STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Tuesday, 4 November 2014 -- GOTV!!!!

[Tansy_Gold]

[font size=3]STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday, 4 November 2014[font color=black][/font]

SMW for 3 November 2014

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON 3 November 2014
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Dow Jones 17,366.24 -24.28 (-0.14%)
S&P 500 2,017.81 -0.24 (-0.01%)
[font color=green]Nasdaq 4,638.91 +8.17 (0.18%)


[font color=red]10 Year 2.34% +0.01 (0.43%)
[font color=black]30 Year 3.06% 0.00 (0.00%) [font color=black]


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[font size=2]Market Conditions During Trading Hours[/font]
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(click on link for latest updates)
http://tools.investing.com/market_quotes.php?
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[font size=2]Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold[center]

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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Market Data and News:[/font][/font]
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Economic Calendar
Marketwatch Data
Bloomberg Economic News
Yahoo Finance
Google Finance
Bank Tracker
Credit Union Tracker
Daily Job Cuts
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Economic Blogs:[/font][/font]
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The Big Picture
Financial Sense
Calculated Risk
Naked Capitalism
Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong
Bonddad
Atrios
goldmansachs666
The Stand-Up Economist
The Automatic Earth
Wall Street on Parade
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Essential Reading:[/font][/font]
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Matt Taibi: Secret and Lies of the Bailout


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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Government Issues:[/font][/font]
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LegitGov
Open Government
Earmark Database
USA spending.gov
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Videos:[/font][/font]
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Charlie Rose talks with Roubini
Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
William Black: This Economic Disaster
Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn
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[font color=red]Partial List of Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 [/font][font color=red]
2/2/12 David Higgs and Salmaan Siddiqui, Credit Suisse, plead guilty to conspiracy involving valuation of MBS
3/6/12 Allen Stanford, former Caribbean billionaire and general schmuck, convicted on 13 of 14 counts in $2.2B Ponzi scheme, faces 20+ years in prison
6/4/12 Matthew Kluger, lawyer, sentenced to 12 years in prison, along with co-conspirator stock trader Garrett Bauer (9 years) and co-conspirator Kenneth Robinson (not yet sentenced) for 17 year insider trading scheme.
6/14/12 Allen Stanford sentenced to 110 years without parole.
6/15/12 Rajat Gupta, former Goldman Sachs director, found guilty of insider trading. Could face a decade in prison when sentenced later this year.
6/22/12 Timothy S. Durham, 49, former CEO of Fair Financial Company, convicted of one count conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud.
6/22/12 James F. Cochran, 56, former chairman of the board of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and six counts of wire fraud.
6/22/12 Rick D. Snow, 48, former CFO of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and three counts of wire fraud.
7/13/12 Russell Wassendorf Sr., CEO of collapsed brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group Inc. arrested and charged with lying to regulators after admitting to authorities he embezzled "millions of dollars" and forged bank statements for "nearly twenty years."
8/22/12 Doug Whitman, Whitman Capital LLC hedge fund founder, convicted of insider trading following a trial in which he spent more than two days on the stand telling jurors he was innocent
10/26/12 UPDATE: Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta sentenced to two years in federal prison. He will, of course, appeal. . .
11/20/12 Hedge fund manager Matthew Martoma charged with insider trading at SAC Capital Advisors, and prosecutors are looking at Martoma's boss, Steven Cohen, for possible involvement.
02/14/13 Gilbert Lopez, former chief accounting officer of Stanford Financial Group, and former controller Mark Kuhrt sentenced to 20 yrs in prison for their roles in Allen Sanford's $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
03/29/13 Michael Sternberg, portfolio mgr at SAC Capital, arrested in NYC, charged with conspiracy and securities fraud. Pled not guilty and freed on $3m bail.
04/04/13 Matthew Marshall Taylor,fmr Goldman Sachs trader arrested, charged by CFTC w/defrauding his employer on $8BN futures bet "by intentionally concealing the true huge size, as well as the risk and potential profits or losses associated."
04/04/13 Matthew Taylor admits guilt, makes plea bargain. Sentencing set for 26 June; faces up to 20 years in prison but will likely only see 3-4 years. Says, "I am truly sorry."
04/11/13 Ex-KPMG LLP partner Scott London charged by federal prosecutors w/passing inside tips to a friend in exchange for cash, jewelry, and concert tickets; expected to plead guilty in May.
08/01/13 Fabrice Tourré convicted on six counts of security fraud, including "aiding and abetting" his former employer, Goldman Sachs
08/14/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout charged with wire fraud, falsifying records, and conspiracy in connection with JP Morgan's "London Whale" trade.
08/19/13 Phillip A. Falcone, manager of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, agrees to admit to "wrongdoing" in market manipulation. Will banned from securities industry for 5 years and pay $18MM in disgorgement and fines.
09/16/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout officially indicted on charges associated with "London Whale" trade.
02/06/14 Matthew Martoma convicted of insider trading while at hedge fund SAC (Stephen A. Cohen) Capital Advisors. Expected sentence 7-10 years.
03/24/14 Annette Bongiorno, Bernard Madoff's secretary; Daniel Bonventre, director of operations for investments; JoAnn Crupi, an account manager; and Jerome O'Hara and George Perez, both computer programmers convicted of conspiracy to defraud clients, securities fraud, and falsifying the books and records.
05/19/14 Credit Suisse, which has an investment bank branch in NYC, agrees to plead guilty and pay appx. $2.6 billion penalties for helping wealthy Americans hide wealth and avoid taxes.
09/08/14 Matthew Martoma, convicted SAC trader, sentenced to 9 years in prison plus forfeiture of $9.3 million, including home and bank accounts







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[font size=3][font color=red]This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.[/font][/font][/font color=red][font color=black]

[Demeter]

1. Germany warns 'no going back' if Britain curbs EU immigration

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/11/03/uk-germany-britain-eu-idUKKBN0IM0J120141103

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned Britain's David Cameron that putting limits on immigration from other European Union nations would be a "point of no return" that could sharply increase the risk of Britain leaving the EU, a magazine said.

The weekly Der Spiegel, citing unnamed sources in Merkel's office and the German foreign ministry, reported on Sunday that Merkel was becoming worried for the first time that a British exit from the EU - dubbed "Brexit" - was a real possibility.

Under growing pressure from the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) ahead of a May 2015 national election, Cameron's Conservatives have said they would try to cap immigration from the rest of the EU if re-elected.

Both Merkel and the European Commission in Brussels have said this would violate a fundamental EU principle that allows citizens of the bloc to live and work in any member state...

It's the classic tale: The Angela of Music!

[Demeter]

2. All the election gear is packed in the car

and the house is getting in good order for tomorrow's poll inspection marathon, 17 hours of it, most likely ....just a bath, a change of clothes, and a bunch of frozen dinners, and I'm off to the mid-terms.

I put the older cat down today...her cancer reached the point of no return, as well. It's a grand turnover in all things this Fall. The hope is that by Spring, a lot of backlog will have been processed, and a new season of warmth and productivity will begin.

But first, there is the Winter...chance of snow Sat, Sun, Mon, Tues and Weds, so far. Every time I look, they add a day or two.

[Demeter]

3. W.H.O. Deplores Delay in Ebola Vaccine

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/04/world/africa/ebola-cure-delayed-by-drug-industrys-drive-for-profit-who-leader-says.html?_r=0

The leader of the World Health Organization criticized the drug industry on Monday, saying that the drive for profit was one reason no vaccine had yet been found for Ebola.

In a speech at a regional conference in Cotonou, Benin, Dr. Margaret Chan, the director general of the W.H.O., also denounced the glaring absence of effective public health systems in the worst-affected countries.

At least 13,567 people are known to have contracted the Ebola virus in the latest outbreak, and 4,951 have died, according to the latest data on the W.H.O. website, which was updated on Friday. All but a few of the cases have been in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Dr. Chan said her organization had long warned of the consequences of greed in drug development and of neglect in public health.

In the midst of the Ebola crisis, she said, these “two W.H.O. arguments that have fallen on deaf ears for decades are now out there with consequences that all the world can see, every day, on prime-time TV news.”

YOUR POINT, MARGARET?

“A profit-driven industry does not invest in products for markets that cannot pay,” she said. “W.H.O. has been trying to make this issue visible for ages. Now people can see for themselves.”

MORE

[Demeter]

4. AIG beats third-quarter estimates, will buy back more shares

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/03/us-aig-results-idUSKBN0IN21U20141103?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews

Insurer American International Group (AIG.N) on Monday reported better-than-expected third quarter earnings, bolstered in part by improved performance at core insurance operations.

After-tax operating income jumped 23 percent from a year earlier. Chief Executive Officer Peter Hancock said the company remains "disciplined in our approach to balancing growth, profitability, and risk and focused on maintaining the strength of our industry-leading balance sheet."

The company also declared a dividend of 12.5 cents per share as it did in the previous quarter. In addition, AIG's board authorized a further up to $1.5 billion share buybacks, in addition to the $3.4 billion of AIG stock the insurer has repurchased this year. AIG shares rose 0.43 percent to close at $53.8 on Monday.

"Overall, it was a good quarter," said S&P Capital IQ equity analyst Cathy Seifert. "I think it was a triple, I don't think it was a home run."

Hancock took the reins at the company on Sept. 1, moving from his previous post as head of the company's property-casualty business. Hancock succeeded Bob Benmosche, who was widely credited with helping turn the company around after bad bets on derivatives nearly sank the company during the financial crisis. The company has since focused more closely on its core businesses and reinstated a dividend last year...

NUMBERS AT LINK

[Demeter]

5. Business Lessons From Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers

Tom Magliozzi, who co-hosted the long-running NPR show Car Talk, with his younger brother, Ray, passed away on Monday after 35 years of hosting Car Talk. NPR executive producer Doug Berman confirmed the cause of death was complications from Alzheimer's.

But before Tom and Ray Magliozzi became Click and Clack, their radio pseudonyms, they were entrepreneurs. The siblings founded an automotive shop in Cambridge, Massachusetts after they both graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology--14 years apart. When they were called in for a radio panel of auto mechanics, they had no idea they would eventually become household names....

http://www.inc.com/graham-rapier/business-lessons-from-car-talk.html

[Demeter]

6. J.P. Morgan being probed by Justice Department

https://secure.marketwatch.com/story/jp-morgan-being-probed-by-justice-department-2014-11-03-181032416?siteid=YAHOOB

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. said the Justice Department is conducting a criminal investigation on its foreign-exchange-related matters, according to a regulatory filing released by the bank Monday. The Justice Department is working alongside other regulators focusing on civil enforcement, as talks on foreign exchange settlements heat up with several banks and regulators across U.S. and Europe, according to people familiar with the matter.

The largest U.S. bank by assets said the investigations focus on its spot foreign-exchange trading activities and controls related to those activities. The company added it continues to cooperate with the investigations and discussions with regulators and civil enforcement authorities.

The bank said there is “no assurance that such discussions will result in settlements.”

Even so, J.P. Morgan said in October it raised its legal expenses by about $400 million compared with the prior quarter, and other large U.S. and European banks took similar moves in recent weeks, in large part due to expected foreign exchange settlements. The banks have said they are cooperating. J.P. Morgan also said the amount it may lose related to litigation in excess of legal reserves could be as much as $5.9 billion as of September 30, up from $4.6 billion three months earlier, according to the regulatory filing. The estimate is closely watched by investors as a way to gauge whether legal costs are rising or falling versus a bank’s previous expectations. J.P. Morgan and other banks generally don’t disclose their reserves.

In recent years, J.P. Morgan has paid billions of dollars in penalties to remedy regulatory concerns from trading losses to alleged mortgage abuses in the run-up to the financial crisis.

MORE: http://online.wsj.com/articles/j-p-morgan-being-probed-by-justice-department-1415054825?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

[Demeter]

7. NY Fed Contracted JPMorgan to Hold Over $1.7T of its QE Bonds Despite 2 Felony, & Serial Charges

http://wallstreetonparade.com/2014/11/the-new-york-fed-has-contracted-jpmorgan-to-hold-over-1-7-trillion-of-its-qe-bonds-despite-two-felony-counts-and-serial-charges-of-crimes/

The Federal Reserve Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., which functions as the central bank of the United States, has farmed out much of its Quantitative Easing (QE) programs to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York since the financial crisis of 2008. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has, in turn, contractually farmed out a hefty chunk of the logistics of that work to JPMorgan Chase in the last six years...Sitting quietly on the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s web site is a vendor agreement and other documents indicating that JPMorgan Chase holds all of the Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) that the New York Fed has purchased under its various Quantitative Easing programs. As of last Wednesday, that figure was $1.7 trillion dollars. (The New York Fed has confirmed that JPMorgan is custodian for these assets.) In addition to holding the MBS, JPMorgan also has a contractual agreement to exercise discretion (its own judgment) in trading the surplus cash that sits in the New York Fed’s cash account. While JPMorgan is restricted to holding collateral backed by U.S. government securities for these cash trades in Repurchase Agreements, its approved list of counter parties include global banks variously charged with rigging the international interest rate benchmark known as Libor, money laundering, aiding and abetting tax evasion, and defrauding clients.

During the period in which JPMorgan has been the trusted custodian of a major part of the assets of the U.S. central bank, it has been repeatedly charged with serial crimes. In January of this year, JPMorgan paid $2.6 billion and made history in being the first Wall Street mega bank to be charged with two felony counts and receive a deferred prosecution agreement. The crime was aiding and abetting the Madoff fraud – the largest Ponzi scheme in the history of modern finance. In September of last year, JPMorgan settled its London Whale scandal for $920 million in penalties. That case involved its use of depositors’ savings to gamble in exotic derivatives in London, lose at least $6.2 billion of those deposits, and initially misstate the amount of losses to its regulators. There has also been a stream of other charges and settlements by JPMorgan for rigging electric rates, abusing credit card customers, and rigging Libor. According to press reports, another charge and settlement is ahead involving the rigging of foreign currency exchange trading – potentially as soon as this month.

The contract between the New York Fed and JPMorgan (located here under “Vendor Agreements – Agency Mortgage Backed Securities Purchase Program”) is a textbook study in the mushrooming conflicts evolving from the New York Fed being a regulator of Wall Street banks while simultaneously needing their help to conduct open market operations to carry out monetary policy for the nation. In the case of the QE assets, the contract designates the New York Fed as JPMorgan’s “customer,” adding another incestuous twist to the relationship Wall Street banks have with their regulator. The conflicts which the New York Fed must tolerate, as a customer handing over $1.7 trillion of its assets to JPMorgan, are breathtaking. Here’s a partial list:

“Customer acknowledges that Bank [JPMorgan Chase] or its Affiliates may have a material interest in transactions entered into by Customer with respect to the Accounts or that circumstances are such that Bank may have a potential conflict of duty or interest. For example, Bank or its Affiliates may…

“act in the same transaction as agent for more than one customer…

“earn profits from any of the activities listed herein…

“Customer further acknowledges that Bank or its Affiliates may be in possession of information tending to show that the instructions received may not be in the best interests of Customer but that Bank is not under any duty to disclose any such information.”

According to a fee agreement dated September 19, 2009, JPMorgan will be handsomely paid for its work. It is to earn 10 basis points on all the assets it holds for the New York Fed; will earn transaction fees ranging from $1.25 to a $1.00 per transaction; $5 for each wire transfer; $25.00 for each manual instruction placed by the New York Fed; $1.25 to $1.00 every time a Mortgage Backed Security pays down principal; and various other fees for administration and trading the cash balances. In addition to the New York Fed’s System Open Market Account (SOMA) oversight of the $1.7 trillion in MBS held at JPMorgan, the New York Fed oversees $2.3 trillion in U.S. Treasury notes and bonds, also purchased under QE programs...The problem for the New York Fed is that it effectively has no bank in America, or anywhere else for that matter, big enough to hold $1.7 trillion in bonds which doesn’t have a serious rap sheet. And the growing feeling is that the New York Fed is an incompetent and/or compromised regulator that has contributed to creating recidivist banks.

MORE

[Demeter]

8. Obama to meet Federal Reserve chair Yellen Monday

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/31/usa-fed-obama-yellen-idUSL1N0SQ2IM20141031

President Barack Obama will meet with Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen on Monday to discuss "the long-term outlook for the American economy and the global recovery," a White House official said.

Obama met periodically with Yellen's predecessor, Ben Bernanke, and was continuing that trend, the official said.

"This meeting is a continuation of that important dialogue on the state of the economy, financial reform, and other economic issues," the official said.


ANYBODY FIND OUT HOW THAT CAME OUT?---LET ME KNOW!

[Demeter]

9. NO TRICK, NO TREAT--No trades busted or adjusted after NYSE data processor incident

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/31/us-markets-usa-processor-idUSKBN0IK1YI20141031

No trades were broken or adjusted when a hardware failure on Thursday interrupted the flow of quotes and last sale price at the five stock and options exchanges operated by the group that oversees the New York Stock Exchange, a spokesman said Friday.

The hardware failure impacted data feeds for about half an hour at the NYSE Group's primary data center in Mahwah, New Jersey, forcing the unit of Intercontinental Exchange Inc (ICE.N) to switch to its back-up recovery center in Chicago.

The processing of quotes and trade reports resumed at Mahwah on Friday, said NYSE spokesman Eric Ryan. There were no adjusted or broken trades because of Thursday's incident, he said.

NYSE offered no further details of what caused the data feeds to experience difficulties in publishing and receiving trade and quote information...

[Demeter]

10. Countries band together against tax evasion

AND WHAT HAVE THEIR CORPORATE MASTERS TO SAY ABOUT THAT?

http://www.dw.de/countries-band-together-against-tax-evasion/a-18028434

Officials around the world are closing in on tax evaders with a cross-border data-sharing agreement aimed at reining in the amount of money people can hide in illegal offshore accounts... Fifty-one countries agreed Wednesday to share their citizens' financial data more openly with authorities in order to combat tax evasion.

"Banking secrecy in its old form has become obsolete," German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble told an international taxation conference in Berlin.

The new deal would facilitate the exchange of private information held by banks, such as customers' account balances, interest earned, dividends and sales proceeds from financial assets on an annual basis. Banks would pass that information along to their country's tax authorities, who would in turn share it with an account holder's home country.

The new standards were developed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in order to force notorious tax havens to disclose the names and fortunes of tax dodgers. While the OECD does not have an estimate of how much money is stowed away in illegal offshore accounts, efforts by 20 countries to make tax avoiders come clean have gleaned 37 billion euros ($47 billion) since 2009, said the head of the OECD's center for tax policy and administration, Pascal Saint-Amans.

Signees of the new framework included all 28 European Union members, but not the United States. A dozen other states signaled their willingness to join the treaty at a later date. That included Switzerland, which has to first put the issue to a referendum. There are already a number of bilateral agreements in place to combat tax evasion internationally. The template for the current pact was the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010, which has required non-US financial institutions to share information on accounts with the International Revenue Service in Washington, DC.

The deal is not expected to go into effect until 2017, when signees have had the chance to vote on the new standards in their national parliaments.

[Fuddnik]

13. Key flaw.

When they have a chance to vote on it.

2017 is plenty of time to buy what they want.

[Demeter]

11. IEA: Sub-Saharan Africa will produce more gas than Russia

http://www.euractiv.com/sections/energy/iea-sub-saharan-africa-will-produce-more-gas-russia-309599

Sub-Saharan Africa will outstrip Russia as a global gas supplier by 2040, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), spurring European Union efforts to wean itself off its Russian gas addiction by investing in the region’s development.

Policymakers and senior officials are acutely aware that liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from a booming Africa would significantly diversify the EU’s energy mix.

Dominique Ristori, the European Commission’s senior civil servant in charge of energy policy, said on Wednesday (29 October) that the situation in Ukraine had given a push to a new level of cooperation between the EU and Africa.

The Ukraine crisis highlighted the EU’s dependence on Russia for gas. Diplomatic efforts to punish Russia for the annexation of Crimea were hampered by fears Moscow would turn off the taps. On 16 October, the Commission published a first-ever analysis of the consequences of a disruption of Russian gas supplies, or even a complete halt of such imports to the Union.

MUCH MORE AT LINK

[Demeter]

12. Shadow Banking Grows to $75 Trillion Industry, FSB Says

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-30/shadow-banking-grows-to-75-trillion-industry-fsb-says.html

The shadow banking industry grew by $5 trillion to about $75 trillion worldwide last year, driven by lenders seeking to skirt regulations and investors searching for yield amid record low interest rates.

The size of the shadow banking system, which includes hedge funds, real estate investment trusts and off-balance sheet investment vehicles, is about 120 percent of global gross domestic product, or a quarter of total financial assets, according to a report published by the Financial Stability Board today.

Shadow banking “tends to take off when strict banking regulations are in place, when real interest rates and yield spreads are low and investors search for higher returns, and when there is a large institutional demand for assets,” according to the report. “The current environment in advanced economies seems conducive to further growth of shadow banking.”

While watchdogs have reined in excessive risk-taking by banks in the wake of the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008, they are concerned that lenders might use shadow banking to evade the clampdown and cause risks to build up out of sight of regulators. The FSB published guidelines for supervisors last year to keep track of the industry.

MORE

[xchrom]

14. Oil Just Crashed To A 3-Year Low

http://www.businessinsider.com/oil-just-crashed-to-a-3-year-low-2014-11

WTI Crude Oil just dropped to its lowest intraday price since 2011, sliding 2.53% lower after weeks of decline. The benchmark price for crude oil is down by nearly a quarter from the end of July.

Saudi Arabian action seems to have pushed the oil price further down: according to Reuters, Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil giant, cut prices for US buyers, while increasing them for Asian and European customers.

The crude price tumbled well below $80 per barrel, settling at around $76.73 per barrel right now (10:53 a.m. GMT). Here's how it slipped this morning:



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/oil-just-crashed-to-a-3-year-low-2014-11#ixzz3I6JDuYJj

[xchrom]

15. The 10 Most Important Things In The World Right Now

http://www.businessinsider.com/10-most-important-things-in-the-world-right-now-nov-4-2014-11

1. In a tentative deal, Russia might convert Iran's giant stockpile of uranium into fuel rods for the country's only nuclear power plant, which would simultaneously relive Western concerns that the uranium could be used to make a nuclear weapon.

2. Iraq is on "high alert" for Jihadist attacks.

3. The former girlfriend of Rurik Jutting, the British banker suspected of killing two women in Hong Kong, claims he was suicidal.

4. French researchers have developed a 15-minute test for the Ebola virus, called eZyscreen, which uses a drop of blood or urine to quickly diagnose patients.

5. Taylor Swift had pulled all of her albums off Spotify, reportedly a move to boost CD sales to make the singer's record label more attractive to potential buyers.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/10-most-important-things-in-the-world-right-now-nov-4-2014-11#ixzz3I6NredAw

[xchrom]

16. The EU Just Slashed Growth And Inflation Forecasts For Europe's Lifeless Economies

http://www.businessinsider.com/europe-economic-forecasts-nov-2014-2014-11

The European Commission just released its forecasts for growth in Europe, one of its bi-annual outlooks. We knew it wasn't going to be pretty. Here's how bad it's gotten:

Inflation is set to be 0.5% this year, and 0.8% next year. Even in 2016, it'll only rise to 1.5%, still far from the ECB's 2% target

Germany will grow by just 1.3% this year, and 1.1% in 2015

France will grow by 0.3% this year, barely out of recession at all, and 0.7% next year

Overall growth for the eurozone expected to come in at 1.1% this year, down from the 1.7% expected in the Spring forecast
Italy will register a recession this year, with growth down 0.4%

France's government deficit isn't going to fall to the eurozone's 3% target. The Commission is forecasting a 4.4% deficit this year, climbing to 4.5% next year and 4.7% in 2016.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/europe-economic-forecasts-nov-2014-2014-11#ixzz3I6OVcV7p

[xchrom]

17. Staggering Unemployment In Greece And Spain Show How Europe Is Failing

http://www.businessinsider.com/europes-policies-are-failing-the-unemployed-2014-11

The European Commission's latest economic forecasts are grim. Overall, growth for the eurozone is expected to be 1.1% this year, down from the 1.7% in the spring forecast.

On the unemployment front the report took an even more negative tone. Labour market conditions are expected to improve very gradually, with unemployment falling from 11.5% today to 10.8% in the eurozone by 2016.

But the headline stats hide the deep divisions among country outlooks. In particular, the huge divide in the prospects for the unemployed across Europe look set to last.

Basically, the countries in the north are doing fine. The ones in the south are a nightmare, with unemployment rates double or triple what you'll see in Germany.

On the one side, you have the eurozone's core countries, which have managed to bounce back since the depths of the crisis.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/europes-policies-are-failing-the-unemployed-2014-11#ixzz3I6PI5Xr7

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/europes-policies-are-failing-the-unemployed-2014-11#ixzz3I6P684W9

[xchrom]

18. More Than 40% Of China's Arable Land Is Degraded

http://www.businessinsider.com/r-more-than-40-percent-of-chinas-arable-land-degraded-xinhua-2014-11

BEIJING (Reuters) - More than 40 percent of China's arable land is suffering from degradation, official news agency Xinhua said, reducing its capacity to produce food for the world's biggest population.

The rich black soil in northern Heilongjiang province, which forms part of China's bread basket, is thinning, while farmland in China's south is suffering from acidification, the report said, citing agriculture ministry statistics.

Degraded land typically includes soil suffering from reduced fertility, erosion, changes in acidity and the effects of climate change as well as damage from pollutants.

Beijing is growing increasingly concerned about its food supply after years of rapid industrialization resulted in widespread pollution of waterways and farmland.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-more-than-40-percent-of-chinas-arable-land-degraded-xinhua-2014-11#ixzz3I6QPMZRU

[xchrom]

19. Former UBS Exec Found Not Guilty In U.S. Tax Cheating Trial

http://www.businessinsider.com/r-former-ubs-exec-found-not-guilty-in-us-tax-cheating-trial-2014-11

LAUDERDALE Fla. (Reuters) - A former top banker who headed global wealth management at UBS AGwas found not guilty on Monday on U.S. charges of conspiring with wealthy Americans to hide $20 billion in secret offshore accounts.

Raoul Weil, the highest-ranking Swiss banker to stand trial in the United States, was accused in South Florida federal court of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service.

The verdict was a major setback to the U.S. Justice Department which spent six years seeking to prosecute Weil, including extraditing him from Italy last year.

The jury took only 75 minutes to reach its verdict after a three-week trial that ended abruptly on Monday when Weil's defense team decided not to call any witnesses, saying the government had failed to make its case.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-former-ubs-exec-found-not-guilty-in-us-tax-cheating-trial-2014-11#ixzz3I6QvNKI9

[xchrom]

20. Australia’s Unemployment Rate Is Worse Than We Thought

http://www.businessinsider.com/australias-unemployment-rise-2014-11

Australia’s unemployment rate has been revised up to 6.2% from 6.1% for September.

Unemployment data over the past few months has been wild, with significant bounces month to month. In July the ABS shocked markets with a surprise surge in Australia’s unemployment rate to a decade high of 6.4%.

In August the bureau’s stats showed a surprise fall 6.1%, with an almost unbelievable 121,000 jobs added against market expectations of 15,000 jobs.

Today the Australian Bureau of Statistics released an explanation for why the job numbers between July and September were so unstable.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com.au/australias-unemployment-rate-is-worse-than-we-thought-2014-11#ixzz3I6RPcWLH

[xchrom]

21. The Crashing Yen Is Boosting Japanese Manufacturing

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-crashing-yen-is-boosting-japanese-manufacturing

Japanese manufacturing is benefiting from the weaker yen, according to the Markit/JMMA manufacturing PMI data for October released this afternoon.

The print of 52.4 was up on the 51.7 in September and while it missed the market’s expectations of 52.8, this is the fifth month in a row that the “sector registered improving business conditions” and the highest level since March this year.

The extremely good news also is that this figure is above the long-run average for the survey of 50.6, suggesting that Abenomics and aggressive BoJ intervention are slowly working in Japan.

Key drivers were an acceleration in new orders, which moved to a seven-month high, and the weaker yen which drove export business to its strongest level since December 2013. Markit said that move “also resulted in upward pressure on import costs, as input price inflation hit the highest since March.”



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-crashing-yen-is-boosting-japanese-manufacturing#ixzz3I6RoFkSQ

[xchrom]

22. Japan's Stocks Explode On QE News

http://www.businessinsider.com/japans-stocks-soar-2014-11

Japanese stocks soared early Tuesday on Friday's surprise news that Bank of Japan was expanding its monetary easing policy. The Nikkei closed up 2.73% after passing 17,000, the first time in seven years. Hong Kong's Hang Seng is also in the green right now, up 0.04%.

After the Friday announcement the Nikkei closed up 4.83%.

The Nikkei has made an incredible comeback. During the mid-October sell-off, it was the worst-performing stock index of any advanced economy, down 10% from January. As of Tuesday's close, it's up 5.11% in 2014, so far.

The Financial Times quotes analysts at Nomura, who said: “The BoJ’s decision can be seen as an indication of a stronger commitment to the 2 per cent inflation target than we had previously thought, and also of the BoJ’s determination to act decisively and proactively in order to achieve this target.”



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/japans-stocks-soar-2014-11#ixzz3I6SIuX4g

[xchrom]

23. European Stocks Are Climbing After Another Rally In Japan

http://www.businessinsider.com/market-update-nov-2014-11

Germany's DAX is up 0.56%

Spain's IBEX is up 0.74%

Italy's FTSE MIB is up 1.06%

The UK's FTSE 100 is up 0.23%

France's CAC 40 is up 0.32%

In Asia, the Nikkei rallied again, rising 2.73% after Friday surge. Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed slightly down, 0.29% lower.

In data today, the UK's construction PMI is out at 9.30 GMT. Analysts are expecting a slight cooling, but the index should remain above 60, illustrating some rapid growth in the sector.

Then at 10 a.m. GMT, the European Commission is releasing its latest growth forecasts for the eurozone. Later in the day, September's US factory orders are out. Analysts are expecting a 0.6% drop from August's figures.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/market-update-nov-2014-11#ixzz3I6VCMgzi

[xchrom]

24. Venezuela Is Raising The Minimum Wage 15% Amid High Inflation

http://www.businessinsider.com/r-venezuela-to-hike-minimum-wage-15-percent-amid-high-inflation-2014-11

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced on Monday a 15 percent increase in the minimum wage starting in December to protect workers from inflation of more than 60 percent.

Maduro blames soaring consumer prices on an "economic war" launched by foes of his socialist government, frequently accusing business executives of price-gouging, hoarding and speculating.

Critics, though, say Venezuela's endemic inflation problem is evidence of the failure of 15 years of socialist economics under Maduro and his late predecessor Hugo Chavez.

"I have decided to accept this proposal, from the workers, to decree a 15 percent rise in the minimum salary from Dec. 1," Maduro said during a televised event with workers.

Maduro said the cumulative raise for 2014 - following a 30 percent hike in May and 10 percent in January - would compensate for inflation caused by the "criminal" campaign against him.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-venezuela-to-hike-minimum-wage-15-percent-amid-high-inflation-2014-11#ixzz3I6Vlihf8

[xchrom]

25. OIL PRICES HIT 4-YEAR LOWS AFTER SAUDI DISCOUNT

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OIL_PRICE_SLUMP?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-11-04-07-43-38

LONDON (AP) -- Oil prices sank to four-year lows on Tuesday following reports Saudi Arabia, OPEC's largest oil producer, is cutting its prices for customers in the U.S.

By early afternoon London time, a barrel of benchmark crude was down $2.07, or 2.6 percent, at $76.79, its lowest level since September 2010. Meanwhile, Brent crude, the international benchmark, was down $2.14, or 2.5 percent, at $82.63 a barrel, its lowest level since October 2010.

The market was shaken by news that Saudi Arabia was cutting prices for the U.S. to compete with the surge in oil production there.

"A snowballing effect is what we are seeing in crude oil price today," said Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst at Forex.com. "News that Saudi has cut its asking price to customers in the U.S. suggests even the largest OPEC producer is now worried about its market share. This does not bode well for the future of the cartel."

[nitpicker]

26. Link to BBC's market data webpage

Almost in real time (scroll down for oil pricing).

http://www.bbc.com/news/business/market_data/overview/

[nitpicker]

27. Link to Marketwatch story on this issue

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/saudi-oil-price-cut-takes-market-by-surprise-2014-11-04?dist=beforebell

[Hotler]

28. Just a reminder!

Don’t forget to turn the country back one century tonight before you go to bed!

[Fuddnik]

30. Just one?

[tclambert]

29. I voted about an hour ago, and the poll workers told me turnout is pretty high.

They also said our community has a lot of absentee voters (3 assisted living facilities in the precinct).

I'm getting my hopes up.

[Demeter]

31. Back from my stint as poll worker

We had 3--count 'em--3 diebold tabulating machines die on us....the 4th one was stolen off a delivery truck--it didn't even have a serial number, it was so brand new. We are supposed to get new machines, of better design, soon. I sure hope so. These weren't so great when they were new, but we weren't the only precinct with problems (just the worst).

So it was hell from 9:30 AM until 2:30 PM, and all the problems weren't resolved until about 7 PM. Polls closed at 8, we were out of there by 9, and I left City Hall just before 10 PM.

A long and crazy day...we will see what comes of it.