justoffal
Senator
Never mind the BS about the parade....read the financial stuff.
This is NOT GOOD.......
http://www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com/
Vladimir Putin just presided over a huge military parade in Moscow to mark his country’s glorious victory ... 69 years ago over Germany. Will it be a warm-up for another holiday celebrating his Ukrainian conquests?
Today we have more evidence that Western sanctions are not having the desired impact. They are instead driving Putin into an even deeper alliance with China. I’m not sure this is a victory for the U.S. or Western Europe.
[See more parade photos at Business Insider]
The large vehicle in the picture is a Topol-M ballistic missile launcher. Notice the Soviet-era symbol on the banner behind it. This could be a 1980s propaganda photo — but the parade happened this week.
After the big parade in Moscow, Putin flew to Sevastopol, Crimea, for a smaller celebration. It was his first visit since the peninsula seceded from Ukraine and joined Russia. NATO says it sees no evidence Russian troops have left their positions near the Ukraine border.
***
This appeared on Bloomberg today.
Putin’s Export Machine Rolls Right Over Sanctions, Outcry
Vladimir Putin’s incursion into Ukraine and the international condemnation that followed haven’t put a dent in Russia’s exports of gas and raw materials.
The world’s largest energy producer shipped 2 percent more gas to Europe in the first three months of 2014 than it did in the same period last year, government data show. Diesel output for export increased, while cargoes of grains, palladium and nickel either climbed or were about the same. Russia’s crude oil exports fell 0.2 percent from last year.
Economic sanctions from the U.S. and European Union haven’t dimmed demand for what Russia can sell even as price increases betray investors’ anxiety over future supplies. Any plan to pinch the country’s trade to punish Putin for his March annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula would have to overcome Europe’s dependence on Russian gas and China’s appetite for the country’s metals.
Read the rest at Bloomberg.com
The last sentence of the quote is important. As long as Europe depends on Russian gas and China keeps buying Russian metals, Western sanctions will have little impact on Russia’s economy.
***
Speaking of China, Putin will travel to Beijing later this month. The two countries supposedly have a huge energy deal in the works and the two leaders may sign it while Putin is there.
Bloomberg also reported today that Putin plans to roll back limits on Chinese investment in Russia. This will help replace Moscow’s lost access to Western capital.
Among other projects, Russia wants Chinese help to build a $1.4 billion bridge from Russian territory on the Black Sea to the Crimean peninsula. Even Putin has limits, though. He will keep China out of gold, platinum, diamond and other important mining projects.
***
This is important information for investors. If these news reports are right, we could be at the beginning of a major economic realignment. Right now, China invests a large part of its currency reserves in U.S. Treasury bonds, mainly because it doesn’t have many other choices.
If Putin’s plan works, he will simultaneously replace the capital that the U.S. and European governments have cut off, and punish the West by forcing it to raise interest rates.
Putin plays the long game — and he’s playing it very well.
JO
This is NOT GOOD.......
http://www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com/
Vladimir Putin just presided over a huge military parade in Moscow to mark his country’s glorious victory ... 69 years ago over Germany. Will it be a warm-up for another holiday celebrating his Ukrainian conquests?
Today we have more evidence that Western sanctions are not having the desired impact. They are instead driving Putin into an even deeper alliance with China. I’m not sure this is a victory for the U.S. or Western Europe.
[See more parade photos at Business Insider]
The large vehicle in the picture is a Topol-M ballistic missile launcher. Notice the Soviet-era symbol on the banner behind it. This could be a 1980s propaganda photo — but the parade happened this week.
After the big parade in Moscow, Putin flew to Sevastopol, Crimea, for a smaller celebration. It was his first visit since the peninsula seceded from Ukraine and joined Russia. NATO says it sees no evidence Russian troops have left their positions near the Ukraine border.
***
This appeared on Bloomberg today.
Putin’s Export Machine Rolls Right Over Sanctions, Outcry
Vladimir Putin’s incursion into Ukraine and the international condemnation that followed haven’t put a dent in Russia’s exports of gas and raw materials.
The world’s largest energy producer shipped 2 percent more gas to Europe in the first three months of 2014 than it did in the same period last year, government data show. Diesel output for export increased, while cargoes of grains, palladium and nickel either climbed or were about the same. Russia’s crude oil exports fell 0.2 percent from last year.
Economic sanctions from the U.S. and European Union haven’t dimmed demand for what Russia can sell even as price increases betray investors’ anxiety over future supplies. Any plan to pinch the country’s trade to punish Putin for his March annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula would have to overcome Europe’s dependence on Russian gas and China’s appetite for the country’s metals.
Read the rest at Bloomberg.com
The last sentence of the quote is important. As long as Europe depends on Russian gas and China keeps buying Russian metals, Western sanctions will have little impact on Russia’s economy.
***
Speaking of China, Putin will travel to Beijing later this month. The two countries supposedly have a huge energy deal in the works and the two leaders may sign it while Putin is there.
Bloomberg also reported today that Putin plans to roll back limits on Chinese investment in Russia. This will help replace Moscow’s lost access to Western capital.
Among other projects, Russia wants Chinese help to build a $1.4 billion bridge from Russian territory on the Black Sea to the Crimean peninsula. Even Putin has limits, though. He will keep China out of gold, platinum, diamond and other important mining projects.
***
This is important information for investors. If these news reports are right, we could be at the beginning of a major economic realignment. Right now, China invests a large part of its currency reserves in U.S. Treasury bonds, mainly because it doesn’t have many other choices.
If Putin’s plan works, he will simultaneously replace the capital that the U.S. and European governments have cut off, and punish the West by forcing it to raise interest rates.
Putin plays the long game — and he’s playing it very well.
JO
