oil exploded higher, closing out the week at $61.44, up sharply from last week's $57.25. The move was mostly fluff, based on prices being too low for American producers, especially with ExxonMobil and Chevron reporting earnings this Friday (Oct. 31). Trump's sanctions are going to do anything to hurt Russia, but will hurt American consumers wiht higher prices at the pump.

The rise in oil prices sent retail gas prices just a touch higher. with the U.S. national average up two cents, at $3.03, according to Gasbuddy.com.

California remains highest, at $4.59 per gallon, followed by Washington ($4.35), both lower on the week. Oregon ($3.93), was down seven cents on the week, but, if higher crude oil prices persist, it may bounce back above $4.00. The lowest prices remain in the Southeast, with Louisiana ($2.55) the lowest, followed by Oklahoma and Mississippi both at $2.56, jumping more than ten cents from last week. Tennessee ($2.57) and Texas ($2.59) follow. The remaining Southeast states are all below $2.75 (Georgia), with Florida the exception, at $2.90.

Relief continued in the Northeast, where all states were under $3.00, except for Pennsylvania ($3.21), New York and Vermont ($3.09), West Virginia ($3.07), and Maine ($3.00).

Illinois ($3.24), Michigan ($3.08) and Indiana ($3.06) were the only Midwest states above $3.00. Kentucky was lowest, at $2.67.

Sub-$3.00 gas can be found in 32 states, down three from last week.

Bitcoin (fake money)

This week: $113,471.40
Last week: $106,748.23
2 weeks ago: $112,895.70
6 months ago: $94,225.30
One year ago: $67,672.59
Five years ago: $16,078.98

Bitcoin cheerleaders have been out in force since gold and silver's slap-down Friday and again on Tuesday. The pundits are all over X, touting bitcoin going to $200,000, $400,000 and estimates in the millions.

There is a concerted effort by crypto enthusiasts, Western governments, and the Trump family to sell the public on crypto, hoping they will stay away from gold and silver. It's actually kind of humorous.

Precious Metals

Gold:Silver Ratio: 84.54; last week: 80.35

Per COMEX continuous contracts:

Gold price 9/26: $3,789.80
Gold price 10/3: $3,912.10
Gold price 10/10: $4,035.50
Gold price 10/17: $4,267.90
Gold price 10/24: $4,126.90

Silver price 9/26: $46.37
Silver price 10/3: $47.97
Silver price 10/10: $47.51
Silver price 10/17: $50.63
Silver price 10/24: $48.41

SPOT:
(stockcharts.com)
Gold 10/17: $4250.59
Gold 10/24: $4110.63
Silver 10/17: $51.88
Silver 10/24: $48.59

(Kitko)
Gold 10/19: Bid: $4,250.80; Ask: $4,252.80
Gold 10/26: Bid: $4,111.20; Ask: $4,113.20
Silver 10/19: Bid: $51.86; Ask: $51.98
Silver 10/26: Bid: $48.53; Ask: $48.65

Gold and silver were dumped early in the week, and, while gold rebounded, silver remained below the magic $50 mark. In a sane world, the price would be $150. Prices at dealers and on eBay reflect the public's rejection of the paper slap-down.

Here are the most recent prices for common one ounce gold and silver items sold on eBay (free shipping included, numismatics excluded):

Item/Price	Low	High	Average	Median
1 oz silver coin:	48.00	64.00	55.75	56.05
1 oz silver bar:	52.00	63.00	56.73	55.95
1 oz gold coin:	4,262.80	4,655.84	4,400.19	4,383.86
1 oz gold bar:	4,292.80	4,532.43	4,353.39	4,335.30

The Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark (SOSMPB) fell somewhat sharply over the course of the week, to $56.12, a decline of $2.42 from the October 19 all-time high price of $58.54 per troy ounce.

WEEKEND WRAP

The next two weeks should provide some indication of where the U.S. economy is headed. If the government doesn't reopen before November 6th, it would serve as notice that the shutdown was planned well ahead of time and that the government's main goal is to sow chaos, both at home and abroad.

At the Close, Friday, October 24, 2025:

Dow: 47,207.12, +472.51 (+1.01%)
NASDAQ: 23,204.87, +263.07 (+1.15%)
S&P 500: 6,791.69, +53.25 (+0.79%)
NYSE Composite: 21,698.06, +74.24 (+0.34%)

For the Week:
Dow: +1016.51 (+2.20%)
NASDAQ: +524.89 (+2.31%)
S&P 500: +127.68 (+1.92%)
NYSE Composite: +286.60 (+1.34%)
Dow Transports: -224.62 (-1.41%)

Disclaimer: Information disseminated on this site should not be construed as investment advice. Downtown Magazine Inc., Money Daily and it's owners, affiliates and/or employees are not investment advisors and do not offer specific investment advice. All investments have risk. You should consult a professional investment advisor or stock broker or use your individual judgement when making investment decisions. By viewing this site, you hold harmless Downtown Magazine Inc., Money Daily, its owners, affiliates and employees against any and all liability. Copyright 2025, Downtown Magazine Inc., all rights reserved.

All Lies, All the Time: Descent Into the End of Empire; 3% Inflation is Good; Russia is Bad; China, India Won't Buy Russian Oil (yeah, sure)

If it wasn't so sad, it would be funny.

Or maybe it's the other way around.

Just a day after the U.S. imposed sanctions on Russia's two largest oil companies, according to an EXCLUSIVE REPORT by Reuters (who never lie, ever, honest) Chinese firms have decided to scale back their purchases of Russian oil and India is poised to do the same.

Poised: [pɔɪzd] Adjective

having a composed and self-assured manner:

"not every day you saw that poised, competent kid distressed"

The story carries the usual flashpoints of falsity, highlighted below:

SINGAPORE, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Chinese state oil majors have suspended purchases of seaborne Russian oil after the United States imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Moscow's two biggest oil companies, multiple trade sources said on Thursday.

The move comes as refiners in India, the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil, are set to sharply cut their crude imports from Moscow, to comply with the U.S. sanctions imposed over the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine.

Notice how that second sentence just blares out India's intentions, without attributing any sources. Supposedly, when the U.S. says to major nuclear-armed nations, "Jump!", they respond by asking, "how high?"

So here comes the delayed CPI report for September. Without looking, Money Daily is going to go out on a limb and say that the numbers beat expectations.

Nailed it. Well, kinda. The report from the always reliable BLS reads thusly:

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.3 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in September, after rising 0.4 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 3.0 percent before seasonal adjustment. Note that September CPI data collection was completed before the lapse in appropriations.

The index for gasoline rose 4.1 percent in September and was the largest factor in the all items monthly increase, as the index for energy rose 1.5 percent over the month. The food index increased 0.2 percent over the month as the food at home index rose 0.3 percent and the food away from home index increased 0.1 percent.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2 percent in September, after rising 0.3 percent in each of the 2 preceding months. Indexes that increased over the month include shelter, airline fares, recreation, household furnishings and operations, and apparel. The indexes for motor vehicle insurance, used cars and trucks, and communication were among the few major indexes that decreased in September.

The all items index rose 3.0 percent for the 12 months ending September, after rising 2.9 percent over the 12 months ending August. The all items less food and energy index also rose 3.0 percent over the last 12 months. The energy index increased 2.8 percent for the 12 months ending September. The food index increased 3.1 percent over the last year.

Just wondering... if the September CPI data collection was completed before the "lapse in appropriations", as the press release states, why was the release of the data delayed? The entire government shutdown thing is a massive fraud perpetrated by both parties and the president, who could have come up with a compromise continuing resolution as they always do. They simply did not want to, as their objective is to sow chaos, and, by most accounts, they're doing a swell job of it.

This isn't exactly what one would call "throttling inflation" or whatever color lipstick the Fed or the BLS wishes to paint on this particular piglet's lips.

Inflation is rising, but the "beating expectations" narrative gives the Fed cover to cut interest rates next week at the FOMC meeting )(October 28=29)

CNBC .helps put the lies into perspective:

The September consumer price index report rose 0.3% on the month, bringing the annual inflation rate to 3%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s just below the 0.4% and 3.1% that economists polled by Dow Jones had expected. While the data was lighter than expected, the inflation rate still marked an uptick from the 2.9% seen in August.

So, inflation is getting worse, but, because the completely fabricated numbers from the "partially shut down" BLS beat Wall Street experts’ (who are almost always wrong about everything) expectations, it's all good for the economy, so "buy stocks."

As usual, stock futures shot to the moon. Right around 9:00 am ET - a half hour after the CPI release - Dow futures were up 206 points, NASDAQ futures up 210, and S&P futures were ahead by 39 points.

There are a number of problems with this report, but the most glaring is the claim that gasoline rose 4.1% in September. Money Daily tracks gasoline prices weekly, via gasbuddy.com and we checked. August U.S. national average gas prices ranged between $3.10 and $3.18, while September gas prices fell in a range of $3.10 to $3.19, virtually unchanged.

Even using the lows of August ($3.10) and the September high of $3.19 - which was actually at the beginning of the month; the $3.10 reading came at the end - the difference is 2.9% not 4.0%. Essentially, gas prices were pretty much flat during the summer and oil prices were falling slightly. The BLS just made the numbers up, as usual.

In any case, the obvious takeaway is that the American public, which, apparently, according to experts on the matter in government and media, are dumber than goldfish and will believe anything, are supposed to just accept three percent inflation as a standard good thing. Never mind that the cost of everything (except silver and gold, of course) will double in 23 years.

Since actual inflation is much worse than that - a provable fact just by going shopping for groceries, lumber, clothes, just about anything - the dollar's purchasing power is plummeting faster than the approval rating for congress.

Oh, well, silver and gold are selling off because THERE IS NO INFLATION. (Orwellian)

Next up comes the meeting between President Trump and China's Xi Jinping on Thursday, October 30, on the sideline of the APEC conference in South Korea. There's a safe bet that Trump will return from his overseas trip boasting about how he got Xi to agree to everything, including sharing China’s rare earths and convinced him to stop buying Russian oil. It's all lies, all the time for these people.

Everything will continue to deteriorate in America, which has become a general theme, in case you haven’t noticed since the president and the media keep telling you everything is wonderful.

Not a word out of Washington nor the mainstream media should be believed. The entire world is being lied to about everything. When Russia takes over all of Ukraine, Europe, the UK and the US will claim victory.

This pretty much sums up how the meeting between the leaders of the U.S. and China will go next week:

Trump: We have all the cards.

Xi: We make the cards.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

At the Close, Thursday, October 23, 2025:
Dow: 46,734.61, +144.20 (+0.31%)
NASDAQ: 22,941.80, +201.40 (+0.89%)
S&P 500: 6,738.44, +39.04 (+0.58%)
NYSE Composite: 21,623.82, +109.11 (+0.51%)