The Nikkei turned out to be Thursday’s negative trendsetter leading the downward tendency in Asia. Weak Flash China PMI released on Thursday by HSBC and indicating a contraction in China’s manufacturing as well as late Wednesday’s remarks from the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on the US bond buying program disappointed not just the Asian markets.Other major indicators in Asia fell as well with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng losing 2.5 percent, and South Korea’s Kospi dropping 1.2 percent. Markets in Australia, Thailand, Taiwan and Singapore also fell.European stocks traded significantly lower on Thursday, also reacting to the disappointing data from China and comments from the US Federal Reserve. The Stoxx Europe 600 index slid 1.9 percent to 304.65, deflecting down after closing at the highest level in five years on Wednesday.Russian markets are also sharply in the red on Thursday. MICEX is losing as much as 2.93 percent, while RTS is down more than 3.5 percent. This is also due to the steep fall in the oil prices. Chinese government’s attempts to boost domestic consumption in the world’s second biggest economy has finally caught up with recession-hit Europe, uncertainty in the US and deflation-driven Japan.HSBC said its Purchasing Managers Index fell to its lowest level since October slipping below analysts’ expectations to 49.6 in May from 50.4 in April. Figures below 50 points indicate that activity is contracting. Analysts forecast a decline to 50.3.”It’s no secret. The true picture is that China’s export sector is slowing down, and its manufacturing sector is also slowing down. That means the trade surplus is almost gone,” Francis Lun, chief economist at GE Oriental Financial Group told the BBC.Wednesday’s testimony by the Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke added to the negative sentiment after the US central bank chief said the Fed could decide on pulling out of its bond buying program over the next few meetings should the US job market shows “real and sustainable progress”.The minutes of the Fed’s last meeting revealed that “a number” of officials’ support pulling out of the Quantitative Easing efforts as early as June. The Federal Reseve will hold its next meeting on June 18-19. … Read More
United States – Freedom of information threatened by abuse of Espionage Act
Reporters Without Borders is alarmed by the frequency with which the Obama administration has reacted to leaks by bringing prosecutions under the 1917 Espionage Act. Six whistleblowers have been prosecuted under this law since President Obama’s inauguration in 2009. Previously, the Espionage Act had only been used three times in response to leaks: in 1973 (for the high-profile Pentagon Papers case during the Vietnam War), in 1985 and in 2005. These witchhunts violate the principles of the (…) … Read More
How America Became a Third World Country (2013-2023)
Traveling back in time to 2013 — at the moment the sequester cuts began — no one knew what their impact would be, although nearly everyone across the political spectrum agreed that it would be bad. … Read More
Market Buzz: Little news, little change
Russian stocks climbed on Monday, opening the week with growth in the banking sector, while shares among oil firms fell. The MICEX added 0.4 percent to close at 1406.86, while RTS advanced 0.8 percent to 1417.05 points. VTB and Sberbank were the biggest gainers in the banking sector. Shares of Russian gas giant Gazprom also grew, adding 0.7 percent. Other oil firms saw a minor selloff on Monday: Lukoil shares dropped, along with Tatneft and Surgutneftegaz. E.On Russian also fell on Monday following Friday’s climb, on news of upcoming dividends that will include 100 percent of the company’s net profit.European stock markets opened the week with gains on Monday. Automakers led the growth in Europe after Morgan Stanley revised its estimate on the sector to ‘overweight’ from ‘equalweight.’ The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.3 percent to close at 309.77. The UK’s FTSE 100 jumped to its highest close since September 2000, having advanced 0.5 percent to 6755.63. Germany’s DAX added 0.7 percent to 8455.83, and France’s CAC-40 grew by 0.5 percent to close at 4022.85.US stocks closed slightly lower on May 20 after a Federal Reserve official hinted that the central bank will soon draw down its $85-billion-a-month bond-buying stimulus program. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans said earlier that the stimulus program would continue until the labor market demonstrates significant improvement. Later, however, he downplayed his remarks.The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.12 percent lower to 15,336.05, while the broad-market S&P 500 index ended down 0.07 percent at 1,666.26. The Nasdaq Composite index also fell 0.07 percent to close at 3,496.43. Investors are eagerly anticipating Wednesday testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke on whether the US central bank intends to end its stimulus program soon.Asian stocks fell Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.1 percent to 15,341.85. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.6 percent to 23,364.36. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.6 percent to 5,176.70. Indices in Mainland China were mixed. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.1 percent to 1,979.93. Benchmarks in Singapore, Indonesia and New Zealand fell, while the Philippines advanced. Oil is currently trading mixed, with Brent down 0.01 percent and WTI adding a mere 0.05 percent. … Read More
Aid for F.C.C. in Defending Its Net Neutrality Rules
A Supreme Court decision seems to help the Federal Communications Commission’s high-profile attempt to defend its net neutrality rules against a court challenge. … Read More
Ceiling suspended: US takes on $300bn in new debt after hitting $16.7 trillion
Citing ‘extraordinary measures’, the US Treasury has further delayed tackling America’s debt, and will wait until Labor Day, September 2nd, to revisit the burgeoning crisis. The ceiling has been lifted, and the Treasury has promised it will keep cash pumping into government spending programs beyond the debt limit through a series of emergency cash tools. “It will not be until at least after Labor Day” when Washington will have reached their full borrowing capacity, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, told CNBC television on May 10th. Until then, the Treasury will borrow money to mend any gaps between government spending and revenues, adding to the already $16.7 trillion debt. On Friday, the Treasury Department announced it will suspend sales of State and Local Government Series loans (SLGS) until further notice. The suspension applies to demand deposit and time deposit securities.In the last four months, the US has accumulated $300 billion in debt. The Congressional Budget Office forecasts that the federal deficit will be $642 billion in FY13. The US economy has shown some promising signs of recovery. US consumer sentiment rose to its highest level in almost six years, jumping from 89.9 to 97.5, the highest post-recession consumer condition, the University of Michigan study found. “The global economic leadership position enjoyed by the United States rests on the confidence of Americans and people around the world that we are a nation that keeps its promises and pays all of its bills, in full and on time,” said Lew. US lawmakers first agreed to raise the debt ceiling two years ago, following a long, drawn out stand-off between Republicans and Democrats, which prompted Standard & Poor to strip the US of their AAA rating. The failed super committee ushered in sequestration, This time around, Lew has urged lawmakers to act more swiftly to not tarnish the reputation of the US economy.”Congress should deal with this right away. The fact that they have more time should not put off dealing with this,” he said. “I don’t think that it’s in the interests of the U.S. or the world economy for Congress to wait until the last minute and create a sense of anxiety,” said Lew. Lew hinted the debt ceiling is not up for negotiation, and that Obama would not bow to Republicans increase the debt ceiling but he does remain open for talks about a deficit deal.Lew was sworn in as Treasury Secretary on February 28th, 2013, after Congress voted in favor of raising the debt ceiling in January to avoid a default on the debt. … Read More
Washington Signals Dollar Deep Concerns
Over the past month there has been a statistically improbable concurrence of events that can only be explained as a conspiracy to protect the dollar from the Federal Reserve’s policy of Quantitative Easing (QE). … Read More
