Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 05 September 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 stock markets advance after US jobs data disappoint; Nikkei at 3-month high (CNBC) Asian markets traded higher, with investors cheering a disappointing U.S. August employment report, which pared expectations the Federal Reserve would hike interest rates in September.
The amazing plantlife on one of the world’s most beautiful island atols is being wiped out (Independent) Nearly 90% of native Hawaiian plants that have been assessed are threatened with extinction with one expert warning the spread of invasive species means the world will start to ‘look the same’.
Raghuram Rajan, India’s Departing Central Banker, Has a New Warning (The New York Times) Three years before the 2008 global financial crisis, an Indian economist named Raghuram G. Rajan presciently warned a skeptical audience of top economic thinkers that excessive risk threatened the entire global financial system. As Mr. Rajan stepped down on Sunday as India’s top central banker, following intense criticism at home, he offered a new warning: Low interest rates globally could distort markets and would be difficult to abandon.
Emerging markets on track to set sovereign debt record (CNBC) Developing economies are on course to raise a record sum in global debt markets this year, as ultra-low rates in the developed world cheapen borrowing costs for countries from Asia to South America. After a slow start, governments in countries including Mexico, Qatar and Argentina have issued bonds worth $90 billion in 2016. By the end of the year, credit strategists at JPMorgan expect sales of debt by emerging markets in “hard” currencies such as dollars and euros to reach more than $125 billion – boosted by Saudi Arabia’s first appearance in global bond markets.
U.S.
Late-term Obama, GOP clash over monuments (The Hill) Obama has now created or expanded 26 monuments, protecting more than 548 million acres of land and water, more than any previous president. Republicans don’t like it, even though national monuments can only be designated or expanded after the federal government has prior ownership of the land. The objection centers on much tighter use restrictions for park and monument land.
We Haven’t Seen Many Storms Like Hermine (Seemorerocks) Hat tip to Doomstead Diner tweet. Based on the current forecasts, Post-Tropical Cyclone Hermine is a storm without a good historical comparison. Hermine was once a tropical cyclone that made landfall in Florida, but that seems like ages ago. It has now transitioned to its post-tropical stage after moving northeast across land, off the coast of North Carolina, where it’s partially drawing energy from the jet stream. Hermine is forecast to affect the Mid-Atlantic over the next several days as a hurricane-strength storm, with a potentially historic coastal flood. Forecasting is difficult when storms do something never done before – all forecasting is based on historical comparisons.
Our nation can’t afford past-its-sell-date economic orthodoxy (The Hill) Former PIMCO chief economist Paul McCulley takes the Fed to task for thinking it can solve real economy ills with financial sector cures. Fiscal policy directly affects the real economy.
UK
G20 Summit: Barack Obama warns US-UK trade relations could unravel after Brexit (Independent) Barack Obama has said the US and UK will have to do everything they can to make sure strong trade links do not start “unravelling” as a result of Brexit. In a blow to Brexiteers’ hopes of a quick trade deal with the US, he stood by his comment that the UK was now at the “back of the queue” for trade talks. Speaking at the G20 Summit alongside British PM Theresa May, he said the US trade negotiations with the EU was his priority.
Syria
U.S., Russia meeting on Syria ends without a deal (Reuters) U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov were unable to strike a deal for a ceasefire in Syria and differences remain, a senior State Department official said after their meeting in China on Monday. Kerry and Lavrov met on the sidelines of the G20 summit in the eastern city of Hangzhou. Details of their talks were not immediately available.
Russia
Putin Pushes for Oil Freeze Deal With OPEC, Exemption for Iran (Bloomberg) Vladimir Putin said he’d like OPEC and Russia, producers of half of the world’s oil, to reach a deal to freeze supply and expects the dispute over Iran’s participation can be resolved.
India
India’s Central Bank Chief May Have a Short Honeymoon (The New York Times) This is how Ragurham Rajan was greeted when he took the helm of the Reserve Bank of India just three years ago. Now he is gone.
Indian newspapers have been gushing about the new governor of the central bank, Raghuram Rajan, in terms usually reserved for Bollywood film stars: his trim physique, his long-distance running, even his “rather photogenic appeal,” as The Mumbai Mirror tabloid wrote this week.
This may not last long.
North Korea
North Korea fires three ballistic missiles as G20 leaders meet in China (Reuters) North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Monday, South Korea’s military said, as the leaders of the Group of 20 major economies held a summit in China, the North’s main diplomatic ally. The missiles were fired from a region south of the capital Pyongyang just after noon local time (0300 GMT) and flew about 1,000 km (600 miles), hitting Japan’s air defense identification zone, the South’s Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
China
China economy news: Caixin services PMI above 50 in August (CNBC) Activity in China’s services sector improved in August as new orders picked up, a private survey revealed on Monday. The Caixin/Markit services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to 52.1, up from 51.7 in July but still below an 11-month peak of 52.7 in June.
Young Beijing Critics Secure Seats on Hong Kong’s Legislature (Bloomberg) Hong Kong candidates seeking a vote to decide the future of Chinese rule won seats in the city’s legislature for the first time amid record turnout Sunday, giving them a new platform to challenge Beijing.
