General Motors

Q. What are traders talking about at the present time here at the New York Stock Exchange?

Cashin: We are concerned about two questions. First, how will the Fed do in keeping money reasonably easy without causing inflation? Second, where do we stand with the current geopolitical challenges? For now, these challenges seem to be short term concerns. But should we begin to see a financial contagion and pressure building on banks in Europe, perhaps out of the Ukraine situation, things could theoretically turn into what I call a «Lehman moment». That is when markets come under pressure but seem to be under control, and then things change suddenly.

• Russia faces new U.S., EU sanctions over Ukraine crisis (Reuters)
• Glasgow pulls no punches in welcome to 'Save the Union Express' (Guardian)
• Pound Seen Tumbling Up to 10% on Scottish Yes Vote (BBG)
• Moscow stifles dissent as soldiers return in coffins (Reuters)
• Ukraine's leader sees no military solution of crisis, eyes reforms (Reuters)
• Venezuela Threatens Harvard Professor for Default Comment (BBG)
• Australia Raises Terror Alert to Highest Level in a Decade (BBG)
• Activist Investors Build Up Their War Chests (WSJ)

With the Alibaba roadshow kicking off this week, ConvergEx's Nick Colas reviews the second-order implications of this historic transaction. Over the next two weeks investors will have to consider important issues, such as which stocks money managers will sell to fund their BABA purchase and what securities (stocks and ETFs) hedge funds may short to pair against an Alibaba long position. And consider: "Do big IPOs signal a market top?" Also, with an estimated $7 billion in fresh cash and a valuable public stock post-IPO, BABA will also be able to play the M&A game aggressively. Just consider its corporate North Star: "Our mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere" (the first line of the S-1 summary). In short, Colas concludes Alibaba really is a big deal (at 27.3x trailing EV/EBITDA).

• Scotland split jitters send sterling to 10-month low (Reuters)
• S&P 500 Beating World Most Since 1969 Doesn’t Spark Flows (BBG)
• Happy ending guaranteed: Vietnam building deterrent against China in disputed seas with submarines (Reuters)
• China Posts Record Surplus as Exports-Imports Diverge (Bloomberg)
• Russia, U.S. to hold talks on 1987 arms accord (Reuters)
• Halcon’s Wilson Drills More Debt Than Oil in Shale Bet (BBG)
• Deadly Disappointment Awaits at Ebola Clinics Due to Lack of Space (WSJ)
• Latinos furious at Obama on immigration delay, vow more pressure (Reuters)
• Japan GDP Shrinks at Fastest Pace in More Than Five Years (WSJ)

• Global stocks bounce on sign ECB could launch ABS program (Reuters)
• Putin unveils Ukraine ceasefire plan, France halts warship (Reuters)
• Poroshenko Flummoxes Investors With About-Face on Truce (BBG)
• No Free Lunch for Companies as IRS Weighs Meal Tax Rules (BBG)
• Turkey Struggles to Halt Islamic State 'Jihadist Highway' (WSJ)
• Lego Becomes World's Largest Toy Maker on Movie Success (WSJ)
• U.N. says $600 million needed to tackle Ebola as deaths top 1,900 (Reuters)
• Goldman Sachs Named 'Stabilization Agent' for Alibaba Stock Offering (WSJ)

• Jackson Hole Theme: Labor Markets Can’t Take Higher Rates (BBG), or anything else for that matter
• Kidnappers free American missing in Syria since 2012 (Reuters)
• More unpatriots: Burger King in merger talks with Canada's Tim Hortons (Reuters)
• California Quake to Cost Insurers Up to $1 Billion, Eqecat Says (BBG)
• Congo declares Ebola outbreak in northern Equateur province (Reuters)
• Missouri Governor Defends Ferguson Prosecutor (BBG)
• Kuroda Douses Japan Stimulus Expectations (WSJ)
• London Jihadi Call Vies With Banks in Canary Wharf Shadow (BBG)
• Netanyahu Signals Expansion of Air Attacks in Gaza (WSJ)
• Libya's Islamist Militias Claim Control of Tripoli (WSJ)

• Ukraine accuses Russia of invasion after aid convoy crosses border (Reuters)
• Hunt for Foley’s Killer Spans Old Policing and Tech Tools (BBG)
• U.S. Probe Examines GM Lawyers (WSJ)
• Argentina accuses U.S. Judge Griesa of "imperialist" attitude (Reuters)
• Violence-weary Missouri town sees second night of calm (Reuters)
• Geneva Banks Break 200-Year Silence to Unveil Earnings (BBG)
• Richest Jailed Putin Foe Says Ukraine Fears Sparked Prosecution (BBG)
• Disclosure of Failed Attempt to Rescue James Foley Is Criticized (WSJ)
• Execution of U.S. journalist reveals the changing business of war coverage (Reuters)

• Barack Obama's 'vacation from hell' (Politico)
• Russian aid convoy checked; military vehicles mass near Ukraine (Reuters)
• Ukraine Says APCs Entered From Russia to Aid Insurgents (BBG)
• Islamic State Said to Challenge Al-Qaeda for Leadership (BBG)
• Missouri protests calmer after governor puts black police captain in charge (Reuters)
• Finally someone will prove the US is a pyramid scheme (in a 1000 page presentation): Ackman’s Pershing Square Sues U.S. Over Fannie, Freddie (BBG)
• Banks, Financial Firms Load Up on Cheap Debt (WSJ)
• Putin to Meet Finnish President as Threat of Cold War Grows (BBG)

• Police fire tear gas, stun grenades at Missouri protesters (Reuters)
• Putin’s Pipeline Bypassing Ukraine at Risk Amid Conflict (BBG)
• Russia's Largest Oil Company Seeks $42 billion to Weather Sanctions (WSJ)
• Shells hit central Donetsk, Russian aid convoy heads towards border (Reuters)
• U.S. Tightens Sanctions, Putting More Russian Companies at Risk (BBG)
• How to Blindly Score 43% Profit Overnight in China Stocks (BBG)
• Tears guaranteed: San Diego Pension Dials Up the Risk to Combat a Shortfall (WSJ)
• Euro Recovery Halts as Germany Shrinks, France Stagnates (BBG)
• Billionaire Found in Middle of Bribery Case Avoids U.S. Probe (BBG)
• Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama 'Hug It Out' on Martha's Vineyard (WSJ)

• Second Ebola patient to arrive in U.S. on Tuesday (Reuters)
• Ebola Drug Made From Tobacco Plant Saves U.S. Aid Workers (BBG)
• Egypt plans to dig new Suez Canal costing $4 billion (Reuters)
• Apple Buybacks Pay Most Ever as CEOs Spend $211 Billion (BBG)
• DeMark Says Sell China Stocks Now After World’s Best Gain (BBG)
• Investors Stung by Losses After Exiting Struggling Property Fund in China (WSJ)
• B.A. in BTFD: MIT May Consider Granting Degrees in Less Than Four Years (BBG)
• Too late, money's already been spent: GPIF Needs Overhaul Before Asset Changes, Shiozaki Says (BBG)
• Oh look, another "truce": Israel withdraws troops, 72-hour Gaza truce begins (Reuters)

• As we predicted yesterday, the "big" Gaza ceasefire lasted all of a few hours (Reuters)
• To Lift Sales, G.M. Turns to Discounts (NYT)
• Espirito Santo Family’s Swift Fall From Grace Jolts Portugal (BBG)
• Argentine Debt Feud Finds Much Fault, Few Fixes (WSJ)
• Fiat Says Ciao to Italy as Merger With Chrysler Ends Era (BBG)
• Euro zone factory growth eases in July as inflation fades away (Reuters)
• CIA concedes it spied on U.S. Senate investigators, apologizes (Reuters)
• Ukraine Reports Losses After Pro-Russian Ambush Near Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 Crash Area (WSJ)
• U.S. says India refusal on WTO deal a wrong signal (Reuters)
• Why Putin Has 2006 Flash Before His Eyes After Sanctions (BBG)

• Argentine holdout NML says government "choosing" to default (Reuters)
• Crunch time for Gaza truce talks as death toll passes 800 (Reuters)
• Don’t Tell Anybody About This Story on HFT Power Jump Trading (BBG)
• U.S. Accuses Russia of Shelling Eastern Ukraine (BBG)
• France’s Wheat Exports in Question as Rain Spoils Quality (BBG)
• Tapering in action: Lower printer sales hurt Xerox's revenue (Reuters)
• No liquidity? No Problem, there's an ETF for that: Bond ETFs Swelling in Europe as Trading Debt Gets Tougher (BBG)
• Herbalife hires ex-Biden chief to fend off regulators (NYPost)
• GM recalls far from calamity for some dealers who find new customers, business (Reuters)
• Bad weather likely cause of fatal Air Algerie crash: French officials (Reuters)

• EU to weigh extensive sanctions on Russia (FT)
• U.S. lifts flight ban to Israel (Reuters)
• Russia says will cooperate with MH17 probe led by Netherlands (Reuters)
• Norway faces ‘concrete and credible’ terrorist threat (FT)
• Don’t Tell Anybody About This Story on HFT Power Jump Trading (BBG)
• But... but... PMI: Unilever Sales Growth Misses Estimates on Asian Slowdown (BBG)
• World’s Biggest Wealth Fund Reviews $8 Billion Russian Stake (BBG)
• Qualcomm latest US tech company to reverse in China (FT)
• Hamptons Home Sales Rise as Buyers Find More Inventory (BBG)

• Here come the gates which we predicted in 2010: SEC Is Set to Approve Money-Fund Rules (WSJ)
• Dick's cuts 400 jobs as golf now less popular (MW)
• Kerry arrives in Israel, pushes for peace (Reuters)
• Pay Penalty Haunts Recession Grads as U.S. Economy Mends (BBG)
• Appeals Courts Issue Conflicting Rulings on Health-Law Subsidies (WSJ)
• Rebel Stronghold Donetsk Holds Breath as Shellfire Mounts (BBG)
• Business executive wins Georgia Republican runoff in U.S. Senate race (Reuters)
• Five held in China food scandal probe, including head of Shanghai Husi Food (Reuters)
• Jobs Hold Sway Over Yellen-Carney as Central Banks Splinter (BBG)

The good news about this particular banana republic: everything else may be imploding, but at least still has bananas.