by ilene - December 23rd, 2010 11:50 am
HONG KONG — North Korea, breaking from the restraint it showed this week during military exercises by the South, said Thursday that it was prepared to use its nuclear weapons if it was attacked.
The North is “fully prepared to launch a sacred war,” Minister of the People’s Armed Forces Kim Young-chun said in comments carried by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency and quoted by Western news media. North Korea’s comments are typically bellicose, but they had been low-key this week as South Korea staged military exercises across its territory.
On Monday, the South staged live-fire artillery drills on Yeonpyeong Island, which was shelled by the North’s artillery on Nov. 23. Four South Koreans were killed. North Korea claims the waters around Yeonpyeong and disputes the maritime border known as the Northern Limit Line.
Continue reading here: North Korea Resumes War Threats as South Stages Drills – NYTimes.com.
Tags: military exercises, North Korea, South Korea, war, war threats
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by ilene - May 25th, 2010 1:00 pm
Courtesy of Mish
Smack in the midst of a "global recovery" tensions are heating up in Asia. Please consider Kim Jong II Orders Military to Get Ready for Combat
North Korean leader Kim Jong II ordered the country’s military to get ready for combat in a message televised nationwide last week following South Korea’s announcement that North Korea torpedoed the South’s warship.
South Korea’s President Lee Myung Bak said yesterday the country will push for United Nations censure against North Korea for the March 26 sinking of a naval ship, which killed 46 sailors. A multinational team concluded on May 20 that North Korea fired a torpedo to split apart the 1,200-ton Cheonan.
Tensions are rising in the Korean peninsula following the report, with both sides threatening counter-measures should they come under attack. South Korea plans to define North Korea as its “main enemy” when it maps out military strategy, Yonhap reported today, citing a government official it didn’t identify.
South Korea’s Won Sinks to 8-Month Low
Inquiring minds may be interested to note South Korea’s Won Sinks to 8-Month Low on Tensions With North.
South Korea’s won slumped to an eight-month low on growing hostilities with the North over the sinking of one of the South’s warships with the loss of 46 lives.
The U.S. yesterday announced plans to conduct joint anti- submarine exercises with South Korea as “a result of the findings of this recent incident.” Japan will consider imposing financial sanctions on North Korea, Finance Minister Naoto Kan said at a news conference in Tokyo today.
“We won’t see the bottom of this fall until we hear some good news on North Korea,” said Cho Hyun Seok, a currency dealer at Kookmin Bank in Seoul. “The won’s exchange rate can go as high as 1,260 won per dollar.”
The military exercises are among steps the U.S. and South Korea are pursuing, including possible further United Nations sanctions, in response to the March sinking of the 1,200-ton Cheonan. The U.S. and South Korea say evidence shows the explosion was caused by a North Korean torpedo.
Asian Stocks Fall to 10-Month Low, Won Dives, Commodities Drop
Please consider Asian Stocks Fall to 10-Month Low, Won Dives, Commodities Drop
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index
…
Tags: Asia, combat, Kim Jong, Lee Myung Bak, military, North Korea, South Korea, Stock Market, U.S. treasuries, war
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by Chart School - August 25th, 2009 1:51 pm
Courtesy of Binve at Market Thoughts and Analysis
…. And it ain’t pretty.
The Shanghai Stock Market (via the SSEC) has been speculation central. It is one of the biggest casinos out there right now. But like any streak in Blackjack where you leave your winnings on the table when the cards are finally going your way, the smart players know to take some of it off the action and back into your bankroll. … because the house always wins eventually.
And like with any speculative endeavor, you only make money if you find somebody to buy it off you at a higher price: baseball cards, Tiffany lamps, Mark Rothko’s (yeesh), Houses, or shares of Stock.
It looks to me like the smart money has already cashed out and is enjoying a nice meal at Carnevino. Everybody else is still at the table because all the economists are saying recession is over, the world is in recovery!
So while SSEC is the real casino (and potential canary in the coal mine), the HSI is a bit less erratic / correlates a bit closer to the rest of the world’s markets. But it is still very much tied to the Chinese and Hong Kong economies.
So a very interesting observation presents itself: ….. The HSI is not making new highs with the rest of the American and European indices. I just checked Bloomberg (delayed unfortunately) and the high so far is 20750 today, still below the peak around 21300 reached a couple of weeks ago. Maybe it is too early (and they will break it today).
But it is worth pondering, are the Asian markets, the leaders in receiving the speculative investment inflow, signaling the sea change of speculative investment outflow?
[click on charts for larger images]
South Korea is looking a bit healthier (maybe not "healthy" so much, but at least less manic than the SSEC and HSI), but there is a *huge* resistance layer to be negotiated at the 62% retrace. Lets see how this one plays out
Tags: Asian Market, charts, Hong Kong, HSI, Shanghai Stock Market, South Korea, SSEC
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by Zero Hedge - May 27th, 2009 5:00 am
Courtesy of Zero Hedge
Developing story: Per BNO, Bloomberg, and WSJ, North Korea has said it will "use its military" to respond to South Korean decision.
Update from BNO: NORTH KOREA ABANDONS KOREAN WAR ARMISTICE.
Update 2: NK Statement: "Any hostile act against our vessels, including search and seizure, [..] we will immediate respond with a powerful military strike"
Update 3: NK Statement: "THE PENINSULA WILL SOON BE RETURNED TO "THE STATE OF WAR."
Update 4: Yonhap Statement here
Tags: North Korea, South Korea
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by Zero Hedge - May 26th, 2009 4:07 am
- Must Read: Henry Paulson – "I didn’t understand the retail [mortgage] market, I just wasn’t close to it" (Newsweek)
- Dallas Fed’s Fisher: "Don’t monetize the debt" [too late Dick] (WSJ)
- Cushman & Wakefield exec says CRE is doomed due to lack of securitization (NYPost)
- Euro falls on renewed concern over European banking system (Bloomberg)
- Deripaska nears deal to retain empire (Reuters)
- China warns Fed over "printing money" (Telegraph)
- Yuan drops by most in 2 months on signs China gains halted (Bloomberg)
- Libor’s plunge could trap banks (Telegraph)
- South Korea won, stocks drop on concern over more North Korean nuclear test (Bloomberg)
- ECB to buy bonds in June, to seek quick exit [mm hmm] (Bloomberg)
- 50% of employers suspend college recruitment (Guardian)
- Geithner dismisses Republican socialism charge as ridiculous
Tags: CHINA, debt, Fed, Geithner, North Korea, Paulson, printing money, South Korea
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Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...
Ilene is editor and affiliate program
coordinator for PSW.
