Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 20 December 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 mostly higher after BOJ decision to keep policy steady (CNBC) Asian shares traded mostly higher on Tuesday with the exception of China and Hong Kong as continued capital outflows from the mainland weighed on sentiment. For info on BoJ action, see under Japan later, below. U.S. crude futures were down 0.42% at $51.90 a a barrel, while global benchmark Brent slid 0.15% at $54.84.
U.S.
US drugmaker charges 200 times UK price for common worm pill (Financial Times) A U.S. drugmaker has put a price tag of more than $800 on a pinworm treatment, about 200 times more expensive than the equivalent medicine on British pharmacy shelves (£3.50 or $4.30), in the latest example of “price gouging” in the world’s largest healthcare market.
Chart Of The Day: Credit Card Debt Outstanding Nearing Pre-Crisis Peak (David Stockman, Alternative Economics)
How America’s Source of Immigrants Has Changed in the States, 1850 – 2013 (Pew Research Center)
How America’s Source of Immigrants Has Changed in the States, 1850 – 2013 https://t.co/iegjWoV4yl pic.twitter.com/Nm6tl5x2l7
– Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) December 20, 2016
Germany
Berlin attack: Police say lorry crash ‘probably terror attack’ (BBC News) German police are investigating a “probable terrorist attack” after a man ploughed a lorry into a Christmas market in the heart of Berlin, killing 12 people and injuring 48. The driver is an Afghan or Pakistani asylum seeker, according to security sources cited by DPA news agency. He reportedly arrived in Germany in February as a refugee. The daily Tagesspiegel said the man was known to the police for minor crimes, but not terror links.
Italy
Italy seeks to borrow 20 billion euros to prop up banking sector (CNBC) The Italian government decided on Monday to seek parliamentary approval to borrow 20 billion euros ($ 20.7 billion) to underwrite the stability of its wobbly banking sector, starting with a likely bail-out of No. 3 lender, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, as early as this week.
Israel
Why Israeli settlers consider Trump’s ambassador choice a ‘miracle’ (Al Monitor) The appointment of attorney David Friedman as US ambassador to Israel was the first actual indication on the part of the Donald Trump administration that it does intend to support the Israeli right and the west bank settlements.
Turkey
Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov shot dead in Ankara (BBC News) A Turkish policeman has shot dead Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, apparently in protest at Russia’s involvement in Aleppo. The killer has been identified as Mevlut Mert Aydintas, 22, a member of the Ankara riot police. It was not clear if he had links to any group. The incident happened a day after protests in Turkey over Russian support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Turkey’s president said the attack was aimed at hurting ties with Russia. Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone and, in a video message, said that they both agreed it was an act of “provocation“.
Is Turkey recruiting militants evacuated from Aleppo? (Al Monitor) Although the Syrian armed opposition has lost its six-year war to declare Aleppo the “capital of the revolution” and the Syrian equation has changed drastically, the curtain is not yet down on this act of the bloody play.
Washington is idling and staying aloof while waiting for President-elect Donald Trump to take over, which has enabled Iran and Russia to complete their operations in Aleppo by sidelining Turkey. Militants and their families evacuated from Aleppo were transferred to Idlib.
Everyone will try to find out what strategy Turkey – which mediated the withdrawal of armed groups, especially Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra), as it had promised Russia – has in mind now. One Turkish approach being discussed indicates that Turkey wants to transfer some groups to Turkey via Hatay and then via Kilis to the Azaz/al-Bab front in Syria.
Iran
Iran’s OPEC Win Lacks Substance Without Deals With Big Oil (Bloomberg) Few countries have benefited from the oil market’s 2016 recovery like Iran. Since sanctions on its economy were eased in January, the Persian Gulf producer has doubled exports as prices rallied and won approval from OPEC last month to pump even more while other members cut. The key to continued growth will be attracting foreign investment to the energy industry.
Japan
Bank of Japan holds rates steady, upgrades economic outlook (CNBC) The Bank of Japan (BOJ) left policy unchanged on Tuesday at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting, as widely expected. The central bank maintained the negative 0.1% interest rate imposed on banks for some excess reserves, left the 10-year Japanese government bond (JGB) yield target at around zero, and kept annual rises in JGB holdings at 80 trillion yen ($676.9 billion). The BOJ also upgraded its economic assessment, revising up its views on exports and output, while noting that the economy continued to recover moderately.
An Eternal Japan Optimist Says Kuroda ETF Experiment Has Failed (Bloomberg) Haruhiko Kuroda’s attempt to engineer change at Japan Inc. using exchange-traded funds just isn’t working, says Jesper Koll, a perennial optimist on the country’s economy. The BOJ is spending 300 billion yen ($2.6 billion) a year on ETFs tracking companies that invest in their businesses and staff, seeking to get executives to do just that. But the funds themselves are falling flat by the most important yardstick, Koll says. Almost nobody else wants to buy them. When this was started, there were no such ETFs in Japan, so providers rushed to create them. A year later, six products from companies including Nomura Asset Management Co. and Daiwa Asset Management Co. have a combined $1.56 billion in assets. That’s less than 1% of the country’s $173 billion ETF market, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
China
Australia
A lying government pushing economy towards recession and greater inequality (Bill Mitchell – billy blog) Prof. Mitchell pointedly criticizes the budgetary process in Australia. He could well be talking about any developed country in the world. He starts his essay:
It is highly surreal listening to radio/TV commentators talking about government financial affairs (fiscal balance etc). These so-called experts are paraded before the nation and the script is generally the same. The interviewer who knows virtually nothing but has the key triggers on hand (‘budget repair’, ‘ratings downgrade’, etc ad nauseum) asks the ‘well respected expert’ about the state of affairs and the answers are always the same – fictional. This charade plays out almost daily but reaches a hysterical fever pitch at the time the Government releases its annual fiscal statement (May) or its Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (December). The Government plays along with the charade releasing what it deems to be cleverly crafted documents, shifting revenue and spending across year lines to give one impression or another of the state of affairs. None of the charade is based on any fundamental economic understanding. None of it means anything other than a demonstration of a national scam to hide the truth from the ordinary citizen who for one reason or another relies on experts to summarise technical detail into meaningful sound bites. The nation then goes about its business in this cloud of ignorance, while the elites continue to suppress wages and living standards and march of with increasing shares of national income. They know what is going on and it is in their interests to keep the rest of us from having the same information. It is the same the world over. Well, here is what is going on with a framework that allows the reader to cut through the lies …
