Asia

Authored by Paul Craig Roberts,

On several occasions I have asked in my columns the rhetorical question: What became of the left? Today I answer my question.

Ahead of her meeting with Trump tomorrow, British Prime Minister Theresa May joked that "opposites attract" and called on the US President to renew the "special relationship" between Britain and the United States and lead in a new, changed world. In the United States for what will be Trump's first meeting with a foreign leader since he took office last week, May signaled a shift in foreign policy, bringing her position more in line with that of Trump.

With global stock markets basking in the afterglow of Dow crossing 20,000 for the first time, on Thursday they propelled higher in sympathy with the US, as Asia and Europe are trading solidly in the green, as is the dollar which rebounded strongly off a 5 week low. Copper touched the highest price since November after reports of lower production. Global government bonds extended declines as France’s 10-year yield breached 1% for the first time in more than a year. Gold declined.

Authored by Alastair Crooke, originally posted at The Automatic Earth blog,

In the latest surprise to come from the Trump administration, the NYT reports that in the Trump administration is preparing a set of executive orders aimed at isolating the US and which would allow the United States to "drastically reduce" its role and involvement in the United Nations and other international organizations, "as well as begin a process to review and potentially abrogate certain forms of multilateral treaties, officials said." The order calls for then enacting “at least a 40% overall decrease” in remaining United States funding toward international organizations.