Archive for April, 2016
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via the FT:
16 minutes ago
by: Mehreen Khan
It’s nearly the summer, which must mean it’s time to worry about Greece again.
Fears over the country’s future as part of the eurozone have flared up as Athens’ leftist government has been at loggerheads with its creditors over passing legislation on new reforms, agreeing ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Greece in News (Again)
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via Bloomberg:
Number of jobless fell for seventh straight month in April
Unemployment rate remains at record low level of 6.2%
German joblessness extended its decline, underscoring the strength of the labor market as Europe’s largest economy seeks to absorb a wave of refugees.
The number of people out of work fell by ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Robust Labor Market in Germany
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via the FT:
16 minutes ago
by: Richard Milne
Norway’s $870bn oil fund recorded its third quarter of negative returns in the past year as weak stock markets from China to Europe weighed on its results.
The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund had a negative return of 0.6 per cent in the first quarter, ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Norway Wealth Funds Takes Hit
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via Marc Chandler at Brown Brothers Harriman:
Central Banks Roil Markets
The Bank of Japan defied expectations and its economic assessment and left policy unchanged.
The FOMC failed to alter investors’ skepticism about a June hike
The US reports weekly initial jobless claims and the first estimate of Q1 GDP
The ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on FX
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via Kit Juckes at SocGen:
<http://www.sgmarkets.com/r/?id=h10613a4e,16c59d8f,16c59d90&p1=136122&p2=2fa44b726dbd07cfd3f24c786623195f>
The US economy isn't healthy yet and the Fed is not heading back to easy-money rehab. The RBNZ is on hold but only temporarily and the BOJ's policy-making looks increasingly uncertain. The result is a 3% appreciation by the yen, a 2% appreciation by the Kiwi ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on FX
Thursday, April 28th, 2016
Via Bloomberg:
Keeps three key tools unchanged; majority forecast some action
Policy makers delay forecast for reaching 2% inflation goal
The Bank of Japan held off on expanding monetary stimulus, as Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and his colleagues opted to take more time to assess the impact of negative interest rates.
The move ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Standing Pat
Wednesday, April 27th, 2016
Via Bloomberg:
Lawyers suing members of rock supergroup Led Zeppelin say their client is willing to settle a lawsuit over the band's most famous song--a claim potentially worth millions of dollars--for just $1.
The catch is that band members Robert Plant and Jimmy Page would have to give dead rocker Randy California a writing credit on ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Aging Baby Boomer Alert
Wednesday, April 27th, 2016
Via Marc Chandler at Brown Brothers Harriman:
Two Issues Loom Large Today - Soft Australia CPI and FOMC
The FOMC statement is the North American highlight; March trade data will allow economists a last minute opportunity to adjust forecasts for Q1 GDP
The short-term market was caught the wrong-footed when Australia ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on FX
Wednesday, April 27th, 2016
Via the FT:
6 hours ago
by: John Authers
Corporate America is swimming in cash. There is no great news about this, and no great mystery about where it came from. Seven years of historically low interest rates will prompt companies to borrow.
A new development, however, is that investors are starting to ask ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Worried About Leverage
Wednesday, April 27th, 2016
Via Bloomberg:
Darrell Preston
Neil Weinberg
April 27, 2016 — 5:00 AM EDT
When Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin proposed his budget in January, he told lawmakers the teacher retirement system had $13.9 billion less than needed to cover promised pension benefits. The state’s audited financial statements earlier estimated the shortfall was about 55 percent ...
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Public Pension Fund Accounting