Submitted by Irina Slav via OilPrice.com,
The first U.S. shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) arrived in Portugal last week and Gazprom did not immediately cut its own gas prices for Europe. While European media has hailed the entry of U.S. gas into the market as a game-changer and a monopoly-breaker, in the short term, nothing has changed at all.
We have old friends visiting this week from Europe. I encouraged them to go to Rosedown Plantation, in St. Francisville, which is one of the grandest and best preserved plantations in the South. It really is a wonder to behold. But Julie and I also suggested that they get the other side of the story by going to Whitney Plantation, down the river in St. John the Baptist Parish.
A high ranking Israeli general has come under fire following remarks where he suggested a comparison between Nazi Germany and present day Israel. His comments made during during a Holocaust Remembrance speech have fueled heated discussion among politicians and on social media. However, the deputy head of the Israeli military has been forced to backtrack after comparing some attitudes in present-day Israel to “nauseating trends” in 1930s Germany.
The coming ‘sharia gold standard’ or shariah compliant gold could lead to a very significant source of new demand for physical gold coins and bars in the Islamic world. It is believed that this will contribute to much higher prices and gold “soaring” as some of the $2 trillion of assets held in Islamic financial institutions are allocated to the very small physical global gold market.
Europe has banned the use of €500 bills.
The reason?
They claim these bills are used in money laundering and for drugs. And if you believe that is the concern, you probably believe the earth is flat.
The fact of the matter is that Europe is now the center for misguided Central Planning for monetary policy. ECB President Mario Draghi has cut interest rates not once, not twice, not even thrice, but FOUR times into NIRP.
The end result has been two items: