In a graphic illustration of the new world order, Arab states have launched secret moves with China, Russia and France to stop using the US currency for oil trading
By Robert Fisk
In the most profound financial change in recent Middle East history, Gulf Arabs are planning – along with China, Russia, Japan and France – to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf Co-operation Council, including Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar.
Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars.
The plans, confirmed to The Independent by both Gulf Arab and Chinese banking sources in Hong Kong, may help to explain the sudden rise in gold prices, but it also augurs an extraordinary transition from dollar markets within nine years.
Leading article: The end of the dollar spells the rise of a new order The Americans, who are aware the meetings have taken place – although they have not discovered the details – are sure to fight this international cabal which will include hitherto loyal allies Japan and the Gulf Arabs. Against the background to these currency meetings, Sun Bigan, China's former special envoy to the Middle East, has warned there is a risk of deepening divisions between China and the US over influence and oil in the Middle East. "Bilateral quarrels and clashes are unavoidable," he told the Asia and Africa Review. "We cannot lower vigilance against hostility in the Middle East over energy interests and security."
This sounds like a dangerous prediction of a future economic war between the US and China over Middle East oil – yet again turning the region's conflicts into a battle for great power supremacy. China uses more oil incrementally than the US because its growth is less energy efficient. The transitional currency in the move away from dollars, according to Chinese banking sources, may well be gold. An indication of the huge amounts involved can be gained from the wealth of Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar who together hold an estimated $2.1 trillion in dollar reserves.
The decline of American economic power linked to the current global recession was implicitly acknowledged by the World Bank president Robert Zoellick. "One of the legacies of this crisis may be a recognition of changed economic power relations," he said in Istanbul ahead of meetings this week of the IMF and World Bank. But it is China's extraordinary new financial power – along with past anger among oil-producing and oil-consuming nations at America's power to interfere in the international financial system – which has prompted the latest discussions involving the Gulf states.
Brazil has shown interest in collaborating in non-dollar oil payments, along with India. Indeed, China appears to be the most enthusiastic of all the financial powers involved, not least because of its enormous trade with the Middle East.
China imports 60 per cent of its oil, much of it from the Middle East and Russia. The Chinese have oil production concessions in Iraq – blocked by the US until this year – and since 2008 have held an $8bn agreement with Iran to develop refining capacity and gas resources. China has oil deals in Sudan (where it has substituted for US interests) and has been negotiating for oil concessions with Libya, where all such contracts are joint ventures.
Furthermore, Chinese exports to the region now account for no fewer than 10 per cent of the imports of every country in the Middle East, including a huge range of products from cars to weapon systems, food, clothes, even dolls. In a clear sign of China's growing financial muscle, the president of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, yesterday pleaded with Beijing to let the yuan appreciate against a sliding dollar and, by extension, loosen China's reliance on US monetary policy, to help rebalance the world economy and ease upward pressure on the euro.
Ever since the Bretton Woods agreements – the accords after the Second World War which bequeathed the architecture for the modern international financial system – America's trading partners have been left to cope with the impact of Washington's control and, in more recent years, the hegemony of the dollar as the dominant global reserve currency.
The Chinese believe, for example, that the Americans persuaded Britain to stay out of the euro in order to prevent an earlier move away from the dollar. But Chinese banking sources say their discussions have gone too far to be blocked now. "The Russians will eventually bring in the rouble to the basket of currencies," a prominent Hong Kong broker told The Independent. "The Brits are stuck in the middle and will come into the euro. They have no choice because they won't be able to use the US dollar."
Chinese financial sources believe President Barack Obama is too busy fixing the US economy to concentrate on the extraordinary implications of the transition from the dollar in nine years' time. The current deadline for the currency transition is 2018.
The US discussed the trend briefly at the G20 summit in Pittsburgh; the Chinese Central Bank governor and other officials have been worrying aloud about the dollar for years. Their problem is that much of their national wealth is tied up in dollar assets.
"These plans will change the face of international financial transactions," one Chinese banker said. "America and Britain must be very worried. You will know how worried by the thunder of denials this news will generate."
Iran announced late last month that its foreign currency reserves would henceforth be held in euros rather than dollars. Bankers remember, of course, what happened to the last Middle East oil producer to sell its oil in euros rather than dollars. A few months after Saddam Hussein trumpeted his decision, the Americans and British invaded Iraq.
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." George Washington
Posts: 4460 | Location: Ohio | Registered: July 20, 2007
Austrian economist have been preaching this for decades. Since the formation of the fed the dollars buying power has deminished 97%. We must abolish the fed and return the sole right of coining currency to the treasury.
instead of issuing bonds the treasury should issue bills.
"Cuban seed tobaccos grown in Nicaragua and Cuba. The wrapper would be from Cuba. The binder leaves would be from Nicaragua. For the ligero tobacco in the filler, he would use two types, one from Esteli and the other from Jalapa in Nicaragua. The other filler components, seco and viso, would come from Cuba, the former from Villa Clara, the latter from Pinar del Rio. That Cigar, he says with pride, would score 100 points." -Don Pepin Garcia
I've seen this coming for a long time. The problem is that it hasn't happened YET !! The world has also seen and known of this impending doom and have taken action already in preparation of it's occurance. John Q. Public is clueless, I've been preaching buying gold for a very long time as 25% of your total portfolio in the very least, and people look at me like I'm crazy. I'ts already tripled in the last few years and could go easily to $2000-$3000 per ounce when the dollar finally does crash. I've also looked into buying Euros....and I mean taking dollars and converting them to Euros, but there is no brokerage house in this country that can do that. The only way for Americans to actually buy Euros is to take your $$$$ to Europe and buy them there and that is just about impossible for most people. The real problem is that nobody believes or understands what is about to happen in this country, many of them are our elected officials. GOD help us !!!!
"Laissez les bon temps rouler"
Posts: 859 | Location: Tiger Country USA | Registered: August 06, 2008
Originally posted by Tonito: I've seen this coming for a long time. The problem is that it hasn't happened YET !! The world has also seen and known of this impending doom and have taken action already in preparation of it's occurance. John Q. Public is clueless, I've been preaching buying gold for a very long time as 25% of your total portfolio in the very least, and people look at me like I'm crazy. I'ts already tripled in the last few years and could go easily to $2000-$3000 per ounce when the dollar finally does crash. I've also looked into buying Euros....and I mean taking dollars and converting them to Euros, but there is no brokerage house in this country that can do that. The only way for Americans to actually buy Euros is to take your $$$$ to Europe and buy them there and that is just about impossible for most people. The real problem is that nobody believes or understands what is about to happen in this country, many of them are our elected officials. GOD help us !!!!
"Laissez les bon temps rouler"
if gold was going to go that high it would have long ago. the elite bankers keep it in check to maintain some value in other currencies.
"Cuban seed tobaccos grown in Nicaragua and Cuba. The wrapper would be from Cuba. The binder leaves would be from Nicaragua. For the ligero tobacco in the filler, he would use two types, one from Esteli and the other from Jalapa in Nicaragua. The other filler components, seco and viso, would come from Cuba, the former from Villa Clara, the latter from Pinar del Rio. That Cigar, he says with pride, would score 100 points." -Don Pepin Garcia
Originally posted by The Wolfe: We must abolish the fed and return the sole right of coining currency to the treasury.
Be realistic, that will never happen! It should, but it wont.
The powers that be have no interest in upholding American superiority.
The dollar will fail-it can't be stopped and it wont be stopped. The question becomes what do the peasantry do to protect themselves?
I like the idea of Gold but I question the practicality of it...after the Fall..I mean, if I had a gold coin worth, let's say $100? or is it worth 100Euro or what? Is it worth what used to be(2009 prices) the value of 100 dollars of grain?
What if I had $100 worth of Stock in Gold Co.? After the dollar fails, and I cash it out what do I get paid in? The new global currency? What will its intrinsic value be and will my $100 in Gold Stock be worth 10cents?
________________________________________________ -The most under appreciated artist, is the one who did not create. -The most under appreciated painter, is the one who never painted. -The most under appreciated writer, is the one that never wrote. -The most under appreciated, is the one who never did.
When I advise the purchase of gold, I mean gold coins only, and then I go to the American Eagle. There's also the Kruggerand, Maple Leaf, Buffalo and others. As far as conversion, that's another problem totally, but my feeling is that whatever amount of gold you possess would be worth the conversion in dollars, America will never give up it's currency no matter how much it fails/falls.
Gold stocks are another thing altogether, you are buying those stocks in dollars so when you cash out, you'll be paid in dollars, and that means whatever the dollar is worth at the time, which will be nil if you wait till after the crash. There are ways to buy gold stocks by not using the dollar, but I'm not familiar with them. You would have to use an offshore broker of some kind, and you would be using your $$$$, which would then be converted to another currency, thus when you cash out, you cash out in that currency.
Gold coins or bullion kept in a safe deposit box is the only way to go, IMHO.
"Laissez les bon temps rouler"
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Tonito,
Posts: 859 | Location: Tiger Country USA | Registered: August 06, 2008
It has been said, the purchasing value of gold has not changed in the last 100years. A new rifle cost 1 oz. of gold a hundred years ago,and new rifle will still cost 1 oz of gold, today.
Besides gold coins, silver coins would also be more useful for smaller business.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Bones,
Yoda
A lie, is not a lie, if you were not expecting the truth...John Vorhaus
New Math: 90% Science + 10% Politics = 120% Politics
New evidence, however, suggest that both rain and snowfall may decrease across the region during dry years. The Oregonian;9/15/09 page 1
Brothers, let me remind you of the words of Charles M. Province, U.S. Army:
It is the Soldier, not the minister Who has given us freedom of religion.
It is the Soldier, not the reporter Who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the Soldier, not the poet Who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer Who has given us freedom to protest.
It is the Soldier, not the lawyer Who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the Soldier, not the politician Who has given us the right to vote.
It is the Soldier who salutes the flag, Who serves beneath the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag, Who allows the protester to burn the flag.
Posts: 859 | Location: Somewhere between Denial and Confusion | Registered: March 26, 2006
Oh, you mean they are denying a secret plan? Wow, so it must not be true...
All I can say is buy gold and get out of the market. People like Gerald Celente are predicting a crash either this autumn or shortly after Christmas. BTW-He said the same thing last summer-"get out of the market", then the market lost 50% of its value. The commercial real-estate market is going to crash very soon. Particularly quickly if there is a bad holiday shopping season.
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." George Washington
Posts: 4460 | Location: Ohio | Registered: July 20, 2007
Originally posted by smokingjoe: LOL....No i posted that purpously to show that..
1. The original story started from an english newspaper....
2. The counter is from Foxnews.....
To me its nothing but fear feeding to the world.
There is to much tied up into the american dollar around the world for it to be abandoned in 10 years.
That to me is to much time to gamble on something like that ( meaning the American dollar ) It could and probably will rebound and be dominant again.
SJ
No, it will not. The dollar is being killed. Our teasury has printed trillions, yesterday Australia raised their interest rate. If we do not respond in kind, our dollar continues to crumble, if we do raise rates, our economy will collapse. The dollar is being imploded. Most economists will tell you that the dollar is toast.
I am reading a book, "Crash Proof" by Peter Schiff (yes he is a potential Senate candidate from CT but I have no stock in him) The book is copyrighted in 2007.
He predicted the same thing, saying too many dollars wereheld overseas (especially by the Chiese) and we have nothing to sell them to get back the dollars. He predicted the real estate bust, saying property was overvalueds and the banks were making bad loans they did not worry about because they were "backed" by the Fed although no one expected the loans to be called.
I too bel;ieve we should have specie currency rather than fiat money but I agree the time for that is long passed. Heck we couldn't get dollar coins to work.
Good people sleep at night knowing there are rough men ready to do violence on their behalf
Posts: 2152 | Location: Connecticut | Registered: November 19, 2004
