Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 15 November 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
- Shares in Asia mainly gain; pound strengthens amid progress on proposed Brexit deal (CNBC) Stocks in Asia were mostly higher on Thursday on the back of an apparent improvement in market risk sentiment after British Prime Minister Theresa May managed to persuade her cabinet to back her draft Brexit agreement. The U.S. dollar index weakened to 96.894 after seeing an earlier high around the 97 handle. Front-month Brent crude oil futures were trading at $65.88 per barrel at 0441 GMT, down $0.24 (0.4%) from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $55.96 a barrel, down $0.29 cents, or 0.5%. Spot gold was little changed at $1,211.12 per ounce at 0453 GMT.
U.S.
- Trump’s approval rating at 47 percent after midterms (The Hill) Roughly a week after the midterm elections, President Trump saw his approval rating increase to 47% according to a new American Barometer poll. The survey, conducted by Hill.TV and the HarrisX polling company found that 23% of voters said they “strongly approved” of Trump, while 24% said they “somewhat” approved of him. The Real Clear Politics polling average had Trump’s approval rating at 43% on Wednesday, while his disapproval stood at 53%.
- Trump seeks to land blow against media in court fight with CNN (Politico) Donald Trump sought Wednesday to land a massive blow in his long-fought battle against the news media, with administration lawyers asserting in court that the president could bar “all reporters” from the White House complex for any reason he sees fit. The sweeping claim, which came in the first public hearing over CNN’s lawsuit to restore correspondent Jim Acosta’s White House credentials, could have a dramatic impact on news organizations’ access to government officials if it is upheld in court. CNN argued in its lawsuit filed Tuesday that the White House infringed on Acosta’s First Amendment rights by revoking his access in response to a dispute over a press conference last week.
- Bill to protect Mueller blocked in Senate (The Hill) Legislation protecting special counsel Robert Mueller from being fired was blocked in the Senate on Wednesday. Sen. Jeff Flake (R, AZ) asked for consent to bring the legislation, which has stalled after being passed in the Judiciary Committee in April, to the Senate floor for a vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R, KY) blocked his request.
- Housing Sector Weakening (The Daily Shot) Residential investment has been weakening in recent quarters (first graphic below). The latest Senior Loan Officer Survey from the Fed shows falling demand for residential mortgages (second graphic below). It’s worth noting that in the past, declines in residential investment led the way into recessions (third graphic below).
- The Housing Crisis Seems to Be Hitting Some Veterans More Than Others (MSN News) According to a new report from Apartment List, veterans who served post-9/11 are actually more likely to struggle to afford housing. This is far more than any group of veterans before them, and even a little more than the average non-vet American citizen. Nearly 35% of them are cost-burdened (meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on housing) and fewer than half of them own their own homes.
- Utah Republican behind in tight race sues to halt vote count (Associated Press) Republican U.S. Rep. Mia Love (pictured below) sued Wednesday to halt vote counting in the Utah race where she is trailing her Democratic challenger by a razor-thin margin, saying her campaign must be allowed to challenge mail-in ballot verification.
In a contest where “every single vote is crucial,” the Love campaign claimed poll watchers have seen a few cases where ballots were approved even if voter signatures did not appear to match those on file in Democratic-leaning Salt Lake County.
Democratic challenger Ben McAdams shot back that the lawsuit “smacks of desperation,” saying in a statement that elections officials, not candidates, decide what votes should count.
- ‘Dangerous’ travel conditions to arise with snow, ice storm taking aim at northeastern US into Friday (MSN Weather) Motorists, airline passengers and school districts can expect an early hit from Old Man Winter with snow, ice and rain set to cause disruptions over a large portion of the eastern United States prior to the end of this week. The storm, already producing intermittent rain in the South, will strengthen and sweep across the Northeastern states during Thursday and Friday. The same storm will bring heavy snow to part of the central U.S. with a focus on eastern Missouri and southern Illinois.
- Devastation from Deadly Camp and Woolsey Fires Seen from Space (Space.com) The Camp Fire, which is scorching its way across Northern California about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Sacramento, has become the deadliest blaze in the state’s history after devastating the town of Paradise. At the same time, Southern California battles its own late-season fire, the Woolsey Fire.
UK
- Brexit secretary Dominic Raab resigns, saying he cannot back May’s deal – Politics live (The Guardian) Raab objected to the status of Northern Ireland, saying the agreement “presents a very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom“. He also objected to the “backstop” which keeps the UK de facto still a member of the EU indefinitely. See also next article and UK’s Brexit Secretary Raab resigns thrusting May’s government into turmoil (Reuters).
- Sterling plunges after UK Brexit minister Dominic Raab resigns (CNBC) Sterling plunged by over 1% against the dollar Thursday morning after U.K. Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab resigned from his post, piling yet more pressure on U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May.
- Brexit deal: how UK and EU got here and what happens next (The Conversation) Their work done, British politicians now have to give their verdict on the technical policy details enshrined in the 585-page draft withdrawal agreement. Now the deal has been agreed by cabinet, it needs the approval of UK MPs and each EU member state. The politics of getting the deal through parliament are immensely fraught and the EU is hanging on a positive answer.
Italy
- Exploding buses, collapsing escalators – what’s the matter with Rome’s transit? (The Guardian) Rome’s transit system lags behind virtually all European capitals, and plenty of Italian urban centres, too. Almost entirely based on two metro lines, A and B , with a somewhat disjointed C line, Rome’s metro only serves a fraction of the city’s 2.8 million residents. The council-owned Rome Transport Company (Atac) carries a huge €1.4bn ($1.55bn) debt and a reputation for waste.
Russia
- Russia’s Putin discusses nuclear pact with U.S.’s Pence (Reuters) Russian President Vladimir Putin said he discussed Washington’s plans to exit the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) arms treaty with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence when they met in Singapore on Thursday. Speaking to reporters at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Putin said he and Pence had also discussed relations with Iran.
India
- India’s economy is booming. Now comes the hard part (CNBC) India is now the world’s fastest-growing major economy, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has won praise for shepherding that momentum. But the picture for the South Asian giant isn’t all rosy, economists told CNBC: As impressive as the country’s growth has been, it has not seen that prosperity evenly distributed. That’s especially relevant for the prime minister, who is up for reelection in 2019, because inclusive growth had been a major promise during his 2014 campaign.
China
- Peter Navarro, U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade advisor and a hardliner on China, has been sidelined by the White House – but prospects of a trade deal between the world’s two largest economies remain bleak, experts said.
- “Remember that he isn’t the only hawk in the administration: Robert Lighthizer, who drove the initial investigations used to justify the US tariffs, is also a hardliner on China,” said Nick Marro, an analyst at The Economist Intelligence Unit.
- The U.S. and China have engaged in a tit-for-tat trade fight over the last few months. Trump is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G-20 summit in Argentina this month to discuss trade.
- China is Building Domenstic Consumption (The Daily Shot) China increasingly imports goods for domestic consumption (rather than for re-exporting).
Mexico
- Exclusive: U.S. troop levels at Mexico border likely at peak – commander (Reuters) The number of U.S. troops at the border with Mexico may have peaked at about 5,800, the U.S. commander of the mission told Reuters, noting he would start looking next week at whether to begin sending forces home or perhaps shifting some to new border positions.
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