Musk, White House Respond To Reports Of 21 'DOGE' Employees Resigning

Authored by Katabella Roberts via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Trump adviser Elon Musk and the White House have criticized media reports about 21 civil service employees resigning from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on Feb. 25.

Elon Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), speaks at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center at National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Md., on Feb. 20, 2025. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

DOGE, created by Trump by renaming the existing United States Digital Service (USDS), is tasked with rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in federal operations. Reducing staff numbers and limiting hiring are also part of the targeted cost-cutting efforts.

In a joint resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained and reported on Feb. 25 by The Associated Press (AP), the 21 staffers said they were refusing to use their technical expertise to “dismantle critical public services.”

“We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations,” they wrote. “However, it has become clear that we can no longer honor those commitments.”

Musk, who leads DOGE, responded to the AP report on social media platform X, calling it “fake news” and “propaganda.”

“These were Dem political holdovers who refused to return to the office,” the businessman wrote. “They would have been fired had they not resigned.”

In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was dismissive of the mass resignation.

“Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits, and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years,” Leavitt said.

“President Trump will not be deterred from delivering on the promises he made to make our federal government more efficient and more accountable to the hardworking American taxpayers.”

In an emailed statement to The Epoch Times, Harrison Fields, the White House principal deputy press secretary, said the issue was an example of inaccurate reporting.

“Democrats and the mainstream media have once again gone off the deep end with their breathlessly inaccurate reporting on President Trump’s widely popular mission to rid the federal government of waste, fraud, and abuse,” Fields said.

“DOGE has effectively become part of the USDS as a component of the White House, and any leftover career bureaucrats who don’t align with the President or DOGE are neither advised nor welcomed to be a part of this never-before-seen mission to make the government more efficient.”

Musk and DOGE have been hit with multiple lawsuits seeking to stymie its operations.

Musk also recently drew criticism after the Office of Personnel Management sent an email to government workers over the weekend asking them to provide a bullet-point list of their accomplishments, with Musk commenting on social media that those who do not respond will face termination.

There is no official tally for the total firings and layoffs to date. Still, a review of various reports suggests that it is at least 20,000 people, with an additional 75,000 people accepting deferred resignations, bringing the total affected to nearly 100,000.

The Associated Press and Tom Ozimek contributed to this report.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 10:45

Deadline Looms For US Schools To Axe DEI Programs Or Face Federal Funding Cuts

Authored by Aaron Gifford via The Epoch Times,

Feb. 28 is the deadline for public school districts to end all DEI-related practices, policies, and curricula or risk losing federal funding under President Donald Trump’s executive order enforcing Civil Rights protections.

The U.S. Department of Education has not yet specified the next steps for sanctioning schools following the deadline and hasn’t disclosed whether any districts proactively contacted the federal agency with proof of compliance.

“Additional guidance on implementation is forthcoming,” Craig Trainor, the agency’s acting assistant director for Civil Rights, wrote via email to The Epoch Times.

Trainor’s Feb. 14 letter provided to states and school districts noted the 14-day deadline for ceasing DEI programs.

He called race-based preferential treatment, crude racial stereotypes, and practices that promote segregation within a school “a shameful echo of a darker period in this country’s history.”

“The department will no longer tolerate the overt and covert racial discrimination that has become widespread in this nation’s educational institutions,” the letter reads.

“The law is clear: treating students differently on the basis of race to achieve nebulous goals such as diversity, racial balancing, social justice, or equity is illegal under controlling Supreme Court precedent.”

That prompted a lawsuit from the American Federation of Teachers and the American Sociological Association.

The Feb. 25 complaint, filed in a Maryland federal court, seeks to bar enforcement of Trump’s anti-DEI policy on grounds that it is overly vague and violates free speech rights.

The Epoch Times has previously reported that the five largest school districts in the nation (serving New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, and Las Vegas) collectively stand to lose more than $5 billion in federal funding if they don’t end DEI practices.

The deadline falls at the same time that many public school districts are planning their 2025–2026 budgets. Federal money typically makes up about 10 percent of a local district’s annual spending plan.

Federal funding from the U.S. Education Department is provided to schools with low-income student populations and covers special education programs.

The agency has also provided billions of dollars in competitive grants for curricula and staffing, many of which were centered on DEI and prioritized under the Biden administration.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture funds free and reduced meals for low-income students at school.  During the 2022–23 academic year, more than half of K-12 public school students were eligible for free or reduced meals, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

The Virginia-based Parents Defending Education organization constantly monitors public school activities related to DEI and transgender ideology.

As of Feb. 25, 22,805 schools serving more than 14 million students across 46 states and Washington, still maintain DEI policies, practices, and plans, according to the organization’s website.

The website provides links to DEI-related materials on the websites for each of the districts identified.

“School districts need to end diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and return to the original charter of educating children,” Rhyen Staley, a PDE researcher, wrote in a public statement.

“DEI has been a disaster for K–12, and the results are evident, as roughly 70 percent of American K–12 students are not proficient in reading or math.”

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 10:05

From Rug-Pulls To Rate-Cuts: Everything, Everywhere, All At Once

Authored by Peter Tchir via AcademySecurities.com,

Tariffs, AI, Crypto, Sentiment, Rates and the Economy

We plan to cover much of this in the weekend report, but given the magnitude of the moves this week, we want to review where we stand ahead of Friday’s trading.

We did get to cover some of this on Wednesday on Bloomberg TV (starts at the 52 minute mark)...

...but here is a quick summary.

Tariffs

A lot of confusing messaging this week, some of which has to be corrected. 

The negative news is that tariffs seem likely to be imposed, and even if they get relieved later on, some damage to the economy will be done. Mexico did deliver some cartel leaders to the U.S., so maybe they get another reprieve, which would be good for markets, but as a whole, my view is that no matter how tariffs  play out, they are impacting the global economy negatively. Decisions are being made to front run them (which artificially propped up some data) but will leave companies somewhat frozen in terms of hiring decisions.

AI

The risks and rewards in the AI space are shifting. Speaking with Academy’s General (ret.) Groen (former head of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Committee) he pointed out two trends, which are very good for companies and the economy, but I think will shift how investors invest:

• The shift to “inference” models from LLM’s. LLM’s were all the rage, but despite some excitement about how quickly they can summarize things and improve search, it is unclear how much impact they have in the real world. Add in hallucination risk and it is even less clear. Inference models are not as fast, but are more detailed.

• Custom designed tactical implementations. We don’t need to base decisions on everything in the world wide web. We need to run this factory, for example, more efficiently. What can AI do that either humans cannot do, cannot do quickly enough, or we don’t have enough humans to do?

AI is growing and evolving rapidly as is how it is used. That could continue to reshape how investors invest and who gains and who loses from that shift. Cheaper AI should in theory let more companies, including smaller companies benefit.

Crypto

The wealth effect from crypto is real, and all too often ignored by “traditional” economists. Bitcoin is down a lot, but the “alt” coin world has been hit even harder. I think there will be continued pressure on bitcoin until a couple of things are “resolved”

• Is MSTR trading at an “appropriate” valuation relative to its bitcoin holdings. This is crucial because the premium was pumped by inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 (forced buying) and the popularity of the single stock leveraged ETFs (MSTU and MSTX have a combined $1.5 billion in AUM, even after major price declines). An allegedly popular arbitrage trade is to short the company and own bitcoin (or the bitcoin ETFs, which is the preferred method for margining, mark to market, etc.). As the premium declines, people take off that trade, putting pressure on bitcoin.

• Are “only” meme coins, rug pulls? The backlash against meme coins is real. It, ironically, pushed some people into bitcoin, which the maximalists tout s the only way to invest in crypto. That could provide support, or could, investors start asking what the difference between bitcoin is and the coins that have rug pulled of late? Again, if you want to make your head hurt, look for tweets about bitcoin gain and bitcoin yield in relation to publicly traded companies and delve into the comment section. The tweets themselves are confusing (to me) but the comment sections are something to digest.

With crypto weak, it is going to be difficult (not impossible, but difficult) for some segments of the stock market to do well. Those that tend to have cross ownership with crypto. It may also hurt the economy as significant wealth has dissipated in recent weeks.

Sentiment

According to indicators like the CNN Fear and Greed Index and AAII Investor Sentiment Survey we have moved to high levels of fear. Normally positive as a contrarian.

However, when I check on some of the frothiest ETFs (see the aforementioned 2x etfs, amongst others) I see evidence that investors have been buying the dip all week.

Maybe buy the dip will work, but we haven’t seen a good capitulation in quite some time, so maybe this is the time the next leg or two down takes out the dip buyers? Investor cash on the sidelines, at least when looking at mutual fund cash holdings, is quite low.

Messaging screams bearish, but actual trading doesn’t seem to reflect that. So for now I’m going to largely ignore these contrarian signals. Thinking about them, but not acting on them.

Rates and the Economy

Rates and the economy are both telling us the same thing. Ignore the rising concerns about inflation because there are a lot more negatives to discuss about the economy than positives. But that we can delve into in more detail this weekend.

Bottom Line

Have to admit, I cannot be bearish interest rates here. I’ve basically capitulated on where I think 10’s should be and how many rate cuts we will. The capitulation is not so much because the administration seems to be focused on them (which is a good thing) but because no matter the end game, I see a lot of bumps in the coming weeks and months for the economy.

I’m less bearish overall on equities (it has been a good move), though my portfolio recommendation remains bearish large cap momentum/ QQQ while spreading risk across other sectors and factors. Getting back to pre-election levels for the S&P and Nasdaq remains my target, though I won’t be pounding the table quite as hard today, as we did coming into recent weeks.

Credit spreads are due to start feeling the pinch. While the equity move was primarily a valuation issue, spreads could remain stable. As this spreads to an economic risk, look for spreads to finally start to widen. Not yet exciting enough to dedicate a lot of time to credit spreads, but I suspect that in the coming days and weeks, credit will go from being dull and boring, to at least mildly intriguing. Issuers should be issuing into this low yield, low spread, high demand environment!

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 09:45

Americans' Savings Rate Soars As First Official Signs Of DOGE Success Emerge

Tl;dr: Fed's favorite inflation indicator dipped as expected but all eyes were on the sudden surge in incomes and plunge in 'spending' in January (that sent the savings rate for Americans soaring) as USAID flows to the rest of the world dried up...

The first step to fixing the US economy is here: US govt transfer payments "to the rest of the world" collapse (i.e. goodbye USAID), and the overall US savings rate soars

More of this. Much more of this pic.twitter.com/LHSTKDeXoC

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 28, 2025

Incomes up, spending down - very positive for Americans' savings rate...

...and a sign that DOGE is working!

This is the first official confirmation that DOGE is a huge success https://t.co/a3IWDZQELr

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 28, 2025

Notice anything odd about the shift in trend of payments to the rest of the world during the Biden administration (relative to the past 60 years?)...

And in case you don't believe us 'digital dickweeds' and our far-right propaganda, here's the St. Louis Fed's source data...

*  *  *

After hotter-than-expected CPI and PPI (and various survey-based inflation expectations), today brings the Big Kahuna - The Fed's preferred inflation indicator, Core PCE - which is expected to show a dovish downturn (from +2.8% YoY to +2.6% YoY). And that is exactly what happened with headline PCE rising 0.3% MoM (as expected) and Core up 0.3% MoM (as expected). That pushed the YoY shifts lower on a sequential basis (Core PCE YoY at its lowest since June 2024)...

Source: Bloomberg

That is the biggest MoM jump in headline PCE since April 2024...

Source: Bloomberg

Core services prices - a closely watched category that excludes housing and energy - rose 0.2% from a month earlier. 

Goods prices excluding food and energy were up 0.4%, the most since early 2023.

The so-called SuperCore PCE (Services ex-shelter) rose 0.2% MoM, dragging the YoY print down to 3.09% - its lowest since Feb 2021...

Source: Bloomberg

On the other side of today's data binge, Personal Spending tumbled 0.2% MoM in January (+0.2% MoM exp) even as incomes soared 0.9% MoM (+0.4% exp). That is the biggest drop in spending since Feb 2021

Source: Bloomberg

Sending the savings rate soaring (after all those revisions)...

Where did the sudden jump in incomes come from? Why, the dear old government of course - transfer payments spiked over $80BN...

Source: Bloomberg

BUT - and it's a big but!! 

Why the sudden plunge in spending?

Simple - goodbye USAID - and the billions of outflows to foreign nations...

Source: Bloomberg

Inflation-adjusted consumer spending fell 0.5%, marking the biggest monthly decline in almost four years...

Source: Bloomberg

Finally, we note that PCE was the only one of the 'hard' inflation indices to drop in January...

Source: Bloomberg

How long can The Fed rely on this gauge with liquidity rebounding?

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 08:41

S&P Futures Rebound From Thursday Rout Which Wiped Out All 2025 Gains; Bitcoin Crash Continues

US equity futures are higher, rebounding from an overnight rout driven by a plunge in Chinese and Japanese stocks, while the ongoing crash in bitcoin which sent the token briefly below $80K and down 25% from its all time high, is not helping the dismal sentiment. As of 8:00am ET, S&P futures were up 0.2% and well off the lows,signaling a rebound after the underlying index erased the last of its 2025 gains on Thursday and outperforming both Nasdaq and Russell. Mag 7 are higher led by META (+0.5%) and NVDA (+0.5%). Crypto-linked stocks are lower as Trump’s latest trade-tariff threats prompted a rush by some investors to safer assets, deepening the recent rout in Bitcoin. Bond yields are 1-2bp lower and the USD is higher as the yen finally cracks lower. Commodities are mostly lower: WTI -1.1%, copper -0.7%. Overall, we have seen equities trying to rebound modestly from yesterday’s selloff, but macro narrative has been pressured from trade/policies uncertainties (Trump is set to talk with Zelensky today) and stagflation concerns ; today we get the January PCE and income/spending report: core PCE is expected to print 2.6% YoY, vs. 2.8% prior.

In premarket trading, Meta is leading gains among the Mag 7, meanwhile, Tesla is on track to drop for a record-matching seventh consecutive session (Meta Platforms +0.6%, Alphabet +0.2%, Amazon ,Apple, Microsoft and Nvidia are little changed, while Tesla -0.2%). US-listed Chinese stocks decline in premarket trading, putting the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index on course for its first week of decline in seven. Traders are paring bets following Donald Trump’s additional 10% tariffs on Chinese goods. Cryptocurrency-exposed stocks slid as a rout in Bitcoin deepened on Friday, with investors rushing to safer assets in the wake of Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats. Here are some other notable movers:

• Acadia Health shares sink 19% in premarket trading after the psychiatric hospital chain gave revenue and adjusted Ebitda forecast for the year that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations. The firm also reported fourth-quarter results that missed the average analyst estimate. S
• Bath & Body Works Inc. shares are up 1.5% in premarket trading, after Citi upgraded the retailer of personal care products to buy from neutral.
• Bloom Energy rises 8.0% after the electrical power equipment company reported revenue for the fourth quarter that beat the average analyst estimate.
• Cava Group shares gain 1.9% in premarket trading after Piper Sandler raised the Mediterranean chain to overweight from neutral, saying it’s one of the best ways to invest in the growth of the fast-casual restaurant industry.
• DLocal shares slump as much as 23% in US premarket trading, after the payment platform operator’s earnings and guidance undershot expectations. Analysts saw this as a sign commissions are coming under pressure and Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to equal-weight.
• Investors in shares of JD.com Inc. face a gut check in next week’s earnings report from the online retailer as it girds for battle in the food-delivery space currently dominated by Meituan.
• Iovance Biotherapeutics shares tumble 19% in premarket trading as analysts cut their price targets on the drugmaker, citing weaker-than-expected sales for its advanced melanoma drug, Amtagvi, in the fourth quarter. Analysts see risk to the firm’s 2025 guidance.
• Monster Beverage shares gain 2.1% in premarket trading Friday after the energy-drink maker’s fourth-quarter gross margin topped the average analyst estimate. Net sales were also roughly in line with Wall Street expectations.
• PubMatic shares are down 14% in premarket trading, after the advertising technology company gave a first-quarter outlook that missed expectations. The company said the outlook “includes the continued headwind from one of our top DSP buyers that revised its auction approach in late May 2024.”
• Redfin shares are down 11% in premarket trading, after the online real estate company reported fourth-quarter results that were weaker than expected on key metrics and gave an outlook that is seen as disappointing.
• Rocket Lab shares drop as much as 13% in US premarket trading after the space company delayed the launch of its Neutron rocket to the second half of the year and issued a revenue forecast for the first quarter which fell short of estimates. This prompted analysts to either lower or place their price targets under review.
• Vital Farms shares gain 2.3% in premarket trading after Stifel raised the egg producer to buy from hold, touting the outlook for near-term growth.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance drops 3.7% in premarket trading as Deutsche Bank downgrades to sell from hold and says reports of a potential take-private deal from Sycamore Partners could be very tough to complete

The S&P 500 has slipped almost 3% this month, in part on worries that Trump’s proposed tariffs would fuel a global trade war. It’s now just about 1% from its closing level of 5,783 points on Nov. 5, the day of the Presidential election. About half of S&P 500 members are now down since election day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. On the outlook for stocks, BofA's Michael Hartnett said a reversal of the post-election rally would spark investor expectations for intervention by the US president to support the market.  The Nov. 5 closing level is the “first strike price of a Trump put, below which investors currently long risk would very much expect and need some verbal support for markets from policymakers,” BofA’s Michael Hartnett wrote in a note.

Attention turns later to the core personal consumption expenditures price index — which excludes often-volatile food and energy costs. The index probably rose 2.6% in the year through January, after an increase of 2.8% in December, according to Bloomberg economists. It likely ticked up to 0.27% monthly compared with 0.16% in December. A hotter-than-expected reading would prompt concern among investors, said Kevin Thozet, a portfolio advisor at Carmignac. “It would be another hint that there hasn’t been much progress on US inflation since June 2024,” he said. The inflation reading is in sharper focus after Trump said 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico will be enforced from March 4, while Chinese imports would face a further 10% levy. Economists say tariffs may hurt US growth, worsen inflation and possibly spark recessions in Mexico and Canada.

Bitcoin plunged, extending declines from its January peak to over 25%, in a striking pullback for one of the most popular Trump trades. The dollar edged up and Treasuries advanced, with US 10-year yields touching levels not seen since December.

“This is not an environment for de-risking,” said Laura Cooper, global investment strategist at Nuveen, on Bloomberg Television. “Perhaps it is just the case of finding hedges to protect the downside, because that 4th of March deadline is looming.”

In Europe, the Stoxx 600 fell 0.3%, although has recovered off its worst levels, with mining and technology shares faring worst  as broader risk sentiment starts to stabilize having been rocked by US President Trump’s latest pronouncements on tariffs. The benchmark was off its Friday lows after French and Italian inflation data boosted the case for European Central Bank interest-rate cuts. Here are the biggest movers Friday:

• Nexi shares rise as much as 7.2% as the payments firm said it’s going to distribute its first-ever €300 million in dividends, on top of a share repurchase program
• Fugro shares jump as much as 11%, their biggest gain in more than two years, after the geological data company beat earnings estimates, aided by a strong margin performance
• Amadeus shares rise as much as 7.1% to the highest in five years, after the travel IT services provider announced a €1.3b buyback program, equivalent to about 4% of market value
• Proximus gains as much as 5.4% after the Brussels-listed communications firm reported broad-based beats to fourth-quarter estimates, and reassured analysts with its outlook for 2025
• Dino Polska gains as much as 6.2%, touching a record after the food supermarket chain reported same-store sales stronger than estimates and gave upbeat guidance for 2025
• Holcim shares rise as much as 2.7% in early trading as the cement maker reported a beat in margins, particularly in North America. Analysts also noted strong cash generation
• Weir Group shares rise as much as 3.2% after the mining engineering company’s earnings beat expectations, with analysts especially positive on its margins and 2025 outlook
• Valeo shares drop as much as 11% on Friday, denting the stock’s strong start to the year, as analysts note a continued tough environment for auto suppliers
• Teleperformance shares slump as much as 16%, the most in almost a year, after the digital business services firm issued weak margin guidance for 2025
• Logitech International shares drop as much as 9% as BofA Global Research cuts its rating on the electronics maker to underperform from neutral due to its valuation and earnings outlook
• Puig shares fall as much as 5.5%, with analysts pointing to its sales guidance for 2025 which Jefferies says is “conservative” and reflects a slowdown in growth in some end markets
• Clariant shares slide as much as 12%, the most in three years and hitting the lowest since July 2012, after the chemicals maker released full-year results

Asian equities slumped, on track to snap their longest weekly winning streak in nearly a year, as US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats and underwhelming Nvidia results damped investor sentiment.  The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 2.5%, set to cap its worst day since Feb. 3, with Alibaba, Tencent and Meituan among the biggest drags. Shares in Hong Kong led the declines, after Trump said he would impose an additional 10% levy on imports from the Asian nation. The move aggravates growth concerns for the world’s No. 2 economy and threatens to derail a rally induced by optimism over artificial intelligence. South Korea was also among the worst performers, with the Kospi down more than 3%, as tech stocks including Samsung and SK Hynix tracked Nvidia lower after its “good-but-not-great” quarterly raised doubts on the sector’s outlook. Japanese stocks were also hit by trade and chip sector worries. Southeast Asian stocks tumbled as currency weakness and tariffs weighed on sentiment, with Thailand’s SET Index on track to enter a bear market.

The additional tariffs “deliver a negative signal to the market that the trade conflict between the two nations still exists,” said Jason Chan, a senior investment strategist at Bank of East Asia in Hong Kong. “The market in general expects trade talks will be held before a new round of tariff hikes occurs, but Trump’s latest announcement may be a surprise.”

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1% advancing for a third session, and hitting its highest since Feb. 13, after President Donald Trump said the 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico would come into force from March 4, while Chinese imports would face a further 10% levy. The kiwi is the weakest of the G-10’s, falling 0.6% against the greenback. The pound erased losses after Bank of England Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden said policymakers will have to take “great care” when cutting interest rates given signs of persistent inflation Earlier, the pound slipped to its lowest in more than a week against the dollar. USD/JPY rose 0.4% to 150.4, its highest level in a week.

In rates, treasuries are little changed as US session gets under way after erasing gains that sent yields to fresh YTD lows. US 10-year yield at 4.25% is back within 1bp of Thursday’s closing level after declining as much as 4bp to 4.22%, last seen in Dec. 11; earlier gains in Treasury futures were backed by a rally in JGBs after domestic inflation slowed more than expected. Core European rates outperformed after French inflation fell to its lowest level in four years and prices in Italy unexpectedly held steady — bolstered expectations for ECB rate cuts. bunds and gilts in the sector outperform by 2bp and 2.5bp; bunds gapped higher at the open, tracking the overnight rally in Treasuries and later showed little reaction to German state inflation data. French and Italian EU harmonized CPI rose less than forecast. German 10-year yields fall 3 bps to 2.38%. Gilts also gain, with UK 10-year borrowing costs dropping 3 bps to 4.48%. Bank of England interest-rate cut bets are steady after Deputy Governor Ramsden said policymakers will have to take great care when lowering rates. Focal point of US day is January personal income and spending data that include PCE price indexes, with core gauge expected to show first deceleration since September.

In commodities, oil prices decline, with WTI falling 1% to $69.60 a barrel. Spot gold falls $15 to around $2,862/oz. Bitcoin briefly tumbles below $80000, plunging 25% from its all time high a little over a month ago.

US economic data calendar includes January personal income/spending and advance goods trade balance (8:30am), February MNI Chicago PMI and February Kansas City Fed services activity (11am). Fed speaker slate includes Goolsbee at 10:15pm.

Market Snapshot

• S&P 500 futures up 0.3% to 5,894.25
• STOXX Europe 600 down 0.4% to 554.88
• MXAP down 2.4% to 183.53
• MXAPJ down 2.4% to 577.29
• Nikkei down 2.9% to 37,155.50
• Topix down 2.0% to 2,682.09
• Hang Seng Index down 3.3% to 22,941.32
• Shanghai Composite down 2.0% to 3,320.90
• Sensex down 1.8% to 73,280.16
• Australia S&P/ASX 200 down 1.2% to 8,172.35
• Kospi down 3.4% to 2,532.78
• German 10Y yield little changed at 2.39%
• Euro little changed at $1.0400
• Brent Futures down 0.9% to $73.40/bbl
• Gold spot down 0.5% to $2,862.59
• US Dollar Index little changed at 107.34

Top overnight news

• Trump has said he is working on a trade deal with the UK and suggested Britain could escape tariffs if the country secured one, but the allies failed to agree on US security guarantees for Ukraine. FT
• Trump said on Truth that they are working very hard with the House and Senate to pass a clean, temporary government funding bill. Trump also announced he nominated Paul Dabbar to be the US Deputy Secretary of Commerce.
• Economists added a big disclaimer — Trump — to their view that the ECB will lower rates three more times. After an almost-certain quarter-point move next week, there’s scope for forecasts to shift abruptly. BBG
• The Treasury’s cash balance plummeted to $569 billion, the lowest since September 2023, as it navigates the debt-ceiling impasse by reducing bill auctions. Meanwhile, overnight repo rates climbed. BBG
• Mexico will extradite drug criminals to the US in a bid to avoid Trump’s tariffs. WSJ
• Donald Trump’s additional 10% tariffs on Chinese goods again brought geopolitical risks to the forefront of investors’ mind, prompting the biggest selloff in Chinese stocks in months: BBG
• President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrives at the White House on Friday with a personal appeal to persuade Donald Trump not to sell out his country in the rush to make a peace deal with Russia: BBG
• French inflation retreated to its lowest level in four years, bolstering the case for further interest-rate cuts by the European Central Bank, whose next move is likely to arrive next week: BBG
• China’s Ministry of Commerce said Friday that it “firmly opposes” Trump’s latest threat to ramp up tariffs on Chinese goods (Trump announced plans for an additional 10% tariff on Chiina yesterday) and vowed retaliation, if necessary. CNBC
• Japan’s Tokyo CPI comes in below the Street at +2.9% headline (down from +3.4% in Jan and under the consensus estimate of +3.2%) and +1.9% core (flat vs. Jan and below the Street’s +2% forecast). BBG
• India’s economic growth probably accelerated to 6.2% year on year in the fourth quarter, from 5.4% in the prior period. BBG
• France’s CPI for Feb cools below expectations, coming in at +0.9% Y/Y on an EU harmonized basis, down from +1.8% in Jan and lower than the consensus forecast of +1.1%. WSJ

Tariffs

• US Treasury Secretary Bessent said he's open to the idea that other countries' tariffs could come down or go away, while it was separately reported that South Korea’s Acting President Choi and US Treasury Secretary Bessent discussed tariffs, investment, and forex policy in a video call, according to South Korea’s finance ministry.
• China's MOFCOM said China opposes US President Trump's latest tariffs on Chinese goods and hopes the US will avoid making the same mistake again and return to the right track of properly resolving differences through dialogue as soon as possible. Furthermore, it stated if the US insists on its own path, China will take all necessary countermeasures to defend its legitimate rights and interests.
• China's Foreign Minister, on the remarks from US President Trump around an additional 10% tariff, says the US is once again using fentanyl as a pretext for threatening China. China opposes the tariff move. Will take all necessary measures to safeguard their legitimate interests. Rubio's speech was filled with "cold war mentality", adds the US coercion will backfire. China is willing to cooperate.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks declined with heavy pressure seen at month-end following the sell-off on Wall St with global risk sentiment hit by tariff threats and following a slump in NVIDIA shares post-earnings. ASX 200 was pressured with nearly all sectors in the red and the declines led by underperformance in miners and tech. Nikkei 225 slumped from the open and briefly dipped below the 37,000 level with the index down by more than a thousand points amid tech-related selling, while there were  mixed data releases from Japan including softer-than-expected Tokyo CPI, a miss on Retail Sales and a slightly narrower-than-feared contraction in Industrial Production. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp conformed to the broad downbeat mood amid trade-related frictions after US President Trump announced that an additional 10% of tariffs on China is set to take effect on March 4th which is on top of the 10% tariffs the US had previously imposed earlier this month. Nonetheless, the losses in the mainland were somewhat cushioned ahead of next week’s annual ”Two Sessions” in Beijing, where markets will be hoping for fiscal stimulus.

Top Asian News

• China's Politburo said it will implement a more proactive macro policy, expand domestic demand and will stabilise the housing market and stock market. Furthermore, it will also prevent and resolve risks and external shocks in key areas, as well as promote the sustained recovery of the economy.
• China's state planner issued measures on promoting high-quality inclusive elderly care services and will leverage central budget investment to boost the construction of affordable elderly care facilities.
• BoJ Deputy Governor Uchida said there is no change to the stance on short-term policy rate or JGB taper despite recent yield moves, and JGB yields fluctuate depending on market views on the economy, prices, and overseas developments. Uchida added the BoJ guides monetary policy towards achieving price stability not to monetise government debt.
• Japan is to crack down on the booming market for JGB-backed loans, according to Bloomberg.
• Chinese banks are reducing US dollar deposit rates following guidance from the PBoC, according to sources cited by Reuters.
• PBoC did not conduct purchase or sale of Chinese sovereign bonds from primary dealers in Feb.

European bourses (STOXX 600 -0.4%) began the session entirely in the red, continuing the down-beat and risk-off mood seen in US and APAC hours. As the morning progressed, there has been an upward bias, attempting to pare back some of the early morning pressure; indices still generally reside in the red. European sectors hold a strong negative bias, given the risk-off sentiment. Construction & Materials tops the pile, lifted by post-earning strength in Holcim (+3.5%). Basic Resources is the underperformer today, given the risk-tone which has weighed on underlying metals prices. It is also no surprise that Tech is amongst the laggards, following the significant losses in NVIDIA (-8.5%) in the prior session; ASML (-2.5%)

Top European News

• BoE's Ramsden says his conclusion from the "current elevated degree of uncertainty is that it increases the range of plausible states that the UK economy might end up in in the medium term". "I no longer think that risks to hitting the 2% inflation target sustainably in the medium term are to the downside. Instead, I think they are two sided, reflecting the potential for more inflationary as well as disinflationary scenarios." & On descending the Table Mountain "There may be circumstances when a slower than expected descent is justified but there will also be times when conditions require that the pace has to quicken."

FX

• USD remains underpinned by the Trump administration's trade policies. As a reminder, Trump clarified that there will be a "10+10" tariff on China for a total of 20% additional tariffs and that the proposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico are scheduled to go into effect on March 4th. On the data slate, the obvious highlight is monthly PCE data for January with core M/M expected to tick higher to 0.3% from 0.2%, and the Y/Y metric forecast at 2.6% vs. prev. 2.8%.
• EUR is flat vs. the USD and pivoting around the 1.04 mark. On the data front, CPI releases thus far today have seen a softer-than-expected outturn for French inflation, whilst German state CPIs have been broadly in-line with expectations of the national release at 13:00GMT; firmer on a M/M basis and steady Y/Y. Elsewhere on the inflation front, the ECB's survey of consumer expectations saw the 12-month forecast slip to 2.6% from 2.8% and the 3yr remain at 2.4%. Tariffs also remain on the mind of investors with the EU still in the firing line of the Trump admin, after President Trump reaffirmed his criticism of EU VAT taxes. EUR/USD briefly slipped below its 50DMA at 1.0387 before just about returning to a 1.04 handle.
• Overnight, USD/JPY saw mild downside amid haven flows into the Japanese currency but saw two-way price action with a brief surge triggered by softer-than-expected Tokyo inflation data. USD/JPY has gained a firmer footing on a 150 handle with a current session peak at 150.68 vs. the YTD low printed on 25th February at 148.55.
• GBP is flat vs. the USD after briefly slipping onto a 1.25 handle. GBP has been more resilient vs. the USD compared to other peers with the UK seen to have less exposure to US tariffs than peers. Furthermore, US President Trump said the US is going to have a deal done on trade with the UK "rather quickly" and that UK PM Starmer tried to convince him not to impose tariffs on the UK during their meeting. Elsewhere, BoE's Ramsden presented an even-handed speech in which he noted inflation risks "are two-sided. Cable, the earlier session low sits at 1.2574; if breached, last week's low kicks in at 1.2562.
• Antipodeans are softer alongside the risk-off tone triggered by the latest Trump tariff tirade and tech losses on Wall Street.
• PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1738 vs exp. 7.2873 (prev. 7.1740).

Fixed Income

• USTs are bid, benefitting from the marked equity sell-off seen in the second half of Thursday’s US session which reverberated into APAC trade and the European open; driven by losses in Tech and Trump confirming that the 10% measure on China is in addition to the 10% tariff he had already announced. Action that took USTs to a 111-03+ peak in APAC trade which is a YTD high for the June contract and takes us back to the 111-08 and 111-20+ peaks from November and December respectively. Focus today is on US PCE.
• Bunds are trading in tandem with USTs for the first part of the session but has since experienced a marginal pullback from highs and while still comfortably in the green, the benchmark finds itself in the lower-half of a 132.94-133.46 band. A pullback which has occurred despite the cooler-than-expected French preliminary inflation measures and the broadly in-line, when compared to expectations for the nationwide figure, German State CPIs; though, while expected, the M/M German figures did see a marked move higher which may be weighing on EGBs. The ECB SCE saw 12-month inflation expectations ease a touch whilst 3yr remained steady.
• Gilts are following the above. UK specifics include Nationwide House Price figures which lifted from the prior and showed the sixth consecutive monthly gain. Alongside that, an extensive text release from BoE’s Ramsden in which he noted that uncertainty has increased and as such a data-dependent and meeting-by-meeting approach is warranted. Firmer but at the lower-end of 93.24 to 93.48 parameters. A further pullback brings into view the figure and then the 92.22 base from earlier in the week. While a pickup would first encounter resistance at 93.49 from mid-February and then the current WTD peak of 93.51.
• BoJ plans to buy bonds in March at same pace as February, according to a release.

Commodities

• Crude futures are lower on Friday, giving back some of the upside seen in the prior session. Some of the pressure today could be attributed to month-end profit-taking, and with traders mindful of US PCE later. Brent May sits in a USD 72.76-73.37/bbl range.
• Subdued trade across precious metals as European players reacted to the surge in the Dollar yesterday amid US President Trump's tariff rhetoric, with nothing new to add during European hours. Spot gold resides in a USD 2,851.11-2,885.24/oz range.
• Base metals are lower across the board amid the risk-off sentiment amid Trump's tariff rhetoric which seeks to impose an additional 10% tariff on China on top of the February 4th 10% levy. 3M LME copper fell further below USD 9,500/t and resides in a USD 9,331.90-9,405.65/t range at the time of writing.
• Oman crude OSP USD 77.63/bbl in April vs. March USD 80.26/bbl, according to GME data cited by Reuters.
• Iraq Oil Ministry says it will announce a resumption of oil exports in the next few hours; initial oil flows from Iraq's Kurdistan region through Turkey will be at 185k barrels, and will increase gradually.
• A group of eight oil firms operating in Iraqi Kurdistan and Apikur say there will be no resumption of oil exports through Iraq-Turkey pipeline on Friday, has not been any formal outreach to member companies with regards to resumption of oil exports yet

Geopolitics

• Israeli army storms the West Bank city of Nablus, via Sky news Arabia citing Palestinian News Agency

US Event Calendar

• 08:30: Jan. Core PCE Price Index MoM, est. 0.3%, prior 0.2%
  • Jan. Core PCE Price Index YoY, est. 2.6%, prior 2.8%
  • Jan. PCE Price Index MoM, est. 0.3%, prior 0.3%
  • Jan. PCE Price Index YoY, est. 2.5%, prior 2.6%
  • Jan. Personal Income, est. 0.4%, prior 0.4%
  • Jan. Personal Spending, est. 0.2%, prior 0.7%
  • Jan. Real Personal Spending, est. -0.1%, prior 0.4%
• 08:30: Jan. Advance Goods Trade Balance, est. -$116.6b, prior -$122.1b, revised -$122b
• 08:30: Jan. Retail Inventories MoM, est. 0.2%, prior -0.3%
  • Jan. Wholesale Inventories MoM, est. 0.1%, prior -0.5%
• 09:45: Feb. MNI Chicago PMI, est. 40.8, prior 39.5
• 11:00: Feb. Kansas City Fed Services Activ, prior -4

DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

Happy Friday. It's been a busy week of travel and dinners, and on getting home last night our kitchen cupboards had finished being repainted. I couldn't tell any difference. When I told my wife that, she said (and I'm paraphrasing to get through compliance), "How on earth can you not tell? They were getting disgusting and now they look new". I didn't think they needed doing but I can't tell if that's me lacking standards or whether my wife has too high ones. Now we're 7-8 years on since we gutted our house and starting again I fear this is the first of many redecoration altercations!

Markets were in a stressed mood of their own yesterday, with renewed tariff threats from President Trump in addition to a sharp tech sell-off that saw the Magnificent 7 (-3.03%) post its worst day of 2025 so far as Nvidia slumped -8.48% after its earnings the previous evening. This marked a sixth consecutive decline for the Mag-7, the first time that’s happened since April last year, and it now leaves the index -13.56% beneath its December peak. In turn, the S&P 500 fell -1.59%, moving back into the red YTD and on course for its worst week since September, while the VIX closed above 20 for the first time this year (+2.03pts to 21.13).

Risk assets had already come under some pressure after President Trump confirmed that 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico were still scheduled for this Tuesday, March 4. In a post on Truth Social, President Trump said that “Drugs are still pouring into our Country from Mexico and Canada”, and that “until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled.” On top of that, he said that China would face an additional 10% tariff, and then on April 2, the reciprocal tariffs would also go into force.

Of course, it’s worth bearing in mind that at the start of February, the proposed tariffs were extended by a month with just hours to spare. And President Trump’s post did leave some room for another extension or deal, as he used the phrase “until it stops, or is seriously limited”, suggesting there was a way of avoiding them. However, if they do come into place for a prolonged period, then the same framework from before would apply, with Canada and Mexico likely to go into an imminent recession. Moreover, it would raise US inflation, and make it more likely that the Fed doesn’t cut this year at all. Our US economists have previously suggested that the 25% tariffs on their two neighbours would reduce US growth by between 0.4 to 0.7% in 2025 and raise core PCE by between 0.3% to 0.7% if sustained. See their analysis here.

In terms of whether a deal could be reached, officials in Canada and Mexico were both still talking as though that was possible. Indeed, Mexican President Sheinbaum said yesterday that “I hope we can reach an agreement and that on March 4 we can announce something else”. Meanwhile, Canada’s public safety minister David McGuinty said in Washington yesterday that “We are quite convinced that the efforts we’ve made thus far should satisfy the US administration”. And given the last extension was made in the final 24 hours, it’s not implausible that markets won’t start to price the full impact of tariffs until after they actually come into force. However, in the case of China, it’s worth bearing in mind that they didn’t reach a deal, and the 10% tariff did come into force earlier this month, so this would be an extra 10% on top of that.  

Although investors are still anticipating a potential last-minute deal again, the most tariff-sensitive assets saw an immediate reaction to Trump’s post. For instance, the Canadian dollar weakened by -0.69% against the US Dollar, while the euro fell to back below 1.04 against the dollar posting its worst day in eight weeks (-0.83%). Elsewhere in Europe, the STOXX Automobiles and Parts index was already having a bad day given President Trump’s announcements of 25% auto tariffs on the EU, but it extended its losses to close -3.73% lower. More broadly, there was underperformance for the DAX in Germany (-1.07%) and the FTSE MIB in Italy (-1.53%), two countries relatively more exposed to trade with the US, while the STOXX 600 fell -0.46%.

On top of the tariffs, we got some more inflationary news from the latest Q4 GDP data, as the Fed’s preferred inflation measure of PCE was revised up on the second estimate. It showed that headline PCE was now running at +2.4% in Q4, an upward revision of a tenth, whilst core PCE was revised up two-tenths to +2.7%. So it’s in a zone where it’s still lingering above target, and that’s before the imposition of any Trump tariffs. With WTI crude oil prices also moving +2.52% higher yesterday to $70.35/bbl, investors moved to price in higher inflation, with the 1yr inflation swap bouncing +5.7bps higher on the day to 2.925%. Looking forward, that inflation focus will continue today, as we’ve got the PCE numbers for January coming out, and our US economists are expecting a core PCE reading of +0.27%.

For rates, the combination of a risk-off tone and a more inflationary backdrop drove a curve steepening. Despite the rise in near-term inflation pricing, the front-end saw a modest rally as investors moved to price in 61bps on Fed cuts by December (+1.4bps on the day). This saw 2yr Treasury yields (-2.0bps) fall to a new 4-month low of 4.05%, while the 2yr real yield fell to 0.87%, its lowest since August 2022. By contrast, 10 year yields ended a run of 6 consecutive declines (+0.4bps to 4.26%). However, overnight in Asia they've rallied a sizeable -4bps for this time of day, trading at 4.22% as I type.

Over in Europe, sovereign bonds had seen a modest rally, with yields on 10yr bunds (-2.0bps) and OATs (-0.9bps) moving slightly lower. That came as the Spanish CPI release for February was in line with expectations, with the EU-harmonised measure at +2.9%, so the lack of an upside surprise helped reassure investors ahead of the numbers from other countries, including France, Italy and Germany today.

President Trump’s comments again drew attention later in the day with Keir Starmer’s visit to Washington. On trade, President Trump said he envisaged "a real trade deal" with the UK, which could mean that tariffs were “not necessary”. On Ukraine, the UK Prime Minister said that the UK would be ready to puts “boots on the ground" to support a peace deal. While saying he supported NATO's Article 5, President Trump refrained from promising any US backstop for European involvement in Ukraine, stating "I don’t like to talk about peacekeeping until we have a deal". Ukraine will remain in the headlines today with President Zelenskiy due to visit Trump in Washington, as the two are expected to sign a deal on Ukrainian minerals. The ongoing focus on European defence saw Germany’s Rheinmetall (+3.20%) continue to outperform yesterday, taking its YTD gains to +62.87%.

Asian equity markets are tumbling this morning with the KOSPI (-3.28) and the Nikkei (-3.10%) the largest underperformers with the latter plunging to its lowest level since mid-September 2024 while the Hang Seng (-2.78%) is also trading sharply lower as local tech shares are slumping following the Nvidia sell-off on Wall Street overnight. Elsewhere, the S&P/ASX 200 (-1.18%) and the Shanghai Composite (-1.29%) are also trading lower. US equity futures have stabilised and are up around a tenth of a percent.

Early morning data showed that headline inflation for Tokyo came in at +2.9% y/y in February (v/s +3.2% expected) down from +3.4% in January. At the same time, Tokyo’s core consumer prices rose by +2.2% y/y in February, a deceleration from January’s 2.5% increase, an 11-month high, and a tenth lower than expectations. The same miss as core/core inflation. Separately, other data showed that Japan’s industrial production in January decreased by -1.1% m/m, aligning with market expectations and compared to a -0.2% contraction in December. Concurrently, retail sales experienced a +3.9% y/y gain in January, in line with projections as against a +3.5% gain in the prior month.

To the day ahead now, and data releases include the French, German and Italian CPI prints for February, along with US PCE inflation for January. Otherwise, we’ll get Canada’s Q4 GDP, and German unemployment for February. Elsewhere, central bank speakers include the BoE’s Ramsden.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 08:15

California Judge Finds Mass-Firings Of Probationary Federal Employees Likely Unlawful

Authored by T.J. Muscaro via The Epoch Times,

A California district judge granted partial relief to some of the federal government’s recently terminated probationary employees who argued that their termination from various agencies was unlawfully ordered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under the false cause of performance.

Senior District Judge William Alsup provided partial relief on Feb. 27 to the non-union organizational employees, ordering their immediate reinstatement to agencies including the National Parks Service, every agency within the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Bureau of Land Management, the Small Business Bureau, and the Department of Defense.

He also ordered that OPM’s request be stopped and rescinded, because of the possibility of more federal employees being let go under the request.

All union-representative employees who were terminated, he ruled, had to go through administrative processes like the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and the National Labor Relations Authority (NLRA).

Eight attorneys were present in the San Fransisco courtroom representing 10 union and non-union organizations, which were, in turn, representing hundreds of probationary employees who said their termination at their respective agencies came down as a direct order from Charles Ezell, acting head of OPM rather than lawful independent action with cause from their agency head.

They also argued the terminations caused immediate harm not only to the plaintiffs but others as well, saying that the terminations directly resulted in the closures of national parks, removing protections of threatened species, and leaving veteran affairs centers without critical staff.

One attorney was present for the federal government, and he argued that OPM’s correspondence to agency heads by email on Jan. 20, by phone on Feb. 13, and again by email on Feb. 14 was an unenforceable request rather than a direct order that came with threatening consequences.

OPM, he argued, asked agencies to review and determine whether the probationary employees, who are not guaranteed employment, were performing well enough to remain employed, and that only those deemed highest-performing and mission-critical should be kept.

He also disputed the court’s jurisdiction over the case, arguing the former employees had to first go through administrative processes like the Merit Systems Protection Board, and that these processes would allow both union and non-union organizations to intervene on the individual plaintiffs’ behalf.

The court had copies of both emails, but it did not have any records of the Feb. 13 telephone call, and Alsup told defense counsel that the circumstantial evidence pointed to an order being given by OPM during that phone call.

The judge also said he believed the plaintiff’s complaint would likely succeed on merit because many agency heads said under oath that they were directed to fire their probationary employees. Government counsel reiterated that the agencies voluntarily terminated their own employees and used the Department of Justice’s decline to let any of its employees go as proof of the voluntary aspect of the termination guidance.

Alsup said in response that while the Department of Justice is full of lawyers who may already know better, there will be some agencies that follow the OPM’s guidelines but are not as strong or as well-versed, and that is what has happened.

He called for an evidentiary hearing to be held on March 13 at 8 a.m. PT to determine what happened on that phone call, making clear that Ezell will take the stand. Alsup asked that all evidence of the phone call be preserved and presented in court.

The plaintiffs notified the court that thousands of employees from the Department of Defense were to be let go on Feb. 28 based on the OPM’s email.

Alsup asked that the OPM tell the Department of Defense before employees were terminated that the guidance was invalid pending further hearing of the court.

Alsup made a point to commend the government’s attorney for doing “an honorable job” arguing a tough case, and he took a moment to share his appreciation for probationary employees, calling them “the lifeblood of our government.”

They come in at low levels and work their way up, he said. They’re the bright minds that come out of college and the way we renew ourselves.

They want to contribute to our country, he added, and when we terminate probationary employees, it hurts the mission of their agencies.

There are an estimated 200,000 probationary workers across federal agencies, according to The Associated Press.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 08:05

Mexico Extradites 29 Cartel Drug Lords To US As Trump Not Backing Away From Tariff War

The US Justice Department revealed Thursday evening that Mexico has begun extraditing dozens of high-level cartel leaders to the US, as President Trump reiterated that 25% tariffs on Mexican goods will take effect next Tuesday.

"The defendants taken into US custody today include leaders and managers of drug cartels recently designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists," the DoJ wrote in a statement, adding these terrorists are facing charges including racketeering, drug-trafficking, murder, illegal use of firearms, money laundering, and other crimes.

Mexico's Attorney General's Office and Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection released this statement: "This morning, 29 people who were deprived of their liberty in different penitentiary centers in the country were transferred to the United States of America, which were required due to their links with criminal organizations for drug trafficking, among other crimes." 

The Mexican government released these photos of 29 cartel leaders... 

The Associated Press reported that the extradition of high-level cartel leaders, including Rafael Caro Quintero, a former leader of the Guadalajara cartel involved in the kidnapping and murder of a DEA agent, came after Mexican Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and other Mexican officials met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in recent days. 

"As President Trump has made clear, cartels are terrorist groups, and this Department of Justice is devoted to destroying cartels and transnational gangs," Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.

Ahead of the extradition, Trump wrote on Truth Social: 

Drugs are still pouring into our Country from Mexico and Canada at  very high and unacceptable levels. A large percentage of these Drugs, much of them in the form of Fentanyl, are made in, and supplied by, China. More than 100,000 people died last year due to the distribution of these dangerous and highly addictive POISONS. Millions of people have died over the last two decades. The families of the victims are devastated and, in many instances, virtually destroyed. We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled. China will likewise be charged an additional 10% Tariff on that date. The April Second Reciprocal Tariff date will remain in full force and effect.

Trump's 25% tariff threat on Mexico has led to Mexican officials beefing up US-Mexico border security to dismantle human trafficking networks, cartels, and fentanyl production. This all comes as Trump's mandate from the American people is to fix the border crisis and stop the drug overdose crisis, which claims the lives of 100,000 Americans annually.

Last week, US Border Czar Tom Homan told Fox News' Jesse Watters that Trump intends to dismantle the command and control centers of Mexican drug cartels, vowing to "put them out of business" and "wipe them off the face of the Earth." 

Readers should understand that the disrupt-and-dismantle strategy is broad, targeting not only Mexican cartels but also transnational criminal organizations spanning from Canada to China.

We must caution that the fight against cartels could get messy, considering the Biden-Harris regime intentionally flooded the nation with thousands of Tren de Aragua terrorists.  

Next, the US will likely prepare sanctions on financial institutions to bust cartel funding networks. 

This is what 'America First' looks like.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 07:45

Even The NYT Is Saying, "Buy Gold"

Via SchiffGold.com,

A recent piece in the New York Times encouraged readers to buy gold, noting its record-breaking run since 2020. However, what the article gets wrong is associating the phenomenon with presidential policies instead of central bank monetary policy. Treasury policies can contribute to money supply growth by issuing debt, and presidential policies can add fuel to economic fires. 

But money printing and sustained artificially-low interest rates are why inflation keeps resurging no matter which political party is in power.

As Peter Schiff recently said on X:

Trump has given the Fed a gift, as FOMC members will blame the coming surge in inflation on tariffs. But tariffs won't be the cause. Resurgent inflation will result from the Fed's monetary policy mistakes. They held interest rates too low for too long and printed too much money.

— Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) February 20, 2025

The Fed is permanent, and can’t be reformed. 

No matter who joins the Board of Governors or who becomes Fed Chairman, the only tools that central banks really know how to use are inflationary. Money printing and artificially-low interest rates are the only methods the Fed has in their effort to manage the economy.

Inflation is an expansion of the money supply, not the rise in prices. Prices go up as a result of inflation, not the other way around. But while the NYT piece attributes this 12% increase in 2025—following a 27% rise in 2024—to President Donald Trump’s second-term policies, such as tariffs and deportation plans, the fundamental driver is that central bank monetary policy has inflated the money supply and eroded confidence in fiat currency, propelling gold’s ascent. 

Analysts like those quoted in the NYT article suggest that Trump’s proposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China, could stoke inflation by raising import costs. Economists quoted in the piece note that such measures, combined with labor market pressures from deportation policies, are pushing investors toward gold. This makes sense on the surface — disruptions to trade and labor can indeed lift prices, and higher costs for imports will just be passed onto consumers. But money supply growth is what inflation is; price increases are just one of its downstream effects. Gold’sgain suggests a deeper unease tied to the Federal Reserve’s actions rather than any single administration.

The money supply (M2) has ballooned from $15.4 trillion in early 2020 to over $21 trillion today, according to Fed data. Meanwhile, interest rates remain below historical norms. Low rates discourage saving and devalue fiat currency, making gold—a finite asset immune to printing presses—an attractive hedge. The Times focuses on Trump’s tariff threats, but central banks set the stage long ago.

M2, 1981 to Present

Source

The World Gold Council reports that central banks bought 1,037 tons of gold in 2024, up 6% from 2023, signaling a shift away from dollar dominance. Physical demand is also straining markets, with the article noting New York futures traders awaiting bars from London vaults.

The Times mentions Trump’s quip about auditing Fort Knox “to make sure the gold is there,” a comment Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent downplayed. Official figures peg U.S. reserves at 8,133 metric tons, but the last full audit of Fort Knox was in 1953. While the article treats this as a sidebar, it underscores a valid point: opaque, dictatorial monetary systems fuel skepticism. Central banks control the levers but, unlike politicians, their “errors” are academic and esoteric enough to evade mainstream scrutiny. 

The Times captures a symptom—gold at $2,900—and correctly tells its readers to buy, wisely realizing that this bull run isn’t over. But it misses the root cause of the gold spike, and assumes that inflation and higher prices are the same thing. Central banks, with their printing presses and interest rate policies, are the architects of inflation. Lots of things can increase prices, and money supply inflation is one powerful force among many as it erodes the purchasing power of the dollar and continues sending gold to record highs.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 07:20

Visualizing The Decline Of Remote Work, By Industry

After years of companies embracing remote work and hybrid models, a major shift back to in-office work could be underway.

This infographic, via Visual Capitalist's Govind Bhutana, highlights the surge in return-to-office by industry, using data from McKinsey & Company’s survey of 8,426 employees from various industries in the United States.

Which Industries Are Returning to the Office?

Across all industries, the share of employees reporting to work in person doubled to 68% in 2024, from 34% in 2023.

However, some sectors are seeing much higher levels of in-office work than others. The table below breaks down the return-to-office trend by industry:

The consumer and retail industry saw the highest growth in return to the office, with 87% of the employees reporting to work in person.

Public sector jobs also saw a sharp rise, with two-thirds of workers now in the office most days. Recently, President Trump also announced that all federal employees must agree to return to in-person work by the first week of February or be terminated.

Additionally, 84% of employees in the Education sector worked mostly in office in 2024, despite the prevalence of EdTech tools over the last few years.

The End of Remote Work?

Remote work declined sharply between 2023 and 2024. McKinsey’s survey found that the share of remote workers across all industries fell to 17% in 2024, less than half of the 44% in 2023.

Over the past year, major Fortune 500 companies—including JP Morgan, Amazon, and Nike—have implemented return-to-office mandates, requiring employees to report to the office at least four days a week. Other organizations, along with the U.S. federal workforce, are following the trend.

However, employee sentiment remains mixed. Many still prefer the flexibility of remote and hybrid work models, while others appreciate the structure and teamwork of being in the office.

Despite the rise of in-person work, many high-paying remote jobs still exist out there. Check out Remote Jobs with the Highest Demand on the Voronoi app to learn more.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 06:55

Unleashing LNG: Trump's Geopolitical Triumph Demands A New Realism

Authored by Ronald Beaty via RealClearEnergy,

By February 21, 2025, the trumpet has sounded: Donald Trump’s second term has begun, and with it, the swift reversal of Biden’s LNG export pause. This isn’t mere policy tinkering—it’s a seismic recalibration of America’s role in the global energy chessboard. 

For conservatives, it’s a clarion call to reclaim energy dominance, secure jobs, and outmaneuver rivals. Yet, as the United States barrels toward an LNG export renaissance, a fresh realism must guide us—one that marries unapologetic ambition with a clear-eyed reckoning of trade-offs. RealClearEnergy readers—policymakers, industry titans, and patriots—deserve a vision that celebrates this moment while charting its complexities.

The Triumph of American Shale

Let’s start with the stakes. Biden’s 2024 LNG export freeze was a sop to climate ideologues, stalling terminals like CP2 and choking billions in Gulf Coast investment. Trump’s Day One reversal—likely formalized by now—unleashes a torrent: the U.S., already the world’s top LNG exporter at 11.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), could double capacity by 2035, hitting 30 Bcf/d with 12 new projects. This isn’t just gas—it’s leverage. Europe, unshackled from Russia’s grip since Ukraine’s transit deal died January 1, 2025, will guzzle 20 Bcf/d by decade’s end. Asia, led by China’s 100 million metric tons per annum (MTPA) appetite, follows suit. The American Petroleum Institute pegs this at 1.5 million jobs—welders in Louisiana, traders in Houston, families thriving.

Conservatives see the gospel here: free markets, not green dogma, deliver prosperity. LNG exports, projected to rival oil’s $200 billion annual haul, turbocharge GDP while slashing allies’ reliance on despots. Russia’s Gazprom, bled dry at 5% of global LNG share, can’t compete with Sabine Pass’s bounty. Qatar scrambles as U.S. shale undercuts its Hormuz Strait chokehold. This is Reagan’s “peace through strength” reborn—energy as a weapon of liberty, not coercion.

A New Realism: Beyond Blind Boosterism

Yet, triumphalism alone won’t suffice. LNG’s ascent demands a conservatism that’s muscular but mature—call it “shale realism.” First, the price paradox: flooding markets with 100 MTPA could drop global LNG from $15/MMBtu to $8 by 2032, a boon for buyers but a squeeze on producers. Henry Hub, at $2.50/MMBtu today, might climb to $4 as exports drain stocks, testing Trump’s “cheap energy” pledge. Conservatives mustn’t flinch—higher domestic prices are the cost of global primacy, a trade-off worth every penny if it bankrupts Putin’s war chest.

Second, the tariff tightrope. Trump’s 10% EU levy threat—60% for China—could backfire. Europe might stomach it, grateful for gas over Russian blackmail, but China’s retaliation could cap U.S. LNG at 15 MTPA, rerouting flows to Japan or India. Here’s a novel fix: tie LNG deals to trade pacts—discounts for tariff waivers. Imagine Beijing swapping solar panel exports for $10/MMBtu gas, a détente that cools trade wars while greening China’s grid. It’s pragmatic, not pandering—a conservative win through cunning.

The Climate Conundrum: LNG as Bridge, Not Bogeyman

Enter the green chorus: LNG’s methane leaks—1% of output, per the Environmental Defense Fund—could add 100 million tons of CO2-equivalent annually at scale. Trump’s likely methane rule rollback stokes their ire, and they’re not wrong to flag emissions. But here’s where shale realism shines: LNG isn’t the enemy of climate goals—it’s the midwife. Displacing Europe’s coal (30% cleaner) and China’s (55% of its mix), U.S. gas could cut global emissions by 500 million tons yearly, dwarfing leaks. By 2040, this bridge could halve coal’s share, buying time for fusion or next-gen solar.

Critics cry “fossil fuel lock-in,” but that’s a strawman. LNG’s flexibility—unlike rigid pipelines—lets renewables scale without blackouts. Picture Germany: its coal plants fade as U.S. gas fills gaps, wind turbines humming by 2035. Conservatives should own this narrative: LNG isn’t denialism—it’s discipline, a transition fuel that starves tyrants while science catches up.

Geopolitical Judo: Flipping the Board

Now, the grand play. Trump’s LNG surge isn’t just supply—it’s strategy. Europe, at 40% of exports by 2030, becomes a U.S. vassal in energy, not ideology—NATO’s glue thickens without a bullet fired. China, hooked on 20% of our LNG, trades coal smog for American molecules, a dependency Trump can tweak with tariffs or diplomacy. Russia, limping at 20 billion cubic meters to Europe, pivots to a discounted Siberia 2—China pays $8/MMBtu, not $12, bleeding Moscow dry.

Here’s an original twist: LNG as soft power. Trump could launch an “Energy Freedom Initiative”—subsidized exports to Africa’s microgrids, outpacing China’s $50 billion oil grab. Kenya’s 100 MW solar pairs with U.S. gas backups, electrifying villages without Beijing’s strings. By 2040, America owns the developing world’s energy soul—capitalism’s quiet coup.

The Balanced Ledger: Risks and Remedies

Shale realism demands candor. Oversupply risks stranding $50 billion in terminals if Europe goes 60% renewable by 2035—Cheniere’s bet could sour. Methane’s shadow looms; a voluntary industry standard—say, 0.5% leakage caps—could blunt critics without EPA meddling. Trade wars might shrink exports to 20 Bcf/d, but a “LNG bloc” with Japan and India hedges that bet.

Conservatives mustn’t dodge these. Champion LNG, yes, but innovate: tax credits for methane capture, not just drilling. Pair exports with fusion R&D—$1 trillion by 2040, privately led. This isn’t capitulation—it’s command of the future.

The Verdict: A Legacy Worth Forging

Trump’s LNG reversal is a conservative dream: jobs, power, liberty. By 2035, 35 Bcf/d could flow—40% to Asia, 30% to Europe—redefining energy’s map. Prices might settle at $10/MMBtu, coal withers, and Russia fades. Yet, shale realism elevates this beyond bravado. It’s a chance to wield LNG as a scalpel—cutting rivals, bridging climate gaps, and electrifying allies—all while fueling America’s heartland.

RealClearEnergy’s readers know the drill: energy isn’t sentiment—it’s strategy. Trump 2.0 can etch a legacy not just of dominance, but of dexterity. Let’s seize it, eyes wide open, and shape a world where American gas lights the way.

Ronald Beaty is a former Barnstable County Commissioner, and a lifelong resident of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 06:30

What We Know About African Mystery Illnesses That Have Sickened Over 400 People And Can Kill Within Hours

Something sinister is lurking in the heart of Africa, and no one knows what it is. A mysterious illness has swept through two remote villages in northwestern Congo, killing 53 people in just five weeks - some within hours of falling sick.

Teams of health workers from the Congolese Red Cross usher a child away during a mass burial at the Musigiko cemetery in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo on Feb. 20, 2025. Hugh Kinsella Cunningham/Getty Images

Health officials are scrambling to figure out what’s behind the deadly outbreaks in Equateur Province, but answers remain elusive. With 419 reported cases and the death toll rising, fear and speculation are gripping the region.

A Tale of Two Villages

The outbreaks began on January 21 in two villages separated by more than 120 miles. In the tiny village of Boloko, the first victims were children who had eaten a bat (oh?). Within 48 hours, they were dead, according to the Associated Press. Weeks later, hundreds more cases surfaced in Bomate, where at least some patients also tested positive for malaria. Are the two outbreaks connected? Health officials still don’t know.

Dr. Serge Ngalebato, medical director of Bikoro Hospital, says this is an 'unusual situation.'

"The first one with a lot of deaths, that we continue to investigate because it’s an unusual situation, (and) in the second episode that we’re dealing with, we see a lot of the cases of malaria." 

Congo’s Ministry of Health reports that about 80% of patients share symptoms including fever, chills, body aches, and diarrhea. These symptoms are common in many tropical infections, but what has scientists on edge is the rapid death of many victims.

Initially, fears of Ebola ran high, as the virus has struck Congo multiple times before. But lab tests in Kinshasa ruled out Ebola and its deadly cousin, Marburg. Now, health officials are considering everything from viral hemorrhagic fever to food poisoning, typhoid, and even meningitis.

“The speed at which people are dying in Boloko is alarming,” the WHO Africa office said in a statement. “We need to accelerate laboratory investigations, improve case management, and strengthen surveillance before it spreads further.”

Congo’s Deadly Pattern

This isn’t the first time an unknown illness has swept through Congo. Just last December, a similar outbreak claimed dozens of lives. The country’s weak healthcare system and remote geography make it difficult to track and contain diseases before they spiral out of control.

Many of these deadly outbreaks stem from the region’s deep forests, where viruses jump from animals to humans. Scientists warn that as long as people continue eating bushmeat—including bats, a known carrier of deadly pathogens—Congo will remain a hotbed for mysterious diseases.

A hemorrhagic fever outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has left more than 50 people dead. AP Graphic

“All these viruses have reservoirs in the forest,” said Gabriel Nsakala, a professor of public health at Congo’s National Pedagogical University. “As long as these forests exist, we will always have outbreaks.”

The Congolese government has sent teams of experts to the affected villages, but the remote locations are making containment efforts difficult. Patients are receiving treatments targeting their symptoms, but without a known cause, there’s no cure in sight.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization is calling for urgent international assistance. The U.S. has historically been the largest donor to Congo’s health sector, but with foreign aid currently under review, it’s unclear whether resources will arrive in time.

As the mystery illness continues its deadly march, one thing is clear: Congo is once again at the mercy of an invisible killer. And until scientists can crack the case, fear and uncertainty will reign supreme.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 05:45

Collusion, Coercion, And The EU's Corporate Sustainability Directives

Authored by Mark Oaks via RealClearPolicy,

For years, unelected regulators and global financial firms have colluded and used other people’s money to force businesses to address climate change and social issues. Under the guise of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), proponents diverted capital away from the energy sector, prioritizing political activism over prudent financial stewardship. The resulting misallocation of capital is most acutely felt in Europe, where energy prices are four times higher than in the U.S.

Sadly, the EU continues to push ESG through regulation with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directives (CSRD). The CSRD imposes sweeping ESG mandates on companies with operations in the EU, even if they are headquartered in the U.S. “CSRD is the EU’s new regulation requiring companies to disclose their environmental and social impact…and hold businesses accountable for their sustainability efforts.”

That is why I, along with 25 of my fellow state financial officers, sent a letter to President Trump asking him to direct the United States Trade Representative to open an investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 into the European Union’s CSRD. This provision allows the President to take action against foreign regulations that unfairly burden U.S. businesses.

The CSRD is costly, prioritizes political agendas over investor returns, and undermines U.S. sovereignty. Given the sweeping scope of the EU’s ESG requirements, a Section 301 investigation is fully justified.

The directives mandate companies to report on ESG impacts and performance, including initiatives to reduce their environmental impact. And, even though President Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement, it requires companies, including U.S. businesses, to develop and implement a Paris-compliant transition plan for climate change mitigation.

Beyond their own operations, businesses must disclose the potential ESG impacts of companies within their supply chain, including Scope 3 emissions. In 2024, even the SEC shied away from such onerous disclosures due to high compliance costs, inconsistent and unreliable Scope 3 data, and the legal uncertainties surrounding the rule itself. The CSRD also introduces a radical concept of “double materiality.” This means not only reporting on financially material risks, but also on speculative societal impacts. This goes far beyond the long-established U.S. legal definition of materiality, creating a legal minefield for American businesses.

The directives also invite frivolous lawsuits from activist groups and trial lawyers seeking to weaponize ESG disclosures. They are built on assumptions about climate change that will force companies to incriminate themselves. Traditional energy has no reliable, abundant, affordable alternatives, so, of course, companies are dependent on it for their underlying activities.

Since CSRD requirements extend European regulators’ authority to U.S. companies, these bureaucrats will dictate in-scope issues that American companies must address, including within their domestic operations. This regulatory overreach undermines U.S. sovereignty.

U.S. companies are unwinding from the coercive ESG scheme. Many of our largest financial institutions, including banks, insurance companies, and asset managers, have pulled out of the collusive global net-zero alliances. The EU, in contrast, seems determined to carry on the deleterious ESG cabal despite the demonstrably detrimental impacts that have resulted.

The recent American Airlines retirement plan litigation highlights the risks of prioritizing non-pecuniary interests in investment decisions. Judge Reed O’Connor noted that ESG investments often underperform traditional ones by about 10% and stated that it is irrational for shareholders or investment managers to push companies like Exxon to act in ways that undermine their own profits.

The EU’s ESG policies have already crippled European economies, driving energy shortages and economic stagnation. The directives will exacerbate capital misallocation and weaken the economies of both Europe and the United States. This not only harms the financial interests of states but also drains financial resources from shareholders.

Even within Europe, the directives are controversial. President Macron of France has asked the EU to postpone their implementation indefinitely. As Brussels re-examines the directives, the U.S. has an opening to assert its opposition.

President Trump’s administration has taken critical steps to free American markets from the grip of ESG mandates. We must extend that fight to the international stage. By taking a firm stance now, the U.S. can protect American businesses, restore market principles, and encourage Europe to rethink its self-destructive policies.

We must act swiftly to ensure that Europe’s regulatory failures do not become America’s burdens.

Marlo Oaks is the State Treasurer of Utah.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 05:00

BP Looks To Double Its Market Value To $200 Billion, Says CEO Auchincloss

BP’s CEO is setting an ambitious goal to more than double the company’s market value to $200bn within five years, restoring it to pre-Deepwater Horizon levels, according to the Financial Times.

Murray Auchincloss told the Financial Times that BP plans to take advantage of “tremendous” demand for oil and gas after abandoning its push into green energy. “At the end of the decade, it would be nice to be back to where we were before Macondo,” he said, referring to the disastrous oil spill that cost BP $62.5bn in clean-up efforts.

His comments followed BP’s decision to cut annual spending on renewables by 70% and shift its focus back to fossil fuels. The company’s current market value stands at just under £70bn ($89bn).

BP’s latest strategy shift acknowledges that the energy transition is progressing more slowly than anticipated, though the market response has been anything but euphoric.

“Oil and gas demand is going to be around for a long time,” said CEO Murray Auchincloss when asked about BP’s future beyond 2050. He pointed to the rising electricity needs of data centers, making gas a crucial fuel source. “The challenge is how do we decarbonize this stuff as much as you can,” he added, noting BP’s active efforts in carbon capture.

The Financial Times report notes that despite dropping all renewable targets and planning to move its wind and solar businesses off the balance sheet, Auchincloss insists they will remain “very big” parts of BP. He defended the company’s measured approach, stating, “You don’t announce a strategy change until you change it,” arguing that premature announcements would have lacked credibility.

BP has faced criticism for slow execution, particularly after activist investor Elliott took a nearly 5% stake and pushed for more aggressive changes. A source familiar with Elliott’s position said BP’s plans fell short, advocating for major divestments and further cuts to renewables spending. Bloomberg first reported the hedge fund’s dissatisfaction.

Auchincloss declined to comment on any engagement with Elliott but expressed no regrets about his first year as CEO. “Nothing comes top of mind,” he said.

Auchincloss acknowledged that the company will face short-term financial challenges as it rebuilds its oil and gas portfolio after years of downsizing. However, he emphasized that future growth will largely come from the U.S. and the Middle East.

“We’re more American than an awful lot of the American companies are,” he said, highlighting his focus on attracting U.S. investors. Over the coming weeks, BP’s management team plans to engage with more than a third of its shareholders through roadshows. Despite this push, Auchincloss clarified that relocating BP’s listing to the U.S. is “not on the agenda.”

Addressing concerns that BP lags behind rivals like ExxonMobil and Chevron in market value, he defended the company’s assets. “Our size is smaller, but the quality of our assets is exceptionally high,” he said, describing BP’s upstream operations as “world class” and a major competitive advantage. He also pointed out BP’s strong trading operations, something he claimed American companies lack.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 04:15

Enough Is Enough? The Italian People Disown & Protest The Words Of Their President

Submitted by Vincenzo Lorusso via Donbass Italia, (emphasis ours)

Months ago, a grassroot media campaign was launched in Italy intended to communicate the popular discontent with the pro-war, anti-Russia policy of the supposedly “Italy First” Government of Giorgia Meloni (elected on a platform that soon became indistinguishable from Atlanticist “Super” Mario Draghi). Themed “La Russia non e’ il mio Nemico” (Russia is not my Enemy), the campaign was promoted on billboards all over Italy to underscore the warm relationship between the Italian people and Russia. And to distance the people as much as possible from a government that contrary to its historical roots has taken Russophobia to a near British level of absurdity. The campaign was as much loved by the people as it was hated by the authorities.

But last week, while delivering his acceptance speech for a honorary degree he was being bestowed by Marseille University, Italian President Sergio Mattarella compared the current Russia regime and policies to the Third Reich. And condemned any form of dialogue as a form of appeasement similar to Europe’s concessions to Hitler.

Unsurprisingly, the speech was quickly criticized by Russia’s MFA and its spokesperson Maria Zhakarova who criticized Mattarella’s speech as offensive (as well as, we may add, ignorant of history to a shocking degree). 

More notably, however, was the popular reaction to this statement made by Italy’s most senior political figure and representative of the Italian people.  

A petition was soon launched, condemning the speech...

“As Italian Citizens, fully identifying ourselves with the Italy born of the Partisan Insurrection of 1945 and the values of the Constitutional Fathers, we wish to express our complete Political Solidarity with the Russian government, the expression of that People who shed the most impressive contribution of blood in the Great Patriotic War, (twenty-seven million dead) which defeated and ended the genocidal Nazi-Fascist tyranny.

Our grandfathers and fathers, on other mountains and fields, challenged the enemy with weapons in hand, as did your grandfathers and fathers, paying with torture and death, nipped in the prime of life. We who saw fascism come into being, as opposed to the civilization movement composed of workers, laborers and peasants, who plowed the path for a true Europe of the Peoples, cannot besmirch history with a dystopian and erroneous vision, with unacceptable historical analogies between Russia and the Third Reich.

And even lately we believe that the same struggle for a new Nazism supported and foraged by Atlanticism has continued on the fields of the Donbass, which has as its first goal the destruction of A POLITICAL EUROPE OF PEACE, WORK AND SOLIDARITY, convenient and functional to a great power defended by two oceans but not to our Peoples.

Our Latin forefathers said that to err is human but to persevere is diabolical.

The narrative of the Atlantic “minculpop” in the unified networks and press, the most impressive war weapon of the collective West, describes the Russian special military operation as a prodigious attack on a sovereign country, forgetting the dramatic aggression suffered for years by the Russian-speaking peoples of the Donbass and the attempt at ethnic cleansing carried out by the Ukrainian coup regime, which has a robust overtly Nazi component at its core.

This is why we believe that the intervention of the government of the Russian Federation was a tragic but legitimate and inevitable reaction to the threat to the borders of the territory of Russia and its Peoples, who a few days ago had to endure tragic episodes of massacres of civilian population in the 'Kursk area and since 2014 in the Donbass involving children, women and the elderly.

We do not accept this reversal of reality. The comparison with the Munich Conference of 1938 made by President Mattarella is a historical and political error that we stigmatize in the strongest terms.

We are convinced that you are aware of the deep friendship and respect that binds Our Ancient Peoples; we know your unwavering patience and discernment and your respect for almost three thousand years of Our Civilization and Culture that you esteem and respect.

We are not like the Baltic or Scandinavian governments; ours has always tended to be a deep and fruitful relationship, despite the fact that a fascist army invaded your country. We have memories of the generosity of so many women workers and peasants to our grandparents, betrayed and abandoned by a dictatorship with which we settled accounts.

Italy's role must be to build bridges of civilization, prosperity and brotherhood in A MARE NOSTRUM OF PEACE.

Anyone who follows wrong friendships, through miscalculation or political cowardice, will be destined to pay the price: this we have as a historical example. 

We do not want to retrace known tragedies on our continent, at a time of deep ethical, cultural and political decadence.

We apologize for erroneous statements that we do not share: with facts we will try to redeem Our wounded country.

We ask everyone to sign this appeal by affixing their signature.”

Impressively, and reflecting the increasing impatience of the Italian population with a game that is no longer amusing to its people, the “petition”, or letter of apology, was signed by over 25,000 signatures in a matter of days and the numbers continue to grow. As a peace offering and a sign of respect, bound volumes of all the signatures were delivered to the MFA of the Russian Federation. While the book of comments, too long to print, was delivered to Maria Zhakarova by email.

Ms Zhakarova seemed touched by the outpouring of support for Russia among ordinary Italian people and in a small ceremony with the author promised that the book of signatures will be displayed in the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. 

Zakharova was presented with a petition with Italy's apology for Mattarella's statements pic.twitter.com/5QJObYrE0c

— Sprinter Observer (@SprinterObserve) February 22, 2025

Another message that is reaching the embassy of the Russian federation following Mattarella’a words was delivered by Matteo Brandi, head of the Pro Italia Party/movement, a small but rapidly growing political force that may well be an alternative government in waiting in the years ahead:

“I fully share the criticism of the spokeswoman Maria Zakharova to the incautious words of President Mattarella who compared Russia's special operation in Ukraine to the Nazi aggressions of the past century. The majority of the Italian people are not enemies of Russia, they know that the real reasons for the war in Ukraine are the aggression of NATO and the Nazi-fascists in Kiev, and they remember the enormous sacrifice of 27 million dead made by the Russian and other Soviet peoples to defeat Nazism.” 

Perhaps, the people of some European countries have figured out that their hapless politicians neither represent their views nor their interests and are pushing back in a more direct way.

Will Italy’s attitude change, having backed, yet again, the wrong side? Time will tell, but it is a start……

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 03:30

PKK Founder Orders Kurdish Group To Lay Down Its Arms, Dissolve In Historic Statement

A grand deal involving Turkey, Syria, and the Kurds is in the works, and on Thursday a historic announcement was made by the leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Abdullah Ocalan, speaking from a Turkish prison, has called on the group that he founded to lay down its arms and disband. This is the result of years of running Turkish-PKK battles as well as fragile negotiations. The PKK has long been in an official state of war with the Turkish government, which considers it a terrorist organization.

"Convene your congress and make a decision," Ocalan said in the statement, read aloud both in Kurdish and in Turkish. "All groups must lay down their arms and the P.K.K. must dissolve itself."

AFP: Abdullah Ocalan in a PKK training camp in Lebanon's Beqaa valley in 1992

Turkey's war against the PKK, as well as the conflict's extension into Syria and Iraq (the YPG/YPJ), has taken tens of thousands of lives. The crackdown on the PKK was its most intense in the 1990s. More recently and connected with the Syria crisis, Turkish warplanes have bombed Syrian Kurdish enclaves connected with the Rojava project.

"The rare message from Mr. Ocalan raised the possibility that a conflict that has killed more than 40,000 people over four decades could finally end," the NY Times has stated. "It could also echo across borders, given Mr. Ocalan’s profound influence over members of the group in Turkey and Iraq as well as affiliated Kurdish militias in Syria and Iran."

Ocalan has actually been in prison for a quarter-century at this point, but the influence of his leadership has remained strong, as Kurdish fighters almost worship him. His political doctrine is widely read and quoted.

But even with this huge step of the PKK's dissolution, the question of implementing details as well as the next steps are highly uncertain. There's also the question of whether the more hardline Kurdish factions will actually heed the call to lay down arms:

His message was greeted with joy in the Istanbul conference room where Öcalan’s allies gathered to broadcast his call, after displaying a photo of supporters visiting the white-haired septuagenarian. A group of older Kurdish peace activists ululated as the call to lay down arms was read out.

“This is the breaking point of history and it is a positive one,” said Sırrı Süreyya Önder of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) party. “We are here with a compass to find a possible route out of these dark chaotic days.”

Önder hinted at some of the potential problems to come, adding that while Öcalan called for the PKK’s dissolution and to lay down arms, this “requires the recognition of democratic politics”, and legal support for a sustained peace.

The Kurdish-led SDF in Syria is unlikely to immediately heed the call. They are supported by the US occupation in northeast Syria and American special forces advisors.

BREAKING — PKK’s Syrian wing PYD leader Salih Muslim says they agree with Ocalan’s statement

“There would be no need for weapons if we are allowed to work politically. If the reasons for carrying weapons disappear we will lay them down”

pic.twitter.com/gIPM2SsWsp

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) February 27, 2025

However this does mean the clock is ticking for the US occupation - which Turkey has long wanted to squeeze out. At the same time, the new HTS rulers in Damascus have been making overtures - offering Syria's Kurds integration into the state and military, if they abandon hopes for a Kurdish autonomous state.

Thus this 'grand bargain' will ultimately be another win for Turkey in the region, and the Pentagon will eventually be forced to pull back. But this is also reportedly what Trump has wanted - a US withdrawal done in a way that doesn't leave a security vacuum.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 02:45

Romania Is At The Center Of The Struggle Between Liberal-Globalists & Populist-Nationalists

Authored by Andrew Korybko via substack,

Observers were shocked on Wednesday after former Romanian presidential front-runner Calin Georgescu was temporarily detained and charged on six counts amidst police raids against some of his closest supporters as he was preparing to file for his candidacy in May’s election redux. The first round last December was annulled on the basis that an unnamed state actor promoted him on TikTok prior to the vote but it was later discovered that this was just another party’s marketing campaign gone wrong.

It was explained here how Georgescu’s election could have ruined the US “deep state’s” escalation plans against Russia while this analysis here added more context after the annulment. The immediate run-up to the latest developments saw Vice President Vance lambast the Romanian government as anti-democratic for what it did last December. 

Wednesday’s events were then followed by Musk retweeting a video of State Department whistleblower Mike Benz describing the “deep state’s” interest in Romania.

Benz drew attention to how Romania agreed to host NATO’s largest airbase in Europe and has played a crucial role in clandestinely transferring Pakistani military equipment to Ukraine. These are important points, as is the “Moldova Highway” that’s mentioned in the two analyses cited above since it completes the last part of the corridor stretching from Greece’s Mediterranean ports to Western Ukraine, but there’s more to what’s happening that just geopolitics. Ideology is arguably just as significant of a factor.

Romania has been under liberal-globalist control for decades after these forces exploited its political dysfunction and endemic corruption to continually install their preferred candidates into power. Georgescu represents the most promising opportunity in years for a populist-nationalist revolution that could finally resolve the aforementioned systemic challenges and thus restore Romania’s sovereignty. His appeals to history, religion, and national interests genuinely resonate with many of his compatriots.

Georgescu can therefore be described as a “Romanian Trump”, but both figures are really just tapping into the populist-nationalist zeitgeist that’s been spreading across the West for years in reaction to the liberal-globalists’ socio-political and economic excesses. He’s his own man, as is Trump, and both simply embody the trend of the times. Like all revolutionaries (or counter-revolutionaries from the perspective of regaining the power that was seized from the people), however, they’re also facing lots of resistance.

It took Trump over eight years before he was able to neutralize the “deep state’s” subversive plots so it’s no surprise that Georgescu, who only just recently began his political career, is having a hard time. Trump was a trailblazer though whereas Georgescu is following in his footsteps so it’s possible that Trump could lend Georgescu a helping hand to greatly speed up the time that it takes for him to neutralize his own “deep state’s” subversive plots. It’s here where the ongoing struggle between the US and EU is relevant.

“Vance’s Munich Speech Vindicated Putin’s Summer 2022 Prediction About Political Change In Europe” and made clear that the US stands on the side of all populist-nationalist movements on the continent. The Romanian “deep state’s” latest attempt to take down Georgescu is essentially a gauntlet thrown at the Trump Administration by its liberal-globalist opponents in Brussels who fully back Bucharest. They want to test whether the US will do anything in response to the EU’s rolling coup in Romania.

What’s unfolding in this Balkan country is nothing less than the opening of another New Cold War front, albeit this time an ideological one between liberal-globalists and populist-nationalists, which also interestingly pits nominal NATO allies against one another as the EU and the US take opposite sides. It’s incumbent on the Trump Administration to do what’s needed to ensure that Georgescu is allowed to run as president in May’s election redux and that the vote is truly free and fair instead of flawed as usual.

To that end, targeted sanctions against Romanian figures, credibly threatening to withdraw its troops from Romania, suspending arms contracts, and extending full political support to populist-nationalist protesters could pressure the authorities into reconsidering the wisdom of doing Brussels’ bidding. At the same time, a comprehensive pressure campaign could also backfire if the German-led EU exploits it as the pretext for deepening its already immense control over Romania, though that could backfire too.

It was explained here in response to the likely next German chancellor’s pledge to “achieve independence” from the US that military, economic, and energy factors make that a lot easier said than done. If provoked, like could soon happen if the German-led EU pushes back against the US’ potentially impending pressure campaign on Romania, then Trump could weaponize each of them in his own such campaign against the EU and Germany that he stands a good chance of winning on both fronts.

Altogether, what just happened in Romania places the country at the center of the intra-Western ideological dimension of the New Cold War, which will determine the future of Europe. Liberal-globalists will either entrench their power in full defiance of Trump, possibly at enormous costs to their countries, or they’ll be democratically deposed by populist-nationalists who share the same worldview as his team. This struggle is historic and the consequences of its outcome will reverberate for decades.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/28/2025 - 02:00

NATO Is The Big Obstacle To Peace In Ukraine

Authored by Jacob Hornberger via The Future of Freedom Foundation,

During his recent campaign for president, Donald Trump repeatedly stated that he had a secret plan for settling the war in Ukraine. 

He suggested that he would be able to resolve the conflict within a day of so of taking office. That obviously was political hyperbole because the war is still going on. Trump and people in his administration are now talking to Russian president Vladimir Putin and Russian officials in an effort to find a way to end the war and possibly even normalize relations between the United States and Russia.

There is one great big obstacle, however, to bringing an end to the Ukraine-Russia conflict. That obstacle is NATO, the old Cold War dinosaur that should have gone out of existence with the end of the Cold War, just like the Warsaw Pact did.

Instead, NATO not only remained in existence, it also ultimately became the root cause of the war between Ukraine and Russia.

It’s that critically important point that is lost on the U.S. mainstream media. For them, the war began at the moment that Russia invaded Ukraine. Nothing that preceded that invasion matters to the mainstream media. What came before the invasion is simply considered irrelevant.

But it’s not irrelevant, especially because it might well prove to be an insurmountable obstacle to a lasting peace between Ukraine and Russia.

With the surprise end of the Cold War, the U.S. national-security establishment — i.e., the Pentagon, the CIA, and the NSA — lost its big official enemy — Russia (or, to be more exact, the Soviet Union), which meant the end of the big Cold War racket that had kept the national-security branch in high cotton in terms of power and taxpayer-funded largess.

The Pentagon, the CIA, and the NSA were panicky. At first, they announced that they were willing to participate in the “war on drugs.” They then converted their old partner and ally Saddam Hussein into an official enemy, who they used to scare the American people for some 11 years. Then, their interventionist and deadly foreign policy in the Middle East brought about the 9/11 retaliatory strikes and they were off to the races again, with the “war on terrorism” replacing the Cold War’s “war on communism.”

But they never lost sight of the possibility of reconverting Russia into a renewed official enemy, as part of a new Cold War, especially given that the anti-Russia Cold War sentiment was so deeply embedded within the American people. That’s when they began using NATO to expand eastward toward Russia’s border by absorbing former members of the Warsaw Pact.

An important thing to note about this was that U.S. officials had promised Russia that NATO would not expand. It would stay, they repeatedly stated, right where it was.

It was a lie. Instead, NATO was used to expand eastward, which enabled NATO’s missiles, tanks, weapons, troops, and planes to get ever closer to Russia’s border. It’s worth mentioning that NATO includes Germany, the nation that wreaked untold death and destruction on Russia in the two world wars.

Why would U.S. officials do that? To get their official enemy — and big cash cow — back. They were not ready to let go of Russia as America’s official enemy. And they knew — as an absolute certainty — what Russia’s reaction would be to having U.S. and German missiles, forces, tanks, planes, and armaments getting ever closer to Russia’s borders. They knew that Russia would react negatively — very negatively. And the reason they knew that was because they knew that that is precisely how they would react if Russia began doing the same thing in Cuba.

Moreover, Russia repeatedly told them what would happen if they threatened to absorb Ukraine into NATO. Russia would invade to prevent that from happening. Thus, not surprisingly, NATO threatened to absorb Ukraine, knowing full-well that that would provoke Russia into invading.

Thus, when Russia did invade, U.S. and European officials and the U.S. mainstream press cried, “Aggression! Aggression!” And they were right from a legal standpoint. Russia had no legal right to invade Ukraine, and Ukraine had the legal right to join NATO. But what U.S. officials, European officials, and the U.S. mainstream press steadfastly avoided confronting — and still avoid confronting — is that, as a practical matter, U.S. officials had broken their promise to Russia not to expand NATO eastward and that, as a practical matter, that was the reason for the Ukraine-Russia war.

Why is all that pre-invasion history important insofar as a peace treaty is concerned? Because if one takes the official U.S.-European narrative seriously — that Russia invaded Ukraine because it is an aggressor nation that is hell-bent on conquering the world — then how do they arrive at a satisfactory resolution of the war, given that the real reason that Russia invaded Ukraine was to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO?

Thus, how does Trump guarantee Russia that Ukraine won’t ever join NATO? Sure, he can give his word. He can even put it into writing. But everyone knows that the U.S. government does not keep its word, and everyone knows that the U.S. government lies. Indeed, everyone knows that the U.S. promised Russia that NATO would not move eastward, and it did anyway.

Moreover, even if Russia believes Trump and takes him at his word, Trump could die from a heart attack tomorrow. Moreover, four years from now, America will presumably have a new president. What then? What assurance does Russia have that a new president won’t suddenly announce that NATO is absorbing Ukraine.

Therefore, the best assurance that Russia could be given would be the total dismantling of NATO. 

With no NATO, there is no threat of NATO’s suddenly absorbing Ukraine. Moreover, no more NATO means no more former Warsaw Pact members as members of NATO. 

But what are the chances that Trump will bring an end to this Cold War dinosaur? Very slim, unfortunately, which will make it very difficult to arrive at a lasting peace in Ukraine.

Tyler Durden Thu, 02/27/2025 - 23:25

How (Un)Free Is The World?

Global freedom declined for the 19th consecutive year in 2024, according to the Global Freedom Index by democratic watchdog organization Freedom House, released Wednesday. 

As Statista's Anna Fleck reports, analysts found that 60 countries have experienced a deterioration in their political and civil liberties since 2023, while 34 saw improvements. 

 

You will find more infographics at Statista

El Salvador, Haiti, Kuwait and Tunisia saw their scores drop the furthest compared to last year, while Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Syria saw the biggest gains.

In a major year for elections, violence affected 27 of the 66 countries and territories studied in the report where ballots were held last year, including attacks on candidates. In Mexico and South Africa, such assaults were largely at the hands of criminal groups seeking to gain political influence and control of territory. In countries such as France, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States, extremism or partisan stances drove attacks on individuals running for office.

India has seen a decline of 15 points in the past decade. Between 2023 and 2024 it slid three points and was placed in the category of "partly free". Meanwhile, Indian Kashmir saw an increase of 12 points year on year due largely to its return of elections, lifting it from the "not free" group to the "partly free" group.

Freedoms and security also continued to be hampered by ongoing armed conflicts. Freedom House notes how civil wars, clashes between states, and fighting that involved non-state armed groups have hit local civilian populations in places around the world and have had a negative ripple effect, including fuelling the spread of illicit trades.

The Freedom in the World Index is an index compiled annually by the U.S. NGO Freedom House, which evaluates civil and political freedom in states and territories around the world. The methodology is based on the Declaration of Human Rights as proclaimed by the United Nations (UN) in 1948 and is intended to assess the political rights and civil liberties of individuals rather than governments.

The countries/territories are evaluated by a team of internal and external analysts and expert advisors from a range of academia, think tank and human rights communities, with the final scores being the result of a consensus between the analysts, a panel of outside advisors and Freedom House staff. Depending on the weighted index score for political rights and civil liberties, a country is classified as "free", "partly free" or "not free".

Tyler Durden Thu, 02/27/2025 - 23:00

The Real Victims Of USAID's Mismanagement

Authored by Peter Burns & Isaac Six via RealClearPolitics,

For decades, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been a pillar of global humanitarian assistance, channeling billions of dollars into development projects worldwide. But behind its noble mission of alleviating suffering and fostering stability lies a deeply flawed system – one riddled with pet political programs, excessive overhead, and a rejection of meaningful oversight. Now, as USAID faces drastic budget cuts and program suspensions, the consequences of these longstanding failures are being felt not just by contractors and implementers but by the very people the agency was meant to serve.

While some may view these reductions as an unfortunate casualty of shifting political priorities, they are, in many ways, the predictable outcome of an institution that has operated with a sense of entitlement for far too long. USAID’s unchecked hubris, its tendency to fund projects of questionable value, and its failure to ensure that taxpayer dollars are being spent advancing their interest have all contributed to the current crisis. If the United States is to maintain its leadership in international development, a fundamental reckoning with USAID’s practices is long overdue. 

A System Transformed To Serve Itself

Despite its important mission and the efforts of well-intentioned staff, USAID had become notorious for inefficiencies and bloated bureaucracies. A significant portion of its $58.4 billion budget never reached those in need, instead getting caught in a web of administrative costs and layers of subcontractors.

Take, for example, Chemonics International, one of USAID’s largest implementing partners. While its contracts are often worth billions, much of that money never reaches the ground. Instead, it is eaten up by overhead costs and an expansive bureaucracy that has grown wealthy off U.S. foreign aid. For example, when the first Trump administration announced hundreds of millions in aid money to help rebuild religious minority communities devastated by ISIS genocide, hopes were high, but between Chemonics and years of USAID bureaucratic entanglement, little of the money was ever seen or felt by the communities for which it was meant. 

At the heart of this problem is the way USAID structures its funding. Rather than directly administering aid, the agency too often relied on large implementing partners that, in turn, subcontracted work to other organizations. Each layer takes its share of the funding, leaving only a fraction of the original budget for actual aid delivery. This model has created an ecosystem in which a handful of firms secure massive contracts while local organizations – often better positioned to execute aid programs effectively – are historically sidelined.

Worse yet, USAID has a history of funding projects that, at best, have limited impact and, at worst, appear to be completely partisan nonsense. Taxpayer dollars have gone to fund a transgender-themed opera in Columbia, a DEI-themed musical event in Ireland, and an LGBTQ+ promoting comic book in Peru. In an era of growing global crisis, such spending choices raise serious questions about the agency’s priorities and how grant awards are being vetted. The plethora of absurd programs suggests more than a simple oversight within a massive bureaucracy. 

Wealthy Contractors, Struggling Recipients

For those who have worked within USAID’s ecosystem, the disconnect between the agency’s stated mission and its actual operations is glaring. Many of its largest contractors have thrived financially even as the populations they were meant to assist saw limited benefit. A handful of development firms have built entire business ecosystems off USAID funding, securing contract after contract while delivering lackluster results.

Meanwhile, the human cost of these inefficiencies cannot be overstated. As USAID-funded programs are halted or downsized, jobs are being lost – not just in Washington, D.C., but across the developing world. Local employees who relied on USAID-funded jobs to support their families now find themselves without work, caught in the fallout of an aid system that prioritized contract value over sustainable impact. 

The Path Forward

The current funding review comes at a pivotal moment. Recognizing the risks of an abrupt pullback, the administration has granted a waiver for existing life-saving humanitarian assistance programs, allowing them to continue while broader budgetary decisions are made. 

For U.S. international aid to regain the American people’s trust and truly advance U.S. national interest abroad, systemic changes must be made. [ZH: or just let it die] The process needs greater oversight in allocating funds and a renewed focus on delivering aid efficiently. This means reducing the reliance on massive contracts that siphon money away from recipients and instead empowering local organizations that can execute projects. On the ground, U.S. expertise and local faith communities that have existing trust and accountability can be used to balance the challenges of moving away from large international aid implementors. The idea of bringing foreign assistance back into the Department of State makes a lot of sense and reflects the structure many governments are moving toward, such as the UK’s restructuring in 2020. 

There is no question that foreign aid remains a critical tool of U.S. diplomacy and global leadership. Reforms of this nature are painful and disruptive, much like a first trip back to the gym after the holidays, but the results can be worth the burn. This moment of reckoning presents an opportunity to rebuild a system that truly works – one that prioritizes U.S. interest, effectiveness, and the people it was meant to help. Anything less would be a disservice to American taxpayers and the millions who rely on U.S. aid for survival.

Peter Burns is executive director of the International Religious Freedom Summit and previously served at the U.S. Department of State. 

Isaac Six is the co-founder and CEO of The Six Group, an organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom around the world, and has worked for nearly 14 years in Washington, D.C., on international religious freedom issues.

Tyler Durden Thu, 02/27/2025 - 22:35

These Are The Highest Paid World Leaders

A study by Slot.Day ranked the ten highest-paid world leaders, comparing their salaries against their respective nations' GDP per capita to standardize comparisons across economies.

Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong tops the list as the world's highest-paid leader, earning $1.6 million annually—nearly 1.5 times the country’s GDP per capita of $84.7K, according to Slot.Day.

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, John Lee Ka-chiu, ranks second with a $695K salary, more than 1.1 times Hong Kong's GDP per capita but less than half of Wong’s earnings. Switzerland’s President, Viola Amherd, follows in third place, earning $572K, which is less than half of the country's GDP per capita of $99.9K.

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese ranks fourth with a $413K salary, equating to 53% of the nation’s GDP per capita. U.S. President Donald Trump takes the fifth spot with a $400K salary—only 40% of the U.S. GDP per capita of $81.6K, the lowest ratio among the top 10.

The study by Slot.Day study revealed that in sixth place, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earns $364K, about 50% of the EU’s GDP per capita. Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer ranks seventh with a $317K salary, or 47% of Austria's GDP per capita.

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon ranks eighth, earning $311K, or 53% of the country's GDP per capita—the same ratio as his Australian counterpart. Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ninth with a $301.4K salary, reflecting a salary-to-GDP ratio of 47.06%.

Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz rounds out the top ten with a $293.7K salary, maintaining the European norm at 46% of GDP per capita.

A spokesperson for Slot.Day said: “The vast differences in world leader salaries show how nations prioritize executive compensation in relation to economic output. While some leaders earn well above their country’s GDP per capita, others operate within stricter public service norms."

They continued: "The uniformity of European salary ratios around 47% suggests a structured approach to governance pay, contrasting sharply with regions where leadership compensation far exceeds national averages. These disparities reflect broader political philosophies—whether leadership is seen as a high-value executive role or a duty bound by fiscal restraint."

The entire dataset from the report can be found here. 

Tyler Durden Thu, 02/27/2025 - 22:10