22Jun2015 Market Update: Averages Remain Solidly In The Green Although Trending Down

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

North and South American markets are higher today with shares in U.S. leading the region. The S&P 500 is up 0.60% while Mexico’s IPC is up 0.58% and Brazil’s Bovespa is up 0.56%.

U.S. Stocks Rise

U.S. stocks were lifted by gains in health-care and financial shares as well as optimism Greece will reach a bailout deal with creditors.

Uber Data Collection Changes Should Be Barred, Privacy Group Urges

The Electronic Privacy Information Center said in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission that changes to Uber’s data collection policy were harmful to consumers.

Wall Street up on Greece hopes, M&A chatter

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks were higher in early afternoon trading on Monday, helped by a surge in M&A chatter, particularly in the healthcare sector, and on hopes that a deal was nearer to avert a looming crisis in Greece.

First-time buyers lift U.S. home sales to 5-1/2-year high

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. home resales surged to a 5-1/2-year high in May as first-time buyers stepped into the market, the latest indication that housing and overall economic activity were gathering steam in the second quarter.

Euro zone welcomes new Greek debt proposals, more work to do

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Euro zone finance ministers welcomed new Greek proposals for a cash-for-reform deal on Monday but said they required detailed study and it would take several days to determine whether they can lead to an agreement to avert a default.

Amazon to pay self-published authors based on pages read

(Reuters) – It could soon pay more to write lengthier books, if you are an author self-publishing on Amazon.com Inc’s Kindle ebook platform.

Collapse, Part 1: Greece

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog,

When systems are broke and broken, collapse is the only way forward.

The theme this week is collapse. It’s a big, complex topic because there are as many types of collapse as there are systems. Some systems appear stable on the surface but collapse suddenly; others visibly decay for decades before finally slipping beneath the waves of history, and some go through stages of collapse.
The taxonomy of collapse is broad, and each unsustainable system (i.e. a system that will fail despite claims to the contrary) has its unique characteristics.
Which brings us to Greece.
I have written extensively about Greece and the doomed financial arrangement known as the euro for many years–for example: Greece, Please Do The Right Thing: Default Now (June 1, 2011).
When Debt is More Important Than People, The System Is Evil (February 18, 2012)
Greece at the Crossroads: the Oligarchs Blew It (January 27, 2015)
Greece and the Endgame of the Neocolonial Model of Exploitation(February 19, 2015)

Tesla’s Need for Cash Should Cow Investors

Heard on the Street: Tesla’s high stock price and need for cash to fuel its ambitions are a risky combination for investors.

Bernanke Blasts Lew’s $10 Bill Woman-ification

Authored by Ben Bernanke via The Brookings Institute,

I must admit I was appalled to hear of Treasury Secretary Jack Lew’s decision last week to demote Alexander Hamilton from his featured position on the ten dollar bill. My reaction has been widely shared, see for example here, here, here, here, and here.

Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury, would qualify as among the greatest of our founders for his contributions to achieving American independence and creating the Constitution alone. In addition to those accomplishments, however, Hamilton was without doubt the best and most foresighted economic policymaker in U.S. history. As detailed in Ron Chernow’s excellent biography, as Treasury Secretary Hamilton put in place the institutional basis for the modern U.S. economy. Critically, he helped put U.S. government finances on a sound footing, consolidating …

Oil down on gasoline buildup fear; Greek debt worry

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Crude oil futures fell for a second straight session on Monday on concerns that U.S. demand for gasoline may fade after a strong stretch and in worries about the potential fallout from the Greek debt crisis.

Suit Sheds Light on Secret Trading Technology

A legal dispute in San Francisco has shed light on a tool that some of the biggest quantitative hedge funds use to predict how stock prices will move.

Goldman’s “Conspiracy Theory” Stunner: A Greek Default Is Precisely What The ECB Wants

Last week, we showed a curious thesis by Goldman, which asked if there is a new and “ominous” development in European currency swings, namely the emergence of what may be a “under the table” fight between the ECB and the Bundesbank on which bonds to monetize.

This is what Goldman said then:

the average maturity of ECB bond buying is around 8.0 years, in line with what Executive Board member Coeure said in his May 18 speech. However, while Italy and Spain see purchases that have an average maturity above that of the outstanding debt stock, Bundesbank buying has fallen short from the very beginning…. This kind of signal — from the key hawk in the Eurosystem — has the potential to undercut the credibility of ECB QE, since it weakens the portfolio balance channel.

After all, it was supposed to be low yields in core Europe into risk assets. If those yields now rise and become more volatile, such portfolio effects will be lessened.

Today, in a follow up report by Goldman’s Robin Brooks and company, and one which seeks to validate Goldman’s “top trade” thesis of a weak Euro currency, (recall Goldman top trade #1 for 2015: “Stay long EUR/$ downside via 1-year 1.00/0.95 put spread (originally at 1.20/1.15 with a premium of 70bp EUR at initiation, expiring on 20 Nov 2015, opened at a spot EUR/$ of 1.253 on 20 Nov 2014, currently at 1.135.”) Goldman explains why despite relentless Greek drama, the EUR hasn’t moved and its conclusion is that this is due to

Exclusive: CVC and Temasek to buy $2billion generic drugs firm Alvogen

LONDON (Reuters) – European private equity fund CVC and Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek [TEM.UL] are to buy a controlling stake in the pharmaceutical firm Alvogen, its chairman and chief executive said.