We can confirm that the explosion at the Abbey Gate was the result of a complex attack that resulted in a number of US & civilian casualties. We can also confirm at least one other explosion at or near the Baron Hotel, a short distance from Abbey Gate. We will continue to update.
Update: At least 12 U.S. service members were killed in the Afghanistan bombings, including 11 Marines and one Navy corpsman, according to two U.S. officials, the Associated Press reports. Officials say a number of US military troops were wounded. They warn, however, that the numbers may grow.
This is a developing story. Stay with Military Times for updates.
Third blast heard near Kabul airport – reports
A third explosion was heard near Afghanistan’s Hamid Karzai International Airport, hours after two previous suicide attacks have occurred. According to Fox News reports, cumulatively the bombings took away at least 10 US marines’ lives, while dozens of American service members have been wounded. Alarm sirens are heard across Kabul as the Taliban warns civilians to not leave homes and allegedly cuts of cell network to prevent further bombings that could be set off with a phone. ISIS-K branch located in Afghanistan is believed to be behind the attacks. Nick Note: What the US should do is fly in10,000 marines. Find where the palace the grand mullah is staying and level the place
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard says the central bank should have its tapering process finished by the end of March 2022.
At that point, we’ll see “whether inflation has moderated,” he said. “If it hasn’t moderated, we’re going to have to be more aggressive to contain inflation.”
Bullard, who spoke from the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole conference, said there’s some evidence the Fed’s bond-buying blitz has started to create bubbles in the U.S. housing market.
The President of the St. Louis Federal Reserve James Bullard stated in an interview on Thursday that if the Bank doesn’t engage in tapering the bond-buying program soon, it runs the risk of creating bubbles in the financial markets, as well as runaway inflation. “We do have a new framework we did say that we would allow inflation to run above target for some time, but not this much above target. So for that reason, I think we want to get going on taper. Get the taper finished by the end of the first quarter next year,” Bullard noted. The Fed official expressed worry that at this point asset purchasing is doing more damage to the economy as the housing market is already seeing a bubble. Following tapering, if the inflation doesn’t moderate, the Fed will have to act more aggressively to contain the price increases.
St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said Thursday that the central bank should begin curbing its monthly stimulus efforts soon and have the process wrapped up by the end of March to prevent the U.S. economy from overheating. Many Fed leaders believe the central bank should reduce the pace of its monthly purchases of $120 billion in Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities in a process known as tapering. Bullard said the Fed’s purchases were appropriate in 2020 to support American business through the Covid-19 pandemic, but they now run the risk of creating bubbles in financial markets and runaway inflation. “We do have a new framework we did say that we would allow inflation to run above target for some time, but not this much above target,” Bullard said of recent price increases in the U.S. economy. “So for that reason I think we want to get going on taper. Get the taper finished by the end of the first quarter next year,” he continued. “And then we can evaluate what the situation is and we’ll be able to see at that point whether inflation has moderated and if that’s the case we’ll be in great shape. If it hasn’t moderated, we’re going to have to be more aggressive to contain inflation.” Bullard, who spoke with CNBC’s Steve Liesman for an interview that aired on “Squawk Box,” said there’s some evidence that the Fed’s bond-buying blitz has started to create bubbles in the U.S. housing market. “I think that there is worry that we’re doing more damage than helping with the asset purchases because there is an incipient housing bubble in the U.S. The median house price, at least the number I saw, was approaching $400,000,” he said. “We got into a lot of trouble in the mid-2000s by being too complacent about housing prices, so I think we want to be very careful on that this time around.” Officials have set the standard of “substantial further progress” as the point at which they will consider tightening monetary policy that includes benchmark interest rates being held near zero. Bullard spoke as part of the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole conference, which is virtual in 2021 to protect against the spread of Covid-19. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note last traded at 1.358%. Central bank leaders use the summit to discuss the current of the U.S. economy and how monetary policy could be adjusted. This year likely will feature significant debate over when to begin tapering. Bullard is known as a “hawk” among central bank officials, meaning he tends to be more apt to pursue higher interest rates and curb easy policy sooner than his peers. He is not a voting member on the Fed’s policymaking committee in 2021, but will be in 2022. Reducing the minimum $120 billion a month in bond purchases is the first step in the tightening process. The Fed would later move to increase interest rates. Nick Note: The stock market has not yet realized that the FED is going to rain on their parade…..
CHICAGO, (Reuters) – Some 25% of SARS-CoV-2 infections among Los Angeles County residents occurred in fully vaccinated residents from May through July 25, a period that includes the impact of the highly transmissible Delta variant, U.S. officials reported on Tuesday. The data, published in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly report on death and disease, shows an increase in so-called “breakthrough” infections among fully vaccinated individuals. The CDC is relying on data from cohorts, such as the Los Angeles County study, to determine whether Americans need a third dose of COVID-19 vaccines to increase protection. Government scientists last week laid out a strategy for booster doses beginning on Sept. 20, pending reviews from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the CDC.The new data released on Tuesday involved more than 43,000 reported infections among Los Angeles County residents aged 16 and older. Of them, 10,895, or 25.3%, occurred in fully vaccinated persons, 1,431, or 3.3%, were in partially vaccinated persons, and 30,801, or 71.4%, were in unvaccinated individuals. The vaccines did, however, protect individuals from more severe cases. According to the study, 3.2% of fully vaccinated individuals who were infected with the virus were hospitalized, just 0.5% were admitted to an intensive care unit and 0.2% were placed on a ventilator. Among the unvaccinated who fell ill, 7.5% were hospitalized, 1.5% were admitted to an intensive care unit and 0.5% required breathing support with a mechanical ventilator.
In addition to the LA County data, the CDC on Tuesday released an update on the HEROES cohort study among healthcare workers that showed a significant drop in vaccine effectiveness among vaccinated frontline workers in eight states who became infected with the coronavirus.
Vaccine efficacy during the period of the study when Delta was predominant fell to 66% from 91% prior to the arrival of the Delta variant, according to the report. Nick Note: Reality is the breakthrough is with us. In the US conveniently they do not record breakthrough infections. In Israel where the best data is available shows in this August surge 60% of the people infected were vaccinated twice. Bottom line is as far as i am concerned your vaccine lasts 6 months. I urge you to get your third vaccines.
First rate hike since Nov 2018 aimed at curbing debt growth
Board member Joo Sang-yong sole dissenter in hike decision
SEOUL, Aug 26 (Reuters) – The Bank of Korea raised its policy rate for the first time in almost three years on Thursday, becoming the first major Asian central bank to shift away from pandemic-era monetary settings as ballooning consumer debt created new threats for the economy.
Governor Lee Ju-yeol maintained his hawkish tone and suggested the bank could further tighten policy as data showed Asia’s fourth-largest economy was overheating.
“We won’t be doing things in a hurry, but we also won’t hold off,” Lee said at a news conference, responding to a question about the timing for additional tightening. “As for timing for the further hikes, we will consider how the COVID-19 situation plays out, and changes in the Fed’s policy stance, which would have an important impact for us, as well as how the financial imbalances play out.”Joo Sang-yong, a known dove on the BOK’s board, was the only one of the six board members who voted to keep rates steady as the bank raised the benchmark interest rate (KROCRT=ECI) 25 basis points to 0.75%, as expected by most analysts. The BOK also pushed up its inflation projection to 2.1% from 1.8% previously, signaling conditions are building for further policy tightening. “If there will be another rate hike within this year, it will likely be November, given that there will be at least two to three rate hikes needed including today’s meeting to address financial imbalances risk,” Paik Yoon-min, fixed-income analyst at Kyobo Securities, who now sees another hike in November, forwarded from January 2022. The benchmark KOSPI fell sharply after the rate decision, while the South Korean won strengthened. Policymakers had been signaling higher rates since May but expectations for a hike were pared recently due to South Korea’s latest COVID-19 outbreak, which forced the economy into semi-lockdown. Central banks around the world are laying the groundwork for a transition away from crisis-era stimulus as what began as emergency support for collapsing growth now overheats many economies. The BOK’s move comes a day before Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivers his keynote address at the U.S. central bank’s annual Jackson Hole symposium, where he is expected to signal the future direction of U.S. monetary policy. Most central banks that have raised rates this year are among emerging economies, concerned about capital flight and imported inflation. In Asia, Sri Lanka raised rates last week, making it the first in the region to do so. The BOK’s decision represents a calculated risk that South Korea’s export-driven economy, which has soared back from last year’s pandemic slump, is healthy enough to start trimming stimulus especially as debt bingeing fast becomes an economic issue. That contrasts with New Zealand, which last week delayed a widely expected interest rate hike as its first COVID-19 outbreak in six months cast uncertainty over its economic recovery. Analysts expect the BOK to raise interest rates next year, with most seeing the base rate at 1.25% by end-2022 though comments from Governor Lee suggest the bank remains on a hawkish footing. The policy decision is the first rate review the BOK has had as a six-member body after board member Koh Seung-beom left the board to head the Financial Services Commission regulatory body. There are two more interest rate review meetings scheduled this year. Nick Note: Its the order of the universe. Central banks MUST pull back stimulase and raise interest rates. And it will happen with the FED kicking and screaming the whole way. Korea went first the others will soon follow. Profits do not drive stock markets.. Cold hard cash does. And the cash cow is about to be milked dry. All i can say is look out below!!
SYDNEY, Aug 26 (Reuters) – Australia’s new daily cases of COVID-19 topped 1,000 on Thursday for the first time since the global pandemic began, as two major hospitals in Sydney set up emergency outdoor tents to help deal with a rise in patients. Sydney, the country’s largest city and the epicentre of the current outbreak, is struggling to stamp out a surge in the fast-spreading Delta variant, with daily infections hitting record levels even after two months under lockdown. New South Wales (NSW) state, where Sydney is the capital, reported 1,029 new locally acquired cases, exceeding the previous record of 919 a day earlier. Of the new cases, 969 were detected in greater Sydney, up from 838. The rapid rise in COVID-19 patients has forced Sydney’s Westmead and Blacktown hospitals, which service the city’s sprawling western suburbs, to erect tents to screen and swab patients to help manage capacity. The makeshift unit in the emergency department for COVID-19 patients will help “to offload delays”, a Western Sydney Local Health District spokesperson told Reuters. State Premier Gladys Berejiklian said authorities had quadrupled the number of the state’s intensive care ventilators to 2,000 early last year. Although the system is “under pressure”, it can withstand the current crisis once vaccination rates rise, she said. “It might be different to the help you got before because of the situation, but please know the system is kicking in,” Berejiklian said at a televised media conference. Of 116 people in intensive care in NSW, 102 are not vaccinated. Three new deaths were reported, including a man in his 30s who died at home, taking deaths from the latest outbreak to 79, although the death rate has slowed since last year. In a video posted on Twitter Wednesday night, the Australian Paramedic Association said paramedics were given a choice to wait in their vehicles with infected people or “wait outside in the freezing rain” due to the rise in patients. The fast-moving Delta strain has taken the gloss off Australia’s early success against the virus that kept its coronavirus numbers relatively low, with some 47,700 cases and 989 deaths. About 32% of people above 16 have been fully vaccinated while just over 54% have had at least one dose. Besides Sydney, the country’s second-largest city, Melbourne, and capital, Canberra, are also in hard lockdowns, putting more than half of the country’s 25 million population under strict stay-at-home orders. Cases in Victoria, home to Melbourne, surged to 80 on Thursday, up from 45 a day earlier.
The federal government is pushing ahead with the country’s reopening plans once vaccination rates reach 70%-80%, but some states have hinted they may delay given the rapid growth of cases in Sydney.
B erejiklian said NSW may reach 70% fully vaccinated by mid-October, and airline Qantas (QAN.AX) said it was preparing for international travel to resume in December. Also on Thursday, grocer Woolworths Group (WOW.AX) reported a surge in annual profit as lockdowns sparked demand for household essentials. Nick Note: Its the tale of two cities. The hospitals are opening up covid units in tents… And the airlines are gearing up for international travel…… What whores. The travel and leisure industry is responsible for the delta spread especially the airlines…..
PARIS, Aug 26 (Reuters) – France plans to roll out COVID-19 vaccine booster shots in nursing homes from September 12 or September 13 onwards, Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Thursday. Meanwhile, people aged over 65 and those will existing medical conditions will be able to book appointments for a booster shot from early September, Castex told RTL radio, adding there must be a six-month delay between the second and the third shot. France’s Haute Autorite de Sante (HAS) health watchdog on Tuesday recommended a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot for those aged 65 and over and for those with existing medical conditions that could put at them serious harm from COVID. Nick Note: If your vaccine is over 6 months old its like you don’t have one. Its a simple booster shot. You really really really need to get your next jab sooner rather then later. To me its a travesty that they are dragging their heals on this…
United States major stock markets closed the trading session on Wednesday higher with S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 hitting all-time highs. The markets reacted to pharma’s positive advances on the status of their vaccine and booster jabs. J&J claimed that its booster shot increases protection ninefold. Additionally, investors sold bonds letting 10-year Treasury notes rise to the highest level since earlier this month and lifting financial services stocks, such as JPMorgan Chase and American Express. Meanwhile, as the US House passes the $3.5 trillion budget and locks in a vote for the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, shares of manufacturing and building companies also saw growth. However, new orders for the US manufactured durable goods decreased by 0.1% since last month with transportation equipment leading the decline. The Dow Jones was 0.11% in the green at the closing bell with American Express growing by 3.05%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.22% as Penn National Gaming soared by 8.66%. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.7% led by Okta jumping by 5.32%. The euro advanced by 0.13% against the dollar exchanging hands for $1.17713 at 4:17 pm ET. Nick Note: I have a small problem here. That is when to short the shit out of this insanity……
Aug 25 (Reuters) – American Airlines (AAL.O) said on Wednesday its August revenue was trending below the U.S. carrier’s internal forecast as a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases led to some softness in bookings. American’s Chief Revenue Officer Vasu Raja, speaking at the Raymond James industrials conference, said the airline was also experiencing a rise in cancellations. COVID-19 cases, driven by the highly infectious Delta variant, have surged in parts of the United States with lower vaccination levels. However, Raja added that the company’s booked business for the holidays remained “incredibly strong”. The carrier expects business demand to likely come back in the transatlantic and Latin American regions, given their proximity to the United States. American shares have risen 26.6% so far this year. The U.S. could get COVID-19 under control by early next year if vaccinations ramp up, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said on Tuesday, as Pfizer won full FDA approval for its shot, with more potential approvals coming in the weeks ahead. Nick Note: Well that did not last long.. The list of no go places expanding rapidly…. Their is no way to make a airline or cruise ship safe short of a full hazmat suit. as long as the mutations are defeating our vaccines…
Just two days into her administration, NY Gov. Kathy Hochul released new COVID-19 death numbers.
Hochul updated the state’s tally by adding 12,000 more deaths than were previously reported.
“Transparency will be the hallmark of my administration,” Hochul said on MSNBC.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul acknowledged an additional 12,000 COVID-19 deaths in New York State that her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, did not, the Associated Press reported. The new governor said the new tally will increase transparency after former governor Andrew Cuomo was accused of covering up COVID-19 deaths in state nursing homes during the beginning of the pandemic. Beyond the sexual harassment allegations that preceded Cuomo’s resignation, the nursing home death count became one of several scandals that plagued his third term. “We’re now releasing more data than had been released before publicly, so people know the nursing home deaths and the hospital deaths are consistent with what’s being displayed by the CDC,” Hochul said Wednesday on MSNBC. “There’s a lot of things that weren’t happening and I’m going to make them happen,” she continued. “Transparency will be the hallmark of my administration.” Before her bombshell 165-page report that found Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women, New York Attorney General Letitia James accused the former governor of undercounting nursing home deaths by as much as 50%. Cuomo’s top aide at the time, Melissa DeRosa, told lawmakers in a leaked call that the administration was sitting on the nursing home-related death tally as a preemptive measure against a potential federal investigation urged by former President Donald Trump. A March 25, 2020 executive order mandated that nursing home patients who were hospitalized with the COVID-19 should be discharged back to nursing homes, as long as the providers could take adequate care of them. The Cuomo administration insisted they were simply following CDC guidance. Hospital capacity was a primary concern at the time, but the order left nursing home staff in a bind, particularly with the potential for the recently hospitalized residents to spread the virus if they were still within the window of contagiousness. Cuomo accused Trump, Fox News and the New York Post of conspiring against him by running with the story. Questions remain over whether Hochul will fire Howard Zucker, the state health commissioner, who was heavily implicated in the attorney general report on nursing homes. Our goal is to create a safe and engaging place for users to connect over interests and passions. In order to improve our community experience, we are temporarily suspending article commenting. Nick Note: This is nothing short of murder. These people were sent back to the nursing homes to die and infect the very vulnerable at the nursing home. They new!!
WASHINGTON — New orders for key U.S.-made capital goods were unexpectedly flat in July amid supply constraints and a shift in demand to services, suggesting that business spending on equipment could slow in the second half after robust growth over the past year. Still, business investment in equipment remains strong, with the report from the Commerce Department on Wednesday showing shipments of these capital goods accelerating last month. Orders are 18% above their pre-pandemic levels. Investment in equipment is expected to help offset cooling consumer spending and keep the economy on a solid growth path this quarter. “Overall, the July data point to solid equipment spending growth at the start of third quarter,” said Oren Klachkin, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics in New York. “But with producer prices running hot and the recovery tilting in favor of high-contact services, we’re likely to see a gradual moderation in real equipment spending growth in the second half of 2021.”
Last month’s unchanged reading in orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, followed an upwardly revised 1.0% increase in June. These so-called core capital goods orders were previously reported to have advanced 0.7%.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast core capital goods orders climbing 0.5%. Shipments of core capital goods rose 1.0% last month after increasing 0.6% in June. Core capital goods shipments are used to calculate equipment spending in the government’s gross domestic product measurement. Stocks on Wall Street were trading higher. The dollar gained versus a basket of currencies. U.S. Treasury prices were lower. Business spending on equipment notched four straight quarters of double-digit growth, helping to power the economy’s recovery from a short and sharp COVID-19 pandemic recession, driven by strong demand for goods, thanks to record-low interest rates and massive fiscal stimulus. July’s slowdown in core capital goods orders likely reflected supply chain bottlenecks as well as the rotation of spending back to services from goods. There were decreases in orders for computers and electronic products. An ongoing global semiconductor shortage has hampered production of these goods. Orders for electrical equipment, appliances and components also fell. But orders for primary metals, machinery and fabricated metal products increased. With inventories extremely lean after they were depleted in the first half of the year, core capital goods orders are likely to pick up in the coming months and underpin manufacturing, which accounts for 11.9% of the economy. Unfilled core capital goods orders increased 0.9% in July after rising 1.2% in June. “As production has not kept up with demand but demand has remained persistently strong, we would expect strong demand to keep production supported well into 2022 as supply issues are eventually resolved,” said Veronica Clark, an economist at Citigroup in New York.
Retail sales fell in July in part because of motor vehicle shortages. Credit card data suggests spending on services like airfares, cruises as well as hotels and motels has been slowing.
Economists at Goldman Sachs last week cut their third-quarter GDP growth estimate to a 5.5% annualized rate from a 9% pace. Bank of America Securities slashed its GDP growth estimate for this quarter to a 4.5% pace from a 7.0% rate. The economy grew at a 6.5% rate in the second quarter, pulling the level of GDP above its peak in the fourth quarter of 2019. Orders for durable goods, items ranging from toasters to aircraft that are meant to last three years or more, dipped 0.1% in July after rising 0.8% in June. They were pulled down by a 2.2% decline in orders for transportation equipment, which followed a 1.4% increase in June. Orders for civilian aircraft tumbled 48.9%. Boeing reported on its website that it had received 31 aircraft orders last month compared to 219 in June. Orders for motor vehicles and parts rose 5.8% in July after climbing 1.8% in June. Automakers have been adjusting their production schedules, including foregoing annual plant shutdowns for retooling in July, to manage their chip supply. That likely contributed to the jump in motor vehicle orders last month. “Make no mistake, auto-production is still struggling to keep up with demand,” said Tim Quinlan, a senior economist at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina. Nick Note: It is obvious their is a slow down and the spending drop on airlines and cruises and hotels is very telling since its vacation season.