Bloomberg:
- Tsipras Returns to Reality After Putin With Greek Cash Depleting. When his plane touches back down in Athens, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will be quickly reacquainted with reality. Talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Wednesday focused on a proposed energy pipeline, future investments and sanctions over the conflict in Ukraine, a meeting that had been dismissed before it began by Germany and France as a sideshow. With a payment to the International Monetary Fund on Thursday depleting Greek cash reserves still further, it’s back to haggling with creditors in the euro region over a financial lifeline.
- Dimon Says JPMorgan Must Be Ready for Greek Exit From Euro Area. JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest U.S. bank by assets, needs to be ready for Greece to depart from the euro currency union, Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said. “We must be prepared for a potential exit,” Dimon said Wednesday in a letter to shareholders of his New York-based bank. “We continually stress test our company for possible repercussions resulting from such an event.”
- Sydney Property Booming While Iron Ore Slumps Shows RBA Dilemma. While investors are betting the Reserve Bank of Australia will deliver additional easing to lift an economy hit by the commodities slump, the central bank chief disappointed them this week by leaving the cash target unchanged at 2.25 percent. As he weighs the effect of 2.5 percentage points of reductions so far, he can’t help but notice house prices are buoyant, household debt is rising and borrowing by non-resource businesses is beginning to grow.
- China’s Deflation Threat: What to Look for Beyond the Headlines. (graph)
- Bank of Korea Holds Benchmark Rate Amid Weak Inflation, Growth. South Korea’s central bank held its key interest rate at an all-time low to monitor the impact of three cuts since August as inflation slowed and exports fell. The Bank of Korea kept the seven-day repurchase rate unchanged at 1.75 percent, as forecast by all 16 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The BOK is expected to keep it at that level until at least the end of March 2016, according to a separate survey.
- Chinese Stocks in Hong Kong Surge Most Since 2007; Dollar Climbs. Hong Kong stocks surged the most since 2009 amid volume almost five times the average and a frenzy of buying by mainland investors. The U.S. dollar climbed after Federal Reserve meeting minutes showed division on when to raise interest rates, while gold retreated. The Hang Seng Index jumped as much as 6.4 percent and touched the highest level since 2007.
- Asian Stocks Fluctuate Near Seven-Year High; Energy Shares Drop. Asian stocks fluctuated, with the benchmark index trading near its highest level since 2008. Health-care companies gained and energy explorers fell. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.1 percent to 150.96 as of 9:18 a.m. in Tokyo, swinging from a gain of less than 0.1 percent.
- Dimon Says Once-in-3-Billion-Year Treasury Move Warning Shot. JPMorgan Chase & Co. head Jamie Dimon said last year’s volatility in U.S. Treasuries is a “warning shot” to investors and that the next financial crisis could be exacerbated by a shortage of the securities. The Oct. 15 gyration, when Treasury yields fluctuated by almost 0.4 percentage point, was an “unprecedented move” that would have serious consequences in a stressed environment, Dimon, the New York-based bank’s chairman and chief executive officer, said in a letter Wednesday to shareholders. Treasuries are supposed to be among the most stable securities.
- After Foreclosures, Home Buyers Are Back. As their credit improves, borrowers who defaulted get reprieve.
- Let’s Hit ‘Pause’ Before Altering Humankind. Two Nobel laureates on gene technology capable of making changes that are heritable by generations to come.
- The Incredible Obama Doctrine. Speak softly and claim to carry a big stick, which you have no intention of ever using. Last weekend, with the ink on the Iran nuclear deal still being deciphered, the Obama Doctrine fell out of an interview between President Obama and Thomas Friedman of the New York Times. “You asked about an Obama doctrine,” Mr. Obama said. “The doctrine is: We will engage, but we preserve all our capabilities.”
Fox News:
- US, Iran support for dueling sides in Yemen raises prospect of proxy fight. (video) Intervention by the U.S. and Iran in Yemen is raising the prospect of a proxy war even as the Obama administration tries to reach a nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic – with Iran sending two ships to waters near Yemen, as the U.S. speeds up military aid to the Saudi-led coalition striking Tehran-backed rebels there.
- Cheney slams Obama in radio interview, says policies aim to 'take America down'. “I vacillate between the various theories I’ve heard, but you know, if you had somebody as president who wanted to take America down, who wanted to fundamentally weaken our position in the world and reduce our capacity to influence events, turn our back on our allies and encourage our adversaries, it would look exactly like what Barack Obama’s doing,” Cheney said.
CNBC:
- Alcoa(AA) beats on earnings, falls short on revenue. Alcoa reported quarterly earnings that beat analysts' expectations on Wednesday, but its revenue fell slightly short. The company, which is in the midst of a major business transformation push, reported adjusted first-quarter earnings per share of 28 cents on revenue of $5.82 billion. Analysts had expected Alcoa to report earnings of 26 cents per share on $5.94 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.
- If You Are A Chinese Stock Market Investor, Do Not Look At This Chart. (graph)
- "Odious Debt" Has Finally Arrived: Greece To Write Off "Illegal" Debt. (video)
- Vietnam Shuns US, Joins Russia-Led Economic Union.
- Smart Meters: Enforcement Of Mandatory Water Restrictions Is Only Just The Beginning.
- Hillary Clinton's Interactive Web Of Money.
- Non-GAAP Gimmickry 101: How Alcoa Just Beat Consensus EPS. (graph)
- 15 Years Of Stimulus - Nothing To Show. (graph)
- Euro Corporate Bond Market Is "Tenacious Bubble," UBS Says. (graph)
- Right Now, In Hong Kong... (graph)
- Auto-Loan Bubble Endgame - Used-Car Prices Have Stalled. (graph)
- JAMIE DIMON: 'There will be another crisis'.
- The war against ISIS has reached a crucial point.
- The White House just trolled Netanyahu on Twitter.
- Dollar extends gains as hawks hear hike in Fed talk. The dollar hovered at one-week highs early on Thursday, having enjoyed another leg up after two influential Federal Reserve officials kept alive expectations for a hike in interest rates sometime this year.
- Emanuel's re-election present: Chicago's fiscal nightmare is just beginning. Rahm Emanuel may have been elected to a second term as Chicago's mayor on Tuesday but now he faces a stark choice: inflict pain on the city's population in the form of unpopular measures such as higher taxes or kick its problems further down the road and risk a fiscal crisis that could even lead to bankruptcy later.
- Hedge funds return 2.4 pct in Q1, beating broad stock index -HFR.
- Alexis Tsipras risks fresh schism with Europe after warning of new Cold War with Putin. Leftist leader uses Kremlin visit to assert Greece will forge an independent foreign policy as his near-bankrupt government courts eastern suitors.
- None of note
- Asian equity indices are -.50% to +.50% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 105.0 -2.0 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 57.75 unch.
- S&P 500 futures -.01%.
- NASDAQ 100 futures +.01%.
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
- (STZ)/.94
- (ANGO)/.16
- (HGR)/.44
- (PSMT)/.98
- (RT)/-.03
8:30 am EST
- Initial Jobless Claims are estimated to rise to 283K versus 268K the prior week.
- Continuing Claims are estimated to rise to 2350K versus 2325K the prior week.
- Wholesale Inventories for February are estimated to rise +.2% versus a +.3% gain in January.
- Wholesale Trade Sales for February are estimated to rise +.3% versus a -3.1% decline in January.
- None of note
- The Eurozone Industrial Production report, China CPI report, USDA's WASDE report, $13B 30Y T-Bond auction, Bloomberg April US Economic Survey results, weekly Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index, weekly EIA natural gas inventory report and the (LB) sales conference call could also impact trading today.
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