Argentina: An Open Letter to Finance Minister Kicillof
by Elliott Morss, Morss Global Finance
Minister Kicillof:
You got caught is a squeeze by your "equal treatment" (RUFO) clause and an overreaching US judge. So you have now not paid any of your debtors on an agreed-upon so you are legally in default. And sadly, this was done at a time it appears your country wants to "rejoin" the global financial community.
Markets End Solidly In The Red, Important Supports Broken
Closing Market Commentary For 08-01-2014
Sell in May worked this year, but you had to wait until the recent downturn to appreciate the DOW forfeiting all profits this year and worst losing market streak since 2011. The only good news is that the by the close DOW didn't lose triple digits again today.
By 4 pm the $RUT had clearly dipped down through an important support, the SP500 touched the 100 DMA and the DOW backed off the 145 DMA. But there is good news.
What We Read Today 01 August 2014
Econintersect: Every day our editors collect the most interesting things they find from around the internet and present a summary "reading list" which will include very brief summaries (and sometimes longer ones) of why each item has gotten our attention. Suggestions from readers for "reading list" items are gratefully reviewed, although sometimes space limits the number included.
- Euro Inflation Slowed to 0.4% in July, Lowest Since 2009 (Catherine Bosley, Bloomberg) The Eurozone has recorded the lowest inflation numbers is almost five years with 0.4% (annual rate) for June. This is happening while the 18-member euro area still suffers with double digit unemployment, 11.5%. Unemployment was improved slightly, having been 12.0% in June 2013. There is more discussion 'behind the wall'.
The Rating Agencies Feel Heat - It's About Time
Special Report from Money Morning
by Shah Gilani, Money Morning
Sometimes it's all about time. Things take time. Time catches up to things.
Subprime Auto Loans: The Next Financial Crisis?
Written by Michael Moon, GEI Associate
An investigation by The New York Times has revealed that millions of Americans with shoddy credit are being handed auto loans from used-car dealers, who are ignoring or even fabricating their financial information including income and the ability to repay the loan. These subprime loans, whose borrowers have credit scores at or below 640, have very high risks of default and pose serious financial threats to the borrowers and the investors who are buying these loans as bundles. This is reminiscent of the doomed subprime mortgage loans that led to the financial crisis in 2008, although auto loans make up a smaller scale.
Market Commentary: Markets Depressed, DOW Down Triple Digits
Midday Market Commentary For 08-01-2014
By 11 am the melting down continued unabated on moderate to sometime heavy red volume. It would appear investors did not like the penetrations of several key averages support levels and are repositioning portfolios to safer ground for now.
By noon the averages were gaining speed in falling but still classified as melting as the DOW slips into triple digits. We are approaching a wait and see level and the red caution flags are flying.
Plants Respond to Leaf Vibrations Caused by Insects Chewing
Plant growth can be influenced by sound and can respond to wind and touch. The University of Missouri brought together audio and chemical analysis showing that plants respond to the sounds that caterpillars make when eating plants.
25 July 2014: ECRI's WLI Growth Slows Insignificantly
ECRI's WLI Growth Index continues to show growth - remaining in positive territory and at a level slightly diminished from the previous week. A positive number predicts economic expansion to come within the next six months.
Final July 2014 Michigan Consumer Sentiment Posts Four Month Low
The Final University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment for July came in at 81.8, a decline from the June final of 82.5 and the lowest reading since March. Today's number came in slightly below the Investing.com forecast of 82.0.
Read more >>
July 2014 ISM Manufacturing Survey Insignificantly Improves - Expansion Continues
Written by Steven Hansen
The ISM Manufacturing survey for July 2014 continues to indicate manufacturing
growth expansion with an insignificant increase in the rate of growth.
Read more >>
Construction Spending Growth Declines in June 2014
Written by Steven Hansen
This month's headlines say there was a decline month-over-month in construction spending -Econintersectagrees with the headlines believing this sector continues to slow month-over-month. Public construction year-over-year contraction continued, and private construction year-over-year growth rate deteriorated.
Read more >>
Market Commentary: Markets Open Mixed, Mostly Down On Moderate Red Volume
Opening Market Commentary For 08-01-2014
The premarkets were down -0.25% and were relatively active jumping up after the mixed not-so-good US financial's reported this morning. The markets opened in the red but slowly recovered to flat status posting numbers in the green on moderate volume.
By 10 the ever so brief stint in the green was meet with more red as investors are convinced this may be the correction everyone has been talking about.
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June 2014 Real Personal Income and Expenditures Show a Growing Economy
Written by Steven Hansen
This was an annual revision month - and what you thought about trends have likely been changed. One element for certain, this data shows a stable and growing economy.
Read more >>
BLS Jobs Situation Remains Fairly Strong in July 2014
Written by Steven Hansen
The July 2014 BLS jobs report headlines again were fairly strong - although slightly less good than the previous month. The unadjusted data paints a stronger picture of job growth this month. The data continues to trend in the right direction.
Read more >>
PMI Numbers Bullish for China
Econintersect: China's manufacturing sector is showing solid grwoth from numbers released for both PMI (Purchasing Mangers' Index) surveys. Both the
official PMI from the government and the HSBC PMI reported 51.7 for July. Numbers above 50 indicate manufacturing is expanding. The official PMI survey covers large and mainly government owned enterprises, while the HSBC survey covers small and mid-sized mostly privately owned companies. It is not often that the two surveys agree exactly as they do for July. In fact a number of times during the past few years the two have differed on whether manufacturing was expanding or contracting.
Options Basics: Wrapping Up the Greeks
Online Trading Academy Article of the Week
by Russ Allen, Online Trading Academy Instructor
This is the fourth and final part of a series.
In the last few articles (Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3) I've been describing the forces that affect option prices. Each has a measurement whose name is a Greek letter, and collectively they are called 'the Greeks.' Here again is the table listing them:
Central Banks Continue to Prepare for Shift in Fed Policy
Monetary Policy Week in Review: Jul 21-25, 2014
by Peter Nielsen, Central Bank News
Central banks are continuing to position themselves to weather the fallout from the coming shift in U.S. monetary policy, with Hungary, Nigeria and Russia's last week citing the need to maintain tight policy in light of the risks they will face from higher U.S. interest rates.
Investing.com Technical Summary 31 July 2014
Investing.com Technical Analysis (as of Thu, 31 July 2014 05:00pm EDT)
by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
Below, technical overviews and analysis for key stock indices, commodities and currency pairs,
based on market activity at the close of the 31 July 2014 U.S. session. This information is a comprehensive summary derived from simple and exponential moving averages along with key technical indicators shown for specific time intervals.
Country Music Acts Earn Staggering Amounts of Money
from Felix Richter, Statista.com
by Niall McCarthy
According to a new list released by Forbes, country musicians are earning staggering amounts of money, even outpacing some of the largest names in mainstream pop.
What Is the Economic Impact of the Slowdown in New Business Formation?
from the Chicago Fed
Economists have emphasized the importance of 'creative destruction' as an engine of growth. The creative destruction process involves a constant reorganization of the economy as old products, firms, factories, and jobs are replaced by new ones. An important part of this process lies in the opening of new firms or establishments.
Steps Needed to Address Puerto Rico's Fiscal Stress
by James Orr - Liberty Street Economics, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
An Update on the Competitiveness of Puerto Rico's Economy, released today, offers six steps that the Island's government should consider taking to restore its fiscal health. Puerto Rico faces interrelated economic and fiscal challenges. The report characterizes economic activity in Puerto Rico as flat at a depressed level and shows that public debt has risen to about 100 percent of GNP, a high ratio compared with the ratios for U.S. mainland states and a number of foreign economies.
Virginia-Based Broker Charged With Stealing Funds From Elderly Customers
from the Securities and Exchange Commission
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a broker based in Roanoke, Va., with defrauding elderly customers, including some who are legally blind, by stealing their funds for her personal use and falsifying their account statements to cover up her fraud.
Infographic of the Day: 5 Utterly Disgusting Medical Jobs
It takes a stomach of steel to have anyone of the following medical jobs.
