MarkZ Thursday Update- Some highlights by PDK-Not verbatim
MarkZ Disclaimer: Please consider everything on this call as my opinion. People who take notes do not catch everything and its best to watch the video so that you get everything in context. Be sure to consult a professional for any financial decisions
Member: Good Morning….This looks to be a very BIG day
Member: Let's go BRICS and it's newest 6 Members
Member: BREAKING: Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and UAE to join BRICS on January 1st, 2024.
MZ: Its quiet on the RV front as expected but, but this will be a big day with what is coming out of BRICS.
Member: The boards are quiet, the RV news has been very quiet - I think the damn is ABOUT TO BREAK!!!
Member: I heard all countries that have applied for BRICS have been accepted.
Member: I see Brics in our future ! Gold Brics!
Member: Petro dollar is running out of gas.
Member: Life is a masterpiece, and you're the artist. Paint it with vibrant moments, bold choices, and endless love. Seize every day with a heart full of gratitude and a spirit ready to explore.
Member: Mark, many thanks as always for all the latest news & updates.
Member: Thank you Mark and Andy for all the exciting info ….we appreciate you
Andy Schectman Joins the stream today. Please listen to the replay for his information and opinions.
“THE INFORMATION IN THIS PODCAST IS FOR GENERAL & EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE ANY PROFESSIONAL & LEGAL ADVICE.” PLEASE CONSIDER EVERYTHING DISCUSSED IS IN MARKZ’S OPINION ONLY.
An economist who explains the reasons for the absence of government support for national production
Aug 23 18:53 Information / special.
Economic expert Diaa Al-Mohsen explained, on Wednesday, the
reasons why the government did not focus in its program on supporting local production, pointing out that the government had focused primarily on the service file and postponed production support to another stage. Al-Mohsen told Al-Maalouma,
"The government program did not present the file of supporting national production and protecting the product, because thegovernment is aware of the weakness of production, as it moved towards supporting the service file and infrastructure." He added,
"The government left the national production support file to another stage when it is confirmed that it is possible to find strong local production in terms of agriculture and industry, as well as the citizen's role in acquiring local goods and preferring them over the importer." And that
"the private sector is still below the level of ambition, especially in terms of prices, as the closure of borders in front of some products when available locally is accompanied by a rise in prices." He pointed out that
"providing local production with the required quality and price needs more time, in addition to the need for confidence and conviction by the Iraqi consumer."
THE NEWSLETTER IS THE ALTERNATIVE TO ALL THE HYPE AND BULLSHIT OUT THERE ABOUT THE RV. WE DEAL IN FACTS ONLY, NO SPECULATION AND HYPE. IN FACT, MY EFFORTS HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO MANY OF THESE INTEL GURUS REALIZING THEIR MISTAKES AND ATTEMPTS TO CLEAN UP THEIR BULLSHIT.
During this period of collecting information for this version of the Newsletter we have learned that the CBI is targeting a new revalued rate for the dinar of 1132 from 1320 and very soon. Oh… didn’t we hear about this exact same rate months ago? Is this coincidental? Oh…any of the negative nay-sayers bashed us and told us it was a typo mistake by the CBI. Really? Why was it not made the “official” rate at that time? In retrospect after reading all the news since, we all should know why. But the important part is that this is their target, and we know now it is. Is this the last rate change we are looking for prior to the 1:1 coming revaluation and triggering the project to delete the zeros?
More news….
IRAQ ANNOUNCED THE PROCEEDS OF THE SALE OF THE DOLLAR
Baghdad – NAS
The Central Bank of Iraq announced the proceeds of the sale of the dollar through the electronic currency window for Wednesday, (August 16, 2023).
Remittance sales: 156.596.083
Cash sales: 37.120.000
Total sales: 193.716.083
More news…
TWO DAYS AFTER THE START OF “BRICS” .. IRAQ IS ABSENT FROM THE LARGEST GLOBAL EVENT “TO GET RID OF THE HEGEMONY OF THE DOLLAR”
Iraq will be absent from the “BRICS 2023” summit, which is the most prominent global event aimed at getting rid of the “dollar hegemony”, as it will be an international conference in which the heads of government of the five member states of the group will participate, in addition to leaders and representatives of about 50 countries, who are expected to attend the summit, which It will be hosted by South Africa, from 22 to 24 August.
(Does this mean the US pressured Iraq not to join this BRICS organization? What do you think?)
More news….
IRAN RECEIVES PART OF ITS FROZEN FUNDS IN IRAQ
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, confirmed today, Monday, that part of the Iranian funds frozen in Iraq had been received.
On August 11, official Iranian media revealed the details of the agreement reached by Tehran with the United States of America under the auspices of a third country, which provides for the exchange of prisoners between the two countries and the release of Iranian funds frozen in South Korea and Iraq.
The official Iranian News Agency, IRNA, quoted an official source familiar with this agreement as saying, “This agreement requires Iran to release 5 American prisoners in exchange for the release of 5 Iranian prisoners in the United States of America.” He explained that “in addition to that, 6 billion dollars of Iranian funds frozen in South Korea will be released, along with a large part also of Iranian funds in the Iraqi TBI Bank,” noting that “the first stages of the process of releasing Iranian funds in European banks have begun.”
STATUS OF THE RV
During this period of collecting information for this version of the Newsletter we have learned that the CBI is targeting a new revalued rate for the dinar of 1132 from 1320 and very soon. Already they issued a new rate for foreign travel of 1305 to the US dollar. Oh… didn’t we hear about this exact same rate months ago? Is this coincidental? Yes…many of the negative nay-sayers bashed us and told us it was a typo mistake by the CBI. Really? Why was it not made the “official” rate at that time? In retrospect after reading all the news since, we all should know why. But the important part is that this is their target, and we know now it is. Like I told you many times the next rate change will be swift and we may not even find out until after the 1:1 occurred. Is this the last rate change we are looking for prior to the 1:1 coming revaluation and triggering the project to delete the zeros?
If you can remember that on August 1, 2023 article, the Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani, described the crisis of the rise in the exchange rate of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar in the local markets as a “battle” not a crisis. Al-Sudani said and I quote- “The battle of the dollar is between the state, which insists on completing the reform of the financial and banking system and we are going to win the battle”.
So, then an article came out on this past Wednesday August 23, 2023, they are telling us that the Parliamentary finance committee determined a way to reduce the exchange rate of the dinar. It stressed the implementation of a number of measures in order to reduce the exchange rate of the dollar, whether they are technical or related to the central bank and its procedures.
Committee member Mueen Al-Kazemi said, according to the official newspaper and I quote – “that the important factor for the decline in the dollar exchange rate is the simplification of the central bank’s procedures for merchants to urge them to resort to the currency window and not go to the parallel market that caused the high exchange rate, in addition to simplifying the procedures for granting sums to Iraqi travelers.” Instead of using the current method.
They then added that another problem that must be discussed with the US Federal Reserve regarding the countries from which the Iraqi merchant imports and does not grant a transfer to them using the new electronic system, given that there is a national interest and need for the Iraqi people with these import vendors. In other words they need to have the electronic system updated to include these countries. This way more of the dollars can be accounted for and traced, if in fact they are needed to pay debts to these countries.
It appears they may be finally getting to the root of the problem in order to obtain positive results in reducing the exchange rate of the dinar (which we know means to increase its value closer the real value it should be in the first place. We know the value of the dinar is now being artificially suppressed.
Last Thursday (August 17, 2023), the Parliamentary Finance Committee identified the features of ending what it called “dollarization” in the local markets, in reference to the dollar exchange rate crisis, indicating that 80% of the solutions are internal, not external. Sounds to me like the crisis is just about over, ifnot over, and they just need to tie up some lose ends. Is Iraq now de-dollarized enough for stability to move to the next stage of the currency reform process? I luv it when I hear this term being used “de-dollarization”. I first heard it when I read the 2011 Dr Shabibi plan for the reinstatement process. He told us then that the de-dollarization is critical in Iraq’s currency reform process. So, it sounds to me like this phase of the Dr Shabibi plan is ending and they are moving to the next stage of the process. We all know what that is, don’t we…hint…hint….hint 😊
Update on the Oil and Gas Law:
Last Friday, the representative of the State of Law Parliamentary bloc, Firas Al-Maslamawi, revealed the Oil and Gas laws are to be legislated in Parliament in the coming period. We have heard this before and so what does the “coming period” mean. Could it be days, weeks or months? But to say this means they are very close.
Al-Maslamawi said, “The priority of the presidency of Parliament and the House of Representatives is to legislate the Oil and Gas laws as sent by the government, and they are in the second stage of proposals, and it will end soon”. I believe the holdup is with the negotiations with Turkey on the operation and maintenance of the northern oil pipeline.
Do you remember this is the “White Paper”? So, I am reminding everyone once again that this is their path to FOREX. Are they there yet?
Are we reaching the proverbial vortex of triggering what we want, the RV?
Yes, and we should be very happy at just where we are now. Since January of this year the main push has been banking reforms and de-dollarization. It has taken longer than we as investors want, but if you read between the lines in today’s news it says they are moving to the next phase of the plan.
When they move to the next phase of the process it will have to be the project to delete the zeros. Just a couple weeks ago Ali Alaq, the CBI governor, told us this project is NOT OFF THE TABLE which means also everything else that follows it. So, relax and enjoy the rest of the summer. Get your kids ready for school. Write, call or text your representatives of how dissatisfied you are with the justice being done in the US about the Biden corruption and where is the justice when they have a double standard of justice. Where is the punishment for his crimes and of those who surround him? I believe in this regards that September thru December are going to be huge for straightening out his mess in the US government.
As I stated many times already the VALUE and RATE of the dinar are two different issues. Yes, the RATE should reflect a true VALUE but it does not today. They know it and we know it.
Iraq does not have to rebuild their economy for the rate to change accordingly as the value is already present, just with the resources they can now exploit and sell. Get it? Once they do rebuild Iraq cities and grow their economy the dinar should also then adjust its rate and go even higher as thy plan to put it on a FLOAT when it is reinstated. No, it is not possible to float the dinar starting at the program rate. This is silly nonsense and I have proved it to you in my previous Newsletters already. Did you read them? Are you keeping up with my news?
Kuwaiti does not export even 1/3 of the oil that Iraq does nor is the oil as rich as their oil needs more refining. Kuwaiti has very little exports and Iraq alone will very soon catch up to them without even trying. So why does the IMF and the US still hold back the liberating of the Iraqi dinar?
I will tell you why – It is nothing more than “blackmail” and a “corruption” scheme that is shortly coming to an end. They need to keep Iraq under their thumbnail and suppressed. They need them as a puppet state not as an independent and sovereign nation. The CIA reported almost a decade ago as it stated that Iraq would be “a detriment to security of the middle east, should it ever become independent and wealthy state”. So, go figure what is happening just by this statement alone. They can’t hide it . We only need to use our God given brains to see through this mascaraed. Don’t you think the Iraqi citizens and politicians see it too?
I know, I know, I give you other possible scenarios but these are just developments in the craziness of goals set for Iraq to obtain. These goals should not be something that holds them back. There are other carrots that can be dangled and used to help push them along. They are a very young democracy and they will make mistakes. But they must also learn from the mistakes and to be a self-governing after nearly 20 years past since 2003, it is about time. Not having an international currency is serious and we can clearly see it is impacting all aspects of Iraqi life. It is time to liberate the dinar. The CBI knows it as the citizens know it, as we investors know it.
POLITICS
I decided to begin including this section in my Newsletter because of the nature of what we are now seeing in our governments and how these crises after crises now affect the ability of us to spend and hold on to our proceeds once we exchange our dinar post-RV. We can make a difference if we decide to. We are empowered citizens as we only have to realize it and do something about it. Remember the majority is many hundreds of millions of people and the elected and on-elected government officials are only less than maybe five thousand. This scares them but we have no power unless we act upon it.
I encourage everyone to watch these videos I have put together. They will save you time and are shortcuts to the political news that does effects everything in our lives including this long-awaited RV.
We are down to the last month of the three-month period that prophet Tim Sheets talked to us about (June-Aug). Did you see how explosive June and July were? Wow! Talk about prophecies fulfilled!!!! What is Sept-Dec going to bring us?
Al-Sudani: The Completion Of The Budget Financing Follow-Up Platform Is A First Step In Reforming The Financial System In Iraq
Political | 06:55 - 08/23/2023 Baghdad - Mawazine News, Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani affirmed today, Wednesday, that the completion of the budget financing follow-up platform is a first step in reforming the financial system in Iraq.
And the media office of the Prime Minister stated, in a statement, that “Prime Minister Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani chaired today, Wednesday, a meeting dedicated to reviewing an electronic platform, which was designed and implemented by self-efforts for the purpose of following up the financing of the budget, and the platform was prepared by a committee headed by the advisor to the Prime Minister, with membership Sectoral agencies and a number of ministries and governorates, and implemented in cooperation with the National Data Center, through which it is possible to follow up on the implementation of the budgets of ministries, governorates and government agencies that are not linked to a ministry and the expenditure doors therein.
Al-Sudani appreciated "the efforts of those working to complete this platform, and considered it a first step in reforming the financial system in Iraq by dealing with this important file," and instructed "to circulate it to spending units in all ministries and government agencies."
And he indicated, "The program is an electronic mechanism that covers the entire chain of financing the general budget, ensuring the provision of updated data with the Prime Minister, or any responsible party that makes use of the information, and the possibility of diagnosing centers of imbalance and delay early."
And he stressed, "The program will also establish new work contexts that add more accuracy and transparency to the means of disbursing public funds, and contribute to supporting financial control and following up on the volume of financing, within the tabulation prepared and meeting the priorities of the government program in various sectors." https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=233774
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The Judiciary: The Investigation Of The Exchange Rate Files Continues, And Most Of The Accused Are Referred To The Courts
Posted On2023-08-24 By Sotaliraq The judiciary reported the continuation of investigations regarding the exchange rate files, pointing out that legal measures were taken against all the accused and they were referred to the courts after conducting an investigation with them, stressing that the theft of tax secretariats took place with the complicity of employees, some of whom are in detention and others outside Iraq.
In a statement to the official news agency, the judge of the Karkh Investigation Court, which specializes in integrity issues, Diaa Jaafar, said, “The investigation courts specialized in money laundering and organized crime cases that conduct investigations in exchange rate cases base their investigations on accurate information issued by the competent authorities,” adding that “all The accurate information that was provided to the courts, legal measures were taken regarding it.”
Jaafar added, "All the important cases that were brought before the courts took legal measures towards the arrest of the accused." He pointed out that "most of the courts referred the accused, with whom the investigations were completed, to the competent courts for a trial."
And between Jaafar, that “the court gives way in some cases by presenting evidence that proves the validity of the procedures taken by companies and banks.”
He pointed out, "These issues are technical, and the reason for investigating them is because they are linked to more than one axis, including their association with technical procedures related to the Central Bank of Iraq, which has a vision and a certain point of view in managing the currency file inside the country."
Jaafar stressed, "The Central Bank is an independent body specialized in managing monetary policy in the country, in addition to the presence of investigative bodies working to follow up on this file."
And he talked about, “The existence of different points of view on how to manage the file requires the courts to be accurate and keen to take into account more than one aspect, which is taking into account the views of the technical authorities concerned with managing this important file and taking into account the information provided by the intelligence agencies and the authorities competent to follow up this file.”
Jaafar described, "This file is one of the difficult files that must be managed according to a vision and methodology that includes more consideration on the part of the competent authorities."
And he stated, “The issue of the currency file is not only related to the inside of the country, but also to an external dimension, and we are keen to deal with all aspects of this file accurately and that the competent authority to manage the file be aware and follow-up on this issue, taking into account its procedures in order to preserve the country’s monetary policy and take into account the information provided by Before the security authorities and taking legal measures regarding them in a fundamental manner, with the need to take legal measures against manipulators of currency rates.
Jaafar stated, "All the defendants in the tax secretariat case, in which the Integrity Commission stated that there are recovery files to return them to Iraq, have taken legal measures against them, on charges of facilitating the seizure of tax secretariat amounts."
He added, "This is what we emphasized in the past periods, that the accusation will not stop at one person, but rather investigations will be completed to prove it against all the accused who participated in that."
Jaafar noted, "The process of theft of tax secretariats was facilitated by a number of employees, some of whom are arrested and the other part outside the country, and investigations are still continuing to pursue them and force them to attend until their trial takes place."
And he continues, “The statements of a member of the House of Representatives regarding the settlement of the Anbar land issue are inaccurate, because the accused, Ahmed Kamel, was arrested pending a case related to real estate in the Fallujah region.”
And he continued, “It has not yet been proven or presented to the judiciary with investigations issued by specialized authorities that explain the process of forgery taking place,” noting that “all investigations that are conducted with land forgery are related to state employees.”
He noted, "The investigations in the case that was raised against Ahmed Kamel are still ongoing and incomplete, and the accused was released on financial bail, despite the passage of a long period of time since his arrest."
Jaafar stressed, “Not to confuse the Anbar lands issue with the case of the accused Ahmed Kamel, as the land issue is independent and related to the existence of information and forgery, but no evidence was presented to the judiciary to explain the forgery that occurred.”
He pointed out, “The court is convinced that in the event of fraud, the palaces are supposed to be assigned to the employees and property owners, if proven.”
He continued, "The case of the Anbar lands relates to a group of employees, as the court is continuing the procedures for arresting these employees from the Anbar Governorate, the governorate's municipality, and the Real Estate Registration Directorate."
And Jaafar concluded, “The investigation committees have almost completed their work, and according to what we received from the preliminary investigations, there are irregularities in the land distribution process by exploiting some loopholes in the law by relying on cooperative societies to grant lands, and during the coming period, the accused in this case will be referred to the courts.” competent.” LINK
Shafaq News / In the wake of the BRICS summit scheduled for Tuesday, August 22nd, the global landscape will inevitably undergo profound changes. This sentiment is most fervently held by China, Russia, India, Brazil, and South Africa. These nations, collectively representing nearly half of the world's population, around 30% of the global GDP, and over 16% of the global trade volume, are betting on the creation of a multipolar world. This term now signifies a departure from Western unilateralism, particularly embodied by the United States.
The upcoming 15th BRICS summit in Johannesburg will deviate from conventional standards, as it marks the first gathering since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its agenda is packed with pivotal matters against the backdrop of global tension stemming from the Ukrainian conflict, escalating latent frictions in East Asia, and the readiness of proxy fronts along African coastal regions following the Niger coup.
Observers assert that the summit, convening 67 world leaders, will usher in crucial decisions concerning the initiation of a joint financial currency, thereby endeavoring to diminish the dominance of the US dollar in the global currency arena. Additionally, the summit aims to bolster the use of member countries' local currencies in inter-trade operations and to establish mechanisms for shared payment systems. Furthermore, the gathering will contemplate membership requests from countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Algeria, Egypt, and Argentina.
Political analysts emphasize that the strides taken by the BRICS group toward these goals unquestionably signal seismic shifts in the global power balance. They also indicate that the US, which has predominantly dominated the world stage since the collapse of the Soviet Union, is gradually losing its grip on political, economic, and possibly military fronts.
While the US defense budget has reached a record-breaking $858 billion, the combined military expenditure of the BRICS nations currently stands at $400 billion, alongside a cumulative military personnel of 11 million and approximately 6,500 nuclear warheads (possessed by China, Russia, and India).
Despite projecting an image of a collective challenging Western hegemony, the prestige of BRICS has experienced a setback as it failed to secure the physical presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin (he will participate via video technology). South Africa faced Western pressures regarding his attendance due to an international arrest warrant issued against Putin by the International Criminal Court pertaining to his role in the Ukraine conflict. However, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will represent Moscow at the summit, while Chinese President Xi Jinping, along with leaders from Brazil, India, and South Africa, are set to attend.
Notably, the Johannesburg government recently announced that it did not extend an invitation to French President Emmanuel Macron for the summit, despite numerous other heads of state and their governments being invited to participate.
Even in a symbolic sense, BRICS stands out as one of the most prominent indicators of the rise of alternative powers in contrast to the European-American duopoly that dominated international affairs for the past three centuries. This trajectory has gained further momentum since the US assumed more solitary control over geopolitical and economic conflicts following the Cold War's conclusion with the Soviet Union in 1991.
Through its share of the global economy, BRICS surpasses the Group of Seven (G7) in terms of influence. The current member nations of BRICS collectively account for 40% of the world's land area, a percentage that is bound to grow with the inclusion of potential new members. Since its inception at the 2009 summit, BRICS has openly pursued becoming a global economic powerhouse, challenging the unipolar dominance of the West led by the US. This pursuit is centered around creating a multipolar world order.
Historically, BRICS had remained somewhat closed to new members, particularly after South Africa's late inclusion. However, it is now endeavoring to expand its membership. New members would be expected to adhere to the group's objectives, which encompass combating poverty, fostering sustainable development, enhancing economic and social integration, strengthening security and peace, ensuring economic growth and political stability, and reforming international financial institutions to grant emerging economies a stronger voice, all while enhancing food security.
Observers highlight that among the most significant moves indicative of this trend towards independence and dismantling US unilateralism was China's decision in 2013 to launch the "Belt and Road Initiative" shortly after a BRICS summit in Durban, South Africa, in the same year. This inclination is also evident in BRICS' decision to establish the "New Development Bank" during the 2015 summit in Ufa, Russia. Based in Shanghai, China, this bank is positioned to be an alternative to the World Bank, traditionally considered the financial arm of Western global dominance, with an estimated capital of around $100 billion.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), "Foreign direct investment (FDI) played a crucial role in the growth of BRICS economies since 2001, with annual FDI flows to the bloc increasing more than fourfold from $84 billion in 2001 to $355 billion in 2021, significantly contributing to total fixed capital formation."
The summit held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in November 2020 was in partnership with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), another alternative bloc to Western dominance that formed in 2001. It serves as another significant indicator of ongoing global shifts. Iran officially joined the SCO in July of the previous year. According to some analysts, BRICS serves as the "economic-financial arm" of the SCO, a phenomenon that is still evolving.
In recent months, estimations from experts and analysts have gained traction, suggesting that Russia's engagement in the Ukrainian conflict has spurred accelerated actions by Moscow and Beijing, as well as other BRICS nations, towards ensuring financial independence away from the US dollar. This strategic shift follows the rapid imposition of sanctions that affected Russia's global relations, trade interests, and economic assets.
These sanctions served as a wake-up call for BRICS leaders, urging them to explore new financial options to break free from the "tyranny" of the US dollar, which has been frequently utilized to besiege and undermine countries and populations in recent decades, as evidenced in Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and others.
Although the global blocs and alliances appear to align interests, objectives, and convergence among their member states, they simultaneously reveal the power struggles of major nations. This shift is transitioning from outright military warfare to economic interest conflicts, all aimed at ensuring continuity and prosperity, even if it comes at the expense of other nations or blocs. At times, these objectives inevitably lead to recourse in conflict and division.
If BRICS serves as an indicator of the rise of alternative blocs, history has also seen the rise and fall of other alliances. For instance, the Warsaw Pact (established in 1955) countered the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which represented Western Europe and the United States. Additionally, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), founded in 1954 with US support to counter Moscow's influence, ultimately fell.
The Baghdad Pact (formed in 1955), which included Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Britain, and Pakistan, also collapsed. This pact aimed to counter Soviet expansion and the Nasserist revolution.
The Rio Pact (1947) was the first post-World War II alliance, encompassing American nations. Yet, it now holds little significance in the face of Washington's absolute dominance.
Nonetheless, active global alliances persist. Alongside NATO, formed in 1949, there is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for
Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), established in 2018 after the US' withdrawal under the administration of former President Donald Trump. The CPTPP includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam, collectively representing around 15% of the global GDP.
