U.S. Bitcoin Reserve Audit Overdue by 172 Days

The audit of the U.S. Bitcoin reserve is now 172 days overdue. According to a Trump executive order, the report was due on April 5, but neither the Treasury Department nor any other responsible agency has released the data.

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China Now Produces More Machine Tools Than Germany, Japan, and the US Combined

The West is no longer the leader in machine tool production. China has surpassed the combined output of Germany, Japan, and the United States.

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Food Prices, Inflation, and the Real Hit to Wallets

Since late 2019, household spending on food in the eurozone has risen by 34%, while overall consumer prices have increased by 23%. In other words, food is becoming more expensive faster than other goods and services, hitting hardest those who spend a large share of their income on groceries.

The situation is particularly dramatic for specific products: beef and milk prices have risen nearly 40%, butter and olive oil by 50%, and cocoa and chocolate even more. The main reasons include rising raw material costs, climate anomalies, and higher labor expenses. Droughts in Spain during 2022–2023 sharply drove up olive oil prices, while poor harvests of coffee and cocoa in exporting countries accelerated price growth for chocolate and beverages.

Price increases vary significantly across the eurozone: Italy +28%, Germany +37%, Baltic states — over 50%. This reflects differing dependencies on global prices, wage dynamics, and energy costs.

The ECB notes that food inflation heavily influences public perception of overall inflation. Even with an average inflation rate of 2%, food prices rising above average are perceived as a direct blow to household budgets. For low-income families, this is especially severe, as food constitutes a larger portion of their expenses.

Conclusion: food prices have become a key indicator of economic pressure on households. Despite central banks’ claims of stable overall inflation, the continued above-average rise in food prices fosters a widespread sense of declining real incomes.

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South Korea Unable to Fulfill $350 Billion Investment Pledge to the US

South Korea, which in July pledged $350 billion in investments for American projects, has refused US demands for control over the funds. South Korean officials say negotiations to formalize the trade deal have reached a deadlock.

The US is likely to respond by reinstating tariffs on goods from South Korea.

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China Launches Tech Visa to Lure Global STEM Talent

China has introduced a new visa for IT specialists and engineers, available even without a prior job offer. To qualify, applicants must be graduates in STEM fields, including biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, architecture, and engineering.

In addition, selected professionals are eligible for a housing subsidy of 5 million yuan (approximately 58 million rubles).

The move is seen as a direct response to the United States’ imposition of high fees and restrictive policies on H-1B work visas for foreign specialists. China now aims to attract this global talent to boost its own technological advancement.

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Many Analysts Say Silver Is Criminally Undervalued

As an example, they point out that in virtually any historical era, the price ratio between gold and silver was much closer than it is today. The highest ratio ever recorded was 1 to 15. Meanwhile, currently, even on a good day, the ratio stands at 1 to 86.

A sharp surge in silver prices in the near future is predicted by a wide range of experts.

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Jeff Bezos Compares AI Hype to a 'Bubble' That Could Wipe Out Investments but Also Benefit Society

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has likened the current frenzy around artificial intelligence to a "bubble," similar to the biotech and pharmaceutical boom of the 1990s. Back then, stock prices often bore little relation to fundamentals, as investors poured money into any related project — leading to widespread bankruptcies.

However, that speculative surge laid the groundwork for breakthrough life-saving drugs.

Bezos noted that today’s AI sector is similarly marked by high speculation and difficulty in distinguishing promising ventures from doomed ones. Yet he emphasized that such bubbles are not inherently dangerous — they can drive innovation, help create new industry leaders, and ultimately lead to transformative technologies.

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U.S. Sanctions Fail to Halt Russian Money Flows, FT Reports

Sanctions have not stopped international money transfers from Russia: over $6 billion has been sent via the stablecoin A7A5 since August, according to the Financial Times.

Experts say these volumes confirm the limited effectiveness of Western attempts to isolate the Russian economy and demonstrate Moscow’s successful adaptation to new conditions for cross-border payments. Russia has found an effective way to maintain international financial flows and ensure the continuity of its global transactions.

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Stablecoins Surpass Visa and Mastercard in Transaction Volume

More money is now being transferred through crypto than via traditional payment methods. Sanctions and financial control in full view.

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Deloitte to Repay Australian Government $440,000 for AI-Generated Report

A major consulting firm, Deloitte, has been found to owe the Australian government $440,000 after it used ChatGPT to generate a report on an automated IT system that issues penalties to welfare recipients.

The investigation revealed that consultants outsourced the work to an AI model—GPT-4o—which fabricated academic references, invented quotes, and even misspelled the name of a judge.

GPT-4o “invented” a quote from the court case Deanna Amato v Commonwealth and renamed Judge Jennifer Davies as “Justice Davis.”

The report contained dozens of citations to non-existent scientific papers.

Deloitte admitted to using GPT-4o “to fill gaps in documentation”—effectively letting the AI write parts of the report.

The firm has agreed to repay the money.

An Australian senator commented: “Deloitte has a problem with human intelligence. Maybe they should just subscribe to ChatGPT.”

The irony is palpable: the report was commissioned to assess whether the government was overrelying on automation. In the end, it was automation that undermined the consultants themselves.

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Gold Could Reach $4,900 an Ounce by End-2026, Goldman Sachs Says

Gold prices could climb to $4,900 per ounce by the end of 2026, according to Goldman Sachs. The bank cites continued strong demand from central banks, which are expected to keep replenishing their gold reserves.

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EU Intensifies Pressure on Belgium to Seize Frozen Russian Assets – FT

European Union member states are ramping up pressure on Belgium to unlock the roughly €190 billion in frozen Russian assets held in the Euroclear system, aiming to use them for a “reparations-backed loan” to Ukraine.

The EU has criticized the Belgian government for refusing to shoulder the legal and financial risks alone. Specifically, EU officials took issue with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s recent proposal that the bloc as a whole assume responsibility for deploying these funds.

De Wever argues that seizing assets from a third country’s central bank would set a “dangerous precedent” for both Belgium and the EU, and insists that risks—including potential lawsuits from Russia—must be shared collectively.

EU leaders, however, view Belgium’s stance as an attempt to protect national interests while benefiting from Euroclear’s profits, which have generated €3.6 billion in Belgian tax revenue since 2022. Critics note that not all of these funds have been transferred to Ukraine, despite Brussels’ claims they are “fully earmarked” for Kyiv.

As negotiations intensify ahead of a planned December agreement—with the first disbursements expected in Q2 2026—tensions are mounting over who will bear the consequences if Russia retaliates legally or by seizing Western assets in return.

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China Imposes Special Port Fee on U.S.-Flagged Vessels

Chinese authorities have introduced a special port fee on ships flying the U.S. flag, the Ministry of Transport of China announced.

According to the statement, this measure is a direct response to similar actions taken by Washington against vessels owned, manufactured, operated by Chinese companies, or sailing under the Chinese flag.

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Many in the U.S. Nostalgically Long for the “Golden Age” of the 1950s–60s

Yet the data tells a different story. In 1967, only 5% of American households earned more than $150,000 annually (adjusted for inflation to today’s dollars). Today, nearly 34% of U.S. households are in that income bracket.

At the same time, the share of the poorest households—those earning less than $50,000 per year—has dropped significantly: from 38% in 1967 to just 21% today.

If Americans from the 1960s were transported to the present, they would likely call our era the “golden age”—not their own.

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Tariffs on China: 100%

When you are too pissed about not getting a Nobel peace prize.

What If Trump’s Reaction Isn’t Baseless? What If China Struck First?

Not a trade war — but the next escalation of one.

Starting September 2025, Chinese retail investors faced a sudden, coordinated wall blocking access to U.S. equity markets:

Futu Securities and Tiger Brokers tightened account opening rules for mainland Chinese residents, now requiring proof of overseas permanent residency. Temporary work or study visas no longer suffice.
On September 10, Interactive Brokers (IB) followed suit — demanding both a mainland ID and documentation of overseas residence or employment over the past three months. IB’s app also vanished from Chinese app stores, making onboarding nearly impossible.
Between June and August 2025 brokers like uSMART, Valuable Capital, Zurich Securities, and Zinvest Global either halted new account openings for mainlanders or imposed similarly strict residency requirements.

The result? De facto exclusion of mainland China from U.S. stock markets — without a single official decree. No government order, no public announcement — just a synchronized retreat by brokers.

So — why?
Protecting investors from Trump’s chaos? Withdrawing liquidity as leverage? Redirecting capital inward – Steering domestic investors toward homegrown tech instead of “foreign distractions”?

Notably, none of these moves required an official ban. The state didn’t need to act — the brokers did. Whether out of regulatory pressure, patriotic alignment, or preemptive compliance with unspoken directives, the outcome is the same: a soft but effective firewall between Chinese retail capital and U.S. equities.

If this is indeed a deliberate strategy, then Trump’s retaliatory tariffs may not be the opening salvo — but a response to a move already made. The question is no longer who started it, but who will blink first.

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