Archive - Oct 20, 2014
"Anti-Petrodollar" CEO Of French Energy Giant Total Dies In Freak Plane Crash In Moscow
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 22:10 -0500Three months ago, the CEO of Total, Christophe de Margerie, dared utter the phrase heard around the petrodollar world, "There is no reason to pay for oil in dollars," as we noted here, and despite Western-imposed sanctions on Russia, Total is continuing to pursue a natural gas project in Yamal, a joint venture with Russia's Novatek. Today, RT reports the dreadful news that he was killed in a business jet crash at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow after the aircraft hit a snow-plough on take-off. The airport issued a statement confirming "a criminal investigation has been opened into the violation of safety regulations," adding that along with 3 crewmembers on the plane, the snow-plough driver was also killed. Debris from the aircraft was scattered up to 200 meters from the crash site.
A Caliph In A Wilderness Of Mirrors
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 21:51 -0500"He's invincible. He beheads. He smuggles. He conquers. He's the ultimate jack-of-all-trades. No Tomahawk or Hellfire can touch him. He always gets what he wants; in Kobani; in Anbar province; with the House of Saud (which he wants to replace) trying to make Putin (who he wants to behead) suffer because of low oil prices..."
Do You Believe In Chinese Miracles? GDP, Industrial Production Beat; Retail Sales Miss
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 21:18 -0500Whocouldanode? Chinese GDP managed (thanks to record-breaking credit creation and QE-lite) to beat expectations of +7.2% and come in at +7.3% (still its slowest growth since April 2009). Notably this was the biggest decoupling from Bloomberg's high-frequency economic data forecast (i.e. real data) since May 2010. Despite weakness in Cement and Steel output, Industrial Production also managed to beat and actually improve (another miracle). Retail Sales missed expectations, rose only 11.6% YoY - its weakest since Feb 2006. Initial kneejerk is a lift in USDJPY, AUDJPY, TSY yields, and S&P and NKY futures... but that has now faded...
China CCTV News Previews The 4th Plenary Session Of The Communist Party In Infographic
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 20:29 -0500Following last year's 20,000 word "decision" at the 3rd Plenum pledging reforms, soft-landings, and corruption crackdowns, we thought we'd leave it to China's state-owned media to explain - via handy infographic - what to expect from the 4th Plenary session this week...
Top Scientist Warns This Version Of Ebola Looks Like "A Very Different Bug"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 19:56 -0500Barack Obama and the head of the CDC need to quit saying that we know exactly how Ebola spreads. Because the truth is that there is much about this virus that we simply do not know. For example, a top Ebola scientist that is working in the heart of the outbreak in Liberia says that this version of Ebola looks like it could be "a very different bug" from past versions. Other leading scientists are echoing his concerns.
"It's Not Abenomics, It's The Weather" Japanese Econ Minister Admits Growth Is Weak
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 19:21 -0500Amid two (notably female) resignations this weekend (Justice Minister Matushima and Trade Minister Obuchi for alleged misuse of political funds), Abenomics tilt towards women as a pillar of the Japanese recovery is taking yet another blow, removing "one of his ways of distracting people from his less popular policies." However,it is Japan's Economy Minister, Akira Amari, that went full economic retard this weekend - having learned well from his wise American central-planning brethren. Rather than face reality that Abenomics currency devaluation printfest has crushed the consumer beyond all expectations (as we noted since the start and Goldman just admitted), he blames the weather for economic weakness: "including the effects of large typhoons and heavy rains in July and August, Japan’s 3Q economic situation is probably not a strong recovery."
"Either You're The Butcher... Or The Cattle"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 18:44 -0500The common people are the cattle being led to slaughter. We are kept docile with incessant propaganda from the mainstream media; marketing messages to consume from Madison Avenue; filtered, adjusted, manipulated economic data fed to us by government agencies; an endless supply of iGadgets and other electronic distractions; government education designed to keep us ignorant; 24/7 reality TV on six hundred stations to keep us entertained; corporate toxic processed food to keep us obese and tame; and an endless supply of Wall Street supplied debt to keep us caged in our pens with no hope of escape. The butchers of the deep state have maintained control for decades, but we’re entering a new era.
The Crocodile Jaws Spring Open Again, Preparing To Bite
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 17:49 -0500And with that, the eternal (and rhetorical) question once again resurfaces: who is right - bonds or stocks?
"We Are From The Government And We Are Here To Get Rid Of Ebola"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 17:17 -0500With Ron Klain now not expected to start his reign as Ebola Czar until Wednesday (we assume he has some other deadly pandemic virus to take care of before switching over), The White House has just one message for the world...
CIA Warned Obama that Funding Rebels Doesn’t Work … But Obama Decided to Fund Syrian Rebels ANYWAY For Cynical Political Gain
Submitted by George Washington on 10/20/2014 16:52 -0500Obama KNEW Arming Rebels Was Useless, But Did It ANYWAY
Santelli & Schiff: "A Messy Exit Is A Given... Ending QE Will Plunge US Into Severe Recession"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 16:49 -0500"Markets are slowly coming to grips with reality is not going to be as easy as everybody thought," Peter Schiff tells CNBC's Rick Santelli, noting the pick up in volatility across asset classes recently. What The Fed clearly does not understand, Schiff blasts, is that "you cannot end quantitative easing without plunging the US into a severe recession." Because of the Fed's extreme monetary policy and the mal-investment that flows from it, Schiff says, "The US economy is more screwed up now than it's ever been in history." Most prophetically, we suspect, Santelli agrees that "a messy exit is a given," and Schiff believes they know that and that is why QE4 is coming simply "because it hasn't worked and they can't admit it's been a dismal failure."
The Tragedy Of NATO: "Beware Foreign Entanglements"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 16:48 -0500Due to the inherent problems with collective security alliances – tragedy of the commons fed by socialism and moral hazard – nations should enter into them with great caution. George Washington’s farewell address has never sounded more prescient: Beware foreign entanglements.
The Fed's Comfort Zone (In 1 Simple Chart)
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 16:17 -0500Communication... Transparency... Optimal Control? Or Schizophrenia, Paranoia, and Mass Confusion?
Apple Beats Top And Bottom Line, Repurchases Record $45 Billion In Stock In Fiscal 2014
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 15:55 -0500With the AAPL EPS whisper number pointing to an EPS somewhere about 10-15 cents above the EPS consensus of 1.30, moments ago AAPL did not disappoint and reported Q4 EPS of $1.42, a solid 12 cent beat to expectations, a comparable beat to the top line beat, with $42.12 billion in revenue, also well above the $39.9 Bn estimate. The gross margin of 38% was right on top of expectations. In terms of product breakdown, AAPL sold 39.3 million iPhones, above the 38 million expected, with Mac unit sales of 5.52 million also above the 4.84 million expected, with only iPad sales of 12.3 million missing the 13.0 million estimate.
Will Our Private Savings Be Sacrificed To Pay Down The Public Debt?
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/20/2014 15:26 -0500Many nations have gone through periods in the past where they've had very high levels of government debt. There are four traditional ways of dealing with that... decades of austerity, defaulting on government debts, inflating away the value of debt by rapidly destroying the value of currency, and government's favorite - "financial repression" - a process that is complex enough that the average voter never understands how it works, thus allowing governments to use this potent but subtle method of taking vast sums of private wealth, year after year, decade after decade, with almost no political consequences.



