<Click on chart for larger image> The Financial Times – The US economy flirts with its stall speed The recent slowdown in the US economy raises the question of whether the growth of output may have dropped below the so-called “stall speed”. This is the growth rate at which a healthy expansion can no longer… Continue reading Soft Patch vs. Recession
The Wall Street Journal – China Moves Closer to Letting Foreign Banks Underwite Yuan Bonds China is moving closer to allowing foreign banks into the potentially lucrative business of underwriting yuan-denominated corporate bonds, as Beijing seeks to develop the country’s debt-capital market. HSBC Holdings PLC and Citigroup Inc are among foreign banks being considered for… Continue reading China Looks To Fire Up Its Debt Market
<Click on chart for larger image> MarketWatch – Is low volume actually bullish? This is a case of receiving a lemon and figuring out how to make lemonade. The lemon in this case is low trading volume, which many consider to be bearish. A week ago, as you may recall, I subjected that notion to… Continue reading Stock Market Volume
<Click on chart for larger image> MarketBeat (WSJ Blog) – Greek Default: The Lehman-Like Day After By now, the question of whether or not Greece will default seems almost moot. Certainly, financial markets have largely priced in the risk. Unfortunately, that doesn’t necessarily mean they have priced in the after-effects yet, and those could be… Continue reading Greek Contagion
None Today
<Click on chart for larger image> Barron’s – Facts Get in the Way of Muni Disaster Story “There’s not a doubt in my mind that you will see a spate of municipal bond defaults,” Whitney predicted. Asked how many is a “spate,” Whitney said, “You could see 50 sizeable defaults. Fifty to 100 sizeable defaults.… Continue reading Munis Continue To Outperform
<Click on chart for larger image> MarketBeat (WSJ Blog) – Brent-WTI Spread Hits Record Dave mentioned this earlier, but I thought it’d be worth posting this nice chart from Bespoke Investment Group showing the spread between Brent and WTI crude prices. That spread is at a record high today of nearly $21 a barrel. Though… Continue reading Brent vs. WTI
The Wall Street Journal – Rising Prices a Risk For the past six weeks, stock-market investors have had their eyes trained on the sputtering U.S. economy. Now, some are also beginning to focus on the prospect of a pernicious sidekick: creeping inflation. It might seem counterintuitive, but some investors see a growing risk that prices… Continue reading Is Inflation Coming?
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Greek Debt Hits a New Low Catching up to a market that has been expecting a Greek default, Standard & Poor’s cut its ratings on that nation’s debt by three notches, citing risks that negotiations over a new bailout package for Greece could result… Continue reading Greece Obtains The Distinction Of Lowest Rated Country In The World
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Test of Nerve on China’s Inflation Has Beijing lost its nerve in the fight against inflation? Hopefully not. Consumer prices continue to rise, up 5.5% on-year in May, the highest level since summer 2008. The sequential change is no less alarming. Yu Song, China… Continue reading Chinese Inflation
Bloomberg.com – Jonathan Alter: The Big Foreclosure Mess, Made Worse by Politics Yet for two years, the foreclosure mess has been on the back burner for President Barack Obama. Now, with sinking house prices threatening the recovery and thus his re-election, Obama needs to find the middle ground between prudence with taxpayer money and empathy… Continue reading Foreclosures
The Financial Times – Better news for investors than last summer Since the 2008 financial crisis, investors have learnt to expect bad things when bank shares plunge. This time last year banks took the first act of the Greek drama very badly. They then suffered still more as a recessionary double dip loomed; the US… Continue reading 2010 Redux?