New G20 Rules: Cyprus-style Bail-ins to Hit Deposits AND Pensions
Special Investigative Report
by Ellen Brown, Web of Debt
On the weekend of November 16th, the G20 leaders whisked into Brisbane, posed for their photo ops, approved some proposals, made a show of roundly disapproving of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and whisked out again. It was all so fast, they may not have known what they were endorsing when they rubber-stamped the Financial Stability Board's "Adequacy of Loss-Absorbing Capacity of Global Systemically Important Banks in Resolution," which completely changes the rules of banking.
Markets Keep Pushing Higher
Closing Market Commentary For 02 December 2014
Gary is off , and the market close comes from our syndication partner Investing.com.
An upbeat U.S. service-sector report sent U.S. stocks rising on Wednesday by stoking hopes that a more upbeat economy will bolster top and bottom lines down the road.
The
S&P 500 VIX index, which measures the outlook for market volatility, was down 2.72% at 12.50.
What We Read Today 03 December 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.
- Australia Growth Slows, Sending Aussie to Four-Year Low: Economy (Michael Heath, Bloomberg) Reduced government expenditure and a slowdown in mining have reduced Australia's GDP growth rate for the second quarter in a row. Quarter-over-quarter GDP grew by 0.3%. Over the last two quarters the annual rate of growth has been 1.6% and year-over-year growth has been 2.7%. The AUDUSD air was driven down below 84 on the news. See also GDP data show Australia in income recession; falling dollar a 'silver lining' (Michael Janda, abc.net.au)
Decentralization: Get ready for the Revolution
Much like the DVR before it, decentralization technology is hard to explain to an audience who needs to be educated about how it works. And much like the DVR before it, decentralization has a terrific side-effect: cutting out the middlemen.
Market Commentary: Markets Open Nearly Flat
Opening Market Commentary For 03 December 2014
Gary is off , and the market open comes from our syndication partner Investing.com.
As expected, the major averages began the midweek session near their flat lines. The S&P 500 hovers just above its unchanged level while the Dow (-0.1%) holds a slim opening gain.
November 2014 ISM Services Index Improves, Index Remains In Moderate Growth Territory
Written by Steven Hansen
The ISM non-manufacturing (aka ISM Services) index continues its growth cycle, and rose moderately from 57.1 to 59.3 (above 50 signals expansion). Important internals likewise contracted insignificantly.
This was within the range of market forecasts of 54.4 to 58.5 (consensus 57.3).
Read more >>
A Word from This Newsletter's Sponsor
Purchasing With Amazon Through This Link Supports the Newsletter
Why Do Banks Keep All that "Fracking" Money?
by Matthew Plosser - Liberty Street Economics, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Second in a two-part series - In a recent post, I discussed the significant impact that 'fracking' and other unconventional energy development has had on bank deposits. Using this deposit windfall, I estimated how banks allocate these funds, finding that over the recent business cycle they reduced the portion used for loans. In this post, I will discuss what may have influenced the decision to lend these funds or to hold liquid assets like cash or securities.
3Q2014 (Final): Productivity Up, Costs Down (or vice versa)
Written by Steven Hansen
A simple summary of the headlines for this release is that the growth of unit labor costs is lower than the previous quarter, whilst the rate of growth of productivity has improved. If one looks at the year-over-year data - it is saying the growth of unit labor costs is higher than the growth of productivity,
Read more >>
November 2014 ADP Job Growth at 208,000, Even Though Under Expectations - It Was a Good Report.
Written by Steven Hansen
ADP reported non-farm private jobs growth at 208,000. This should be again be considered a strong report. What is interesting this month is that the rolling averages have been unchanged for the last 4 months.
Read more >>
Human Races
Written by Frank Li
After talking about civilizations, let me delve a little deeper into it by focusing on human races, political correctness notwithstanding.
Majority Considers Internet Access a Human Right
by Felix Richter, Statista.com
Should affordable internet access be a basic human right?
The Dow Jones: Beautiful Tree in the Desert
by Wim Grommen
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) Index is the only stock market index that covers both the second and the third industrial revolution. Calculating share indexes such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and showing this index in a historical graph is a useful way to show which phase the industrial revolution is in. Changes in the DJIA shares basket, changes in the formula and stock splits during the take-off phase and acceleration phase of industrial revolutions are perfect transition-indicators. The similarities of these indicators during the last two revolutions are fascinating, but also a reason for concern. In fact the graph of the DJIA is a classic example of fictional truth, a fata morgana.
This Time Really Is Different For Initial Unemployment Claims
by Lee Adler, Wall Street Examiner
Editor's note: Written a month ago this is still a timely "long-view" of initial unemployment claims trends.
The headline, fictional, seasonally adjusted number for initial unemployment claims came in at 278,000, slightly less than the Wall Street conomist crowd consensus guess of 285,000. That was a non event.
Read more >>
Using Bankruptcy to Reduce Foreclosures: Does Strip-Down of Mortgages Affect the Supply of Mortgage Credit?
from the Philadelphia Fed
A mortgage 'strip-down' = reducing the principal of underwater residential mortgages to the current market value of the property for homeowners in Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Strip-down of mortgages in bankruptcy was proposed as a means of reducing foreclosures during the recent mortgage crisis but was blocked by lenders.
Investment Professional Charged With Double Dealing Stock and Pocketing the Money
from Securities and Exchange Commission
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the owner of several now-defunct investment entities with fraudulently selling shares of stock that he claimed to own when he had actually purchased them for others a few years before.
Infographic of the Day: Trek of a Hammerhead Shark
The movements of a scalloped hammerhead shark were monitored over a period of 10.5 months as it swam 2,082 miles (3,350 kilometers) in the Gulf of California.
How much is Breathing Smog Worth to You?
The recent election, in which the Tea/Republicans captured the votes of America, merits this headline:Turkeys Vote For Thankgiving.
Investing.com Technical Summary 25 November 2014
Investing.com Technical Analysis (as of Tue, 02 December 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 02 December 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.
Move Over Big Power - the Micropower Revolution is Here
by Morgan Saletta, The Conversation
There is no shortage of shouting and dire warnings about the state of the climate and our need to phase out fossil fuels. But there is a more silent revolution happening too - in micropower.
Small-scale electricity generation is slowly replacing big fossil-fuel driven power plants, which are currently the world's single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.
Cyber Monday 2013: The Biggest Online Spending Day In History
from Felix Richter, Statista.com
by Niall McCarthy
Since the term 'Cyber Monday' was officially coined back in 2005, the Monday after Thanksgiving has swiftly become the most important day of the year for online retailers in the US. Indeed, last year,
