STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Wednesday, 4 September 2013

[Tansy_Gold]

[font size=3]STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday, 4 September 2013[font color=black][/font]

SMW for 3 September 2013

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON 3 September 2013
[center][font color=green]
Dow Jones 14,833.96 +23.65 (0.16%)
S&P 500 1,639.77 +6.80 (0.42%)
Nasdaq 3,612.61 +22.74 (0.63%)


[font color=red]10 Year 2.86% +0.01 (0.35%)
30 Year 3.79% +0.03 (0.80%) [font color=black]


[center][/font]

[HR width=85%]

[font size=2]Market Conditions During Trading Hours[/font]
[center]


[/center]

[font size=2]Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold[center]

[/center]

[center]

[/center]

[HR width=95%]

[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Market Data and News:[/font][/font]
[center]
Economic Calendar
Marketwatch Data
Bloomberg Economic News
Yahoo Finance
Google Finance
Bank Tracker
Credit Union Tracker
Daily Job Cuts
[/center]

[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Economic Blogs:[/font][/font]
[center]
The Big Picture
Financial Sense
Calculated Risk
Naked Capitalism
Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong
Bonddad
Atrios
goldmansachs666
The Stand-Up Economist
The Automatic Earth
Wall Street on Parade
[/center]

[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Essential Reading:[/font][/font]
[center]
Matt Taibi: Secret and Lies of the Bailout


[/center]

[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Government Issues:[/font][/font]
[center]
LegitGov
Open Government
Earmark Database
USA spending.gov
[/center]

[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Videos:[/font][/font]
[center]
Charlie Rose talks with Roubini
Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
William Black: This Economic Disaster
Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn
[/center]

[div]
[font color=red]Partial List of Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 [/font][font color=red]
2/2/12 David Higgs and Salmaan Siddiqui, Credit Suisse, plead guilty to conspiracy involving valuation of MBS
3/6/12 Allen Stanford, former Caribbean billionaire and general schmuck, convicted on 13 of 14 counts in $2.2B Ponzi scheme, faces 20+ years in prison
6/4/12 Matthew Kluger, lawyer, sentenced to 12 years in prison, along with co-conspirator stock trader Garrett Bauer (9 years) and co-conspirator Kenneth Robinson (not yet sentenced) for 17 year insider trading scheme.
6/14/12 Allen Stanford sentenced to 110 years without parole.
6/15/12 Rajat Gupta, former Goldman Sachs director, found guilty of insider trading. Could face a decade in prison when sentenced later this year.
6/22/12 Timothy S. Durham, 49, former CEO of Fair Financial Company, convicted of one count conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud.
6/22/12 James F. Cochran, 56, former chairman of the board of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and six counts of wire fraud.
6/22/12 Rick D. Snow, 48, former CFO of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and three counts of wire fraud.
7/13/12 Russell Wassendorf Sr., CEO of collapsed brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group Inc. arrested and charged with lying to regulators after admitting to authorities he embezzled "millions of dollars" and forged bank statements for "nearly twenty years."
8/22/12 Doug Whitman, Whitman Capital LLC hedge fund founder, convicted of insider trading following a trial in which he spent more than two days on the stand telling jurors he was innocent
10/26/12 UPDATE: Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta sentenced to two years in federal prison. He will, of course, appeal. . .
11/20/12 Hedge fund manager Matthew Martoma charged with insider trading at SAC Capital Advisors, and prosecutors are looking at Martoma's boss, Steven Cohen, for possible involvement.
02/14/13 Gilbert Lopez, former chief accounting officer of Stanford Financial Group, and former controller Mark Kuhrt sentenced to 20 yrs in prison for their roles in Allen Sanford's $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
03/29/13 Michael Sternberg, portfolio mgr at SAC Capital, arrested in NYC, charged with conspiracy and securities fraud. Pled not guilty and freed on $3m bail.
04/04/13 Matthew Marshall Taylor,fmr Goldman Sachs trader arrested, charged by CFTC w/defrauding his employer on $8BN futures bet "by intentionally concealing the true huge size, as well as the risk and potential profits or losses associated."
04/04/13 Matthew Taylor admits guilt, makes plea bargain. Sentencing set for 26 June; faces up to 20 years in prison but will likely only see 3-4 years. Says, "I am truly sorry."
04/11/13 Ex-KPMG LLP partner Scott London charged by federal prosecutors w/passing inside tips to a friend in exchange for cash, jewelry, and concert tickets; expected to plead guilty in May.
08/01/13 Fabrice Tourré convicted on six counts of security fraud, including "aiding and abetting" his former employer, Goldman Sachs
08/14/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout charged with wire fraud, falsifying records, and conspiracy in connection with JP Morgan's "London Whale" trade.
08/19/13 Phillip A. Falcone, manager of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, agrees to admit to "wrongdoing" in market manipulation. Will banned from securities industry for 5 years and pay $18MM in disgorgement and fines.








[HR width=95%]


[center]
[HR width=95%]
[font size=3][font color=red]This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.[/font][/font][/font color=red][font color=black]

[Fuddnik]

1. Good toon. So appropriate.

It seems Obomber,, and Kerry, and the rest of the neo-cons are just itching to do Israel's dirty work for them.

Between this, TPP Wall Street, etc., they've put the last nails in the coffin of the Democratic Party. I've had so much of this neo-con, neo-liberal bullshit I can't honestly justify voting for any of them again.

The Florida Democratic Party just fucked their base once again. Our new FDP Chair, who was formerly a ChoicePoint lobbyist and employee, and her husband who was an attorney for the Bush side of Bush v. Gore, just funded a corporate turd against a progressive in the Primary for Mayor of St. Petersburg. Just the woman Bill Nelson and Debbie Weaselman-Schlitz wanted.

Now, they're all pushing for the same candidate without a personality, who lost to Rick Scott last time ( an unbelievable achievement in the realm of mediocrity) to win the Democratic Gubernatorial Primary. They wouldn't even let the lone progressive candidate (former Senate Minority Leader) in the race speak at the convention. That slot was reserved for former Republican Governor, turned Democrat, Charlie Crist.

Fuck em all!

[Fuddnik]

2. Get in on this.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023592050

[xchrom]

3. Syria worries check gains on brighter economic data

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-markets-global-idUSBRE96S00E20130904

(Reuters) - Conviction that economic recovery will persuade the Federal Reserve to trim its stimulus kept the dollar near a six-week high on Wednesday but shares dipped as Washington moved closer to a strike on Syria.

President Barack Obama clinched the backing of key figures in Congress on Thursday for his drive to punish Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for his suspected use of chemical weapons, though no vote is due until next week.

"There is an underlying vulnerability to any escalation of tension in the Middle East, but I think for the markets top of the agenda is the improvement in economic activity and the better risk back drop that leaves," said Adam Cole, head of FX Research at RBC Capital Markets.

The dollar was trading close to a six-week peak against a basket of major currencies .DXY supported by the rise in U.S. debt yields which gained after strong factory data raised expectations the Fed will soon begin trimming its bond buying.

[xchrom]

4. Euro zone business sees best month in two years in August: PMI

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-poll-euro-zone-business-idUSBRE9830AY20130904


(Reuters) - Euro zone businesses had their best month in over two years in August as orders increased for the first time since mid-2011, a survey showed on Wednesday, suggesting the region's economy will grow slightly this quarter.

Markit's Eurozone Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 51.5 last month from 50.5 in July. It was the highest headline figure since June 2011, albeit revised down a tad from an initial flash reading of 51.7.

The forward-looking new orders index rose to 51.0, the first time above the 50 mark dividing growth and contraction since July 2011, which will come as welcome news to European Central Bank policymakers meeting this week.

"The euro zone recovery is looking increasingly broad-based, with more sectors and more countries emerging from recession," said Chris Williamson, chief economist at data collator Markit.

[xchrom]

5. U.S. small business borrowing rises to six-year high

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-usa-economy-paynet-idUSBRE9830CJ20130904

(Reuters) - Small U.S. businesses took on more debt in July, pushing an index of borrowing to a six-year high and adding to evidence that the economic recovery is on firmer ground.

The Thomson Reuters/PayNet Small Business Lending Index, which measures the volume of financing to small companies, rose 11 percent in July to 117.7, the highest level since August 2007.

The index registered 105.7 in June, PayNet said on Wednesday, revised from an initial reading of 104.8.

Historically, PayNet's lending index has correlated to overall economic growth one or two quarters in the future.

[xchrom]

6. Indian rupee in sharp rebound on suspected heavy intervention

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-india-economy-rupee-idUSBRE98306520130904

(Reuters) - The Indian rupee staged a sharp recovery on Wednesday after suspected heavy dollar selling by the central bank, preventing the battered currency from slipping to a record low on the same day that the authority ushers in a new governor.

Raghuram Rajan, a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), takes charge at the Reserve Bank of India as the country faces its worst economic crunch since a balance of payments crisis two decades ago.

In a reminder of the uphill task he faces, a report on Wednesday showed that activity in India's services sector shrank in August for the second straight month for its lowest reading in four years.

It added to a series of data showing the economy struggling for growth. GDP figures last week said annual growth had slipped to 4.4 percent in the April-June quarter, its weakest pace in four years. The mining and manufacturing sectors contracted from a year earlier.

[xchrom]

7. Path of a Tyrant: Uncovering Genghis Khan's Lost Legacy

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/archaeologists-hunt-for-the-tomb-of-genghis-khan-a-919215.html


A depiction of Genghis Khan on his deathbed, surrounded by his sons Jochi, Chagatai, Ögödei and Tuli.

His end didn't begin heroically. The Mongolian ruler simply fell off his horse. His hands and legs must have lost their strength. It was an embarrassing incident from which Genghis Khan never recovered.

Shortly thereafter, a procession of slaves and warriors escorted the ruler's body, wrapped in a white felt blanket, to its final resting place. Slivers of fragrant sandalwood were placed in the grave to prevent insects from gnawing at the body of the Great Khan.
But where exactly did the subjects bury the body of this tyrant, who is still revered by Mongolians today? Over the past century, scores of adventurers and archaeologists have searched in vain for Genghis Khan's grave.

Today, expeditions with high-tech equipment are racing to make the find. Not surprisingly, Mongolians claim their national hero's grave is located within the borders of their own country. A Russian historian, though, claims to have discerned from old sources that the nomadic leader was buried near the Mongolian border -- but on the Russian side, in the Republic of Tuva.

Meanwhile, Chinese researchers have sent an expedition to the foothills of the Altai Mountains, with the assumption this is where Genghis Khan was buried after he died during his last military campaign against the Tangut, in modern-day northern China.

[rusty fender]

23. Boy, will they be surprised when they

find his grave and it's Jimmy Hoffa who's in there!

[xchrom]

8. Australia's economic growth better than forecast

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23941461

Australia has reported better-than-forecast growth numbers for the April to June quarter, boosted by gains in consumer spending.

Its gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 2.6% during the quarter, from a year earlier. Compared with the previous quarter, growth was 0.6%.

Most forecasts were for an annual growth closer to 2.5%.

Analysts said the data was likely to see the Australian central bank hold back on easing its policies further.

[xchrom]

9. Raghuram Rajan takes charge of Reserve Bank of India

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-23955219

Raghuram Rajan, a former International Monetary Fund chief economist is taking over as head of Reserve Bank of India.

He takes charge as the central bank grapples with a weakening rupee, a widening current account deficit and a slowdown in economic growth.

India's currency has declined 20% against the US dollar since May and its growth rate fallen to a ten-year low.

Analysts said that stemming the decline in the rupee would be the first issue that Mr Rajan had to address.

[xchrom]

10. UK services sector growth at six-year high

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23956192

The UK service sector grew at its fastest pace in six years in August, according to the latest survey by Markit and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS).

The business activity index registered 60.5 in August, the highest reading in more than six-and-a-half years.

It also showed that backlogs of work are running at the highest level in more than 13 years.

But despite the extra work, there was only a small increase in employment.

[xchrom]

11. Spain's jobless total holds steady

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23940803

Spain's unemployment total remained at 4.7 million in August, government figures show, with the jobless figure dropping by just 31 people last month.

The tiny reduction means the jobless total has now fallen for six months in a row.

Spain's unemployment rate is 26.3%, the second highest in the eurozone and only below Greece where the jobless rate is 27.6%.

The eurozone's unemployment rate stood at 12.1% in July.

[xchrom]

12. South African gold miners strike over ‘slave wages in white man’s economy’

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/04/south-african-gold-miners-strike-over-slave-wages-in-white-mans-economy/



About 80,000 gold miners in South Africa walked out on strike on Tuesday night, raising fears of renewed violence in the crisis-hit industry and underlining the government’s dwindling authority.

President Jacob Zuma admitted that he could only plead with companies and unions to find a peaceful solution and avoid seriously damaging the economy, already hit by sluggish growth and a contagion of strikes in other sectors.

But the parties remain poles apart. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) accused captains of industry of “arrogance” forcing it to embark on nationwide industrial action “that will change the gold mining landscape forever”.

The dispute over pay comes a year after 46 people died during unrest in the platinum belt and amid signs that the century-old mining industry model is broken. For years South Africa was the world’s top gold producer, accounting for more than two-thirds of output in 1970, but it has slipped to fifth place with just 6% of global production.

[xchrom]

13. US GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS RISING ONCE AGAIN

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_GLOBAL_COMPETITIVENESS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-09-04-04-21-15

GENEVA (AP) -- The United States' competitiveness among global economies is rising again after four years of decline, though northern European countries continue to dominate the rankings published annually by the World Economic Forum.

In its latest survey, released Wednesday, the Forum ranked the U.S. - the world's largest economy - in fifth place for overall competitiveness, up from seventh last year. The U.S. turnaround reflects "a perceived improvement in the country's financial market as well as greater confidence in its public institutions," the report concluded.

The Forum, which hosts the annual gathering of global business and political leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos every winter, ranks a country's competitiveness according to factors such as the quality of its infrastructure and its ability to foster innovation.

Six European countries dominated the top 10: Switzerland, Finland, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. The remaining three slots were Asian: Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.

[xchrom]

14. EU TO STRENGTHEN OVERSIGHT OF SHADOW BANKING

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_EUROPE_SHADOW_BANKING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-09-04-06-48-16

BRUSSELS (AP) -- The European Union is trying to strengthen oversight of "shadow banking," a sector of the financial system that holds trillions of dollars in assets but is not bound by the same rules as banks.

The EU Commission says investment vehicles such as money-market funds or hedge funds active on credit markets are welcome because they provide extra sources of financing for the economy, but they can also pose threats to long-term financial stability.

The global shadow banking sector was estimated to hold assets of about 51 trillion euros in 2011 (currently $67 trillion), or almost a third of the total financial system and half the size of bank assets, according to the latest figures available from the Financial Stability Board. About a third of the sector's assets are held by firms in the U.S. and some 45 percent in the 28-country European Union.

Commissioner Michel Barnier, who was set to announce rules and legislation to regulate the growing sector on Wednesday in Brussels, maintains many of the funds resemble banks in their operations by taking deposits and lending money, but aren't subject to the tough oversight banks face.

[xchrom]

15. PLANS FOR NEW INDIAN STATE SPARK DEMANDS FOR MORE

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_INDIA_BATTLE_FOR_STATES?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-09-04-07-10-17

NEW DELHI (AP) -- India, a nation of 1.2 billion people, has 28 states. Some would rank among the world's most populous countries.

So when India's ruling coalition endorsed a 29th state last month, millions of people who have felt ignored and marginalized living far from their state capitals had the same reaction: Why not us?

In West Bengal state, for example, tens of thousands of indigenous Gorkhas demanding their own state - Gorkhaland - have barricaded streets in Darjeeling, the town best known for its prized tea gardens. Strikes have shut down businesses. Police arrested dozens of activists and clamped a curfew in the worst-hit districts last week.

Demands for more than two dozen new states have burst into mutinous life, and the strikes and protests could redraw India's political map.

[xchrom]

16. BANK OF AMERICA SELLS CHINA BANK STAKE FOR $1.47B

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/APFN_AS_CHINA_BANK_OF_AMERICA_CCB?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-09-04-06-40-08

HONG KONG (AP) -- Bank of America sold a $1.47 billion stake in China Construction Bank on Wednesday, the latest foreign institution to shed its investment in a Chinese lender after initial optimism about the potentially lucrative market wore off.

The U.S. bank sold 2 billion shares, or 1 percent, of China Construction Bank Corp., one of China's four major state-owned commercial lenders, for 5.70 Hong Kong dollars (73.5 cents) each. The shares were the last of its stake in the Beijing-based lender.

Over the past decade, Bank of America Corp. and other Western banks bought stakes in China's major state-owned commercial lenders ahead of their initial public offerings.

The investments were aimed at building relationships to help them expand in China but its banking industry has largely remained a closed shop to foreign institutions.

[xchrom]

17. Eurozone Retail Sales Miss

http://www.businessinsider.com/eurozone-retail-sales-miss-2013-9

The Eurozone is coming back, and retail sales are growing.

But it's still uneven and mediocre.

For July retail sales in the Eurozone grew just 0.1% vs. expectations of 0.4%, per ForexLive.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/eurozone-retail-sales-miss-2013-9#ixzz2dvUgwM9p

[xchrom]

18. Markets Are Under Pressure

http://www.businessinsider.com/morning-markets-september-4-2013-9

Markets are under pressure in Europe and US futures are down slightly.
Italian stocks are off 1%. Germany is down 0.26%. France is down 0.46%.

This follows an afternoon selloff in the US yesterday, which is being blamed on seeming momentum for an attack on Syria, though who really knows.

US futures are down a hair.
QUEEN & DAVID BOWIE: Under Pressure

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/morning-markets-september-4-2013-9#ixzz2dvV9qreD

[xchrom]

19. How the Bank Lobby Loosened U.S. Reins on Derivatives

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-04/how-the-bank-lobby-loosened-u-s-reins-on-derivatives.html

One by one, Gary Gensler’s supporters deserted him. Now the chief U.S. regulator of derivatives was being summoned by Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew to explain why he refused to compromise.

Banks and lawmakers, as well as financial regulators from around the world, had besieged Lew with complaints about Gensler’s campaign to impose U.S. rules overseas.

The July 3 meeting in Lew’s conference room with a view of the White House grew tense, according to three people briefed on it. Gensler argued his plan was vital if the U.S. hoped to seize meaningful authority over financial instruments that helped push the global economy to the brink in 2008, taking down American International Group Inc. (AIG) and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and igniting the worst recession since the 1930s.

Lew insisted that Gensler coordinate better with the Securities and Exchange Commission, whose new chairman, Mary Jo White, was also present. Gensler, who was deep into negotiations with his European counterparts, was surprised by Lew’s demand. He’d been hearing the same request from lobbyists seeking to slow the process, and he told the Treasury chief it felt like his adversary bankers were in the room, the people said.

[xchrom]

20. Emerging Nations Save $2.9 Trillion Reserves in Rout

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-04/emerging-nations-save-2-9-trillion-reserves-in-rout-currencies.html

Developing nations from Brazil to India are preserving a record $2.9 trillion of foreign reserves and opting instead to raise interest rates and restrict imports to stem the worst rout in their currencies in five years.

Foreign reserves of the 12 biggest emerging markets, excluding China and countries with pegged currencies, fell 1.6 percent this year compared with an 11 percent slump after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The 20 most-traded emerging-market currencies have weakened 8 percent in 2013 as the Federal Reserve’s potential paring of stimulus lures away capital.

After quadrupling reserves over the past decade, developing nations are protecting their stockpiles as trade and budget deficits heighten their vulnerability to credit-rating cuts. Brazil and Indonesia boosted key interest rates last month to buoy the real and rupiah, while India is increasing money-market rates to try to support the rupee as growth slows. Central banks should draw on stockpiles only once currencies have depreciated enough to adjust for the trade and budget gaps, according to Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.

“If fundamentals are going against you, it’s not credible to defend a currency level -- investors would rush for the exit when they see the reserves depleting,” said Claire Dissaux, managing director of global economics and strategy at Millennium Global Investment in London. “The central banks are taking the right measures, allowing the currencies to adjust.”

[Hotler]

21. And then there is this....

Hillary Clinton to speak to Carlyle Group investors
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023587765

[Fuddnik]

22. She's gotta meet with her base.

[Hotler]

24. Hillary gets the nod for 2016 in echange for ....

Bill looking the other way for Poppy Bush's crimes.

[Demeter]

25. Sorry everyone, computer failure and Kid failure and schedule failure

kept me off the beat today. I'll try to do better on Thursday.