Tag Archives: Geopolitics

Taiwanese gov. blows up fishermen with supersonic missile

Posted on by

“Taiwan’s navy mistakenly launched a supersonic anti-ship missile from a naval base, killing one person and injuring three, officials say.  A patrol boat was undergoing a drill inspection in Kaohsiung when the Hsiung Feng III missile was fired, Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) reported.   It launched in the direction of mainland China, and hit a fishing boat off the Penghu islands, CNA added.  A Taiwanese official said the launch was not ‘politically motivated’.  It came as China celebrates the 95th anniversary of the formation of the Chinese Communist Party.  China considers Taiwan a breakaway province, to be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary.”

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-36680899

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

After vote, China tells Taiwan to abandon independence “hallucination”

Posted on by

“Taiwan should abandon its ‘hallucinations’ about pushing for independence, as any moves towards it would be a ‘poison’, Chinese state-run media said after a landslide victory for the island’s independence-leaning opposition.  Tsai Ing-wen and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won a convincing victory in both presidential and parliamentary elections on Saturday, in what could usher in a new round of instability with China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own.  Tsai pledged to maintain peace with its giant neighbour China, while China’s Taiwan Affairs Office warned it would oppose any move towards independence and that Beijing was determined to defend the country’s sovereignty.”

http://in.reuters.com/article/taiwan-election-idINKCN0UV02I

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

ISIS Fighters’ Salaries Halved After Loss Of Territory And Air Strikes

Posted on by

“The terror group’s ‘treasury’ released a document stating that they have decided to cut the salaries due to ‘exceptional circumstances.’  The document does not describe the reasons behind its decision, it is thought to be the result of strikes that destroyed its bank and millions in currency.  ‘On account of the exceptional circumstances the Islamic State is facing, it has been decided to reduce the salaries that are paid to all mujahideen by half, and it is not allowed for anyone to be exempted from this decision, whatever his position,’ the document states.”

http://breaking911.com/isis-fighters-salaries-halved-due-loss-of-territory-and-air-strikes/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Saudi Arabia Just Got Turned Into an ETF

Posted on by

“Such a fund was not even possible until June, when Saudi Arabia opened up to direct foreign investment, albeit limited, in its stock market to boost economic growth while the country looks to diversify its $750 billion economy away from oil. Similar to the China A-share market, KSA gives quick access to a market that was previously accessible only by using indirect, costly channels.  The ETF will track the MSCI Saudi Arabia IMI 25/50 Index, which holds about 50 large-, mid-, and small-cap stocks that cover approximately 99 percent of the free float-adjusted market value of Saudi Arabia. One interesting note is that the index has only 1.4 percent allocated to energy stocks.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-16/saudi-arabia-just-got-turned-into-an-etf

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

World Bank tells Saudis to prop up currency amid global devaluation war

Posted on by

“Saudi Arabia should use its massive foreign exchange reserves to defend the riyal, amid fears the world is descending into a new phase of global currency wars, the World Bank has said. The kingdom’s shaky currency peg with the dollar has come under record pressure this week as the price of oil has plummeted to near 12-year lows.  Central bank reserves have dropped from a peak of $735bn to around $635bn this year – a pace of spending which will exhaust the kingdom’s fiscal buffers within five years  The monarchy has vowed to stick by the exchange regime and is instead planning to strengthen its coffers through the unprecedented flotation of its state-owned oil giant, Aramco.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/12089324/Saudi-Arabia-China-riyal-dollar-currency-wars.html

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Ron Paul Says to Watch the Petrodollar

Posted on by

“From 1972 to 1974, the U.S. government made a series of agreements with Saudi Arabia. These agreements created the petrodollar system. The U.S. government chose Saudi Arabia because of its vast petroleum reserves, its dominant position in OPEC, and the (correct) perception that the Saudi royal family was corruptible. In essence, the petrodollar system was an agreement that the U.S. would guarantee the survival of the House of Saud. It’s hard to overstate how much the petrodollar system benefits the U.S. dollar. It’s allowed the U.S. government and many Americans to live beyond their means for decades.”

http://www.internationalman.com/articles/ron-paul-says-to-watch-the-petrodollar

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Saudi Arabia may go broke before the US oil industry buckles

Posted on by

“Bank of America says OPEC is now ‘effectively dissolved’. The cartel might as well shut down its offices in Vienna to save money.  OPEC now faces a permanent headwind. Each rise in price will be capped by a surge in US output. The only constraint is the scale of US reserves that can be extracted at mid-cost, and these may be bigger than originally supposed, not to mention the parallel possibilities in Argentina and Australia, or the possibility for ‘clean fracking’ in China as plasma pulse technology cuts water needs. Saudi Arabia is effectively beached. It relies on oil for 90pc of its budget revenues. There is no other industry to speak of, a full fifty years after the oil bonanza began.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/oilprices/11768136/Saudi-Arabia-may-go-broke-before-the-US-oil-industry-buckles.html

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Saudis ‘will not destroy the US shale industry’: hedge funds

Posted on by

“Hedge funds and private equity groups armed with $60bn of ready cash are poised to snap up the assets of bankrupt US shale drillers, almost guaranteeing that America’s tight oil production will rebound as soon as prices start to recover.  Mr Yergin said groups with deep pockets such as Blackstone and Carlyle will take over the infrastructure when the distressed assets are cheap enough, and bide their time until the oil cycle turns. Many shale bonds are trading at distress level below 50 cents on the dollar, even for mid-risk companies. Banks are being careful not to push them into receivership but they themselves are under pressure.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/12118594/Saudis-will-not-destroy-the-US-shale-industry.html

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Some Bankrupt Oil and Gas Drillers Can’t Give Their Assets Away

Posted on by

“Winners and losers are emerging from the energy bust. What’s a meal for Clark is indigestion for banks that financed the boom using oil and gas properties as collateral. The four biggest U.S. banks — Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. — have set aside at least $2.5 billion combined to cover souring energy loans and have said they’ll add to that if prices stay low.  There’s plenty to keep Clark bargain-hunting. Last year, 42 U.S. energy companies went bankrupt, owing more than $17 billion, according to a report from law firm Haynes & Boone.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-20/some-bankrupt-oil-and-gas-drillers-can-t-give-their-assets-away

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet

Saudi Arabia budget 2016: domestic and regional effects

Posted on by

“This new economic forecast presents big challenges to Saudi Arabia’s standing regionally. Its sponsorship of rebel groups in Syria and its military adventurism in Yemen have seen massive increases in its military budget, which has risen by 19 percent a year since 2011. The conflict in Yemen has moved from a rapid response by the Gulf States to a protracted conflict that seems like there is no political or military solution in sight. As Saudi Arabia becomes further bogged down in the conflict, the economic and social costs will likely increase, placing more pressure on the House of Al-Saud.”

http://globalriskinsights.com/2016/01/saudi-arabia-budget-2016-domestic-and-regional-effects/

Scan to Donate Bitcoin to Freedomwat.ch Staff
Did you like this?
Tip Freedomwat.ch Staff with Bitcoin
Donate via Installed Wallet