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Read where Pimco says, no more long US bonds. Short term only.
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At PIMCO, we are already making incremental adjustments in response to rising U.S. deficits. Specifically, we’re less inclined to lend to the U.S. government at the long end of the yield curve, favoring opportunities elsewhere. Here’s our latest thinking.
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... we have become more hesitant to lend longer term given U.S. debt sustainability questions and potential inflation catalysts, such as tariffs and the effects of immigration restrictions on the labor force. ...
The argument that restricting immigration is detrimental to the labor force falls flat once one realizes that there are only about 2.5 million news jobs created per year.Would deporting illegals really be inflationary? I don't think they are working (ie. in the labor force) and the government is spending a ton of money to house them. That bit seems like a bit of a politica
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has affirmed that plans to establish a BRICS payment system are tangible and progressing, describing them as “not hypothetical.” In an interview with the Tass Analytical Center on Tuesday, Ryabkov reflected on Russia’s role during its BRICS chairmanship, emphasizing that the initiative is both real and actionable. When asked about the feasibility of such a payment system among BRICS nations, he stated:...Not only it exists. It is not hypothetical.
Russian Official Declares BRICS Payment System a Real Alternative to US Dollar – Economics Bitcoin News
A top Russian official has declared plans for a BRICS payment system “not hypothetical,” signaling a shift toward reducing reliance on the dollar through alternative financial mechanisms.news.bitcoin.com
Eric Yeung speculates that Russia's proposed BRICS precious metals exchange might be developed/located in Hong Kong:
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the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said:Working Group on Promoting Gold Market Development established
Following the Chief Executive's announcement in the 2024 Policy Address to establish a working group under the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau to comprehensively review all aspects relating to the development of a gold market, take forward the establishment of an international gold trading centre, and formulate plans on enhancing the trading and regulatory mechanisms of the market, conducting domestic and overseas promotion, etc, the Government announced today (December 18) that the Working Group on Promoting Gold Market Development has been established.
The Working Group is chaired by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury. Members comprise relevant government officials, representatives of regulatory bodies, financial institutions, exchanges and industry stakeholders. The Working Group will also invite other industry experts to participate in discussions on specific issues.
The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui said, "The establishment of an international gold trading centre is a new entry point to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre. In this year's Policy Address, the Chief Executive stated that we would attract physical gold storage, drive gold trading, settlement and delivery activities, and even propel Hong Kong into being a gold trading centre. The Government will promote the development of world-class gold storage facilities, and building on the increased gold holdings, scale up associated support and financial services such as insurance, testing and certification, logistics, etc, as well as expanding related derivative transactions such as collateral, loans and hedging, etc, hence creating a comprehensive ecosystem in a progressive manner. This will promote a comprehensive multicurrency trading, clearing, delivery, and regulatory system, thereby establishing a holistic gold trading centre. We will also explore mutual access with the Mainland financial market when appropriate."
He added, "The Working Group, which brings together industry leaders and professionals, as well as representatives of financial regulators and market participants, will hold its first meeting this month. I look forward to working closely and actively discussing with members on formulating a comprehensive implementation plan for the development of Hong Kong's gold market."
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... For the Brics group, a gold-backed digital currency could make a big difference. Lower transaction costs and reduced exchange rate volatility are among the tangible benefits. If even 50% of intra-Brics trade shifted to such a currency, cost savings of 1% to 2% per transaction would add up to billions of dollars. These savings could be reinvested to fuel economic growth and enhance trade efficiency. DLT offers the transparency, security and efficiency necessary to underpin such a currency.
By tokenising gold reserves, each digital unit would be backed by tangible assets stored in secure vaults, with regular audits ensuring accountability. Smart contracts could dynamically adjust currency weightings, reflecting trade patterns and economic conditions. This would enable real-time settlements, reduce delays and foster trust among participants. Such a system might even attract nations outside the bloc seeking alternatives to dollar-dominated networks, potentially increasing the Brics bloc’s global trade share beyond its current 18%.
Some elements of this vision are in place. ...
A few days ago, Putin gave an interview with CNBC wherein he made a couple of comments that caught my attention. You might recall a bit of discussion some time back in this thread about US sanctions on Russia with the nuclear strike of locking them out of the SWIFT system which kicked off (or sent into high gear) Russia's de-dollarization efforts. They even tried to build a competing payment clearing system to compete with SWIFT. Crypto seems like it might end up being a solution (some day).
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Though Putin expressed disdain for Bticoin/crypto price volatility, he understands it is a payment clearing mechanism that no government can control. I suspect that smaller players like Iran will test the waters with crypto based oil trades before big dogs like Russia do it.
Russian companies have begun using bitcoin and other digital currencies in international payments following legislative changes that allowed such use in order to counter Western sanctions, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Wednesday.
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"As part of the experimental regime, it is possible to use bitcoins, which we had mined here in Russia (in foreign trade transactions)," Siluanov told Russia 24 television channel.
"Such transactions are already occurring. We believe they should be expanded and developed further. I am confident this will happen next year," he said, adding that international payments in digital currencies represent the future.
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Saudi Arabia has frozen the bid to join Brics, according to Russian news agency Interfax.
The agency quoted Yuri Ushakov, a foreign policy advisor to Kremlin, as saying that Russia has frozen its accession to Brics.
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Indonesia has become the first Southeast Asian country to join Brics as a full member. Together with its Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) counterparts Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, Indonesia was invited last October to be a Brics “partner country”, a category created at the Kazan summit with a path to full membership. Among them, only Vietnam has yet to accept.
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Originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – hence Brics – the bloc added Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates last year. ...
This year will pave the way for a great central bank reserve shift from fiat to assets like gold and Bitcoin, according to Deven Soni, CEO of Matador Technologies.
"We're going to see more governments rebalance their holdings away from fiat assets and towards assets like Bitcoin and gold," Soni told Kitco News anchor Jeremy Szafron. "That's going create an outsized return for gold relative to fiat currencies."
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... Project mBridge, which has successfully reached the minimum viable product stage, is being handed over to the central bank partners. ...
Amazing how many of these 'Tin Foil' conspiracies are actually coming true...
It's really hard to understand how changes will alter our landscape. If we had known, for example, that that miserable iPhone would turn into a tracking collar on the plebes...how many of us would have bought one? How many of us would have DEMANDED it be BANNED from the market, or at least demanded privacy-protection legislation?~20 years ago or so - before I created this website, I was posting about these topics in other corners of the internet and largely dismissed. Very few could (or had sufficient interest to) see the significant currents that move the tides that toss our boats around. Cognitive bias is a very strong force.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a comic science fiction series created by Douglas Adams ...
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In the radio series and the first novel, a group of hyper-intelligent pan-dimensional beings demand to learn the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything from the supercomputer Deep Thought, specially built for this purpose. It takes Deep Thought 7+1⁄2 million years to compute and check the answer, which turns out to be 42. Deep Thought points out that the answer seems meaningless because the beings who instructed it never knew what the question was.[4]
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In January 2000, in response to a panellist's "Where does the number 42 come from?" on the radio show Book Club, Adams explained that he was "on his way to work one morning, whilst still writing the scene, and was thinking about what the actual answer should be. He eventually decided that it should be something that made no sense whatsoever – a number, and a mundane one at that. And that is how he arrived at the number 42, completely at random."
Stephen Fry, a friend of Adams, claims that Adams told him "exactly why 42", and that the reason is "fascinating, extraordinary and, when you think hard about it, completely obvious."[14] ...
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Being called the “Mar-a-Lago Accord,” it would involve several stages. First, the U.S. would try to force some foreign creditors, which hold large amounts of long-term Treasury notes, to trade them in for special extra-long-term Treasurys.
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Another aspect is the existing push on tariffs. The Trump administration wants to use them in the process of restructuring global trade and weaken the dollar, ...
From Grok:I can't seem to find a citation to an original source for the plan.
From Grok:
The "Mar-a-Lago Accord" is not an officially documented agreement with a single, definitive original source citation like historical accords such as the Plaza Accord or Bretton Woods Agreement. Rather, it appears to be a speculative concept or term coined by analysts, commentators, and financial experts to describe a potential economic strategy associated with Donald Trump’s administration, particularly in his second term starting in 2025. It is often framed as a hypothetical plan to restructure U.S. debt, weaken the dollar, or reset the global financial system, drawing parallels to past international monetary agreements.
Based on available information, the term has been popularized in discussions by figures like Jim Bianco of Bianco Research, who has described it as a "concept" rather than a literal event tied to a specific document or meeting at Mar-a-Lago. For instance, Bianco’s discussions, as noted in sources like Bloomberg and MacroVoices in February 2025, suggest it encapsulates ideas from Trump’s economic team, including tariffs, debt restructuring, and dollar devaluation—ideas partly traced to a November 2024 paper by Stephen Miran, Trump’s nominee for the White House Council of Economic Advisers. That paper, titled "A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System," outlines strategies to address dollar overvaluation and reform global trade, but it does not explicitly use the term "Mar-a-Lago Accord" or present itself as an official accord document.
Other sources, such as commentaries on Substack (e.g., by JD Breen or Anthony Pompliano) and financial analyses from outlets like Forbes and ZeroHedge, further speculate on this concept, often linking it to Trump’s broader economic rhetoric and actions like imposing tariffs or leveraging gold reserves. However, no primary source—such as a signed agreement, government press release, or official transcript from a meeting at Mar-a-Lago—has been identified as the "original" citation. The term seems to have emerged organically in financial discourse around late 2024 and early 2025, inspired by Trump’s estate and historical naming conventions for economic pacts.
Critically examining this, the lack of a concrete original source suggests the "Mar-a-Lago Accord" remains a narrative construct rather than a formalized policy with a citable origin at this point. It reflects market speculation and interpretation of Trump’s intentions rather than a documented event. If you’re seeking a foundational text, Miran’s November 2024 paper is the closest associated document, though it’s more a proposal than an accord itself. Without an official primary source, the concept’s legitimacy hinges on ongoing developments and whether such a plan materializes into a tangible agreement. For now, no singular "original source citation" exists in the traditional sense.
BEIJING, March 5 (Reuters) - China said on Wednesday it would accelerate the annual stockpiling of strategic fuels, food and other commodities.
In a report on Wednesday, China's state planner said it would steadily advance the construction of storage facilities for grain, petroleum and other commodities.
"We will move faster to fulfil the yearly task of stockpiling strategic goods as we work to expand the scale of reserves," the report said.
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