- Ukraine Rebels Vow to Retake Cities as Vote Nears. Pro-Russian insurgents vowed to keep battling Ukrainian forces and retake eastern cities, including the port of Mariupol as general elections near. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk warned today of Russian provocations ahead of the Oct. 26 ballot. Ukraine, the European Union and the U.S. say President Vladimir Putin has backed the rebels with arms and troops, charges Russia denies. Ensuring security for Ukraine’s more than 40 million citizens is the government’s main concern before the vote, the first time lawmakers will be picked since Russia annexed Crimea in March. The fighting in eastern Ukraine has left at least 3,660 dead, according to United Nations estimates. A Sept. 5 truce has been violated almost daily.
- Russia Reserves Fall $7.9 Billion, Biggest Drop Since May. Russia’s international reserves tumbled $7.9 billion in the biggest drop in more than five months as the central bank sold foreign currency to arrest the ruble’s decline to a record. The value of the stockpile, the second-biggest in Europe after Switzerland’s, shrank for a ninth week to $443.8 billion in the seven days through Oct. 17, the central bank said on its website today. It dropped $3 billion a week earlier. “So far this level isn’t critical, although the trend of falling reserves isn’t optimistic,” Vladimir Tikhomirov, chief economist at BCS Financial Group in Moscow, said by phone. “The drop in reserves is largely due to the central bank’s more active interventions and revaluation of the euro exchange rate over the past week.”
- Ruble Drops as S&P Junk Concern Fuels Worst Emerging-Market Rout. The ruble slid to a record, crossing the threshold that triggers central-bank currency interventions, and bonds fell on concern that Standard & Poor’s will lower Russia’s credit-rating to junk. The ruble lost 0.7 percent to 46.6592 versus the central bank’s target dollar-euro basket at 6 p.m. in Moscow, declining past the 46.30 lower limit of the trading band. The monetary authority has spent more than $15 billion this month to slow the world’s worst depreciation since June. The currency fell the most among 24 emerging nations today, while 10-year bonds had their worst day in two weeks and stocks slipped.
- Corporate Europe Fails to Reverse Drop as Asia Compounds Gloom. European companies failed to shake off this quarter’s trend of disappointing earnings, with consumer-oriented businesses taking the biggest hit as a spending slowdown in Asia compounds stagnant growth at home. Unilever (UNA), the maker of Lipton ice tea and Knorr soups, posted its worst quarterly sales growth today since 2009 because of slowing demand for personal-care products. Pernod Ricard SA (RI) predicted full-year earnings growth that may fall short of analyst estimates, joining companies from Michelin & Cie. to Finnish mining-equipment maker Metso Oyj (MEO1V) in reporting disappointing profit on one of the busiest days this quarter.
- China’s Stocks Fall Most in Month as IPOs Hurt Small-Cap Shares. China’s benchmark stock index fell the most in a month on concern new share offerings will divert funds from existing shares. Wuhu Token Science Co. and Beijing E-Hualu Information Technology Co. (300212) slumped more than 5 percent, dragging the ChiNext index of small-cap companies down the most since mid-September. Pangang Group Vanadium Titanium and Resources Co. plunged 10 percent after the company said it has no plan to sell its non-mining assets. Trainmakers China CNR Corp. and CSR Corp. jumped at least 3.7 percent after the government approved railway investment worth 97.4 billion yuan ($15.9 billion). The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) slid 1 percent to 2,302.42 at the close. The gauge has lost 3.6 percent since this year’s high on Oct. 9 as nine companies market IPO shares and uncertainty grows over the start of a trading link with Hong Kong.
- Saudi Arabia’s Crude Oil Supply Said to Fall in September. The amount of oil Saudi Arabia supplied to markets fell last month, according to a person familiar with the country’s oil policy. Its production climbed. The world’s biggest crude exporter supplied 9.36 million barrels a day last month, a reduction of 328,000 barrels daily from August, according to the person, who asked not to be identified, citing policy. The supply figure excludes what’s stored. Saudi Arabia produced about 100,000 barrels a day more than in August, the person said.
- The Democrats' Coming Blame Game. Less than two weeks before Election Day, Democrats are bracing for losses — and are already quietly trying to shift the blame.
- The Market Says Markit Is Full Of It: Global PMIs Are Painting An Unrealistically Rosy Picture. (graph)
- Investors Are Even More Euphoric And Confident. After the market's four straight up days, this week's poll, released last night, showed another big jump. Bullish percentage: +7 to 49.7%. Bearish percentage : –11.2 to 22.5%.
- Wake Up, Europe by George Soros. Europe is facing a challenge from Russia to its very existence. Neither the European leaders nor their citizens are fully aware of this challenge or know how best to deal with it. I attribute this mainly to the fact that the European Union in general and the eurozone in particular lost their way after the financial crisis of 2008.
Telegraph:
- Oil slump leaves Russia even weaker than decaying Soviet Union. Russia had the chance at the end of the Cold War to build a modern, diversified economy, with the enthusiastic help of the West. That chance has been squandered.
- Toyota Motor Has Sold Some Shares of Tesla(TSLA). Toyota Motor has sold some shares of Tesla.
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