"At no point is it possible to bail-in depositors below €100K, now or in the future," Reuters reports an EU Commission statement as saying (never mind this is precisely what was attempted in Cyprus last week). It's not our job to evaluate Dijsselbloem's comments on Cyprus, the EU adds. "Dijsselbloem was wrong," says the ECB's Benoit Coeure. "Cyprus isn't a model." [View news story]
The real message is that they need your funds to stay in place so they can be stolen, when needed
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
Wait until the withdrawals show how weak the banks really are....and people realize the gov't guarantee is meant only to cover for a few bad banks when economies are booming. Does anybody really think deposits are insured? Got gold, bitchez?
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
That's right. How can we expect to steal deposits to pay bonuses and cover for our stupid mistakes if we tip the innocent customers off first.
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
It would have been fun to watch Draghi soil himself when that hit the air waves. A la BB, Mario will be the only one authorized to speak to the media going forward.
"The impact of the improvement in financial conditions on the real economy has been somewhat stronger than I anticipated," says FRBNY chief Bill Dudley, patting himself on the back with both hands. Not only that, but the risks of QE are even less than he anticipated (need 3rd hand now). Why does growth remain so slow? Fiscal policy, he says. Governments are tightening at precisely the wrong time. [View news story]
Obviously someone who has risen way past his level of incompetence
The IMF will slash its forecast for U.S. economic growth in its next World Economic Outlook report, according to Reuters and Italian news agency ANSA. Investors should expect the U.S. economy to grow at just 1.7% in 2013, well below the historical average and 0.3% less than previously forecast. On the bright side, the IMF said last month it could cut its outlook by as much as 0.5% so, in theory, it could have been worse.[View news story]
Miles Kimball makes the case for a third term for Ben Bernanke: He “has developed an unparalleled skill in explaining and defending controversial monetary policy measures to Congress and to the public. The most important ways in which U.S. monetary policy has fallen short in the last few years are because of the limits Congress has implicitly and explicitly placed on the Fed.” [View news story]
Tack, it is excess spending, debt overload, and corruption that led to the problems in Greece and are coming soon to the rest of the civilized world. Having Bennie whip up $4 trill on the printer is not the answer. Maybe we need a PHD to study Iceland and learn how to let the biz cycle run it's course.
A deal has reportedly been reached for a group of Russian investors to buy one of Cyprus' banks for €4B. If so, it would greatly reduce the country's financing needs. The euro (FXE) moves about 40 pops higher, and European shares (FEZ) add nearly 1% to their gains. SPY at session highs, +0.6% premarket. Update at 8:35: A Cyrpus government spokesman is denying any such deal. [View news story]
But the unintended consequence would seem to be that the KGB's 40% of deposits held in other Cyprus banks would immediately shift to the one they would own....so the problem just migrates. Maybe with their present leverage the Russians will come out with a bank, a port, the gas fields, and give Europe a reaming for the threat.
The bailout rejected, what's next for Cyprus? Open Europe suggests the EU will allow a few days for Cypriot MPs to get their minds right before the ECB thinks about cutting off funding for the country's banks (which would lead to their collapse). Or not. Reuters' Anatole Kaletsky notes the ECB needs two-thirds of its board to cut off ELA funding, and the Germans don't have the votes. "Time to get bullish ... German U-turn ahead!" [View news story]
Who has loans outstanding to the 2 Cyprus banks that are going to fold? They will be driving the next step.
"We might actually have a STD (sell-the-dip) situation brewing" in regards to Cyprus, writes Jefferies' David Zervos. Even if the bailout is approved, Thursday's reopening of the banks is going to see billions in withdrawals, he writes. Unless the ECB violates every collateral rule it has, the Cypriot financial system is poised to collapse. [View news story]
Be real. The ECB has no collateral rules already....I'll issue bonds to myself, you certify you'll guarantee them - even though you are bankrupt too - and I'll pledge them for Euros. Perfect. They just needed a target small enough and w/non European funds at stake to dry run the bankruptcy scenario before it moves to Spain, Greece, and Italy. Maybe Draghi can whip up a few derivatives quick and make it all better.
Automobile sales fell 10.2% Y/Y in Europe during February to 829K, according to the Association of European Car Manufacturers. Volkswagen (VLKAY.PK), Ford (F), General Motors (GM), and Fiat (FIATY.PK) all had another tough month on the continent, while South Korean automakers Hyundia (HYMLF.PK) and Kia (KIMTF.PK) tread water with sales. By region, sales in Germany and Italy were disappointing again while the U.K. is a bit of an outlier with car sales up 10.3% YTD. [View news story]
It's either a channel stuffing error or they forgot to apply the seasonal adjustment
Regulators are looking into whether high-frequency traders routinely distort stock and futures markets by engaging in illegal "wash trades" - those in which the same party acts as buyer and seller in the same transaction. Of concern are the operations at the CME and ICE which regulators feel aren't sophisticated enough to flag the trades. [View news story]
So we'll have Gary tits-on-a-bull Gensler look at it for 4 years and then find nothing amiss. Numerous congressional panels will also put their idiocy on full display while others Senate members front run any legislative action...since there can't be a conflict of interest for them.
Cyprus's parliament is due to convene this afternoon to debate an astonishing eurozone demand that it tax all bank deposits at up to 10% in return for a €10B bailout. While approval is not guaranteed, Cypriots rushed to take as much money as allowed out of ATMs. And although EU Commissioner Olli Rehn ruled out a deposit raid in other eurozone countries, menacingly for savers, eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem would not. "We are in a new world," says an economist. Update: The parliamentary debate has been postponed until tomorrow. [View news story]
The real kicker is they had the nads to grab some of the Russian mafia's money (ex-KGB). Watch how fast those funds are restored when a few technocrats start going missing.
The Federal Reserve will shift the release time of its monetary policy statements to 2 PM ET from the traditional 2:15. On those days when the chairman holds a press conference, policy statements had come at 12:30, but those too will be at 2. The changes will be effective with the next policy meeting on March 20. [View news story]
Everybody wants real estate. KKR is prepping its first-ever fund dedicated to real estate and reportedly has an initial $500M commitment. "We've got a real sense of urgency around scaling in these businesses and grabbing as much land as we can." TPG Capital is planning the launch of at least a $1B fund - it would be the largest initial property fund since Lehman's 2001 $1.6B launch. That didn't work out so well, but first there was several years of partying. [View news story]
Ham, you forget that the fools that voted this crop in have their housing paid for by the gov't
"At no point is it possible to bail-in depositors below €100K, now or in the future," Reuters reports an EU Commission statement as saying (never mind this is precisely what was attempted in Cyprus last week). It's not our job to evaluate Dijsselbloem's comments on Cyprus, the EU adds. "Dijsselbloem was wrong," says the ECB's Benoit Coeure. "Cyprus isn't a model." [View news story]
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
The Cyprus deal is now a template for the rest of the eurozone, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem tells Reuters' Luke Baker. He's naturally referring to bailing-in uninsured depositors, but does he also mean capital controls and border checks for cash? Other eurozone countries need to work quickly, he says, to overhaul their own banking sectors. [View news story]
"The impact of the improvement in financial conditions on the real economy has been somewhat stronger than I anticipated," says FRBNY chief Bill Dudley, patting himself on the back with both hands. Not only that, but the risks of QE are even less than he anticipated (need 3rd hand now). Why does growth remain so slow? Fiscal policy, he says. Governments are tightening at precisely the wrong time. [View news story]
The IMF will slash its forecast for U.S. economic growth in its next World Economic Outlook report, according to Reuters and Italian news agency ANSA. Investors should expect the U.S. economy to grow at just 1.7% in 2013, well below the historical average and 0.3% less than previously forecast. On the bright side, the IMF said last month it could cut its outlook by as much as 0.5% so, in theory, it could have been worse. [View news story]
Miles Kimball makes the case for a third term for Ben Bernanke: He “has developed an unparalleled skill in explaining and defending controversial monetary policy measures to Congress and to the public. The most important ways in which U.S. monetary policy has fallen short in the last few years are because of the limits Congress has implicitly and explicitly placed on the Fed.” [View news story]
A deal has reportedly been reached for a group of Russian investors to buy one of Cyprus' banks for €4B. If so, it would greatly reduce the country's financing needs. The euro (FXE) moves about 40 pops higher, and European shares (FEZ) add nearly 1% to their gains. SPY at session highs, +0.6% premarket. Update at 8:35: A Cyrpus government spokesman is denying any such deal. [View news story]
The bailout rejected, what's next for Cyprus? Open Europe suggests the EU will allow a few days for Cypriot MPs to get their minds right before the ECB thinks about cutting off funding for the country's banks (which would lead to their collapse). Or not. Reuters' Anatole Kaletsky notes the ECB needs two-thirds of its board to cut off ELA funding, and the Germans don't have the votes. "Time to get bullish ... German U-turn ahead!" [View news story]
"We might actually have a STD (sell-the-dip) situation brewing" in regards to Cyprus, writes Jefferies' David Zervos. Even if the bailout is approved, Thursday's reopening of the banks is going to see billions in withdrawals, he writes. Unless the ECB violates every collateral rule it has, the Cypriot financial system is poised to collapse. [View news story]
Automobile sales fell 10.2% Y/Y in Europe during February to 829K, according to the Association of European Car Manufacturers. Volkswagen (VLKAY.PK), Ford (F), General Motors (GM), and Fiat (FIATY.PK) all had another tough month on the continent, while South Korean automakers Hyundia (HYMLF.PK) and Kia (KIMTF.PK) tread water with sales. By region, sales in Germany and Italy were disappointing again while the U.K. is a bit of an outlier with car sales up 10.3% YTD. [View news story]
Regulators are looking into whether high-frequency traders routinely distort stock and futures markets by engaging in illegal "wash trades" - those in which the same party acts as buyer and seller in the same transaction. Of concern are the operations at the CME and ICE which regulators feel aren't sophisticated enough to flag the trades. [View news story]
Cyprus's parliament is due to convene this afternoon to debate an astonishing eurozone demand that it tax all bank deposits at up to 10% in return for a €10B bailout. While approval is not guaranteed, Cypriots rushed to take as much money as allowed out of ATMs. And although EU Commissioner Olli Rehn ruled out a deposit raid in other eurozone countries, menacingly for savers, eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem would not. "We are in a new world," says an economist. Update: The parliamentary debate has been postponed until tomorrow. [View news story]
The Federal Reserve will shift the release time of its monetary policy statements to 2 PM ET from the traditional 2:15. On those days when the chairman holds a press conference, policy statements had come at 12:30, but those too will be at 2. The changes will be effective with the next policy meeting on March 20. [View news story]
Everybody wants real estate. KKR is prepping its first-ever fund dedicated to real estate and reportedly has an initial $500M commitment. "We've got a real sense of urgency around scaling in these businesses and grabbing as much land as we can." TPG Capital is planning the launch of at least a $1B fund - it would be the largest initial property fund since Lehman's 2001 $1.6B launch. That didn't work out so well, but first there was several years of partying. [View news story]