By Karl Grossman Manipulation of the petroleum market is not new. John D. Rockefeller with his Standard Oil Trust mastered it between the end of the 19th and start of the 20th Century. Rockefeller and his trust succeeded in controlling virtually all the oil industry in the United States and also dominating the international market. The … Continue reading
Emerging market (EM) corporate bonds have been dealing with a surging U.S. dollar, a collapse in global energy prices, and a likely hike in U.S. interest rates, which are underscoring growing liquidity risks, according to a new report from Fitch Ratings published on Thursday. The rapid appreciation of the U.S. dollar, potential hikes in U.S. interest rates later in 2015 and the … Continue reading
By Pedro García Otero The US Federal District Court for the District of Columbia has entered a default ruling against Venezuela, after the South American country failed to respond in time to a demand introduced by Gold Reserve Inc. The Canadian gold mining firm is seeking to confirm a US$740 million arbitration made in its favor by the International … Continue reading
By Michael Snyder When an economic crisis is coming, there are usually certain indicators that appear in advance. For example, commodity prices usually start to plunge before a recession begins. And as you can see from the Bloomberg Commodity Index which you can find right here, this has already been happening. In addition, I have previously … Continue reading
By Daniel Djouder The new trend of low oil prices has rapidly escalated, carrying negative effects for producers and positive effects for the economies of importers, though these have been slow to become apparent. In this complex scenario, the oil-dependent country of Nigeria finds itself in a very peculiar position owing to a specific mix of … Continue reading
By Gulam Asgar Mitha U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2007 had supposedly asked ex-Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd “how do you get tough on your banker?.” This was over concerns about China’s growing power and hold on U.S. finances. According to Wikileaks, Rudd told Clinton to keep force as a last resort. Do … Continue reading
By Stratfor Global Intelligence The controversial bid by Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan to seek re-election has jeopardized Nigeria’s political stability. The Boko Haram insurgency in northeastern Nigeria, which pushed back presidential and national assembly elections from Feb. 14 to March 28 because of security concerns, has complicated this picture. Gubernatorial and state houses elections set for Feb. 28 were … Continue reading
By Pepe Escobar, Sputnik News The Empire of Chaos dream of regime change in Russia has always hinged on controlling large swathes of Eurasia. With “friends” like European Council President Donald Tusk and top NATO commander Gen. Philip Breedlove, the EU certainly doesn’t need enemies. Gen. Breedhate has been spewing out his best Dr. Strangelove impersonation, warning that … Continue reading
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) warned on Tuesday of growing risks to local currency bonds in emerging East Asia. In the ADB’s latest quarterly Asia Bond Monitor report it warns that widening credit spreads, a stronger U.S. dollar, Greece’s debt crisis, and falling oil prices are growing risks to local currency bonds in emerging East Asia. “While … Continue reading
By Michael Snyder Just a few days ago, the bull market for the S&P 500 turned six years old. This six year period of time has been great for investors, but what comes next? On March 9th, 2009 the S&P 500 hit a low of 676.53. Since that day, it has risen more than 200 … Continue reading