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President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of a new DG (Budget), and a Special Adviser, Planning. In a statement released by Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity), Femi Adesina, Mr. Tijjani Mohammed Abdullahi is the new Director-General (Budget). Mr. Abdullahi, a fellow of the Certified National Accountants of Nigeria, and a banker […]

The world let out a collective gasp of shock last night when the PBOC announced that in January, China had created an absolutely gargantuan CNY3.4 trillion in new total debt (Total Social Financing) – or about $520 billion – more than 50% higher than expected, of which CNY2.1 trillion was in the form of new […]

As traders slowly (and then quickly) woke up to the fact that a “freeze” at record levels of production is not a “cut”, WTI Crude has collapsed over 5% from its hope-stricken illiquid highs of early trading – now back below $30. As Barclays warns: OPEC OUTPUT FREEZE WOULD LEAVE 1Q SURPLUS OF 1M B/D: […]Read More

The Empire Fed Manufacturing survey has been in contraction (below 0) since July 2015 and while February’s -16.64 print was above January’s -19.37, it was dramatically worse than the expected -10.0. New Orders and Shipments remain in contraction as both prices paid and recived tumbled. Hope improved modestly but remains markedly below December levels, as […]Read More

Yesterday we reported that the ECB has begun contemplating the death of the €500 EURO note, a fate which is now virtually assured for the one banknote which not only makes up 30% of the total European paper currency in circulation by value, but provides the best, most cost-efficient alternative (in terms of sheer bulk […]

With investment grade credit risk soaring, it’s now or never for many firms to lever up at “relatively” low costs and two of the biggest buyback-ers are stepping up to the debt issuance window this week. Perhaps helping to explain the carnage in Treasuries at the end of last week (as rate-locks are set), Apple […]

Something strange is going on. Heading into the Friday open, in his daily letter to “clients”, Dennis Gartman said that in his “retirement portfolio” he was short the market and long gold, to wit: In our own retirement fund here at TGL, we have essentially the same positions that we’ve had for the past several […]Read More

European Banks holding European sovereign debt may have to take haircuts and be part of bail in plans should that same debt default, according to a plan being pursued by German government advisers. In another attempt to shelter German tax payers from the largess and excess of fellow European neighbouring countries’ national banks, the move […]

Update: Here are the latest headlines out of Russia where the defense ministry is at wit’s end with the Turks. RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTRY SAYS ‘TERRORISTS’ IN SYRIA’S IDLIB AND ALEPPO PROVINCES CONTINUE TO RECEIVE WEAPONS AND REINFORCEMENTS FROM TURKISH TERRITORY – INTERFAX TURKEY IS LAUNCHING ‘MASSED’ ARTILLERY STRIKES ON SYRIAN GOVT FORCES AND ‘SYRIA’S PATRIOTIC […]Read More

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog, If we collectively choose wishful thinking, catastrophic consequences are guaranteed. Wishful thinking has been an integral driver of the “recovery” 2009-2015: asset bubbles aren’t bubbles, central bank policies are brilliantly successful, unemployment has dropped to levels of full employment, and so on. The problems with wishful thinking that […]

Nearly two years after Victoria Nuland decided that “Yats” should be her puppet prime minister in Ukraine as part of the CIA-organized presidential coup, the latest embarrassment for the U.S. State Department is about to become a fact when moments ago Ukrainian billionaire president Petro Poroshenko called on Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk to resign and […]

Major news coming out of Doha reveals Saudi Arabia and Russia have agreed to freeze output at January production levels. The two largest producers of oil in the world met in Doha, Qatar today in a meeting that have been months in the making agreeing to freeze production in the hope that prices will climb […]