SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Played Like a Bouzouki

We have a deal! 

No really. This time we do have a deal.  Uh, we think.

 

And the cry went forth, and Very Serious People breathed a sigh of relief, the Greek people continued to take their euros out of the banks, and the markets rallied.   Again.

 

In the usual opera buffo, the Greeks accidentally sent the wrong terms last night.   And then sent the correct terms this morning, too late for the powers that be to adequately consider them.  But just in time for the markets to open and for the Western world to celebrate.

 

In the terms it appears that Syriza has put a toe over its 'red line,' causing some to bubble over with calls of premature capitulation.  Huzzah! 

 

It is hard to handicap this kind of game, when you really do not understand the objectives and the nature of it, and use all the wrong sources to discover what is really happening.

 

More likely they disappointed first, brought the markets and the worried ministers to the brink, again, and then gave them terms that were not satisfactory, but much harder to dismiss.

Sometimes their strength is their weakness, and your weakness is your strength, if you know how to play the game.

 

Keep in mind that there is no 'deal' yet, but Greece is wearing down the opposition and fraying their nerves fairly well.  And under duress they may take a deal, get their house in order as best they can, but in the Greek manner, continue the fight from the hills and the islands.

 

After all, when is a default not a default?   If it is delayed a year, involving a larger amount?  Believe me when I say that this dance is still in early days, and the band is still getting warmed up.

 

Life is not so boring these days.  Some day I would like to share some ouzo or grappe with these fellows and have a good talk, share some war stories.  High stake negotiations are always interesting.

 

And in their love of life, Greece is teaching northern Europe to dance.  I am sure that Germany would like to take off their suitcoats and learn.  But not everyone can yet hear the tune clearly.

 

Have a pleasant evening.

 

 

 

The Decision Path For US Equities

These charts show two potential rising wedges on the US stock futures.

They are in a period of uncertainty after the long rally from the bottom of the financial crisis.

Shanghai Gold Exchange Sees Offtake of About 46 Tonnes of Gold For the Week

There were 46.15 tonnes of gold withdrawn from the Shanghai Gold Exchange in the latest week.

This chart is from the data wrangler Nick Laird at sharelynx.com.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Drs. Maleficent and Mabusive, Medieval Economists

Gold and silver saw the usual capping action today, get shoved back to their magnet prices of 1200 and 16 respectively.

As you can see on the calendar below we have a precious metals option expiration on Thursday, June 25th for the July contract.

That option expiry might not be all that meaningful for gold, but it certainly might provoke some action in silver, which has an active July contract.

The stock markets were driven by concerns over Greece today, and to a lesser extent the volatile financial markets in China.

There was also a stock options expiration today, which often drives some 'technical trading.' 

One would have imagined some follow through on the flight to safety bump higher we saw yesterday, but not in The Bucket Shop, these days.

The economic calendar for next week is below. The Q1 GDP third revision is such old news now that I doubt it will have much impact. Durable goods is very volatile, and sometimes used as a cover for stock market shenanigans.

 

Otherwise we will be watching for any new ways that the Scheiße Köpfe aus Scheißekopfstraße and their Wall Street and City colleagues may employ to baffle the world, and to prepare new feasts for their hoards of corporate ghouls and private equity vultures.  

 

One can hardly underestimate the absurdities of this insanely ideological brand of medieval economics and arcane austerity cures.  It is approaching a type of mania, the beating of horses and the burning of cities. Not for any particular good, but because one can, and does not know what else to do.

 

And speaking of lunacies, let us hope that the TPP FastTrack may fail ignobly in the Senate.

 

I have spoken to many people who are finding some of the things that are happening to be difficult to understand, if not incomprehensible. 

 

There is so much that hidden that it is not easy to completely understand, especially with respect to motivations.  But it is possible to at least make some sense of it.

 

To that end there is intraday commentary that offers at least one framework from history for it here.

 

Our concerns in such times of uncertainty are understandable.  But be of good cheer. There is truly nothing new under the sun.

So He rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be still!”

The wind ceased and there was great calm.

Then he turned and asked them, “Why are you terrified?  Do you not yet have faith?”

Have a pleasant weekend.  See you Sunday evening.

 

 

 

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Get Ready

Stocks just could not follow through the short squeeze euphoria yesterday.

Today was the June stock option expiration, often an occasion for antics in the days before and after.

 

Geopolitical concerns, centering around Greece and the China market volatility, have traders taking profits and cover for the weekend.

 

This market is a bit dodgy for all the reasons I have outlined for the past couple of weeks.

 

Things could get interesting quickly if anything goes amiss. 

 

Have a pleasant weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Debt, War and Empire By Other Means

This video below may help one to understand some of the seemingly obtuse demands from the Troika with regard to Greece.

The video is a bit dated, but the debt scheme it describes remains largely unchanged. The primary development has been the creation of an experiment called the European Union and the character of the targets.   One might also look to the wars of 'preventative intervention' and 'colour revolutions' that raise up puppet regimes for examples of more contemporary economic spoliation.

From largely small and Third World countries, the candidates for debt peonage have become the smaller amongst the developed Western countries, the most vulnerable on the periphery.  

And even the domestic populations of the monetary powers, the US, Germany, and the UK, are now feeling the sting of financialisation, debt imposition through crises, and austerity.   What used to only take place in South America and Africa has now taken place in Jefferson County Alabama.  Corrupt officials burden taxpayers with unsustainable amounts of debt for unproductive, grossly overpriced projects. 

It would be wrong in these instances to blame the whole country,  the whole government, or all corporations, except perhaps for sleepwalking, and sometimes willfully, towards the abyss.  For the most part a relatively small band of scheming and devious fellows abuse and corrupt every form of government and organization and law in order to achieve their private ambitions, often using various forms of intimidation and reward.  It is an old, old story.

And then there is the mass looting enabled by the most recent financial crisis and Bank bailouts.  If the people will not take on the chains of debt willingly, you impose them indirectly, while giving the funds to your cronies who use them against the very people who are bearing the burdens, while lecturing them on moral values and thrift.  It is an exceptionally diabolical con game.

The TPP and TTIP are integral initiatives in this effort of extending financial obligations, debt, and control.  You might ask yourself why the House Republicans, who have fought the current President at every turn, blocking nominees and repeatedly staging mock votes to denounce a healthcare plan that originated in their own think tank and was first implemented by their own presidential candidate, are suddenly championing that President's highest profile legislation, and against the opposition of his own party?  Where did that come from?

The next step, after Greece is subdued, will be to extend that model to other, larger countries.  And to redouble the austerity at home under cover of the next financial crisis by eliminating cash as a safe haven, and to begin the steady stream of digital 'bailing-in.'   They will not even have to ask, as if it mattered.

This is why these corporatists and statists hate gold and silver.  And why it is at the focal point of a currency war.  It provides a counterweight to their monetary power.  It speaks unpleasant truths. It is a safe haven and alternative, along with other attempts to supplant the IMF and the World Bank, for the rest of the world.

So when you say, the Philippines deserved it, Iceland deserved it, Ireland deserved it, Africa deserves it, Jefferson County deserved it, Detroit deserved it, and now Greece deserves it, just keep in mind that some day soon they will be saying that you deserve it, because you stood by and did nothing.

When they are done with all the others, for whom do you think they come next?   If you wish to see injustice stopped, if you wish to live up to the pledge of 'never again,' then you must stand for your fellows who are more vulnerable first.

The economic hitmen have honed their skills amongst the poor and relatively defenseless, and have been coming closer to home in search of new hunting grounds and fatter spoils.  There is nothing 'new' or 'modern' about this.  The only thing that changes are the names for it.

This is as old as Babylon, and evil as sin.  It is the power of darkness of the world, and of spiritual wickedness in high places.   The difference is that it is not happening in the past, or in a book, it is happening here and now.

"Economic powers continue to justify the current global system where priority tends to be given to speculation and the pursuit of financial gain. As a result, whatever is fragile, like the environment, is defenseless before the interests of the deified market, which becomes the only rule."

Francis I, Laudato Si

You may also find some information about the contemporary applications of these methods in The IMF's 'Tough Choices' On Greece by Jamie Galbraith which I highly recommend.

"Plunderers of the world, when nothing remains on the lands to which they have laid waste by wanton thievery, they search out across the seas. The wealth of another region excites their greed; and if it is weak, their lust for power as well. Nothing from the rising to the setting of the sun is enough for them. Among all others only they are compelled to attack the poor as well as the rich. Robbery, rape, and slaughter they falsely call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace."

Tacitus, Agricola