04-05-2013, 09:50 AM
April 4th Update:
1. BOJ to pump $1.4 trillion into economy in unprecedented stimulus
(Reuters) - The Bank of Japan unleashed the world's most intense burst of monetary stimulus on Thursday, promising to inject about $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years, a radical gamble that sent the yen reeling and bond yields to record lows. New Governor Haruhiko Kuroda committed the BOJ to open-ended asset buying and said the monetary base would nearly double to 270 trillion yen ($2.9 trillion) by the end of 2014, a dose of shock therapy officials hope will end two decades of stagnation.
The policy was viewed as a radical gamble to boost growth and lift inflation expectations and is unmatched in scope even by the U.S. Federal Reserve's own quantitative easing program. The Fed may buy more debt, but since Japan's economy is about one-third the size of the economy, Kuroda's plan looks even bolder.
"This is an unprecedented degree of monetary easing," a smiling Kuroda told a news conference after his first policy meeting at the helm of the central bank.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/0...6U20130404
2. Bread riots or bankruptcy: Egypt faces stark economic choices: Egypt needs IMF money to stay afloat, but the international lender is demanding tough subsidy cuts from an already-embattled government.
Steep food price inflation is a particular worry for Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi In Cairo's Tahrir Square, angry youth tore up sidewalks to hurl stones at riot police when they ran out of Molotov cocktails; the police responded with tear gas and baton charges. By the time the smoke cleared, at least 80 Egyptians were dead in the worst rioting the country had witnessed in a generation.
The Egyptian government restored the subsidies. While this probably sounds familiar, it describes the 1977 bread riots that almost brought down the government of Anwar Sadat and left ransacked the home of his young vice president, Hosni Mubarak. This history should be top of mind for the current president, Mohamed Morsi, who is facing decision time on a national financial crisis that dwarfs the one Sadat faced 35 years ago.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-Ea...ideMonitor
3. 8,853,614: Americans on Disability Hits Another Record
(CNSNews.com) - The number of American workers collecting federal disability payments climbed to yet another record of 8,853,614 in March, up from 8,840,427 in February, according to newly released data from the Social Security Administration. That means there are more than 3 times as many Americans taking disability payments as there are people living in the city of Chicago, which according to the Census Bureau has a population of 2,707,120.
March was the 194th straight month that the number of American workers collecting federal disability payments increased. The last time the number of Americans collecting disability decreased was in January 1997. That month the number of workers taking disability dropped by 249 people—from 4,385,623 in December 1996 to 4,385,374 in January 1997. As the overall number of Americans collecting disability has increased, the ratio of full-time workers to disability beneficiaries has decreased.
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/8853614-...on-chicago
4. U.S. offers $5M bounty for warlord Kony
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration on Wednesday offered up to $5 million in rewards for information leading to the capture of Lord's Resistance Army chief Joseph Kony, two of his top aides and a Rwandan rebel leader suspected of crimes against humanity.
The bounties are being offered by the State Department under a provision in the War Crimes Rewards Program authored by Secretary of State John Kerry when he was a senator and signed into law by President Obama in January. That provision expanded the scope of the program that had previously allowed for rewards to be offered for war crimes suspects wanted only by international criminal tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.
It now covers those wanted by the International Criminal Court and other international tribunals, such as those envisioned for the Democratic Republic of Congo and potentially Syria
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/natio...y/2049735/
5. U.S. considers less prison time for ex-Enron CEO Skilling
(Reuters) - Jeffrey Skilling, the former Enron Corp chief executive serving a 24-year prison term over the energy company's spectacular collapse, may get a chance to leave prison early.
The U.S. Department of Justice has notified victims of Enron's fraud and 2001 bankruptcy that prosecutors may enter an agreement with Skilling that could result in a resentencing.
Skilling, 59, has served about 6-1/4 years in prison following his May 2006 conviction by a Houston federal jury on 19 counts of securities fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors. It is unclear how much Skilling's sentence could be reduced, and a Justice Department official said no agreement has been reached. CNBC, the television business channel, said prosecutors and Skilling's lawyers have been negotiating a shorter term.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/0...KP20130404
6. Rockefeller buys into Russian oil business
Stephen Clark Rockefeller’s UK-based oil company has reached an agreement with VTB Bank to purchase a 100% stake in Tehneftinvesta for $1 billion. VTB Capital facilitated the sale which gives Rockefeller Oil over 180 million tonnes of oil reserves, and 20 billion cubic meters of natural gas, Kommersant newspaper reported on Thursday.
Vitaly Kryukov, an analyst at IFD Kapital, thinks the $1 billion price tag is fair, and “within the market limit”. Rockefeller will pay, on average, $0.78 per barrel. While the price is fair, the big sale has prompted many analysts to scratch their heads and ask the obvious question: why an American company, and not Russian? Kryulov is sure VTB has already offered the deal to local oil magnates, but the purchase by Rockefeller indicates they all turned it down.
http://rt.com/business/oil-rockefeller-vtb-company-324/
7. Kyle Bass: "Japan Will Implode Under Weight Of Their Debt"
As the fast-money flabber-mouths stare admiringly at the rise in nominal prices of Japanese (and the rest of the world ex-China) stock prices amid soaring sales of wheelbarrows following Kuroda's 'shock-and-awe' last night, it is Kyle Bass who brings these surrealists back to earth with some cold-hard-facting. Out of the gate Bass explains the massive significance of what the Japanese are embarking on, "they are essentially doubling the monetary base by the end of 2104."
It is a "Giant Experiment," he warns, but when you are backed into a corner and your debts are north of 20 times your government tax revenue, "you're already insolvent." Simply put, Bass says they have to do something and they have to something big because they are "about to implode under the weight of their debt." For a sense of the scale of the BoJ's 'experimentation', Bass sums it up perfectly (and concerningly), "the BoJ is monetizing at a rate around 75% of the Fed on an economy that is one-third the size of the US!"
His advice, "if you're Japanese, spend! or take it out of your country. If you're not, borrow in JPY and invest in productive assets." Do not be long JPY or Japanese assets as he concludes with the reality of Japan's "hollowed out" manufacturing industry and why USDJPY is less important that KRWJPY.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-04...their-debt
8. DPRK’s “State of War” Declaration Is a Faulty Translation: Not an Official Policy Statement
“from that time” becomes “from this time on” and “from this moment“… little change, big difference As much as our leaders would like them to have taken the bait, North Korea has not declared war on the South or the U.S. in response to our unprecedented provocations. So when all else fails, leave it to yellow journalism like this piece of work from the New York Times or this obviously Photoshopped image that came out this past week.
The much touted “state of war” declaration is not a declaration of war from Kim Jung Un but rather a statement of support for whatever decision he has too make from the “the government, political parties and organizations of the DPRK.” It claims only they will declare themselves in a state of war WHEN their leader makes that decision showing they are completely behind him. It is a statement of support from the people and perhaps a warning to the South that the North will not fold under their attack. But not a declaration of war from Kim Jung Un. There is a campaign of propaganda underway this week in Korea and I will show you that this latest crisis is nothing more than a continuation of that warmongering effort.
http://www.infowars.com/dprks-state-of-w...m-jung-un/
1. BOJ to pump $1.4 trillion into economy in unprecedented stimulus
(Reuters) - The Bank of Japan unleashed the world's most intense burst of monetary stimulus on Thursday, promising to inject about $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years, a radical gamble that sent the yen reeling and bond yields to record lows. New Governor Haruhiko Kuroda committed the BOJ to open-ended asset buying and said the monetary base would nearly double to 270 trillion yen ($2.9 trillion) by the end of 2014, a dose of shock therapy officials hope will end two decades of stagnation.
The policy was viewed as a radical gamble to boost growth and lift inflation expectations and is unmatched in scope even by the U.S. Federal Reserve's own quantitative easing program. The Fed may buy more debt, but since Japan's economy is about one-third the size of the economy, Kuroda's plan looks even bolder.
"This is an unprecedented degree of monetary easing," a smiling Kuroda told a news conference after his first policy meeting at the helm of the central bank.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/0...6U20130404
2. Bread riots or bankruptcy: Egypt faces stark economic choices: Egypt needs IMF money to stay afloat, but the international lender is demanding tough subsidy cuts from an already-embattled government.
Steep food price inflation is a particular worry for Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi In Cairo's Tahrir Square, angry youth tore up sidewalks to hurl stones at riot police when they ran out of Molotov cocktails; the police responded with tear gas and baton charges. By the time the smoke cleared, at least 80 Egyptians were dead in the worst rioting the country had witnessed in a generation.
The Egyptian government restored the subsidies. While this probably sounds familiar, it describes the 1977 bread riots that almost brought down the government of Anwar Sadat and left ransacked the home of his young vice president, Hosni Mubarak. This history should be top of mind for the current president, Mohamed Morsi, who is facing decision time on a national financial crisis that dwarfs the one Sadat faced 35 years ago.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-Ea...ideMonitor
3. 8,853,614: Americans on Disability Hits Another Record
(CNSNews.com) - The number of American workers collecting federal disability payments climbed to yet another record of 8,853,614 in March, up from 8,840,427 in February, according to newly released data from the Social Security Administration. That means there are more than 3 times as many Americans taking disability payments as there are people living in the city of Chicago, which according to the Census Bureau has a population of 2,707,120.
March was the 194th straight month that the number of American workers collecting federal disability payments increased. The last time the number of Americans collecting disability decreased was in January 1997. That month the number of workers taking disability dropped by 249 people—from 4,385,623 in December 1996 to 4,385,374 in January 1997. As the overall number of Americans collecting disability has increased, the ratio of full-time workers to disability beneficiaries has decreased.
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/8853614-...on-chicago
4. U.S. offers $5M bounty for warlord Kony
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration on Wednesday offered up to $5 million in rewards for information leading to the capture of Lord's Resistance Army chief Joseph Kony, two of his top aides and a Rwandan rebel leader suspected of crimes against humanity.
The bounties are being offered by the State Department under a provision in the War Crimes Rewards Program authored by Secretary of State John Kerry when he was a senator and signed into law by President Obama in January. That provision expanded the scope of the program that had previously allowed for rewards to be offered for war crimes suspects wanted only by international criminal tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.
It now covers those wanted by the International Criminal Court and other international tribunals, such as those envisioned for the Democratic Republic of Congo and potentially Syria
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/natio...y/2049735/
5. U.S. considers less prison time for ex-Enron CEO Skilling
(Reuters) - Jeffrey Skilling, the former Enron Corp chief executive serving a 24-year prison term over the energy company's spectacular collapse, may get a chance to leave prison early.
The U.S. Department of Justice has notified victims of Enron's fraud and 2001 bankruptcy that prosecutors may enter an agreement with Skilling that could result in a resentencing.
Skilling, 59, has served about 6-1/4 years in prison following his May 2006 conviction by a Houston federal jury on 19 counts of securities fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors. It is unclear how much Skilling's sentence could be reduced, and a Justice Department official said no agreement has been reached. CNBC, the television business channel, said prosecutors and Skilling's lawyers have been negotiating a shorter term.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/0...KP20130404
6. Rockefeller buys into Russian oil business
Stephen Clark Rockefeller’s UK-based oil company has reached an agreement with VTB Bank to purchase a 100% stake in Tehneftinvesta for $1 billion. VTB Capital facilitated the sale which gives Rockefeller Oil over 180 million tonnes of oil reserves, and 20 billion cubic meters of natural gas, Kommersant newspaper reported on Thursday.
Vitaly Kryukov, an analyst at IFD Kapital, thinks the $1 billion price tag is fair, and “within the market limit”. Rockefeller will pay, on average, $0.78 per barrel. While the price is fair, the big sale has prompted many analysts to scratch their heads and ask the obvious question: why an American company, and not Russian? Kryulov is sure VTB has already offered the deal to local oil magnates, but the purchase by Rockefeller indicates they all turned it down.
http://rt.com/business/oil-rockefeller-vtb-company-324/
7. Kyle Bass: "Japan Will Implode Under Weight Of Their Debt"
As the fast-money flabber-mouths stare admiringly at the rise in nominal prices of Japanese (and the rest of the world ex-China) stock prices amid soaring sales of wheelbarrows following Kuroda's 'shock-and-awe' last night, it is Kyle Bass who brings these surrealists back to earth with some cold-hard-facting. Out of the gate Bass explains the massive significance of what the Japanese are embarking on, "they are essentially doubling the monetary base by the end of 2104."
It is a "Giant Experiment," he warns, but when you are backed into a corner and your debts are north of 20 times your government tax revenue, "you're already insolvent." Simply put, Bass says they have to do something and they have to something big because they are "about to implode under the weight of their debt." For a sense of the scale of the BoJ's 'experimentation', Bass sums it up perfectly (and concerningly), "the BoJ is monetizing at a rate around 75% of the Fed on an economy that is one-third the size of the US!"
His advice, "if you're Japanese, spend! or take it out of your country. If you're not, borrow in JPY and invest in productive assets." Do not be long JPY or Japanese assets as he concludes with the reality of Japan's "hollowed out" manufacturing industry and why USDJPY is less important that KRWJPY.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-04...their-debt
8. DPRK’s “State of War” Declaration Is a Faulty Translation: Not an Official Policy Statement
“from that time” becomes “from this time on” and “from this moment“… little change, big difference As much as our leaders would like them to have taken the bait, North Korea has not declared war on the South or the U.S. in response to our unprecedented provocations. So when all else fails, leave it to yellow journalism like this piece of work from the New York Times or this obviously Photoshopped image that came out this past week.
The much touted “state of war” declaration is not a declaration of war from Kim Jung Un but rather a statement of support for whatever decision he has too make from the “the government, political parties and organizations of the DPRK.” It claims only they will declare themselves in a state of war WHEN their leader makes that decision showing they are completely behind him. It is a statement of support from the people and perhaps a warning to the South that the North will not fold under their attack. But not a declaration of war from Kim Jung Un. There is a campaign of propaganda underway this week in Korea and I will show you that this latest crisis is nothing more than a continuation of that warmongering effort.
http://www.infowars.com/dprks-state-of-w...m-jung-un/