Author: BlackMask Financial

Germany’s Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) on Thursday recommended booster shots for all adults. A draft resolution proposing booster shots of the mRNA vaccines should be given six months after the last vaccine dose has been sent on to experts and Germany’s federal states for vote and consideration. The committee recommend priority for booster shots be given to the immunocompromised, people over 70, residents and caregivers at elder care homes and staff in medical facilities. Regardless of what vaccine was given previously, mRNA vaccines should be administered as booster shots. Pregnant women after the second trimester should also receive booster shots.

It said the boosters should be given six months after the last vaccine shot. However, that could be shortened to five months if there is enough capacity.

The committee also “urgently calls on all previously unvaccinated persons to take advantage of the COVID-19 vaccination offer.” The goal in administering booster shots is to reduce instances of infection and transmission as Germany and Europe battle a new, record setting wave of COVID-19 cases Over the past 24 hours, Germany has registered a daily record of more than 65,000 new infections. Currently 67.8% of the German population is fully vaccinated. NN: It is nothing short of criminal with all the published science that the 3rd booster shot was not given to the masse in August…… Its nothing short of incompetence that extends to criminal negligence.

Here is the cdc spin on the new variant… they have no credibility:

A more infectious new version of Covid-19’s delta variant is spreading fast in the U.K., accounting for about 12% of the samples gathered in the most recent government survey.  That represents a 2.8% daily growth rate for sub-variant AY.4.2 over the course of the REACT survey, from Oct. 19 to Nov. 5, the researchers said. Still, the new sub-variant seemed less likely to cause symptomatic Covid.  Outside researchers cautioned that it’s too early to say for sure whether the new sub-variant is really less likely to make people sick, or whether there are other factors at work. If AY.4.2 was spreading among people who were younger or in places with broad vaccine coverage, “these factors could account for the observed difference,” Simon Clarke, an associate professor in cellular microbiology at the University of Reading, said in a briefing distributed by the Science Media Centre.

About one in 20 school-aged children had the virus over the survey period. Prevalence also doubled in people over the age of 65.

NN: I have been following the spread of the under-reported AY.4.2 MUTATION for a little over a year now. When it was first sequences the mutations  on the spike proteins worried me. i have watched as it spread it pail of death starting as a new breakout in China. Now Europe is going back into lockdown. And early evidence points to this mutation as the culprit. It will take the “researchers” 6 months after the fact to understand its this new variant. Remember few samples are collected from the infected and dead. And even fewer are DNA sequenced to scientifically identify the mutation. And even fewer scientists are going to step in front of this and warn that the varient unless your anybodies are high can defeat your vaccine

The Greeneewenniees are in a hissey fit:

The Biden administration has asked some of the world’s largest oil consuming nations – including China, India and Japan – to consider releasing crude stockpiles in a coordinated effort to lower global energy prices, according to several people familiar with the matter. The unusual request comes as U.S. President Joe Biden fends off political pressure over rising pump prices and other consumer costs driven by a rebound in economic activity from lows plumbed early in the coronavirus pandemic. It also reflects U.S. frustration with members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies who have rebuffed repeated requests from Washington to speed up their production increases. “We’re talking about the symbolism of the largest consumers of the world sending a message to OPEC that ‘you’ve got to change your behavior,'” one of the sources said. In Asia, where China said it is working on a crude release, oil prices extended declines prompted by the U.S. request, after settling on Wednesday further below seven-year highs struck in early October. Biden and top aides have discussed the possibility of a coordinated release of stockpiled oil with close allies including Japan, South Korea and India, as well as with China, over the past several weeks, the sources said. The US and allies have coordinated strategic petroleum reserve releases before, for example in 2011 during a war in OPEC member Libya.

But the current proposal represents an unprecedented challenge to OPEC, the cartel that has influenced oil prices for more than five decades, because it involves China, the world’s biggest importer of crude.

A Japanese industry ministry official said the United States has requested Tokyo’s cooperation in dealing with higher oil prices, but he could not confirm whether the request included coordinated releases of stockpiles. By law, Japan cannot use reserve releases to lower prices, the official said. A senior cabinet official declined to comment. China’s state reserve bureau said it was working on a release of crude oil reserves although it declined to comment on the U.S. request. A South Korean official confirmed the United States had asked Seoul to release some oil reserves. “We are thoroughly reviewing the U.S. request, however, we do not release oil reserve because of rising oil prices. We could release oil reserve in case of supply imbalance, but not to respond to rising oil prices,” the official said.

The U.S. share of any potential release of reserves would need to be more than 20 million to 30 million barrels to affect markets, according to a U.S. source who participated in the discussions. Such a release could be in the form of a sale or a loan from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve – or both.

Several people familiar with the matter cautioned that negotiations over a coordinated supply release have not been finalized nor has any final decision been made about whether to pursue any specific course of action on oil prices. OPEC and other producers including Russia, known collectively as OPEC+, have been adding around 400,000 barrels per day to the market on a monthly basis, but have resisted Biden’s calls for more rapid increases, arguing the rebound in demand could be fragile. OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said on Tuesday he expected a global supply surplus to emerge as soon as December.”These are signals that we have to be very, very careful,” he told reporters.

Rising oil prices have vexed Biden ahead of the 2022 midterm elections which will determine whether his Democratic party maintains slim majorities in the U.S. Congress.

U.S. gasoline prices average $3.41 per gallon recently, according to AAA, more than 60% higher than a year ago as the economy has rebounded from the COVID-19 pandemic Several Biden aides attribute his falling public approval ratings in recent months to worsening inflation from energy to food and other areas. The consumer price index is up 6.2% over the last 12 months, with its energy components up 30%. NN: Obviously the Biden administration is suffering from a self inflicted wound. Kicking and screaming along the way they will reverse their previous hostile actions towards  oil. Like many greeneewenniees they made several critical mistakes. Like their are no viable 100% renewable alternatives to oil as a PRIMARY  energy source. And the masses are not on board with them ending the  modern age. They want their cars, airconditiong and traditional foods…… including perish the though animal based meats and dairy.

Oil prices slumped on Wednesday, driving major benchmarks to their lowest settlement levels since early October, after OPEC and the International Energy Agency warned of impending oversupply, while rising COVID-19 cases in Europe increased downside risks to demand recovery. Prices dropped further in thin post-close trading after Reuters reported that the United States was asking other major global oil consumers like China and Japan to consider a coordinated release of oil reserves to bring prices down. Brent crude futures fell $1.36, or 1.7%, to $81.05 a barrel by 12:18 p.m. EST (1718 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures settled at $78.36, down $2.40, a 3% decline. The declines took Brent to its lowest close since Oct. 1 and U.S. crude to its lowest settlement since Oct. 7. Traders said funds apparently are weighing a greater likelihood that supply will start to outpace demand, with sharp declines in near-term futures pointing to funds closing long positions. “It signals a movement towards balance which we’ve not seen for many months,” said Tony Headrick, energy analyst at CHS Hedging. In post-close trading, U.S. crude fell to $77.98 a barrel. The global oil market has been focused on the swift rise in demand against a slow increase in supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, along with reluctance from big U.S. shale players to overspend on drilling. However, both the IEA and OPEC in recent weeks said more supply could be coming in the next several months. OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, have maintained an agreement to boost output by 400,000 bpd every month so as not to overwhelm the market with supply. On Tuesday, OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said the group sees signs of an oil supply surplus building from next month adding its members and allies will have to be “very, very cautious.” Other nations, including the United States, have called for OPEC+ to boost output more swiftly. The United States has considered announcing an emergency release of crude from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which contains more than 600 million barrels of oil. In the last two weeks the U.S. Energy Department has sold more than 6 million barrels of oil – part of previously approved sales. The United States currently has discretion to sell several million barrels from the SPR thanks to previous Congressional approval. J.P. Morgan analysts said the White House could speed up those sales rather than declare an emergency – calling it the “easiest of the options the White House has” to combat rising fuel prices. The IEA has already said U.S. supply is expected to increase at a swifter pace in the second quarter of 2022, and U.S. rig counts have been rising, with private operators seeking to take advantage of higher crude prices. The IEA expects U.S. output will account for about 60% of its forecast of 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd) for non-OPEC supply growth in 2022. U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 2.1 million barrels last week, government data showed, running against analyst expectations for a build of 1.4 million barrels. Headrick noted, however, that the modest build in inventories at the key Cushing, Oklahoma hub of 213,000 barrels signaled that the end may be near for drawdowns. New waves of COVID-19 cases in Europe have driven some governments to reimpose restrictions; Austria has ordered a lockdown on unvaccinated individuals. The Biden administration asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the growing gap between the cost of unfinished gas and what consumers are paying at the pump.

New York (CNN Business)The American Petroleum Institute on Wednesday slammed President Joe Biden’s push for a Federal Trade Commission investigation of the oil industry and renewed its call for the federal government to encourage domestic oil and gas production. “This is a distraction from the fundamental shift that is taking place and the ill-advised government decisions that are exacerbating this challenging situation,” Frank Macchiarola, the API’s senior vice president of policy, economy and regulatory affairs, said in a statement to CNN.Biden asked the FTC on Wednesday to “immediately” investigate whether illegal activity by oil and gas companies is lifting gasoline prices. “Gasoline prices at the pump remain high, even though oil and gas companies’ costs are declining,” Biden wrote in a letter to the FTC. Even though oil and gasoline have soared to seven-year highs, US oil production remains below pre-pandemic levels. Industry experts have told CNN that is in large part because oil companies are focused on returning cash to shareholders and living within their means after years of excessive drilling. There is also significant uncertainty over the future of demand due to increased attention on the climate crisis. Read More Biden asks FTC to ‘immediately’ look into whether illegal conduct is pushing up gas prices “Rather than launching investigations on markets that are closely regulated and closely monitored on a daily basis or pleading with OPEC to increase supply,” the API executive wrote, “we should be encouraging the safe and responsible development of American-made oil and natural gas.” The API explained the price spike by pointing to how demand has returned as the economy has reopened, outpacing supply. “Further impacting the imbalance is the continued decision from the administration to restrict access to America’s energy supply and cancel important infrastructure projects,” Macchiarola said. NN: Thia is a desperate attempt on the part of the Biden administration to divert attention from their failed policies. They hate oil… And in their Grennneeeiweinnie fever they have shot oil prices to the moon

SEOUL (XINHUA) – South Korea reported 3,187 new cases of Covid-19 as of midnight Tuesday (Nov 16) compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 402,775.The daily caseload surged from 2,124 in the previous day, marking the country’s second-highest daily number since the first case was found in January last year. The recent resurgence was attributed to cluster infections in the Seoul metropolitan area. Of the new cases, 1,432 were Seoul residents. The number of newly infected people residing in Gyeonggi province and the western port city of Incheon was 956 and 157, respectively. The virus spread also raged in the non-metropolitan region. The number of new infections in non-capital areas was 618, or 19.5 per cent of the total local transmission. Twenty-four cases were imported from overseas. The number of infected people who were in a serious condition was 522, up 27 from the previous day. Twenty-one more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 3,158. The total fatality rate stood at 0.78 per cent. Since the mass vaccination was launched on Feb 26, the country has administered Covid-19 vaccines to a total of 42,062,748 people, or 81.9 per cent of the total population. The number of fully vaccinated people was 40,243,219, or 78.4 per cent of the population. NN: This is a bigger problem for the world economy then most realize. Some of the worlds biggest chip makers are in S.Korea. They are packed like sardines their. And i am told that they are very close to starting to shut down critical manufacturing… Further exasperating chip shortages