Bloomberg:
- Why People Have Been Worrying About Deutsche Bank, in 12 Charts.
- Draghi Lays Blame for European Banks’ Woes on Industry Behavior. Mario Draghi said the financial industry must stop blaming the actions of central banks for their problems and focus on fixing internal management and risk failings. “Many banks have problems that don’t have primarily to do with the low level of interest rates but possibly with other reasons,” the European Central Bank president said after a meeting with German lawmakers in Berlin on Wednesday. He cited business models and risk management and said this was “generally acknowledged” by those at the talks. Draghi’s appearance follows criticism by some politicians that the ECB’s policies are hurting savers and weakening banks. The talks also come amid increasing concern about Frankfurt-based Deutsche Bank AG, which had its share price fall to a record low this week as investors questioned the lender’s ability to weather rising legal charges.
- China's Red-Hot Property Market Risks Missing Lessons From Japan's Crash. China is turning Japanese. That’s the increasingly held view of observers comparing China’s frenzied real-estate market with the epic bust that more than two decades ago hobbled one of its biggest economic rivals. While the two scenarios aren’t a carbon copy, similarities between China’s record credit boom in recent years and Japan’s bubble era have been made at various times by a number of economists and investors. Now, those voices are being heard more often -- even within China. Huang Yiping, a Peking University professor who advises China’s central bank, warned Saturday about leverage that continues to climb, saying that the top risk is more and more investment generates less growth. “That’s exactly the story that unfolded in Japan.”
- China Said to Mull Bigger Cut in Solar Prices in Some Regions. China may cut the amount of money that solar power generators receive for electricity by more than previously planned, according to two people familiar with the matter. The National Development and Reform Commission may reduce tariffs for solar farms in regions that receive the least amount of sunlight by about 13 percent in 2017 from the 2016 level of 0.98 yuan (15 cents) a kilowatt-hour, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public. The cut compares with a 2 percent reduction the agency had planned for 2017. The move hasn’t been finalized and may be adjusted later, said the people.
- U.S. Warns Russia It’s Poised to Stop Syria War Cooperation. Secretary of State John Kerry warned that the U.S. will suspend contacts with Russia over Syria unless President Vladimir Putin’s government stops a bombing campaign by Russian and Syrian forces in the besieged city of Aleppo. “The Secretary made clear the United States and its partners hold Russia responsible for this situation, including the use of incendiary and bunker-buster bombs in an urban environment, a drastic escalation that puts civilians at great risk,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday in a statement after a call between Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
- How Actual Nuts and Bolts Are Bringing Down Oil Prices. Last spring, Statoil ASA announced it had used the same oil well design and components to drill three reservoirs for the price of one. While the specs for Norwegian Sea drilling might provoke reactions akin to the oil field’s name—the Snorre—such standardized pipes and casings could hold the key to a pervasive mystery about today’s energy market: Why is everyone still drilling when prices are in the basement?
- Yellen Cornered by Lawmaker in Heated Exchange Over Fed Politics. (video) Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s defense of the central bank as non-partisan came under attack on Wednesday, as a Republican congressman cornered her on whether a key policy maker would have a conflict of interest in discussing a post in the next U.S. president’s administration. Fed Governor Lael Brainard has donated to Clinton’s campaign and is widely viewed as a potential Clinton pick for Treasury secretary. Yellen hesitated and then demurred when Representative Scott Garrett of New Jersey asked whether Brainard would have a conflict of interest if she were indeed in talks with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s campaign about a position. The election takes place Nov. 8. “I would have to consult my counsel, I’m not aware that that’s a conflict,” Yellen said in testimony to the House Financial Services Committee in Washington, while rejecting Garrett’s suggestion that the U.S. central bank has a political bias.
Zero Hedge:
- Oil Spikes After OPEC Announces It Has "Reached A Deal To Limit Oil Production"; Execution To Take Place In November. (graph)
- Obama Humiliated: Senate Overrides President's Veto Of "Sept 11" Bill In Crushing 97-1 Vote.
- California Sanctions Wells Fargo - Suspends Up To $2 Trillion Banking Relationship For Next 12 Months.
- Sucker Punch On Main Street - Disturbing Facts About The Fed's Phony Housing "Recovery".
- Deutsche Denial Tsunami Begins: Draghi "Not ECB Fault", IMF "Solid Base".
- The Banquet Of Consequences Is Being Served (By The Central Banking Cartel).
- Julian Robertson: "Janet Yellen Has Created A Serious Bubble And Pain Is Coming".
- "Russian Roulette" - Credit Suisse CEO Admits "EU Banks Not Really Investable".
- All This Market Calm Feels Like Mayhem.
- Oil Oscillates As Production Drops; RBOB Plunges After Biggest Gasoline Build In 4 Months.
- FBI Director Comey Takes Stand Again To Answer For "Handing Out Immunity Agreements Like Candy".
- "There's A Real Problem Here" - Did Fed's Plosser Just Admit Trump Is Right About Yellen?
- Core Durable Goods Orders Contract For 20th Straight Month - Longest Non-Recessionary Streak In US History. (graph)
- Not Even An OPEC Deal Will Stop Oil Going Lower, Goldman Warns.