Archive - Sep 25, 2012

“European leaders” and “responsibilities”: a can of worms

Today's Zero Hedge Articles in Audio Summary. "Americans don't struggle. North Koreans struggle." Everyday 8-9pm @ New York Time.

SNB bond-buying is "exacerbating" the gap between borrowing costs for stable countries like Germany and the rest of the 17-nation euro zone.

In what is likely the biggest sabre being rattled this week in the war-of-words that is occurring in the Pacific, China announced today the launch of its first aircraft carrier. China bought the 300-meter Soviet-built vessel in 1998 from Ukraine and had it refitted to become an important step in "raising the overall fighting capacity" of its naval forces. Rear Admiral Yang Yi noted that "it is natural that China should have its own aircraft carrier," arguing that all major world powers already own similar vessels. Of course, the coincidental timing is no surprise as Reuters notes "China will never tolerate any bilateral actions by Japan that harm Chinese territorial sovereignty," Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun told his Japanese counterpart on Tuesday as the two met in a bid to ease tensions. "Japan must banish illusions, undertake searching reflection and use concrete actions to amend its errors, returning to the consensus and understandings reached between our two countries' leaders."

We'll let the charts do the talking this time.

While much attention has been paid to what Draghi has 'talked' about doing, what Bernanke 'is' doing, what EU Leaders 'are not' doing, and what US politicians 'will not' do - the world's risk markets remain on edge. Admittedly, for now, that edge seems biased to the 'we-believe' side of the fence. However, as Deutsche Bank notes, in their wonderfully succinct chart comparing the impact and probability of potential upside and downside risks to global markets, it is economic (or real!) data that should worry investors the most - though we still fear the Kubler-Ross 'denial' stage that in which Spain/Italy/Portugal/Greece remain mired.

But what if one wants Ron Paul to be elected? Can one vote for Ron Paul then?

The first concern of the Emir of Qatar is the prosperity and security of the tiny kingdom.  To achieve that, he knows no limits. Stuck between Iran and Saudi Arabia is Qatar with the third largest natural gas deposit in the world.  The gas gives the nearly quarter of a million Qatari citizens the highest per capita income on the planet and provides 70 percent of government revenue.  How does an extremely wealthy midget with two potentially dangerous neighbors keep them from making an unwelcomed visit?  Naturally, you have someone bigger and tougher to protect you. Of course, nothing is free.  The price has been to allow the United States to have two military bases in a strategic location.  According to Wikileak diplomatic cables, the Qataris are even paying sixty percent of the costs. Having tanks and bunker busting bombs nearby will discourage military aggression, but it does nothing to curb the social tumult that has been bubbling for decades in the Middle Eastern societies.  Eighty-four years ago, the Moslem Brotherhood arose in Egypt because of the presence of foreign domination by Great Britain and the discontent of millions of the teaming masses yearning to be free.  Eighty-four years later, the teaming masses are still yearning. 

Two years ago nobody would dare touch Steve "Blue Eyes" Cohen's firm. Then we dared to ask some questions. Then the entire expert "information arbitrage" network pyramid got exposed (with a one year delay after ZH) and hedge funds returns aka "alpha" plunged. And now this. From Bloomberg:

• FIVE SAC CAPITAL EMPLOYEES HAVE BEEN IMPLICATED IN INSIDER CASE
• SAC MANAGER SAID TO BE UNCHARGED FIGURE IN HEDGE FUND SCHEME
• SAC FUND MANAGER MICHAEL STEINBERG SAID TO BE TIED TO PROBE
• SAC CAPITAL'S STEINBERG SAID TO BE UNINDICTED CO-CONSPIRATOR

How long until we go from unindicted, i.e. extensively questioned, to indicted? Just which bigger fish are these "unindicted co-conspirators" expected to throw under the bus? And what happens to the NYSE if/and or when the firm that trades 10% of its daily volume is busted?

It seems European credit markets were on to something this morning. As European tensions spilled over so the US equity markets just could not hold on to the post QEternity gains and turned down rapidly shortly after Europe closed. The S&P 500 has retraced over 75% of its post-FOMC spike gains, Treasuries are well below the pre-FOMC yield levels and the USD has retraced all of its losses. The 1% drop in the S&P 500 is the largest in over two months. equities closed at their lows - something we have not seen in a while - with all the usual high-beta suspects (e.g. AAPL -2.5%) all getting crushed. VIX surged to 15.5% (up 1.25 vols) as volume surged across most equity indices. Only Healthcare and Staples remain green post-FOMC.

Sadly the social unrest that we had predicted, when over 50% of the youth are unemployed and the politicians are navel-watching, has erupted, as angry protesters charge the local police, who in turn are arresting rioters and using volleys of rubbers bullets to keep the crowd at bay.

Leonardo Fibonacci (1170-1250) may have just stuck his 'golden-ratio-based' fork in the equity market's rally. As the following chart shows, the diminishing marginal utility of Quantitative Easing's wealth effect has followed a rather remarkable pattern... and today marks the next turning point.

and a flying moron.

The United States, long considered the standard bearer for economic freedom among large industrial nations, has experienced a remarkable plunge in economic freedom during the past decade. From 1980 to 2000, the US was generally rated the third freest economy in the world, ranking behind only Hong Kong and Singapore. The ranking of the US has fallen precipitously; from second in 2000 to eighth in 2005 and 19th in 2010. By 2009, the United States had fallen behind Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Chile, and Mauritius, countries that chose not to follow the path of massive growth in government financed by borrowing that is now the most prominent characteristic of US fiscal policy. By 2010, the United States had also fallen behind Finland and Denmark, two European welfare states. Moreover, it now trails Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Estonia, Taiwan, and Qatar. The Fraser Institute's massive volume on the Economic Freedom Of The World - based on the following five factors: Size of Government, Legal System & Property Rights, Sound Money, Freedom to Trade Internationally, and Regulation - covers 42 variables with the goal of quantifying the key ingredients of economic freedom.

The Japanese have a peculiarly virulent strain of right-wing militarism that continues to influence domestic politics. In this worldview, reverence for the Imperial household is mixed with an aggrieved sense that Japan's expansion in World War II was justified (though few would say this publicly). As a result, any official Japanese attempt to apologize for the horrendous destruction, murder, enslavement and torture inflicted by Japanese forces in World War II sparks outrage in one sector of the domestic political order. Deep within this mindset is the view that the only thing wrong with World War II was that Japan lost. Even more galling to those who suffered so mightily, Japan has refused to publicly acknowledge (though they claim they have) and compensate the "comfort women," young women who were forced into prostitution to serve Japan's armed forces in the Asian/Pacific theater of World War II. This official dance between apology and refusal satisfies no one, and the general sense outside Japan is that the Japanese acceptance of guilt is grudging public relations rather than sincere. Combine an obsession with "face" and a plethora of deep-seated resentments, and you get the tinder for territorial disputes. What appears to be lost on the Chinese is the consequence of their saber-rattling and bluster: they appear to have obliterated 20 years of careful diplomacy aimed at convincing their neighbors of China's peaceful intentions.