Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 21 February 2018
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, published Monday, Wednesday and Friday, which has many more headlines and a number of article discussions to keep you abreast of what we have found interesting.
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​Global
- Asia markets mixed amid choppy trade as dollar steadies (CNBC) Asian markets were mixed on Wednesday, with choppy trade seen in Japan and South Korea as stock indexes hovered around the flat line. More convincing gains were seen in Taiwan and Hong Kong markets. The dollar index was up to 89.817 at 12:10 p.m. HK/SIN. U.S. crude futures declined 1.07% to trade at $61.13 per barrel. Brent crude futures edged down by 0.84% to trade at $64.70. Spot gold had slipped by 0.2% to $1,326.37 an ounce by 0353 GMT and was down for a fourth straight session.
- Japan hopes U.S. returns to TPP but overhaul tough: negotiator (Reuters) Japan welcomes a positive stance by the United States toward an Asia-Pacific trade pact, but indicated that altering the agreement at this point would be very difficult. The new agreement due to be signed this week has omitted some 20 provisions introduced by the U.S. to protect American interests.
- OPEC Roars Into 2018 Oil Cuts. Allies Stumble, Shale Soars. (Bloomberg) OPEC roared into its second year of crude oil cuts in January, but a tandem effort from non-OPEC suppliers led by Russia faltered. All the while, U.S. shale drillers keep pumping more oil, undermining any efforts by the petrostates to end a global glut.
U.S.
- Attorney pleads guilty in Mueller probe to lying to FBI over contacts with former Trump campaign official (CNBC) See also Mueller Gets Plea, No Cooperation, as Skadden Lawyer Admits Lies (Bloomberg). From CNBC:
- Alex van der Zwaan admitted making false or misleading statements regarding email communications with Richard Gates.
- His former employer, the renowned law firm Skadden, Arps, says they are cooperating with authorities.
- Van der Zwaan is married to the daughter of German Khan, a Russian oligarch who is suing research firm Fusion GPS over a dossier alleging salacious and unverified ties between President Donald Trump and Russia.
- America Is Under Attack and the President Doesn’t Care (The Atlantic) Hat tip to Doomstead Diner Daily. This author says:
Trump’s gravest responsibility is to defend the United States from foreign attack – and he’s done nothing to fulfill it.
- Florida survivors, lawmakers on collision course over guns (Associated Press) Hat tip to Elliott Morss. Students who survived the Florida school shooting began a journey Tuesday to the state Capitol to urge lawmakers to prevent another massacre, but within hours the gun-friendly Legislature had effectively halted any possibility of banning assault-style rifles like the one used in the attack. The legislative action further energized the teens as they prepared to confront legislators who have quashed gun-control efforts for decades in a state where 1.3 million people have concealed carry permits.
- Raising the gas tax hits another roadblock in Washington (CNBC)
- A report released Tuesday by the conservative group Freedom Partners found that a 25-cent hike in the gas tax would increase costs for households by hundreds of dollars a year.
- The average amount ranges from $103.39 in Washington, D.C., to a high of nearly $390.62 in Mississippi.
- President Donald Trump repeatedly brought up the idea during a bipartisan meeting with lawmakers last week as a way to pay for his $1.5 trillion infrastructure package
- The hypocrisy poisoning America (Fabius Maximus) FM has contributed to GEI. Summary:
America’s largest problems don’t appear in the in the headlines, but between the lines. Such as the hypocrisy poisoning our politics. Here are some recent examples – and a simple solution.
New Tax Cuts Will Save Billions. But for Whom? (Fortune) Here is an excerpt:
- Treasury $258 Billion Bond Auction Is Hogging All the Attention (Bloomberg) U.S. Treasury bonds fell across the board on Tuesday as investors demanded higher yields ahead of record issuance of three- and six-month bills this week. Two-year Treasuries led the selloff.
EU
- Improving Construction Acitivity in Eurozone (The Daily Shot) Analysts expect construction activity to improve in the Eurozone, further boosting economic growth.
UK
- Treasury Select Committee publishes full “disgraceful” report into RBS’ restructuring unit and “profit centre” GRG (City A.M.) The Treasury Select Committee has published the FCA’s unredacted report into Royal Bank of Scotland’s restructuring unit GRG after MPs agreed to do so this afternoon. The unit was supposed to help customers in financial trouble but instead helped the bank at customers’ expense. (Read full report here.)
The report details how GRG’s twin objectives – of helping struggling customers return to viability and contributing to the bank’s bottom line – were incompatible and led to a culture it called “the GRG way”. The restructuring unit was treated as a “profit centre”, it notes.
Israel
- Confidant of Israel’s Netanyahu turns state’s witness in corruption case: media (Reuters) A confidant of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to provide testimony on behalf of the state about alleged corrupt dealings between the government and the country’s biggest telecoms group, Israeli media reported on Wednesday.
Russia
- How ‘Putin’s Cook’ Fed America’s Appetite for Disinformation (Bloomberg) This a detailed look at how the Russians named in the indictment created fake news tailored for an American public eager to receive it. See also Woman behind pro-Trump Facebook page denies being influenced by Russians (The Hill)
North Korea
- North Korea Pulled Out of Olympic Meeting With Pence, U.S. Says (Bloomberg) U.S. Vice President Mike Pence was willing to meet with Kim Jong Un’s envoys earlier this month during the Winter Olympics in South Korea, but the North Koreans backed out, the Trump administration said.
- Japan sees transfer at sea that may violate NKorea sanctions (Associated Press) Japan’s military has witnessed a ship-to-ship transfer on the high seas that it “strongly suspects” violates U.N. sanctions on North Korea, in the third such incident reported by Japan in the past month. A maritime Self-Defense Force PC-3 surveillance plane and an escort ship saw a North Korean-flagged tanker alongside a smaller ship on Feb. 16 about 250 kilometers (150 miles) off Shanghai in the East China Sea, the Foreign Ministry said late Tuesday.
South Korea
- South Korea said on Wednesday it will sign trade agreements with five Central American nations, which will boost market access for South Korean automotive and electronics sectors.
- The agreements are subject to parliamentary approval in each country, and is likely to take effect at different times.
- The ministry expects the five deals to accelerate South Korea’s economic growth by an overall 0.02 percent in the next 10 years, by boosting exports of cars, steel, cosmetics products, and auto components.
