Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 09 November 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.
Global
Asia shares mixed, dollar strong after U.S. jobs data boosts case for Fed hike (Reuters) Asian stocks were mixed, with Japanese and Chinese shares up, while the dollar stood at a 7-month high against its peers on Monday after robust U.S. jobs data bolstered expectations of an imminent Federal Reserve interest rate hike. The stronger dollar in turn knocked commodities like crude oil and gold. With the U.S. jobs release out of the way, spreadbetters are forecasting a slightly higher open for Britain’s FTSE .FTSE, Germany’s DAX .GDAXI and France’s CAC .FCHI.
Speculators Share Andy Hall’s Optimism That Oil Prices at Bottom (Bloomberg) Hedge fund managers Andy Hall and Daniel Yergin think oil prices are bottoming out. Other hedge funds agree. Money managers’ net-long position in West Texas Intermediate crude rose 20% in the week ended Nov. 3, the most in seven months, according to data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Bets on rising prices rose to the highest level since June. Econintersect: The graph with the article looks like random fluctuation to us.
How state benefits negatively affect personality (The Conversation) The author reviews correlations of epidemiological data and finds that “Individuals with aggressive, rule-breaking and antisocial personality characteristics are over-represented among welfare claimants.” From this he concludes that “state benefits negatively affect personality“. Econintersect: This is ridiculous! Why aren’t the personality defects tha cause of receiving welfare instead of the other way around? We have the same concern about his conclusion that “the welfare state increases the number of children at risk of developing personality profiles that make them less likely to get a job“. Would the same results be observed if the same children and parents had not received state welfare? Would the result be even more undesirable in the no welfare situation? By the logic of this researcher it might be argued that “wet streets cause rain“, to borrow a favorite phrase from John O’Donnell. This author has an opinion and it may or may not be correct – but his logic cannot be accepted as proof that the opinion is correct.
Goldman fund walks away from the Brics era (CNBC) Goldman Sachs, once the most energetic sponsor of the “BRIC” investment theme, has quietly stepped away from it, merging its dedicated in-house fund into an all-purpose emerging markets vehicle. The closure of the Bric fund – announced in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission in September and spotted by Bloomberg on Sunday – came after poor performance and consistent lagging of benchmarks. Assets under management had dwindled to about $100 million, from a peak of more than $800 million at the end of 2010.
U.S.
US looks to TPP to reform arbitration system (Financial Times) US officials are hailing a new Pacific Rim trade agreement as a vehicle to reform the opaque international arbitration system that for decades has been used to resolve disputes between foreign investors and governments. President Barack Obama and his administration are trying to blunt criticism from congressional opponents of the Trans-Pacific Partnership like Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, who claim the pact – and the “investor-state dispute settlement” mechanism it includes – will let foreign companies challenge domestic environmental, financial, food safety and other regulations before international arbitration panels.
Hearing set for officers in shooting death of 6-year-old Louisiana boy (CNN) Nearly a week after two officers allegedly killed a 6-year-old boy while pursuing his father’s car in Louisiana, disturbing questions remain. Why did officers target the father, Chris Few? Did they know him? Why did they open fire on 6-year-old Jeremy Mardis? A court hearing scheduled Monday in the shooting death of Jeremy in Marksville could provide some answers on the tragedy. The first grader was buckled in the front passenger seat when he was shot Tuesday. The head of Louisiana’s state police said “disturbing” body camera footage helped build the case against the two officers accused of shooting the boy.
UK
Job vacancies on the rise across London (City A.M.) Jobs are on the up across a variety of sectors, according to several reports released today. The number of new vacancies in financial services in London rose by seven per cent to 9,480 in October compared to the month before, recruitment consultancy Morgan McKinley found. The figure also represents a 28% increase compared to the year before. The number of professionals seeking jobs in the capital also grew seven7 in the month of October to 14,405, a 61% increase compared to last year. Banks in Britain are relocating an increasing number of jobs to UK regions outside London to cut costs but keep staff in the country, the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) said on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia will not stop pumping to boost oil prices (Financial Times) Saudi Arabia is determined to stick to its policy of pumping enough oil to protect its global market share, despite the financial pain inflicted on the kingdom’s economy. Officials have told the Financial Times that the world’s largest exporter will produce enough oil to meet customer demand, indicating that the kingdom is in no mood to change tack ahead of the December 4 meeting in Vienna of the producers’ cartel OPEC.
India
Modi’s party suffers election defeat, showing his waning political power (Al Jazeera) The honeymoon appears to be over. The second regional election setback for the party of India’s prime minister may galvanize opposition parties.
Boeing to Make Apache Attack Helicopter Body in India With Tata (Bloomberg) Boeing Co. and Tata Advanced Systems Ltd. will jointly make aircraft parts in India, a move that will boost Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plans to encourage local manufacturing under his flagship “Make in India” program. Boeing’s decision for a manufacturing center in India, announced today, comes a year after the Chicago-based company said it was in the process of identifying partners “for a strategic and meaningful relationship” after Modi eased rules for foreign investment in India’s defense sector.
China
Goodbye Gasoline, Hello Chinese Battery Power (Bloomberg) Local governments in the world’s largest car market now have to dedicate 30% of their fleet purchase to battery-, hybrid-, and fuel cell-powered cars, and will lose fuel and operating subsidies if they fall short. The country’s State Grid is accelerating the roll-out of charging stations, according to state-owned media, and mobile-phone infrastructure owner China Tower is being recruited to the task, people with knowledge of the matter said. Car parks in new apartment blocks will have to be charging-station ready, further helping to address a shortage that’s been one of the main impediments to electric-vehicle sales.
Afghanistan
NATO ponders future of Afghan mission as fatigue, frustration mount (Reuters) NATO partners are considering ways of beefing up their training and assistance mission in Afghanistan as concern grows over the ability of local forces to fight an escalating insurgency by Taliban militants, according to officials in Brussels and Kabul. The Taliban’s success in seizing the northern city of Kunduz in late September and holding it for several days caused shock among Afghanistan’s international partners, who have invested billions of dollars trying to create a security force capable of standing on its own.
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