|
Follow ZeroHedge in Real-Time on FinancialJuice [28] HEADLINES |
|
|
|
EU's Juncker Tells Greek PM ''Don't Assume Eurozone Will Accept Your Plans'' Greece PM Defies EU Pressure, Sticks To Pre-Election Promises UK Chancellor Osborne Admits Grexit Contingency Plan Preparations German CDU Party's Fuchs Says 'We Are Prepared For Grexit' French FinMin Sapin Says Greece Needs Extension, Bridge Loan OECD: G20 Must Focus On Productivity, Competitiveness To Boost Growth OPEC Cuts Forecast For US Oil-Supply Growth After Price Rout US CBO Estimates $19 Bln Jan Govt Deficit Vs $10 Bln Deficit Jan'14 US Tsy's Lew: US Economy Has Turned Corner, More Wage Growth Needed Bank of France Forecasts Q1 French GDP Growth At +0.4% Bank Of Italy Boosts GDP Growth Estimates On ECB Measures China's Imports Slump, Capping Dismal January Trade Performance Eurozone Sentiment Improves Sharply In February On ECB Bond-Buying Apple Plans Debut Swiss Franc Bond Sale Loews Profit From Continuing Operations Falls 13% Hasbro Raises Quarterly Dividend 7% To $0.46; 3.3% Yield HSBC Board Announces Quarterly Dividend Of $0.3875 Per ADS VW's Audi Has Record January Sales, Beats Mercedes |
|
|
|
COMMENTARY |
|
|
|
ECB Doing 'Too Little, Too Late' To Rescue Eurozone, Experts Warn |
|
Eurozone stimulus will be “too little, too late” to revive the currency bloc’s feeble economy, experts have warned. If policymakers do not learn from their mistakes, then the euro project may come to a nasty end, as the euro area falls further into a deflationary spiral. Scott Sumner, a leading monetary economist, has said that a €1.1 trillion (£820bn) quantitative easing package unveiled by the European Central Bank (ECB) in January will not be sufficient to reverse the euro area’s decline. Writing for the Telegraph, Mr Sumner said that “European officials have not learned any of the lessons offered by the Japanese experience” of prolonged economic stagnation. (Telegraph – Continue Reading) [29] |
|
US Investors Primed For Midyear Rate Rise |
|
US investors are priming themselves for the first tightening of interest rate policy this summer as strengthening employment conditions in the world’s largest economy counter worries over slowing global activity. It is a shift in sentiment for investors who had expected the first interest rate rise from the US Federal Reserve to arrive late this year or early 2016, and comes after employment numbers released on Friday showed solid job and wage gains. (FT – Continue Reading) [30] |
|
The Global Financial System Stands On The Brink Of Second Credit Crisis |
|
The world economy stands on the brink of a second credit crisis as the vital transmission systems for lending between banks begin to seize up and the debt markets fall over. The latest round of quantitative easing from the European Central Bank will buy some time but it looks like too little too late. It was the collapse of US house prices back in 2007 that resulted in the seizure of the credit markets and banking crisis of 2008. And it would be easy to lay the blame for the 2008 financial crisis at the doorstep of American home owners, easy but wrong. The collapse of the US housing market was not the cause of the crisis, it was merely a symptom of the more insidious ills of cheap credit, low risk and the promise of another bailout round the corner. The Keynesian pump priming that has taken place on a colossal scale across the world is failing. The Chinese economy was growing at 12pc in 2010, but that slowed to 7.7pc in 2013 and 7.4pc last year — its weakest in 24 years. Economists expect Chinese growth to slow to 7pc this year. It is the once booming property sector that has turned into a bust, and is now dragging down the wider economy as the bubble deflates. (Telegraph – Continue Reading) [31] |
|
Ukraine Cease-Fire Talks To Open Wednesday In Belarus |
|
The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France have agreed to meet Wednesday in Belarus for talks aimed at a deal to end the surging pro-Russian rebellion in eastern Ukraine. Their agreement came Sunday in four-way phone talks that followed crisis talks Friday in Moscow involving Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande. Merkel is due in Washington Monday for talks with President Barack Obama about the fighting, which has claimed more than 5,600 lives since rebels launched their uprising 10 months ago. A cease-fire reached in September has gone unheeded by both sides. (VOA – Continue Reading) [32] |
|
Abbott's Days As PM Are Numbered, Experts Say |
|
Australia's prime minister may have survived a crucial leadership challenge on Monday, but that doesn't mean he'll remain in power for much longer, experts told CNBC. "He's a goner…I don't think he'll last the twelve weeks until the critical budget [in May]," said Colin Chapman, founder and editor-in-chief of think-tank Australia and ASEAN Strategies. "He's on borrowed time and I can't see anything he can do in the coming months that can change that." Monday's spill motion, an internal vote held between all Liberal Party members of parliament (MPs), revealed that 61 MPs voted for Abbott to remain in power, while 39 were against him. (CNBC – Continue Reading) [33] |
|
Leaked HSBC List Shows Who Was Banking On Swiss Secrecy |
|
The private-banking unit of HSBC Holdings Plc made significant profits for years handling secret accounts for an array of criminals, from drug cartels and arms dealers to tax evaders and fugitive diamond merchants, according to a report released Sunday by an international news organization. HSBC is among a handful of banks to face criminal prosecution in recent years for its role in a Swiss banking system that allowed depositors to conceal their identities, and in many cases dodge taxes or launder ill-gotten cash. The report, prepared by the Washington-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, revealed for the first time the massive sweep of HSBC’s private-banking arm as of 2007, when it controlled $100 billion in assets and served a swath of wealthy depositors from the elite to the illicit. (Bloomberg – Continue Reading) [34] |
|
DATA |
|
Eurozone Sentix Investor Confidence Feb: 12.4 (est 3; prev 0.9) [35] Bank of France Bus. Sentiment Jan: 98 (est 97; rev prev 97) [36] SNB Sight Deposits Feb-06: 384.9B (prev 383.3B) [37] Greek Industrial Production (YoY) Dec: -3.80% (rev prev 2.50%) [38] Swedish Household Consumption (MoM) Dec: -1.30% (rev prev 0.50%) [39] Dutch Manufacturing Production (YoY) Dec: -2.80% rev (prev 0.20%) [40] |
|
GOVERNMENT/ CENTRAL BANK NEWS & COMMENTARY |
|
US CBO Estimates $19 Bln Jan Govt Deficit Vs $10 Bln Deficit Jan'14 [41] US Tsy's Lew: US Economy Has Turned Corner, More Wage Growth Needed [42] The Fed's Republican Tries Talking Republicans Out Of 'Audit The Fed' [43] EU's Juncker Tells Greek PM: Don't Assume Euro Zone Will Accept Your Plans [44] Greece PM Defies EU Pressure, Sticks To Pre-Election Promises [45] Greek FinMin Varoufakis Says Euro Will Collapse If Greece Exits [46] UK Chancellor Osborne: Planning For Possible Grexit [47] BoE's Carney Says Worried About Financial Reform Fatigue Globally [48] OECD Warns On Reform Slowdown [49] German CDU Party's Fuchs Says 'We Are Prepared For Grexit' [50] Bank Of Italy Boosts GDP Growth Estimates On ECB Measures [51] Italy's Padoan Says Europe Should Be Bolder In Boosting Investments [52] Abbott Defeats Challenge, Yet Leadership Speculation Lingers [53] BoJ's Morimoto: Watch Various Price Data, Not Just Oil Prices [54] |
|
GOVERNMENT/ BOND NEWS & COMMENTARY |
|
Greek Bond Yields Spike As Tsipras' Speech Sounds Alarm [55] Germany Sold EUR1.895 Bln In 6-Month Bills (avg yield -0.209%; bid cover 2.6) [56] |
|
EQUITY NEWS & COMMENTARY |
|
US Stock Futures Fall As Bears End Hibernation [57] Grexit, China Growth Fears Weigh On European Assets [58] China Stocks Fall Further On Bad Data Surprise [59] China's First Stock Options Trading Debuts In Shanghai [60] Loews Profit From Continuing Operations Falls 13 Pct [61] Hasbro Reports Revenue, Operating Profit And Net Earnings Growth For FY 2014 [62] HSBC Admits Swiss Bank Failings Over Client Taxes [63] HSBC Board Announces Quarterly Dividend Of $0.3875 Per ADS [64] US Banks Say Soaring Dollar Puts Them At Disadvantage [65] VW's Audi Has Record January Sales, Beats Mercedes [66] Carrefour Says CEO Recovering From Surgery [67] Credit Suisse To Launch Speciality Finance Company ? WSJ [68] |
|
CURRENCY/ COMMODITY NEWS & COMMENTARY |
|
GBP/USD Almost Unchanged In Quiet Trade [69] EUR/USD: Euro Trims Gains, Remains Above $1.13 [70] USD/JPY: Yen Ticks Higher Amid Risk-Off Trades On ?Grexit? Fears [71] Gold Futures Edge Higher Amid Greece Jitters [72] Copper Edges Higher After Chinese Data, Nickel Down As Stocks Rise [73] Oil Dips After Weak Chinese Trade Data [74] OPEC Cuts Forecast For US Oil-Supply Growth After Price Rout [75] |
|
EMERGING MARKET NEWS & COMMENTARY |
|
Politics, US Yields Weigh On EMs, Naira Hits New Low [76] China's Imports Slump, Capping Dismal January Trade Performance [77] China Hikes Retail Fuel Prices, First In Eight Months [78] Russia Inflation Shock No Reason To Raise Rates, Nabiullina Says [79] |
