morning all
Morning snap of activity over Yerp and Med
RAF RRR7217 Rivet Joint over west northern Ukraine
RCH546 and RCH570 nw from Ramstein
RCH546 USAF C-17 Globemaster nw from Constanta, Romania earlier
RCH570 USAF C-17 west from Rzeszow Airport earlier
LAGR120 USAF KC-135 Stratotanker on the track over Poland
RAF RRR9847 over southern Romania from Cyprus-AB Akrotiri
Romanian AD ROF1104 Antonov-30 north from Bucharest after a run out to Constanta
FORTE11 Global Hawk sw after run into/out of Ukraine-been doing this for last few days
A stunning fall for ex-Honduran president wanted in US
The arrest of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández and the images that followed — a leader shackled and paraded before the cameras like a common criminal — were a stunning reversal for a man who for years seemed impervious to growing allegations of corruption.
While president from 2014 until last month, he had the support of U.S. officials waging the war on drugs and some diplomats who did not see a better option. But less than three weeks out of office, his utility exhausted, the U.S. government moved for his extradition and the chance to make him an example in a region wracked by corruption.
Hernández arrived at the Supreme Court of Justice Wednesday morning for his initial court appearance. About 150 supporters from his National Party awaited him, chanting “You’re not alone!” He was arrested Tuesday at the request of the U.S. government on charges of drug trafficking, using weapons for drug trafficking and conspiracy to use weapons in drug trafficking.
U.S. prosecutors in the Southern District of New York have accused Hernández in recent years of funding his political rise with profits from drug traffickers in exchange for protecting their shipments.
For years, images were Hernández’s crutch. Accusations of ties to drug traffickers would stream from a New York City courtroom and Hernández would soon pop up in the United States or at an event with U.S. Embassy officials in Honduras, reinforcing the idea that he had U.S. government support and it was just bitter drug traffickers telling stories to seek revenge for his efforts against them.
https://apnews.com/article/business-honduras-caribbean-drug-trafficking-tegucigalpa-15a18167195c32e8745d0b649e77d23a
His brother was arrested in 2018 (sentenced to life in prison 2019)-see below-and I've seen the Honduran Prez AC here last year (while he was still Prez) in May of last year making trip to Phoenix (where his bro was possibly in the Fed Pen dhere) and D.C. (Dulles) and then back to Boston in June.
The last trace I have of it was leaving Tel Aviv (no surprise) in June 23 2021-cap #2
Honduras drugs: President's brother gets life in prison
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-56589088
KECK201 USAF C-17 Globemaster on ground at Cleveland-Hopkins Int'l because....
Joe Biden To Visit Cleveland, Lorain On Thursday
Joe Biden will visit Northeast Ohio on Thursday. Biden will visit Cleveland and Lorain to discuss his $1 trillion infrastructure package, which was signed into law in November 2021. The legislation will send $60 billion to Ohio to fund local and state government projects, plus $10 billion to fund highway projects and $1 billion for the Great Lakes Restoration Project.
https://patch.com/ohio/cleveland/president-joe-biden-visit-cleveland-lorain-thursday
>>>/qresearch/15640317 Four banks have custody of over US$179 Trillion in assets
Top four derivative positions according to OCC: $164.67T + precious metals contract amount(s)
The usual suspects still control the derivative positions as of Q3 2021-won't get Q4 until almost end of Q1 2022
$164.67 T controlled by-JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs (and the real "standout" cause they only have $387.38B in assets 'backing' it up) Shitibank and Bank of America.
The rest don't even come close.
Cap #2 for the visually inclined
For shits and giggles here is the derivative positions in precious metals-you can see Bank of America adding over 2021 with it's short term lease arrangement with JP Morgan on the far left of cap#3
Most of it is Silver and after it's 10 year low in 2018 it basically got ridiculous-the bulk on short term leases (orange portion).
Since these are mostly short term leases (less than a year) and March is the next delivery month for the COMEX we shall see how BofA tries to extricates itself from this ticking time bomb.
https://www.occ.gov/publications-and-resources/publications/quarterly-report-on-bank-trading-and-derivatives-activities/files/pub-derivatives-quarterly-qtr3-2021.pdf
Once Q4 comes out later next month this will be updated
02-4452 USAFSOC C-32B west from McGuire and did a pirouette just ne of Altoona PA
These have been quiet (or switched off) for last 10 days or so.
RCH738 and RCH176 (shows as 06-6158) inbound from Ramstein and Polish load outs
Ukraine crisis: NATO says no signs of Russian troop pullback
G-7 foreign ministers to hold emergency meeting Saturday.
Group of Seven foreign ministers are set to hold an emergency meeting Saturday to discuss the tensions surrounding Ukraine, as the West remains skeptical of Russia's claims of drawing down troops from along its border. This will follow a meeting Wednesday of NATO defense ministers about the bloc's response to the crisis, including potentially deploying troops in Eastern Europe. "So far, we have not seen any de-escalation on the ground," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters Wednesday before the meeting. "On the contrary, it appears that Russia continues the military buildup." "The intelligence we are sharing is actually confirmed also with open sources, with satellite imagery from commercial satellites," he told reporters.
So let's see it.....
"There's what Russia says. And then there's what Russia does. And we haven't seen any pullback of its forces," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC. "We continue to see critical units moving toward the border, not away from the border." Russia's defense ministry on Wednesday released video footage of tanks leaving Crimea after military exercises there, apparently to counter such criticism. The G-7 meeting is scheduled to take place alongside the Munich Security Conference, an annual forum to discuss international security matters. The officials look to gather in person, but the event could be moved online in light of coronavirus case trends.
Also on Wednesday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held a 25-minute call with U.K. counterpart Boris Johnson in which they confirmed support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and opposition to any attempts to unilaterally change the status quo through force. "We confirmed that we will continue diplomatic efforts to ease tensions and remain in contact," Kishida told reporters.
The two leaders agreed that an invasion would "shake the foundations of international order, and have severe consequences," according to London's readout of the call.
It was reported Tuesday that the website of Ukraine's defense ministry was taken down by a cyberattack. Banks in the country were hacked as well.
"We have been in touch with the Ukrainians, our allies and partners, working with them to deter and respond to malicious cyberactivity," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
"There's a range of means that we could respond, both seen and unseen, to a cyberattack or any other attack," Psaki said. "Our view remains that the crippling package of sanctions is an effective deterrent."
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Ukraine-crisis/Ukraine-crisis-NATO-says-no-signs-of-Russian-troop-pullback
BOXER40 USAF C-40C returning from somewhere in da great white north-trace shows it departed Brussels on 0211 and then nuffin else until this inbound to JBA
Arrived from JBA to Ramstein on 0208 then to Stuttgart on 0209 and Brussels on 0210
LA Keeps Indoor-Masking Mandate as Most of California Drops Rule
Los Angeles County, home to about 10 million people and the second-largest U.S. city, will still require people to wear masks indoors as infections decline from a peak but remain elevated. In most of the rest of California, the indoor masking mandate was lifted on Wednesday. LA County, along with a handful of others including Santa Clara and Mendocino, announced they’ll keep local indoor mask rules probably at least for the next few weeks.
The number of hospitalized Covid-19 patients in LA County has dropped by more than half to about 2,000 since the height of the omicron-fueled surge in mid-January.
Amid the drop in cases, LA County health officials eased some restrictions on Wednesday, lifting the obligation for people to wear masks outdoors, including at public schools, child-care centers and mega-events at places like the Hollywood Bowl and Dodger Stadium.
The county has entered a post-surge period of the pandemic, according to a statement from LA County of Public Health.
Disneyland, in Anaheim, California, said it plans to lift the masking requirement for vaccinated guests from Thursday.
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/la-keeps-indoor-masking-mandate-as-most-of-california-drops-rule-1.1724407
>>126387 lb The 'imminent' Russian invasion premium sparked last week is now mostly out of Au/Ag and coming out of still ridiculous oil pricing--4+% 10 year back over 2%
Metals and Oil right back up
10 yr stays above 2% after a drop earlier
https://www.kitco.com/charts/livegold.html
https://www.kitco.com/charts/livesilver.html
https://www.macrotrends.net/2566/crude-oil-prices-today-live-chart
https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/bond/tmubmusd10y
20Y Auction Sees Record Direct Bidders As Yield Rises To Highest On Record
After a trio of surprisingly strong auctions last week, moments ago the Treasury concluded the week's only coupon auction when it sold $19 billion in 20Y paper in yet another solid auction.
The auction, the 22nd 20Y sale since the tenor was introduced back in May 2020, stopped at a high yield of 2.396%, the highest on 20Y auction record, and on the screws with the When Issued which was also trading at 2.396% ahead of the auction.
as mentioned above these have only been available since may 2020
The bid to cover of 2.44 was slightly below January's 2.48 but was above the six-auction average of 2.41%, but was the lowest since November's 2.34.
The internals were also somewhat soggy with Indirects taking down 62.9%, below January's 66.2% below the six-auction average of 63.8% and the lowest since November of 2021. And with Directs taking down 21.0%, or the highest on record, Dealers were left holding just 16.1%, the second lowest on record, and below the recent average of 17.8%. Overall, the auction priced in line with expectations, and despite some weakness in the bid to cover and Indirect takedown, the record Direct bid will likely compensate for this weakness.
More notably, the 20s30s yield curve continued to trade inverted, after first dipping into negative territory back in October. There is no risk of this particular part of the yield curve disinverting any time soon.
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/20y-auction-sees-record-direct-bidders-yield-rises-highest-record
The U.S. Marine Corps F-35B STOVL (Short Take Off Vertical Landing) jets jointly operated with an F-117 Nighthawk from Tonopah Test Range.
On Feb. 8, 2022, the news started circulating online about at least one F-117 Nighthawk working the pattern at MCAS (Marine Corps Air Station) Miramar, California. The sighting immediately brought to mind the somewhat surprising deployment two F-117s did in 2020 to Miramar as well as the one to Fresno last year.
While the activities carried out from the base just outside San Diego in 2020 have never been publicly acknowledged and little is known other than the aircraft landed at MCAS Miramar in the afternoon on Oct. 20, 2020, and departed two days later, on Oct. 22, returning directly to Tonopah Test Range after a mission offshore in the W291 range off Southern California, the deployment to Fresno got at least an official confirmation. As we reported back then, at the end of Sept. 2021, two F-117s, flying as KNIGHT01, arrived at Fresno Yosemite International Airport to carry out dissimilar air combat training with the local-based California Air National Guard F-15C/D Eagles. Several shots and clips, taken by aviation photographers showed the iconic “Wobblin Goblin” at work over central California and the 144th FW posted a video of the Nighthawk operating at Fresno on their FB page too. But, some interesting details were provided, along with the first official images of Nighthawk aircraft flying again after being retired in 2008, by a USAF’s public release. Fortunately, local photographers were outside MCAS Miramar for the 2022 deployment, getting some really cool shots of the F-117 deployed there last week. “It was a very similar pattern to when the Nighthawks visited Fresno. I was also there for that one,” told us our friend and local photographer @point_mugu_skies. “This Nighthawk arrived Monday afternoon…..did a quick morning flight on Tuesday and then nothing the rest of the day (maybe a night flight) then a flight at 11:30am roughly on Wednesday, then an early flight on Thursday at 7:45am or so. He left back to Tonopah on Friday around 11AM”.
The interesting thing is that the aircraft this time integrated with the F-35Bs of the Marine fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 225 “Vikings” of Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 13, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, U.S. Marine Corps, deployed to MCAS Miramar from MCAS Yuma.
“Wednesday and Thursday it returned to base in a flight of 3….two different F-35s each day. Same squadron. Wind direction reversed runways on Thursday which is how I got that unique angle. My son and I were the only spotters there on Thursday so we were the only ones that got that shot.”
https://theaviationist.com/2022/02/14/f-35bs-f-117-mcas-miramar/
so many peeps still don't know that (FB=DARPA) and moar importantly have never heard of the DNI which makes it even tougher for them to process.
Equate it with the C_A is an easier sell overall though.
FOMC Minutes: "Faster" is the Word
In light of elevated inflation pressures and the strong labor market, participants continued to judge that the Committee's net asset purchases should be concluded soon. Most participants preferred to continue to reduce the Committee's net asset purchases according to the schedule announced in December, bringing them to an end in early March. A couple of participants stated that they favored ending the Committee's net asset purchases sooner to send an even stronger signal that the Committee was committed to bringing down inflation.
Participants discussed the implications of the economic outlook for the likely timing and pace for removing policy accommodation. Compared with conditions in 2015 when the Committee last began a process of removing monetary policy accommodation, participants viewed that there was a much stronger outlook for growth in economic activity, substantially higher inflation, and a notably tighter labor market. Consequently, most participants suggested that a faster pace of increases in the target range for the federal funds rate than in the post-2015 period would likely be warranted, should the economy evolve generally in line with the Committee's expectation.
Too bad you don't set the rates-bond market does and did it for you so all you are doing is delivering an already produced outcome
Even so, participants emphasized that the appropriate path of policy would depend on economic and financial developments and their implications for the outlook and the risks around the outlook, and they will be updating their assessments of the appropriate setting for the policy stance at each meeting. Participants noted that the removal of policy accommodation in current circumstances depended on the timing and pace of both increases in the target range of the federal funds rate and the reduction in the size of the Federal Reserve's balance sheet. In this context, a number of participants commented that conditions would likely warrant beginning to reduce the size of the balance sheet sometime later this year.
To who???...kek
In their discussion of the outlook for monetary policy, many participants noted the influence on financial conditions of the Committee's recent communications and viewed these communications as helpful in shifting private-sector expectations regarding the policy outlook into better alignment with the Committee's assessment of appropriate policy. Participants continued to stress that maintaining flexibility to implement appropriate policy adjustments on the basis of risk-management considerations should be a guiding principle in conducting policy in the current highly uncertain environment.
Most participants noted that, if inflation does not move down as they expect-*it's not going to and again...talk to he bond market faggits, it would be appropriate for the Committee to remove policy accommodation at a faster pace than they currently anticipate. Some participants commented on the risk that financial conditions might tighten unduly in response to a rapid removal of policy accommodation. A few participants remarked that this risk could be mitigated through clear and effective communication of the Committee's assessments of the economic outlook, the risks around the outlook, and the appropriate path for monetary policy.
https://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2022/02/fomc-minutes-faster-is-word.html
Someone in the system will panic and they will do moar in March than "forecast" and then intra-meeting...."Jamie Dimon" already told everyone whut they were gonna do.
taken from ZH and noticed yesterday by the Fox biz guy Charles Payne
Perhaps most notable is the fact the forward curve has moved rapidly to price in rate-cuts starting in 2023-cap #2
Same playbook in 2007-08...raise them fast so you can lower them during the manufactured crisis that "no one" saw coming...
Italian AF IAM3101 Falcon 900 Rome to Moscow.
Went to Kyiv yesterday-cap #2
Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio plans to visit Russia this week
Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio is going to visit Russia and Ukraine. About it writes the publication La Stampa. According to journalists, this week the head of the Italian Foreign Ministry intends to fly to Moscow and Kiev because of the situation around Ukraine. Corriere della Sera also reports that if a decision is made at a meeting of NATO defense ministers to strengthen the presence of the Alliance in Eastern Europe, then about two thousand Italian troops will be sent to Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania. At the same time, the military mission has not yet been agreed with the Italian parliament, journalists point out. Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister Manlio Di Stefano said that Italy should take care of energy security in the long term. Russian supplies, he said, could be replaced by imports of energy resources from three other states.
https://scooptrade.com/italian-foreign-minister-luigi-di-maio-plans-to-visit-russia-this-week/
One of these visits is not like the other.
Macron, Scholz at the 'table'
Macron refused to be tested....
Bolsanaro not at the big table
To be fair Scholz did lay a wreath at the Tomb of Unknown Soldier
#856 update 1
>>126631 Boatfag(s) alert Watch the water. East Coast around Nova Scotia.
>>126719, >>126727, >>126733, >>126737, >>126741 >>126749, >>126760, >>126772, >>126787 pf report(s) Morning view of Yerp/Med, BOTUS to Cleveland on thurs., Mystery Blackhawk (EVAC01) back to Rzeszow as DUKE53, SWQ (iAero) AC activity/Italian FM to Moscow/F-18 load test @NASA
>>126723 A stunning fall for ex-Honduran president wanted in US-apnews
>>126727, >>126728 Joe Biden To Visit Cleveland, Lorain On Thursday-patch
>>126729 Graphic: 11 Implications of Durham Probe Threaten to Undermine Biden-foxnews
>>126730 Top four derivative positions according to OCC: $164.67T + precious metals contract amount(s)-occ.gov
>>126734 Ukraine crisis: NATO says no signs of Russian troop pullback-nikkei
>>126738 LA Keeps Indoor-Masking Mandate as Most of California Drops Rule-bnnB'berg
>>126739, >>126740 Oil/Gold retake wut they lost yesterday ftmp, 10 t-note still above 2%
>>126743, >>126745, >>126748, >>126751, >>126752, >>126753, >>126754,>>126755, >>126756 Records Reveal Tech Operatives Allegedly Used by Hillary Clinton Campaign to Spy on Trump WH Had Contract with Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency-judicialwatch + drop #4664 and 4105 and discussion
>>126744 20Y Auction Sees Record Direct Bidders As Yield Rises To Highest On Record-zh
>>126746 The U.S. Marine Corps F-35B STOVL (Short Take Off Vertical Landing) jets jointly operated with an F-117 Nighthawk from Tonopah Test Range.-aviationist from Feb 14
>>126757 New York’s attorney general will take action in court on Thursday to FORCE Donald Trump to testify about “fraudulent or misleading” valuations of Trump properties to get loans and tax benefits-soc.media
>>126758 FOMC Minutes: "Faster" is the Word-calculatedrisk
>>126793 @CBS_Herridge Durham: New filing “Tech Executive-1 and his associates exploited this arrangement by mining the EOP’s (Executive Office of the President) DNS traffic and other data for the purpose of gathering derogatory information about Donald Trump-soc. media
>>126794 @CBS_Herridge "(Sussmann’s) Congressional testimony..was knowingly + intentionally misleading..defendant billed work..to Clinton Campaign”-soc. media
>>126796 @CBS_Herridge "#Durham CONTEXT: IG Horowitz 2019 FISA abuse report found FBI debunked Alpha Bank claims by early 2017"-soc. media
>>126798 still moar from @CBS_Herridge:"The Supervisory Intel Analyst told us that he factored the Alfa Bank/Trump server allegations into his assessment of Steele's (dossier) reporting.” NOTE: always pays to read the footnotes" soc. media
>>126801 @CBS_Herridge:"#Durham Heavily redacted + still relevant 16 months after first declassified by then DNI @JohnRatcliffe + after NEW special counsel filing"-soc. media
>>126436 lb
Pelosi was reported as arriving yesterday so this is some on the list at linky above.
But this AC is one the Nancy has used in the past for both Int'l and domestic trips
BOXER42 USAF C-40C on descent for Tel Aviv from Shannon, Ireland ground stop and JBA depart earlier today
yes...
muh n'bor broke back and they made them go to pt for 6 weeks and now have a perm rod after surgery
they had kaiser so no gettin' round that one.
Relieved that wait is now over.
din't used to be like that.
had experience before when therapist knew I shouldn't be doing something they actually wrote that down and reported it.
dunno about others.
Now it all about being paid...like the chiros who want you 3x a week forever.
And you know what?...people still do that.
They trust too much at expense of selves
Spouse was sitting next to table with me too and they did not like that one bit.
"can you go wait in the waiting room?"
"No"
can't even get into the bldg w/o one-at least where I have been.
It was supposedly lifted on Tues but have noticed no difference-still single in car with them on
We have cloth ones that have holes cut for nose that you can't see cause the fabric dark.
Sneaky like that
Got to go to Dr appts so must play that game but won't wear them anywhere else