CNBC – Dollar Will be Utterly Destroyed, Global Currency, New World Order

Youtube | Nov 6, 2009

Posted by: SignificantImagery

The dollar will get “utterly destroyed” and become “virtually worthless”, said Damon Vickers, chief investment officer of Nine Points Capital Partners. Due to the huge wage disparities between the United States and emerging markets like China, Vickers said that may resolve itself in some type of a global currency crisis.

“If the global currency crisis unfolds, then inevitably you get an alignment of a global world government. A new global currency and a new world order, so we may be moving towards that,” he said.

For those who have claimed this is a fake clip I suggest you visit CNBC’s website:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/33709379

Note the inverted pyramid/illuminati triangle with the hypnotic spinning lights of Nine Points Capital Partners in the background. – PJ

Global Crisis Makes U.S. More Dependent On China Than Ever

When he visits Beijing, he will try to encourage the Chinese to continue playing their role as the principal driver of the world economy.

freeinternetpress.com | Nov 11, 2009

Posted By: Intellpuke

When U.S. President Barack Obama visits China this weekend, he will encounter a rival that sees the financial crisis as more of an opportunity than a threat. America, on the other hand, has been fundamentally weakened by the global crunch – and is more dependent on the goodwill of the rising superpower than ever.

The scientists at the National University of Defense Technology in Changsha, China, had plenty to celebrate: They had developed a supercomputer that could perform more than a quadrillion calculations per second.

The announcement, released just in time for U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to China this weekend, had symbolic value: With their new computer, dubbed “Tianhe” (“Milky Way”), the Chinese claim they will be the first country to become a direct rival to the superpower.

China is bursting with self-confidence. The new world power sees itself as a winner in the financial crisis, with its economy growing by an impressive 9 percent in the third quarter, while the economies of the West struggle to recover from a deep recession. And while the Americans are focused on their own problems, China is expanding its influence, both in Asia and among resource-rich African countries.

China’s leaders are challenging the Americans more and more aggressively, not least to demonstrate to their own population of 1.3 billion how far the country has progressed under their leadership.

In an article in the party organ of the People’s Liberation Army, Air Force General Xu Qiliang announced China’s plans to expense its defense capabilities deep into space in the future. By the mid-21st century, the general predicted, the People’s Republic will have become a world power, and its air force will be required to defend the country against many kinds of threats.

Shifting Balance

Thirty years after the two major powers established diplomatic relations, the bilateral balance is now shifting in China’s favor. When Obama arrives in Beijing this weekend as part of his first Asian tour since taking office, the Chinese will expect him to behave far more modestly than his predecessor. The president is unlikely to disappoint his hosts.

Judging by what his advisers have indicated in recent weeks, Obama will not inundate the Chinese with demands. The vision of a nuclear weapons-free world will have to wait. The calls for binding climate protection goals will only be mentioned quietly, if they are mentioned at all. The American will continue to press Beijing to revalue its currency, the yuan, but only at the expert level. Rarely has the superpower been this mild-mannered.

Obama describes his foreign policy as a new age of cooperation. He is seeking to develop a relationship with a Chinese leadership that he needs more than it needs him. About two-thirds of China’s foreign currency reserves are denominated in dollars. Any abrupt shift on the part of Beijing would threaten the stability of the U.S. currency. Cheap imported Chinese goods help push up the American standard of living and minimize the risks of inflation.

Washington has been particularly enthusiastic about China’s economic stimulus programs: the Chinese launched the world’s biggest investment program after the start of the financial crisis. Without their spirited course of action, the world economy could very well have imploded. Beijing’s stimulus program amounted to about 13 percent of Chinese gross domestic product, making it almost twice as large as the U.S. program and close to five times the size of its German equivalent. Obama’s economic team has been deeply impressed by the success of China’s stimulus policy.

The discussion that has begun in China over curbing government spending and tightening liquidity is happening too early for Obama’s taste. When he visits Beijing, he will try to encourage the Chinese to continue playing their role as the principal driver of the world economy.

Meanwhile, the Americans see Europe moving from the passenger’s seat to the back seat in terms of the U.S.’ international partners. It was former President George W. Bush who upgraded the Chinese by launching a G-20 summit process to combat the financial crisis, rather than leaving it up to the G-8 member states, as the German Chancellery would have liked him to do.

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China’s wealthiest gaining on U.S. counterparts

Wang Chuanfu. Net Worth: $5.8 billion. Company: BYD. Industry: Battery, Automobile. City: Shenzhen. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett (R) receives a BYD car model as a gift from BYD’s Chief Executive Officer Wang Chuanfu in this file photo. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc has realized a $1.02 billion paper profit on a 10-month-old investment in BYD Co after shares in the mainland car and battery maker quintupled. China Daily.

His BYD, which makes electric cars and batteries, got a jolt from recent Warren Buffett investment; stock up 6 times this year.

China’s 400 Richest

The nation’s wealthiest are gaining against their U.S. counterparts.

Forbes | Nov 4, 2009

by Russell Flannery

SHANGHAI — A quick comparison of our new Forbes China Rich List with that of the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans, published in September, appears to tell a familiar story. China’s 400 Richest are worth a record $314 billion, but that is just one-fourth the total net worth of their American counterparts. China’s richest person, BYD’s Wang Chuanfu, has a net worth of $5.8 billion, far below the $50 billion fortune belonging to America’s richest citizen, Microsoft’s Bill Gates. In the U.S., Wang would only rank no. 40, tied with petroleum magnate Harold Hamm.

But the more interesting story is the fact that Chinese tycoons are making huge gains, at a time when many of the world’s richest haven’t been as lucky, thanks to strong economic growth and rebounding stock markets. Shanghai’s main index is up 69% and Hong Kong’s 56% in the past 12 months. As a result, we pinned down a record 79 billionaires, up from 24 a year earlier, more than Germany, Russia or India had in March when we published our worldwide billionaire rankings. The U.S. has 391 billionaires, but that’s down from 489 a year ago. The total net worth of the China 400 jumped 81%, or $141 billion, at a time when American’s wealthiest lost $300 billion, or 20% of their cumulative total, dropping to $1.27 trillion.

Chinese tycoons are also giving some of their American rivals a run for their money. Baidu’s ( BIDU – news – people ) Robin Li is worth $12.4 billion less than his rivals at Google ( GOOG – news – people ), Sergey Brin and Larry Page, but he has bragging rights for keeping Google at bay in China; his Internet search engine’s market share in his native country is about double that of its American nemesis. Chinese billionaire Chen Yihong’s China Dongxiang is seen as one of the country’s most competitive sports apparel brands, going up against internationals like Philip Knight’s Nike ( NKE – news – people ).

Rather than just a rivalry, there is also a growing collaboration of resources–capital, technology and people–between the U.S. and China that will likely help lead to continuing good fortunes for the Asian nation’s increasingly global entrepreneurs. Warren Buffett’s investment through a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway ( BRK – news – people ) in China’s car and battery maker BYD highlights the trend this year (read the story on Wang here). That Buffett support helped push up its co-founder Wang Chuanfu’s net worth by $4.7 billion, the biggest dollar gain of anyone on the list, and propelled him to the top spot in the rankings. Two other BYD executives, Lu Xiangyang and Xia Zuoquan, are billionaires as well. In September, Duke Energy ( DUK – news – people ) signed an agreement with Rich List-member Wang Yusuo’s ENN Group to jointly develop commercial solar power projects in the U.S.

U.S. investment banks and capital markets are also courting Chinese businesses like never before. China Rich List members who took companies public in the U.S. this year include Zhou Xin (China Real Estate) Charles Zhang (Changyou) and Chen Tianqiao (Shanda Games).

But for now, China’s wealth boom, after last year’s bust, is still very much tied to its own robust growth. China quickly overcame the financial crisis with a dose of government spending and loose monetary policy. The economy is likely to grow by 8% this year. Yet it’s not just short-term stimulus that’s buoyed its wealthy. A long-term trade surplus, urbanization and favorable demographics are benefiting the economy. Heavy infrastructure spending–from the integration of Hong Kong and Guangzhou to the Beijing subway is laying the groundwork for longer-term gains for Chinese entrepreneurs like Shen Guojun and China Zhongwang’s Liu Zhongtian, assuming he can overcome accusations about his company’s prospectus.

China’s cash-rich consumers, who are prone to saving–in contrast to overextended Americans–have fueled the fortunes of many on our list this year, including Zhou Chengjian of retailer Metersbonwe and Li Shufu of Geely Automobiles. Real estate tycoons have also done quite well, catering to the upwardly mobile and burgeoning middle classes as well as multi-nationals coming to China for business; in fact, real estate is the main source of wealth for more than a third of the 400 Chinese and at least a quarter of the country’s billionaires.

The Chinese expression, shi lai yun zhuan, which means “a new moment has arrived, and luck has changed,” captures well the improved fortunes of the country’s richest. But the best may still be yet to come. More than ever, there are new opportunities for Chinese entrepreneurs willing to seize them, and along with those opportunities, still more fortunes to be made.

To compile these rankings, a dozen reporters interviewed rich listers, employees, rivals, investors, fund managers, real estate agents and securities analysts. We also sifted through documents and databases to determine value and ownership of assets. For people with publicly traded fortunes, net worths were calculated using Oct. 16 stock prices. Privately held fortunes were valued at book value or by coupling estimates of revenues, profits or book value to prevailing ratios for similarly publicly traded companies. Unlike the Forbes billionaires list, the ranking has been broadened to include some family fortunes. We also include a few entrepreneurs born in mainland China who have citizenship from elsewhere but whose main source of wealth and/or residence is still on the mainland.

Reporting and research by Maggie Chen, Danni Cao and Jiang Yan. Additional research by Forbes China.

Passing on the Mantle of Deep North American Integration

nauresistance.org | Nov 3, 2009

By Dana Gabriel

With the demise of the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) of North America and the restructuring of many of its key priorities under the banner of the North American Leaders Summit, other trilateral initiatives are also passing on the mantle of deep continental integration.

The Fifth Annual North American Forum was held in Ottawa on October 4-6, 2009.  In a news release the group describes itself as, “a community of Canadian, Mexican and American thought leaders whose purpose is to advance a shared vision of North America, and to contribute to improved relations among the three countries.”  It goes on to say that, “They come together annually to explore linkages among the mutually reinforcing goals of security, prosperity and enhanced quality of life.”  Meetings are co-chaired by former U.S. Secretary of State, George Schultz, former Premier of Alberta, Peter Lougheed, as well as former Mexican Finance Minister Pedro Aspe.  The North American Forum has no business office and no business address.  It consists of the three co-chairs, along with their extensive network of contacts in government, business and the military, meeting privately to champion North American integration.  The news release also stated that, “This year’s meeting of the North American Forum focused on the need for Canada, Mexico and the United States to work together in responding to the global economic crisis and promoting a quick return to strong and sustainable growth.  In addition, the Forum included special sessions on two critical issues: one on energy and the environment, and the other on transnational crime, arms smuggling and drug trafficking.”  The North American Forum has been described as a parallel structure to the SPP.

The Standing Commission on North American Prosperity is an initiative of the U.S.-Mexico Chamber of Commerce and directly relates to the ongoing efforts to further merge North America.  The group characterizes itself as “an united effort of distinguished individuals from Mexico, Canada and the USA to provide sound economic and social policy guidance to the political leaders of the three countries for the future prosperity of all peoples of North America.”  It notes that, “In the aftermath of NAFTA and the SPP initiatives, a vacuum presently exists in developing a vision for North American prosperity.  The lack of such a vision jeopardizes previous achievements in building strong economic ties across North America made during the past 15 years.”  It also states that, “The Commission will meet 3 times a year and will provide ‘A North American Prosperity’ White paper to the leaders of the three countries upon conclusion of each session.”  The group’s inaugural Summit was held at Georgia’s Kennesaw State University on May 12-13, 2009.

The Future of North America Summit presented by the Standing Commission on North American Prosperity was scheduled to take place on November 2-3 of this year in Toronto, Canada.  It was reported that the Summit was cancelled, but there is no indication if it will take place at a later date.  The meetings would have included the participation of past political heavyweights such as former Mexican President Vicente Fox, former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, as well as former Chilean President Ricardo Lagos Escobar.  The agenda would have dealt with economic, environmental and climate change, energy, trade, transportation, along with other issues and how they relate to North America.  In a recent article Manuel Pérez-Rocha, director of the NAFTA Plus and the SPP Advocacy Project, raised some valid questions concerning the meetings.  He stated, “Are we going back to the future?  Why are these former leaders ‘representing’ countries they don’t run any more?  Is their purpose to dictate to our actual presidents what to do to build North America?  Why was ex president Lagos from Chile invited at all?”  What is clear is that with the SPP no longer the vehicle being used to create a North American Union, other groups and initiatives are further advancing deep continental integration.

The 2009 meeting of the NAFTA Free Trade Commission was held in Dallas, Texas on October 19 of this year and brought together top trade officials from the U.S., Canada and Mexico.  The meeting was used as an opportunity to celebrate NAFTA’s achievements and to plot a course for the future.  Manuel Pérez-Rocha stated, “What the three governments are really doing is incorporating the already-buried, George W. Bush-led Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) agenda into NAFTA.  While current presidents are stripping the SPP label, which has garnered much negative publicity, they’re keeping its principles to armor NAFTA as an instrument for further deregulation.”  He also said that, “the merging of the SPP prosperity agenda into NAFTA is evident, especially after the recent Dallas meeting.  In their declaration, the trade officials stated that since 2007, the three countries have worked together to protect and enforce intellectual property rights.  This was one of the SPP’s plans, together with a ‘framework for regulatory cooperation,’ a ‘North American plan for avian and pandemic influenza,’ and an ‘agreement for cooperation on energy science and technology,’ which are also well under way.”  Mexico is scheduled to host the next NAFTA Commission meeting in 2010.  Despite the demise of the SPP, many of its key objectives have already been implemented or continue to move forward through other initiatives.

Speaking at the annual policy forum of the Canadian American Business Council held in Montreal on October 21, U.S. ambassador to Canada David Jacobson said that there are no immediate plans to reopen NAFTA.  He also echoed Washington’s sentiments that the trade agreement is working well for all sides.  This could not be further from the truth as NAFTA is badly flawed.  Minus a few cosmetic changes that the Obama administration might make regarding side deals related to labor and the environment, the reality is that NAFTA will remain intact.  The NAFTA structure is also being used to advance SPP objectives.  All the talk of renegotiating the agreement appears to have revived the 15 year old trade accord and renewed the push for North American integration.  This could lead to NAFTA’s expansion into a North American Union and might serve to further spread its failed model to other parts of the Western Hemisphere.

Dana Gabriel is an activist and independent researcher. He writes about trade, globalization, sovereignty, as well as other issues. Contact: beyourownleader@hotmail.com

Visit his blog site at beyourownleader.blogspot.com

High jobless rates could be the new normal

Job seekser line up at a New York job fair. That the recovery in jobs will be long and drawn out is something on which economists and policy makers can basically agree, even as their proposals for remedies vary widely.

Industries that previously jump started employment aren’t able to this time

MSNBC | Oct 19, 2009

WASHINGTON – Even with an economic revival, many U.S. jobs lost during the recession may be gone forever and a weak employment market could linger for years.

That could add up to a “new normal” of higher joblessness and lower standards of living for many Americans, some economists are suggesting.

The words “it’s different this time” are always suspect. But economists and policy makers say the job-creating dynamics of previous recoveries can’t be counted on now.

Here’s why:

* The auto and construction industries helped lead the nation out of past recessions. But the carnage among Detroit’s automakers and the surplus of new and foreclosed homes and empty commercial properties make it unlikely these two industries will be engines of growth anytime soon.

* The job market is caught in a vicious circle: Without more jobs, U.S. consumers will have a hard time increasing their spending; but without that spending, businesses might see little reason to start hiring.

* Many small and midsize businesses are still struggling to obtain bank loans, impeding their expansion plans and constraining overall economic growth.

* Higher-income households are spending less because of big losses on their homes, retirement plans and other investments. Lower-income households are cutting back because they can’t borrow like they once did.

That the recovery in jobs will be long and drawn out is something on which economists and policy makers can basically agree, even as their proposals for remedies vary widely.

Retrenching businesses will be slow in hiring back or replacing workers they laid off. Many of the 7.2 million jobs the economy has shed since the recession began in December 2007 may never come back.

“This Great Recession is an inflection point for the economy in many respects. I think the unemployment rate will be permanently higher, or at least higher for the foreseeable future,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist and co-founder of Moody’s Economy.com.

“The collective psyche has changed as a result of what we’ve been through. And we’re going to be different as a result,” said Zandi, who formerly advised Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and now is consulted by Democrats in the administration and in Congress,

Even before the recession, many jobs had vanished or been shipped overseas amid a general decline of U.S. manufacturing. The severest downturn since the Great Depression has accelerated the process.

Many economists believe the recession reversed course in the recently ended third quarter and they predict modest growth in the nation’s gross domestic product over the next few years. Yet the unemployment rate is currently at a 26-year high of 9.8 percent — and likely to top 10 percent soon and stay there a while.

“Many factors are pushing against a quick recovery,” said Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the labor-oriented Economic Policy Institute. “Things will come back. But it’s going to take a long time. I think we will likely see elevated unemployment at least until 2014.”

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‘Planned recession’ could avoid catastrophic climate change

Britain will have to stop building airports, switch to electric cars and shut down coal-fired power stations as part of a ‘planned recession’ to avoid dangerous climate change.

Telegraph | Sep 30, 2009

By Louise Gray

At the moment the UK is committed to cutting greenhouse gases by a third by 2020.

However a new report from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research said these targets are inadequate to keep global warming below two degrees C above pre-industrial levels.

The report says the only way to avoid going beyond the dangerous tipping point is to double the target to 70 per cent by 2020.

This would mean reducing the size of the economy through a “planned recession”.

Kevin Anderson, director of the research body, said the building of new airports, petrol cars and dirty coal-fired power stations will have to be halted in the UK until new technology provides an alternative to burning fossil fuels.

“To meet [Government] targets of not exceeding two degrees C, there would have to be a moratorium on airport expansion, stringent measures on the type of vehicle being used and a rapid transition to low carbon technology,” he said.

Prof Anderson also said individuals will have to consume less.

“For most of the population it would mean fairly modest changes to how they live, maybe they will drive less, share a car to work or take more holidays in Britain.”

More than 190 countries are due to meet in Copenhagen in December to decide a new international deal on climate change.

Speaking at an Oxford University conference on the threat of climate change, Profjkj Anderson said rich countries will have to make much more ambitious cuts to have any chance of keeping temperature rise below four degrees C.

“If we do everything we can do then we might have a chance,” he said.