U.S. Backs Libya Rebels as Qaddafi Says 'My People Love Me'. Libya’s opposition gained fresh support from the U.S. and European nations, who promised humanitarian aid and began planning for a no-fly zone, as leader Muammar Qaddafi declared that “my people love me” and sent forces to regain lost territory.
JPMorgan(JPM) May Face Enforcement, Added Costs in Mortgage Probe. JPMorgan Chase & Co., the second- largest U.S. bank by assets, may face enforcement actions, fines and other added costs stemming from probes of its mortgage- servicing procedures. “The firm expects to incur additional costs and expenses in connection with its efforts to correct and enhance its mortgage foreclosure procedures,” the New York-based company said in its annual filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday. JPMorgan said it can’t predict the outcome of the federal and state investigations or the financial impact.
Health Care REIT to Buy Genesis Real Estate Assets in $2.4 Billion Deal. Health Care REIT Inc., the third- largest U.S. health-care real estate investment trust, agreed to buy substantially all the property assets of closely held Genesis HealthCare for $2.4 billion. Health Care REIT will buy 147 post-acute, skilled nursing and assisted living properties in 11 states, the Toledo, Ohio- based company said in a statement. Genesis, of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, will rent the properties from Health Care REIT and operate them, according to the statement.
Morgan Stanley(MS) Hacked in China-Based Attacks That Hit Google(GOOG). experienced a “very sensitive” break-in to its network by the same China-based hackers who attacked Morgan StanleyGoogle Inc.’s computers more than a year ago, according to leaked e-mails from a cyber-security company working for the bank. The e-mails from the Sacramento, California-based computer security firm HBGary Inc., which identify the first financial institution targeted in the series of attacks, said the bank considered details of the intrusion a closely guarded secret. “They were hit hard by the real Aurora attacks (not the crap in the news),” wrote Phil Wallisch, a senior security engineer at HBGary, who said he read an internal Morgan Stanley report detailing the so-called Operation Aurora attacks.
Baidu(BIDU), Taobao Identified as 'Notorius Markets' by U.S. for Piracy. Baidu Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s Taobao, China’s biggest Internet search engine and retailer, were named “notorious markets” by the U.S. Trade Representative for helping sustain piracy and counterfeiting. The two Chinese companies were among more than 30 Internet and physical markets worldwide identified by the USTR for helping the illegal sale of goods or materials protected by copyright or patents. Others on the list include the Pirate Bay file-sharing website in Sweden and the Silk Market in Beijing, according to the statement.
RBA Keeps Rate Unchanged, Extending Pause as Inflation Eases. The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate at the highest level in the developed world, saying a stronger currency and an earlier decline in wage growth are helping to contain inflation. Governor Glenn Stevens held the overnight cash rate target at 4.75 percent today, as forecast by all 25 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The central bank expects inflation to stay within its target range of 2 percent to 3 percent over the next year, he said in a statement in Sydney.
Wall Street Journal:
No-Fly Zone Eyed in Libya. Col. Moammar Gadhafi went on a broad offensive Monday in a bid to shift momentum against Libya's uprising, as the White House imposed record sanctions against the embattled strongman and international leaders discussed clipping his wings by imposing a no-fly zone. Forces loyal to Col. Gadhafi attacked two opposition-held cities east of the capital of Tripoli on Monday, said witnesses and rebel army commanders. A rebel commander said Monday that government forces regained control of a seafront oil-terminal town east of Tripoli, extending eastward the government's front line against the rebels.
Small US Firms Wants Strong Dollar, Big Firms Want It Weak. Small U.S. firms want a strong dollar while big companies prefer a weak dollar, according to a new survey published Monday. According to the survey of more than 1,200 privately owned businesses by the Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business and Management, 36.7% of firms with less than $5 million in annual revenue believe that a stronger dollar would be a boon to their bottom lines. More than 43% of businesses with more than $100 million in yearly revenue, however, believe that the weaker dollar is better for the economy. The report comes as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to testify before Congress on monetary policy and the state of the U.S. economy. He is expected to face a grilling from lawmakers concerned about inflation and job creation, questioning the effectiveness of the Fed's loose monetary policy. Although the Fed isn't specifically targeting a weak dollar, it acknowledges that a weaker currency is a consequence of lowering rates, which can aid the U.S. economic recovery. John Paglia, lead researcher on the survey and associate finance professor at the university, said the Fed's latest round of monetary easing "has benefited large publicly traded companies at the expense of smaller privately held businesses." "Small businesses, the vast majority of which don't receive a significant amount of revenues through exporting, are losing purchasing power, which is resulting in margin compression and reduced profitability levels," he said.
Fannie, Freddie Stuck In a Dividends Circle. For the first time since the financial crisis, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are showing glimmers of profitability. But the two mortgage behemoths still ask the Treasury Department every quarter for billions of dollars in cash, most of it going right back out the door to pay dividends to the same U.S. agency. The requirement that both companies pay a 10% dividend on preferred shares—which the U.S. government receives for its infusions after taking over Fannie and Freddie in 2008—costs them about $15 billion a year at the current rate. In the last two quarters, the firms have paid $7.5 billion in total dividend payments, while receiving injections of $5.7 billion to help keep them in business.
States Mull Shift in Worker Pensions. Policy makers across the country are considering scrapping guaranteed retirement benefits for public workers in favor of 401(k)-like plans. In pursuing the switch, some state and local governments hope to shift more responsibility and risk—as well as potential reward—to employees.
Billions in Bloat Uncovered in Beltway. The U.S. government has 15 different agencies overseeing food-safety laws, 20 separate programs to help the homeless and 80 programs for economic development. These are a few of the findings in a massive study of overlapping and duplicative programs that cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year, according to a new Government Accountability Office report to be released Tuesday.
U.S. Confirms Parcel-Delivery Probe. The Justice Department confirmed Monday that it is conducting an investigation into possible anticompetitive behavior in the parcel-delivery market. United Parcel Service Inc.(UPS) and FedEx Corp.(FDX) both said in January that they were being investigated by the Justice Department.
Oil's Rise Threatens Economic Growth. As unrest in Libya keeps crude prices high, the U.S., Europe and Japan might have to spend almost $200 billion more on imports of crude this year than they did in 2010, potentially threatening their economic recoveries, the International Energy Agency said. IEA chief economist Fatih Birol said in an interview that if the price of oil averages $100 a barrel this year, the U.S. would have to spend $385 billion on oil imports—nearly $80 billion more than it did last year.
Why Koch Industries is Speaking Out by Charles G. Koch. Crony capitalism and bloated government prevent entrepreneurs from producing the products and services that make people's lives better. Years of tremendous overspending by federal, state and local governments have brought us face-to-face with an economic crisis. Federal spending will total at least $3.8 trillion this year—double what it was 10 years ago. And unlike in 2001, when there was a small federal surplus, this year's projected budget deficit is more than $1.6 trillion. Several trillions more in debt have been accumulated by state and local governments. States are looking at a combined total of more than $130 billion in budget shortfalls this year. Next year, they will be in even worse shape as most so-called stimulus payments end.
A Union Education. What Wisconsin reveals about public workers and political power.
CNBC:
China PMI Dips to 6-Month Low as Tightening Bites. Chinese manufacturing growth slowed in February to a six-month low, according to an official survey, as the government's sustained campaign to tame inflation weighed on industrial activity. But soaring global commodity costs complicated the task of monetary tightening, pushing a gauge of industrial input prices to a three-month high in China's official purchasing managers' index. The overall PMI, which is designed to provide a timely snapshot of conditions in the manufacturing sector, fell to 52.2 in February from 52.9 in January, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said on Tuesday. The input prices sub-index, a measure of how much factories pay for raw materials and intermediate goods, rose to 70.1 in February from 69.3 in January.
Business Insider:
What's The Significance of Kim Jong Un's Huge State Visit to China? A collapse in North Korea could have clear destabilizing effects on China (with which it shares a border) and there's some speculation that the two countries are moving closer back together to beat back the world's democratic wave.
Government Backs Futuristic Flu Shots. The U.S. government is pledging $215 million — and as much as $375 million — to two biotechnology companies working to pioneer faster, more efficient ways to make vaccines for influenza.
iPad Makes a Splash With Businesses. The iPad tablet computer has been tested or deployed at 80% of Fortune 100 companies, according to Apple. And now the company is boosting its sales support for businesses to address that growing demand, Bloomberg News reported last week.
Reuters:
JPMorgan(JPM) Says Tablets to Grow Into $35 Billion Market. J.P. Morgan Securities expects tablets to evolve into a $35 billion market by 2012, eating into the share of PCs, and competition to drive down premium prices. The brokerage, which nudged up its forecast for tablet unit shipment and revenue, sees steep adoption rate and increasing number of available devices driving tablet market growth. It sees tablet market growth spurred by improved operating system platforms and penetration of enterprise and education customer verticals.
Citi(C) Could Lose $10 Billion From US Tax Change - Analyst. Citigroup Inc could write down some $5 billion to $10 billion in expected future tax benefits if the United States decreases corporate tax rates, veteran banking analyst Mike Mayo estimated on Monday.
CME(CME) to Slash Rate Traders' costs to Fight NYSE(NYX). CME Group Inc unveiled a plan that would slash costs for interest-rate traders to shore up its key Treasury futures franchise ahead of an imminent challenge from NYSE Euronext.
Warnaco(WRC) Outlook Below Estimates, Shares Down. n">Warnaco Group Inc forecast full-year earnings that fell short of estimates as the maker of Calvin Klein underwear and jeans faces high product costs, and its shares fell as much as 6 percent.
TimesOnline:
ARM Holdings Plc(ARMH) expects its sales of memory chips to increase by a third this year, citing an interview with CEO Warren East.
Winnipeg Free Press:
South Korea's President Says Koreas Cannot Repeat 'Dark History,' Urges North to Abandon Nukes. South Korea's president called Tuesday for serious talks with North Korea, warning that the rivals must not repeat their "dark history" and urging Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear programs. President Lee Myung-bak made the remarks in a nationally televised speech amid worries over rising animosity following Monday's launch of annual South Korea-U.S. military drills, which Pyongyang calls a rehearsal for invasion. The North's state media said Tuesday that the drills could cause a "nuclear catastrophe" on the Korean peninsula. "The Korean nation cannot afford to lag behind the currents of the times, repeating the dark history of yesteryear," Lee said, referring to the Koreas' bloody 1950-53 war and the subsequent decades of violence and tension. "Now is the opportune time to open a new kind of future on the Korean peninsula." Lee said South Korea could provide aid to the impoverished North and is ready to resume inter-Korean talks "anytime with an open mind." He said, however, that "the North should step forward for serious dialogue and co-operation and refrain from developing nuclear weapons and missiles."
Sydney Morning Herald:
Hedge Funds' Oil Bets Soar to Record on Libya Fears. Hedge funds raised bullish oil bets to a record as violent clashes in Libya curbed output from Africa's third-largest producer, driving crude to $US100 a barrel for the first time in more than two years. The funds and other large speculators increased net-long positions, or wagers on rising prices, by 30 percent in the seven days ended February 22 to 240,572 futures and options combined, the highest in records dating back to June 2006, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's weekly Commitments of Traders report.
Evening Recommendations Citigroup:
Reiterated Buy on (LCAPA), raised target to $95.
Reiterated Buy on (RIG), (NR) and (DO).
Night Trading
Asian equity indices are +.25% to +1.50% on average.
Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 108.50 -1.0 basis point.
Construction Spending for January is estimated to fall -.4% versus a -2.5% decline in December.
ISM Manufacturing for February is estimated to rise to 61.0 versus a reading of 60.8 in January.
ISM Prices Paid for February is estimated to rise to 83.0 versus a reading of 81.5 in January.
Afternoon
Total Vehicle Sales for February are estimated to rise to 12.6M versus 12.53M in January.
Upcoming Splits
(WEC) 2-for-1
(DEST) 2-for-1
Other Potential Market Movers
The Fed's Bernanke speaking, weekly retail sales reports, Citi Healthcare Conference, KeyBanc Consumer Conference, Pac Crest Emerging Tech Summit, CSFB Healthcare Conference, (KBW) Bank Conference, (TMRK) analyst day, (EMN) investor day, (CHS) analyst meeting and the (SD) analyst meeting could also impact trading today.
BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are higher, boosted by technology and financial shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher. The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.
North American Investment Grade CDS Index 81.57 -1.57%
European Financial Sector CDS Index 118.58 -3.63%
Western Europe Sovereign Debt CDS Index 175.17 bps -.94%
Emerging Market CDS Index 220.0 -2.32%
2-Year Swap Spread 19.0 +1 bp
TED Spread 17.0 -2 bps
Economic Gauges:
3-Month T-Bill Yield .13% +1 bp
Yield Curve 273.0 +3 bps
China Import Iron Ore Spot $182.80/Metric Tonne -.71%
Citi US Economic Surprise Index +74.50 +4.3 points
10-Year TIPS Spread 2.40% -1 bp
Overseas Futures:
Nikkei Futures: Indicating +41 open in Japan
DAX Futures: Indicating +6 open in Germany
Portfolio:
Slightly Higher: On gains in my Technology, Medical and Retail longs
Disclosed Trades: None
Market Exposure: 100% Net Long
BOTTOM LINE: Today's overall market action is mildly bullish as the S&P 500 trades higher despite Mideast unrest, mixed economic data and emerging markets inflation fears. On the positive side, Road & Rail, Restaurant, REIT, Insurance, Hospital, Drug, Wireless, Telecom, Steel, Ag and Utility shares are especially strong, rising more than 1.0%. (IYR) has strongly outperformed throughout the day. Copper is rising +.85% and oil is falling -1.28%. The 10-year yield is stable at 3.41%. The US Muni CDS Index is falling -2.77% to 157.11 bps. The Spain sovereign cds is falling -5.64% to 249.66 bps and the Russia sovereign cds is falling -3.51% to 139.78 bps. The Israel sovereign cds is falling -1.93% to 171.10 bps, which is also a big positive. On the negative side, H0mebuilding, Disk Drive and Alt Energy shares are under pressure, falling more than 1.0%. Small-Caps are relatively weak today. Tech shares are also underperforming. "Value" stocks are outperforming "growth" shares. The UBS-Bloomberg Spot Ag Index is rising +.98%. The Saudi sovereign cds is rising +.4% to 136.51 bps. The US dollar is likely very close to a tradable rally. Sentiment regarding the currency is once again getting to bearish extremes. As well, the Citi US economic surprise index is at the highest level since Sept. 2008, while the Citi Eurozone economic surprise index continues to break down, falling to the lowest level since April 15th of last year. I continue to believe that as long as oil trades below $100/bbl. stocks can work their way higher. I expect US stocks to trade mixed-to-higher into the close from current levels on short-covering, fund inflows, earnings optimism, lower energy prices, buyout speculation and declining euro sovereign debt angst.
U.S. Consumer Spending Cools as Food, Fuel Costs Climb. Consumer spendingcooled more than forecast in January as rising food and fuel prices caused Americans to cut back on post-holiday visits to malls and restaurants. Purchases rose 0.2 percent, the smallest gain since June, as winter storms may have also discouraged shoppers, according to figures from the Commerce Department today in Washington.
Business Activity in U.S. Grew at Fastest Pace in 20 Years. Businesses in the U.S. unexpectedly grew in February at the fastest pace in two decades, indicating manufacturing remains at the forefront of the recovery. The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago Inc. said today its business barometer rose to 71.2 this month, the highest level since July 1988, from 68.8 in January. The Chicago group’s production gauge rose to 78.2 from January’s reading of 73.7. The gauge of new orders climbed to 75.9 from 75.7. The employment measure fell to 59.8 from 64.1 the prior month.
Oman Youth Protests Enter a Third Night as Sultan Promises to Create Jobs. Hundreds of Omani protesters gathered in the city of Sohar for a third night, demanding that the government open talks on their demands for more jobs, higher pay and more representative political institutions. Khaled Maqbuli, a leader of the protest, called on the demonstrators at a roundabout in the center of Sohar, north of the capital, Muscat, to stay peaceful and avoid confrontation with the army and the police.
Oil Fluctuates as Saudis Offer Supplies, Unrest Spreads to Oman. Crude oil fluctuated as Saudi Arabia offered to make up for supplies lost because of unrest in Libya and as Mideast tensions spread to Oman, the region’s largest oil producer outside of OPEC. Futures slipped as much as 1.2 percent in New York after Khalid Al-Falih, the Saudi Arabian Oil Co.’s chief executive officer, said the kingdom is ready to compensate for any shortfall in crude supply. Two demonstrators were killed and several wounded in clashes with police yesterday in Oman, according to hospital and government officials. “The threat to supply overall doesn’t look as dangerous as it did last week,” said Tim Evans, an energy analyst at Citi Futures Perspective in New York. “Even the protests in Oman aside, events in Libya seem to be moving steadily in one direction, with oil production apparently not dropping further and some exports being loaded.” Crude oil for April delivery declined 12 cents to $97.76 a barrel at 11:34 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The cost of hiring capesize ships to haul iron ore and coal dropped for a 10th day on a lack of cargo and excess vessels. Capesize rents fell 1.8% to $4,567 a day, the lowest since Dec. 9, 2008.
Ford(F) is Most Improved Automaker on Consumer Reports List. Ford Motor Co., the only major U.S. automaker that didn’t receive a government bailout, improved the most since last year in Consumer Reports’s annual automaker rankings, bolstered by reliability for resale value.
Fed's Dudley Says Growth Not Reason to 'Reverse' Stimulus. Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley said the “considerably brighter” economic outlook isn’t yet reason for the central bank to withdraw its record monetary stimulus. “We provided additional monetary policy stimulus via the asset purchase program in order to help ensure the recovery did regain momentum,” Dudley said today in a speech in New York. “A stronger recovery with more rapid progress toward our dual mandate objectives is what we have been seeking. This is welcome and not a reason to reverse course.”
Pent-Up Demand Lifts U.S. Economic Recovery Outlook, Business Survey Shows. U.S. companies expect the economy to grow faster than previously estimated as demand from consumers, businesses and other countries picks up, a survey showed. Gross domestic product in the world’s largest economy will expand at a 3.3 percent pace in 2011, up from the 2.6 percent rate forecast in November, according to a survey by the National Association for Business Economics issued today in Washington. Consumer spending, business investment and exports will also increase more than previously projected. “Pretty much across the board there has been a better view with regard to the economic recovery,” Bill Strauss, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, who analyzed the results, said in an interview. “The consumer sector is coming back, and we’re still looking at pretty good numbers coming from the business sector.”
Capitulating Bears Push Short Sales to Lowest in Three Years. The biggest Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rally in more than five decades is forcing stock market bears to abandon short sales, cutting them to the lowest level since 2007 last month. Shares borrowed and sold to profit from declines dropped four straight months and represented 3.3 percent of all stock in January, according to data compiled by NYSE Euronext. Pessimists are giving up after missing the 95 percent rally in the S&P 500 spurred by the fastest earnings growth since 1994. The monthly decrease comes as individuals added $17.6 billion to U.S. mutual funds this year after withdrawing money since April. While short sales rose 2.8 percent in the two weeks ended Feb. 15, January’s low may foreshadow slower gains in equities as the pool of new investors shrinks, according to Doug Burtnick of Aberdeen, Scotland-based Aberdeen Asset Management Plc. To Laszlo Birinyi of Birinyi Associates Inc. in Westport, Connecticut, levels haven’t fallen enough to reverse gains or stop equities from climbing as the economy expands.
Iran Arrests Opposition Leaders After Calls for Protest. Iran’s opposition leaders Mehdi Karrubi and Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who had been under forced seclusion at home, were transferred to a Tehran prison, as supporters prepared to hold a rally tomorrow, the opposition Kaleme website said. Mousavi and Karrubi, along with their wives, were “arrested and taken to Heshmatiyeh prison in Tehran,” Kaleme said on its website, which cited neighbors for some of the details.
Wall Street Journal:
Pro-Gadhafi Forces Attempt Raids on East. Libya's government moved Monday to recapture key sections of the country controlled by rebel forces, launching attacks in two coastal cities to the east of the capital Tripoli, according to witnesses and rebel army commanders. Forces loyal to Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gadhafi attempted to bomb Benghazi, Libya's second-largest city and a stronghold of opposition to the Gadhafi regime, with airplanes, according to an opposition commander there.
Tech to the Rescue. An early look at three technologies that may provide more energy in the future.
Walker Issues Ultimatum to Democrats. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker issued an ultimatum to the 14 state Senate Democrats blocking a vote on a bill restricting workers' collective-bargaining rights, saying the state will lose its chance to refinance $165 million in bonds if the bill isn't passed by Tuesday.
Google's(GOOG) Search Cleanup Has Big Effect. Google Inc.'s move last week to lower the search rankings of websites that the company said offer little useful information appears to be having a dramatic impact, according to firms that study search-engine data. Many websites that previously ranked highly in searches for certain keywords on Google dropped sharply following the change in the company's search algorithms, the firms found.
Fed May Need to Take Break From Easing: Bullard. With the central bank about halfway through its purchases of $600 billion in Treasurys, Bullard said the Fed should consider a return to more normalized monetary policy. "Policy is a continuous process," he said. "I would see it as possibly finishing the program a little bit shy of where we intended initially then go on pause for a while, let more information come in on the economy, see how things develop. "If things continue to go as well as I think they will in 2011 then we can start the process of getting the balance sheet back to normal and getting interest rates up there eventually."
Obama Puts Single Payer and Public Option Back on the Table. At the National Governors Association, President Obama just threw his weight behind a bi-partisan effort in the US Senate to allow states to innovate with health reform, including adopting a public insurance system or single payer health care system by 2013 instead of 2017. The governors embraced the state innovations waiver proposal, since conservative states want to weed back the federal health reform and states like California might like to push ahead with public insurance options or single payer health care systems. The idea is to let states meet federal targets anyway they want to, rather than how the federal government prescribes, by 2013 rather than the current 2017 deadline.
Apple Insider:
Apple's(AAPL) to Launch $500 Joint Venture Small Business Support Plan. Last week, AppleInsider exclusively reported that Apple had scheduled a secretive meeting Sunday for retail employees. Details emerged later that week, revealing that the meeting was called to prepare employees for the imminent announcement of a new enterprise service plan, dubbed Joint Venture. According to people in attendance, the meeting's agenda on Sunday did indeed involve an internal unveiling of the new Joint Venture priority service plan. Sources have told AppleInsider that the plan will cost around $500 a year and will be made available to businesses when purchasing a new Mac. Up to 5 systems will be covered by the plan, though additional systems may be added for $99 a year.
Forbes:
Apple(AAPL) Plots Move to Expand iPhone's Market Share. In a research note this morning, Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi reports on a meeting he had last week with Apple COO Tim Cook, CFO Peter Oppenheimer and VP of Internet Services Eddy Cue. His high level takeaway is that the executives “projected a very confident tone,” and that Apple is focused on “the right things,” in particular expanding the market for the iPhone and capitalizing on “explosive” tablet demand. Here are some key points from Sacconaghi’s report:
CNN Money:
SEC Casts Wide Net in Private Stock Trading Probe. Now the SEC is taking a closer look at so-called "pre-IPO" trading in Facebook and other private companies to see if securities laws were broken. An ongoing investigation is probing not just the exchanges themselves, but also several red-hot social media companies and at least three investment funds that specialize in buying up their shares.
China's Unipec Not Buying More Crude to Replace Libyan Supply.Unipec, the trading arm of top Asian refiner Sinopec, has so far declined Saudi Aramco's offer of more Saudi crude oil to replace Libyan crude supplies, trading sources said on Monday. The Chinese company is not buying any more crude oil to replace Libyan supplies, they said. "There is no shortage of crude overall in Sinopec," said one source. "We have the ability to adjust sweet and sour crudes among our refineries."
SEC Top Attorney Didn't Recuse Himself on Madoff. The top attorney for the U.S. securities regulator was advised not to recuse himself from handling Bernard Madoff matters for the agency even though his family's estate had invested with the swindler.
Independent:
Al Qaida Tries to Exploit Unrest. Al Qaida has attempted to exploit the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia with a recorded message urging people to create Islamic states. Osama bin Laden's deputy Ayman al-Zawahri appeared to have made the audio tape between the January 14 fall of Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and before the February 11 overthrow of Egypt's Hosni Mubarak. Al-Zawahri urged Egyptians and Tunisians to keep up their protests and push out the interim governments that continue in place in both nations. The wave of popular protests in both countries was led by mainly secular youths calling for greater democracy and their success appears to have caught Osama bin Laden's terror network off guard. Al-Zawahri tried to depict the uprisings as aiming to set up Islamic governments.
Xinhua:
China will take "firm" measures to curb "excessive and rapid" rise in property prices, citing Jiang Weixin, minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. Jiang said the country will continue to increase housing supply, and draw up measures to stabilize the property market in the medium and long term.
