White House: We are not saying Putin has made a final decision

• US ready to respond decisively should Russia invade Ukraine
• We are now in the window where a Russian invasion could begin any time
• Any American in Ukraine should leave within the next 24-48 hours
• "I do want to be clear: It could begin during the Olympics, despite a lot of speculation that it would only happen after the Olympics."
• We are not saying Putin has made a final decision
• Believes there is a distinct possibility that Putin has given the order to invade but doesn't know his decision has been made
• US ready to respond to invasion with sanctions and NATO posture changes
• False flag operations is also possible
• Could also see rapid assault on Kyiv
• Expects Biden to engage with Putin by phone
• More than 100K Russian troops on the border

Beyond the invasion itself, the big question for markets is whether there will be coordinated sanctions on Russian oil and gas or lock Russia out of the SWIFT system. I suspect the EU won't go that far, at least not initially.

The rise in oil is going to mean more inflation Inflation Inflation is defined as a quantitative measure of the rate in which the average price level of goods and services in an economy or country increases over a period of time. It is the rise in the general level of prices where a given currency effectively buys less than it did in prior periods.In terms of assessing the strength or currencies, and by extension foreign exchange, inflation or measures of it are extremely influential. Inflation stems from the overall creation of money. This money is m Inflation is defined as a quantitative measure of the rate in which the average price level of goods and services in an economy or country increases over a period of time. It is the rise in the general level of prices where a given currency effectively buys less than it did in prior periods.In terms of assessing the strength or currencies, and by extension foreign exchange, inflation or measures of it are extremely influential. Inflation stems from the overall creation of money. This money is m Read this Term but it has come back a bit on the comment that the US says Putin hasn't made a final decision.