Aggregator

Trump Says 'Open Up China' Before Landing In Beijing For Pomp-Filled Red Carpet Airport Welcome

Zero Rss
1 month 1 week ago
Trump Says 'Open Up China' Before Landing In Beijing For Pomp-Filled Red Carpet Airport Welcome

President Trump and his Air Force One entourage have arrived in Beijing on Wednesday, greeted by a lavish red carpet welcome. The American president was received by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, China’s ambassador to Washington Xie Feng, Executive Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxuong, and US envoy to Beijing David Perdue.

Reports describe the extravagant welcoming ceremony as made up of a military honor guard and band, as well as about 300 Chinese youths waving alternating Chinese and American flags.

via Associated Press

"We’re the two superpowers," Trump had told reporters just before departing to China the day prior. "We're the strongest nation on Earth in terms of military. China’s considered second."

This is Trump's first visit there in nearly nine years, and an array of pressing issues will be discussed over the next two days of a packed-out schedule.

Official events with President Xi Jinping will kick off Thursday at 10am (local) with a formal welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, leading into the first meeting with Xi, after which the Chinese leader will host Trump for a state banquet at 6pm.

⚡️ Trump has arrived in China — the first visit by a U.S. president to Beijing since 2017

A day earlier, the U.S. president said Washington does not need China’s help on Iran.

According to Trump, the U.S. will “win one way or another — peacefully or otherwise.”

A meeting… pic.twitter.com/2QWYQZc5q8

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) May 13, 2026

Also looming large over the historic visit is the ongoing Iran conflict. Just before departing Washington Trump while talking to reporters raised eyebrows in remarking that the financial situation for Americans was not a factor in his decision-making when it comes to Iran and dealing with the nuclear issue. 

"Not even a little bit," he said in the remarks at a moment Americans continue to face rising gas and food prices, connected to the war.

A day earlier, the U.S. president said Washington does not need China’s help on Iran. According to Trump, the U.S. will “win one way or another — peacefully or otherwise.”

Meanwhile, over in the Strait of Hormuz:

A Chinese supertanker carrying two million barrels of Iraqi crude has passed through the Strait of Hormuz, according to ship-tracking data.

The Yuan Hua Hu crude carrier is now anchored off the Gulf of Oman near where the US navy has set up a blockade of Iranian vessels. It marks the third known passage by a Chinese oil tanker through the waterway since the US-Israeli war on Iran began.

Trump has landed in Beijing. Motorcade en route to hotel. pic.twitter.com/PkN5XKz7QB

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) May 13, 2026

While Iran and Taiwan remain pressing geopolitical challenges between the US and China, and for the whole globe really, Trump appears ready to focus on major business deals, per the Associated Press:

But Trump appeared firmly focused on business deals, with Nvidia chief Jensen Huang boarding the plane at the last minute in Alaska and Tesla’s Elon Musk also traveling on the presidential jet.

As the global AI race hots up, China is currently banned from purchasing the cutting-edge chips that Huang’s company produces under US export rules that Washington says are to protect national security.

Trump said in a social media post en route that he would be “be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to ‘open up’ China so that these brilliant people can work their magic.”

But this is how Beijing is going to read this....

Pretty hilarious of him to say that he's going to China with Jensen Huang to ask them to "open up," when the whole issue is that it's the U.S. that banned the sale of advanced Nvidia chips...

You can't ask China to reverse your own policies 🤷‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/B6jSLZxRik

— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) May 13, 2026

Apparently very few of the CEOs were on Air Force One, with the rest flying presumably on private jets...

The US has banned an array of Chinese technology imports, citing national security, and so it's likely that China will only see this as having to go the other way - that it is the United States which must 'open up' to more Chinese business and tech.

The Chinese foreign ministry meanwhile stated Wednesday it "welcomes" Trump’s visit and that "China stands ready to work with the United States... to expand cooperation and manage differences."

Tyler Durden Wed, 05/13/2026 - 09:35
Tyler Durden

SoCal lowlifes fleece vulnerable senior out of $25K

NY Post
1 month 1 week ago
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced that Shaohua Sun, of Monterey Park, and Yanwen Gu, of Rosemead, both pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy to commit elder abuse along with additional special allegations tied to the case.
Daniel Farr

Trump Mulls 'Operation Sledgehammer' If Ceasefire Collapses, But Iran Has Re-Armed

Zero Rss
1 month 1 week ago
Trump Mulls 'Operation Sledgehammer' If Ceasefire Collapses, But Iran Has Re-Armed

The Pentagon is considering renaming the war with Iran from "Operation Epic Fury" to "Operation Sledgehammer" if President Trump orders a renewed full-scale bombing campaign against Iran, according to an NBC News report published Tuesday.

The report came on the eve of day 75 since the US and Israel launched the conflict. US sources touted to NBC that the United States now has greater military capabilities in the region than it did before the US and Israel launched the war on February 28. But US intelligence is now also suggesting Iran's missile capability is getting back up and running as well.

US Navy file image

After Iran had clearly withstood the shock and destruction of the opening days and couple weeks of major American and Israeli bombing raids over its cities and airbases, Trump belatedly ordered more warships, carriers, and troops into the region (Marine Expeditionary Force) - after which the blockade of Iranian ports was eventually put in place.

Now amid the heavier US naval and combined forces build-up in the CENTCOM area, "We are in a better spot now than on February 27," a US official said to NBC. "We have more firepower and capability."

The reported name change appears part of the Trump administration's effort to navigate around the War Powers Resolution, which is the 1973 law designed to limit executive war powers and reinforce Congress's constitutional authority to declare war.

According to NBC, the name change would be to underscore how seriously the administration is considering resuming the war, and could allow Trump to argue that it restarts the 60-day clock that requires congressional authorization for war, by way of the name change loophole.

While Republicans hold control of the Senate and have a slim majority in the House, there have lately been signs of bipartisan frustration at how the war is going, and the coming financial impact on the American public.

Also, even though the Pentagon has its assets in place if fighting were to resume, fresh reporting in NY Times and elsewhere indicates that Iran too has re-armed and regrouped.

"U.S. Intelligence Shows Iran Retains Substantial Missile Capabilities. Secret new assessments say Iran has operational access to 30 of its 33 missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting that its military remains far stronger than President Trump has asserted," NY Times reports.

The report also indicates, "The Trump administration’s public portrayal of a shattered Iranian military is sharply at odds with what U.S. intelligence agencies are telling policymakers behind closed doors, according to classified assessments from early this month that show Iran has regained access to most of its missile sites, launchers and underground facilities."

This further opens up the possibility that US forces could sink into protracted quagmire should the White House choose to escalate the conflict through a renewed bombing campaign, or else launching some kind of ultra high-risk ground operation to recover Iran's nuclear material.

Interesting how U.S. intelligence reports are fluctuating, one moment Iran’s military is obliterated, another it’s retaining its capabilities. No leadership, then reports of serious cracks in the system, then a conclusion that Mujtaba is consolidating power. That’s completely… https://t.co/3iZAfMhZel

— Ali Hashem علي هاشم (@Alihashem) May 12, 2026

Trump is still insisting on taking Iran's "nuclear dust" out of the country, but how that precisely happens is anyone's guess - and would likely prove to be a long shot.

On Tuesday, speaker of Iran's parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said  his country's military stands ready to "teach a lesson" to any aggressor as Trump has said the ceasefire is hanging by a thread. "Our armed forces are ready to respond and to teach a lesson for any aggression," he said on social media. "A bad strategy and bad decisions always lead to bad results - the world already understands this."

Tyler Durden Wed, 05/13/2026 - 08:50
Tyler Durden

Yields Spike As Producer Prices Explode Higher In April

Zero Rss
1 month 1 week ago
Yields Spike As Producer Prices Explode Higher In April

After yesterday's hotter than expected CPI (driven in large part by Energy, but seeing some contagion into Services costs), this morning's Producer Price print for April was expected to show a major surge in annual wholesale inflation.

With the eight straight monthly increase, PPI rose by a massive 1.4% MoM (vs +0.5% MoM exp) - the biggest MoM jump since March 2022, lifting PPI by a stunning 6.0% YoY (vs 4.8% YoY exp). That is the hottest PPI YoY since Dec 2022...

Source: Bloomberg

Services and Energy saw the biggest rise (while construction costs actually deflated very modestly)...

Core Producer Prices spiked 1.0% MoM (more than triple the +0.3% exp) smashing Core PPI YoY up 5.2% (also the hottest since Dec 2022)...

Source: Bloomberg

And finally, one could argue this is as bad as it gets for the energy component as oil prices have stabilized...

Source: Bloomberg

But of course, the pipeline of those energy costs is perhaps only just starting to trickle into the rest of the economy.

PPI triggered a spike in 2Y yields...

Now back above 4.00% at their highest since March with the market now pricing in a 50% chance of one rate-hike in 2026...

It appears any chance of Warsh cutting rates (as per Trump's expectations) are off the table... for now.

Finally, there is perhaps a silver lining from this ugly PPI report. Other than airfares (which rose 3%) the components that feed through into PCE inflation were pretty tame; portfolio management fees dropped 2.4% and the various medical-care components showed a maximum rise of 0.3%.

That may mitigate the impact of the report, but it’s still hard to totally ignore the risk that inflation becomes a more pressing concern moving forward. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 05/13/2026 - 08:40
Tyler Durden

Trump meets Xi in China, Denver airport death raises safety questions

NY Post
1 month 1 week ago
President Trump arrives in Beijing for high-stakes talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, with Iran, trade, and AI all on the agenda. The outcome could reshape global economics and geopolitical tensions between the world’s two biggest powers. New details are emerging about a deadly incident at Denver International Airport where a man was struck by...
New York Post Video

MMA rankings May 2026: Sean Strickland’s No. 1 spot not so cut-and-dried

NY Post
1 month 1 week ago
MMA math does not work. Need some proof? Take a gander at the top of the middleweight pecking order. With the second championship upset of his career, Sean Strickland took back both the UFC belt he lost nearly 2 ½ years ago and the consensus No. 1 spot in the world.  Sean Strickland exits the...
Scott Fontana

UK Risk Spreads Oddly Calm As PM Starmer Faces Growing Threat Of Ouster

Zero Rss
1 month 1 week ago
UK Risk Spreads Oddly Calm As PM Starmer Faces Growing Threat Of Ouster

Wes Streeting is reportedly poised to resign as UK health secretary and launch a formal challenge to UK PM Keir Starmer in a Labour Party election.

Following a meeting with Starmer in Number 10 (which lasted just 16 minutes), an “ally” of the health secretary told The Times that Streeting was “going to go for it”.

Around 100 Labour MPs have publicly called for Starmer to resign although a similar number of lawmakers have urged challengers to hold back from launching a leadership bid.

Starmer’s leadership is hanging by a thread after Labour lost nearly 1,500 councillors across English councils and were defeated by nationalist parties in Wales and Scotland.

A slew of ministerial resignations have so far failed to force Starmer’s downfall this week.

As Bloomberg reports,s everal allies of Streeting have been among those to say he should go, leading lawmakers to conclude that he is attempting to build pressure against the premier ahead of announcing a challenge.

“I think it’s being a bit over dramatized,” Starmer loyalist Nick Thomas-Symonds said on BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday, ahead of Starmer’s meeting with Streeting.

“Anyone would think we were talking about the final scene at Casino Royale or something.”

Trade unions have joined the calls for change.

“It’s clear that the Prime Minister will not lead Labour into the next election, and at some stage a plan will have to be put in place for the election of a new leader,” unions affiliated with the party said in a statement published Wednesday morning.

In a statement alongside the King’s Speech this morning, Starmer said the country stood at a “pivotal moment”.

He said multiple crises had meant that the “status quo had repeatedly made working people pay the price”.

“This time must be different. And this King’s Speech shows it will be different with a plan to make this country stronger and fairer.”

Starmer’s move was seen as effectively daring his opponents to come out and publicly challenge him, a position that his deputy, David Lammy, put voice to in Downing Street on Tuesday evening.

“It’s been 24 hours now, and nobody has come forward to put themselves forward in the processes that exist in the party,” Lammy told reporters.

“No one seems to have the names to stand up against Keir Starmer, and for those who are suggesting that he should stand down, they should say which candidate would be better.”

Interestingly, the odds of a Starmer resignation in the short-term (by the end of May) have tumbled...

...while the odds of him leaving by year-end have soared...

And while the UK is in the midst of a political crisis that could see off its sixth Prime Minister in only a decade, Bloomberg's Simon White notes that risk spreads are remarkably contained.

A measure including UK asset swap spreads, gilt spreads, bank CDS, sterling, etc, is only modestly wider and is below where it was on the outbreak of the Iran war, Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first budget, and the ill-fated, short-lived premiership of Liz Truss.

Gilt yields are indeed higher, and are so across the curve, which is suggestive of extra risk premium for holding UK debt.

“I am underweight gilts,” said Shinji Kunibe, a portfolio manager at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Co. in Tokyo.

“Yields have already risen beyond Truss-era levels, so they’re attractive if we see any positive signals. But with so much uncertainty, I doubt anyone is willing to touch gilts right now.”

However, that has happened to other countries too - albeit to a lesser extent - due to the energy shock, muting the spread impact on the UK.

“I’d love to buy them because obviously long-end yields are so enticing on paper,” the chief multi-asset strategist at HSBC said in an interview on Bloomberg radio.

But with a potential challenge to Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s leadership keeping volatility high, “right now, gilts are a half-hour trade.”

There is also perhaps a hope that in the gilt market that the potential replacements for Keir Starmer are beginning to preach greater fiscal orthodoxy, if recent political commentary is to be believed.

Tyler Durden Wed, 05/13/2026 - 08:25
Tyler Durden

zero rss

Copyright (c) 2026 FYCKL Project