Wolf Richter

BlackRock: Russian Bond Market “Freezing Up”

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“People thought sanctions were about visas for oligarchs wanting to visit Disneyland. But they are much more important.”

Russia Dumping US Treasuries? But Why the Heck in Belgium?

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Belgium is known for its surprises. For example, it got by amazingly well for a couple of years without a national government, to the chagrin of a lot of people. Now that tiny country with a tiny economy is suddenly piling up a mountain of US Treasuries.

France Thumbs Nose at Obama Over Sanctions: Will Deliver Two Warships to Russia

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The battle between the US and France has been brewing for months, but now it came to a head: the French government decided to spite the US and move forward with the contract to deliver two warships to Russia. To heck with those silly sanctions.

Russian Bank Lures German Savers As Russians Yank Out Money

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Smart Russians are voting with their bank accounts, dumping rubles at the fastest rate since the financial crisis, and yanking dollars and euros out of banks at a record pace. So where do the teetering banks go to refill these holes? Where the dumb money is: German savers.

The Brutal, Beneath-the-Surface, Slo-Mo Crash of Stocks

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Even while the googly-eyed mainstream media celebrate the Dow’s record high, beneath the gloss, thousands of stocks are getting gutted. And the carnage is spreading.

When $1.2 Trillion In Foreign Bank Funds In The US Dissipate

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It fits the pattern of gratuitous bank enrichment perfectly. This time, the big beneficiaries of the Fed are foreign banks. An unintended consequence, with big impact on the “recovery.”

Explosive Hidden Leverage Threatens To Blow Up the Markets

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We don’t know what hedge fund manager Steven Cohen will do with the money he borrowed from Goldman Sachs. We don’t even know how much it is, though it’s a lot; the personal loan is backed by his $1 billion art collection. But we know how he’ll use it: cheap leverage.