Swiss Central Bank Steps in to Backstop Credit Suisse Amid Financial Collapse – The Larger Geopolitical Dynamic is Clear


Posted originally on the CTH on March 16, 2023 

Before getting to the details of the Credit Suisse issue, it is worth taking a bigger geopolitical context to the dynamic.  The initial backstop sought by Credit Suisse was from the Saudi National Bank; however, SNB Chairman Ammar Abdul Wahed Al Khudairy refused more lending {LINK}.

This is where we need to keep the BRICS -vs- WEF dynamic in mind and consider that ideologically there is a conflict between the current agenda of the ‘western financial system’ (climate change) and the traditional energy developers.  This conflict has been playing out not only in the energy sector, but also the dynamic of support for Russia (an OPEC+ member) against the western sanction regime.  Ultimately supporting Russia’s battle against NATO encroachments.

Russia, Saudi Arabia and China are geopolitically aligned in interest against the western financial system.  As a consequence, when western banks find themselves in need of capital and cash, there is a layered geopolitical dynamic in the background to Saudi refusal that must be considered.

With multiple western banks now in trouble, Credit Suisse is also exposed, and, like U.S. Treasury/Fed intervention in America, the Swiss central bank has stepped in to backstop the looming collapse.

In the big picture we are seeing the ramifications of the ‘Build Back Better‘ agenda impacting the banking and finance sector which spearheaded it.  I am not seeing this discussed anywhere, as the western governments of the collapsing banks are being forced to intervene.

(Reuters) – Credit Suisse on Thursday said it was taking “decisive action” to strengthen its liquidity by borrowing up to $54 billion from the Swiss central bank after a slump in its shares intensified fears about a broader bank deposit crisis.

The Swiss bank’s problems have shifted the focus for investors and regulators from the United States to Europe, where Credit Suisse led a selloff in bank shares after its largest investor said it could not provide more financial assistance because of regulatory constraints.

Regulators in the private banking hub on Wednesday had sought to ease investor fears around Credit Suisse, which added to broader worries sparked by last week’s collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, two U.S. mid-size firms.

Asian stocks had extended Wall Street’s tumble on Thursday and investors bought gold, bonds and the dollar, leaving markets on edge ahead of a European Central Bank meeting later in the day. The bank’s announcement in the early European morning helped trim some of those losses though trade was volatile. (read more)

Again, I go back to the geopolitical map.  The yellow nations with sanctions against Russia are also the yellow nations driving the ‘Build Back Better’ climate change energy policy.  The grey nations are not in alignment with either dynamic.  It is not a coincidence the banking issues are all within the yellow nations.

(Via Daily Mail) Wall Street’s main stock indexes opened lower on Wednesday, as turmoil at Credit Suisse renewed fears of a banking crisis and sent shares of major US banks lower.

At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 396 points, or 1.23 percent, while the S&P 500 opened 1.09 percent lower and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.20 percent.

Shares of First Republic, one of the regional banks swept up in contagion fears after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, dropped up to 11 percent after the bank’s bond rating was downgraded to junk status by S&P.

In Europe, shares of Credit Suisse plunged more than 25 percent, hitting a new record low for the second day in a row, after the Swiss bank’s largest investor said it could not provide more financial assistance to the lender.

The Big Four trillion-dollar US banks suffered in early trading after yesterday’s rally. Wells Fargo slid 3.9 percent, Citigroup dropped 4.3 percent, Bank of America was down 2.2 percent and JP Morgan saw a 3.5 percent dip.

After the collapse of SVB Financial and Signature Bank, emergency measures by US authorities had soothed some worries about the health of the other banks, helping regional lenders stage a rebound in Tuesday’s session.

However, regional banks were giving back their gains in early trading Wednesday, with shares of First Republic, PacWest and Western Alliance all down between 2.7 percent and 11 percent.

[…] Driving investor sentiment was turmoil at Credit Suisse, after its biggest shareholder – the Saudi National Bank – said that it would not inject more money into the ailing Swiss bank.

Saudi National Bank chairman Ammar Al Khudairy told Reuters: ‘We cannot [buy more shares] because we would go above 10 percent. It’s a regulatory issue.’

The Saudi bank holds a 9.88 percent stake in Credit Suisse, according to Refinitiv data. (read more)

Yellow Team -vs- Gray Team:  Remember, China just brokered a deal to lessen hostilities between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The fulcrum of that agreement was economics.

Meanwhile in North America, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez-Obrador has said he was not willing to join the energy suicide pact pushed by Joe Biden and Justin Trudeau…. A policy break in the trilateral relationship which suddenly, and not coincidentally, aligns with the timing to make Mexico a pariah to the U.S. vis-a-vis a renewed media push on the drug cartel narrative.

BIG PICTURE NOT BEING DISCUSSED – The western politicians followed the climate change instructions of the WEF multinational corporations and banks (Build Back Better) and post-pandemic immediately started reducing energy development.  The central bankers then began raising interest rates to shrink the economies of the same western nations to the scale of the now diminished energy production.

The raising of interest rates is now hitting the national and multinational banks impacted by government policy that was following WEF orders.  Now the western politicians are stepping in with the government controlled central banks to backstop the national banks and multinationals.  Can you see the dynamic?

Team yellow is suffering the consequences of their own ideological policy as enacted.  Team grey is not going to help team yellow get out of a crisis team yellow created, which was intended to hurt team grey.

…. And we continue watching.

Tucker Carlson Contrasts DC’s Effort to Expand NATO War Against Russia with Position of American Voters


Posted originally on the CTH on March 16, 2023 | Sundance

For his opening monologue Wednesday night Fox News host Tucker Carlson revisited the status of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia and the disconnect between Washington DC and American voters.  WATCH:

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President Trump Hosts “Ask Me Anything” Following Iowa Speech – Video


Posted originally on the CTH on March 14, 2023 | Sundance 

At the conclusion of his speech and remarks at a campaign rally event in Davenport, Iowa, President Trump did something very few candidates would ever do, he held an impromptu “ask me anything.”

A microphone was given to the audience and President Trump took unscripted questions, delivering answers directly from him, “off the cuff.”  Most political consultants would recoil from their managed candidate exposing themselves to any random audience question.  However, for President Trump the opportunity reflects just another example of an outsider speaking directly to the people he asks to represent.  The video of the Q&A is below and represents the authentic nature of “The People’s President.” WATCH:

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You cannot ‘create’ authenticity.  Either a candidate has it, or they do not.

Joe Biden Brags About Lessening Massive Inflation He Creates


Posted originally on the CTH on March 15, 2023 | Sundance 

This is so far beyond hubris, the gaslight from where hubris emanates would take a year to reach it.

Joe Biden spikes the football on the Twitter claiming to have lessened inflation he created. [LINK]

I try not to hold negative sentiments, but I cannot help but loathe this man.

Interesting – Democratic Congressman Daniel Goldman of New York Holding $32+ Million in Cayman Island Bank Account…


Posted originally on the CTH on March 15, 2023 | Sundance 

Here’s a fun little bit of datamining by the folks at TrendingPolitics.  Apparently, former DOJ apparatchik and current New York Representative Daniel Goldman is holding $32+ million in a Cayman Island bank account.

Goldman was one of Los Tres Amigos conscripted from the DOJ who was enlisted by Mary McCord to run the public face of the House impeachment effort against President Trump.  More recently sketchy Goldman attempted to run defense for the Mueller-Weissmann team during testimony about the Twitter files. {Go Deep}

Considering his legal exposure to the multiple frauds he assisted and perpetrated, it seems part of his financial risk mitigation is to keep his bank accounts in the Cayman Islands.  Curiously interesting, because it’s always worth noting what ammunition the Fourth Branch carries to keep their toadies in line.

[Trending Politics] – Newly disclosed financial documents show that a House Democrat leading the charge against income inequality has stashed over $30 million in a tax-free international haven to support his nonprofit.

The Richard W. Goldman Foundation, which for a decade has provided charitable efforts on behalf of the disadvantaged, reported holding $32.2 million in investments harbored within the Cayman Islands, a renowned haven for wealthy individuals and corporations seeking to relieve tax burdens. The organization was founded in 2012 by Democratic Congressman Daniel Goldman of New York.

Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission list Goldman as financial director for the Goldman Foundation, giving him control over where and how its assets are managed. Disclosures to House Ethics by the New York lawmaker show he has maintained a position on the foundation’s board of advisors through July 2022.

Rep. Goldman just last week issued a statement supporting President Joe Biden’s plan to raise taxes on corporations and wealthy Americans as part of his annual budget. (read more)

There no such thing as Random Walks in Markets or Economics


Armstrong Economics Blog/Economics RE-Posted Mar 15, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

COMMENT: Marty, I really cannot thank you enough. Socrates called yesterday as the turning point and it was the strongest one of the week. We got the bounce when everyone was in a panic state claiming that the Fed would not have to lower rates. They really do not understand central banks as you alone have explained many timers. There was no way the Fed would lower rates and undermine its credibility by suspending its inflation fight now, That would blow all credibility and lead to panic for sure. The Fed will not change because of SVB for that would undermine financial stability completely.

I am not sure just how much Socrates helps traders and society.

Paul

REPLY: I do realize that Socrates could run the economy far better than any human. It is my hope that it proves itself over the course of now and 2032 and that people will look back upon these forecasts and at last comprehend that there is truly a hidden order in what people think are just random walks.

Here is the Array published on March 1st. It forecast the high for the 6th with a turning point, a Panic Cycle for the 9th, and then the turning point on the 13th for a low. This was clearly published in advance of the SVB failure. This raises the question, how can a computer possibly predict such a Panic would take place on the 9th long before anyone heard about SVB? This is NOT my personal opinion. You do not see me running ads saying this is the guy who had forecast whatever. Socrates has taught me a lot about market behavior.

Just as Edward Lorenz ran what appeared to be random weather data into a computer and out came the most perplexing image of a hidden order that existed in what the human eye could see only randomness.  He became the father of Chaos Theory, which to this day, prevents us from seeing the future as part of a pattern that has been set in motion.

My real hope is that the world will come to recognize that there is a hidden order to everything that most are blinded by the appearance of randomness – chaos. We need to understand how everything worked if we are to reconstruct a new form of government after the great collapse of governments post-2032.

NOTHING is RANDOM – That Cannot Exist

Pi Day Contributions


Armstrong Economics Blog/ECM RE-Posted Mar 14, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

COMMENT: Pi Day history compliments —-
On March 14, 1883 KARL MARX MADE HIS MOST IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TO MANKIND . . .
HE DIED.
Happy Pi Day!

SR

REPLY: Also, Albert Einstein was born in Ulm, Germany, on March 14th, 1879.

Real Wages Drop Again as Inflation Continues to Outpace Pay Increases


Posted originally on the CTH on March 14, 2023 | Sundance

Knowing, not predicting – knowing – the Biden economic policies were going to create massive U.S. inflation in the years to follow, in 2021 I pinned a tweet thread to the top of my timeline on the CTH Twitter account that could be used as a reference. [You Can Read Here] Not a single month of statistical data has come in the past two years that was not entirely predictable.  Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) [DATA HERE] is no different.

Inflation is a measure of the change in a price. It is usually presented in terms of a percentage of change. When inflation starts to lessen, what that means is the rate of the price increase slows down. The price is still going up, but at a slower pace.

February prices overall increased 0.4% for the month, putting the current rate of annual inflation at 6.0%.  Meaning prices (on aggregate) are 6% higher than this exact same time last year.

Meanwhile, wages increased 0.2% for the month, and hours worked dropped 0.3% [DATA]. Wages only rising by half the rate of prices, and hours worked dropping, means the net ‘real wages’ declined, yet again, by 0.4%.

Workers are going backwards.

The very real impact on the working class is getting worse.  The blue collar team, who works for a living and does not take Instagram pictures of their lunches, are getting crushed in the Biden economy.  The divide between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ is getting wider.

Put another way, Team MAGA, the entire continuum of normally apolitical working class, is watching the rust growing and feeling the worst part of the Biden economic outcome.  I have often spoken in my immediate circle of influence with the phrase, “financial anxiety is a very real concern the closer you get to the laundromat,” and many people have no idea what that means.

The biggest BS statement of the day goes to CNBC with this sentence:

“Inflation began rising in early 2021 due to a supply-and-demand imbalance. Now, it’s largely fueled by strong demand for labor, economists said.”  (link)

I challenge you to find a more encapsulating pile of horsepucky that represents the financial media era of great pretending.  When I read stuff like this, I begin to think the next great eruption of a violent war is getting even closer, and this war will have nothing to do with nations.

Our current inflation crisis is directly related to the western aligned intentional Build Back Better/Green New Deal, climate change policy decisions that have destroyed energy production and created massive increases in energy costs.  Those costs go everywhere and drive up the unit price of all goods and services.

Nothing about the Biden economic plan, which is really an extension of the collective WEF economic plan, has anything to do with ordinary supply-and-demand imbalances – other than the forced and intentional destruction of oil, coal and natural gas development.

The WEF climate change energy policy is destroying the U.S. economy, creating pain for all U.S. workers and consumers, driving up prices and doing the same thing in every western country that is following it.

Action Alert – List of States Where “Money” Is Being Redefined and Non Govt Issued Cryptocurrency Is Being Banned


Posted originally on the CTH on March 14, 2023 | Sundance 

Last week, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem broadcast a warning on the Tucker Carlson show about a bill that passed her State House and Senate that she was forced to veto because it changed the definition of money and banned non-govt-issued cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. {Broadcast Warning Here}

The bill stems from the generally innocuous Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which Daniel Horowitz describes as, “a set of standards to facilitate interstate sales and commercial transactions such that all definitions pertaining to such commerce are uniform and clearly understood.”  It looks like Horowitz was the first to transmit the public warning, as identified by two members of the South Dakota House Freedom Caucus, and then Kristi Noem became aware – thus the veto.

Governor Noem warned that the bill was already passing through several states, and if you look at the UCC Amendment tracking page [DATA HERE], she is correct.  The states in green on the map below are states where the UCC revision bill has already been introduced.

As Daniel Horowitz notes in his initial warning dated March 2, 2023:

“The revisions to Article I are very clear now that Bitcoin will not be money, because even though the definition provides for electronic money … it says that an asset that is adopted by a government as its medium of exchange will not qualify as money … if the electronic asset, such as Bitcoin, existed before it was adopted by the government. So Bitcoin, of course, exists today; it existed before El Salvador adopted it as its currency … so it will never be money for UCC purposes. The same for other kinds of crypto currencies.” So there you have it. Officials clearly mean to pave the way for CBDC while explicitly barring all competition. (more)

This is obviously alarming.

Additionally, with the timing of this national revision taking place very quietly; and with the failure of SVB and Signature Bank following a few weeks later; and with specific impacts to the cyptocurrency market; one is left wondering if the current bank “failure” and Biden team intervention was not an intentional crisis with a motive to push government controlled central bank digital currencies into the mainstream.

In essence, was the SVB banking collapse, a designed crisis?  And as a result, was the federal government response predetermined and just waiting to be triggered?

When asked last week why her legislature would do this, Noem responded the state politicians likely did not read the bill as it was constructed by lobbyists.  Noem is exactly correct and hits on a subject we have discussed here frequently {GO DEEP}.  However, one of the more alarming aspects to Noem’s discussion of the issue is that around 20 other states are considering similar legislation.  WATCH:

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Speak Up for the Kids!


Posted originally on the CTH on March 14, 2023 

I stumbled across this podcast this morning. Missy Robertson, Kirk Cameron, and Riley Gaines (representing Bethany Hamilton, the surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack) had an appearance at the Hendersonville, Tennessee public library last week. They were to read children’s books they’d written for Brave Books, stories based on faith-based principles.

The staff did everything they could to disrupt the event, and according to Missy, kept the parents and kids in line outside in the freezing rain when they could have formed the lines inside the library.

As Missy says, for the sake of our children, our grandchildren, we must make sure our voices are louder than theirs. I’m quite sure Drag Queens would have been given the red carpet treatment.

At the very least, the must be taught that we will not give up our Constitutional rights and that they, government employees, have no right or ability to restrict them.

Please share, and contact the Hendersonville Library, and the Library Board and commissioners. If you are nearby, perhaps you could even attend, and film. It would be great to hear from some Treepers.