The "Monsters" Unmasked: Cologne Police Admit "Most Of The Attackers Were Refugees"

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 11:20
While previously there was some ambiguity with regard to who actually perpetrated the attacks which allegedly unfolded in Cologne on New Year's Eve, authorities are now sure that "most" of those involved were "freshly traveled asylum seekers." From Die Welt: "Primarily it was the most Arab perpetrators to sexual offenses or, to put it from their point of view to their sexual amusement. A group of men circling a female victim, closes it and takes on the woman."

"Nowhere To Hide" As Baltic 'Fried' Index Careens To Fresh Record Low

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 15:00 Another day, another fresh all-time record low in The Baltic Dry Index as Deutsche Bank's "perfect storm" appears ever closer on the horizon. Plunging 4.7% overnight to 445 points, this is 20% lower than the previous record low in 1986 and as one strategist warns, "It’s a brutal start of the year, there’s just nowhere to hide on the market."
 

5,000 Swiss Army Troops Will Protect World's Billionaires During Annual Davos Boondoggle

With a new wave of terrorism, mass shootings and unprecedented social violence around the globe now a part of the daily routine for billions of people across both developed and developing nations, one group wants to be certain there is no chance of "close encounters", violent or otherwise, with the peasantry during its upcoming annual boondoggle at the World Economic Forum in Davos. According to Swissinfo, when the world's billionaires land their private jets in the gorgeous Swiss town (which at 1,560 m is also the highest town in Europe) on January 20, they will have up to 5,000 Swiss army troops protecting them.

Perfect Storm!?

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 14:20 One of the (many) fascinating things about this latest global financial crisis is that there’s no single catalyst. Unlike 2008 when the carnage could be traced back to US subprime housing, or 2000 when tech stocks crashed and pulled down everything else, this time around a whole bunch of seemingly-unrelated things are unraveling all at once.

VIX Breaks Above 25 - Term Structure Inverts; Credit Signals More To Come

Who could have seen that coming? Bob Pisani is about to get "worried" as VIX broke above 25

We Have Officially Run Out Of Greater Fools

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 14:02 Is there any wonder panic has returned to a "market" in which fundamental investing, long forgotten, suddenly matters once more and as we have been showing over the past 7 years - undeterred by the great Copperfieldian act put on by central banks since 2008 - the fundamentals of both the economy and the market have never been worse?

Amazon, Tesla Tumble Into 10% Correction As FANTAsy Stocks All Red In 2016

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 13:51 Well that escalated quickly...

China, Oil, & Markets: It's All One Story

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 13:40 If there’s one thing to take away from this year’s developments in markets and economies so far, it’s that they are all linked, they’re all part of the same thing. If you can’t see that, you’re not going to understand what’s happening. It’s tempting to see this as a China problem, but first of all there is no China problem that will not of necessity also gravely affect the west , and second of all when you read, just to name an example, that America’s new jobs pay 23% less than the jobs they replaced, it’s just plain silly to believe that the economy is doing well, let alone recovering.

Dow Dumps 1200 Points From Holiday Highs, Nasdaq In Correction As Steeper Yuan Collapse Lies Ahead

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 13:38 Remember 'The Santa Claus Rally' that Bob Pisani said "we should expect" - well The Dow is now down over 1200 points from the highs just before the end of the year and extending those losses as Reuters reports, PBOC advisors are said to call for steeper yuan depreciation, pressuring the government to depreciate by 10-15%.

"The Assassin Is Still Out There": Charlie Hebdo Identifies Terror Culprit

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 13:21 Last January, gunmen killed 12 people at Charlie Hebdo's offices in an apparent act of "revenge" for the publication's satirical depictions of the Prophet Mohammed. For those struggling to understand how society has devolved to a point where such atrocities are possible, even commonplace, Hebdo offers an explanation.

China Matters

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 13:00 Over the past few days we have repeatedly heard the following statement: "China isn’t that important as it is only 7% of the U.S. economy." While that may be a true statement in relation to the economy, it is a far different matter when it comes to the financial markets. With financial markets so closely correlated, what happens in China has a direct and immediate impact on U.S. markets.

OPEC Basket Crude Price Crashes Below $30 - Lowest Since 2004

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 12:45 With WTI trading with a $32 handle, collapsing below December 2008's $32.40 lows briefly overnight, OPEC's broad basket price for crude has also reached a worrisome milestone. Amid Saudi price cuts to Europe, the basket price was set at $29.71 today - the first print below $30 since April 2004.

Silver Surges To Key Technical Level

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/07/2016 - 12:38 While Gold has been grabbing the "safe haven" headlines in recent days, this morning it is Silver's turn. Having rallied 2.5%, Silver just broke its 50-day moving average for the first time in 2 months...

How Corrupt Is the American Government?

from Washington’s Blog:

See For Yourself
Government corruption has become rampant:

• Senior SEC employees spent up to 8 hours a day surfing porn sites instead of cracking down on financial crimes

• Nuclear Regulatory Commission workers watch porn instead of cracking down on unsafe conditions at nuclear plants
• • An EPA employee who downloaded 7,000 porn files, then spent 2-6 hours each workdaywatching porn. He’s been doing it for years … but the EPA never fired him. Another EPA employeeharassed 16 women co-workers … and then was promoted to a higher-paying job with more responsibility, where he harassed more women

Read More

Permanent State Of Emergency? France Seeks Alarming Expanse Of Police Powers

from The News Doctors:

Citing last year’s Paris attacks as justification, the French government is seeking to expand police powers permanently—relaxing rules around the firing of weapons, enabling nighttime raids, and loosening restrictions on searching and detaining suspected terrorists, according to a draft bill seen by the newspaper Le Monde.
Politico Europe reported Tuesday that the draft, sent to the French Supreme Court for review in December, lays out plans to “perennially strengthen the tools and resources at the disposal of administrative and judicial authorities, outside the temporary legal framework implemented under the state of emergency.”
Read More

Obama Just Got Caught Red Handed At His Gun Speech

from Western Journalism:

Twitter lit up Tuesday after President Obama made the claim that violent felons can go online and buy weapons “with no background check, no questions asked.”
The assertion came as part of a lengthy address from the East Room of the White House on the executive actions Obama is taking to increase gun control in America.
Gun-rights advocate and radio talk show host Dana Loesch was quick to call out the president on his claim.
Read More

Team Obama Joins Donald Trump’s Attack On Ted Cruz’s Citizenship

by Charlie Spiering, Breitbart:
The Obama administration might hold a grudge against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after he repeatedly questioned the president’s birth certificate, but it seems willing to join Trump in questioning Sen. Ted Cruz
During the White House press briefing this afternoon, one reporter explained the fight between Cruz and Trump and asked if the president was enjoying the drama around Cruz’s citizenship.
Read More

/