Thursday, September 12, 2013

Today's Headlines

Posted by Gary .....at 3:19 PM
Bloomberg:   
  • Assad Sets Conditions as U.S.-Russia Geneva Talks Open. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad set what may be unacceptable conditions for the U.S. in negotiating a chemical-weapons deal, saying it must be a “two-way street” in which the Obama administration drops its military threats and stops arming Syrian rebels. Assad set out his terms as Secretary of State John Kerry told top Syrian opposition figures in a phone call that the option of a U.S. military strike remains on the table and that the U.S. will continue to stand by the rebels, according to a State Department official who asked not to be named because the talks were private.
  • Richemont Sales Growth Misses Estimates on China Sales. Cie. Financiere Richemont SA (CFR), the world’s largest jewelry maker, reported revenue growth for the first five months of its fiscal year that missed estimates because of weak demand in mainland China. Sales rose 9 percent, excluding currency shifts, in the period through August, Geneva-based Richemont said today. Analysts expected 10 percent growth, according to the median of 21 estimates gathered by Bloomberg News. The stock fell as much as 3.7 percent, leading declines in the Swiss SMI Index. Revenue in the Asia-Pacific region, the source of 41 percent of Richemont’s sales last year, is rising more slowly as China cracks down on the use of watches and jewelry as bribes and illegitimate gifts. Growth in that market was 4 percent in the five months, continuing a slowdown in the last fiscal year and compared with a 46 percent gain a year earlier. 
  • Rupiah Forwards Gain Most Since 2010 as Central Bank Raises Rate. Indonesia’s rupiah forwards gained the most since May 2010 and the onshore spot rate pared losses after the central bank unexpectedly boosted borrowing costs. Stocks and government bonds advanced. Bank Indonesia raised the reference rate to 7.25 percent, from 7 percent, as predicted by only four of 23 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
  • Euro-Area Industrial Output Declines More Than Forecast. Euro-area industrial output contracted more than economists forecast in July as manufacturers struggled to shake off the legacy of a record-long recession. Factory production in the 17-nation euro area fell 1.5 percent from June, when it gained 0.6 percent, the European Union’s statistics office in Luxembourg said today. That’s more than the 0.3 percent contraction forecast by economists, according to the median of 33 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. (EUITEMUM) In the year, output fell 2.1 percent.
  • Italy Industrial Output Unexpectedly Falls as Slump Persists. Italian industrial production unexpectedly fell in July, signaling that the euro region’s third-biggest economy may still be stuck in its longest recession since World War II. Output fell 1.1 percent from June, when it rose a revised 0.2 percent, national statistics office Istat said in Rome today. Economists had estimated a 0.3 percent increase, according to the median of 16 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. Output fell 4.3 percent from a year earlier when adjusted for working days. “We need to see a considerable upward correction in the following months to see activity gaining momentum over the quarter,” Annalisa Piazza, an analyst at Newedge Group in London, said in a note to investors. “So far, it looks like activity will remain on a downward trend.”  
  • Italy Yield Premium Over Spain Reaches 18-Month High; Bunds Gain. The extra yield investors demand to hold Italian 10-year bonds over Spain’s widened to the most in 18 months as Italy’s cost of borrowing for three years climbed to the highest since October at a debt auction. Italian 10-year yields were about five basis points from a two-month high amid speculation a vote on whether to expel former premier Silvio Berlusconi from the Senate could destabilize Enrico Letta’s coalition government. The Rome-based Treasury sold a combined 5.5 billion euros ($7.32 billion) of securities due in 2016 and 2028. German (GDBR10) 10-year bunds rose along with Finnish and Dutch securities as investors sought the region’s safest assets.
  • Europe Stocks Drop From Five-Year High on Industrial Data. European stocks slipped from the highest level in more than five years as the region’s industrial output contracted more than forecast. Sanofi fell 2.6 percent after withdrawing a U.S. application for a diabetes drug. Cie. Financiere Richemont (CFR) SA dropped 2.3 percent as revenue missed analysts’ estimates. Vivendi SA advanced 2.7 percent after saying it will begin a formal study to separate its French phone unit from its media businesses. Home Retail Group Plc (HOME) surged 5.4 percent to a two-year high as sales exceeded projections. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped less than 0.1 percent to 310.74 at the close of trading, as four stocks declined for every three that gained. 
  • Crude Rises a Second Day Amid U.S.-Russia Talks on Syria. West Texas Intermediate crude climbed a second day ahead of talks between the U.S. and Russia to resolve the crisis in Syria, a conflict that’s bolstered concern that Middle Eastern oil supplies may be disrupted. Futures rose as much as 1.5 percent as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Geneva to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for discussions on a plan for Syria to surrender its chemical weapons. President Barack Obama has made their use the rationale for a potential attack on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s war-making ability. 
  • Copper Reaches One-Week Low on Concern About Outlook for Demand. Copper reached a one-week low in London as reports of slumping prices, reduced industrial production and higher unemployment from Germany to Australia fanned concern about the outlook for demand.
  • Gold Futures Fall Most in Nine Weeks on Fed Stimulus Bets. Gold futures tumbled the most in nine weeks after a report showed U.S. jobless claims last week fell to the lowest since April 2006, boosting speculation that the Federal Reserve will scale back fiscal stimulus soon. First-time claims for unemployment insurance fell by 31,000 to 292,000 in the week ended Sept. 7, government data showed. Analysts forecast 330,000.
  • Consumer Comfort Steadies in U.S. After Four-Week Fall: Economy. (graph) The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index (COMFCOMF) rose to minus 32.1 in the week ended Sept. 8 from minus 32.3. The drop was within the survey’s margin of error of 3 percentage points. A measure of households’ assessment of the economy fell to the lowest level since mid-May.
  • Disney(DIS) to Buy Up to $8 Billion of Stock Starting Next Year. Walt Disney Co. (DIS), the world’s biggest entertainment company, plans to buy back $6 billion to $8 billion of its stock starting next year, stepping up efforts to increase investor returns. The company, based in Burbank, California, will borrow to finance some of the repurchases, Chief Financial Officer Jay Rasulo said today at an investor conference in Beverly Hills, California. The company intends to maintain its debt ratings.
Wall Street Journal:
  • Assad Demands End to U.S. 'Threats'. Syrian Leader States Conditions as Envoys Convene in Geneva. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad insisted that the U.S. give up its "policy of threats" and halt arms shipments to rebels before his government turns over its chemical weapons, as U.S. and Russian delegations arrived in Geneva to begin talks aimed at forging a road map for the shutdown of the weapons program. Mr. Assad's comments, in his first public statement on the Russian proposal that Syria hand over its chemical weapons, underlined the distance between Syria and its backers in Moscow on one side and the U.S. and its allies on the other.
  • Economists Expect Tapering Announcement Next Week. Majority in WSJ Survey See Enough Evidence for Fed to Begin Pullback.
Fox News:
CNBC: 
Zero Hedge: 
Reuters: 
Telegraph: 

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