Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 08 June 2016
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 markets trade mixed; energy plays get boost as oil holds above $50 (CNBC) Asian markets traded mixed on Wednesday, amid a muted reaction to China’s May trade data , but the energy sector got a boost after oil prices settled above $50 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time in nearly 11 months.
‘We’ve never seen anything like this’: Arctic sea ice hit a stunning new low in May (The Washington Post)
U.S.
Obama congratulates Hillary Clinton, and thanks Bernie Sanders for energizing voters (Business Insider) President Barack Obama called former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday to congratulate her on securing the delegates needed to become the Democratic presidential nominee, the White House said. Obama also spoke to Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, and will meet with him on Thursday at Sanders’ request.
Trump-Backed House Republican Renee Ellmers Loses in Primary (ABC News) Renee Ellmers, R-North Carolina, the only member of Congress endorsed by presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, has lost her primary, becoming the first Republican incumbent member of Congress to lose a reelection bid this cycle.
Republican’s plan to revamp Dodd-Frank highlights U.S. political divide (Reuters) The chair of the House Financial Services Committee has proposed getting rid of much of the regulation put in place after the financial crisis, unveiling a plan on Tuesday that ignited fierce debate in the presidential election but is expected to flame out in Washington. In a sweeping speech at the Economic Club of New York, Republican Representative Jeb Hensarling, from Texas, laid out his ideas on weakening the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law just as polls opened in six states holding presidential primaries. Hensarling also met on Tuesday with Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee who has called for dismantling the massive reform law.
EU
The TTIP trade deal is lost at sea (The Conversation) The future of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the US and European Union seems bleak. Beset by doubts and stumbling alongside the UK’s referendum on EU membership, the TTIP is starting to look like an awful lot of effort for unremarkable gains. US president Barack Obama may have given the negotiation process a shot in the arm in recent weeks, but there is a good possibility that a deal will not be struck during his administration. After that, all bets are off.
Draghi Smashes Corporate Yields to 1% Before a Bond Is Bought (Bloomberg) Even before Mario Draghi starts his corporate-bond buying program on Wednesday, he’s pushed down borrowing costs in Europe toward unprecedented levels. The average yield on investment-grade company notes in euros tumbled to 1.002% on Monday, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch index data. That’s the lowest in more than a year and a smidgen away from dropping below 1%, something that’s happened in just one other period.
UK
Brexit: Britons Who Support Leaving EU Ahead in Polls Amid Warnings From Economic Leaders (ABC News) The latest official poll by YouGov/GMB gave a slight majority to the pro-Brexit camp — 45 to 41, with 11 undecided and a small fraction of people saying they would not vote. Britain’s prime minister David Cameron has appeared increasingly uneasy ahead of the June 23 referendum, accusing those in support of leaving the European Union of making claims that are “complete untruths“.
Ireland
Why Ireland only sees risks from Britain leaving the EU (City A.M.) The biggest risk is likely disruption of trade between the two countries. The specifc area of the border with Northern Ireland is another potential problem as in would no longer be an internal border within the EU with free traffic both ways.
India
US will push for India’s admission to NSG later this month (The Hindu) In another significant step forward in India’s push for accessing high-end technology, all members of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) have agreed to India being admitted into the exclusive club, Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). The U.S. has advised India that it will vote for that at this year’s plenary of the MTCR – which will be taking place in the last week of June in South Korea.
How Indians See the World (Pew Research Center)
China
China Exports Stabilize in May as Weaker Yuan Gives Support (Bloomberg) China’s exports stabilized in May, with a weakening currency giving some support to growth in the world’s biggest trading nation. Overseas shipments fell 4.1% in dollar terms from a year earlier, the customs administration said Wednesday. Imports slipped 0.4% — the smallest drop since late 2014 — to leave a trade surplus of $50 billion. Reflecting a weaker currency, both exports and imports fared better when measured in local currency terms.
China’s Cities Need $1 Trillion Green Finance to Cut Pollution (Bloomberg) China’s cities need about 6.6 trillion yuan ($1 trillion) of green financing over the next five years to reach its pollution-reduction targets, according to a report. Financial markets will need to cover as much as 90% of investment funding for clean transportation, energy-efficient buildings and renewable power through 2020, according to the executive summary of the report, “Green Finance for Low-Carbon Cities“, which was commissioned by the Green Finance Committee of China Society for Banking and Finance and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
China says important glacier is melting due to climate change (Reuters) The Jianggudiru Glacier on Geladaindong Mountain in a remote part of the western province of Qinghai has shrunk 34 meters (38 yards) over the past six years. The glacier started to shrink slowly in the 1970s, then expanded between 1989 and 1994 before retreating more quickly from 1995. The glacier is one of the largest at the source of China’s Yangtze River.
Australia
Oz rent growth continues to plummet (Twitter) The Australian housing bubble may finally be ready to deflate.
Canada
Canadians Satisfied with U.S. Relationship (Pew Research Center)
