A Texas LGBT judge with a history of clashing with authorities over her activism has been arrested and charged after she allegedly handcuffed and held a defense attorney captive in her jury box for the crime of arguing for the right to confer with her client during a probation hearing.    

Bexar County Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez was indicted last week on a felony charge of unlawful restraint by a judicial officer and misdemeanor official oppression.  The controversial judge was arrested for the 2024 incident, during which she and defense attorney Elizabeth Russell clashed in the courtroom. 

Gonzalez has had run-ins with the law before.  In 2022 she was was fined for bringing a loaded rainbow-painted gun through San Antonio International airport in her carry-on luggage.  In 2019 shortly after she took the bench as the “first openly gay judge in Bexar County”, Gonzalez was sanctioned for pasting her courtroom, office and robes with gay pride flags in violation of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.  In 2023 the sanctions were lifted by a three judge panel.

Former staff members of the court report that the LGBT judge created a “hostile work environment”.  Multiple former workers/partners with the Reflejo Court program accused Gonzales of increasingly erratic and aggressive behavior, primarily toward defendants/litigants in the courtroom.  Others accused her of being “unstable” and prone to violent outbursts.

The judge is, however, considered a favorite of local prosecutors.

The incident and arrest once again bring into question the mental and emotional stability of woke activists in positions of legal and political authority.  Recent peer-reviewed studies indicate a link between leftist extremism and narcissism/psychopathy. 

Researchers suggest that individuals with dark personalities – such as high narcissistic and psychopathic traits – are attracted to certain forms of political and social activism which they can use as a vehicle to satisfy their own ego-focused needs instead of actually aiming at “social justice and equality.”  In other words, they use activism as a shield from scrutiny when engaged in otherwise destructive behaviors. 

Allowing such volatile and biased people into positions of power in the name of “equity” is becoming a detrimental problem in American society.  Clearing activists out of the military and federal government is already having noticeable benefits over the previously unhinged era of the Biden Administration.  Removing them from the legal system and the public school system will be vital for the future.     

Authored by Jackson Richman via The Epoch Times,

A federal judge is set to sentence Ryan Routh on Feb. 4 for attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump. Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence while the defense is arguing for leniency.

The sentencing hearing is scheduled just months after Routh, 59, attempted to stab himself in U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s courtroom following a guilty verdict on multiple counts. Federal prosecutors said in a court filing that a life sentence was appropriate given what they described as months of deliberate planning and a clear intent to kill.

“He took steps over the course of months to assassinate a major presidential candidate, demonstrated the will to kill anybody in the way, and has since expressed neither regret nor remorse to his victims,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

Defense attorneys objected to prosecutors’ attempt to enhance the sentencing by alleging Routh’s actions involved a terrorism element. Routh’s actions did not meet the legal definition of terrorism, the defense said.

During the trial, Routh attempted to portray himself as gentle and nonviolent, a characterization prosecutors sharply disputed, arguing that his planning showed clear intent to kill Trump.

The prosecution argued in a memo that Routh, “for all his protestations of peacefulness, is a dangerous man, at least when it comes to individuals who stand in his way.”

Dr. Heather Holmes wrote a report for the defense, which is unavailable to the public, that Routh suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder and Bipolar II. However, prosecutors argued that these diagnoses do not provide a basis to claim incompetence, insanity, or diminished capacity. Additionally, the disorders are not corroborated by the defendant’s prior medical or psychiatric records, they said.

The report should not be a justification for sentencing Routh to anything less than life in prison, the prosecution added.

The defense submitted character letters to Cannon.

One was from Darya Trotsenko, a citizen of Ukraine, where Routh served during the Eastern European country’s war with Russia.

She wrote that Routh “possessed a remarkable openness and kindness that drew people to him, and he was deeply respected and liked by everyone.”

Trotsenko also wrote that Routh’s “actions in Ukraine demonstrated a peaceful and constructive character.”

“I believe in justice, but I also believe in compassion and in judging a person by their whole life. Ryan has already shown, through his actions, that he is an asset to his community, not a threat,” she added.

Additionally, Trotsenko said that Routh should eventually be released from prison to be with his family and a contributing member of society.

Routh was convicted of attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

Routh targeted Trump on Sept. 15, 2024, while the then-Republican presidential nominee was golfing at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. The attack occurred just months after a separate assassination attempt against Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Trial evidence showed that Routh concealed himself outside the golf course perimeter, aiming an AK-style rifle through a hole in the fence. He was spotted by then-U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Robert Fercano, who was patrolling one hole ahead of Trump. At the time, Trump was golfing with longtime friend Steve Witkoff, now the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East.

Fearing for his own safety and that of the former president, Fercano fired a shot at Routh, who fled the scene and drove away. Routh was arrested shortly after on a nearby highway.

During the trial, a witness testified that he contacted law enforcement after Routh dropped off a box at his home in April, following a visit to the area near the golf course. Inside the box was a handwritten letter from Routh that read, in part, “Dear World, This was the assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job.”

The letter also offered $150,000 to anyone who could kill Trump.

Investigators searching Routh’s vehicle recovered multiple cell phones, a list of international flights scheduled for the afternoon and evening of the attack, and directions to Miami International Airport.

Cell phone records showed that between Aug. 18 and Sept. 15, Routh’s devices repeatedly connected to cell towers near Trump International Golf Club and Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s estate.

2025 was a watershed moment for the US nuclear industry: enthusiasm for a global nuclear renaissance gripped the investment community as the valuations for publicly traded companies were pushed into the stratosphere. Tickers associated with nuclear reactors were pushed up several hundred percentage points, with Nano Nuclear one of the best performers of the year.

Nano Nuclear’s chairman and founder, Jay Yu, sat down recently on the Shawn Ryan Show and discussed his company’s mission and technology.

The Vigilance Elite Production of SRS EP. 275 with Jay Yu is live on the Shawn Ryan Show YouTube channel! https://t.co/otnVoaUQNM pic.twitter.com/9y8TAIzfpM

— Shawn Ryan Show (@ShawnRyanShow) January 29, 2026

The nuclear portion of the discussion focused around the global demand for new sustainable energy and how companies like Nano are answering that call.

With energy widely understood to be the true bottleneck of AI adoption and economic affordability, companies are developing new innovative ways to rapidly deploy gigawatts of nuclear-powered energy generation capacity.

Nano recently broke ground at the University of Illinois for the construction of their flagship reactor design, the Kronos reactor.

Kronos is a high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor using TRISO as fuel and helium as a coolant.

Tri-structural Isotropic (TRISO) fuel was described by Yu as nearly indestructible and lined with tank armor, which is an accurate description given its multiple layers of pyrolytic carbon and silicon carbide. 

One of the highlights of gas reactors is their ability to be “walk-away safe”.

This means their design utilizes passive cooling features in the event of an extended loss of power due to natural disaster or massive electrical system failures – the plant prevents a meltdown or explosion like Fukushima and Chernobyl all on its own.

Yu went on to highlight the modularity of smaller reactor designs. This means the majority of the parts are fabricated in a factory and then shipped to the site and connected like Lego bricks at the location to dramatically reduce construction times.

Additional features such as a lack of required water cooling enable the possibility of data centers being built out in desert locations in the U.S. and the Middle East.

The potential of building several reactors to power one data center, vice one large reactor, enables the take down of single or multiple units at a time for refueling/maintenance without losing power to the load is a massive advantage.

Much more in the full clip: watch it here.

Crude oil prices (WTI) are trending moderately lower this morning as traders weigh geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and a report of sharply lower US stockpiles reported by API overnight.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US envoy Steve Witkoff will hold indirect negotiations in Oman on Friday, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim reported, adding talks would be “limited to the nuclear issue and the lifting of sanctions.”

“Geopolitical tensions are really driving it,” Equinor Chief Financial Officer Torgrim Reitan said in a Bloomberg TV interview.

“The underlying balance is a lower price than there is today, but with everything going on it’s very hard to say where this will end.”

We can’t help but feel like the API reporting (and very mixed picture) was related to the impact of the freezing weather across most of the country.

API

• Crude -11.1mm (+700k exp)

• Cushing

• Gasoline +4.7mm

• Distillates -4.81mm

DOE

• Crude -3.45mm (+700k exp)

• Cushing -743k

• Gasoline +685k

• Distillates -5.55mm – biggest draw since Feb 2021

The official data showed a sizable crude draw (but considerably less than API reported) as distillates saw their biggest drawdown since Feb 2021. Bloomberg’s Will Zubanskuy notes that the largest portion of that distillates draw came from PADD 1, which includes the East Coast — where homes in the Northeast lean on heating oil to warm their houses in frigid temperatures. Adding to the demand, diesel and oil-fired power plants start running when the grid comes under strain and some utilities begin pulling from heating oil for certain customers instead of natural gas when supply of the latter gets tight.

Stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, declined for the second straight week, bringing inventories at the storage hub to around 24 million barrels. Despite the draw, levels at Cushing remain several million barrels above where they were this time last year. Gasoline stocks rose for the 12th straight week…

Source: Bloomberg

Crude production in the Lower 48 fell to the lowest since November 2024 as freezing temperatures disrupted drilling in the Permian and Bakken formations.

In the past two months, output is down by 632,000 barrels a day. Overall, production has been shaved off by 4.4 million barrels since early December. 

Source: Bloomberg

Bloomberg’s Alex Longley also noted another data point showing how much of this storm impact was centered on the gas side of the market rather than oil. While crude production was down 481k b/d versus a week earlier, NGL output tumbled 1.25m b/d. It’s the lowest since 2024 and the biggest weekly decline on record.

WTI prices edged lower, likely driven by the smaller draw than API reported…

Circling back to where we started, the bullish drop in inventories comes as tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to run hot. While the U..S. Administration said negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program will start this week, U.S. naval forces sent to the Arabian Sea off Iran shot down an Iranian drone approaching an aircraft carrier 500 miles off Iran’s coast in the Arabian Sea, the BBC reported. As well, a U.S.-flagged merchant ship in the Strait of Hormuz, the choke point for more than 20-million barrels per day of Persian Gulf exports, was harassed by Iranian gun boats.

“Oil would be lower without Middle Eastern sabre-rattling. Post-settlement API figures, faithfully echoing the impact of the cold spell in the US, provide additional support this morning, as crude oil stocks dropped 11 million bbls. These are extraordinary days, weeks and months, in which perceived oversupply has been overwhelmingly overlooked, yet it is still able to set a price ceiling when perceived supply disruptions are in the crosshairs of investors,” PVM Oil Associates noted.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In one of his most revealing moments years ago, Don Lemon sat down with Morgan Freeman and admitted exhaustion with the race narrative. “Sometimes, I get so tired of talking about it,” Lemon said. “I wanna just go, ‘This is over. Can we move on?’”

Don Lemon once told Morgan Freeman that he was tired of talking about race because racism “is over.”

“Sometimes, I get so tired of talking about it. I wanna just go, ‘This is over. Can we move on?’”

Now Don Lemon harasses pastors and portrays church goers as white supremacists. pic.twitter.com/nROt2HvcrX

— Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) February 2, 2026

He also once had some sage advice for black people:

pic.twitter.com/SKq9kkRd5A

— MCM (@MMike218) February 2, 2026

Today that same man harasses pastors, calls ordinary churchgoers entitled because of “WHITE SUPREMACY,” and defends mobs that storm Christian services.

Lemon’s dramatic transformation reached a new level this month when he was arrested by federal agents in connection with the anti-ICE mob that disrupted a worship service at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. 

The Trump DOJ is now pursuing prison time against Lemon and others involved under federal civil rights statutes protecting religious freedom.

A clear turning point came in March 2024 when Elon Musk terminated a planned partnership for The Don Lemon Show on X. Musk bluntly explained that Lemon’s approach was “just CNN, but on social media” and lacked authenticity. 

Lemon responded by calling Musk racist, claiming the billionaire was “not used to having to answer to anyone, especially someone like me who doesn’t look like him.” Musk fired back, placing Lemon in the “stupid asshole” quadrant on a personality-intelligence chart.

Instead of recalibrating toward more independent journalism, Lemon doubled down on the very identity politics he once appeared weary of.

By May 2025, Lemon was in full meltdown mode over the arrival of white South African farmers granted refugee status. He dismissed the entire situation as “this South African farmer bullshit, which is the most blatantly obvious racist shit ever,” arguing Afrikaners could not be legitimate refugees because they “own most of the land and the property.”

In September 2025, while covering Charlie Kirk’s memorial, Lemon spent hours attacking the event for displaying too much Christianity. “What we saw in that arena was not simply faith finding public expression, it was religious nationalism on full display,” he complained, claiming speakers quoting scripture were “demanding submission.”

Then came the January church storming in Minneapolis. Lemon embedded himself with the anti-ICE protesters and livestreamed as they burst into a service, forcing families and children out into freezing temperatures. When criticized, he insisted: “The whole point of it is to disrupt and make people uncomfortable.”

“It’s uncomfortable and traumatic for the people here, but that’s really… that’s what protesting is about,” Lemon further added.

He later ridiculously claimed: “I didn’t even know they were going to this church until we followed them there. We were there chronicling protests… Once the protest started in the church, we did an act of journalism.”

Federal prosecutors disagreed. Lemon was arrested late January 2026 and charged in connection with the incident, including counts related to conspiracy against religious rights. 

He was released on his own recognizance but must appear in Minnesota federal court. The Trump administration has signaled it intends to treat this case seriously, with Deputy AG Todd Blanche stating those convicted would face prison time and vowing to properly enforce the FACE Act against attacks on religious services.

Lemon now stands as a stark example of radicalization. Once hinting at fatigue with endless race grievance, he fully embraced it—attacking white Christians, defending disruptions of worship, and raging against any immigration policy that doesn’t fit the left’s narrative.

The Trump DOJ’s willingness to hold him accountable may finally force a reckoning for Lemon and the leftist activists who believe storming churches is protected “journalism.”

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Trump had kicked off the week by warning Iran that “bad things” would probably happen if a deal could not be reached. “We have ships heading to Iran right now, big ones – the biggest and the best – and we have talks going on with Iran and we’ll see how it all works out,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “If we can work something out, that would be great and if we can’t, probably bad things would happen.”

“I’d like to see a deal negotiated. I don’t know that that’s going to happen,” he added. So far, Iran seems a willing participant, though at this point the reality is it has little to lose by risking such direct engagement.

The only thing which has remained up in the air is the venue. Initially widespread reports said the talks would be hosted by Turkey in Istanbul, but now the sides have their sights set on Oman.

Axios writes that these changes threaten to derail the talks before they even begin. “The Iranians want to move the talks from Istanbul to Oman,” the Wednesday report says.

“They also now want to hold them in a bilateral format, only with the U.S., rather than with several Arab and Muslim countries attending as observers,” it adds.

But Axios says that the Trump administration has agreed to the request from Tehran to hold the talks in Oman.

The bigger issue is going to be the scope of the talks. Iran is willing to engage on the nuclear issue, but will not negotiate over its ballistic missiles, seen as essential for national security and in any future war with Israel.

“A source with knowledge said that’s because the Iranians want to limit the talks to nuclear issues and not discuss things like missiles and proxy groups that are priorities for other countries in the region,” states Axios.

On Tuesday Trump had followed with more comments:

“They had a chance to do something a while ago, and it didn’t work out. And we did ‘Midnight Hammer’, I don’t think they want that happening again,” he said.

This time, Tehran is warning that it is ready to strike back hard if attacked, even if this means all-out war. It says its military forces and ballistic missiles are on high alert, and also that Tel Aviv will be again targeted in the event of US aggression.

NEW: Direct talks not currently on agenda as Iran-US set to resume negotiations in Oman. Qatari PM may join, no word yet on other regional officials. Also potentially joining: Jared Kushner.

Apart from differences over substance, concern that indirect talks won’t cut it. pic.twitter.com/1bCWoymsiY

— Mohammad Ali Shabani (@mashabani) February 4, 2026

Israel meanwhile is said to be lobbying Washington for regime change in Tehran, but the White House reportedly isn’t ready for such a drastic option – also amid reports the Pentagon would need more time to put assets in place.

While we will not be getting the payrolls report this week (due to a very brief govt shutdown), ADP’s Employment report paints a poor picture for hiring (even if jobless claims paints a healthy picture for ‘not firing’) adding just 22k jobs (well below the 45k expected).

Goods producing firms added just 1k jobs (Construction +9k, Manufacturing -8k – which has lost jobs every month since March 2024) while Services firms saw only 21k jobs added (with health care a standout, adding 74k job, while Profesional Services lost 57k jobs)

“Job creation took a step back in 2025, with private employers adding 398,000 jobs, down from 771,000 in 2024,” said Dr. Nela Richardson Chief Economist, ADP.

Interestingly, Small firms saw joib additions while large firms saw job losses…

The ADP report, published in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, showed workers who changed jobs saw a 6.4% increase in pay, decelerating from the prior month. Those who stayed put saw a slight pickup in pay gains.

“While we’ve seen a continuous and dramatic slowdown in job creation for the past three years, wage growth has remained stable.”

So, in summary, the ‘no hire, no fire’ labor market keeps chugging along, despite considerable optimism over economic growth.

US stock futures are up small with Tech lagging on rotation fears, though major indices are off their overnight lows. The AI narrative has been flipped upside down, with traders focused on perceived losers, most of which are in the Software sector, where “there’s no floor” according to one investment manager. As of 8:00am ET, S&P futures are up 0.2%, well off session lows; Nasdaq futures rise 0.2%, pressured by weakness in AMD which tumbled 8% after projections which disappointed Wall Street; Alphabet is set to report after the close. Pre-market, Mag7 are mixed with AAPL, AMZN, and GOOG higher with Semis under pressure (AMD -7%, AVGO -0.8%, NVDA -0.1%). Both Cyclicals and Defensives are mixed without a clear leader. The USD is bid as bond yields are higher by 1-2bps.Commodities are stronger led by Energy and Metals, with gold blasting off back over  $5k, and silver rising above $90. Today’s macro data focus is on ISM Services where an in line / stronger print may create a renewed bid for stocks.

In premarket trading, Mag 7 stocks are mostly higher: Alphabet +1% ahead of earnings due after the market close (Microsoft +0.1%, Amazon +0.3%, Apple +0.3%, Nvidia +0.3%, Meta little changed, Tesla -0.06%)

• AMD (AMD) slides 9% after the chipmaker’s sales forecast underwhelmed investors, a sign that it’s not making the AI inroads that some on Wall Street anticipated.
• Boston Scientific (BSX) falls 9% after the maker of medical devices gave a profit and sales growth forecast for 2026 that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations.
• Chipotle (CMG) falls 5% after the restaurant chain operator’s underwhelming annual comparable sales forecast.
• Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY) rises 7% after providing an upbeat sales forecast for the year as strong demand for its weight loss drug cemented its position at the top of the obesity market.
• Emerson Electric (EMR) rises 4% after the automation technology provider reported 9% growth in underlying orders in its first quarter. Citi said orders and other results show a “largely healthy demand environment.”
• Johnson Controls (JCI) rises 8% after the HVAC company boosted its adjusted earnings per share forecast for the full year to a figure above what analysts expected.
• Lumen Technologies (LUMN) falls 4% after the wireline telecommunications company’s results and outlook prompted a downgrade from Raymond James.
• Lumentum (LITE) rises 10% after the maker of optical and photonic products posted stronger-than-expected second-quarter results and gave a robust forecast.
• Match Group (MTCH) jumps 7% after the dating service provider reported revenue for the fourth quarter that beat the average analyst estimate.
• Silicon Laboratories (SLAB) jumps 53% after agreeing to be acquired by Texas Instruments for $231 per share in cash.
• Sonos (SONO) rises 12% after the speaker company’s first-quarter results beat expectations on key metrics.
• Take-Two Interactive (TTWO) rises 5% after the video game publisher raised its fourth-quarter bookings forecast. Analysts are positive about the company reiterating the launch date of its highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI.
• Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER) falls 6% after giving a weak profit outlook and promoted an outspoken driverless-vehicle bull to be its new chief financial officer, signaling further investment in a closely watched area of the ride-hailing company’s business.

Economically sensitive shares were Wednesday’s biggest gainers, with futures for the Russell 2000 index of small caps advancing 0.4%, while tech treaded water after a historic rout for SaaS/Software names. The rotation into cyclical stocks persisted as renewed fears over AI-driven disruption weighed on markets. Tuesday’s selloff was sparked by a new automation tool from Anthropic PBC, with losses spilling into financial services and asset managers. Caution lingered on Wednesday, with a European basket of stocks seen at risk from AI disruption falling another 1.1%.

“I don’t think the market has fully resolved whether this move was based on fear or fundamentals. What’s clear is that we’ve had a confidence break, really, at the category level,” said Stephanie Niven, portfolio manager at Ninety One. “Before convictions can be rebuilt at that really important company level, we are seeing this kind of indiscriminate selling.”

Disruption fears have added a new layer of complexity in distinguishing winners from losers in AI. With valuations stretched and earnings season under way, investors have already punished companies that failed to live up to elevated expectations. The mood among investors about software stocks and other sectors deemed at risk of AI advances is grim, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. analyst Toby Ogg. Ogg met more than 50 investors across Europe and the US over two weeks and said he found that they had significantly reduced software holdings over the past 12 to 18 months. Even after the latest pullback, “the general appetite to step in remains generally low,” he said in a client note.

No one is interested in buying the dip, according to JPMorgan analyst Toby Ogg, and even good earnings won’t be enough, since AI disruption is a long-term issue. “We are now in an environment where the sector isn’t just guilty until proven innocent but is now being sentenced before trial,” he said.

“There’s clearly indiscriminate selling across the entire software cluster,” said Karen Kharmandarian, senior equity investment manager at Mirova in Paris. “There’s no floor, the downward momentum is too strong. It looks a bit like capitulation, which could offer opportunities selectively once things stabilize”.

The pain isn’t just in equities, with banks unable to sell a software loan deal. In options, the implied volatility of software stocks is blowing out versus the  S&P 500 ETF.

Another test looms for the AI trade when Alphabet reports after the close. The stock has been the top performer among the Magnificent Seven megacaps since the beginning of 2025. Peers Microsoft Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc. saw divergent reactions to their results last week, reflecting views over whether heavy AI spending is paying off.

“The biggest risk regarding tonight’s publication is the fact that there is a decoupling between Google’s long-term stature as an AI winner, thanks to its vertically integrated approach, and short terms trends in search and monetization, which might prove more erratic,” said Jacques-Aurélien Marcireau, co-head of equities at Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management.

European stocks reverse an earlier decline as an initial extension of the Anthropic-sparked software selloff eases. Stoxx 600 now up by 0.3% as gains in telecoms and chemicals offset mixed results from the financials sector and a large drop for drugmaker Novo Nordisk, which sank 16% after a disappointing sales outlook. Here are some of the biggest movers on Wednesday:

• Handelsbanken gains as much as 4.4% after posting a top-line beat in its full-year report.
• DNB Bank shares rise as much as 3.5% after the Norwegian bank reported net profit ahead of expectations, driven by beats in net interest income and fees.
• Mediobanca shares rise as much as 7.8% after MF daily reported that the board of the Banca Monte Paschi di Siena is begining to tilt toward a delisting of the taken over bank.
• Wendel shares rise as much as 7% after Germany’s Henkel agreed to buy Stahl Parent from Stahl Group, which is majority-owned by the French investment firm. BASF and Clariant also have stakes.
• AMS Osram shares rise as much as 13% after agreeing to offload its sensor business to Infineon for €570m in cash.
• Novo Nordisk shares plunge as much as 20% in Copenhagen after the drugmaker forecast a steep decline in sales this year that was also wider than analyst expectations.
• Software, IT, data services, ad agencies and exchanges are among the equity sectors leading losses in the European session on Wednesday, as they extend a selloff following persistent investor concerns over potential disruption from AI tools.
• UBS shares dropped as much as 5.5% despite a beat on 4Q earnings as it announced a below-expected $3 billion buyback program for 2026 that could increase during the year and maintained its financial targets for 2028.
• Santander shares drop as much as 5% after the Spanish lender announced the acquisition of Webster Financial in a $12 billion deal.
• Watches of Switzerland tumbles as much as 5.1% after the watch retailer cut the midpoint of its margin goal, countering the improved outlook for sales growth.
• DSV falls as much as 4.5% after the Danish shipping and logistics group guidance for 2026 disappointed, overshadowing decent 4Q figures.
• Novartis shares drop as much as 3.1% after the Swiss drugmaker reported net sales for the fourth quarter that missed expectations, while its 2026 Ebit forecast was also below estimates.
• Atalaya Mining Copper shares fall as much as 8.9% to 937 pence, slipping below the offering price after holder Trafigura Group sold 14 million shares at 945 pence per share.

Earlier in the session, Asian stocks slipped in another session dominated by technology concerns, after a broad selloff in the US on fears of disruption from artificial intelligence. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell as much as 0.6%, with software makers among the biggest decliners after Anthropic’s launch of a new automation tool. Hong Kong led losses and Japan’s Nikkei 225 also dropped, while stocks rose in South Korea, Australia and Thailand. 

Eli Lilly, Uber and Yum! Brands are among companies expected to report before the market open. Lilly investors will be looking for guidance on how the company sees the obesity market expanding following a deal with the Trump administration to widen access for some patients with Medicare. Rival Novo Nordisk’s guidance fell well short.

In FX, the dollar is stronger and the yen extended losses for a 4th session as traders anticipated a victory for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party in this weekend’s poll.

In rates,treasuries are slightly cheaper across the curve, with yields around 1bp higher vs Tuesday’s close and lagging European bonds, which are higher after euro-area January inflation data and services PMIs. US session includes ISM services gauge, following Treasury quarterly refunding announcement at 8:30am. US 10-year yield near 4.28% is more than 1bp cheaper on the day while German counterpart is richer by about 2bp; UK 10-year is higher by less than 1bp European bonds rising and outperforming gilts and Treasuries. Euro-zone inflation cooled to the lowest level in more than a year.

In commodities, gold moves back above $5,000/oz and silver up to around $89/oz. Oil prices up, Brent above $67/barrel. Bitcoin hovered near $76,000.

The dollar and Treasuries were little changed.

US economic calendar includes January ADP employment change (8:30am), January final S&P Global US services PMI (9:45am) and January ISM services index (10am).Fed speaker slate includes Governor Cook on monetary policy and the economic outlook at the Economic Club of Miami (6:30pm)

Market Snapshot

• S&P 500 mini little changed
• Nasdaq 100 mini little changed
• Russell 2000 mini +0.3%
• Stoxx Europe 600 little changed
• DAX -0.1%, CAC 40 +0.7%
• 10-year Treasury yield +1 basis point at 4.28%
• VIX -0.1 points at 17.94
• Bloomberg Dollar Index +0.2% at 1189.69
• euro little changed at $1.1814
• WTI crude +0.7% at $63.66/barrel

Top Overnight News

• Donald Trump reiterated that the US and Iran are maintaining diplomatic talks, even after an American warplane shot down an Iranian drone in the Arabian Sea. BBG
• Trump’s Federal Reserve chair nominee Kevin Warsh faces a battle in the Senate after lawmakers threatened to hold up his confirmation until the DoJ halts its probes into Jay Powell and Lisa Cook. FT
• Nvidia is nearing a deal to invest $20 billion in OpenAI as part of its latest funding round, people familiar said. BBG
• Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi should not count on the Bank of Japan’s help in taming sharp bond yield rises given the huge cost of intervention, including the significant risk of igniting unwelcome yen falls, sources say. RTRS
• Hedge funds are using leverage to reap 28% returns from the safest of bonds. A key ingredient is their use of borrowed cash to juice returns, in some cases amplifying positions up to 15 times their initial investment. BBG
• Investors are ramping up bets on higher long dated Treasury yields and a steeper yield curve as incoming Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is expected to press for interest rate cuts while shrinking the U.S. central bank’s balance sheet. Warsh’s preference for a materially smaller Fed balance sheet, currently around $6.59 trillion, implies a withdrawal of meaningful government demand for Treasuries, a move which tightens financial conditions because the central bank is not providing liquidity to the market. RTRS
• Euro-area inflation slowed to 1.7% in January, the weakest reading in more than a year and further below the ECB’s 2% target. BBG
• Novo shares plunged after the drugmaker forecast sales decline of up to 13% in 2026, amid price pressure in obesity drugs. But Eli Lilly LLY is now +8% in the pre on Strong 4Q GLP-1 Momentum + Guidance Ahead of Street Quelling Last Minute Fear from NVO Guide. BBG, GS Trading
• NVDA CEO Jensen Huang dismissed fears that artificial intelligence will replace software and related tools, calling the idea “illogical”, after a significant selloff in global software stocks on Tuesday. RTRS
• Department of Labor said all agencies will fully resume to normal operations from the 4th of February 2026.

Trade/Tariffs

• US Senators push for USD 70bln funding deal to support US President Trump’s critical minerals agenda, FT reported.
• Indian Trade Minister said the US trade deal will offer a competitive advantage to Indian exporters and our priority is to energy security for our citizens. Need to bolster capabilities in many sectors including nuclear energy and data centres. India will raise trade with the US.

A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks were ultimately mixed as the region partially shrugged off the downbeat handover from Wall Street, where sentiment was mired by renewed tech-selling, while participants in the region also reflected on the latest Chinese PMI data and the end of the partial US government shutdown. ASX 200 climbed higher with the upside led by outperformance in miners as metal prices continued their recovery, but with gains in the index capped by heavy losses in the tech sector. Nikkei 225 slumped at the open but is off worst levels, while risk appetite was pressured following recent earnings, including disappointing results from Nintendo, which saw its shares suffer a double-digit percentage drop. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp saw two-way price action as participants digested stronger-than-expected Chinese RatingDog Services PMI data, and after the PBoC drained liquidity, while it was also reported that NVIDIA AI chip sales to China are stalled by a US security review and that Chinese customers are meanwhile not placing H200 chip orders with the company.

Top Asian News

• China’s market regulator unconditionally approves CATL (3750 HK), Chery (9973 HK) and others joint venture formation.
• China’s Vice Finance Minister said China is facing persistent headwinds and policy uncertainty.
• New Zealand ANZ Commodity Price Index MM (Jan) +2.0% (Prev. -2.1%).

European bourses (+0.1%) are broadly firmer across the board, though the DAX 40 (-0.1%) has been pressured by post-earnings losses in Infineon (-2.3%). European sectors hold a positive bias. Telecoms and Chemicals leads whilst Healthcare is the clear laggard, hampered by post-earning losses in Novo Nordisk (-17.6%) and Novartis (-1%). The former reported strong headline metrics, though its 2026 guidance disappointed.

Top European News

• Germany sold EUR 3.197bln vs exp. EUR 4.0bln 2.50% 2032 Bund: b/c 1.51x (prev. 1.2x), average yield 2.60% (prev. 2.33%), retention 20.1 (prev. 23.87%).
• Germany’s VDA announces that 2025 EV production comes out at 1.67mln vehicles, +23% Y/Y.
• Europe’s safest corporate bond spreads drop to its lowest level since 2007.

Central Banks

• Fed Governor Miran resigned on Tuesday from his position as Chair of Council of Economic Advisers, Barron’s reported citing a White House official.
• BoJ won’t come to the rescue of a Takaichi-driven bond rout, with sources stating that Japanese PM Takaichi should not count on the BoJ’s help in taming sharp yield rises given the high cost of intervention including risk of igniting unwanted yen declines.
• PBoC announces plan to build a multi-level financial service system to support domestic demand, tech innovation and SMEs. To continue to support debt risk resolutions for financing platforms, back local government in market oriented reforms and guide financial institutions to provide services based on marker and legal principles.
• Riksbank Minutes: President Thedeen said “at present I assess that monetary policy is following a stable and reasonable course, and we can tolerate minor deviations in data outcomes without immediately needing to adjust the course we have set.

FX

• DXY resides within a narrow range within Tuesday’s 97.298-97.692 range after seeing weakness yesterday against most major peers, giving back some of the post-ISM spoils, while JOLTS data was delayed, and there were several comments from Fed speakers, but failed to move the dial. Overnight, US President Trump signed the USD 1.2tln spending bill to end the government shutdown, as expected, and thus NFP will likely be released next week (TBC). Today, however, desks are eyeing the private ADP and ISM Services PMIs.
• JPY is the underperformer vs the USD, EUR, and GBP, as the Japanese currency continued to lag amid the ongoing expectations for a landslide victory by Japanese PM Takaichi’s ruling LDP at the snap election on Sunday. USD/JPY topped yesterday’s 156.08 peak to print a current high of 156.59, but is still some way off the 23rd Jan high of 159.23.
• EUR/USD trades flat with little notable action seen on the Final Services and Composite PMIs. Little move also seen on the EZ HICP metrics, which were broadly in-line / cooler-than-expected. A report which will have little impact on policymakers at the ECB, who are set to meet on Thursday – as a reminder, the Bank is expected to keep its deposit rate steady at 2.00%.
• GBP/USD sees modest gains and narrowly gains despite the revisions lower in Final PMIs, but likely lifted by the GBP/JPY pair testing highs from 23rd Jan as the cross looks to test 215 to the upside, residing at levels last seen in 2008.
• Antipodeans are mixed with the Aussie buoyed by rebound in gold prices, whilst the NZD posts losses following ultimately mixed employment and labour cost data from New Zealand.

Fixed Income

• USTs are essentially flat in quiet trade and currently trading in a narrow 111-17 to 111-21+ range. Focus overnight was on the end of the US shutdown after the House voted (217-214) to pass the USD 1.2tln spending package to fund the government. Following this, the Department of Labor announced that all agencies will fully resume normal operations from the 4th of February 2026; there are currently no further details or guidance on whether the NFP due on Friday will be released.
• Nonetheless, focus turns to US data later; the monthly ADP national employment data will be released, where analysts expect 48k from the prior 41k. The ISM services PMI headline is expected to ease to 53.5 from 54.4, where employment is seen nudging up a little, but prices and new orders are seen easing a touch. From the supply front, the QRA is also due today.
• Bunds initially held a downward bias but then gradually picked up as the morning progressed; currently at the upper end of a 127.72-127.88 range. There have been a number of Final PMI metrics this morning, with the EZ figure revised a touch lower; the accompanying report suggested that the ECB may highlight growing services inflation in its policy decision this week. EZ HICP printed in line with expectations, and cooled from the prior; core metrics were a touch short of expectations. Overall, a report which will not shift much ahead of the ECB confab on Thursday. As a reminder, the Bank is expected to keep its deposit rate steady at 2.00% and largely reiterate that rates are at a good place. Next up, a 2032 Bund auction.
• Gilts are essentially flat and trade within a 90.88-91.06 range. Action has been fairly choppy this morning, but has moved off its best levels in recent trade. Aside from the UK’s PMI (revised a touch lower), catalysts for the benchmark are incredibly light. Focus now on the BoE on Thursday, where rates are expected to be kept unchanged.
• UK DMO plans to hold a programmatic gilt tender for a long conventional gilt on February 11th.
• Australia sold AUD 1.1bln 4.25% 2036 bonds, b/c 3.73, avg. yield 4.9012%.

Commodities

• Crude benchmarks initially held onto the gains seen in the latter end of Tuesday’s session, which came from reports that the US shot down an Iranian surveillance drone approaching the USS Abraham Lincoln. WTI and Brent peaked at USD 64.16/bbl and USD 68.25/bbl, respectively, early in the APAC session, just shy of Tuesday’s high, before steadily paring back and retracing to the key USD 63/bbl and USD 67/bbl handle.
• Spot XAU continues to rebound, with the yellow metal returning above the USD 5k/oz handle after hovering just shy of the level throughout Tuesday’s session. Gold rose throughout the APAC session, peaking at USD 5092/oz, before oscillating in tight c. USD 40 range. Similarly, spot silver has gradually bid higher and briefly held above USD 90/oz before falling back below the level as European trade continues.
• 3M LME Copper has thus far traded on both sides of the unchanged mark, fluctuating in a USD 13.29k-13.52k/t band, as risk tone overnight was mixed. Heightened concerns over AI weighed on the tech-heavy NQ during Tuesday’s trading day, and this followed through into Asia-Pacific equities.
• Morgan Stanley raises near-term Brent forecasts as geopolitical risk premium is likely to persist, but expects prices to fall below USD 60/bbl later this year.
• Ukraine’s Naftogaz said Ukraine has received a delivery of 100MCM batch of US LNG, making it the first delivery expected in 2026.
• Venezuela’s top Economic Advisor Ortega said he wants Venezuela to be known as a country with one of the highest oil production levels.
• China expands subsidies for energy storage industry as it seeks to support the country’s green transition and ensure reliable electricity supplies.

Geopolitics

• Ukrainian peace negotiators have arrived in Abu Dhabi and have started their first meetings, IFX reported.
• Russia’s Kremlin said it will defend its interest in the Arctic, via Sky News Arabia.
• Russia’s Kremlin said it has not seen any new developments when it comes to India and Russian oil.
• Russia’s Kremlin said Russia will continue its Special Military Operation until the relevant decisions are made by Ukraine.
• Ukraine’s Naftogaz said Ukraine has received a delivery of 100MCM batch of US LNG, making it the first delivery expected in 2026.
• China’s President Xi is to hold a video call with Russian President Putin, CCTV reported.
• Iran is to announce major structural and administrative decisions in the defence sector to respond to new threats, Iran’s Noor News reported.
• “Deputy Speaker of Iran’s Parliament: Iran and the United States likely reached preliminary understandings before sitting down at the negotiating table”, Sky News Arabia reported.
• Israeli artillery shelling reported in central Gaza, via Al Jazeera news.
• Israeli army announces airstrikes and tank shelling on militants after an Israeli officer was seriously injured, according to Sky News Arabia. IDF said shooting at our forces is a violation of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, according to Al Arabiya.
• US President Trump said we are still negotiating with Iran and that there is more than one meeting with Iran.

US Event Calendar

• 7:00 am: United States Jan 30 MBA Mortgage Applications, prior -8.5%
• 8:15 am: United States Jan ADP Employment Change, est. 45k, prior 41k
• 9:45 am: United States Jan F S&P Global US Services PMI, est. 52.5, prior 52.5
• 9:45 am: United States Jan F S&P Global US Composite PMI, est. 52.9, prior 52.8
• 10:00 am: United States Jan ISM Services Index, est. 53.5, prior 54.4, revised 53.8
• 6:30 pm: United States Fed’s Cook Speaks on Monetary Policy and Economy

DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

It was a pretty brutal day in markets yesterday that wouldn’t be obvious with a quick glance of the screens, as a majority of the S&P 500’s constituents rose on the day. The reason was that Anthropic launched a new AI automation tool servicing legal work, which was perceived as a big threat to software firms and related stocks. So in Europe, RELX Plc, Wolters Kluwer, Experian, Thomson Reuters, and the LSE all fell around -10 to -15%, while in the US Gartner (-20.87%), Paypal (-20.31%) and Expedia (-15.26%) led the declines in the S&P 500. In turn, the overall US Software index (-4.60%) saw 104 decliners and only 9 risers, and its 6th successive decline to put the index back to April levels. Even the blue-chip Microsoft was down -2.87% and is now down -24% from its peak on October 28 last year.

So yesterday marked a dramatic acceleration of the trend we’d seen of late, and it means the 9 worst-performing companies in the S&P 500 YTD are all in the software and related services sectors, having now seen declines of 25% or more. While the question over the end-winners from AI is unlikely to be answered in 2026, recent months have seen a clear shift in markets from AI euphoria towards more differentiation between companies, and growing concern about its disruption to existing business models.

Those huge moves helped push the S&P 500 (-0.84%) down, despite being on course for another record high at the US open. The Nasdaq (-1.43%) and Mag-7 (-1.53%) clearly suffered more. And they’re still struggling for momentum this morning, with futures on the S&P 500 (+0.04%) basically flat.
To be fair, it wasn’t all bad news yesterday, with most of the S&P 500 constituents moving higher on the day. The ongoing rotation meant materials (+2.00%) and consumer staples (+1.71%) sectors extended Monday’s post-ISM gains, while energy stocks (+3.29%) were boosted by a renewed rise in oil. Those gains included Walmart (+2.94%), which became the 11th US company to reach a $1trn valuation. And the small cap Russell 2000 rose by +0.31% despite being down -1.30% at the day’s lows. Meanwhile in Europe, the STOXX 600 (+0.10%) just about managed to hit another record high, whilst Italy’s FTSE MIB (+0.90%) closed at its highest level since 2000, despite the broader struggles among tech stocks.

Another beneficiary of yesterday’s session were precious metals, which finally showed signs of stabilising after their recent slump. In fact, gold prices (+6.12%) posted their biggest daily gain since 2008, moving up to $4,947/oz, whilst silver (+7.43 %) was back up to $85.16/oz. Clearly they’re still a long way from the highs, but it was clear that dip buyers were coming back in after the biggest slump in decades. And that trend has continued overnight, with gold (+2.72%) now back up to $5,081/oz. The volatility was also visible in Bitcoin (-2.96%), which fell by as much as -7% to below $73k intra-day, which was its lowest level since Trump’s election victory in November 2024.

By contrast, it was a very steady day for US Treasuries, which saw little movement in either direction. In the end the risk-off backdrop sent yields lower, with the 2yr yield (-0.2bps) down to 3.57%, whilst the 10yr yield (-1.3bps) fell to 4.27%. But there were few concrete drivers behind that. Admittedly, we did hear from Richmond Fed President Barkin, who acknowledged the persistence of above-target inflation, and said “I take this sustained miss seriously”. But market pricing for the Fed was little changed yesterday either.

Those moves came as the latest US government shutdown came to end after four days, with the House passing the funding package that had been approved by the Senate last Friday. The legislation, which was then signed by Trump, will fund most government agencies through September, though Congress still faces a showdown over funding for the Department of Homeland Security which was extended only until next Friday (February 13) amid partisan tensions over immigration enforcement.

The market backdrop wasn’t helped by the continued geopolitical noise, with oil prices spiking after news that the US shot down an Iranian drone that approached a US aircraft carrier. Oil marginally pared its gains as the White House said that US-Iran talks led by Steve Witkoff were still scheduled for Friday, with Trump himself saying that “We are negotiating with them right now”. But Brent crude still closed +1.55% higher at $67.33/bbl, and has risen another +0.76% this morning to $67.84/bbl as we go to print.

Earlier in Europe, it was a bit more eventful as the 30yr German yield (+3.4bps) hit a post-2011 high of 3.55%. That comes as investors are increasingly focused on the fiscal stimulus, with higher debt issuance having pushed up long-end bond yields in recent months. Those moves for long-end German yields were part of a wider selloff across Europe, with yields on 10yr bunds (+2.2bps), OATs (+1.7bps) and BTPs (+1.7bps) all moving higher, not helped by the latest rebound in oil prices. To be fair, we did get a downside surprise in the flash CPI print from France yesterday, which fell to just +0.4% in January, thus raising hopes that today’s Euro Area-wide print would come in on the softer side. But the commodity rebound ultimately offset that, and the RBA’s rate hike earlier in the day further added to the sense that hikes elsewhere could eventually be back on the agenda.

Overnight in Asia, we’ve seen a mixed performance this morning. On the positive side, the KOSPI (+1.39%) is at another record high, and the Shanghai Comp (+0.01%) has eked out a modest gain. However, other indices have moved lower, including the CSI 300 (-0.05%), the Hang Seng (-0.17%) and the Nikkei (-0.83%). We’ve also started to see some of the services and composite PMIs from the region, with China’s RatingDog Services PMI up to a 3-month high of 52.3 (vs. 52.0 expected), whilst Japan’s final services PMI reached to an 11-month high of 53.7. However, the Japanese yen has continued to weaken a bit ahead of this weekend’s election, down -0.33% to 156.27 per dollar.

Looking at the day ahead, US data releases include the ISM services index for January and the ADP’s report of private payrolls for January, whilst in the Euro Area we’ll get the flash CPI print for January. Otherwise, we’ll get the final services and composite PMIs for January for the US and Europe. The US Treasury will also be releasing its quarterly refunding announcement, detailing the breakdown of planned issuance. Elsewhere, central bank speakers include the Fed’s Cook, and today’s earnings releases include Alphabet.

Authored by Michael Wilkerson via The Epoch Times,

Investors have been rightly impressed by the remarkable run of gold, which in dollar terms has doubled in price over the past year.

This performance vastly outpaces the stock markets (which are also sitting near all-time highs) and bitcoin (trading sideways to down for months), the cryptocurrency challenger touted as a “digital gold” safe-haven alternative to depreciating fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar.

The gold euphoria should be tempered by an uncomfortable recognition.

Gold’s meteoric performance is a troubling sign that something is profoundly wrong—or at least brewing—in the global geopolitical, economic, and monetary environment.

Investors are reaching for safety at the same time that risky investments continue to rise in dollar-terms value. Central banks are accumulating and hoarding gold and reducing their U.S. dollar reserves, as all the while they prepare for economic, technologic, and kinetic war. Gold is a safe haven for individual investors so long as they can legally hold, buy, and sell it. Most of us take that as a given.

But Americans should never forget that the U.S. government, under then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s (FDR’s) Executive Order 6102 (April 1933), moved with coercive force (including massive fines and threat of up to 10 years’ imprisonment) to confiscate the estimated $1.5 billion in gold coins, bullion, and certificates held by ordinary Americans. This represented about 5 percent of the money supply, equivalent to about $1.1 trillion in liquidity terms in today’s financial system.

Then, in the midst of the Great Depression and related banking crisis, the U.S. dollar was convertible into gold at an artificially low fixed rate of $20.67 per ounce. Anyone could walk into their bank and demand their paper currency be redeemed for gold. Because of the loss of confidence in the banking system, that is exactly what they were doing, as were foreign governments and banks that had a claim on gold held in the United States, draining the U.S. government and banks of their reserves.

Because the dollar was 100 percent backed by gold, and with the fixed conversion rate, the Federal Reserve couldn’t increase the money supply to help ease the credit crisis and stop the deflationary spiral the country was facing … because it didn’t hold the gold.

So FDR simply declared a national emergency, confiscated citizens’ gold for $20, and then, the next year, “presto,” simply changed the official conversion rate upward by 67 percent to $35 per ounce, enabling money supply expansion, reducing the value of the dollar in foreign currency terms, and thus supporting U.S. exports.

This was done in the context of rising geopolitical tensions, tariff wars, rumors of rearmament in Europe, competitive currency devaluations, and a scramble by governments around the world to shore up their gold reserves.

Sound familiar?

Today, we are in a similar—but also very different—geopolitical environment. What is analogous is that the nations of the world are transitioning into a “war economy.” The central banks are once again buying as much gold as they can get their hands on. Protectionism and resource nationalism are the orders of the day. Fiat currencies are on a path toward debasement, an environment in which governments deprive their citizens of purchasing power and use inflation as stealth taxation.

I’m not suggesting that the U.S. government is considering gold confiscation. I’m reminding all of us that “black swan” events happen unexpectedly and suddenly. A kinetic intervention into Iran would potentially be one such event, with economic and financial ramifications likely much greater than the restrained response to U.S. action in Venezuela. When a black swan lands, the shock waves move in patterns difficult to anticipate. In perceived national emergencies, governments reach into their bags of tricks for unprecedented solutions. This was true in 1914 (the onset of the cataclysm of World War I), in the 1930s Great Depression, in 1971 when then-President Richard Nixon “temporarily” suspended dollar convertibility into gold by foreign banks and governments to stem the outward flow of reserves (temporarily lasting 55 years), and in 2008’s global financial crisis. The long list of government interventions during this period resulted in distortions to the monetary and financial markets—and the real economy—that ripple to this day.

We are in times that are not business as usual. I continue to view gold as an important part of a financial umbrella. Over millennia, gold has proven to be real money when fiat (paper) currencies inevitably fail. But I keep one eye open to the possibility that in a national emergency, all bets are off. History shows that no action is beyond the consideration of governments attempting to extricate themselves from an apparently intractable strategic predicament.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times or ZeroHedge.

Officials at the United Nations are pleading for relief this week after admitting that the premier globalist organization is going broke because of US cuts and changes to their budgeting rules which require them to pay back some “unspent funds”.  Unpaid dues from member states are also building.

As the Trump administration slashes support over criticism that the U.N. has failed to promote U.S. interests, the United Nations is warning it could face a cash crisis by July.  U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warns that outstanding dues reached a record $1.568 billion at the end of 2025 and that collections covered only 76.7% of assessed contributions, leaving the organization dangerously exposed. 

Unless collections “drastically improve,” the secretary-general warned, the U.N. will not be able to fully implement its 2026 budget and could face a liquidity crisis by mid-year.

In 2024, US taxpayers funded around 25% of the United Nations core budget and peacekeeping operations, along with 40% of all humanitarian assistance.  As with the revelations surrounding institutions like USAID and NATO, when we look at the raw financial data for the UN we find that Americans have been paying for the rest of the world for quite some time and without US cash the house of cards quickly starts to fall apart.

Furthermore, taxpayer dollars have been flowing into organizations and countries that are explicitly hostile to US values and constitutional freedoms.

In January 2026, the United States formally withdrew from the World Health Organization and began exiting dozens of international bodies, including multiple U.N. entities, citing misalignment with American priorities.  The funding squeeze has already forced the United Nations to tighten spending across several agencies. Reports show that U.N. bodies, including the World Food Programme and refugee agencies, are preparing layoffs and program reductions as overall contributions fall to the lowest level in a decade.

“Either all member states honour their obligations to pay in full and on time – or member states must fundamentally overhaul our financial rules to prevent an imminent financial collapse,” Secretary-General Guterres wrote.

In his final yearly speech this month, Guterres, who will step down at the end of 2026, outlined his goals for the year, saying that the world was riven with “self-defeating geopolitical divides (and) brazen violations of international law.”  The UN chief also denounced “wholesale cuts in development and humanitarian aid”.  In other words, the UN admits it cannot survive without constant handouts from the US.  

However, Guterres never addresses the obvious problem:  Why should Americans continue to fund an international organization that is ideologically opposed to everything they stand for?  Why should they fund an organization that helped to fund and plan the third-world invasion of the US through mass immigration?  In fact, why wouldn’t most Americans cheer for the financial ruin of the UN?