20Apr2016 Pre-Market Commentary: US Futures Flat, US Dollar Continues Slide, WTI Crude Trading In High 41’s, Investors Unsure Of Market Direction

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are mixed today. The CAC 40 is up 0.21% while the DAX gains 0.19%. The FTSE 100 is off 0.19%.

Global markets stabilize as likely ECB support offsets weak oil

LONDON (Reuters) – Stocks markets stabilized on Wednesday as expectations of support from the European Central Bank offset a decline in the price of oil.

EU charges Google with abusing Android market dominance

BRUSSELS – The European Union charged Google on Wednesday with abusing the dominant position of its Android mobile operating system, opening a second front against the U.S. technology giant that could lead to large fines.

Coca-Cola sales drop on weak Europe demand, strong dollar

(Reuters) – Coca-Cola Co’s sales fell for the fourth straight quarter as demand weakened for its fizzy drinks in Europe and a strong dollar ate into revenue from other markets outside the United States, including Latin America.

Exclusive: Verizon set to make Yahoo’s bidder short list – sources

(Reuters) – Verizon Communications Inc was set on Tuesday to advance to the second stage of bidding for Yahoo Inc’s core assets, as the U.S. internet company went through offers to put together a short list, people familiar with the matter said.

United Airlines bows to activists, adds directors

(Reuters) – United Continental Holdings Inc said on Wednesday it had added two new board members in a settlement with activist investors, averting a long fight over governance at the No.3 U.S. airline by traffic.

Russians, Saudis have capacity to ramp up oil output: Russian energy minister

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia and Russia both have the capacity to steeply increase oil production, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday, and he said he was not confident exporters would be able to agree on freezing their output by June.

Oil falls on end to Kuwaiti strike, supply outlook

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell on Wednesday as investor focus returned to worries about oversupply after Kuwaiti workers ended a three-day strike that had halved the nation’s crude output.

ADB head: Dollar strength ‘corrected’, market turmoil unlikely

TOKYO (Reuters) – Asian Development Bank President Takehiko Nakao said on Wednesday that the “correction” of dollar strength since the start of this year is unlikely to cause market turmoil, with the yuan and other Asian currencies stabilizing.

China unveils steps to support exports to help economy

BEIJING (Reuters) – China will take steps to boost exports, including encouraging banks to boost lending, expanding export credit insurance and raise tax rebates for some firms, the cabinet said on Wednesday, in the latest step to underpin growth.

How Systems Break: First They Slow Down

Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith of OfTwoMinds blog,

Alternatively, we can cling to a state of denial, and the dominant system will be replaced by arrangements that are not necessarily positive.

The reality that cannot be spoken is that all the financial systems we believe are permanent are actually on borrowed time. One way we can judge this decline of resilience is to look at how long it takes systems to recover when they are stressed, and to what degree they bounce back to previous levels.

Another is to look at the extremes the system reaches without returning to “normal”: for example, interest rates, which rather than normalizing after seven years of suppression are being pushed to negative rates by increasingly desperate central bankers.

The key insight here is that financial systems and indeed economies function as natural systems. Central planning/central banker manipulation appears to control the system, but this control masks the reality that the system is increasingly fragile and prone to collapse, not just from internal dynamics but as a direct result of central bank manipulation.

The warning signs of fraying resilience are all around us.

Nature’s Warning Signal: Complex systems like ecological food webs, the brain, and the climate all give off a characteristic signal when disaster is around the corner.

“The signal, a phenomenon called ‘critical slowing down,’ is a lengthening of the time that a system takes to recover from small disturbances, such as a dise …

China Gold Yuan Trading To Boost Power In Gold and FX Markets – End Manipulation?

China Gold Yuan Trading To Boost Power In Gold and FX Markets ” End Manipulation?

China launched yuan denominated gold bullion trading today in a move that will further boost its power in the global gold and fx markets. Critics of the existing pricing mechanisms hope that it will lead to increased transparency and may end price manipulation.

The Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE), the world’s largest physical gold exchange, launched a yuan-denominated benchmark price today in Shanghai, a measure that will benefit both China’s domestic gold market and the global precious metals market.

The SGE set the price at 256.92 yuan a gram ($1,233.85/oz) at the 10:30 am session after members of the SGE submitted buy and sell orders for gold of 99.99 percent purity according to Bloomberg. Members include Chinese banks, jewelers, miners and the local units of Standard Chartered Plc and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., according to the bourse.

The SGE said in a press release that the launch of the Shanghai Gold Benchmark Price will be useful as it adequately reflects the gold supply and demand in China, and represents the price trend of China’s gold market and China is now the largest producer and buyer of gold bullion in the world.

Shanghai Gold is gold bars or ingots with the standard weight of one kilogram and a fineness of no lower than 999.9, delivered in Shanghai, and traded via SGE price trading platform. It is quoted i …

Frontrunning: April 20

After big New York wins, Trump and Clinton cast themselves as inevitable (Reuters)

Eastern States Take Turn in Presidential Primary Spotlight (WSJ)

China’s Stocks Tumble Most in Seven Weeks to Break Trading Calm (BBG)

Oil falls on end to Kuwaiti strike, supply outlook (Reuters)

Oil price’s decline weighs on global stock markets (Reuters)

Blankfein’s Decade Ending With a Thud on a Humbled Wall Street (BBG)

Toyota to Resume Production at Most Japan Plants Next Week (WSJ)

Apple refused China request for source code in last two years (Reuters)

Japan’s Trade in Surplus as Imports Drop for Fifteenth Month (BBG)

EU charges Google with abusing Android market dominance (Reuters)

Saudi $10 Billion Financial District Is Missing One Thing: Banks (BBG)

Brazil’s Rouseff sla …

The Very Good News In Goldman Sachs’s Bad Earnings Report

Goldman Sachs had a lousy first quarter. But Wall Street isn’t as troubled as it seems

Why Mitsubishi Motors’ Emissions Problem Won’t Clear Quickly

If Volkswagen is a model, investors shouldn’t place much hope in a quick restart for Mitsubishi Motors after the latest emissions problem.

Lexmark Shareholders Clear Paper Jam With China Deal

For Lexmark shareholders, a bid from Chinese Apex Technologies is a timely deliverance after a rough ride.

Trucking Tonnage Declined in March 2016

Truck shipments are reported down in March – with one index showing year-over-year growth whilst the other showing year-over-year contraction.

The Wall Street Journal: EU hits Google with antitrust charges over Android conduct

The European Union has filed its second round of formal antitrust charges against Alphabet’s Google in less than two years, accusing the U.S. technology giant of abusing the dominance of its Android mobile operating system.

Market Snapshot: U.S. stock futures edge up as market tries to add to 2-day advance

U.S. stock futures inch higher Wednesday even as oil prices drop, with the S&P 500 trying to extend a two-day advance.