Burrito Now, Pay Later: DoorDash - Klarna Deal Feeds US Debt Addiction
Burrito Now, Pay Later: DoorDash - Klarna Deal Feeds US Debt Addiction
We've reported on many indications of a faltering US economy being propped up by debt, but our latest entry is particularly emphatic: DoorDash has inked a deal with Klarna that will let cash-strapped consumers pay for restaurant food, groceries and other delivery orders in four equal, interest-free installments, or "https://about.doordash.com/en-us/news/doordash-partners-with-klarna
, such as a date that aligns with their paycheck schedules."
Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) arrangements have surged in recent years. However, what began as a reasonable accommodation for large purchases like appliances and furniture has now metastasized to a point where Americans can finance Friday-night-pizza impulse-buys.
?itok=07Z3uhut
Klarna derives more than 60% of its revenue from fees paid by merchants who offer the financing option to their customers, with those fees potentially ranging from https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/21/business/doordash-klarna-buy-now-pay-later-partnership/index.html
of the purchase price. With some merchants, Klarna and other BNPL-facilitators also earn interest on long-term credit plans stretching out to upwards of 36 months.
However, Klarna also has a chance to earn money from consumers who take the interest-free, four-equal-installments plan -- in the form of https://www.tekrevol.com/blogs/how-does-the-klarna-app-make-money-app/
, up to 25% of the purchase price. For the financially disorganized or imminently insolvent, the interest-free option could prove to be a siren song that leaves their cash flow dashed against the metaphoric rocks of unexpectedly expensive burritos and Kung Pao chicken.
what do you mean you have $11k in "doordash debt" https://t.co/pu1h8GqdZg
— adam 🇺🇸 (@personofswag) https://twitter.com/personofswag/status/1902815645777138081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Even for those who make timely payments, the interest-free option can have a destructive effect over time, by encouraging consumers to commit to spending more money than they would in the absence of the appealing, "interest-free" enticement. Indeed, that's one of the essential attractions for DoorDash and other merchants who choose to partner with the likes of Klarna:
According to research from https://www.rbccm.com/en/insights/tech-and-innovation/episode/2021-outlook-massive-shift-in-e-commerce-spend
“The problem is these things start having a very pervasive and very negative influence on people who can’t afford it,” Anish Nagpal, an University of Melbourne marketing professor who studies behavioral decision-making, told the https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/03/21/doordash-klarna-buy-now-pay-later/
. “They just want something now, and they go into this spiral of debt and always trying to chase up and meet the payment requirement.”
In 20 years democrats will be campaigning on DoorDash loan forgiveness
— Dr. Richard Harambe (@Richard_Harambe) https://twitter.com/Richard_Harambe/status/1903177359211032679?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Naturally, Klarna Chief Commercial Officer David Sykes https://about.doordash.com/en-us/news/doordash-partners-with-klarna
on things:
“Our partnership with DoorDash marks an important milestone in Klarna’s expansion into everyday spending categories. By offering smarter, more flexible payment solutions for groceries, takeout, and retail essentials, we’re making convenience even more accessible for millions of Americans.”
We must ask: Is it ever "smarter" to finance a sandwich?
News of the DealDash BNPL arrangement comes against a backdrop of steadily rising consumer debt and signs that Americans are increasingly unable to keep up with their obligations. The New York Fed's latest https://www.newyorkfed.org/newsevents/news/research/2025/20250213
found that total household debt increased by $93 billion in 2024's fourth quarter, pushing the total over $18 trillion. Warning lights are flashing:
The share of subprime auto borrowers at least 60 days past due hit 6.56% in January, https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/bidenomics-hangover-worsens-subprime-auto-loan-delinquencies-hit-record-high-january
in 1994.
The percentage of credit card holders making only the minimum payment hit 10.75% in Q4 2024, https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/22/minimum-payments-on-credit-cards-hit-record-level-as-delinquencies-also-rise.html
in a Philly Fed data series that goes back to 2012.
?itok=PljBGgyl
The share of 30-day-delinquent credit-card balances hit 3.52%, https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/22/minimum-payments-on-credit-cards-hit-record-level-as-delinquencies-also-rise.html
reached in Q2 2021.
After the Doordash-Klarna news broke, social media memesters had an absolute field day:
So then they securitized all the DoorDash loans and sliced them into tranches to sell off to the banks
Rating agencies were slapping AAA on Chick-fil-A orders for credit scores under 500 who didn’t leave a tip https://t.co/sa3YKIqLhw
— Max Gagliardi (@max_gagliardi) https://twitter.com/max_gagliardi/status/1902943104602189935?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
John, the name of the company is DoorDash. Through a partnership with Klarna, they’ve just unlocked interest-free structured liquidity for high-frequency sustenance transactions. You can finance a carne asada burrito over 4 easy payments, or even defer the charge until payday. https://t.co/VUFounWDTq
— Adam Singer (@AdamSinger) https://twitter.com/AdamSinger/status/1902805429224448438?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
how i walk up to my doordash driver after tipping $0 on the 18 McGriddles i just financed https://t.co/u4ZyZSN0gZ
— Frosty ❄ (@I_Frosty_) https://twitter.com/I_Frosty_/status/1902876406410858550?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
"so you financed a $5.29 McChicken on DoorDash but still remain bullish on the economy?" https://t.co/c57aVqbVC0
— Boring_Business (@BoringBiz_) https://twitter.com/BoringBiz_/status/1902928107847213172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
“They’re called DoorDash Default Swaps.” https://t.co/rX5ZDGfIEa
— Multifamily Madness (@MultifamilyMad) https://twitter.com/MultifamilyMad/status/1903197245589082480?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
“So we take these DoorDash loans, combine them, and create a whole new instrument where investors can bet on whether borrowers will pay off their Taco Bell Crunch Wrap Supreme within 12 months” https://t.co/cwU484agrg
— Dr. Parik Patel, BA, CFA, ACCA Esq. (@ParikPatelCFA) https://twitter.com/ParikPatelCFA/status/1902843222977867835?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
DoorDash debt collection outside your door because you missed a Chipotle payment https://t.co/pJdr2frU5u
— Archer, Leader of the Gorgonites (@RollxTidexTee) https://twitter.com/RollxTidexTee/status/1902752117779042700?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
the year is 2038 and you owe $50,000 of burrito debt to doordash but you can pay it all off by living in mr beasts minivan for 80 days
— Zack Voell (@zackvoell) https://twitter.com/zackvoell/status/1902922945351069795?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
You are telling me these loans are backed by consumers who ordered burritos on DoorDash? https://t.co/hU76On8Y5N
— Boring_Business (@BoringBiz_) https://twitter.com/BoringBiz_/status/1903067850522186039?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Me tipping the DoorDash driver $150 cuz it's on Klarna's tab https://t.co/oo05X2sHWM
— Phella (@iamphella) https://twitter.com/iamphella/status/1902775668057776161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The delivery guy watching me sign a 6-year financing deal for my double cheeseburger https://t.co/03KtqAylj0
— piet (@piet_dev) https://twitter.com/piet_dev/status/1903099122149724626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
"What do you mean your orders? We're talking about one DoorDash order, aren't we?"
"I had three. A burger from Five Guys, fries from McDonalds, and a 20 ounce Slurpee from 7/11." https://t.co/kuDJj6NazJ
— the prince with a thousand enemies ♂️ (@jaketropolis) https://twitter.com/jaketropolis/status/1902810109736259772?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
"Alright, so DoorDash makes money whenever any of you orders food instead of cooking. But the problem is, some of you are so broke, you can’t even afford that. You don’t have $15 for a burrito. Which, obviously, means you should just not get the burrito, right?" https://t.co/PCUfJVSJuZ
— Poe's Law, Esq: Poe's Lawyer (@dyingscribe) https://twitter.com/dyingscribe/status/1902893397037191336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Excited to announce that I closed on a $31.38 transaction to secure a burrito and side of chips
20-year senior fixed rate financing was provided by Klarna
DoorDash provided delivery of the asset
Congratulations to all involved https://t.co/u0DPMHlS8K
— Chase Passive Income (@chasedownleads) https://twitter.com/chasedownleads/status/1902785526186307734?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Sat, 03/22/2025 - 15:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/burrito-now-pay-later-doordash-klarna-deal-feeds-us-debt-addiction
Anti-MAGA Law Firm Pledges $40M To Pro-Trump Causes To Avoid Security Clearance Suspensions
Anti-MAGA Law Firm Pledges $40M To Pro-Trump Causes To Avoid Security Clearance Suspensions
(emphasis ours),
President Donald Trump is withdrawing an executive order targeting New York-based law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison (Paul Weiss) after it agreed to review its hiring practices and provide tens of millions of dollars in free legal services to support some of his administration’s initiatives.
?itok=JcfbnpL7
The March. 14 order suspended security clearances for Paul Weiss lawyers and restricted their access to government buildings and officials, citing the firm’s diversity policies. It also directed federal agencies to take steps to cancel U.S. government contracts “for which Paul Weiss has been hired to perform any service.”
Trump confirmed the withdrawal of the order in a March 20 https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114197044617921519
on the social media platform Truth Social.
The decision followed Trump’s meeting with the law firm’s chairman, Brad Karp, “during which Mr. Karp acknowledged the wrongdoing of former Paul, Weiss partner, Mark Pomerantz, the grave dangers of Weaponization, and the vital need to restore our System of Justice,” according to the statement.
No further details were provided regarding the alleged wrongdoing.
According to the statement, the law firm has agreed to dedicate the equivalent of $40 million in pro bono legal services over the course of Trump’s term “to support the Administration’s initiatives,” including assisting veterans and the president’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, among other projects.
It also affirmed its commitment to merit-based hiring, promotion, and retention, and will not adopt, use, or pursue any diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, the statement said.
“As part of its commitment, it will engage experts, to be mutually agreed upon within 14 days, to conduct a comprehensive audit of all of its employment practices,” the statement said.
Paul Weiss also agreed that “the bedrock principle of American Justice is that it must be fair and nonpartisan for all,” the statement read.
It added that Paul Weiss affirms its “unwavering commitment to these core ideals and principles,” and “will not deny representation to clients, including in pro bono matters and in support of non-profits, because of the personal political views of individual lawyers.”
In response to Trump’s decision to withdraw the executive order, Karp said the firm was “gratified” and is looking forward to “an engaged and constructive relationship with the President and his Administration.”
Trump’s March 14 https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/addressing-risks-from-paul-weiss/
also targeted Paul Weiss’s hiring of attorney Mark Pomerantz in 2022, a former partner of the law firm who left to work in the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
During his time at the district attorney’s office, Pomerantz was involved in an investigation into Trump’s alleged payments to Stephanie Clifford, better known as adult performer Stormy Daniels.
Pomerantz said in a statement that he “engaged in no wrongdoing by working as a prosecutor to uphold the rule of law.”
Trump’s order also mentioned a Paul Weiss partner and former leading prosecutor in the office of special counsel Robert Mueller who brought a pro bono lawsuit against individuals alleged to have participated in the Jan. 6, 2021 breach, of the U.S. Capitol, on behalf of the District of Columbia attorney general.
“My Administration has already taken action to address some of the significant risks and egregious conduct associated with law firms, and I have determined that similar action is necessary to end Government sponsorship of harmful activity by an additional law firm: Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (Paul Weiss),” Trump wrote.
In recent weeks, Trump also signed a presidential memorandum targeting law firm https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/suspension-of-security-clearances-and-evaluation-of-government-contracts/
. In response, Perkins Coie sued the administration in federal court in Washington last week.
A federal judge has temporarily blocked the administration from enforcing portions of the order on Perkins Coie, finding the law firm was likely to win its lawsuit alleging Trump’s actions violated the firm’s rights under the U.S. Constitution.
The Epoch Times reached out to Paul Weiss, Covington & Burling, and Perkins Coie for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Sat, 03/22/2025 - 15:10
Hundreds Of Anti-Erdogan Protesters Arrested Overnight As Crisis Slides: 'Fight About Democracy'
Hundreds Of Anti-Erdogan Protesters Arrested Overnight As Crisis Slides: 'Fight About Democracy'
Turkish police have detained 343 people during overnight protests in several cities against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the Interior Ministry https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-detains-343-people-over-protests-against-istanbul-mayors-detention-2025-03-22/
Saturday.
Demonstrations took place across the country, including in Istanbul and the capital Ankara, the ministry said in a statement. It said the detentions were made to prevent "disrupting of public order" and warned that authorities would not tolerate "chaos and provocation."
?itok=lrvc88Zo
The Republican People's Party (CHP), of which Imamoglu is a member, said the detentions were politically motivated and urged supporters to demonstrate lawfully. The protests are the biggest in Turkey since the massive demonstrations of 2013 to protest the demolition of Istanbul's Gezi Park, Kurdistan 24 https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/story/831165
.
"There is a great anger. People are spontaneously taking to the streets. Some young people are being politicized for the first time in their lives," said Yuksel Taskin, a lawmaker from the CHP.
"The feeling of being trapped -- economically, socially, politically, and even culturally -- was already widespread," journalist and author Kemal Can told AFP.
The protests began on March 19 after Mayor Imamoglu was detained at his home that morning on terrorism and corruption charges. "I see today during my interrogation that I and my colleagues are faced with unimaginable accusations and slanders," Imamoglu said in his defense during a counter-terrorism police interrogation, a court document viewed by Reuters https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/istanbul-mayor-imamoglu-denies-terrorism-charges-court-document-shows-2025-03-22/
🟡 HAPPENING NOW: Scenes show the massive scale of ongoing protests across Turkey, now entering their third consecutive day.
Demonstrations continue to spread nationwide, as police respond with tear gas, water cannons, and pepper spray in multiple cities. https://t.co/0tpG8tpJvG
— red. (@redstreamnet) https://twitter.com/redstreamnet/status/1903193649749561802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Imamoglu is considered a prominent rival to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He was set to run for his party's presidential primary on 23 March – during which he was expected to be chosen as the CHP candidate for future presidential elections scheduled for 2028.
According to the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office, https://thecradle.co/articles/turkish-authorities-detain-istanbul-mayor-on-terrorism-corruption-charges
and others have been accused of "running a criminal organization, membership of a criminal organization, corruption, bribery, fraud, illegally obtaining personal data, and corruption in a public tender."
He has also been accused of "aiding" the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) – outlawed in Turkiye – by participating in an "urban consensus initiative" aimed at bolstering the Kurdish group's influence in last year's local elections.
Imamoglu's arrest came a day after Istanbul University nullified his diploma, making him ineligible to run in elections under Turkish law.
Anti-riot measures being deployed by police. The Guardian has said it is https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/22/turkey-protests-istanbul-mayor-grow-into-fight-about-democracy
"fight about democracy"...
🟡 BREAKING: Protesters are pushing back riot police and water cannons in Ankara amid massive anti-government protests across Turkey. https://t.co/OvberI0gGu
— red. (@redstreamnet) https://twitter.com/redstreamnet/status/1903184896148820293?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Since the detention, Ankara has identified hundreds of X accounts and detained 37 social media users for "provocative posts inciting crime and hatred," Turkiye's Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Thursday.
"Efforts to catch the other suspects are ongoing," the minister added. Restrictions have been imposed on several social media platforms.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Sat, 03/22/2025 - 14:00
Macron Unveils Major Nuclear Expansion By 2035
Macron Unveils Major Nuclear Expansion By 2035
France has talked a big, hawkish anti-Russia game of late, but this week President Macron has actually backed up the rhetoric with action, but which brings Europe another step closer to nuclear escalation with Moscow.
France unveiled earlier this week plans to establish a new nuclear-capable air base, which will be its fourth, also to be home to two squadrons of the latest version of its domestic-made Dassault Rafale multirole fighter.
?itok=K_Hb5pqj
France plans to invest around 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) to establish the new nuke-capable installation. A moment, the three air bases equipped with secure weapons storage for nuclear missiles are: Saint-Dizier, Istres, and Avord.
Speaking of the location of what will become the next base to play nuclear host, Macron said, "The Luxeuil air base is about to be upgraded in an unprecedented way and regain its full role in France's nuclear deterrent," describing that it will need "massive investment" to be modernized.
"Announcing the storage of modern nuclear missiles on an air base less than 200 kilometers from the German border is strategic signaling," https://www.politico.eu/article/france-will-reopen-fourth-nuclear-air-base/
has commented. "It also comes after Germany's chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz said he wanted to hold talks about France's nuclear deterrent as fears grow of a U.S. retreat from the continent."
"If we are to avoid war, our country and our continent must continue to defend, equip and prepare themselves," Macron said.
Storing ASN4G air-launched hypersonic nuclear missiles there will require the permanent staff to double to at least 2,000 people. The French President set a bar of preparing Luxeuil to host an expansion of next-generation Rafale fighter jets and their hypersonic nuclear missiles by the year 2035.
The double-engine Rafale is capable of flying supersonic speeds and can depart runways as short as 400 meters. Produced by Dassault Aviation, it has been a central fighter of the French Air Force since 2000.
?itok=9mZTfmcv
Macron has recently floated the idea of France extending its nuclear deterrent to all of Europe, amid fears in NATO that the US under Trump is retreating from its leadership role, also as Washington holds direct talks with Moscow.
France remains the only nuclear power in the European Union, and it possesses some 290 nuclear warheads - according to media estimates - which is why Russian leaders have slammed all of Macron's latest comments as "extremely confrontational".
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Sat, 03/22/2025 - 08:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/macron-unveils-major-nuclear-expansion-2035
Boeing Will Build US Air Force's Next-Gen Stealth Fighter Jet, Trump Announces
Boeing Will Build US Air Force's Next-Gen Stealth Fighter Jet, Trump Announces
President Trump on Friday announced that the U.S. Air Force had awarded Boeing a contract to develop the U.S. Air Force’s next-generation fighter jet.
?itok=rO87SMH5
Trump said this new fighter jet will be designated the F-47.
“After a rigorous and thorough competition between some of America’s top aerospace companies, the Air Force is going to be awarding the contract for the next generation air dominance platform to Boeing,” Trump said in an announcement from the White House on March 21.
The president said an experimental version of Boeing’s F-47 airframe has been flying in secret for nearly five years.
“And we’re confident that it massively overpowers the capabilities of any other nation,” he said.
The Air Force’s effort to build a new fighter jet, known as the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF12805
, calls for an aircraft that has advanced new propulsion and stealth capabilities. The Air Force has envisioned an advanced manned aircraft that could be paired with stealthy fighter drones being developed in a parallel effort known as the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program.
🇺🇸 TRUMP UNVEILS 6TH-GEN FIGHTER: “MOST LETHAL AIRCRAFT EVER BUILT”
Trump and Defense Secretary Hegseth announced Boeing will produce the F47 — America’s first 6th generation fighter jet.
“The F47 will be the most advanced, most capable, most lethal aircraft ever built.”
They… https://t.co/5FWX5vy97A
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) https://twitter.com/MarioNawfal/status/1903119410753310811?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
NGAD has been in development since at least 2014 but has been on hold since the summer of 2024 amid concerns about the service’s budget for new weapons programs.
In a sign that NGAD was making new progress, the Air Force announced earlier this month that it had assigned fighter aircraft designations to two separate prototype drones being developed for the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program.
The prototype drones, developed by General Atomics and Anduril Industries, are the first U.S. drone airframes ever to bear fighter designations and are currently projected to begin flight testing this summer.
“This is a historic investment in the American military, in the American industrial base, in American industry, that will help revive the warrior ethos inside our military,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said as he joined Trump in the Oval Office for the contract announcement.
Friday’s contract announcement comes as a boon for Boeing, which has faced recent worker strikes and operational challenges.
?itok=D0LJRKJ7
The aerospace and defense company has faced https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/whistleblower-attorney-says-lawsuit-against-boeing-can-continue-despite-death-of-plaintiff-5607005
operating the Boeing Starliner spacecraft during a recent space mission.
The deal is also a blow to Lockheed Martin, the other competitor and maker of the high-profile F-35.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Fri, 03/21/2025 - 14:05
Katz Threatens To Annex Territory In Gaza, Implement Trump's 'Voluntary Migration' Plan
Katz Threatens To Annex Territory In Gaza, Implement Trump's 'Voluntary Migration' Plan
After days of a renewed aerial and (more recently) ground forces campaign in the Gaza Strip, which has already killed a reported nearly 600 Palestinians, Israel's defense chief has warned Hamas that if it doesn't immediately return the hostages the IDF military will beginning annexing the Gaza Strip.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Friday that the Israel Defense Forces https://www.ft.com/content/f31073b8-694a-43c0-b262-ebda774e3946
"seize additional territories [in Gaza], while evacuating the population" if Hamas doesn't sign on to revised terms of a hostage-for-ceasefire deal. "The more Hamas continues its refusal, the more territory it will lose and be annexed to Israel," Katz warned. He said it would start through the expansion of border "security zones" in order to bring them under "permanent Israeli control."
?itok=T34ixTXT
Katz is demanding for the first time that Hamas "release all the hostages, both living and dead, in advance and in two stages, with a ceasefire in between."
Hamas has blamed Israeli side for pulling out of the ceasefire which had been on for two months since January, before it was supposed to enter a phase two, with a path to permanent peace. The Israelis have grown impatient.
Crucially, Katz has referenced Trump's Gaza mass expulsion plan in announcing the potential for military annexation. He said the IDF will "intensify" operations against Hamas and use "all military and civilian pressure, including evacuation of the Gaza population south and implementing United States President Trump’s voluntary migration plan for Gaza residents."
The army has been instructed "to seize additional areas in Gaza, evacuate the population, and expand security zones around Gaza to protect Israeli communities and [Israeli army] soldiers," the defense chief was https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/21/israeli-forces-conduct-ground-operations-air-strikes-across-gaza-strip
in local media as saying further.
"The more Hamas persists in its refusal to release the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed to Israel," he warned.
It looks like Israeli leaders are seizing the opportunity and initiative to push Palestinians out in the wake of Trump's previous comments on turning the enclave into the "Riviera of the Middle East".
But the administration has been somewhat quiet on the ultra-controversial plan of late, with Trump telling reporters most recently that "nobody is expelling any Palestinians" in response to a question on whether he still stands by his remarks which were tantamount to calling for ethnic cleansing of the enclave. "We’re working hard with Israel… to see [how] we can solve the problem," Trump had explained in the mid-March exchange.
The White House position on Gazans being expelled to other countries is based on the prior explanation that "Gaza is currently uninhabitable and residents cannot humanely live in a territory covered in debris and unexploded ordnance," in the earlier words of US National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes.
But even many Republicans see the plan as completely unrealistic and absurd, given that for starters it would ensure years more of brutal war, and the likelihood that conflict would spiral over into other Arab countries.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Fri, 03/21/2025 - 10:00
Futures Drop Ahead Of $4.7 Trillion OpEx As Dismal Earnings Sour Sentiment
Futures Drop Ahead Of $4.7 Trillion OpEx As Dismal Earnings Sour Sentiment
US equity futures are lower, as are European and Asian markets, with sentiment after the latest batch of earnings after yesterday’s close were mostly mixed or negative (particularly Fedex and Nike, both of which guided lower again). S&P500 futs are down 0.2%, off session lows, with the index facing an additional test on Friday in the form of a huge option expiration quad-witching. Nasdaq futures dropped 0.3% with all Lag 7 names lower led by NVDA -1.2%, and TSLA -0.7%. Micron reversed an earlier gain after reporting earnings after hours and was down 3%-premarket amid margin weakness. 10Y Treasury yields are down 4bps while the dollar reversed an earlier gain. In commodities, oil markets are already feeling the effect of the first effort to target a vast private processing industry, with traders preparing for significant disruption after Washington’s move to sanction a Chinese refiner over its Iranian links. London’s Heathrow airport will be closed all day Friday and service interruptions are likely to continue for days after a nearby fire cut power to the hub and brought travel to a standstill. Today, the macro data calendar is largely quiet, with eyes on any additional headlines from the White House.
?itok=GkIyBVZ_
In premarket trading, TSLA stock was down even as Elon Musk sought to reassure Tesla employees that despite “rocky moments,” they should “hang onto” their stock. Other Mag 7 names were also mostly lower (Alphabet -0.2%, Amazon -0.2%, Apple -0.7%, Microsoft -0.2%, Meta +0.2%, Nvidia -0.7% and Tesla -0.1%). Nike tumbled 6% as the company signaled further declines in revenue and profitability due to an ongoing merchandise reset and the impact of US tariffs on products from China and Mexico. FedEx was just as ugly, sliding 7% after the parcel delivery company lowered its full-year guidance for a third consecutive quarter, citing inflation and uncertain demand for shipments. Here are some other notable premarket movers:
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALNY) gains 5% after the company won expanded approval for a heart drug that could be the biggest boon yet for the 23-year-old biotech and put it in competition with Pfizer Inc.
Lennar Corp. (LEN) declines 4% after the homebuilder’s margin guidance came in below expectations amid a challenging US housing market.
Lockheed Martin (LMT) inches 2% higher after Bloomberg reported the White House is poised to announce on Friday the winner of its contest to build the next-generation fighter jet, choosing between the aerospace giant and peer Boeing.
Luminar (LAZR) climbs 8% after the automotive technology company reported revenue for the fourth quarter that beat the average analyst estimate.
Nio Inc. (NIO) ADRs slip 4% after the Chinese electric vehicle maker now expects to deliver only as many as 43,000 cars in the three months that will end March 31; that’s short of the around 65,000 units the market was looking for.
Ouster Inc. (OUST) rises 5% after the maker of sensors used in robotics posted 4Q revenue that increased 23% from the year-ago period and beat estimates.
Planet Labs (PL) slides 9% after the Earth imaging company’s revenue outlook disappointed.
The S&P 500 is up slightly this week, following four weeks of losses. As https://cms.zerohedge.com/markets/47-trillion-opex-looms-liberation-day-fear-trumps-gamma-greed
, stocks face a big test today in the form of another massive quad-witching , an event that can stoke volatility as options contracts worth $4.7 trillion head for expiry, including $2.8 trillion of S&P index and $645 billion of single stock options. Goldman doesn't see the gamma picture getting meaningfully better as we continue to be well below most call overwriting strikes. Interesting to note that since the close on March 10, S&P is up 48pts, but VIX spot is down more than 8pts. This demonstrates the vol destruction the past week, even as the market itself has not recovered much. Further, we have seen fixed strike vol compression every day this week as vol supply has not let up for even 1 day
?itok=3SoaVaZe
Not helping matters was the latest batch of dour earnings from FDX and NKE which added to concerns over a worsening global economic outlook, especially ahead of Trump’s April 2 deadline for a series of broad reciprocal tariffs. While the Federal Reserve has indicated it sees room to cut interest rates, many economists fear the inflationary impact of tariffs will hinder central banks from delivering support to slowing economies.
“The Fed revised their growth forecast lower earlier this week, so the whole street is moving their forecast lower. But they could have further to go,” said Michael Metcalfe, head of macro strategy at State Street Global Markets. “We just need to see whether what we’ve seen so far this year is the start of something more serious in terms of slow growth.”
Despite the challenges, investors haven’t entirely given up on equities with US stock funds enjoying the largest weekly inflows this year on a view that the trade war won’t derail the economy or equity market, BofA's Michael Hartnett said.
Meanwhile, the Turkish lira headed for its biggest weekly crash in nearly two years, shrugging off an emergency rate increase in the face of mounting political tensions. Istanbul stocks were halted again, after plunging as much as 7%, having shed $30 billion in value this week.
European stocks decline, with the Stoxx 600 down 0.7%. Regional airline stocks underperform after London’s Heathrow airport was shuttered by a major fire nearby. Here are some of the biggest movers on Friday:
Asos shares jump as much as 25%, their best day in nearly five years, after the online fashion retailer reiterated it expects a “significant improvement” in profitability in the first half.
Energean shares rise as much as 5.8% after the oil and gas company said it has terminated a deal to sell natural gas assets to a unit of Carlyle Group.
Tele2 shares gain as much as 3.4%, the most since January, after the Swedish telecommunications firm was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
IAG shares fall as much as 4.3% after British Airways hub Heathrow Airport was forced to close all day Friday after a nearby fire caused a power outage.
Douglas shares fall as much as 23.5%, the most ever and to a record low, after the German beauty product retailer issued a profit warning.
Wetherspoon shares slide as much as 12%, hitting a two-year low, after Shore Capital said it expects consensus estimates to fall after the pub chain’s results came in softer than anticipated in the first half.
Amadeus Fire shares plunge as much as 13% after the German recruiter said it expects a significant fall in profit this year as the economic environment continues to deteriorate
Ceres Power shares fall as much as 13% after the British fuel-cell technology company reported revenue that came in short of expectations and a guidance for 2025 that suggests no major commercial developments near term, according to RBC
Polish Banks fall after Poland’s EU Funds Minister Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz, member of junior coalition party, floated the idea of windfall tax for banks amid the industry’s record profit
Earlier in the session, Asian stocks fell as a selloff in Chinese shares extended amid a lack of catalysts, while traders braced for US President Donald Trump’s upcoming tariffs. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined as much as 0.7%, with Alibaba and TSMC among the biggest drags. Benchmarks in Taiwan, mainland China and Hong Kong declined, while South Korea gained. MSCI’s regional gauge is still headed for a nearly 2% advance this week. Chinese shares in Hong Kong posted their biggest two-day drop since October as traders digested earnings and awaited further policy catalysts.
“With the ‘Two Sessions’ now behind us, market attention has shifted to looming tariff risks set to take effect in less than two weeks, which may prompt investors to adjust their positioning amid the uncertainty,” said Jun Rong Yeap, market strategist at IG Asia.
In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2% but was off session highs. The yen reversed a 0.3% drop against the greenback and was now higher. The pound and the euro lose 0.2% each. Spot gold drops $13 to around $3,032/oz.
In rates, treasuries inch higher, pushing US 10-year yields down about 2 bps to 4.22%. Euro-area government bonds also advance with traders now pricing in two more quarter-point European Central Bank reductions this year. Gilts fall, underperforming peers across the curve, after UK government borrowing topped estimates in February. UK 10-year yields rise 4 bps to 4.69%.
In commodities, European natural gas futures rise over 2% after an attack on a pumping station in Russia’s Kursk region. Oil prices dip, with WTI down 0.4% near $67.81 a barrel. Gold held near record highs, as several banks raised their price forecasts for the haven asset. Gold funds have seen the biggest four-week inflow ever, the BofA data showed.
Looking to the day ahead, data releases include the UK GfK consumer confidence for March whilst in France there’s the manufacturing confidence for March and retail sales for February. Additionally, Eurozone consumer confidence for March and Italy’s current account balance for January will also be published. Outside of the Eurozone, we have Canada retail sales for January. Otherwise from central banks, we’ll hear from the Fed’s Williams and the ECB’s Escriva.
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 futures down 0.4% to 5,638.25
STOXX Europe 600 down 0.9% to 548.14
MXAP down 0.5% to 188.95
MXAPJ down 0.8% to 588.93
Nikkei down 0.2% to 37,677.06
Topix up 0.3% to 2,804.16
Hang Seng Index down 2.2% to 23,689.72
Shanghai Composite down 1.3% to 3,364.83
Sensex up 0.6% to 76,786.38
Australia S&P/ASX 200 up 0.2% to 7,931.23
Kospi up 0.2% to 2,643.13
German 10Y yield little changed at 2.76%
Euro down 0.2% to $1.0825
Brent Futures up 0.2% to $72.14/bbl
Gold spot down 0.4% to $3,031.74
US Dollar Index up 0.21% to 104.07
Top Overnight News
Britain's Heathrow Airport was shut on Friday after a huge fire at a nearby substation knocked out its power, stranding passengers around the world and angering airlines who questioned how such crucial infrastructure could collapse
Germany’s new era of big spending is pulling up borrowing costs across Europe, reigniting jitters around fiscal stability on the continent’s periphery.
Trump posted "Egg prices are WAY DOWN from the Biden inspired prices if just a few weeks ago. “Groceries” and Gasoline are down, also. Now, if the Fed would do the right thing and lower interest rates, that would be great!!!"
Trump posted "Unlawful Nationwide Injunctions by Radical Left Judges could very well lead to the destruction of our Country!... STOP NATIONWIDE INJUNCTIONS NOW, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE".
Trump and Defense Secretary Hegseth are to deliver remarks from the Oval Office today at 11:00EDT/15:00GMT, according to the White House.
President Trump denied a report that the Pentagon was going to brief Elon Musk about the US military's plan for any war with China.
Elon Musk sought to reassure Tesla Inc. employees during what he referred to as “a little bit of stormy weather,” after the carmaker’s shares plunged more than 50% in just three months.
White House has commenced a review of Federal Agency plans for a 2nd round of mass layoffs: RTRS
The Israeli cabinet voted early on Friday to dismiss the head of the Shin Bet domestic intelligence service effective April 10, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said, after three days of protests against the move.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves is set to overshoot her borrowing forecasts significantly for the current fiscal year, highlighting the fragile state of the UK’s public finances ahead of a key economic statement next week.
Germany’s move to unlock hundreds of billions of euros in debt-financed defense and infrastructure spending passed its final legislative hurdle on Friday when lawmakers in the upper house of parliament in Berlin approved the measures.
The financial industry is abandoning caution and chasing the rally in European stocks, hiking their targets and looking to the upside.
President Xi Jinping’s government is set to welcome a US senator close to Donald Trump for talks in China, as the world’s largest economies try to move forward trade negotiations that have stalled at lower levels.
China’s imports of US cotton, cars and some energy products all plunged in the first two months of the year after President Donald Trump started imposing tariffs and Beijing retaliated. In a prelude to what could be widespread disruption to global trade, Chinese purchases of cotton fell almost 80% from a year earlier, according to Bloomberg analysis of data released Thursday. Imports of large-engined cars were down nearly 70%, while purchases of crude oil and liquefied natural gas dropped more than 40%.
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks ultimately traded mixed following the choppy performance stateside in the aftermath of the Super Thursday deluge of central bank announcements and ahead of quad witching. ASX 200 was just about kept afloat by notable outperformance in Consumer Staples as shares of Coles and Woolworths rallied after a report by the competition regulator which noted the supermarket retailers along with discount rival Aldi, were among the most profitable supermarket businesses in the world. Nikkei 225 initially traded higher on favourable currency moves but then reversed course after hitting resistance ahead of the 38,000 level and as the mostly firmer-than-expected Japanese inflation data supported the case for the BoJ to continue policy normalisation in the future. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were pressured despite the lack of fresh catalysts and as earnings results trickled in, while trade uncertainty continued to cloud over risk sentiment and NYT recently reported that Elon Musk is set to get access to a top-secret US plan for a potential war with China although President Trump later refuted this.
Top Asian News
Elon Musk was initially reported to get access to a top-secret US plan for a potential war with China, according to the New York Times. However, President Trump later refuted the report which he said was fake news.
Japan's Rengo says second round data shows avg. wage hike of 5.4% for Fiscal 2025 vs 5.46% in the first-round data.
Meituan (3690 HK) FY24 (CNH) Net Income 35.8bln (exp. 37.8bln), Revenue 337.6bln (exp. 337bln); Q4: Adj. Net Income 9.85bln (exp. 9.91bln), Revenue 88.5bln (exp. 87.9bln).
Nio Inc (NIO) Q4 (CNY): EPS -3.17 (exp. -2.4) Revenue 19.7bln (exp. 20.07bln); sees Q1 total revenue 12.367-12.859bln
Top European News
London's Heathrow Airport said it is experiencing a significant power outage due to a fire at an electrical substation supplying the airport and will be closed until 23:59 GMT today, while it stated significant disruption is expected over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until it reopens.
Denmark is reportedly open to joint European projects and funding if required, via FT citing sources
UK says it is pausing the publication of Service Producer Price Index and Producer Price Index; planning to recommence publication in the summer and will keep users informed of progress; CPI unaffected.
German Bundesrat has passed the debt reform bill and EUR 500bln fund, according to the vote tally cited by Reuters
FX
USD is slightly firmer and trading within a 103.74-104.15 range in what has been a quiet session thus far - the US data docket remains light for the remainder of the. Focus however, will be on Fed speak from Williams, Waller and Goolsbee; the former will see the release of an accompanying text release and a Q&A thereafter. Elsewhere, US President Trump is to speak with Hegseth at 15:00GMT.
EUR is a little lower and trades towards the bottom end of a 1.0820-35 range, continuing the losses seen this week. Aside from EZ Consumer Confidence, the docket remains light with no ECB speakers scheduled - though some focus will be on DBRS, who will review France's credit rating today.
USD/JPY has edged higher and reclaimed the 149.00 handle despite the cautiousness in the region and with the pair also unfazed by the mostly firmer-than-expected Japanese inflation data.
GBP is on the backfoot vs. the USD in an extension of yesterday's downside. Despite yesterday's mildly hawkish skew to the BoE announcement in which external member Mann reverted back to the unchanged camp, the pound has fallen victim to the broadly firmer USD. This morning's public sector net borrowing data showed a further deterioration in the nation's finances.
Antipodeans are both struggling for direction after recent losses and with price action contained amid a quiet calendar and the mixed risk sentiment.
Fixed Income
USTs are slightly firmer, in-fitting with action in Bunds as the risk tone remains under pressure this morning. US specifics a little light thus far though the docket ahead is packed. Firstly, POTUS is due to give remarks from the Oval Office at 15:00GMT alongside his Defence Secretary. Given Hegseth’s inclusion the remarks may be focussed on Iran, with rhetoric from the Supreme Leader this morning punchy. As it stands, USTs are at the upper-end of a 111-00 to 111-09 band, with yields softer across the curve which itself is incrementally steeper.
Bunds are firmer and at the top-end of a 128.15-128.58 band. Strength this morning comes from the downbeat risk tone which broadly speaking appears to be a continuation of the recent narrative of taking risk off the table into the April 2nd tariff announcement. German Bundesrat has passed the debt reform bill and EUR 500bln fund, as expected.
Gilts gapped higher by a handful of ticks given the lead from EGBs but then succumbed to the morning’s borrowing data and slumped to a 91.73 trough. However, as the risk tone deteriorated, the benchmark lifted off worst and briefly got back to within reach of the 92.00 mark in a 91.73-92.12 band; though, ultimately, Gilts remain under notable pressure. PSNB showed a larger-than-expected borrowing figure alongside a downward revision to the prior which has taken borrowing for the 11-months of the current FY to the GBP 132bln mark, exceeding the GBP 127.5bln forecast by the OBR for the entire FY period.
Commodities
Crude is incrementally lower, after spending the majority of the European morning around the unchanged mark; WTI'May now trades towards the lower end of a USD 67.80-68.65/bbl range. Energy-specific newsflow has been light today, whilst punchy rhetoric from Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei failed to lift prices.
Natural gas prices have been boosted today after Kyiv Post reported "Putin’s forces shelled the Sudzha gas metering station in Russia’s Kursk region with artillery in order to blame Ukraine — the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces". In response to this attack, Russia's Kremlin said Ukrainian President Zelensky cannot be trusted.
Precious metals are on the backfoot, with spot gold pulling back from best levels in overnight trade; into the European session, price action has been fairly contained and currently sits towards the mid-point of a USD 3,021.73-3,047.51/oz range.
Base metals are entirely in the red given the downbeat risk tone and poor Chinese performance overnight. 3M LME Copper currently trades towards the lower end of a USD 9,842.2-10,001.8/t.
China is to add cobalt and copper to its state metal reserves.
Geopolitics: Middle East
Hamas says it is still studying the US proposal and the other proposed ideas in order to reach a deal that ensures hostage releases, the end of the war, and Israeli withdrawal.
Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei says the "US need to know if they mess around with Iran, it will receive a hard slap"; "has no proxies in the region, those groups act independently".
Israel's cabinet voted to fire the head of Shin Bet Ronen Bar, according to AP.
US National Security Adviser Waltz said Israel has every right to defend its people from Hamas terrorists and the ceasefire would have been extended if Hamas released all remaining hostages, but they chose war instead.
Geopolitics: Ukraine
Russia's Kremlin says Russian President Putin's order not to strike Ukrainian energy infrastructure remains in force; attack on Russian Gas transit station in Sudzha shows Ukrainian President Zelensky cannot be trusted.
Kyiv Post reports "Putin’s forces shelled the Sudzha gas metering station in Russia’s Kursk region with artillery in order to blame Ukraine — the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces".
Explosions were reported in the sky of Ukraine's capital and air defences were working to counter a large-scale attack with drones, while it was also reported that Russian drones hit civilian targets in Odesa on Thursday night.
US reportedly seeks to reopen terms of a Ukraine minerals deal, according to FT.
Germany, Italy, Poland, UK, and Canada leaders are to meet in Paris next week to discuss Ukraine, while French President Macron said the European meeting next week is to discuss ways to accelerate immediate military support for Ukraine and will discuss plans to strengthen the Ukrainian army if an agreement is reached with Russia.
EU's Costa said he believes EU member states will increase pledges of support to Ukraine.
Russia's presidential security adviser Shoigu arrived in North Korea and is to meet with North Korea's leader.
Russian Investigative Committee opens a case over explosion at Sudzha gas metering station in Russia's Kursk region organised by Ukraine; station significantly damaged in a blast.
US Event Calendar
Nothing scheduled
DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
As London basks in temperatures warmer than Ibiza, a renewed focus on trade fears derailed a recovery in risk assets yesterday, with the S&P 500 closing -0.22% lower last night, though it’s still up +2.56% from last Thursday’s close, having so far only spent that one day in -10% correction territory. Yesterday was also the first day in a while where European stocks bore the brunt of the negativity with the FTSE-MIB (-1.32%) and the DAX (-1.24%) leading the declines. The Stoxx 600 (-0.43%) was helped by exposure to UK stocks with the FTSE (-0.05%) outperforming even after a slightly hawkish hold from the BoE (more later).
European markets had seen a sharp slide lower just before 9am GMT yesterday with no real explanation but by mid-morning they had stabilised and range traded into the close. There was no associated story but there was a lot of chatter about Mr Trump’s social media post from the early hours of the London morning that suggested the Fed should be cutting rates as “.... US Tariffs start to transition (ease!) their way into the economy. Do the right thing. April 2nd is Liberation Day in America!!!”. In an era of analysing every nuance of every post, the clear suggestion was that this implied that tariffs would cause some economic pain ahead. And while markets recovered during the US morning session, they then turned lower again with the S&P falling from +0.63% at the peak to close down -0.22%. So a modest but fairly broad-based decline, with 65% of the S&P lower on the day and the equal-weighted version of the index down -0.37%.
Bonds also had a topsy-turvy session, with 10yr Treasuries yields a mere -0.5bps to 4.24% by the close after having traded as low as 4.17% amid the earlier risk-off tone. The reversal of the bond rally was helped by a decent batch of US data. Existing home sales saw an unexpected acceleration in February (4.26m vs 3.95m expected and 4.08m previous), although there may be some residual seasonality in the data as sales have seen large February spikes for the past three years. Meanwhile, the latest initial jobless claims (223k vs 224k expected) painted a steady picture of the US labour market.
Looking forward to today, the vote on the debt brake reform in the Bundesrat starts at 9.30am CET this morning with news at the start of the week that Bavaria will support the bill meaning that its safe passage probability is even higher than it was in the Bundestag where it passed comfortably on Tuesday. Assuming it passes, it is theoretically possible that the AfD and the Left could seek an abstract judicial review at the Federal Constitutional Court as soon as the new Bundestag is constituted, which sits for the first time next Tuesday, but the Left have said they won’t file a complaint alongside the AfD. The potential legal challenges have steadily fallen away over the last couple of weeks and the story will likely move onto coalition talks next week with the expectations that this will be completed before the end of March and Friedrich Merz to be sworn in as chancellor shortly after Easter.
As for the BoE, our economist Sanjay Raja, believes the on-hold decision (at 4.5%) was on the hawkish side with the MPC's vote tally and messaging highlighting growing concern around the disinflation progress in the midst of weaker demand. The biggest surprise was that only one member voted for a cut with 8 voting for unchanged. We thought there would be 2 doves. Sanjay still thinks there’ll be four 25bps cuts this year but his conviction levels have fallen. The risk is now that they could pause between May and November when CPI is expected to push up against 4% YoY. Ultimately, Sanjay thinks that beyond that the labour market will cool, pay settlements fall, tariffs will bite, and a terminal rate of 3.25% will be hit. See his report here. The hawkish lean left the probability of a cut in May at 64% down from 72% at the prior close. 10yr Gilts slightly underperformed, climbing +1.0bps with 2yr yields +3.5bps in contrast with German and French 2yr yields which were -2.3bps and -2.5bps lower, respectively.
Elsewhere in Europe, the SNB cut rates by 25bps as expected to 0.25%, their lowest since September 2022, but signalled that it doesn’t anticipate further easing as things stand. And in Sweden, the Riksbank kept rates on hold at 2.25% and also reiterated that it expects stable rates ahead. In other central bank news, Bank of Canada Governor Macklem said that the hotter inflation print the previous day “got our attention”.
Sticking with Canada, the Globe and Mail reported that new Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected this weekend to call a snap election for late April. An election is due by October at the latest. The former Bank of England and Bank of Canada governor took over from Trudeau as the head of the Liberal party earlier this month, and while the Liberals had been more than 20pts behind the opposition Conservatives in opinion polls at the turn of the year, the latest polls now show them in a slight lead in a dramatic turnaround since Trudeau’s decision to step down and amid increased tensions with the US.
Turkish markets remained in the headlines yesterday as Türkiye's central bank raised its overnight lending rate by 2pp to 46% in a surprise meeting. The Turkish lira saw modest rebound (+0.25%) and has been trading in a narrow range close to 38 on the dollar, hinting at a concerted effort to stabilise the currency after its initially sharp sell-off on Wednesday.
In commodities, Brent crude oil prices (+2.13%) rose to their highest level since the end of February at $72.29/bbl after the US for the first time sanctioned a Chinese refinery for allegedly buying Iranian oil, raising the prospect of stricter US sanctions enforcement against Iran. Meanwhile, copper (+0.03%) hovered within 1% of its record high from last May, after extending its YTD gains to +26% YTD on risks of US duties and stronger China data.
Asian equity markets are sharply lower in China but generally slightly higher elsewhere. The Hang Seng (-2.14%) is leading losses in the region followed by the CSI (-1.30%) and the Shanghai Composite (-1.06%). Elsewhere, the Nikkei (+0.17%) is trading slightly higher with the KOSPI (+0.06%) and the S&P/ASX 200 (+0.16%) also hanging on to gains. US stock futures are a fraction lower and 10yr US yields around a basis point higher.
Coming back to Japan, Japan’s core inflation came in at 3.0% y/y in February (v/s +2.9% expected) but lower than January’s figure of 3.2%. At the same time, headline inflation rose +3.7% y/y in February (v/s +3.5% expected) easing from a two-year high of+ 4.0% seen last month, thus staying above the BOJ’s 2% target for 35 straight months. The “core-core” inflation rate climbed to +2.6% y/y from +2.5% in the month before and maybe a touch above expectations especially as the print nearly rounded up to 2.7%. Following the data release, yields on the 10yr JGBs are +1.3bps higher trading at 1.52%. See our economist’s take on the inflation release here.
Now to the day ahead, the Bundesrat is voting today on the huge fiscal package ahead of the new Bundestag session starting next Tuesday. Data releases include the UK GfK consumer confidence for March whilst in France there’s the manufacturing confidence for March and retail sales for February. Additionally, Eurozone consumer confidence for March and Italy’s current account balance for January will also be published. Outside of the Eurozone, we have Canada retail sales for January. Otherwise from central banks, we’ll hear from the Fed’s Williams and the ECB’s Escriva.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Fri, 03/21/2025 - 08:27
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/futures-drop-ahead-47-trillion-opex-dismal-earnings-sour-sentiment
'Make Ireland Great Again' - Conor McGregor Announces Run For Irish Presidency
'Make Ireland Great Again' - Conor McGregor Announces Run For Irish Presidency
Three days after an Oval Office visit with President Trump and Elon Musk, UFC fighter and strident anti-immigration hawk Conor McGregor announced he is running for the Irish presidency.
McGregor's announcement centered on his opposition to the EU's European Migration Pact, which would streamline screening and asylum processing, with other provisions also aimed at accelerating the deportations of people whose asylum claims are rejected. Last summer, the Irish government committed to the pact, and must start implementing it by June 12, 2026. In preparation for that milestone, Ireland will need to pass several legislative acts so its migration practices conform to the pact.
?itok=31NfGN2m
In making his announcement via his accounts on https://x.com/TheNotoriousMMA/status/1902785474105835973
, the 36-year-old McGregor attacked Ireland's adoption of the European Migration Pact and promised to give the Irish people a chance to veto it, rather than the implementation being decided by House of the Oireachtas and the president :
"The next presidential election must take place by 11 Nov 2025. Who else will stand up to Government and oppose this bill? Any other Presidential candidate they attempt to put forward will be of no resistance to them. I will!
For clarity also, as President, I would put forth this bill to referendum. Although I oppose greatly this pact, it is neither mine nor governments choice to make. It is the people of Irelands choice!"
The days of weak men creating horrid times for Ireland are over!
MARK MY WORDS.
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) https://twitter.com/TheNotoriousMMA/status/1902226352083779937?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
On his https://www.zerohedge.com/political/conor-mcgregor-ireland-overrun-illegal-immigrants
to Washington, McGregor stepped to the microphone in White House briefing room and laid down a brief yet blistering condemnation of the state of affairs on the Emerald Isle.
"What is going on in Ireland is a travesty. Our government is the government of zero action with zero accountability. Our money is being spent on overseas issues that have nothing to do with the Irish people. The illegal immigration racket is running ravage on the country. There are rural towns in Ireland that have been overrun in one swoop, that have become minority in one swoop...Irish-Americans need to hear this because if [these issues are not addressed], there will be no place to come home and visit."
Conor McGregor: "The illegal immigration racket is running ravage on [Ireland]. There are rural towns that have been overrun in one swoop."
"Irish-Americans need to hear this because there will be no place to come home and visit."https://t.co/lyXumJwj2p
— Border Hawk (@BorderHawkNews) https://twitter.com/BorderHawkNews/status/1901649340533268848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The Irish establishment left quickly criticized McGregor for his remarks. “St. Patrick’s Day around the world is a day rooted in community, humanity, friendship and fellowship,” said Prime Minister Micheál Martin via social media. “https://apnews.com/article/conor-mcgregor-trump-white-house-st-patricks-9211fa05da0bd04866e4bbb42378d2d4
, or the views of the people of Ireland.”
The Irish presidency is nothing like the American one. It's largely ceremonial, with many of the president's "authorities" actually being obligations to do what other branches and officials tell him to do. For example, https://www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2023/1017/1389911-just-what-can-the-president-of-ireland-actually-say-and-do/
under penalty of impeachment. Similarly, the president carries the title of "Supreme Commander of Defence Forces," but has zero military authority. The president does have some ability to influence the formation of government in the lower legislative house; thus far, that power has never been used.
On his path to the presidency, McGregor will be dragging a ball and chain in the form of legal troubles. Last year, an Irish jury found him civilly liable for raping a woman in a hotel following a night of drug use. He's appealed that result. He's also been sued in Florida by a woman who accused him of sexually assaulting her in a Miami arena bathroom during the 2023 NBA finals.
Given he's an EU critic, there may be other barriers put in McGregor's way, as best exemplified by the recent events in Romania, where https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/romania-bars-another-nationalist-presidential-race-opposing-eu-nato-membership
.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Fri, 03/21/2025 - 08:05
McCaskill: Trump Is Trying To "Disappear" People Like "His Buddy Putin"
McCaskill: Trump Is Trying To "Disappear" People Like "His Buddy Putin"
https://jonathanturley.org/2025/03/20/mccaskill-trump-is-trying-to-disappear-people-like-putin/
MSNBC analyst and former Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill has long been criticized for unhinged rhetoric.
?itok=M4oJwvt3
That was evident on “Morning Joe” recently when McCaskill said that the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members was akin to Putin “disappearing” people.
It is not the first such analogy by McCaskill, who has called those opposing the censorship under the Biden Administration “Putin lovers.”
However, just for the record, Putin does not generally disappear people by putting them on flights back to their countries. He tends more toward https://ge.usembassy.gov/putins-poisons-2020-attack-on-aleksey-navalny/
than immigration agents to remove people.
McCaskill’s comments have been echoed by others on the left, even before the election.
On ABC’s “The View,” Whoopi Goldberg told viewers how Trump is already committed to being a dictator who will “put you people away … take all the journalists … take all the gay folks … move you all around and disappear you.”
I have expressed concerns over the alleged failure to comply with the order of U.S. District Judge James “Jeb” Boasberg in his order to stop such flights and return those in transit.
To the extent that the White House is arguing that this is a non-justiciable matter, that is an argument to raise on appeal.
I have criticized some judges for intrusion into areas of presidential discretion. However, the Trump Administration would only undermine such cases by defying court orders.
Trump struck the perfect tone after coming into office by pledging to comply with opposing court orders while appealing them. That is what he did in his first term with considerable success.
Nevertheless, the analogy of McCaskill is the latest example of the rising hysteria on the left. She stated on MSNBC:
“We’ve got to make sure that people cannot be picked up and disappeared like his buddy Putin does. Like his buddy. He does like his buddy Xi does, like his biddy Kim Jong Un does. They do this?
They disappear people and many times murder them.
So we’re not going to go down that road. I don’t care how much the president screams irresponsibly about impeachment, there’s no way.”
McCaskill tends to paint those with opposing views as Nazis or Putin sympathizers. After one hearing (where I also testified against the censorship system under the Biden Administration), McCaskill appeared on MSNBC to https://jonathanturley.org/2023/02/12/is-the-red-scare-going-blue-democrats-accuse-government-critics-of-being-putin-lovers-and-supporting-insurrectionists/
the witnesses (Sen. Chuck Grassley, Sen. Ron Johnson, and former Rep. Gabbard) as “Putin apologists” and Putin lovers. She exclaimed, “I mean, look at this, I mean, all three of those politicians are Putin apologists. I mean, Tulsi Gabbard loves Putin.”
She has also said that Trump is “https://www.wjtv.com/hill-politics/trump-more-dangerous-than-hitler-mussolini-mccaskill/
” — a person who committed the genocide of millions and triggered a war killing tens of millions. Yeah, that Hitler.
The problem with the escalating rhetoric is that there is nowhere to go from here. You jumped the shark. What is left after saying that Trump is more dangerous than Hitler and is disappearing people like Putin? That leaves only Ebola and cholera.
There is a danger to such https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1668047047?tag=simonsayscom
, you cannot ratchet down without being yourself subject to attack from the mob. You have to keep the rhetoric at a DEFCON 1 level.
There is another possibility worth considering. Every administration has come into power with sweeping changes. They are hashed out in the courts. If history is any guide, it is likely that Trump will win many but also lose some of these cases. That includes challenges to the authority of courts.
You can criticize these moves without reaching for the Hitler and Putin analogies. We have the most stable, most successful constitutional system in the history of the world. https://jonathanturley.org/2025/03/10/panic-politics-law-professors-umpteenth-constitutional-crisis-falls-flat/
. We have this. Our constitution and courts will resolve any conflicts and we will continue as a free people. The only thing likely to “disappear” are the ratings and viewers of networks who traffic in rage rhetoric and panic politics.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University and the author of “https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1668047047?tag=simonsayscom
.”
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Thu, 03/20/2025 - 14:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/mccaskill-trump-trying-disappear-people-his-buddy-putin
New York State's Highest Court Blocks NYC Law To Allow 800,000 Illegals To Vote
New York State's Highest Court Blocks NYC Law To Allow 800,000 Illegals To Vote
New York’s highest court has decisively rejected a controversial New York City law allowing migrants living in the US illegally to vote in local elections, dealing a major blow to progressive activists in the Big Apple.
%287%29.jpg?itok=MjWrT99_
The Court of Appeals, the state’s top judicial body, struck down the measure in a clear 6-1 ruling Thursday, - as the court's progressive majority sided overwhelmingly with Republicans who argued the law violated New York’s state constitution, https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/20/new-york-noncitizen-voting-blocked-00240007
reports.
The now-defunct law, pushed through at the end of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s tenure and passively approved by his successor Mayor Eric Adams, would have allowed over https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/10/ny-courtnoncitizen-voting-00203174
living in the US illegally to vote in municipal elections—including critical contests like mayoral races.
Republicans, who challenged the law, pointed to clear language in the state constitution stating that "every citizen shall be entitled to vote," arguing this explicitly excludes noncitizens from casting ballots. Democrats on the City Council claimed the wording represented only a minimum standard and argued local governments had the power to expand voting rights beyond citizens.
But Chief Judge Rowan Wilson didn't buy it. Writing for the court’s majority, Wilson shredded the Democratic interpretation, highlighting the potential absurdity of their position.
“Under that interpretation, municipalities are free to enact legislation that would enable anyone to vote—including … thirteen-year-old children,” Wilson wrote, adding "It is plain from the language and restrictions contained in [the state constitution] that ‘citizen’ is not meant as a floor, but as a condition of voter eligibility: the franchise extends only to citizens whose right to vote is established by proper proofs."
Joe Borelli, former Republican minority leader of the City Council and a plaintiff in the suit, called the decision predictable. "We file some lawsuits that are stretches," he admitted. "This one was, from the beginning, an open-shut case."
Assemblymember Michael Tannousis (R-Staten Island), another plaintiff, celebrated the ruling as an affirmation of voting as a "sacred right" reserved solely for U.S. citizens.
“As the son of immigrants who came to New York for the American dream and worked hard to become naturalized citizens, I am content with today’s ruling,” Tannousis said.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Thu, 03/20/2025 - 14:25
What Recession? Initial Jobless Claims Hover Near Multi-Decade Lows
What Recession? Initial Jobless Claims Hover Near Multi-Decade Lows
The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time remains in 'strong labor market' mode with just 223k last week - a level it has oscillated around for three years now...
?itok=emyL1TU_
Moreover, this broad low level of initial jobless claims has not been seen since the late '60s...
?itok=A7EwAQxL
Continuing claims remain around 1.9 million Americans...
?itok=WhZUWWQx
For now, the effects of DOGE seem to be kept in line by the judiciary - is there a surprise to come?
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Thu, 03/20/2025 - 08:39
BOE Keeps Rate On Hold In 8-1 Vote
BOE Keeps Rate On Hold In 8-1 Vote
The Bank of England held interest rates at 4.5% as expected, and says it will stick to a “gradual and careful” approach to easing as some of its more outspoken doves turned cautious. The vote split was 8-1 (expectations were for a 7-2 split), with external member Swati Dhingra voting for a 25bp cut and Mann moving into the unchanged group. The BoE said that interest rates are still on a gradually declining path. As with all the other central banks this week, the BoE highlighted elevated uncertainty. It said domestic price and wage pressures were moderating, but remained elevated. Today's decision followed macro data which showed unemployment held at 4.4% and wage growth slowed as expected.
?itok=g9nmwR3h
The https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy-summary-and-minutes/2025/march-2025
maintained the view that "a gradual and careful approach to policy restraint remains appropriate" and reiterated that monetary policy is not on a preset course over the next few meetings; the statement indicates that while the MPC does think that disinflationary progress has continued, there hasn't been enough news since the last MPC meeting to conclude a further rate cut was justified at this stage. It stated:
“There remained two-sided risks around the balance of supply and demand, and the persistence of domestic price and wage pressures. The underlying disinflationary process was expected to continue, but an accumulation of evidence would be used to assess progress. There was no presumption that monetary policy was on a pre-set path over the next few meetings.”
Some more highlights from the statement:
TRADE POLICY/GEOPOLITICS:
Notes that gloval trade policy has intensified, other geopolitical uncertainties have also increase
MPC will pay close attention to any signs of more lasting inflation pressure
ECONOMY:
Domestic wage pressures are moderating, but are still somewhat elevated
Energy prices are higher than last year
It is possible that labour costs have been a driver of the recent pickup in nonenergy goods prices
Notes that GDP has been slightly stronger than expected in February; surveys still suggest weak growth, and employment plans
GOVERNOR COMMENTS:
BoE Governor Bailey says there is a lot of economic uncertainty
Bailey still thinks that interest rates are on a gradually declining path
Overall, the decision was largely as expected with policy settings maintained and language around “gradual and careful" reiterated. The main update was the vote split, 8-1 with Dhingra the lone dissenter as activist Mann switched to an unchanged vote after calling for 50bps in February (Feb. decision was a 25bps cut); a switch which is likely one of the drivers behind the modest hawkish move.
In terms of guidance, language is much the same as last time, with the eight members who voted for unchanged, emphasising that “there had been relatively little news since the previous meeting...", one point of note is the continuing emphasis that the BoE is not on a pre-set path, though Bailey reiterated the view that interest rates are on a gradually declining path. Elsewhere, the release acknowledged upside in energy prices and moderating but elevated inflationary pressures.
According to UBS, the commentary from the BoE was "in line with market views. The notable change comes from MPC external member Mann. Having been hawkish for so long, she suddenly called for a 50bp cut in February, alongside Dhingra. Dhinghra voted for a 25bp cut this week. Mann, however, has returned to an unchanged view. Her suggestion for an activist approach has gone. While inconsequential for markets, it does draw attention to her odd vote at the last meeting."
There is no formal press conference as this is not an MPR meeting. However, Governor Bailey will likely do the press rounds later in the day, typically the lock-in period for this ends at around 16:00GMT though timing is for guidance only.
In kneejerk response, the pound trimmed declines and lifted from 1.2955 to 1.2979. While Gilts were also choppy but ultimately fell from 92.96 to 92.87 before extending to 92.75 over an eight minute period. UK 10-year yield is 6bps lower at 4.57%; two-year peer is 4bps lower at 4.17%. Money markets maintain BOE rate-cut wagers, price 53bps more cuts by the end of next year.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Thu, 03/20/2025 - 08:28
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/boe-keeps-rate-hold-8-1-vote
Trump Admin Removes Advisory From HHS Website Labeling Gun Violence A Health Crisis
Trump Admin Removes Advisory From HHS Website Labeling Gun Violence A Health Crisis
(emphasis ours),
The June 2024 advisory by former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declaring violent crime involving guns a public health crisis has been removed from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) website.
?itok=Mqgst7Gy
The unprecedented advisory was the realization of a goal for gun control proponents.
An HHS spokesperson said the change was made to comply with a Feb. 7 executive order.
“HHS and the Office of the Surgeon General are complying with President Trump’s Executive Order on Protecting Second Amendment Rights,” Emily G. Hilliard, HHS deputy press secretary, wrote in an email to The Epoch Times.
Second Amendment advocates praised the move.
Erich Pratt, senior vice president of Gun Owners of America, said Murthy was selected by President Joe Biden mainly for his views on gun control. Pratt said the Biden administration was attempting to sidestep the U.S. Constitution to implement its gun control plans.
Pratt said the real issue is fighting crime, not disease.
“Scrapping that absurd ‘advisory’ from the HHS website was a no-brainer and absolutely the correct call,” Pratt stated in a text message to The Epoch Times.
“The true health emergency in this country is how Democrat-run cities play catch-and-release with hardened criminals while slapping law-abiding concealed carriers with off-limits zones left and right.”
Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said the advisory was an empty gesture that did nothing to reduce crime or suicides.
“The surgeon general should have never issued this advisory. He was just catering to the gun control lobby. Its total effect was symbolism over substance. Gun ownership is not a communicable disease,” Gottlieb told The Epoch Times.
Giffords, the gun control organization begun by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, posted a https://giffords.org/press-release/2025/03/trump-administration-deletes-surgeon-general-webpage-with-advisory-on-gun-violence/
on its website decrying the change. The former congresswoman was shot while meeting with constituents on Jan. 8, 2011, in Tucson, Arizona. The gunman killed six people and injured 12.
“By removing this important public health advisory with lifesaving resources, President Trump has chosen to prioritize gun industry profits over protecting kids and families,” Giffords Executive Director Emma Brown said.
“Guns have been the No. 1 killer of American children and adolescents since 2020, and nonpartisan health care experts have understood gun violence as a public health crisis for years.”
?itok=0sfEBOsJ
The advisory called for a public health approach to address violent crime involving firearms. Murthy described the issue as a “moral crisis” that required immediate action.
A surgeon general’s advisory is meant to highlight urgent public health issues and is reserved for significant public health challenges. One of the most well-known was the 1964 report on tobacco by then-Surgeon General Luther Terry. That report is credited as the genesis of cigarette warning labels.
Murthy said his experience as a doctor motivated him to issue the advisory on guns.
“I’ve seen the consequences of firearm violence up close and the lives of the patients that I cared for over the years,” Murthy said in a video statement.
The advisory was just one of the Biden administration policies that President Donald Trump ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to review. On Feb. 7, Trump issued his executive order titled “Protecting Second Amendment Rights.”
That order states that within 30 days of the order’s date, “the Attorney General shall examine all orders, regulations, guidance, plans, international agreements, and other actions of executive departments and agencies to assess any ongoing infringements of the Second Amendment rights of our citizens, and present a proposed plan of action to the President, through the Domestic Policy Advisor, to protect the Second Amendment rights of all Americans.”
Chase Smith and Patricia Tolson contributed to this report.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 23:25
Recycling Hero Or Dumpster Fire? How The World Handles Trash
Recycling Hero Or Dumpster Fire? How The World Handles Trash
https://stats.oecd.org/viewhtml.aspx?datasetcode=MUNW&lang=en
reveals that the American continent has a dirty secret when it comes to how it handles its trash.
almost 57 percent of municipal waste in the five OECD member countries on the American continent is still going to landfill.
While developing Latin American nations Colombia, Costa Rica and Chile factor into the count, more than 80 percent of people in the OECD Americas sample live in the United States and Canada.
Only around 27 percent of https://www.statista.com/topics/2630/waste-management-in-the-united-states/
or composted in 2022, the latest year the numbers are available.
You will find more infographics at https://www.statista.com/chartoftheday/
This is in stark contrast to the almost 46 percent of waste in this category in the OECD's 14 European member nations and also below the rate of around 31 percent in developed Asia-Oceania, namely Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan.
The latter region also employs a method that is https://www.rts.com/blog/what-is-waste-to-energy/
amid criticism, it hasn't caught on in the U.S. or other OECD nations in the Americas.
Reasons why countries use landfills, https://www.pollutionsolutions-online.com/news/waste-management/21/breaking-news/incineration-vs-landfill-which-is-better/55768
published by the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, a lot of recyclable materials in the U.S. end up in landfills. The report faults outdated federal standards and based on them, complicated collection practices that vary regionally for these shortcomings. It goes on to explain that differing systems and facilities' autonomous decision making create confusion with consumers as well as unpredictability in the country's recycling market, both of which diminish the quality of recycled materials, curb demand for it and hamper the rise of recycling as a money-making tool for industries.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 23:00
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/recycling-hero-or-dumpster-fire-how-world-handles-trash
Trump To Sign Order Eliminating Department Of Education
Trump To Sign Order Eliminating Department Of Education
By Zachary Stieber of the https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-to-sign-order-thursday-to-eliminate-department-of-education-5821032?ea_src=frontpage&ea_cnt=a&ea_med=lead-story-0-title-0
President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on March 20 that will facilitate the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, taking a step toward fulfilling a campaign pledge.
The order, which has been under preparation for weeks, will be signed at a White House event with several Republican governors and state education commissioners in attendance, as confirmed by the White House. The plan was first reported by USA Today.
Trump will direct his recently confirmed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take all required steps to prepare for the closure of the Education Department and transfer its authority to the states, according to a White House fact sheet obtained by NTD TV, sister media of The Epoch Times.
According to the fact sheet, the order also aims to ensure that, throughout the process, there is no disruption in the delivery of services, programs, and benefits that Americans rely on.
?itok=1LKxShUr
The order also instructs that any programs or activities receiving remaining Department of Education funds will not promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) or gender ideology.
The Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
McMahon, https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/senate-confirms-linda-mcmahon-as-education-secretary-5818053
by the Senate on March 3, said in her first message to employees—titled “Our Department’s Final Mission”—that her “vision is aligned with the president’s: to send education back to the states.”
She added, “Our job is to respect the will of the American people and the President they elected, who has tasked us with accomplishing the elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education—a momentous final mission—quickly and responsibly.”
The Department of Education employed about 4,200 workers before its recent termination of around 1,300, and the buyout of another 600.
The agency’s current form stems from a 1979 law that made it independent by splitting it from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.
The federal government’s role in education, according to the White House, has failed students, parents, and teachers.
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores demonstrate that student achievement has not improved, despite more than $3 trillion invested since the Department of Education’s inception in 1979, according to the fact sheet.
Trump promised on the campaign trail to abolish the Department of Education, alleging it is responsible for indoctrinating America’s youth.
Continue reading at https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-to-sign-order-thursday-to-eliminate-department-of-education-5821032?ea_src=frontpage&ea_cnt=a&ea_med=lead-story-0-title-0
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 22:37
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/trump-sign-order-eliminating-department-education
Russia's Arctic LNG 2 Megaproject Could Figure Into A Future Deal With The US
Russia's Arctic LNG 2 Megaproject Could Figure Into A Future Deal With The US
https://korybko.substack.com/p/russias-arctic-lng-2-megaproject
Russian and Chinese interests don’t align on this particular issue and the dynamics associated with it...
?itok=wNaES0GW
Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that “https://archive.is/2gkCn
”. According to them, a senior executive pitched this as “a way to counter a rising China”, which has a certain logic to it.
From those three potential clients’ perspectives, all three of which have troubled ties with China, whatever they might buy from Arctic LNG 2 would reduce the amount available to Beijing. There’s also the chance that they elbow China out of this megaproject entirely if they collectively replace its lost investments after private Chinese companies https://korybko.substack.com/p/this-chinese-companys-compliance
of Arctic LNG 2 due to American sanctions. This could prospectively be achieved if Japan and South Korea, which have similar interests, get involved too.
That could in turn force China to rely more on comparatively costlier LNG from other sources like Australia and Qatar, both of which are American allies and whose exports could be more easily cut off by the US Navy in the event of an Asian crisis, thus applying immense pressure on China in that scenario. Russia is neutral in the Sino-US dimension of the https://korybko.substack.com/p/towards-tri-multipolarity-the-golden
, just like China is neutral to the Russian-American one, with both prioritizing their national interests as their leaders understand them to be.
China didn’t want to risk America’s wrath by defying one of the latter’s most significant sanctions, ergo why it pulled out of Arctic LNG 2, while Russia’s interests rest in offering the West privileged access to this same megaproject as an incentive for the US to coerce Ukraine into concessions. Russian and Chinese interests therefore don’t align on this particular issue and the dynamics associated with it, yet they’re expected to responsibly manage their differences as usual in the spirit of their partnership.
These approaches align with the US’ evolving interests, however, since it wanted China to informally comply with some sanctions such as this one https://korybko.substack.com/p/russia-and-chinas-us-provoked-payment
.
The sanctions didn’t bankrupt Russia, its military-industrial complex didn’t collapse, and no withdrawal from Ukraine followed, with Russia instead gradually gaining ground and now approaching the brink of a breakthrough that could either decisively end or escalate the conflict. The US doesn’t want Russia to achieve its https://korybko.substack.com/p/the-clock-is-ticking-for-russia-to
the US could do stop it in the event of a breakthrough, hence why they began negotiations at this time.
The series of pragmatic compromises that they’re now discussing could see Russia agree to a ceasefire in exchange for partial sanctions relief that could restore a degree of its pre-conflict complex interdependence with the US-led West in order to lay the basis for a comprehensive deal later. There’d prospectively be other mutually beneficial terms to whatever ceasefire they might clinch but the energy aspect could play a leading role in getting both sides to agree as explained https://korybko.substack.com/p/creative-energy-diplomacy-can-lay
in early January.
Arctic LNG 2 and https://korybko.substack.com/p/nord-stream-is-back-in-the-news-as
, as Russia’s most globally significant energy megaprojects, could therefore figure prominently in any series of pragmatic compromises with the US. Taken together, they could bring together those two, the EU, and the Indo-Pacific Rim countries of India, Japan, and South Korea, thus resulting in a Eurasian-wide network of direct stakeholders for sustaining and building upon a ceasefire in Ukraine. This might even be what ultimately gets Putin and Trump to reach an interim agreement.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 22:35
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/russias-arctic-lng-2-megaproject-could-figure-future-deal-us
Deportation Of Haitian Migrants Underway As Protection Status Revoked
Deportation Of Haitian Migrants Underway As Protection Status Revoked
The first of what is expected to be many deportation flights has landed in the crisis worn country of Haiti this week, carrying 46 aliens including 25 convicted felons expelled from the US.
The Trump Administration has revoked protections established during the Biden Administration that shielded roughly half a million Haitians from deportation. They will lose their work permits and could be subject to removal from the country in the near term. Many of the Haitians deported Tuesday had crossed into the United States illegally or were waiting for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) approval, which grants individuals legal authority to remain in the country but does not offer a long-term pathway to citizenship
The administration has long way to go to rectify the damage done by Joe Biden and Democrats on cities like Springfield, OH, which was flooded with Haitians under federal relocation programs. Around 30% of Springfield's population turned Haitian almost overnight; the situation became global news after Trump repeated claims made by locals that the third-world visitors were "eating people's dogs and cats" and other park wildlife. The comment created a storm of online memes and even songs.
It should be noted that Haitian migrants are not even welcome in the Dominican Republic, the neighboring country to Haiti. The D.R. is engaged in a constant battle to have Haitians removed en masse and the government considers the migrants to be harbingers of economic decay.
Dominican Republic has begun a massive deportation operation for Haitian illegals.
Truckloads are being sent back by force. https://t.co/3NTmkcjL5D
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) https://twitter.com/EndWokeness/status/1767991796947173380?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Haitians in the US have reportedly sought to escape to sanctuary cities to avoid ICE arrest and deportation, but many are also considering leaving the country voluntarily. The majority of the 500,000 Haitians residing in the US under Biden TPS policies will likely be deported in the coming months regardless of sanctuary city laws.
US government intervention in third world affairs just isn't the answer. Agencies like USAID have been exposed as completely incompetent (or corrupt) in their Haiti operations. Only 2% of the https://nypost.com/2025/02/22/opinion/how-usaid-squandered-billions-in-haiti-and-around-the-globe/
actually ended up in Haitain hands. The rest has disappeared into the pockets of various NGOs. Americans taxpayers have not only been expected to shell out billions for such countries, they are also expected to tolerate mass cultural invasion when the money doesn't get to where it was supposed to go.
The planes taking migrants back to their point of origin are a welcome sight for the majority of American voters who picked Trump at the ballot box specifically to enact unyielding immigration reform.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 22:10
The 3 Things Experts Say Would Make US Education World Class
The 3 Things Experts Say Would Make US Education World Class
(emphasis ours),
Plummeting reading and math scores are often blamed on COVID-19, but negative trends in U.S. public school performance compared with that of other developed countries predate the pandemic.
?itok=lx2EDf1Y
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/
at least six years of steady decline in reading and math scores on domestic standardized tests leading up to the 2024 results.
Sixty-nine percent of fourth graders scored below grade level in reading last year, and the rate was 70 percent for eighth-grade students.
NAEP’s 2024 math results were equally disappointing: 60 percent of fourth-grade students and 72 percent of eighth graders scored below their respective grade levels.
Martin West, vice chair of the National Assessment Governing Board, which oversees NAEP, said student skills have eroded for more than a decade.
He attributed the downward spiral to two significant events: a softening of public school accountability and a new era of “screen-based childhood,” in which students spend far more time on smartphones and social media than on schoolwork.
“‘Sobering’ would be a good word for it,” West said during a February panel discussion with the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Education policy experts identify three significant barriers to catching up to higher-performing nations in classroom performance: lack of accountability, relaxed standards, and lack of engagement.
On the global stage, the 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/american-students-reading-scores-decline-show-little-improvement-in-math-5800605
ranked the United States 22nd out of 44 nations.
On average, American eighth graders scored more than 120 points below their peers in Singapore and Taiwan.
?itok=BSnlzLKv
The 2022 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), which tests 15-year-olds in math, science, and reading proficiency, https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/china-achieved-top-education-rankings-by-cherry-picking-students-report-5770070
the United States 18th out of 80 nations.
It finished ninth in reading, 16th in science, and 34th in math. The next PISA exams take place this spring.
David Steiner, director of the Institute for Education Policy at Johns Hopkins University, said U.S. results in the PISA global assessments were respectable but not ideal.
U.S. standardized tests are more difficult for kids raised on social media because they are less visual than the PISA questions and require longer reading passages.
President Donald Trump has already initiated reforms that he says will improve classroom performance and global rankings for the United States’ 50 million K–12 public school students.
They include shrinking the Department of Education and streamlining its funding with state block grants, outlawing curricula based on progressive ideologies, and promoting universal school choice.
The United States leads the world in education spending despite its poor test results.
The National Center for Education Statistics https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cmd/education-expenditures-by-country
that U.S. per-pupil spending exceeds $15,500 (local, state, and federal total), which is 38 percent higher than the average of 79 other developed countries.
?itok=vpZRo3n9
Lack of Accountability
Public schools are required to participate in standardized tests as a condition of federal funding, but any results, good or bad, satisfy that requirement.
Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama tried to incentivize improved test scores via the No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top programs, but school communities resisted and complained about increased pressure.
Under President Joe Biden’s administration, $190 billion in post-COVID-19 emergency funding was quickly and unconditionally allocated to help schools reopen safely after the pandemic and accelerate learning recovery.
Many districts used their grants for athletic facilities, capital projects, and staffing unrelated to academics as scores continued to drop, according to the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University.
Today, most states have decoupled or are in the process of decoupling teacher evaluation and tenure decisions from students’ scores on standardized tests, according to the National Council on Teacher Quality.
Instead, teacher unions and district leaders negotiate alternative metrics, such as student grades and teacher observations.
In Texas, several districts filed lawsuits against the state education agency in 2023 and 2024 to prevent it from releasing the results of its school accountability system that grades districts based on standardized test scores and other metrics. The Travis County Court has yet to issue a final ruling to release and continue the accountability reporting.
Catrin Wigfall, a former charter school teacher in Arizona and now an education policy fellow at the Minnesota-based Center for the American Experiment think tank, told The Epoch Times that this opposition to standardized tests as school and teacher assessment tools indicates that teacher unions, not school boards or state education leaders, are in control of a “top-down system.”
Declines in math and reading have been pervasive since 2013, after the National Assessment Governing Board reported big gains in both subjects across all grade levels from 1994 through 2010.
“It was driven by gains for the low-achieving students, but still not up to the expectations of No Child Left Behind,” West said.
“There was bipartisan [support] for standard-based reform and accountability measures. I do think we’ve seen a softening of accountability.”
?itok=WZvu2YnD
Relaxed Standards
The Golden State’s report card notes that less than half of California public school students in grades three through eight met or exceeded grade-level standards for English Language Arts, and only about one in three students met or exceeded math standards.
Still, its high school graduation rate was 87 percent, the highest in six years, and its chronic absenteeism rate has declined since 2021.
Most states, in fact, don’t require diploma candidates to pass a final high school assessment, which is more common in other countries, Steiner said during a Feb. 7 panel discussion.
“If we stop measuring, the idea seems to be that the kids will stop doing poorly,” he said. “I don’t know where this mania for retreat from using a thermometer comes from. It strikes me as rather dangerous.”
Without that thermometer, Steiner said, students can slip through the cracks.
Last year, a student who could not read or write https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/illiterate-graduate-sues-school-board-highlights-national-problem-5785179
from high school in Hartford, Connecticut, and was admitted to the University of Connecticut–Hartford.
The student, Aleysha Ortiz, is now suing the school district.
Her lawsuit notes that she was served by a team of case managers and special education teachers during her entire academic career as a special education student.
She completed assignments using a talk-to-text function on her smartphone because she didn’t understand the words in front of her.
Carol Gale, president of the Hartford Federation of Teachers union, previously told The Epoch Times that the district doesn’t police its chronic absenteeism policy and has lowered student expectations to improve the high school graduation rate, which was below 70 percent the year before Ortiz was awarded her diploma.
In a March 7 email response to The Epoch Times, Hartford Public Schools declined to comment on the Ortiz case.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 21:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/3-things-experts-say-would-make-us-education-world-class
Trump Fires Democrat FTC Commissioners
Trump Fires Democrat FTC Commissioners
President Trump has fired the two Democrats sitting on the Federal Trade Commission.
?itok=GIsEBRDE
Rebecca Slaughter - a former legal advisor to Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Alvaro Bedoya - a former Georgetown official, were informed by the White House that the president was terminating their positions at the FTC, which enforces consumer protection and antitrust laws. The Commission typically has five members, with the president's party holding three seats and the opposing party two.
Slaughter and Bedoya say they plan to challenge their dismissals in court.
"Today the president illegally fired me from my position as a federal trade commissioner, violating the plain language of a statute and clear Supreme Court precedent," said Slaughter, who Trump nominated to the FTC during his first term in 2018. "Why? Because I have a voice. And he is afraid of what I’ll tell the American people."
?itok=bDSagkxu
Bedoya wrote on social media, "I'm a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission. The president just illegally fired me," adding that Trump wants the FTC to be "a lapdog for his golfing buddies."
I am a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission. The president just illegally fired me. This is corruption plain and simple. My full statement: https://t.co/12HPZsbLTP
— Alvaro Bedoya (@BedoyaFTC) https://twitter.com/BedoyaFTC/status/1902105345545113607?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
"We are still commissioners. We're suing to make that clear for everyone," Bedoya said in a follow-up statement reported by https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-fires-democratic-ftc-commissioners
.
FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson, a Republican first appointed by President Biden and recently made chairman by Trump, said he sees no issues with the firings.
"President Donald J. Trump is the head of the executive branch and is vested with all of the executive power in our government," Ferguson wrote. "I have no doubts about his constitutional authority to remove commissioners, which is necessary to ensure democratic accountability for our government."
"I wish Commissioners Slaughter and Bedoya well, and I thank them for their service," he added.
— Andrew Ferguson (@AFergusonFTC) https://twitter.com/AFergusonFTC/status/1902132482499084389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The FTC firings are set to become yet another test to the limits of Trump's executive authority, as Democrats who don't get their way can simply go venue shopping for an activist judge who will halt, even if temporarily, various decisions by the executive branch.
Last week, US District Court Judge James Boasberg issued a 14-day restraining order to immediately halt several planes full of Tren de Aragua gang members under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 - which the Trump administration ignored since the planes were over international waters at the time.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 15:05
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/trump-fires-democrat-ftc-commissioners
Obama-Appointed Judge Temporarily Blocks EPA From Canceling Climate Grants
Obama-Appointed Judge Temporarily Blocks EPA From Canceling Climate Grants
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from terminating grants that were part of a $20 billion climate funding program created by the previous administration.
?itok=ukvSvSjc
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 16: Lee Zeldin speaks during his Senate confirmation hearing Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
In a 23-page https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2025/03/19/id5827900-gb.pdf
, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan - nominated by President Obama - issued a temporary restraining order to prevent the EPA from terminating grants awarded to three environmental groups—Climate United, Coalition for Green Capital, and Power Forward Communities—and block Citibank from transferring the funds back to the government.
According to the court ruling, the EPA explained that it was terminating the grants due to multiple ongoing investigations into “programmatic waste, fraud, and abuse and conflict of interest.”
Chutkan said the evidence was insufficient as the agency failed to provide specific information about the investigations, factual support for the decision, or an individualized explanation for each plaintiff.
“Based on the record before the court, and under the relevant statutes and various agreements, it does not appear that EPA Defendants took the legally required steps necessary to terminate these grants, such that its actions were arbitrary and capricious,” the judge wrote.
Chutkan said the plaintiffs would face imminent harm if Citibank were to transfer the funds—which they use to pay staff, rent, and fund projects—out of their accounts, as the money would be unrecoverable by then.
The judge stated that the plaintiffs have no cash or reserves available to cover their operating expenses and have no other committed sources of funding that could replace the grants.
Climate United was awarded $6.97 billion, the Coalition for Green Capital received $5 billion, and Power Forward Communities received $2 billion last year through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which was created under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Their grants, held by Citibank, were part of the $20 billion in funding the Biden administration awarded to eight entities for projects aimed at curbing pollution.
The three nonprofits filed the lawsuit on March 8 after Citibank withheld their funding and their grants were terminated. The plaintiffs alleged that the EPA’s decision to terminate their grants was unlawful.
Climate United CEO Beth Bafford said in a https://weareclimateunited.org/news/district-judge-orders-stay-on-epas-unlawful-termination-of-grant-agreement
that the preliminary injunction marked “a strong step in the right direction” for their legal challenge against the EPA.
“In the coming weeks, we will continue working towards a long-term solution that will allow us to invest in projects that deliver energy savings, create jobs, and boost American manufacturing in communities across the country,” Bafford stated.
Commenting on the ruling, EPA administrator Lee Zeldin https://x.com/epaleezeldin/status/1902198769505956089
the former Biden administration awarded the grants to “politically connected” nonprofit organizations “in a manner that deliberately reduced the ability of EPA to conduct proper oversight.”
Zeldin vowed to claw back the funding and ensure that “every penny EPA spends” is directed toward its core mission of protecting human health and the environment.
“I will not rest until these hard-earned taxpayer dollars are returned to the U.S. Treasury,” the EPA head said in a statement.
Zeldin https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/epa-chief-seeks-return-of-20-billion-in-climate-funding-5809385
last month that the EPA had decided to rescind the grants for climate and clean-energy projects due to concerns over lack of oversight and transparency.
He alleged that the eight entities were tasked with funding nongovernmental organizations and other groups at their discretion and with “far less transparency.”
“This scheme was the first of its kind in EPA history,” Zeldin said in a https://x.com/epaleezeldin/status/1889840040622321778
on Feb. 13. “It was purposefully designed to obligate all of the money in a rushed job with reduced oversight.”
In its court filing, Climate United asked the court to order Citibank to comply with its contractual obligations and to declare that the EPA’s termination of the grant violates the Administrative Procedure Act.
“This isn’t about politics; it’s about economics,” Bafford said in a https://weareclimateunited.org/news/climate-united-takes-legal-action-to-unfreeze-federal-funds
announcing the lawsuit on March 8. “This program was designed to save money for hard-working Americans who are struggling to pay for groceries and keep the lights on.”
The Epoch Times reached out to Coalition for Green Capital, Power Forward Communities, and Citibank for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.
https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden
Wed, 03/19/2025 - 14:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/judge-temporarily-blocks-epa-canceling-climate-grants