Bloomberg:
- Greece Loses ECB Funds, Raising Pressure to Yield to Austerity. Greece lost a critical funding artery as the European Central Bank restricted loans to its financial system, raising pressure on the 10-day-old government to yield to German-led austerity demands to stay in the euro zone. The ECB’s decision, announced at 9:36 p.m. in Frankfurt, will raise financing costs for Greek banks and stiffen oversight by the central bank. The next move is up to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who swept to power promising to reverse five years of spending cuts that accompanied 240 billion euros ($272 billion) of bailout loans. The ECB move came hours before the Greek finance chief, Yanis Varoufakis, was due to meet Germany’s Wolfgang Schaeuble in Berlin and hours after he met ECB President Mario Draghi.
- The Rebel Leader Who Makes Putin Look Cautious. Vladimir Putin’s critics say he went too far on Ukraine. The former Russian agent who helped trigger the conflict says his biggest mistake was not going far enough. Putin has made himself a “hostage” to the war in Ukraine by opting not to annex the Donetsk and Luhansk regions after taking Crimea, according to Igor Girkin, the former rebel commander who goes by the name Strelkov, or Shooter. If the president had sent troops into Donetsk and Luhansk to support the insurgents like he did in Crimea, all of Novorossiya, or New Russia, the term the rebels and their supporters revived to identify a swathe of southeastern Ukraine that was once part of the Russian empire, would now be reunited with the motherland, Strelkov said in an interview in Moscow. But Putin, “not understanding that he’d already crossed the West’s red line,” and influenced by “top bureaucrats and oligarchs,” decided to stop at Crimea, said Strelkov. “Now we have a war that will continue to grow, regardless of whether Russia wants it to or not.”
- Asia Stocks Fall on Euro Concern; China Futures Jump Amid Easing. Asian stocks fell as investors weighed the European Central Bank’s tightening of the terms of Greece’s bailout. China stock index futures climbed after the government cut banks’ reserve ratios for the first time since 2012. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.2 percent to 141.61 as of 9:24 a.m. in Tokyo.
- China’s Total Debt Load Equals 282% of GDP, Raising Economic Risks. (graph) The speed of Chinese debt growth, much of it related to real estate, raises risks that an unwinding of the country’s two-decade growth boom might not go down so smoothly. Here are some key facts from the report.
- Ukraine Anticipates Arms Supplies From West. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Visit Kiev on Thursday. Ukraine’s president suggested the West is close to sending arms to Kiev to help fight off pro-Russia rebels after previous appeals for weapons were rebuffed, as the capital prepares for a visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry aimed at finding a solution to the conflict in the east.
- Greeks Meet Skepticism in Frankfurt, Brussels. The European Central Bank No Longer Accepts Greek Bonds From Banks Seeking Funding. European officials put a damper on plans by the new Greek government to ease conditions on its bailout, warning that without an extension of the existing rescue program—and the austerity measures it contains—the government will lose access to new money by the end of this month. On Wednesday evening the European Central Bank announced it would no longer accept
- UBS Faces a New Tax-Evasion Probe. Authorities Investigate Whether Swiss Bank’s Clients Used ‘Bearer Securities’ to Hide Cash. Federal prosecutors have launched a new probe into whether Swiss bank UBS AG helped Americans evade taxes through investments largely banned in the U.S., according to people familiar with the investigation.
- Health Insurer Anthem Hit by Hackers. Breach Gets Away With Names, Social Security Numbers of Customers, Employees. Anthem Inc., the country’s second-biggest health insurer, said hackers broke into a database containing personal information for about 80 million of its customers and employees in what is likely to be the largest data breach disclosed by a health-care company.
- Brian Williams lied about his copter being shot down in Iraq. Brian Williams, the nation’s top-rated news anchor, has admitted fabricating a tale of being shot down in a helicopter over Iraq a dozen years ago. Williams apologized on the air Wednesday evening, saying: “I made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago.”
- Keurig(GMCR) shares fall after disappointing outlook, results. Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc. dropped -7.5% in the extended session Wednesday after the single-serve coffee company's outlook and quarterly results fell below Wall Street estimates.
- What you need to know about ECB’s Greek collateral decision. It’s not a welcome development. Greek banks have suffered significant deposit withdrawals before and after the January election that brought the antiausterity government, led by Syriza’s Alexis Tsipras, to power. “This news will likely scare depositors and result in further bank runs,” said Peter Boockvar, chief market analyst at the Lindsey Group in Fairfax, Va.
- West Coast ports on the verge of a complete gridlock. Traffic at nearly 30 West Coast ports is on the verge of "complete gridlock" and shipping officials have threatened to stop paying dockworkers if a contract deal is not reached soon.
- Yum Brands(YUM) earnings: 61 cents per share vs. EPS estimate of 66 cents. Same-store sales in China were forecast to plunge 19.4 percent, according to Consensus Metrix. Instead, China same-store sales declined 16 percent.
Business Insider:
- GREECE CRASHED. (graph)
Telegraph:
- Devaluation by China is the next great risk for a deflationary world. China is not alone in facing a dilemma as deflation spreads and beggar-thy-neighbour currency wars become the norm.
- ECB tightens the screw on Greece with plan to cut funding earlier. Eurozone central bank officials refuse to accept Greek bonds, pushing the burden of supporting the country's banks back onto Athens.
- McKinsey Says China's Debt Development Not Sustainable. Debt accumulated by private households, cos. and govt. quadrupled in China in past 7 years, citing a McKinsey study it obtained. Structure of debt in China worrisome as real estate industry's debt too high. Global indebtedness more than doubled to $199t last year from $87t in 2000. Global debt now represents 286% of global economic activity, up from 269% in 2007.
- U.S. May Lift 'Price Russia Pays for Aggression,' Biden Says. U.S. may loosen economic sanctions should Russia meet its obligations under Minsk agreement, or increase the burden on Russia for its "aggressive behavior" in Ukraine should country not follow suit, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said in an interview. The U.S. has no interest in military escalation, he said.
- China Ratio Cut Unlikely to Reverse Property Correction. The reserve requirement ratio cut is unlikely to reverse the overall correction in China's property market and smaller cities will still face destocking pressure, citing researchers.
- None of note
- Asian equity indices are -.5% to +.5% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 109.0 +2.0 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 68.5 +.75 basis point.
- S&P 500 futures -.19%.
- NASDAQ 100 futures -.21%.
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
- (ABB)/.35
- (ADS)/3.33
- (BDX)/1.44
- (CI)/1.67
- (CMI)/2.51
- (EL)/1.05
- (ICE)/2.54
- (KORS)/1.33
- (PTEN)/.50
- (PM)/1.06
- (SNA)/1.79
- (VMC)/.28
- (BWLD)/1.11
- (CME)/.93
- (EXPE)/1.01
- (GPRO)/.70
- (LNKD)/.53
- (MCK)/2.62
- (PPS)/.68
- (SYMC)/.49
- (TWTR)/.06
- (YELP)/.24
7:30 am EST
- Challenger Job Cuts for January.
- RBC Consumer Outlook Index for February.
- Preliminary 4Q Non-Farm Productivity is estimated to rise +.2% versus a +2.3% gain in 3Q.
- Preliminary 4Q Unit Labor Costs are estimated to rise +1.2% versus a -1.0% decline in 3Q.
- Initial Jobless Claims are estimated to rise to 290K versus 265K the prior week.
- Continuing Claims are estimated to rise to 2400K versus 2385K prior.
- The Trade Deficit for December is estimated at -$38.0B versus -$39.0B in November.
- None of note
- The Bank of England decision, weekly EIA natural gas inventory report, weekly Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index and the (SE) analyst meeting could also impact trading today.
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