Russia-Ukraine War: Six Powerful Videos
In this post, I will provide six videos that offer contrary views of the Russia-Ukraine war against the American establishment (i.e., the Biden administration and the MSM).
18Mar2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: DOW Closed Up 274 Points, NASDAQ Closed Up 2.1%, S&P 500 Closed Up Again 1.2%, USD Fractionally Down At 98.21, Gold Slips To 1919, Bitcoin Rises Upward Fractionally To 42300, Market Moderately Fractionally Lower
WTI crude rose higher today which may be the start of another oil rally as it settled at 104.54 this afternoon. The three major Wall Street indexes rallied for the the third straight session, but remained below the 200 day SMA.
214,000 initial unemployment claims were filed last week, down 15K from the previous week and surprising analyst projections of 220,000. The figures reflect the ongoing tight labor market. More than 11 million jobs remain vacant as employers are reporting difficulties in filling jobs across a number of industries.
While the job market remains hot, the economy still faces strong inflationary headwinds. Inflation rose by 7.9% year-over-year in February, prompting the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates for the first time since December 2018.
A summary of headlines we are reading today:
Toyota, major chip supplier suspend production due to earthquake in Japan
Over 400 companies have withdrawn from Russia. But some Western brands are locked in
Key Words: Arnold Schwarzenegger gets tough with Vladimir Putin
Stocks Squeeze To Best Week Since 2020 Election As Fed Cranks Hawkishness To ’11’
These and other headlines and news summaries moving the markets today are included below.
NOAA Updates their Four-Season Outlook on March 17, 2022
Introduction
Today is the third Thursday of the month so right on schedule NOAA has issued their Seasonal Outlook. In this article, I summarize it and provide links that will take the reader to additional maps and discussions that I have not included, but I have included quite a bit in this article. I want to remind everyone that last Thursday NOAA issued their ENSO outlook and that has a lot of influence on their Seasonal Outlook. The Seasonal Outlook generally reflects La Nina conditions initially with no clear indication of when this La Nina will end. There could be triple dip La Nina but that is not the most likely scenario but can not be discounted. Over the next three months, the Southern Tier drought intensifies but there is relief extending to the east. There is fairly good news with respect to the North American Monsoon (NAM).
17Mar2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street Closed Higher After Feds Interest Rate Increase, DOW Closed Up 418 Points, NASDAQ Up 1.3%, S&P 500 Up 1.2%, Gold At 1935, Silver at 25.25, Both At Support, Bitcoin Fractionally Lower At 40800
The Green Back rose on Saint Paddy’s Day to $97.99 along with U.S. equities on moderately lower green volume. Investors are getting used to the Fed’s actions as stocks jumped for a third day. “We’re on day three of potential gains here, and a lot of investors are going in thinking maybe there are calmer waters,” Jeff Kilburg, the chief investment officer of Sanctuary Wealth, said this afternoon.
Investors digesting the latest news out of Ukraine seem to be getting comfortable with the outcome of the Federal Reserve meeting yesterday. However, the down trend line of the three major indexes was broken upwards may be a false flag, leading to more losses.
Wall Street stocks rebounded from early losses this morning as investors considered the Federal Reserve’s economic implications, which some say were surprisingly aggressive.
Crude prices originally rose on initial supply shortages and concerns from the Russia-Ukraine war. Oil prices spike nearly 10% as hopes of Ukraine’s ceasefire fade. As the White House continues to push back against the oil industry over high gasoline prices, WTI and Brent crude rallied today to gain nearly 10% by 3:30 p.m. ET. In addition, oil prices rebounded substantially today after a major selloff earlier in the week.
A summary of headlines we are reading today:
- A Million New Millionaires Were Created In U.S. Last Year, And The Richest Got Richer, Report Says
- Stocks Go Full Green On St Paddy’s Day Ahead Of Massive OpEx
- Uranium Stocks Soar After U.S. Signals Aid For Nuclear Power
- Russia Says It Made Debt Payments In Dollars, A Move That Would Avert Potential Default: Reports
These and other headlines and news summaries moving the markets today are included below.
16Mar2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street Continues Rally For Second Day, DOW Closes Up 519 Points, NASDAQ Up Sharply 3.8%, S&P 500 up 2.2%, WTI Crude Settles At 95.04, Bitcoin Rises Fractionally To 41200
Wall Street, gold, cryptos soar as Fed hawkish surprise triggers a countdown to a recession this summer warns strategist. The Federal Reserve approved its first interest rate hike in three years today and expects to see six more rate hikes ahead. Moreover, the Fed has signaled a willingness to sacrifice growth to stop inflation.
WTI settled near where it was yesterday as Oil sheds most of its Russian war premium. However, China’s latest COVID lock down will reduce its demand for crude in the coming months and may lower crude prices further. The USD has slipped fractionally to 95.04 while gold rose moderately to 1928.
The widely followed president and chief economist and strategist of Toronto-based Rosenberg Research & Associates Inc., David Rosenberg, said the Fed is trying to beat inflation that will result in the U.S. economy sliding into a recession as early as this summer.
Rosenberg sees evidence of a slowing economy already, which makes the Fed’s timing questionable and only amplifies his recession call.
A summary of headlines we are reading today:
- Chernobyl Could Be Close To New Nuclear Disaster
- Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine Will Lower Car Production By Millions Of Units Over Two Years, S&P Says
- Energy Spending To Hit Record 13% Of Global GDP In 2022
- Beyond First Rate Hike, The Fed Signals That Inflation Fight Is Going To Get Harder
These and other headlines and news summaries moving the markets today are included below
Assessing the U.S. Climate in February, 2022
Updated at 0:15 AM EDT March 17, 2022 to include information on worldwide precipitation and the corresponding discussion.
Recently I published a podcast about February climate prepared by two meteorologists who work at CLIMAS. It focuses on why February was the way it was for the U.S. Southwest and West Coast.
This is the official NCEI assessment of the U.S. Climate in February, 2022. it describes what it was not why it was. Sometimes I use an email that a PR person sends out on that report. This time I am working with the report itself. Plus there was some supplementary information provided and I am including some of that as well. The report is pretty complete so I only added a few comments to it. The main comment is that the last decade has been the warmest ever in modern times but that can be confusing if you say that this is the fifth warmest year ever (just an example). That could mean it is average for the last ten years. Although this article is mostly about CONUS plus Alaska, I have included the World temperature record for the last 128 Februaries.
15Mar2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: The DOW Closed Up 599 Points, Just Shy Of Its Session Highs, NASDAQ Closed Higher At +2.9% And The S&P 500 Closed Up 2.1%, Gold Sipped To 1915, WTI Crude Settled At 95.03
The three major Wall Street indexes closed near their highs in a rebound during the last hour and a half. Stocks end today’s session significantly higher after trading sideways during the late afternoon session. Today’s rise appears to be a relief rally helped in part by falling crude costs and rising prices of tech stocks.
Oil has fallen more than 27% of recent highs and 5% today. Chinese stocks listed in Hong Kong have taken the largest plunge since 2008’s financial crisis, and the fall is blamed on concerns of its close affiliation with Russia.
A summary of headlines we are reading today:
The World Is Facing A Critical Diesel Shortage
EIA: The U.S. Is Still Energy Independent
Crude Craters, Chinese Tech ‘Dead Cat Bounces’, & VXX Decouples From Reality
Tesla Bought Russian Aluminum To Make Body Shells For Model Y
Bond Report: Treasury Yields Rise To Highest In Almost Three Years As Fed Settles Into Its Two-Day Meeting
These and other headlines and news summaries moving the markets today are included below.
14Mar2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street Closes Down, DOW Up 1 Tiny Point, But Headed Down After Opening, NASDAQ Down 2.0%, S&P 500 Down 0.7%, WTI Crude Slips To $101, Gold Trading At 1953
Wall Street opened higher at the opening few minutes. Still, like a rollercoaster, the rest of the session was downhill, finally leveling off in negative territory and trading sideways for most of the late afternoon trading.
Stocks turned lower, and oil prices fell as traders looked ahead to the Fed decision this week. Investors are awaiting the Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy decision amid the ongoing invasion in Ukraine and soaring inflation.
A summary of headlines we are reading today:
• Speculators Massively Cut Their Bullish Bets On Oil
• Russia Looks To Charm India With Cheap Oil Supplies
• Renewable Energy Projects Are Facing Resistance Around The World
• Carnage: China Breaks, Apple Cracks Key Support, Yields Soar As Rate Hike Odds Surge
• U.S. Oil Tumbles More Than 8%, Dips Below $100 Per Barrel
These and other headlines and news summaries moving the markets today are included below.
Mar 2022 Southwest Climate Podcast – Cold(ish), Windy, and Dry – Winter Recap & Looking Ahead
In the March 2022 edition of the CLIMAS Southwest Climate Podcast, Mike Crimmins and Zack Guido “dive into a recap of winter (so far) in the Southwest. First, recap winter to date, and put it in the context of a double-dip La Niña, including precipitation totals, temperature, and snowpack. Then they take a closer look at the phases of the PNA (Pacific/North American pattern) and how this links to ENSO/La Niña and the weather conditions this winter. Finally, they revisit temperature to consider just how “cold” it has actually been, and preview a closer look at fire outlooks, snowpack, and water supply in upcoming podcasts”.
ENSO Update March 10, 2022: La Nina Remains and if Anything is Stronger
On the second Thursday of every month, NOAA issues its analysis of the status of ENSO. This includes determining the Alert System Status. Although the current status remains the same i.e. La Nina Advisory, the forecast has been adjusted somewhat from last month. The forecast calls for the La Nina to continue to fade perhaps but right now it is stronger. The timing is shown in the NOAA discussion and the IRI probability analysis. Of importance, the chances of a Triple Dip La Nina are not ruled out. That could be a real disaster for the Southwest and the West Coast.
The impact of the NOAA forecast for the transition from La Nina to ENSO Neutral will show up next Thursday when NOAA issues its Seasonal Outlook. The NOAA ENSO Status Update provides an advance indication of how the forecast might change. There is a lag between the ENSO state and the impact on U.S. weather. Thus the exact date when a fading La Nina meets the criteria for ENSO Neutral may not be very important in terms of the actual impact on Spring and Summer weather including the North American Monsoon (NAM). But the possibility of a Triple Dip should be of considerable concern. We will learn what NOAA thinks next Thursday.
