Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 30 May 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
- Asian stocks decline after global markets fall on Italian turmoil (CNBC) Asian markets closed lower on Wednesday as a sell-off in U.S. and European markets weighed on sentiment during the Asian trading session. The political crisis in Italy took center stage, with investors concerned over its implications for the rest of the euro zone. The dollar index was little changed at 94.664. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures slipped 0.12% to trade at $66.65 per barrel after settling 1.7% lower on Tuesday. Brent crude futures were off by 0.15% at $75.28. Spot gold had risen 0.3% to $1,301.98 per ounce by 0125 GMT.
U.S.
- Trump steps up attacks on Mueller (The Hill) President Trump on Tuesday intensified his attacks on Robert Mueller, predicting the special counsel’s team will be “MEDDLING” in the fall midterm elections in order to hurt Republican candidates. Trump’s Twitter outburst, in which he labeled Mueller’s investigators as “13 Angry Democrats,” is his latest attempt to undercut the credibility of the Russia investigation by arguing it is politically motivated. The president wrote:
“The 13 Angry Democrats (plus people who worked 8 years for Obama) working on the rigged Russia Witch Hunt, will be MEDDLING with the mid-term elections, especially now that Republicans (stay tough!) are taking the lead in Polls. There was no Collusion, except by the Democrats!”
- Probability of Four Rate Hikes Drops (Twitter) The probability of four rate hikes plunged to 10.5%. Even the “sure thing” June hike is now down to 70%.
- How the right is defending Roseanne Barr’s racist tweets (The Guardian) Shortly after ABC canceled the show, rightwing commentators were engaged in false equivalences and ‘mental gymnastics’. But not all. Some conservatives acknowledged that Roseanne’s tweets were indefensible. Tomi Lahren, a high-profile commentator who has previously compared the Black Lives Matter movement to the KKK, tweeted that:
“What Roseanne said was wrong. I’m sure she knows that. She made a mistake. I don’t know why fellow conservatives are playing mental gymnastics trying to justify it. Come on. Wrong is wrong.”
- Inflation Outlooks (The Daily Shot) Inflation is expected to rise modestly in he U.S. going forward. Here are a couple of forecasts:
EU
- EU’s Oettinger apologizes for comments on Italy (Reuters) European Union Budget Commissioner Guenther Oettinger apologized on Tuesday after comments suggesting Italian voters would be punished by markets for voting for eurosceptic populists caused an uproar in the country. He said in a statement:
“I fully respect the will of voters being left, right or center and in every country. By referring to the actual market developments in Italy, I did not mean to be disrespectful and I apologize for this. Italy as a founding member (of the European Union) played and plays an important role in European integration and I hope it will continue on this path.”
UK
- Soros-backed campaign to push for new Brexit vote within a year (The Guardian) The billionaire says holding fresh referendum soon could save UK from ‘immense damage’.
Italy
- Politicians push for July election as Italy seeks exit from crisis (Reuters) Last-ditch efforts to form a government in Italy showed little sign of succeeding on Wednesday, with major parties calling instead for repeat elections in July – a vote investors fear could become a de facto referendum on the euro.
- NIRP’s Revenge: Italian Bonds Plunge, Worst Day in Decades (Wolf Street) On Tuesday, Italian bonds had their worst day in Eurozone existence, even worse than any day during the worst periods of the 2011 debt crisis. And this comes after they’d already gotten crushed on Monday, and after they’d gotten crushed last week. And this happened even as the ECB is carrying on its QE program, including the purchase of Italian government bonds; and even as it pursues its negative-interest-rate policy (NIRP). As bond prices plunge, yields spike by definition, and the spike in the two-year yield was spectacular, going from 0.3% on Monday morning to 2.73% on Tuesday end of day:
Ukraine
- Prominent Russian journalist who criticized Kremlin shot dead in Kiev (Reuters) Arkady Babchenko, 41, a prominent Russian journalist and critic of President Vladimir Putin, was shot dead in Ukraine where he had fled into exile following threats, police said on Tuesday. Police said they suspected the murder was due to Babchenko’s professional activities.
Philippines
- Philippines says ready for war if troops harmed in disputed South China Sea (Reuters) The Philippines is prepared to go to war if military personnel are harmed in disputed waters, a top security official said on Wednesday, firing back at criticism the government was going soft on China and allowing it to militarize the South China Sea. President Rodrigo Duterte has taken flak in recent weeks for not confronting Beijing following news that China had installed missile systems on artificial islands in the busy waterway, including areas within Manila’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
Japan
- Inflation Outlook For Japan Declines (The Daily Shot) Although the Tokyo CPI can be below the national levels, the recent decline suggests further weakness in Japan’s consumer inflation.
North Korea
- White House seeks to save summit with North Korea (The Hill) The Trump administration is scrambling to save a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un less than a week after President Trump canceled the meeting. Since Trump’s Thursday letter calling off the sit-down, there’s been a flurry of diplomatic activity, including U.S. teams going to Singapore and the Korean Peninsula and a top North Korean official traveling to New York.
Australia
- Tesla’s Massive Virtual Power Plant in South Australia Roars Back to Life (EcoWatch) Tesla‘s plans to build the world’s largest virtual power plant in South Australia (SA) will proceed after all. The $800 million (US $634 million) project – struck in February by Tesla CEO Elon Musk and former South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill – involves installing solar panels and batteries on 50,000 homes to function as an interconnected power plant. An additinal 40,000 homes in another SA initiative will receive discounts on battery storage systems. Energy Minister Van Holst Pellekaan, who met with Tesla soon after he was sworn in, added that he wants South Australia to become a world leader in home battery installation.
Mexico
- Mexican campaigns awash with dirty money, pre-election report finds (The Guardian) Anti-graft group says that for every peso reported to election officials, 15 goes unreported. The report, published on Tuesday by the anti-graft group Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity, comes four week’s before the country’s presidential elections.
- Trump says Mexico will eventually pay for border wall (Reuters) U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticized Mexico for not helping to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States and repeated his campaign promise that Mexico will pay for building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
- Mexican President Responds (Twitter)
Canada
- Canada’s Freeland to visit Washington this week for NAFTA talks (Reuters) Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland will go to Washington on Tuesday to meet with the U.S. trade chief, officials said on Monday, as officials press for a deal on reworking the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
The negotiations are moving slowly as Mexico and Canada try to grapple with U.S. demands to impose tougher minimum content requirements for autos built in the region, along with several other contentious proposals.