Written by Econintersect
Early Bird Headlines 04 Apr 2019
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
- Stocks in Asia mixed as investors await US-China trade developments (CNBC) Shares in Asia were mixed on Thursday as investors watched ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and China, with the two economic powerhouses reportedly closer to striking a deal to end a protracted trade dispute. The U.S. dollar index was lower at 97.099 after seeing levels above 97.2 yesterday. Brent crude futures contract was 0.35% lower at $69.07 per barrel and U.S. crude futures declined 0.32% to $62.26 per barrel. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,291.89 per ounce as of 0332 GMT.
- Warning from ‘Antarctica’s last forests’ (BBC) Scramble across exposed rocks in the middle of Antarctica and it’s possible to find the mummified twigs of shrubs that grew on the continent some five million years ago. This plant material isn’t much to look at, but scientists say it should serve as a warning to the world about where climate change could take us if carbon emissions go unchecked. The time period is an epoch geologists call the Pliocene, 2.6-5.3 million years ago. It was marked by temperatures that were significantly warmer than today, perhaps by 2-3 degrees globally.
U.S.
- Trump hit with ‘accidental’ 1-day investigative assault (Politico) In a single day, House Democrats demanded President Donald Trump’s tax returns for six years, moved to get a decade’s worth of his financial records and prepared to issue a subpoena for the full Mueller report from the Justice Department.
Top House Democratic lawmakers and aides say the triple-headed attack was more by accident than design, but it’s also clear that April 3 marks a turning point for the new Democratic majority. In less than eight hours, House Democrats moved to an all-out investigative assault on Trump, one that the White House and Republican leaders blasted as unnecessary, openly partisan and a huge distraction from the country’s business.
- Some on Mueller’s Team See Their Findings as More Damaging for Trump Than Barr Revealed (The New York Times) Some of Robert S. Mueller III’s investigators have told associates that Attorney General William P. Barr failed to adequately portray the findings of their inquiry and that they were more troubling for President Trump than Mr. Barr indicated, according to government officials and others familiar with their simmering frustrations.
At stake in the dispute – the first evidence of tension between Mr. Barr and the special counsel’s office – is who shapes the public’s initial understanding of one of the most consequential government investigations in American history. Some members of Mr. Mueller’s team are concerned that, because Mr. Barr created the first narrative of the special counsel’s findings, Americans’ views will have hardened before the investigation’s conclusions become public.
- Mueller Hid Evidence Favorable to the Defense, Manafort’s Attorneys Argue in Heavily Redacted Doc (Law & Crime) Attorneys for Paul Manafort have filed a public version of a previous motion to reconsider a judge’s ruling that the former Trump 2016 campaign chair lied about contacts with a Russian national. This motion argues that government prosecutors unlawfully withheld evidence crucial to the defense.
- As Trump rages over border, Kushner quietly plans legal immigration boost (Politico) Even as President Donald Trump threatens to shut down the southern border, his administration is quietly working on a plan to expand some forms of legal immigration into the U.S. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, has been working for months on a proposal that could increase the number of low- and high-skilled workers admitted to the country annually, four people involved in the discussions told Politico.
- Immigration operation at Texas tech firm brings almost 300 worker arrests (Fox News) Immigration officials on Wednesday arrested some 280 employees of a North Texas tech company suspected of knowingly hiring illegal immigrants, the largest such single-company sweep in 11 years. More than 200 law enforcement personnel took part in the operation at CVE Technology Group in Allen, north of Dallas. Officials said the company refurbishes and repairs telecommunications equipment, including cellphones.
- Trump claims wind turbine ‘noise causes cancer’ (The Hill) President Trump on Tuesday stepped up his attacks against wind power, claiming that the structures decrease property values and that the noise they emit causes cancer. The president also said wind turbines are a “graveyard for birds.”
- Lower Inflation is Indicated (The Daily Shot) Regional manufacturing surveys point to slower factory input inflation (priced paid) across the US.
EU
- EURUSD: Traders Net-Long Increased by 75.1% from Last Week (Dailyfx) EURUSD: Retail trader data shows 73.3% of traders are net-long with the ratio of traders long to short at 2.75 to 1. In fact, traders have remained net-long since Mar 26 when EURUSD traded near 1.12738; price has moved 0.7% lower since then. The number of traders net-long is 12.0% higher than yesterday and 75.1% higher from last week, while the number of traders net-short is 1.5% lower than yesterday and 38.0% lower from last week. Clearly traders are betting on a resurgent euro.
Turkey
- Turkish President Recep Erdogan faces a choice between buying U.S. or Russian-made weapons systems and has been warned by Washington of serious consequences if it partners with Moscow.
- The Pentagon has already announced a halt in delivery of F-35 joint strike fighter jet components to Turkey this week.
- Any signs of increased tension with the U.S. will weigh on Turkish assets, analysts believe.
India
- RBI cuts rates by 25 bps, sees need to spur growth (Reuters) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut its policy interest rate by 25 basis points on Thursday, in a widely expected move to boost the economy just a week before voting begins in an election that will decide whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi gets a second term.
Though inflation remains subdued, falling farm incomes and record high unemployment are seen as hampering Modi’s prospects going into the polls after economic growth slid to 6.6 percent in December – its slowest in five quarters.
Japan
- Japan policymakers shun ‘Modern Monetary Theory’ as dangerous (Reuters) Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso on Thursday said using government spending as a primary policy tool to boost employment and spur inflation, an idea backed by some U.S. academics, would backfire on the world’s third-biggest economy given its huge debt pile. This got a surprised reaction from a leading MMT academic:
North Korea
- Officials say Kim Jong Un warned his generals ahead of Trump summit (CNN) In one of the clearest signs of just how much Kim Jong Un wanted an agreement at what became the failed Hanoi summit in February with President Donald Trump, CNN has learned that the North Korean leader gave specific orders to his generals to not carry out any unplanned activity in the days and weeks leading up the meeting, according to a senior South Korean official and a US defense official.
The US official added that Kim was worried any inadvertent movement of his military units would raise tensions leading up to the summit. He issued specific orders that forces stay in place in a passive status, without any indication they were moving in the field.
China
- Trump plans to meet with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Thursday (CNBC) U.S. President Donald Trump is planning to meet with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Thursday, according to a White House schedule. The event is scheduled to take place at 4:30 p.m. ET in the Oval Office. That comes as Washington and Beijing appeared to be closing in on a deal that would put an end to their ongoing trade war.
- China Dominates Many Global Commodity Markets (The Daily Shot) This chart shows China’s commodity consumption.
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