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It's Settled: Central Banks Trade S&P500 Futures
Based on the unprecedented collapse in trading volumes of cash products over the past 6 years, one thing has become clear: retail, and increasingly, institutional investors and traders are gone, probably for ever and certainly until the Fed's market-distorting central planning ends. However, one entity appears to have taken the place of conventional equity traders: central banks.
Courtesy of an observation by Nanex's Eric Hunsader, we now know, with certainty and beyond merely speculation by tinfoil fringe blogs, that central banks around the world trade (and by "trade" we mean buy) S&P 500 futures such as the E-mini, in both futures and option form, as well as full size, and micro versions, in addition to the well-known central bank trading in Interest Rates, TSY and FX products.
In fact, central banks are such active traders, that the CME Globex has its own "Central Bank Incentive Program", designed to "incentivize" central banks to provide market liquidity, i.e., limit orders, by paying them (!) tiny rebates on every trade. Because central banks can't just print whatever money they need, apparently they need the CME to pay them to trade.
So the next time you sell some E-minis, ask yourself: is the ECB on the other side? Or the BOE? Or, perhaps, you are selling S&P 500 futures to Kuroda. Who knows: there is no paper trail anywhere, although a FOIA request and/or the discovery from a lawsuit, class action or otherwise, of the CME's central bank incentive program would likely yield some stunning results.
But the only place where "discovery" would be by far the most interesting, is for the CME to disclose just which central banks provide, or take such as at 8am every morning when one market sell order takes out the entire bid staack, the most liquidity when it comes to central bank trades in "Metals Futures Contracts (Physicals)."
Because imagine the shock and awe if and when it is uncovered that the biggest active manipulators of gold are not some junior-level traders out of Britain's criminal bank cartel, but the central banks themselves.
Finally, while the list above deals with international central banks "providing" ES liquidity, those wondering why the NY Fed is not on the list and just how the Fed's active trading team participates in the market without breaking the law, we have just one word: Citadel.
Source: Modifications to Central Bank Incentive Program. CME/CBOT/NYMEX/COMEX #14-038
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Cuz grandma and grandpa's money is still "on the sidelines". lol. This is proof of the obvious fake levitation and manipulation.
Lack of free market fundamentals is going to fuck them all up the ass...but they are trying to get grandma and grandpa first.
Pussy Ass Fuckers!!! Fuckin with Grammy?
Markets up cause dollars buy less.
MYRA next?
This will not end well... Trust me...
Just keep on stack'in and fergeddaboud-it....
Nope. No conflict of interest there. Nope no way, no how
Hah ha ha ha ha ha ha
I love it when a Conspiracy Theory becomes Conspiracy Fact
Selling to a senator or CONgress person too.
We all knew it was happening, but when faced with proof I still find myself a little stunned.
I am rarely stunned by the truth.
At lseast given the dates on this offering, we're good through the end of the year. As for the start date... July 2013... why does that ring a bell?
And, of course, now we know why the Fed is routing though Belgium and God knows where else. Only foreign central banks can participate. So had the money to Belgium and have them do it for you.
Among the many questions I have, probably the first one to mind is this: How long has this been going on? Surely July 2013 is not the first time such a program has been offered. As for the end date, we all know when that will be: never.
Central banks need incentives, like $1 commissions, but retail investors do not. Because without the incentives, central banks wouldn't buy trillions of dollars of S&P. But retail investors would.
Did we seriously think that Kevin Henry of the FRBNY sat around all day watching porn?
The man is working those markets!!!!
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-26/help-us-oh-kevin-henry-you-are-...
well, no, not all day
Well there's another conspiracy "theory" proven as actual conspiracy fact.
Isn't this all illegal?
well, govt make dem rules
what it is, however, is nationalisation by stealth
ask any politician in public if nationalisation is the solution and theyd scream 'EVIL COMMUNISM!!!'
"what it is, however, is nationalisation by stealth"
Please tell me this is sarc? Your spelling is UK, so it is possible you are intimating that everyone here is a redneck, staunch anti-communist....
However, the UK thrives on a steady diet of Head Cheese, Blood Sausage and Sheep's Balls....so, you are statistically most likely a pig-fucking, pedophile, tranny who works in an "abattoir"....
Central banks are "private", thus making these actions "privitiZation"...of "public" tax monies.....the gains, anyway.....
They are still lying. They forgot to put commodity futures and gold and silver on their list... Bastards.
re: Gold and Silver...I thought we were talking about things they were buying?
If you look at the official document they mention: incentive to "trade" the following items. In my book you can trade either on the long or short side... ;-)
like they're ever going to ruin the game by selling short?
recall what happens when SHTF: 'short bans'
the narrative can only be maintained if prices keep going UP.
as a bonus, their losses never have to see daylight, because they're obviously not accountable to anyone.
the greatest ponzi scheme humanity has ever seen
The market has reached its peak. But this isn't good news for the gold bugs. Precious metals will end up taking a beating.
My mattress stuffed full of Zimbabwe bucks is all I need to get me through the tough times ahead.
Got a couple Benjis in there as well.....just in case.
Does Kevin lift green boxes that have a West Point band around them?
We need to fill them with lead and make him do that 'till he drops.
It's "incent", not "incentivize". As in it's "regardless" not "irregardless"
Not a peak, really. A peak is sharp, and has a down slope. This is a plateau. As far as the eye can see.
nar, no sarc - if it is govt policy to buy stocks , it does constitute a peicemeal/clandestine nationalization.
i take your point in the case of the Fed being private and only pretending to be .gov. Other central banks around the world are, however an extension of govt. But given it all gets funnelled to the oligarchy one way or another so my point is kinda moot
You own a printing press. You print money and give it to your friends. You do so with full support of law and government. Bribes are paid to politicians to continue the charade.
Does that not make the government complicit in the crime? Can not the government at any time extort whatever it wants from those actually engaging in the farce?
Follow the money. Big government MEANS Big Corruption and cronyism. It means Economic Fascism. And it will happen every time because of human nature.
All forms of leftism are fundamentally the same- Socialism, Communism, fascism ( Crony Capitalism) - the only differences between them is the lie they tell to justify using government force to uphold the theft of property and enslavement of those who actually produce value.
When the left complains about "private parties" benefiting from these arrangements - they are only complaining about the size of their cut - feeling that the average non-contributing zero deserves a bigger cut of the criminal enterprise for voting for the criminals in govt than the crime bosses working for the government. At no point are they actually suggesting that such corruption shouldn't continue. If it did stop then they would have to survive by providing value to others in a mutal and VOLUNTARY exchange, and that would mean that they starve.
Isn't this all illegal?
Thanks, still laughing my ass off. Nice to laugh on a "banking holiday"
How long until the CBs own everything is one follow up question. Another, maybe more or less important depending on the first answer, is are the CBs trying to buy everything? As to why, I think we can all figure out why they would.
Why?
Don't they already own enough?
Or do they want to own, buy, and sell us too?
why would they ever need to sell?
That;s so sick. That's a real ice bucket challenge. I feel like I got hit in the head with a dead fish. What the fuck do these jerk offs think they're doing. Liquidity, my ass.
You can't control it all unless you control it all.
jb
At 7:07 AM PST I checked the prices of Gold, Silver and Platinum, on Kitco, as they are trading on the London Market. (US Markets are closed due to Labor Day.
All of the Metals were at the price which they had opened. NO CHANGE in price.
What are the odds that it happened randomly? (Silver is trading at 1/10,000th of a cent.)
They are not even trying to hide this anymore.
It would be nice if prices became halfway sane again. We only see good companies with dividend yields greater than 1.5% during market meltdowns.
Also, I think we should expose the holdings so that people of all the countries can get their fair distribution of equity ownership and usher in the Marxism dream. (yeah right)
"Pussy Ass Fuckers!!! Fuckin with Grammy?"
Putting the words "pussy"..."ass" ....and ....."Grammy" al together in one sentence is gonna make me puke....and probably many others too....
There are plenty of really fuckable 40-50 year old grannies. Free your mind and your ass will follow.
That makes me feel so sad for you.
cougar strike!
"They don't yell; they don't tell; they don't swell; and they're grateful as hell."
I think gram'ma is running out of orifices for the Fed to profane....
Do not google that combination of words.
Sigh. Now instead of ads for AnastasiaDate.com, it's back to CougarLife ads. Thanks a bunch.
It's the same circle jerk that was always functioning in FOREX, except now it applies to stocks. Big fucking surprise... not !
We are already at the point where we can speak of "free markets" as a theoretical concept only, and at past tense...
Next step: free speech !
cnbc will be all over this....
Yes, on their Bizarro world broadcast.
When CNBC can no longer hide from the truth, Liesman will actually explain to all us dumb fucks how this is good for the markets. The sooner people like him are destroyed the sooner the the rebirth can happen.
With total silence
All major banks have always been the market makers in Forex; that's natural, money is there business. But buying and selling metals contracts, and S&P500 contracts by Central Banks, UGH ! That;s not natural, that's sick.
THIS! is settled science.
Whaddya mean they are "Trading S & P Futures"?
I thought they were "Trading OUR Futures".
They were done with that 40 years ago
What happens when they all run for the exits?
Plunge protection team at work. Buy staaaawks, bitches.
Well, if you're cutting up strips of paper, calling it money, and forcing people to use it as such at the point of a gun.......
you damn well better do SOMETHING to keep it propped up.
"You're gonna use these pretty (electronic) strips of paper and you're gonna LIKE it." - Grandma Yellen as she waves around a .38 snub-nose.
Yellen has just given a press conference where she explains how it all works.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4W0qUaM9xQ
Oh, that is Janet in her younger years when she was on the board of the Federal Reserve. She is a little more discrete now.
They did it with the best of intentions....and they're really sorry.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPHuE5pDlEs
Presumably a short player doesnt want the risk -
but a long investor doesnt see anything other than a momentum play since there is no value or real growth or buy backs - so does it take very few dollars for CB to keep the market where it is or inching higher with very low volume and committments?
Motherfuckers.
Fuck them.
I will never trade again. Fuck it, I'm out.
And after the market bounced back up in 2008 right after Il Duce's speech, and after silver was clobbered within hours of "killing" Bin Laden in 2011, you thought this shit was real?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMjXbuj7BPI&list=UUEHsSWvrGVSIA63OV3J6vhA
Sunday Bloody Sunday (night) I'll never forget that.
but remember bitchez, the Matrix was just a movie...
Invest. Don't trade. Buy what you need and can afford without debt. Enjoy time with your family. Leave these assholes out of your life equation.
bout fucking time...
what'd u think - u gonna win in their RIGGED roach markets.....?
Central Bamks and algo's - You can't loose.
Fed balance sheet: 4 TRILLION AND GROWING
https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5346bceb69bedd6a23c62d87-96...
And it is not just US Fed either... ECB, Bank of Japan, Chinese are all in it too.
Addiction has no cure except self destruction.
except that, you have to take their word for it on the 4 trillion number right? anyone really want to stake their life on the truth of that figure?
Plus the $12tn they pumped in 2008.
Don't know which set of books its in, but I doubt it was ever paid back .
Just as well they are audited every year.
Oh wait........
Whatever happened to the $2 Trillion missing from the Pentagon back on Sept 10, 2001? If you add up all these trillions floating around, no wonder Gold has to be manipulated with such vigor.
So relatively US fed is still faring better. Every one prints $ wins. Where is the issue ?
Theft, asshole....theft.
Generational theft......you might get off the hook.....but your grandkids won't.
The program started on July 1st, 2013. Did I miss something or is it THE explanation ?
Program term started last July and ends this December, so it's actually in the last quarter. Let's consider it the new norm if the program renews Jan 1st.
Do you really have any doubt the program will be renewed? Nothing in the world so permanent as a temporary government program.
Central banksters criminal cartel getting paid to manipulate, whodathought!
The Berlin Wall was never going to come down until it did.
Although no one can say when, their desperation is such that it WILL fail at some point. If they're buying up crap fixed income and crap stocks just to keep the 'markets' up (except gold and silver of course) what happens when they've got everything and there's nothing left?
DavidC
Entire world is full of crap ?
Starting to look that way.
Double, sorry...
If I weren't a peaceful person , For what i KNOW they have done to Gold price, I would kill these fuckers. Perhaps someone out there isn't a peaceful person and takes care of them.
Dear #NSA,
I down voted this comment. Please add this post to my permanent folder. I might need it later.
Thanks and Keep up the Good Work.
This is the ultimate martigale trade played by those with printing presses, extremely terrifying thought!
Spot on.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/forex/06/martingale.asp "...The problem with this strategy is that to achieve 100% profitability, you need to have very deep pockets; in some cases, they must be infinitely deep.
No one has infinite wealth..." [from the discussion on Investopedia]
Zimbabwae seems to have a lot of money... I can only assume that one or two other countries' central banks have a lot of "money" also
just sayin'
Markets?! We don't need no stinkin' markets! Vamanos!
Liquidity = public treasury funded economic diarrhea.
Still think that I'm dumb and stupid for saying that there is a central command controlling the VIDEO GAME NETWORK SYSTEM called Financial Market?
Please, some of us have been saying that loooonnnggg ago.
true
I stream DOW, S&P and DayZ on Twitch.
This article says it all,realy good read.
http://srsroccoreport.com/must-read-a-fraud-by-any-other-name-is-still-a...
I wonder who has been dumping gold contracts like crazy at 3:00AM every time gold breaks above $1300. Any tin foil hat theories on this?
His name was Janet Yellen.
People might be better employed thinking how gold got to nearly USD2,000 and then lost around one-third.
Personally, I think the problem is debt: too much (grossly too much), all around the world, in all sectors of all economies.
And the surprise is that the (deflationary) collapse has not already occurred.
It does not matter how cheap you make money, if no-one (willingly) wants to borrow...and linked to a modern world where the marginal cost of production (for manufactured goods, at least) is near zero...
Think about it.
Watson
Guess CNBC will be all over this next week exposing the corruption and fixing ....LOL
I just began holding my breath.
Maybe Lie-awatha Warren will mention it.
Well, let's see. All we have to do is go through our handy dandy Elizabeth Warren possibility of pursuing an issue flow chart to see if she'll say anything:
1) Is this an issue that appeals to the blue team? If no, stop. If yes, go on to #2.
2) Is this an issue that, if publicized, will upset my bribe givers, er, donators of campaign funds? If yes, stop. If no, go on to #3.
3) Will this issue, in any way, remind people of how I falsely claimed membership in a minority group (American Indian) to get ahead in life? If yes, stop. If no, go on to #4.
4) Is this an issue that my cadaverous senate leader does not allow me to talk about? If yes, stop. If no, go on to #5.
5) Could this issue result in a botox embargo thereby gaining me the everlasting enmity of Nancy Pelosi and John Kerry? If yes, stop. If no, go on to #6.
6) Will speaking out on this issue highlight problems at the core of our economic system?
If yes, stop. If no, go on to #7.
7) Will speaking out on this issue be meaningless but be good for public relations?
If yes, run, don't walk, to the nearest microphone? If no, forget it.
Elizabeth Warren....the faux injun?
1. If CBs were trading Comex products in size, why would Comex feel the need to offer an incentive program to them?
2. The program only started on 1 July 2013 when the market bottom was in 2009, so this looks irrelevant to 2010 - 2012, a period of substantial stock market rise.
The announcement relates to non-US CBs. People might want to investigate for evidence of the Fed's participation in equity products.
Watson
Quid pro quo ?
squid pro quo
How do you know this is the original and only program? From my perspective all you know are dates for THIS 'incentive' program.
I was just about to point that out. INCENTIVES program is just the "on sale" teaser.
If there had been any earlier programs, and they had been successful, you wouldn't need this one.
So if there were any earlier programs, they were unsuccessful - which in this context means too few deals to have any meaningful market effect.
I would concentrate on looking for proof as to whether or not the Fed is active.
Watson
how do you know that they "wouldn't need this one". are you sure this kind of program is a one-time offer? i feel like that would be a really big leap of faith.
i'm personally looking at it and seeing the program ending just after elections.
why couldn't there have been multiple offerings of similar style programs? perhaps this is only the latest one with particular rates on offering?
Exactly!
These are simply the latest rates.
Before July 2013 it was capitalism half off. Now it's capitalism 70% off.
What it is is direct evidence of the CBs desperate attempts to maintain control as the situation worsens beyond TARP, TALP, QEs++ and now direct market intervention....how long before we get to war as the great default?
Only draining the swamp will expose the fraud and only collapse drains the swamp. Lawsuits lead to destroyed evidence, fall guys and foot-dragging obfuscation. No collapse, no justice, no price discovery.
The evidence is mounting that the end game is at hand for this Keynesian experiment so I remain optimistic we may yet see some truth revealed.
The Mudsuckers have proven they can hold their breath for...centuries.
Even if you drain the swamp to dry ground, pissing a little fiat on them brings em' back to life.
Beheading is the only recourse.
Spend and pretend! That's basically been our economic policy since 2008. Anyone with a brain knows this will have a bad outcome. If it was possible to solve a debt problem with more debt we wouldn't have a budget deficit and everyone would be driving new cars.
The only question left to answer is why did they think this could work? History is not going to be kind to the policy makers who caused severe hardship. Once this mess collapses the quality of life will drop dramatically for most people. In fact, I would surmise that our way of life will likely be lost.
Once the US loses its ability to borrow money, it is going to be painful for nearly everyone. Policy makers think this is impossible, but look where we are today. Central banks are printing money to roll over debt. The only way we can borrow money is from ourselves! How long can that last? Anyone who doesn't think we are in a countdown is naive.
The ugly part is that we may fall so hard that we don't recover. America could literally be broken up. That possibility it more real than most imagine.
Most days I feel like I'm living in a world who's days are numbered. Not a world that going away, just a new one that won't be as plesant. Today we are living on easy street, but it won't last much longer. 1 year? 2 years. It won't be long now.
www.goldsilverdata.com
"Spend and pretend! That's basically been our economic policy since 2008. Anyone with a brain knows this will have a bad outcome. If it was possible to solve a debt problem with more debt we wouldn't have a budget deficit and everyone would be driving new cars.
The only question left to answer is why did they think this could work?"
Because you have morons like these at the top:
Biden: 'you have to spend money to save from going bankrupt'
To be fair to the US, 'spend and pretend' had been a policy followed by most of the West since 1945 (Germany was an exception, I think).
The US just has bigger problems because it is starting to go through the gut-wrenching experience of the British, namely losing status as world premier economic power, and along with it loss of reserve currency status.
FWIW, although worth investigating, I would worry a lot less about whether or not the Fed is playing around with S&P contracts, than thinking about what happens when China removes all restrictions on the holding and transfer of Yuan and Chinese govvies.
Watson
This comes a surprise? The "markets" are a policy tool and they won't be permitted to collapse until there is an appropriate excuse to let them. Now that we have that brute Putin and that scarier than AL-CIA-DUH , Isis we have two good excuses. Beware, when they let it go there will be no escape.
So let me get this straight. The central banks use money created out of thin air to buy stocks so the rich can get richer. No wonder it keeps going up & up no matter bad news or fundamentals!
mainly why nothing will happen until the real economy can no longer supply ppl of financial economy.
revolution can never happen if totalitarism is well approached & set up.
i think they work on that.
Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows that the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That's how it goes
Everybody knows
Food price inflation is how this falls apart.
Phase one.....smaller packaging has worked splendidly.....but people are starting to notice.
I was in the retail business for thirty years. It's easy to put a price on something. It's a heck of a lot harder to sell it at that price. In fact, much was ultimately discounted to 50% off or more. Market valuation is relatively easy to create. Getting that value is a different reality.
Aaaand nobody cares. People with money in the market want the status quo and people without money in the market have no idea why they should care.
People without money in the market have a 401k that has grown nicely in the last 5 years. Once that takes a big hit there will be revolution.
so lets all open short positions and trade against the central banks.. right?
This document doesn't limit participation to foreign central banks only.
Awesome Tylers. In a world of riddles, you're the hedge.
meanwhile...
revolution in pakistan
http://live.arynews.tv/
Islamabad sit-in updates: 144 injured as chaos grips capitalhttp://tribune.com.pk/story/754861/islamabad-sit-in-updates-govt-ready-t...
And what is the reason they had to suddenly have this incentive program? So many years after the problem?
Wonder why so much wall street money goes to Obama and the Dems? This is why. Their buddies are now in control and funnelling huge amounts of money to not only stabalize the markets but also push it up. This in return boosts hedge fund returns which in turn boosts their fees which in tern gets spent back to Democrat Wall Street fundraisers. The big circle. The funny thing is the Dems have convinced the stupid in this country that the Republicans are the party of the rich Wall Street class. Ha! It's the complete opposite and they get away with it.
Whichever party has the majority is the party of Wall St. Going in to election season, Wall St. Places bets on both, with the most going to the party with the most momentum. Once in, it's grab all you can.
You might want to Google K Street Project, or just hit this:
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0307.confessore.html
Wonder why so much wall street money goes to Obama and the Dems? This is why. Their buddies are now in control and funnelling huge amounts of money to not only stabalize the markets but also push it up. This in return boosts hedge fund returns which in turn boosts their fees which in tern gets spent back to Democrat Wall Street fundraisers. The big circle. The funny thing is the Dems have convinced the stupid in this country that the Republicans are the party of the rich Wall Street class. Ha! It's the complete opposite and they get away with it.
How many republicans do you hear talking about evil wallstreeters? ..........Crickets....... That's what I thought. Both parties are bought and paid for, they each act out different rolls for their owners.
Thank you. I know the Liberal media is disgusting but that's only to incentivize a vitriolic debate, never allowing for a true discussion. Please stop falling into that trap.
I see that SyndicateOne is another victim of the Pro-Wrestling Kabuki Theater Show otherwise known as politics.
We have TWO parties?
seems to me, well yes. one party sucks up the votes from the people that think they are liberal and the other from people that think they are conservative, and then no matter who gets voted in, they all work together to screw us and make the MIC fantasy dreams come true.
the only competition really is, if you can screw the other party and get elected, you not only get the .gov pay check, but continue to get your lobbying illegal $$.
We have TWO parties?
We have four parties. The progressive republicans and democrats (third party) hate the Tea Party...which would be the fourth party.
I'm a fiscal conservative....and I can't stand those damn progressive republicans. I mean come on, moon bases......really?
does not matter. what you have is a voting system based on the assumption that one person wins the only seat in one district... and that this is satisfactory for the majority and representative for the district's people
though you constantly re-district and change residency, which interestingly is the reason why the system works at all
damned funny for me (as a non-resident, non-visiting foreigner) how a country that loves choice so much is so restrictive with it when it comes to voting systems
The Repugnicans and the Demoncraps are working both sides of the same street to fascism/socialism/progressiveism/communism/totalitarianism/authoritarianism/NWO Beast government. The final results of their dark works will come as more of a shock to them than to us who have read The end of The Book.
History writ large before it even happens.
OK, fuckhead, quit drinking the red/blue kool aid. Open up your fucking eyes and see the daylight. It's us against both fucked up groups in CONgress.
lol at central banks trading micro fx products
INCENTIVIZE?
When you hear made-up, bullshit words like this, you know you are dealing with charlatans.
Yes. Thank you.
"Tiny Tin Foil Blogs" ???? LMAOROTHF.
Now WHO would have thought... SO surprised... Not.
How about a column/category in the COT report for the authoritarian banks?
When the CB buys, say, call options, and the market responds by going up, does the CB avoid undoing the trade by allowing the in-the-money calls to expire unexercised ?
All the "Hot $$$" has to be used to further strengthen the fiat wealth illusion. When the mirage fades so does the imaginary wealth.
Uncut trees are now considered future cash on the sidelines.
Canadian bills are now made of plastic.
I guess that's why we need the oil sands.
And they say, "the fed prints money out a thin air". Idiots!