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Ft.com
China’s December lending and money supply growth exceeded economists’ estimates, reports Bloomberg, with new loans totalling 640.5bn yuan ($101bn) for the month. M2 rose 13.6 per cent, comparedhttp://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/822301/chinas-december-mone...
Mario Monti has defended a tough crackdown on tax evaders in luxury ski and coastal resorts, rejecting angry reactions from leading members of Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right party whose support in parliament is vital for Italy’s new government of technocrats, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/822291/monti-defends-tax-cr...
David Cameron has left open the door to Britain giving billions of pounds of new support to the IMF – and indirectly to ailing members of the eurozone – in a move likely to infuriate eurosceptic MPs in his own Conservative party, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/822091/uk-signals-possibili...
Iran has declared that it plans to start uranium enrichment in a highly-protected underground bunker south of Tehran in the “near future”, in a move that could seriously inflame tensions with western countries over its nuclear programme. Fereydoon Abbasi-Davani, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation, said on Saturday that the Fordow underground site, which is near the Iranian holy city of Qom, would become operational soon and would produce enriched uranium at concentrations up to 20 per cent. http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/57d083be-3a05-11e1-a8dc-00144feabdc0.html...
Germany and France are set to propose new measures to revive economic growth in Europe and reduce youth unemployment, including action to increase cross-border labour mobility, to complement budget discipline and debt reduction in the eurozone. The growth initiative will be the main item on the agenda on Monday of Angela Merkel, German chancellor, and Nicolas Sarkozy, French president, at a bilateral summit in Berlin which will also seek to iron out their differences on managing the eurozone crisis. http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/e99059f0-3a0a-11e1-a8dc-00144feabdc0.html...
Manmohan Singh, India’s prime minister, has cut his forecast for his country’s economic growth rate to 7 per cent this year signalling a sharp slow down in the world’s fastest growing large economy after China. Mr Singh said on Sunday that India was “going through difficult times”, alluding to a severe test of his leadership from falling growth, rising prices and a bitterly divided parliament. His acknowledgement of weaker economic performance comes weeks before elections in five states, including the political crucible of Uttar Pradesh. http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1c05b5c0-3a0f-11e1-a8dc-00144feabdc0.html...
Wsj.com
Asian stock markets were mostly lower on Monday as continued concerns over the outlook for Europe overshadowed better-than-expected U.S. jobs data on Friday, and pushed the euro to fresh lows against the U.S. dollar and Japanese yen. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.1%, South Korea's Kospi Composite tumbled 1.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slipped 0.8%, China's Shanghai Composite Index added 1.4% and India's Sensex declined 0.6%. Markets in Japan were shut for a holiday. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 38 points in screen trade. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020412420457714946374651112...
A dismal year means Wall Street is about to take a big hit to its wallet. As banks prepare to report fourth-quarter results and make final bonus decisions for 2011, total compensation is likely to be the lowest since 2008, when the financial crisis destroyed some firms and left many survivors on government life support. While still lofty compared to the rest of the U.S., pay for some Wall Street workers will be the lowest in years, at a time when critics have been lashing out at what they deem excessive finance-industry compensation.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020433130457714775025312284...
For the second year running, Adam Parker is at the bottom of the pack. Yet he is happy to be there. The 42-year-old Mr. Parker, Morgan Stanley's chief U.S. equity strategist, is the most bearish market strategist at any major Wall Street firm when it comes to forecasting the outlook for stocks in 2012. He took the same pessimistic position last year—and it turned out to be the most accurate.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020433130457714562017693480...
The U.S. job market is showing signs of a sustained recovery. But the country's prolonged struggle with unemployment will leave scars that are likely to remain for years, if not generations. The latest labor-market snapshot, out Friday, gave cause for continued, if tepid, optimism. U.S. employers added 200,000 jobs in December, and the unemployment rate ticked down to 8.5%, its lowest level since early 2009. But economists gathered here for the American Economic Association's annual convention took a longer and generally dimmer view. Even if recent progress continues, the recession already has had a lasting effect on a generation http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020351360457714448306067865...
Europe's never-ending drama is tranquilizing Treasurys to the point where even mounting signs of a healing U.S. economy can't rouse bond bears. The counterintuitive reaction to Friday's blockbuster U.S. jobs report is the latest piece of proof. Such better-than-expected data usually would spur a big drop in Treasury prices. But instead, there was only a brief weakening that almost immediately disappeared as a wave of buyers scooped up the debt at cheaper prices. Michael Materasso, co-chairman of Franklin Templeton's fixed-income policy committee, which sets broad investment guidelines for the firm's bond funds, says improving data from the world's largest http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020351360457714512073863777...
South Korea's producer price inflation eased in December to the lowest level since September 2010 amid falling commodity prices as the global economy slows, the Bank of Korea said on Monday. The country's producer price index rose 4.3% from a year earlier in December, slowing from a 5.1% rise in November. It is also the first time since November 2010 that the PPI increase hashttp://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020412420457714952413379452...
A cabinet reshuffle in Japan is coming, and is likely to include the removal of a defense minister who outraged the public with gaffes about a rape by U.S. servicemen. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda told reporters Sunday that a change in his cabinet was coming soon, while Japanese media reports said new ministers may be named Friday. The opposition has been demanding that Defense Minister Yasuo Ichikawa be fired after he made a series of gaffes, including a remark that he didn't http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020425750457714858386964884...
Marketwatch.com
Benchmark crude-oil futures declined in electronic trading Monday but held above $101 a barrel, in line with broad selling across commodity and equity markets. Crude for February delivery shed 40 cents, or 0.4%, to $101.16 on the New York Mercantile Exchange during Asian trading hours. The softer start to the trading week followed a 2.8% rise for oil last week, as some positive U.S. economic reports supported the prospects for energy demand, while concerns about the spread of Europe’s debt crisis limited gains. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-futures-fall-in-electronic-trading-...
Gold futures declined in electronic trade during Asian hours Monday, extending their slide after recent advances, as the U.S. dollar strengthened against the backdrop of worries over European debt troubles. The precious metal’s Comex contract for February deliverylost $7.80, or 0.5%, to $1,609 an ounce. he losses came on top of a decline for gold during the regular session on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, when it snapped a four-session winning streak as the greenback rose against the euro after stronger-than-expected U.S. nonfarm payrolls data.http://www.marketwatch.com/story/gold-prices-slip-further-on-rising-us-d...
Australia's seasonally adjusted retail sales were flat in November, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported Monday. Retail sales had risen 0.2% in October. Economists had been expecting a rise of 0.3% for November retail sales, according to a survey from Dow Jones Newswires. Sales were down 0.4% in the clothing, footwear and personal accessory category, and down 0.1% in department stores, the ABS reported http://www.marketwatch.com/story/australia-retail-sales-flat-in-november...
New home sales in Australia rose sharply during November, spurred by interest-rate easing by the central bank, according to an industry survey published Monday. Sales of new homes rose 6.8% on a seasonally-adjusted basis, compared with October when sales rose a revised 2.8%, the Housing Industry Association-Jeld-Wen monthly report said, based on a survey of the country's biggest 100 builders. A first rate cut by the central bank in November and an expectation of more easing boosted sentiment in the market, though overall conditions in the building sector remains soft, said Harley Dale, chief economist at the HIA. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/australia-new-home-sales-rise-sharply-i...
China may maintain a tight monetary policy and loose fiscal policy for the next few years given the current macroeconomic conditions, China Business News reported Monday, citing People's Bank of China adviser Li Daokui. Li's comments run counter to expectations that Beijing might be willing to slightly loosen its monetary policy in the face of mounting concerns that the country's economic growth may be slowing. The latest data show lending and the money supply both grew faster than economists' had expected in December. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-central-bank-adviser-sees-tight-p...
Reuters.com
Embattled Swiss National Bank Chief Philipp Hildebrand faces a grilling by a parliamentary committee on Monday about a controversial currency trade made by his wife three weeks before he imposed a cap on the soaring Swiss franc. Hildebrand has been fighting allegations of wrongdoing after an employee of the bank used by his family leaked details of the trade to the lawyer of a political adversary.http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/08/us-swiss-hildebrand-idUSTRE807...
Greece should leave the euro zone and devalue its new currency unless Europe is willing to provide "massive" funding for the indebted country, Czech central bank Governor Miroslav Singer said in a newspaper interview. Singer told daily Hospodarske Noviny Europeans should focus on helping banks which may need recapitalisation and on issues that can be resolved, rather than devoting attention for years to Greece which represents just two percent of the European economy. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/08/us-czech-cenbanker-idUSTRE8070...
French savers are squirreling away their spare cash at the fastest rate in nearly 30 years, putting a drag on consumer spending in the euro zone's second-biggest economy while helping its banks' balance-sheets. Even in the best of times France is among the most thrifty nations in the developed world, but the threat of Europe's debt crisis spreading to France has savers running for the perceived safety of bank accounts and becoming more wary of life insurance policies exposed to volatile markets. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/09/us-france-savings-idUSTRE80808...
Bloomberg.com
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban abandoned all previous objections to a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, indicating his government was open to “any kind” of credit line to prop up financing. “As far a we’re concerned, there’re no preconditions during negotiations, all issues that the involved parties deem necessary can be debated,” Orban said in an interview with state news service MTI today. Tamas Fellegi, the country’s chief negotiator in aid talks, has a mandate to accept “any kind” of credit line that strengthens the country’s market financing, Orban said. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-08/hungary-has-no-preconditions-in...
Canadian consumer confidence rose in the fourth quarter from a two-year low on optimism about real estate prices and the global economy according to a Nanos Research poll. The Nanos Economic Mood Index rose to 107.4 in the fourth quarter from 105.1 the prior three months, according to a report by Nik Nanos, president of the Ottawa-based polling company. About 19 percent of those surveyed said the economy will be stronger in the next six months, up from 16 percent, while the share who said it will be weaker declined to 31 percent from 39 percent. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-09/canadian-confidence-in-economy-...
Cnbc.com
A research firm says U.S. sales of consumer electronics fell 5.9 percent this past holiday season, as smartphones cannibalize sales of standalone gadgets like cameras, camcorders and GPS navigation devices. The NPD Group says electronics sales, including TVs and PCs, totaled $9.5 billion in the five weeks ending Dec. 24.Camcorder sales plunged 43 percent, and sales of digital picture frames fell 38 percent. GPS units slumped 33 percent. PC and TV sales slipped just 4 percent, bolstered by sales of TVs bigger than 50 inches. http://www.cnbc.com/id/45919975
Central bank actions work better than tax and spending measures to protect an economy from shocks, even when interest rates are at rock bottom levels, St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said on Saturday. "Monetary policy has been quite effective, even when the policy rate has been near zero," he said in remarks to an economics conference. "It is not necessary, or desirable to turn to fiscal stabilization policy." http://www.cnbc.com/id/45913382
Cnn.com
Close to 15% of federal taxes -- or $385 billion -- went unpaid in 2006, according to new estimates by the IRS. That's the net tax gap number -- meaning what didn't get paid even after the $65 billion the IRS managed to collect through audits. And it's the closest proxy policymakers have to the country's annual revenue shortfall, said Mark Luscomb, the principal federal tax analyst at CCH, a tax information publisher. What's driving the shortfall? A whopping 84% of the total tax gap is due to underreporting of income by corporations, small businesses and individuals.http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/06/news/economy/tax_gap/index.htm?hpt=ibu_c...
USAtoday.com
Freddie Mac says the average rate on 30-year fixed mortgages fell to 3.91% this week, matching the record low reached two weeks ago. Last week, the average rate for these loans was 3.95%. The average on 15-year fixed mortgages ticked down to 3.23% from 3.24%. That's up from 3.21% two weeks, which was also a record low. Mortgage rates are lower because they tend to track the yield on 10-year Treasury notes, which fell below 2% this week. http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/story/2012-01-05/weekly-mo...
Telegraph.co.uk
The Prime Minister is to abandon plans to scrap the 50p rate of income tax amid increasing pressure from business leaders and backbench Tories, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. The Prime Minister and George Osborne are understood to have concluded that abolishing the levy is politically impossible in the near future amid fears that they will be accused of pandering to the wealthy. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/consumertips/tax/9001...
Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti on Sunday rejected talk of a euro crisis and said Rome was open to the idea of a tax on financial transactions championed by France - but only if the measure was part of an EU-wide effort. "The euro is not in crisis, the currency has solidly maintained its exchange rate with the dollar," Monti said on RAI 3 public television, adding that Italy's "banking system is not under threat". http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9001408/Italian-Prime...
The amount of money investors spent on commercial property in central London rose last year as the eurozone debt crisis turned the West End and City into a safe haven. Investment volumes for 2011 grew 10pc on the previous year to £10.9bn as landmark buildings such as Tower 42 were acquired by foreign investors. A rush of deals worth £1.75bn were completed in the City in the final quarter of the year –despite the eurozone crisis worsening – as a wave of assets were put up for sale by Western institutions. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/constructionandproperty/...
Plans to levy a tax on financial transactions across Europe could leave a €116bn (£95bn) hole in the region's public finances, a report has warned. The calculations by Ernst & Young (E&Y) came as Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain would veto any attempt to introduce a so-called "Tobin tax", arguing that imposing such a levy across Europe without similar measures being in place elsewhere in the world would hit European jobs and prosperity. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9001256/Tobin-tax-cou...
Independent.co.uk
Britons reduced their mortgage debt by £8.6 billion during the third quarter of this year, but the Bank of England said there was "little sign" that households are trying to pay their debts down more quickly than in the past. The Bank said a lack of activity in the housing market and a reduction in re-mortgaging were underlying the figures. The housing market is widely forecast to remain sluggish next year and the Council of Mortgage Lenders recently predicted that transactions could reach their lowest level since its records began in 1978. http://www.independent.co.uk/money/mortgages/mortgage-debt-cut-by-82bn-6...
Smh.com.au
The head of the eurozone's bailout fund is considering offering foreign investors a better deal in a bid to improve sluggish demand, a German newspaper reported on Sunday. Klaus Regling, who runs the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), is mulling plans to offer investors outside the eurozone an insurance of 30 percent against a possible default, the Bild am Sonntag weekly said. Without citing sources, the paper quoted Regling as telling a meeting of German parliamentarians last week that the current 20 percent guarantees offered were "too low" to cover investors' risk. http://www.smh.com.au/business/world-business/better-deal-mulled-for-for...
Straitstimes.com
Germany's Volkswagen sold more than eight million vehicles worldwide in 2011, possibly enough to grab the top spot among global automakers for the first time, chairman Martin Winterkorn said on Sunday. VW boosted sales by more than one million vehicles, or 14 per cent, to 8.16 million last year, Mr Winterkorn said on the eve of the annual North American International Auto Show in Detroit. That was likely enough to put it past the champion of the previous three years, Japan's Toyota, which found production last year hobbled by the March 11 earthquake-tsunami disaster.http://www.smh.com.au/business/world-business/better-deal-mulled-for-for...
Xinhuanet.com
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has urged the nation’s financial sector to do more to support entrepreneurs and industry and strengthen its capability in supporting the real economy. The real economy is defined as production activity in sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and service, which are the basis of a country's GDP. "In future, China will stick to the principle of having the financial industry serve the real economy to prevent virtual bubbles from inflating the economy," Wen said at the National Financial Work Conference on Saturday in Beijing.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-01/09/c_131350001.htm
China's southern boom town of Shenzhen reported a 21.7-percent decline in land sales in 2011 as property control measures hampered growth prospects. Shenzhen made 18.4 billion yuan (2.9 billion U.S. dollars) from land sales last year, down from 23.5 billion yuan in 2010, according to a government report unveiled Sunday at the ongoing annual meeting of the local legislature. The Chinese government has managed to cool the once red-hot property sector by instituting measures such as purchasing restrictions, higher lending rates and down payments for second homes, and a ban on mortgage loans for third homes. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-01/08/c_131348912.htm
Ten Japanese and Korean firms will relocate their plants from neighboring countries in Southeast Asia to Indonesia's East Java province this year, thanks mainly to the province's good infrastructure, a local official was quoted by Jakarta Post as saying on Monday. East Java Investment Coordinating Board (BKPMD) chairman Warno Harisasono welcomed the relocation plan as those firms operated in labor-intensive industries such as footwear, furniture, fertilizer and industrial waste management. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2012-01/09/c_131349966.htm
Bolivia's international reserves rose to a record high of 12.02 billion U.S. dollars in 2011, a 24-percent increase over 2010, Bolivian Central Bank (BCB) said Sunday. International reserves had grew seven-fold since 2005 when the country had only 1.7 billion dollars in reserves. The constant growth in international reserves was partly due to rises in natural gas and mineral exports, said the BCB.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2012-01/09/c_131349683.htm
A decade after the full adoption of the euro, it seems the alarm is ringing for the European single currency. On Friday, euro slumped to its another 16-month low on upbeat U.S. job data and International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde's remarks that euro is unlikely to "vanish" in 2012. As the more than two-year-old sovereign debt crisis sees no quick end, and economists warn of a second recession upcoming, doubt is growing over whether the 17 nations that use euro can hold together. Some analysts say Greece may become the first eurozone member to leave the currency union, while euro skeptics urge banks to prepare for catastrophic contagion in the global financial market following a likely euro break-up. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/indepth/2012-01/08/c_131348336.htm
Thehindu.com
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday called upon the Indian communities living abroad to play a more active role and contribute “much more” to the building of a modern India and promised significant steps to facilitate, encourage and promote their engagement with the country of their origin. Inaugurating the 10th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas here, Dr. Singh also announced the right of franchise to the non-resident Indians who are registered under the Representation of the People Act, 1950. A new pension and life insurance fund for overseas Indian workers, to enable them to voluntarily save for their return and resettlement, has also been introduced. http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2785369.ece?homepage=true
A top Chinese diplomat said on Sunday that China would “make concerted efforts” to improve relations with India in 2012, in comments seen as an attempt to draw a line over recent differences that have strained ties between the neighbours. “China hopes that the two sides will support each other and learn from each other, so as to push for better and faster development of the Sino-Indian strategic and cooperative partnership,” said Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin. The rare remarks by a Chinese official on relations with India were made in an interview on Sunday with the State-run Xinhua news agency. http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2785085.ece?homepage=t...
Indian economy is going through a downturn though the situation is not as grim as Europe or U.S. Growth will be lower and inflation higher than the projection when the current year budget is formulated. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth was 6.9 per cent in the second quarter ended September and is expected to be 7.3 per cent for the current fiscal year. Inflation stood at 9.73 per cent in October with food inflation at 8 per cent during the week ended November 19. The trade deficit was $19.6 billion and it might break the $150-billion mark in the current fiscal. The Union Finance Minister is confident of the economy picking up. There is, however, a big challenge facing the coming central budget. The specific steps and issues involved are worth examining.http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/article2783356.ece
Economictimes.com
Europe may avoid a recession this year and there were reasons to be more upbeat about prospects for the region, the a newspaper quoted International Monetary Fund's Managing Director Christine Lagarde as saying. "The euro-zone scene has changed massively over the last 18 months or so ... there are reasons to be a little bit more upbeat about the prospects," she told the daily in an interview conducted during a two-day visit to South Africa. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/imf-sees...
For industrialists and consumers facing uncertain times, an imminent cut in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India appears to be the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. But the tunnel may be longer than it appears. A cut in policy rates, promised by RBI Governor Duvvuri Subbarao, will begin to ease the pressure from next fiscal, but the revival of investments and return to 9% economic growth may take longer as the economy nurses its wounds. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/costly-crude...
Yonhapnews.co.kr
China has further exempted tariffs on Taiwanese imports, government officials said Monday, a move expected to hurt South Korean exports to the world's No. 2 economy. Under a trade agreement reached earlier between China and Taiwan, Beijing has started implementing the second phase of tariff reductions on goods and services from Taipei this month, the Chinese cabinet State Council said.http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2012/01/09/85/0503000000AEN2012...
The Bank of Korea (BOK) is weighing diverse options other than its interest rate policy to curb inflation, a senior official said Monday, highlighting the central bank's uphill anti-inflation battle amid downside risks to economic growth. South Korean policymakers and the president have put anti-inflation efforts on the top of their economic agenda this year. The country's consumer prices rose 4 percent in 2011, hitting the upper ceiling of the BOK's 2-4 percent target band. "Consumer inflation has emerged as an issue of national concern in the new year," said a high-ranking BOK official, declining to be named. "The BOK is reviewing various policy measures to curb rising consumer prices in the short- to mid-term."http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2012/01/09/59/0502000000AEN2012...
Themoscowtimes.com
It's what you might call a bounceback. With deals worth tens and even hundreds of millions of dollars, real estate buyers have poured about $7.5 billion into the Russian market this year, a post-Soviet record. Though the market is unlikely to repeat such a feat in 2012, it will continue to be an active market with billions of dollars in deals, both analysts and their numbers suggest. In addition, a handful of major deals are on the way to completion, either by the end of this month or in the first quarter. Ducat Place III has been for sale for much of the year and a deal could be at hand for the Class A building near Moscow's Garden Ring. It was built in the 2000s by Hines, the Houston-based real estate developer, which also has owned it. http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/article/real-estate-to-reach-75bl...
Tehrantimes.com
Iran has ready alternatives to a threatened European Union embargo on its oil and increased pressure from Washington, and intends to keep up exports of some 2.3 million barrels per day this year, a senior Iranian oil official told Reuters. European Union governments have discussed on a plan to ban imports of Iranian crude to the European Union but have not yet to reached to an agreement on such an embargo. The discussions, news of which sent crude oil prices higher, followed talks in the last days of December between EU envoys, diplomats said. http://www.tehrantimes.com/economy-and-business/94340-iran-can-readily-r...
Thetrader.se
If you ever happen to acquire an inclination for being the subject of disrepute and ridicule I highly recommend endorsing the conceit alluded to in the title. Apparently this issue is ‘so obvious’ that even gold bugs and government officials can reach common ground via the contention that I’m deluded. My folly — if you will — is to maintain that dollar debasement can be bullish for the dollar vis-à-vis other currencies at present. Since this long-standing conviction of ours is once again being corroborated by price action in the currency markets I thought I’d attempt to convince you that I’m not completely crazy. Here I outline why dollar debasement is bullish for the dollar against other fiat currencies in this environment. http://www.thetrader.se/2012/01/08/huh-when-the-fed-expands-its-balance-...
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I just can't get over the hoopla about U.S. unemployment. After what we witnessed this past year, this bull shit number should be totally ignored, and yet there seems to be surprise that no-one takes it seriously.
Go figure
you forgot "h/t to Bruce" on the Swiss NB story. he broke the first major financial news story of the year...and is starting to make a habit of it i might add. At some point we're gonna have to start having the "Zero Hedge Scooby-doo Awards" around here. Also some opinions on which stories you think are more important than others wouldn't be bad...if you think you can do that. (A "saliancy" standard. Just your view of course.) Other than that spot and...and who doesn't love a story with a happy ending either.
"Krasting brings down Hildebrand" there fixed it