Econintersect: Click Read more >> below graphic to see today's list.

The top of today's reading list has an astounding item about China's information control and indoctrination concerning Tiananmen Square  ........ and the last article is about the astounding misrepresentation of fact by headlines in the U.S.

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by Mathias Brandt, Statista.com

National Doughnut Day takes place on the first Friday of June every (today, June 7th.) year in the United States. This event dates all the way back to 1938 when the Salvation Army organised a fundraising initiative both to help the needy in Chicago and honour women that served doughnuts to soldiers during the First World War.

That tradition continued during the Second World War when female Red Cross volunteers distributed doughnuts to soldiers, eventually being referred to as “Doughnut Dollies”. Interestingly, American prisoners of war held at Son Tay prison camp during the Vietnam War successfully tricked their North Vietnamese guards into believing National Doughnut Day coincided with the birthday of the United States Marine Corps. To their delight, the emaciated prisoners received doughnuts from their captors!

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Current ECRI WLI Level and Growth Index

The readings declined slightly for the fourth week in a row - but the current levels of the WLI are still within a slight improvement channel if viewed over 2013. A positive number predicts positive growth to come within the next six months. ECRI's Future Inflation Gauge for May were also revised in this post (see below)

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Econintersect:  Fed Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin (pictured) argues that there should be agressive movement toward implementation of stricter capital controls (a la Basil III) for U.S. banks.  But she specified that the costs of complexity incurred by the largest banks should not be imposed on small banks.  She spoke of the value of maintaining healthy community banks as part of a a properly functioning financial system.  Raskin spoke before the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Financial Institutions in Columbus, 06 June 2013.

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QE3 Purchases

Total Fed Balance Sheet

Fed's Balance Sheet is a record $3.357 trillion (up from the last week's $3.354 trillion). The complete balance sheet data and graphical breakdown of the cumulative and weekly changes follows the "read more".

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