Waching daily Apr 4 2017

too. Wind will

pick up through the day

tomorrow. RADAR & SATELLITE

Pockets of rain showers are

currently moving through the

region. The rain threat

continues tonight with rain off

to our west likely to move into

the region. Currently we are

only seeing showers but an

isolated rumble of thunder is

possible

tonight. The storm system

bringing the rain will continue

pushing showers through the area

Tuesday. Expect mainly cloudy

skies tonight and tomorrow.

RAIN TRACKER Rain will add up to

more than a half inch in spots

by midday tomorrow. FUTURE

TRACKER

This will be a soggy and

unsettled week. Rain will be

increasing in coverage tonight.

The rain may be heavy at times

later this evening and thunder

is also possible. Temps will

stay mild with lows only

dropping into the 50s. Spotty

showers

remain possible for the morning

commute Tuesday. Expect hit or

miss showers through

much of the day with a rumble of

thunder possible early. Highs

will be in the upper

50s to low 60s. Rain begins

tapering off Tuesday night with

only a few isolated

showers expected. Clouds will

break up overnight into

Wednesday. It will be

a little cooler with lows in the

40s. Wednesday will be a decent

day. Expect

some sunshine with highs

returning to the 60s. The risk

for rain returns Wednesday

night and becomes increasingly

more likely toward Thursday

morning.

Temperatures will hover in the

50s all night.

CURRENT TEMPERATURES It has been

a warm afternoon and the mild

temperatures will continue

tonight. Currently, temperatures

are well

into the 60s. They will hover in

the 60s through the evening and

only fall to the

middle 50s tonight. TONIGHT AND

TOMORROW

Rain will become more likely

through the night. Temperatures

stay

mild with lows in the middle

50s. Expect a cloudy night.

Skies stay mainly cloudy

Tuesday morning with spotty

showers expected and

temperatures in the

50s. We warm to near 60 for the

afternoon high. Off and on

showers are expected

through the day with a low risk

of some rumbles of thunder.

Expect a breezy day

Tuesday. 7-DAY OUTLOOK Some

sunshine is expected through the

first half of the day Wednesday.

Clouds

will increase into the afternoon

with a few showers possible late

in the day. Rain

becomes likely again Wednesday

night and showers are expected

Thursday with a chance for

thunderstorms. Highs Thursday

will reach the upper 50s. A cold

front crosses the region

Thursday evening and

temperatures will drop

to the low 30s by Friday

morning. Expect a cold and windy

friday. Scattered rain showers,

mixing with snow at times, are

likely. Highs will only reach

the middle

30s. A few flurries are possible

in the morning Saturday. Skies

will become

mostly sunny through the day and

temperatures will begin to

rebound, with highs in the

middle 40s. Sunday will be the

better day of the weekend. Highs

will

reach the low 60s with plenty of

sunshine. Skies remain partly

sunny Monday. There

is a slight chance for a

late-day showers, but the risk

is low. It will be warmer with

highs in the middle to upper

For more infomation >> First News Weather Update - Duration: 3:26.

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Moscow And Beijing Join Forces To Bypass US Dollar In Global Markets - politics - Duration: 6:34.

Moscow And Beijing Join Forces To Bypass US Dollar In Global Markets, Shift To Gold Trade

The Russian central bank opened its first overseas office in Beijing on March 14, marking

a step forward in forging a Beijing-Moscow alliance to bypass the US dollar in the global

monetary system, and to phase-in a gold-backed standard of trade.

According to the South China Morning Post the new office was part of agreements made

between the two neighbours "to seek stronger economic ties" since the West brought in sanctions

against Russia over the Ukraine crisis and the oil-price slump hit the Russian economy.

According to Dmitry Skobelkin, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia, the

opening of a Beijing representative office by the Central Bank of Russia was a �very

timely� move to aid specific cooperation, including bond issuance, anti-money laundering

and anti-terrorism measures between China and Russia.

The new central bank office was opened at a time when Russia is preparing to issue its

first federal loan bonds denominated in Chinese yuan.

Officials from China�s central bank and financial regulatory commissions attended

the ceremony at the Russian embassy in Beijing, which was set up in October 1959 in the heyday

of Sino-Soviet relations.

Financial regulators from the two countries agreed last May to issue home currency-denominated

bonds in each other�s markets, a move that was widely viewed as intended to eventually

test the global reserve status of the US dollar.

Speaking on future ties with Russia, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in mid-March that

Sino-Russian trade ties were affected by falling oil prices, but he added that he saw great

potential in cooperation.

Vladimir Shapovalov, a senior official at the Russian central bank, said the two central

banks were drafting a memorandum of understanding to solve technical issues around China�s

gold imports from Russia, and that details would be released soon.

If Russia - the world's fourth largest gold producer after China, Japan and the US - is

indeed set to become a major supplier of gold to China, the probability of a scenario hinted

by many over the years, namely that Beijing is preparing to eventually unroll a gold-backed

currency, increases by orders of magnitude.

Meanwhile, as the Russian central bank was getting closer to China, China was responding

in kind with the establishment of a clearing bank in Moscow for handling transactions in

Chinese yuan.

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) officially started operating as a Chinese

renminbi clearing bank in Russia on Wednesday this past Wednesday.

"The financial regulatory authorities of China and Russia have signed a series of major agreements,

which marks a new level of financial cooperation," Dmitry Skobelkin, the abovementioned deputy

head of the Russian Central Bank, said.

"The launching of renminbi clearing services in Russia will further expand local settlement

business and promote financial cooperation between the two countries," he added according

to.

Irina Rogova, a Russian financial analyst told the Russian magazine Expert that the

clearing center could become a large financial hub for countries in the Eurasian Economic

Union.

Bypassing the US dollar appears to be paying off: according to the Chinese State Administration

of Taxation, trade turnover between China and Russia increased by 34% in January, in

annual terms.

Bilateral trade in January 2017 amounted to $6.55 billion.

China�s exports to Russia grew 29.5% reaching $3.41 billion, while imports from Russia increased

by 39.3%, to $3.14 billion.

Just as many suspected, with Russian sanctions forcing Moscow to find other trading partners,

chief among which China, this is precisely what has happened.

The creation of the clearing center enables the two countries to further increase bilateral

trade and investment while decreasing their dependence on the US dollar.

It will create a pool of yuan liquidity in Russia that enables transactions for trade

and financial operations to run smoothly.

In expanding the use of national currencies for transactions, it could also potentially

reduce the volatility of yuan and ruble exchange rates.

The clearing center is one of a range of measures the People's Bank of China and the Russian

Central Bank have been looking at to deepen their co-operation, Sputnik reported.

One of the most significant measures under consideration is the previously reported push

for joint organization of trade in gold.

In recent years, China and Russia have been the world's most active buyers of the precious

metal.

On a visit to China last year, the deputy head of the Russian Central Bank Sergey Shvetsov

said that the two countries want to facilitate more transactions in gold between the two

countries.

"We discussed the question of trade in gold.

BRICS countries are large economies with large reserves of gold and an impressive volume

of production and consumption of this precious metal.

In China, the gold trade is conducted in Shanghai, in Russia it is in Moscow.

Our idea is to create a link between the two cities in order to increase trade between

the two markets," First Deputy Governor of the Russian Central Bank Sergey Shvetsov told

Russia's TASS news agency.

In other words, China and Russia are shifting away from dollar-based trade, to commerce

which will eventually be backstopped by gold, or what is gradually emerging as an Eastern

gold standard, one shared between Russia and China, and which may day backstop their respective

currencies.

Meanwhile, the price of gold continues to reflect none of these potentially tectonic

strategic shifts, just as China - which has been the biggest accumulator of gold in recent

years - likes it.