Today's Headlines

Bloomberg: 

• Spanish Bonds Fall as Auction Demand Wanes; Italian Debt Drops. Spanish government bonds fell, pushing 10-year yields to the highest level this month, as demand dropped when the nation sold a combined 4.57 billion euros ($5.99 billion) of securities at an auction. Longer-maturity debt led declines as investors submitted bids for 1.62 times the amount of the 13-year bonds sold today, down from 2.85 times at the previous auction in January. The so-called bid-to-cover ratio also worsened for three- and five-year notes. Spain’s 10-year yield fell to the lowest in three years last week after the European Central Bank cut its main refinancing rate to boost growth. Italian bonds also declined.
• ECB Seen Desisting From Further Rate Cut Until 2015. The European Central Bank will refrain from cutting its interest rate again until at least 2015, according to economists surveyed since President Mario Draghi’s pledge last week to deliver another reduction if needed. The Frankfurt-based central bank will leave its main refinancing rate at a record-low 0.5 percent until the end of 2014, according to the median of 18 forecasts in the monthly Bloomberg survey of economists. The same survey shows that 27 of 32 economists predict no cut in the benchmark by the end of 2013, while five see a reduction to 0.25 percent. 
• Yen Weakens Past 100 Per Dollar for First Time in Four Years. The yen weakened beyond 100 per dollar for the first time in four years as the Bank of Japan’s deflation-fighting measures have the currency headed for its longest streak of monthly losses in almost two decades.

Fox News:

• Boehner calls for release of Benghazi emails as pressure grows on administration. Pressure on the Obama administration to release more information about the Benghazi attack grew Thursday, as House Speaker John Boehner demanded officials turn over emails pertaining to the controversial "talking points" and another top Republican appealed for more whistle-blowers to come forward. On the heels of a dramatic hearing where three whistle-blowers testified, Fox News has learned that former Vice President Dick Cheney on Thursday, on the Hill for a meeting with House Republicans, also told lawmakers: "I think Hillary (Clinton) should be subpoenaed if necessary."

CNBC:

• Mortgage Delinquency Rate Rises as Inventory Eases. The delinquency rate on U.S. home mortgages rose in the first quarter as more homeowners fell behind on payments for the first time, data from an industry group showed on Thursday. The seasonally adjusted delinquency rate on all loans rose to 7.25 percent from 7.09 percent in the first quarter but was down from 7.40 percent a year ago, according to the report from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Zero Hedge:

• Greek Unemployment Hits New Record High, Youth Jobless Rises By 5% In One Month To 64.2%. (graph)
• The Depressing Effect Of QE.
• Initial Claims Drop To 324K, Lowest Since January 2008. (graph)
• The Complete Ira Sohn Conference Highlights. 
• Wholesales Sales Drop By Most Since March 2009; Relentless Inventory Accumulation Continues. (graph)
• The "Labor Hoarding" Effect. (graph)
• "QE-Off Rumor?" Bonds Down, Stocks Down, Gold Down.

Business Insider:

• CHARLES RAMSEY: Take That Reward And Give It To The Kidnap Victims.
• CHART OF THE DAY: The Short Sellers Are Getting Destroyed. (graph)
• New York Could Be America's First City To Let Non-Citizens Vote.
• The EU's Unofficial Spy Services Are Growing Out-Of-Control.
• ROSENBERG: America's Labor Market Mess Spells Trouble For Stocks.
• GOP SENATOR: There's A 'Glaring Omission' On Benghazi That Will Eventually Cause 'Real Trouble'.

Real Clear Politics:

• A Coverup Laid Bare. Thanks to House Republicans, Americans finally got to hear from the State Department officials the Obama administration never wanted to testify. They are now called “whistleblowers,” but that’s only because their accounts of what really happened in Libya on Sept. 11, 2012, were buried by the administration, apparently in the furtherance of Democrats’ election-year imperatives.

Reuters: 

• Fed's Plosser adds voice to too-big-to-fail criticisms. The United States is falling short in its effort to end the problem of too-big-to-fail banks and should require higher capital and adopt a fresh approach to winding down firms that face bankruptcy, a top Federal Reserve official warned on Thursday. In a speech, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser threw his weight behind growing momentum among regulators and politicians to crack down on big banks some five years after the global financial crisis led to massive government bailouts and a deep recession. "Can we end too big to fail? I think we can, but I believe the current efforts may come up short," Plosser told the Annual Simon New York City Conference.
• Copper slips, taking breather after 3-week high.

Eesti Paeevaleht:

• Europe's Austerity Is 'Pure Irony,' Estonia's Ligi Says. Europe accounts for half of global social spending with less than 10% of world population, Estonian Finance Minister Juergen Ligi said in an interview. Excessive taxes and imprecisely allocated public spending are main drags on regional development. "Actual austerity hasn't been noticeable in most countries, he said.

Xinhua:

• China's Inflation Pressures Haven't Eased. China's inflation pressures haven't eased because of large domestic money supply and quantitative easing policies of major developed countries, citing Zhang Liqun, a researcher with the State Council's Development Research Center. China shouldn't have expansionary policies now to boost economic growth, otherwise inflation will rebound.