Mexico

Just read.

In a perilous replay of the Spanish bank "bailout", the proxy for bailout sentiment, the EURUSD pair, was up 61 pips to just under 1.2700... and that's it. Naturally, if the world suddenly thought Europe was "fixed", Spain notwithstanding, one would imagine the reaction by the FX market would be just a little more invigorated than merely confirming that what is playing out (namely the lack of a definitive Greek government) has already been priced in. And yet here we are...

While everyone is focusing on Greece, we have news from France:

• FRENCH SOCIALISTS WIN ABSOLUTE MAJORITY IN PARLIAMENT, CSA SAYS
• FRENCH SOCIALISTS WON 320 SEATS, CSA SAYS; MAJORITY IS 289
• FRENCH SOCIALISTS WON'T NEED TO RELY ON LEFT FRONT, GREENS: CSA

So... does that mean that the recently reduced minimum retirement age wil be cut again, thank you Germany?

Four months before the election. And yet, a horrendous migration across the Pacific

All you can read.

• How original: Syria prints new money as deficit grows (Reuters)- America is not Syria
• Former SNB head Hildebrand to become BlackRock vice chairman (FT)
• Osborne says Greece may have to quit euro (Reuters)
• Osborne Risks the Wrath of Merkel (FT)
• China second-quarter GDP growth may dip below 7 percent - government adviser (Reuters)
• Italian Borrowing Costs Surge at Auction of 1-Year Bills (Bloomberg)
• Greeks withdraw cash ahead of cliffhanger vote (Reuters)
• Merkel’s Choice Pits European Fate Against German Voter Interest (Bloomberg)
• Italy Tax Increases Backfire as Monti Tightens Belts (Bloomberg)
• Dimon says JPMorgan failed to rein in traders (Reuters)

All you need to know.

All you need to read.

• China Cuts Interest Rates for First Time Since 2008 (Bloomberg)
• New Risk to Europe's Growth: Banks Cut Lending to Cities (WSJ)
• Labor Faces New Challenge - Losses in Wisconsin, California Come as Ranks of Government Unions Decline (WSJ)
• Yellen argues for more Fed easing amid Europe risk (Reuters)
• Americans Cling to Jobs as U.S. Workforce Dynamism Fades (Bloomberg)
• Japan’s LDP Agrees to Talks With Noda’s DPJ on Sales Tax (Bloomberg)
• Korean Buying Spree Boosts Brent Price (FT)
• China Delays Bank Capital Rule Tightening as Economy Slows (Bloomberg)
• China CIC Chief Sees Rising Risk of Euro Breakup (WSJ)

The end game of this global monetary crisis is the imposition of a 100% digital monetary system that would permanently end what little economic freedoms we still retain today. Educate. Resist. Fight Back. Win.

Just in case the epic collapse in the NY ISM (an indicator virtually nobody had heard of until today) which tumbled from 61.2 to a 49.9 contraction, was not enough of a hint that the economic virtuous cycle is a myth, and that CTRL-P'ing will be required, here comes the latest rumor via Reuters:

• G7 FINANCE MINISTERS AND CENTRAL BANK GOVERNORS TO HOLD PHONE CALL ON EUROPE TUESDAY MORNING - CANADA FINANCE SPOKESWOMAN

Will they discuss just any old plan, or DAS MEISTER PLAN? Stop talking about and just do it already. It's not like anyone expects it.

• Spain Seeks Joint Bank Effort as Pressure Rises on Merkel (Bloomberg)
• Banks Cut Cross-Border Lending Most Since Lehman: BIS (Bloomberg)
• Shirakawa Bows to Yen Bulls as Intervention Fails (Bloomberg)
• Merrill Losses Were Withheld Before Bank of America Deal (NYT)
• Investors Brace for Slowdown (WSJ)
• China's lenders ordered to check bad loans (China Daily)
• Obama Seeks Way Out of Jobs Gloom (WSJ)
• Noda Reshuffles Japan Cabinet in Bid for Support on Sales Tax (Bloomberg)
• China to open the market further (China Daily)
• Australian Industry Must Adapt to High Currency, Hockey Says (Bloomberg)
• Tax-funded projects to be more transparent (China Daily)

Here we go again. Back in July 2011 we wrote an article entitled "The Real Banking Crisis" where we discussed the increasing instability of the Eurozone banks suffering from depositor bank runs. Since that time (and two LTRO infusions and numerous bailouts later), Eurozone banks, as represented by the Euro Stoxx Banks Index, have fallen more than 50% from their July 2011 levels and are now in the midst of yet another breakdown led by the abysmal situation currently unfolding in Greece and Spain.... Although the last eight months have not played out the way we would have expected for gold, they have played out the way we envisioned for the banks. The question now is how long this can go on for, and how long gold can remain under pressure in a banking crisis that has the potential to spread beyond Greece and Spain? So much now rests on the policy responses fashioned by the US Fed and ECB, and just as much also rests on what's left of European citizens' confidence in their local banking institutions. Neither of these things can be precisely measured or predicted, but we continue to firmly believe that depositors in Greece and Spain will choose gold over drachmas or pesetas if they have the foresight and are given the freedom to act accordingly. The number one reason we have always believed gold should be owned, and why we believe it will go higher, is people's growing distrust of the banking system - and we are now there. We will wait and see how the summer develops, and keep our attention firmly focused of the second phase of the bank run now spreading across southern Europe.

One of breakout standup routines from the late, great George Carlin was his 1972 monologue “Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television.” In the presence of polite company, I shall not repeat them… but rest assured, the routine is still hilarious to this day. I wish I could say the same about the Department of Homeland Security… I wish I could say this is all a big joke… that the government’s “377 words you can never use online” is just some stupid comedy routine. But it’s not. And you just can’t make this stuff. After vigorous resistance, the Department of Homeland Security was finally forced into releasing it’s 2011 Analyst’s Desktop Binder. It’s a manual of sorts, teaching all the storm troopers who monitor our Internet activity all day which key words to look for.