Early Bird Headlines 05 August 2015
Econintersect: Here are some of the headlines we found to help you start your day. For more headlines see our afternoon feature for GEI members, What We Read Today, which has many more headlines and a number of article discussions to keep you abreast of what we have found interesting.
U.S.
- A fun guide to the 10 Republicans who could make the debate (BBC News) A guide to basic info about 10 likely qualifiers for Thursday night’s Republican presidential candidate debate in Cleveland, hosted by Fox News.
- The Roster: Contenders Named to First Republican Debate (The New York Times) Ohio Governor John Kasich is in, Ex-governor Rick Perry is out.
- Family of Sandra Bland launch lawsuit against arresting officer, others (Al Jazeera) State trooper Brian Encinia, Texas Department of Public Safety, is among those being sued over black woman’s cell death three days after being arrsted during a routine traffic stop.
- House to vote on Iran deal disapproval resolution (Reuters) The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives will vote on whether to reject the nuclear agreement between world powers and Iran when lawmakers return to Washington in September, party leaders said on Tuesday, setting up a showdown with the White House. A law President Barack Obama signed in May gives the Republican-led Congress until Sept. 17 to approve or disapprove of the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers announced on July 14. A disapproval resolution could cripple the agreement by eliminating Obama’s ability to temporarily waive most U.S. sanctions, and Obama has promised a veto if a resolution passes Congress,
- Tens Of Thousands Of Californians Are About To Get Their Voting Rights Restored (The Huffington Post) Ex-convict California residents will soon have their voting rights restored as the state drops its appeal of a ruling that found the state could not bar individuals who have left prison and completed parole from registering to vote.
- How dare he? Obama moves to stop climate change (Rodger Malcolm Mitchell, Monetary Sovereignty) RMM has contributed to GEI. This might make you laugh or rouse your anger, depending on you point of view.
EU
- European CEOs shrug off Greece, see recovery gaining pace (The Business Times) Is the Eurozone shaking off Greece? Businesses in Europe said a weak euro, cheaper oil and the European Central Bank’s easy money policies drove a continued improvement in profitability in the second quarter, encouraging some companies to invest and hire more. Chief Executives of some of the biggest US and European companies told investors in recent weeks the region was experiencing a sustained recovery, helped by a turnaround in southern Europe, which had been a drag for years.
Greece
- Greece and lenders strike upbeat tone, deal seen on bailout (Reuters) Both Greece and its lenders (aka Troika) said on Tuesday they were optimistic they could broker a deal within days on a multi-billion euro bailout, striking a surprisingly upbeat tone on a process previously fraught with bitterness. A bailout worth up to €86 billion ($94.5 billion) must be settled by Aug. 20 — or a second bridge loan agreed — if Greece is to pay off debt of €3.5 billion to the European Central Bank that matures on that day.
Germany
- German prosecutor sacked over Netzpolitik treason probe (BBC News) Germany’s justice minister has sacked the country’s top prosecutor, who had accused the government of interfering with a treason investigation. Heiko Maas said he no longer had confidence in Harald Range, dismissing his statements as “incomprehensible“. Prosecutors are investigating whether the Netzpolitik website revealed state secrets in articles about plans to step up state surveillance. News of the case sparked street protests last week over press freedom. Earlier on Tuesday, in a rare public row between the German judiciary and the state, Mr Range said the government had asked him to drop an independent investigator from the inquiry, who concluded that one of the articles published did amount to a disclosure of a state secret. The request, said Mr Range, amounted to “an intolerable encroachment on the independence of the judiciary“.
Islamic State
- Islamic State Circulates Sex Slave Price List (Bloomberg) With the price of oil down, these creeps are developing a new profit center. A senior United Nations official says Islamic State is circulating a slave price list for captured women and children, and that the group’s ongoing appeal and barbarity pose an unprecedented challenge.
India
- India Inc. Learns Its Place (Bloomberg) The government of Narendra Modi is cracking down on a tradition of stealing, selling and leaking government documents that can give corporations an edge.
China
- ‘National team’ powers China stocks to biggest gain in 3 weeks (Financial Times) The Chinese government is stepping up it stock buying program. China’s stock market rallied on Tuesday to post its biggest gain in more than three weeks, amid signs that the “national team” was unwilling to tolerate a fourth straight day of losses. The Shanghai Composite Index gained 3.7%, its best day since July 10, after dropping 10 per cent last week and another 1.1% on Monday. A coalition of state-owned financial institutions – known collectively as the “national team” – have backstopped share prices in recent weeks after the Shanghai Composite fell 35% from a seven-year high reached on June 12.
- IMF staff urges no rush to add China yuan to currency basket (Reuters) The International Monetary Fund should put off any move to add the yuan to its benchmark currency basket until after September 2016, IMF staff said in a report which showed a mixed performance of the renminbi on meeting key financial norms. The report, published on Tuesday, comes after Beijing launched a major diplomatic push for the yuan to be added to the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights basket as part of its long-term strategic goal of reducing dependence on the dollar.
Econintersect: At some point the international financial institutions China is setting up may displace some of the functions of the dollar denominated international agencies such as the IMF (International Monetary Fund). The world could devolve into a two-currency reserve operation and the dollar-yuan exchange rate would become a key monetary exchange parameter. This would, of course end the (formerly official, now de facto) yuan peg to the dollar and create a degree of exchange rate flexibility for the dollar in international trade that does not exist today, where it is the only dominant reserve currency.
BECOME A GEI MEMBER – IT’s FREE!
Every every afternoon What We Read Today featured column is available only to GEI members.
To become a GEI Member simply subscribe to our FREE daily newsletter.
