Live Feed From Japan Which Wakes Up To Destructive Earthquake Aftermath

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 17:33
The massive magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck Japan this afternoon, the strongest since the devastating quake of 2011, took place at night local time, and as such there was little available media coverage. As Japan wakes up, much of the destruction becomes apparent.

Major 7.0 Magnitude Quake Strikes Japan, Tsunami Advisory Issued

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 12:44
A day after yesterday's "biggest quake since 2011's tsunami," at 1:25 local time, Japan was just struck with a massive aftershock in the form of a Magnitude 7.0 earthquake, which means it was roughly 10 times stronger than yesterday's tremor:

America's Imperial Overstretch

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 17:30 Since the end of the Cold War in 1991, this country has been steadily bled and slowly bankrupted. We are now as overextended as was the British Empire in the 1940s. Time for a reappraisal of all of the war guarantees this nation has issued since the beginning of the Cold War, to determine which, if any, still serve U.S. national interests in 2016. Alliances, after all, are the transmission belts of war. This is not isolationism. It is putting our country first, and staying out of other people’s wars. It used to be called patriotism.

The Fed Sends A Frightening Letter To JPMorgan, Corporate Media Yawns

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 11:20 Yesterday the Federal Reserve released a 19-page letter that it and the FDIC had issued to Jamie Dimon, the Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, on April 12 as a result of its failure to present a credible plan for winding itself down if the bank failed. The letter carried frightening passages and large blocks of redacted material in critical areas, instilling in any careful reader a sense of panic about the U.S. financial system. The Federal regulators didn’t say JPMorgan could pose a threat to its shareholders or Wall Street or the markets. It said the potential threat was to “the financial stability of the United States.”

How To Trade The Coming Helicopter Money: Deutsche Bank Explains

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 16:58 "At one extreme, if the market perceives the policy as a failure, credit risk and demand/supply imbalances are likely to dominate, putting even further downward pressure on yields. At the other extreme, if the policy is perceived as a loss of monetary discipline, inflation expectations would spike, leading to an aggressive re-pricing of yields higher."

Silver Soars, Stocks Roar On 2nd Biggest Short-Squeeze Since 2011

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 16:05

Why All Central Planning Is Doomed To Fail

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 15:55 How is it that so many smart people came to believe things that aren’t true? Krugman, Stiglitz, Friedman, Summers, Bernanke, Yellen – all seem to have a simpleton’s view of how the world works. They believe they can manipulate the future and make it better. Not just for themselves… but also for everyone else. Where did such a silly idea come from?

THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE: NAVY VET SETS HIMSELF ON FIRE IN FRONT OF VA TO PROTEST LACK OF HEALTHCARE

by Andrew Emett, The Daily Sheeple:

Northfield, NJ – Doused in gasoline, a former chief petty officer stood outside a Veterans Affairs (VA) outpatient clinic when he lit himself on fire and eventually died nine hours later. His wife recently confirmed that her husband was upset with the inadequate care that he had been receiving at the VA facility shortly before his suicide.
A seven-year veteran of the U.S. Navy, Charles Ingram III walked nine miles from his home, past an American Legion park and a military veteran memorial, before arriving at the parking lot of the VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic around 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 19. While standing on a grass lawn near the clinic, the 51-year-old poured several gallons of gasoline on himself before committing self-immolation.
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Exposing The False Promises Of The Socialist "Poison That Bernie Is Peddling"

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 14:55 "It takes someone who has experienced socialism’s failures firsthand to see why Sen. Sanders is succeeding: We elders, immigrants and native-born alike, have failed to teach our children and grandchildren about the economic history and false promises of the myriad forms of socialism that infest our world."
 

Weekend Reading: Sagacious Discombobulation

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 16:30 So what do you do? Play the short-term chase the market game or the longer-term wealth devastation game. The choice is yours to make, the consequences will be for all to share. “I will tell you my secret: I never buy at the bottom and I always sell too soon.” – Baron Nathan Rothschild
 

Trump Lead Hits Record In New National Poll; Hillary Slides

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 12:38 A new fox poll was released yesterday, and it shows Donald Trump jumping out to a commanding 18 point lead over Ted Cruz in the Republican race for the nomination. As Fox News notes, Trump's best numbers are coming from voters without a college degree (54%), and who describe themselves as "very conservative (50%).
 

U.S. Economy 2016: 3 Classic Recession Signals Are Flashing Red

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 12:20 Those that were hoping for an “economic renaissance” in the United States got some more bad news this week.  It turns out that the U.S. economy is in significantly worse shape than the experts were projecting.  Retail sales unexpectedly declined in March, total business sales have fallen again, and the inventory to sales ratio has hit the highest level since the last financial crisis.  When you add these three classic recession signals to the 19 troubling numbers about the U.S. economy that we wrote about last week, it paints a very disturbing picture.

"It's Turning Into A Ghost Town" - One In Five Calgary Offices Is Now Empty

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 14:53 As a result of the ongoing collapse of the Alberta energy economy, CBRE Canada estimates that Calgary's downtown office vacancy rate was 20.2% as of March 31, nearly twice as high as the 11.8% a year ago. This means that one in five offices is now vacant.

Santelli & Harris Rage "The World Has Really Lost Its Way"

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 14:40 "Central bankers may have their hearts in the right place, but no matter how much more they do, they end up with more debt and no progress," rages CNBC's Santelli which, as Vine Street's Yra Harris notes, "is enabled by a potemkin village of counterfactuals," before embarking on the most vitriolic take-down of the "atavistic remnant of a colonial past" - The IMF. Simply put, as Santelli exclaims, "the world has really lost its way," and  Harris is in full agreement, concluding with a simple message to the world's central banks - "Stop!"

On The Hubris Of The Completely Clueless

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 14:25 Any honest person working with such models know their gross limitations and how awful their track-records are. Still, these are the tools guiding the world’s central planners when they micromanage economies, be it fiscal or monetary expansion. They are obviously completely clueless, but still act with an extravagant level of hubris simply because they believe the scripture and their models.

"Last Bubble Standing" Bursts - China Junk Bond Risk Soars

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 14:05 In January we pointed out "the last bubble standing," as China's crashing equity market had spurred massive inflows - directed by a "well-meaning" central-planning committee's propaganda - sparking a massive bubble in Chinese corporate bond markets (in an effort to enable desperately weak balance-sheet firms to roll/refi their debt and keep the zombies alive). That has now ended as China's junk bond risk has soared to 5-month highs with its worst selloff since 2014. As HFT warns, "we should avoid junk bonds."

Real-Life "Gordon Gekko" Proclaims - Only Sanders Can Stop The Banksters

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 13:45 "Banking is the least understood, and possibly most lethal, of all the myriad issues at stake in this election."

"The World's Most Bearish Hedge Fund" Has A Terrible March, Goes Even Shorter

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 13:28 "How do you know this is just a short squeeze, and not the beginning of something much more substantial? While equities are trying to send a bullish tune, the 200 day moving average is now trending down for S&P, Dax and the Nikkei. This is not bullish. Furthermore, yield curves in the US, Japan and Europe have flattened. This is not bullish. Yen is rallying. This is not bullish. We have seen substantial covering by the market. This is not bullish."

Apple Stock Slides On News It Cuts iPhone Production By 30% Due To Sluggish Sales: Nikkei

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 13:08 Don't expect any optimistic emails from Tim Cook to Jim Cramer for a long time, because according to a just released report in Japan's Nikkei, Apple will continue its reduced production of iPhones in the April-June period in light of sluggish sales, according to parts suppliers notified of the plan. The website reports that slow sales of the flagship iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, which debuted last autumn, have forced Apple to adjust inventories. It lowered production for the January-March quarter by about 30% from the year-earlier period. With sales still sluggish, the U.S. company has told parts suppliers in Japan and elsewhere that it will maintain the reduced output level in the current quarter.

Crude Oil Prices Rise On New Record Low US Rig Count

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 13:04 With all eyes on Doha this weekend, today's rig count data may have even less signaling power than normal. The US oil rig count has risen for only one week this entire year and continues to track lagged crude prices lower, dropping 3 to 351 (lowest since Oct 09). With gas rigs unchanged, the total rig count dropped once again to a new fresh record low at 440. The reaction in crude oil prices was a small bounce.

Brazil Stocks Soar After Rousseff Impeachment Vote Passes Critical Threshold

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 12:09 Following Monday's decision by a special committee to commence the impeachment process against president Dilma Rousseff, all attention had been focused on the number of Congressional votes that the pro-impeachment movement would have ahead  Sunday's critical vote. As a reminder, impeachment would require two-thirds support, or 342 of the 513 lower-house lawmakers, to send the case to the Senate. Then, moments ago, Brazil's Folha newspaper reported that this critical 342 threshold had been met.

"If No Agreement, Expect A Sharp Selloff" - All You Need To Know About Doha

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 11:45 Sunday’s producer meeting is all about nothing no matter what agreement might be forged. At best, the agreement will be, as Russia’s energy minister has stated, a gentlemen’s affair, with no binding commitments, no concrete next steps beyond having a review meeting, and no procedure for moving to production cuts.

The NY Fed Just Cut Its First Half GDP Forecast To 1.0%

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 11:00 The New York Fed's 'decidedly-more-optimistic-than-Atlanta-Fed's-GDPNow-model' NowCast model for GDP growth just tumbled back to reality after a week of dismal data finally forced its hand. Treasury bond yields are extending their tumble as NYFed slashes Q1 growth to just 0.8% (from 1.5% in Feb) and collapsed Q2 growth to 1.2% from 1.9% last week. This cuts the entire H1 estimate from 1.5% to 1.0%... shamed down to GDPNow's reality.

With Everyone Selling Stocks, Who Is Buying? Goldman Explains

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 10:44 "We expect corporations will purchase $450 billion of US equities in 2016 and will remain the largest source of US equity demand."

$1,001,000,000,000: China Just Flooded Its Economy With A Record Amount Of New Debt

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 10:18 If one adds up the Total Social Financing injected in the first quarter, one gets a stunning $1 trillion dollars in new credit, or $1,001,000,000,000 to be precise, shoved down China's economic throat. As shown on the chart below, this was an all time high in dollar terms, and puts to rest any naive suggestion that China may be pursuing "debt reform."

UMich Is Worried About "Consumer Resilience" As Sentiment Tumbles To September Lows

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 10:08 We were wrong: several minutes ago when we documented the collapse in the Gallup Economic confidence, we said that "we look forward to the UMich confidence report to beat expectations when it is released in just a few minutes." Moments ago the official print came out and it was not pretty: sliding from 91 to 89.7, not only did the print miss expectations of a rebound to 92.0, but was the lowest print since September 2015. The reason for the drop? Consumers reported a slowdown in expected wage gains, weakening inflation-adjusted income expectations, and growing concerns that slowing economic growth would reduce the pace of job creation.

"It's Getting Worse" - Economic Outlook Plummets In Gallup Poll, Rising Gas Prices Blamed

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/15/2016 - 09:40 It turns out that ordinary people are not as excited about the US economy as those who are cheerleading minimum wage job creation and market levels being close to all time highs, and certainly not as excited as that group of people called each month by either the Conference Board or UMich, the two far more closely tracked confidence indicators."Americans are confronted with presidential candidates using the economy as one of their talking points, mixed signals from national economic reports, volatility in the stock market and an apparent end of sub-$2 gas prices nationally -- all of which may be affecting their economic assessments."

CIA, FEMA, DHS Retirees Are Going Into Hiding-Why?

by Dave Hodges, The Common Sense Show:

Many are missing the proverbial boat. Many are writing about the bankers and their several meetings. We all know something is amiss. I have covered this in detail for the past 3.5 years. The disappearing bankers are the last step before the SHTF. The real warning signals came over three years ago when ex-intelligence and alphabet soup agency retirees began to collectively retire to remote community enclaves that would make the most die-hard prepper envious.
The time to have become concerned was three plus years go. Let me recap what I have spoken about so many times in the past. First let me say, forget the bankers. In most cass the bankers are only one day ahead of the rest of us. For the most part, they are only the brown shirts for the criminal elite.
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CIA Operations: Ugly History, Current Reality – Martin Berger

by Martin Berger, The News Doctors:

Most people are aware of the wide range of secret US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operations which the White House has been employing at different points throughout history to wreak havoc around the globe. And eventually even those who don’t may soon fall victims of the wide range of operations the CIA conducts.
The following are just some of the most notorious:

Operation ARTICHOKE – evolved from Project Bluebird and was launched in 1951 to be transformed later in the project MKULTRA . The goal of this operation was to test the government’s ability to cause amnesia through the use of psychotropic substances among certain individuals. This operation resulted in the creation of amphetamines and LSD that were tested on the population of the Federal Republic of Germany.

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Free Trade Created The Chinese Model

from The Sleuth Journal:

“He who restrains his appetite avoids debt” – Chinese proverb
East will never meet the West of Adam Smith. China never had a culture or tradition of respecting individual human rights. Why would anyone assume that a regime that houses worker slaves in huge chicken coops would adopt a fair trade economy? The Chinese juggernaut is a creature of Western creation. The Red Dragon never reflects the noble contributions of wealth development that grew a stable middle class and spread the fruits of democratic principles. The Chinese model is a harbinger of the global gulag and the coerced society designed to demolish cherished Western Civilization values and liberties. The masters of political confrontations have found a better way than waging world wars for imposing their planetary dominance.
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The American Dictatorship

from Washington’s Blog:

Even for the post of U.S. President, the preferences of the American people have only a marginal, if any, impact upon the selection of the person to occupy that post.

In Colorado’s Republican race to win delegates to the Republican National Convention for selecting the Republican Presidential nominee, there was no primary, and there was no caucus. As the Republican magazine National Review headlined on April 11th, attempting to justify what a Republican wag had just headlined as “Cruz Celebrates Voterless Win”: “Donald Trump Laid a Colorado Goose Egg because He Was Disorganized and Amateurish.” Their argument (since they campaign for any Republican but Trump) was: he lost “because he was disorganized and amateurish” — not because he had been cheated by the Party-hierarchy.

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