Monthly Archives: March 2014

emerging, Trading

Yuan Drops as PBOC Cuts Reference Rate by Most Since July 2012

China’s yuan fell after the central bank cut the currency’s fixing by the most since July 2012 and the nation’s exports unexpectedly declined last month.

The People’s Bank of China lowered the daily reference rate by 0.18 percent to 6.1312 per dollar today, the weakest level since Dec. 3. Overseas shipments fell 18.1 percent in February from a year earlier, the biggest drop since 2009, customs data showed March 8. That compares with the median forecast for a 7.5 percent increase in a Bloomberg News survey. The figures may have been distorted by the Lunar New Year holiday and over-invoicing a year earlier, Tim Condon, Singapore-based head of Asia research at ING Groep NV, wrote in a note today.

http://www.bloomberg.com/

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  • Renminbi (RMB) has taken center stage on global currency markets
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    The move in March by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) to double the RMB’s daily trading band from 1 percent to 2 percent has coincided with a new era of exchange rate volatility. This year, the long running trend of RMB appreciation has reversed course with it losing 3.4 percent against…
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  • China Shows Bulls With $500 Billion of Yuan Bets Who’s in Charge
    69
    Efforts by China to damp speculation in its currency risks driving away investors just as it’s attempting to open up its capital markets in a once-in-a-generation economic overhaul. After allowing the yuan to steadily rise in each of the past four years, China’s central bank let it tumble about 1…
    Tags: china, yuan, currency, bank, percent, central, http://www.bloomberg.com, month, bloomberg
  • Q&A: China’s currency devaluation
    66
    China’s central bank weakened the renminbi by its most in two decades on Tuesday. The unexpected move fuelled talk of “currency wars”, although some interpreted it as a welcome gesture towards market reform and financial liberalisation. What happened? The People’s Bank of China devalued its currency by setting the daily…
    Tags: currency, china
  • Yuan’s sharp drop puts investors on alert for end of strengthening trend
    61
    The yuan has recently been something of a safe haven among emerging-market currencies, yet market participants have learned from a bloody lesson over the past week that it is no longer an easy, one-way bet. A sharp fall of both the onshore and offshore yuan against the greenback made the…
    Tags: yuan, asia, currency, drop, china
  • Why did the market Crash ?
    60
    When stock markets are free-falling 10+% in a matter of days, it’s natural to seek some answers to the question “why now?” Some are saying it was all the result of high-frequency trading (HFT), while others point to China’s modest devaluation of its currency the renminbi (a.k.a. yuan) as the…
    Tags: china, central, bank
NoTrading

As hostilities flare in Crimea, U.S. steps up pressure on Russia

Hostilities intensified in Crimea on Saturday as Ukrainian officials accused pro-Russian forces of armed aggression and President Barack Obama rounded up world leaders to demand Russia “de-escalate the situation.”

Obama called British, French and Italian leaders and hosted a conference call with the presidents of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, the White House said.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/08/world/europe/ukraine-crisis/index.html

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  • @BarackObama to reassure #Putin : Won't provide lethal aid to #Ukraine
    85
    Lavrov warns West from supporting Ukrainian military action as Kiev's deadline passes for separatists to end siege of government buildings in eastern Ukraine. The White House on Monday said President Barack Obama would speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin soon, perhaps later in the day, and made clear the United…
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  • Crimea votes to join Russia, accelerating Ukraine crisis
    70
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    63
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    62
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longread

The Whistleblower’s Last Stand #longread

In Mike McQueary, some see a hero who brought down a monster. Others see a liar who railroaded a legend. At the upcoming trial that will close the book on the Jerry Sandusky scandal, Joe Paterno’s former protégé will have the final word.

http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/10542793/the-whistleblower-last-stand

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  • Tyrone Hayes said that a chemical was harmful, its maker pursued him #longread
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    Hayes has devoted the past fifteen years to studying atrazine, a widely used herbicide made by Syngenta. The company’s notes reveal that it struggled to make sense of him, and plotted ways to discredit him. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/02/10/140210fa_fact_aviv
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  • Machines are for answers; humans are for questions. #Longread
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    A few weeks ago David Carr profiled Kevin Kelly on page 1 of the New York Times Business section. He wrote that Kelly's pronouncements were "often both grandiose and correct." That’s a pretty good summary of Kevin Kelly's style and his prescience. http://www.edge.org/conversation/the-technium
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  • Run Your #Meeting Like a Boss: Lessons from #Mayer, #Musk, and Jobs
    79
    Meetings are such a fixture in our work lives that we constantly hear the same advice: have an agenda, keep it short, don’t invite too many people. However, despite the commonality of this well-meaning advice, research from Harvard suggests that half of all meetings are unproductive. http://99u.com/
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  • Maybe the future of journalism #Longread
    78
    Nate Weiner is neither a journalist nor a publisher. He’s a developer bent on changing publishing, and he’s built the platform to do it. With 10 million users, Pocket is the largest save-for-later service on the market. But more than market share, what sets Pocket apart is its ability to…
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  • Life is a game. This is your strategy guide
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    Real life is the game that – literally – everyone is playing. But it can be tough. This is your guide. Basics You might not realise, but real life is a game of strategy. There are some fun mini-games – like dancing, driving, running, and sex – but the key to winning is simply…
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longread

Maybe the future of journalism #Longread

Nate Weiner is neither a journalist nor a publisher. He’s a developer bent on changing publishing, and he’s built the platform to do it. With 10 million users, Pocket is the largest save-for-later service on the market. But more than market share, what sets Pocket apart is its ability to measure how readers read and its devotion to learning from its users

http://longform.towcenter.org/pocket/

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  • Tyrone Hayes said that a chemical was harmful, its maker pursued him #longread
    79
    Hayes has devoted the past fifteen years to studying atrazine, a widely used herbicide made by Syngenta. The company’s notes reveal that it struggled to make sense of him, and plotted ways to discredit him. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/02/10/140210fa_fact_aviv
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  • The Whistleblower's Last Stand #longread
    78
    In Mike McQueary, some see a hero who brought down a monster. Others see a liar who railroaded a legend. At the upcoming trial that will close the book on the Jerry Sandusky scandal, Joe Paterno's former protégé will have the final word. http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/10542793/the-whistleblower-last-stand
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  • Machines are for answers; humans are for questions. #Longread
    78
    A few weeks ago David Carr profiled Kevin Kelly on page 1 of the New York Times Business section. He wrote that Kelly's pronouncements were "often both grandiose and correct." That’s a pretty good summary of Kevin Kelly's style and his prescience. http://www.edge.org/conversation/the-technium
    Tags: #longread
  • Run Your #Meeting Like a Boss: Lessons from #Mayer, #Musk, and Jobs
    77
    Meetings are such a fixture in our work lives that we constantly hear the same advice: have an agenda, keep it short, don’t invite too many people. However, despite the commonality of this well-meaning advice, research from Harvard suggests that half of all meetings are unproductive. http://99u.com/
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  • Ghost behind Assange / WikiLeaks #longread
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bitcoin

Biggest and most embarrassing blunder in its 81-year history ? #Newsweek

Newsweek wanted a scoop for its relaunch cover story, and boy did it deliver: it uncovered the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of bitcoin. Who then promptly came out and denied everything. Which means that one of the two is wrong: either Nakamoto is lying through his teeth, or Newsweek has made what is probably the biggest and most embarrassing blunder in its 81-year history.

http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2014/03/07/the-satoshi-paradox/

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NoTrading

Cost to Operate the Chevy #Volt

I want to save our planet —
Cost to operate a Chevy Volt

Eric Bolling (Fox Business Channel’s “Follow the Money”) test drove the Chevy Volt at the invitation of General Motors.

For four days in a row, the fully charged battery lasted only 25 miles before the Volt switched to the reserve gasoline engine. Eric calculated the car got 30 mpg including the 25 miles it ran on the battery. So, the range including the 9 gallon gas tank and the 16 kwh battery is approximately 270 miles. It will take you 4 1/2 hours to drive 270 miles at 60 mph. Then add 10 hours to charge the battery and you have a total trip time of 14.5 hours. In a typical road trip your average speed (including charging time) would be 20 mph.

According to General Motors, the Volt battery holds 16 kwh of electricity. It takes a full 10 hours to charge a drained battery.

The cost for the electricity to charge the Volt is never mentioned so I looked up what I pay for electricity.

I pay approximately (it varies with amount used and the seasons) $1.16 per kwh.

– 16 kwh x $1.16 per kwh = $18.56 to charge the battery.

$18.56 per charge divided by 25 miles = $0.74 per mile to operate the Volt using the battery.

Compare this to a similar size car equipped with only a 4 cylinder gasoline engine that gets 32 mpg.

– $3.19 per gallon divided by 32 mpg = $0.10 per mile.

The gasoline powered car cost about $15,000 while the Volt costs $46,000.

So Obama wants us to pay 3 times as much for a car that costs more that 7 times as much to run and takes 3 times as long to drive across country.

REALLY? No wonder GM is having trouble selling the Volt !

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/chevyvolt.asp

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  • When will FED rise the funds rate ?
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USA

The Bar Is Really Low For Friday’s Jobs Report #NFP

Perhaps the most notable development in the run-up to Friday’s jobs report is just how low the bar has been set.
The fact that the survey period over which the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics collected data for the report (the week that included the 12th of February) coincided with nasty winter storms has received a ton of attention on the Street and in the press.

Moreover, Wednesday’s economic data docket delivered two data points that further served to reduce expectations. The first one was payroll-processing firm ADP’s February National Employment Report, which estimated only 139,000 workers were hired to private-sector payrolls last month (below market economists’ consensus 155,000 forecast). The second one was the Institute for Supply Management’s February survey of non-manufacturing firms (the non-manufacturing sector accounts for around 80% of U.S. economic activity), the results of which were indicative of the first monthly contraction in hiring since 2010.

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/february-jobs-report-preview-2014-3

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bitcoin

The Face Behind Bitcoin

Satoshi Nakamoto stands at the end of his sunbaked driveway looking timorous. And annoyed.

He’s wearing a rumpled T-shirt, old blue jeans and white gym socks, without shoes, like he has left the house in a hurry. His hair is unkempt, and he has the thousand-mile stare of someone who has gone weeks without sleep

http://mag.newsweek.com/2014/03/14/bitcoin-satoshi-nakamoto.html

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-06/how-bitcoins-not-so-secret-satoshi-nakamoto-was-discovered-hint-phone-book

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NoTrading

British PM warns Russia could face asset freezes, travel bans

British Prime Minister David Cameron warned the Kremlin on Thursday that Russians could face asset freezes and travel bans unless there was progress in direct talks with the new Ukrainian government.

Cameron, speaking after a meeting of European Union heads of state in Brussels, said the EU had agreed to suspend negotiations on easing visa rules for Russians in response to President Vladimir Putin’s intervention in Ukraine.

http://www.trust.org/item/20140306171050-jtn1u

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NoTrading

Crimea votes to join Russia, accelerating Ukraine crisis

Crimea’s parliament voted to join Russia on Thursday and its Moscow-backed government set a referendum within 10 days on the decision in a dramatic escalation of the crisis over the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula.

The sudden acceleration of moves to bring Crimea, which has an ethnic Russian majority and has effectively been seized by Russian forces, formally under Moscow’s rule came as European Union leaders gathered for an emergency summit to find ways to pressure Russia to back down.

U.S. President Barack Obama took steps to punish those involved in threatening the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, ordering the freezing of their U.S. assets and a ban on travel into the United States.

 

http://www.reuters.com/

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  • Plummeting ruble and the disarray in that country’s markets pose real threats to the global economy
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