Japanese Traders Are Getting Angry: "The BOJ Is Destroying The Functioning Of The Market"

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 09:35
"Among central banks, the BOJ is the one that destroys functioning markets the most," Izuru Kato, the president of Totan Research in Tokyo was quoted by Bloomberg. "Companies will slash staff and scale back operations where activity is grinding to a halt, exposing markets to spikes in rates when the time comes for normalization."

Mossack Fonseca: The Nazi, CIA And Nevada Connections... And Why It's Now Rothschild's Turn

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/03/2016 - 23:38
"Jurgen Mossack’s family landed here in the 1960s. During World War II, his father had served in the Nazi Party’s Waffen-SS, according to U.S. Army intelligence files obtained by the ICIJ. Once in Panama, the elder Mossack offered to spy on communists in Cuba for the CIA."  And yes, Mossack Fonseca may now be history, and its countless uberwealthy clients exposed, but none other than Rothschild is now delighted to be able to fill its rather large shoes.

The Panama Papers: ‘Biggest Leak in History’ Exposes Global Web of Corruption

‘The story behind the #PanamaPapers?’ tweets Edward Snowden. ‘Courage is contagious.’
by Deirdre Fulton, Common Dreams:
An anonymous source, an enormous cache of leaked documents, and a year-long investigative effort by around 400 journalists from more than 100 media organizations in over 80 countries have yielded the Panama Papers, an unprecedented look at how the world’s rich and powerful, from political leaders to celebrities to criminals, use tax havens to hide their wealth.
The investigation went live on Sunday afternoon.
German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote:

Over a year ago, an anonymous source contacted the Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) and submitted encrypted internal documents from Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm that sells anonymous offshore companies around the world. These shell firms enable their owners to cover up their business dealings, no matter how shady.

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ISM New York Drops To September Lows As All Components Decline; Employment Plunges

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 09:57 While last week's Chicago's PMI staged a strong bounce from its recent contraction and back into expansion, New York did not. ISM New York just printed at 50.4, just barely above the contraction point, and the lowest headline print since mid 2015. But the most troubling reading was the employment print, which after staging a strong rebound last month, collapsed to just 40.9, the second worst print in the current decade.

Atlas is Shrugging – In Venezuela, the Lights Are Going Out

by Juan Christobal Nagel, Foreign Policy:
Venezuela is, once again, in the throes of a full-blown electricity crisis. Citizens complain of unannounced blackouts are shutting down factories, forcing shopping malls to close early, and otherwise wreaking havoc on an already-sputtering economy. The crisis is so severe that President Nicolás Maduro has curtailed working hours for government workers. Last week he even extended the Holy Week holiday to reduce power usage.
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9/11: The FBI Report and the Dancing Israelis Standing Truth on its Ear

from Information Clearing House:

On the morning of September 11, 2001 a Jersey City, N.J. housewife named Maria was making coffee in her kitchen when she received a phone call from a neighbor who excitedly told her to look out the window. When Maria looked she was shocked to see a plume of smoke rising from the World Trade Center about a mile away across the Hudson River. Quickly Maria grabbed some binoculars and stepped out onto the balcony of her high-rise apartment, known as the Doric Towers, which afforded an excellent view of lower Manhattan. Maria did not yet know that a commercial airliner had plowed into the north tower of the World Trade Center, but it was obvious that an ugly tragedy was in progress.
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Donald Trump Is Starting To Sound Just Like The Economic Collapse Blog (And That Is A Good Thing)

by Michael Snyder, The Economic Collapse Blog:

Guess what Donald Trump is saying now?  Last week, I discussed how Robert Kiyosaki and Harry Dent are warning that a major crisis is inevitable, but I didn’t expect Donald Trump to come out and say essentially the exact same thing.  On Saturday, the Washington Post released a stunning interview with Donald Trump in which he boldly declared that we heading for a “very massive recession”.  He also warned that we are currently in “a financial bubble” and that “it’s a terrible time right now” to be investing in stocks.  These are things that you may be accustomed to hearing on The Economic Collapse Blog, but to hear them from the frontrunner for the Republican nomination is another thing altogether.
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Saudis Retaliate To "Oil Freeze" Fallout: Ban Transport Of Iranian Crude In Territorial Waters

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 09:11 In a new and unexpected retaliation by Saudi Arabia for Iran's intransigence, moments ago the FT reported that Saudi Arabia has taken steps to slow Iran’s efforts at increasing oil exports, banning vessels that transport Iranian crude from entering their waters, according to traders and shipbrokers.

Iceland PM Refuses To Resign, Faces No Confidence Vote Following "Panama Papers" Scandal

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 08:42 Following the Panama Papers scandal, the Iceland Prime Minister faces a no confidence vote in parliament as soon as this afternoon: the opposition has called for a vote against the government as parliament begins its session at 3 p.m. local time, though it’s still unclear whether the vote can be held on Monday. Protests in Reykjavik organized by a Facebook group calling for “Elections Now!” are due to start two hours after the opening of the assembly.

The Future of Money

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 08:25 The reason is that banks understand their core reason to exist is threatened by peer-to-peer, decentralized payment platforms and currencies. If payments no longer need to be routed through a centralized trusted institution, then one core function of banks disappears. If peer-to-peer lending and securitization becomes easier and cheaper due to the blockchain, then banks' function of allocating capital also vanishes.

Vietnam Seizes Chinese Ship In Gulf Of Tonkin

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 07:58 In a rare move for Vietnamese authorities against a Chinese vessel, the coast guard in the northern port city of Haiphong seized the ship carrying diesel fuel in the Gulf of Tonkin on Thursday. The WSJ adds that Border Defense Force of Haiphong City found the vessel carrying 100,000 liters of diesel oil Thursday near Vietnam’s Bach Long Vi Island in the Gulf of Tonkin, reported the An Ninh Thu Do newspaper, which is run by Hanoi Police Department. After seizing it, the force towed the ship to the city.

Frontrunning: April 4

• Ties between Germany and Russia enter new chill (Reuters)
• Tax authorities begin probes into some people named in Panama Papers leak (Reuters)
• SEC investigates ex-JPMorgan debt traders (FT)
• Who Will Win Wisconsin? Here Are Six Credible Predictions (BBG)
• Victim in Wall St. Scheme Was a Classmate of Its Accused Architect (NYT)

Germany To Greece: No Debt Relief For You

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 07:15 Whether or not the IMF intended to use a Greek credit event to destabilize Europe as the greek government first alleged, or whether this was "nonsense" as Lagarde responded to Tsipras letter, is irrelevant - ultimately the underlying premise was whether or not Greece gets debt relief, something the IMF has been insisting on since the third bailout package. And as is well-known, it was Germany - not Greece - that stood in the IMF's way. So after a terse weekend in which relations between Greece and the IMF devolved once again to frigidly sub-zero levels, moments ago Germany chimed in with its position, which can be summed up in another familiar word: "nein".

Global Stocks Rise, Europe Rebounds As Oil Halts Decline

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/04/2016 - 06:39 In a quiet start to the week following last week's surprisingly strong rebound which followed a stronger than expected jobs report (perhaps to demonstrate that good news is once again good news), Japan stocks continued to sink as the USDJPY dropped to fresh lows, while commodities declined for a fifth day as the supply glut from crude to copper weighed on prices, dragging down commodity currencies. European equities rose, rebounding from a one-month low.

"Unprecedented Leak" Exposes The Criminal Financial Dealings Of Some Of The World's Wealthiest People

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/03/2016 - 22:35 An unprecedented leak of more than 11 million documents has revealed the hidden financial dealings of some of the world's wealthiest people, as well as 12 current and former world leaders and 128 more politicians and public officials around the world.  The data allows a never-before-seen view inside the offshore world — providing a day-to-day, decade-by-decade look at how dark money flows through the global financial system, breeding crime and stripping national treasuries of tax revenues.

How Bad Would A Nuclear Terror Attack Be: Find Out With This Interactive Nukemap

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/03/2016 - 21:35

Key U.S. Events In The Coming Week

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/03/2016 - 21:07 Key economic releases for the coming week include the ISM non-manufacturing report on Wednesday. There are several scheduled speeches from Fed officials this week. Fed Chair Yellen will take part in a discussion with former Fed Chairs on Thursday.

Off The Grid Indicators Reveal True State Of U.S. Economy

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/03/2016 - 19:19

The EU Has Bigger Trouble than Brexit alone

from Wolf Street:

The referendum in the Netherlands on April 6th is going to cause a lot of trouble, possibly axing the strong Dutch commitment to the European project.
The plebiscite is about the Association Treaty between EU and Ukraine, into which the EU inserted some curious clauses about military cooperation and such. It is not a trading treaty per se, since those are the sole responsibility of the European Commission and would not require ratification by the member states.
Another fact that points toward bigger issues at stake is the last-minute involvement of the US government that recently urged Dutch voters to vote YES.
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The Pitfalls Of Buying Gold And Silver Online, And How To Avoid Them

by John Rubino, Dollar Collapse:
Back in 2014, online bullion dealer Tulving shocked its many customers by suddenly failing. See Coinweek’s story: How does $40M of Gold and Silver Disappear: The Collapse of Tulving Company
Last week another one bit the dust:
NW Territorial Mint seeks bankruptcy protection

(Seattle Times) – Northwest Territorial Mint, a Federal Way company that sells precious metals and produces medals and medallions, filed for Chapter 11 protection Friday, a month after the company and its owner were hit with large jury verdicts in a defamation case.

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The Dire Consequences of California’s $15 Minimum Wage

by Preston Cooper, CNSNews:
California Governor Jerry Brown just announced an agreement between lawmakers and unions to raise his state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour. When passed by the legislature and signed into law, as is expected, it will be the first such statewide minimum in the country and a victory for the “Fight for $15” movement. While workers who keep their jobs will be happy to receive a $15 hourly wage, such regulations come at a cost—more expensive labor means fewer jobs, particularly for the young and low-skilled.
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Labour’s Shadow Defence Secretary ‘Does Not Understand What Defcon One Means’

by Ben Riley-Smith, The Telegraph:
Labour’s shadow defence secretary has admitted she does not understand what ‘Defcon One’ means, it has been claimed.
Emily Thornberry, who was appointed by Jeremy Corbyn in January, said she had only seen the term for imminent nuclear attack “in films” during a private discussion about her defence review.
Details of the meeting leaked out to the media with Labour locked in a civil war over Mr Corbyn’s determination to scrap Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.
A Labour source attacked whoever was behind the leak for using “dirty tricks” in the battle over the party’s Trident stance.
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