Archive - Jul 22, 2015

Ahead of today's crucial Greek vote, it appears investors are seeking safety in the arms of Bunds, Treasuries, and The US Dollar.

The US economy is widely seen as the world’s best performing major economy at the moment. However, so far this year most economic data have actually been somewhere between very soft and lackluster. The steep fall in truck tonnage is definitely an alarm signal. It indicates that inventories are already too high relative to demand, something that seems to be confirmed by recent industrial production and retail sales data. Given that tonnage has continued to decline since the end of Q1, one can no longer blame the port strikes either. To be sure, the US economy is not yet signaling an imminent recession. At best though it is muddling through at a very subdued pace. It probably won’t take much to push it over the edge.

Clearly, Russia puts great strategic importance on its gold reserves. Both President Putin and Prime Minister Medvedev have been photographed on  numerous occasions holding gold bars and coins as a display of economic stability and strength. Since early 2007 Russia has sold gold only twice, in 2012, in small amounts.

If KO had applied the proper tax rate of 28.7% to its non-GAAP pre tax income of $3.6 billion, the EPS number it would get is not $0.63, but $0.58. Why is this key? Because Wall Street's consensus estimate for KO EPS was $0.60, or right in the middle. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how both Intel and now Coca Kola used the oldest trick in the accounting book to "beat" EPS: by using an unrealistically low tax rate.

why things are as they are...

The Greek parliament will vote on a second batch of prior actions on Wednesday including EU rules on bank resolutions and civil justice reform amid protests from public sector union ADEDY which has pledged to "continue the battle so that the new barbaric bailout does not pass and is overturned," and so that Greece does fall under the "neocolonial control" of Brussels. Today's vote is a litmus test for Syriza. That is, the key issue is whether the party splinters further or if some of those who broke with Tsipras last week return to the fold on Wednesday.

• Stocks sour as Apple results leave bitter aftertaste (Reuters)
• Awkward Alliance Running Germany Exposed by Greek Crisis (BBG)
• Apple Faces Old Question of What’s Next After Record Profit (BBG)
• Lawmakers, White House Explore Tax Revamp for U.S. Firms Overseas (WSJ)
• Digital Misfits Link JPMorgan Hack to Pump-and-Dump Fraud (BBG)
• More Debt Traders at Risk as European Banks Report Results (BBG)
• Iran rejects sanctions extension beyond 10 years (Reuters)

While this week has been, and continues to be, devoid of macro updates, yesterday's flurry of mostly disappointing earnings releases both before and after the open, including some of the biggest DJIA companies as well as the current and previously biggest and most important companies in the world, AAPL and MSFT, both of which came crashing down following earnings and forecasts that were well short of market expectations, came as a jolt to a market that was artificially priced by central bank liquidity and HFT momo algos beyond perfection. Add to that yesterday's downward revision to historical industrial production which confirmed the US economy is a step away from recession, as well as last night's Crude API inventory build which is once again pressuring WTI lower and on the verge of a 49 handle, and perhaps the biggest question is why are futures not much lower.