WISHING THE WEEKEND OF CREATING CONSENSUS, CONCORD, CONCURRENCE, COHESION, COOPERATION AND COMMUNITY

Macro Economic News 17 Feb 2018

 

The world needs to move from excess and assurance of inventory to solidarity and empathy. Compassion for acceptance of disconnects - from macro views to economic facts - is the way ahead for oneness of individuals as well as global growth sustainability. Concurrently, it appears, world is having a hard policy choice between rule of principals vs principal of rules. A compassionate choice is to have rule and principals both. And, yes it can coexist.

Global leaders call for policy cooperation and convergence of course of actions. Consensus is changing towards soft developmental indices from hard economic indices for performance benchmark and goal setting. Countries are moving from “Being Better” to “Being Unique”, while the theory of ‘Comparative Advantage’ is losing its lustre.

 

FINANCIAL TIMES

[I]  US eyes global tariff of ‘at least’ 24% on steel imports

[I]  US charges Russians with 2016 election interference

[I]  UK aims to keep financial rules close to EU after Brexit

[I]  China bets on donkey breeding to curb Africa imports

[I]  US business mourns after Dreamers deal dies

[I]  Australia government in turmoil after sex scandal

[I]  London life proves hard to give up for Brexit relocations

 

WALL STREET JOURNAL

[I]  For the Federal Reserve, a New Chief but Same Rate Path

[I]  Consumer Sentiment Rebounds in February

[I]  The Rise of the Jumbo Student Loan

[I]  U.S. Home Construction Rose 9.7% in January

[I]  U.S. Import Prices Rise in January

[I]  Producer Prices Returned to Upward Path in January

[I]  The Robots Are Coming for Garment Workers

[I]  U.S. Weighs Tariffs, Quotas on Metals Imports

[I]  What’s the Value of Americans’ Love for the Great Outdoors? $374 Billion

[I]  Real Time Economics: Inflation In Check | Silver Lining for Industrial Production | Startups Still In a Rut

 

REUTERS

[I]  Data shows fraud problems extend far beyond PNB

[I]  Canada evaluating impact of lower U.S. corporate tax

[I]  India gold swings to discount as price jump hurts demand

[I]  U.S. charges Russians with 2016 U.S. election tampering to boost Trump

[I]  Stock volatility: back with a bang and here to stay

[I]  Not so fast: Inflation may take a while to stir

[I]  Pakistan could face economic pain from return to terrorist financing 'grey list'

 

BLOOMBERG 

[I]  Next Nafta Talks Scheduled to Start With Auto Content Rules

[I]  China Flooded U.S. With Solar Panels Before Trump's Tariffs

[I]  U.S. Signals New Trade Blow With Metal Tariff Proposals

[I]  Trump Must Weigh Retaliation Risk as Ross Floats Steel Tariffs

[I]  Layoffs Arrive in Brexit Britain, and Auto Workers Are Up First

[I]  European Doctors Are Giving Up on the U.K.

[I]  Ending Nafta Could Cause Rural ‘Depression,’ GOP Senator Says

[I]  Kuroda Nominated for Another 5-Year Term to Lead BOJ

[I]  India Stocks Fall as Deficit, Fraud Complaint Weigh on Sentiment

[I]  RBA's Lowe Says Inflation, Jobs Will Decide Next Rate Hike

 

BUSINESS LINE

[I]  Draft auto policy: Green mobility hits top gear

[I]  Iran keen to share energy resources with India: Rouhani

[I]  Outlook stable for renewable energy sector, says Ind-Ra

[I]  GST Council to meet in March to usher in single monthly return

[I]  WTO huddle: India to set the agenda, but talks may turn to ‘new issues’

[I]  It’s high time individual investors got attention

[I]  ‘Average Variable Cost’, best way to determine predatory pricing: TRAI

[I]  CM woos farmers with 0% loans up to Rs. 3 lakh

 

ECONOMIC TIMES

[I]  PNB just tip of the iceberg, rot runs much deeper

[I]  Rising US supply a big overhang on crude prices

[I]  India Inc sees M&A deals worth $15 billion in January

[I]  Govt to prepare roadmap for doubling farmers income by 2022

[I]  Government expects to finalise 5G service roadmap by June

[I]  Not bringing separate policy for Electric Vehicles: Nitin Gadkari

 

BUSINESS STANDARD

[I]  Stable outlook for solar & wind energy, negative for thermal: Ind-Ra

[I]  Coal India's foreign dreams lose steam in bid to fuel domestic demand

[I]  Govt may spend Rs 120-150 bn to support states on procurement of farm goods

[I]  Protecting farmers: Govt may raise import duties on edible oils and chana

[I]  Alternative fuel policy to encompass EVs instead of a seperate policy

[I]  Aadhaar privacy row: Enough data to clone digital identity of somebody else

 

Best Regards, ARBIND

17 Feb 2018

A LOVELY DAY TO MEET YOURSELF WITH ABSOLUTE LOVE

Macro Economic News 16 Feb 2018

 

The Bank of Russia rounded off this marathon week of monetary decisions with a cut in interest rates to 7.75 percent, as inflation remained below 4 percent for a fourth month. The over-arching theme from the sixteen policy updates seems to be that the world’s central banks would like everything to keep going just the way it is as they quietly take the punchbowl away.(Bloomberg)

 

FINANCIAL TIMES

[I]  Big agricultural groups turn to co-ops after US tax threat

[I]  Ethiopian prime minister quits in sign of leadership split

[I]  MEPs raise concerns over Spain’s ECB candidate

[I]  French companies complain of skills shortages

[I]  French unemployment drops to lowest level since 2009

[I]  Britain’s productivity problem begins in the bedroom

[I]  Eurozone members must be serious about risk-sharing

 

WALL STREET JOURNAL

[I]  U.S. producer prices rose in January, the latest sign of building inflation pressure in the economy.

[I]  U.S. Jobless Claims Rose Last Week

[I]  U.S. Retail Sales Started 2018 on Weak Footing

[I]  White House Adviser Cohn Downplays Concerns Over Rising Inflation, Bond Yields

[I]  U.S. Factory Output Flat Again in January

[I]  Real Time Economics: Inflation and the Fed | Immigration Debate Advances | Companies Lower the Bar for New Hires

 

REUTERS

[I]  India's January trade deficit widens to highest since May 2013

[I]  India's WPI inflation eases to 2.84 percent in January

[I]  U.S. regulator warns of cryptocurrency 'pump-and-dump' schemes

[I]  U.N. Security Council mulls Saudi praise for Yemen aid pledge

[I]  UK PM May heads to Berlin to face tough German line on Brexit

[I]  Analysis: U.S. market gurus who predicted selloff say current calm an illusion

[I]  U.S. producer prices rise in January; industrial output falls

 

BLOOMBERG 

[I]  Pitting the Lira Against the Rand Is a Vogue Trade That’s Rarely Paid Out

[I]  South Africa’s Bonds Are Getting More Love Than Mexico’s

[I]  U.K. Should Strive for Partial Customs Union With EU, IOD Says

[I]  China Holdings of U.S. Debt Rose in 2017 by Most in Seven Years

[I]  European Doctors Are Giving Up on the U.K.

[I]  NASA Is Bringing Back Cold War-Era Atomic Rockets to Get to Mars

[I]  Australian Leadership Rift Widens as Joyce Labels Turnbull Inept

[I]  These Naked U.S. Treasury Buyers Are Packing Up for Good

[I]  SEC Kills Chinese-Linked Takeover of Chicago Stock Exchange

[I]  RBA's Lowe Says Inflation, Jobs Will Decide Next Rate Hike

[I]  Australia's 18-Year Yield Premium Over Treasuries Disappears

 

BUSINESS LINE

[I]  You’re hired! Campus placements humming at B-schools

[I]  American chicken legs set to walk into India

[I]  Import duty hike spells ‘bad time’ for luxury watch market

[I]  Farm cost panel urged to look at net returns for farmers

[I]  Centre targets procurement of 320 lt of rabi wheat, 55 lt of paddy

[I]  Pulses body sees imports halving to 2.5-3 million tonnes in 2018-19

[I]  Vehicle loans will grow at a faster pace for NBFCs till FY20: Crisil

 

ECONOMIC TIMES

[I]  Why WhatsApp's entry into payment arena could change Indian banking forever

[I]  LTCG tax cloud over companies heading for mergers worries shareholders

[I]  US CPI data add to inflation worries

[I]  Retail investors in IPO to get compensation: Sebi

[I]  Tomato prices in MP fall from Rs 30/kg in Oct to Rs 2/kg

[I]  Online consumer spends to hit $100 billion by 2020: Report

[I]  Centre to change base year for GDP, IIP to 2017-18

[I]  India's exports fall in January, so do imports

[I]  WPI inflation eases to six-month low of 2.84% in January

[I]  Tax collection assumptions in India's budget ambitious: IMF

[I]  RBI asks banks to accept coins of all denominations from public

[I]  Policy to scrap 15 yrs old vehicles almost finalised: Nitin Gadkari

[I]  No need for EV policy as action plan ready: NITI CEO

[I]  In free trade U-Turn, Modi raises India's wall of import duties

[I]  Govt plans meet to firm up India's stand on key issues at WTO mini ministerial

 

BUSINESS STANDARD

[I]  7 mn jobs created in 2017-18: NITI helped Ghosh & Ghosh access EPFO data

[I]  Govt takes U-turn on policy for EVs; Nitin Gadkari says action plan enough

[I]  Jan export growth rate dips to 9.07%; trade deficit widens to 56-month high

[I]  2018 set to witness highest supply of malls in 6 years, says study

[I]  Donald Trump's reciprocal tax may not hit India's bikes, steel industry

[I]  Crisil core inflation tracker: Sharp fall in WPI led by food and fuel

[I]  India's transition to renewable would need strong policy support: ETC

[I]  Jute mills barred from open market sales amid short supply to govt

[I]  Veg oil imports jump 25% in January ahead of duty hike in Budget 2018

[I]  In consultation with MCA, Sebi makes headway in framing crowd-funding norms

 

MARKETS (08:00 am)

[I]  SGX NIFTY Fut: 10584;  USDINR DGCX: 63.9825;  DJIA Mini: 25241;  FTSE 100 Fut: 7222;  NIKKEI 225 Fut: 21738;  EUR-USD: 1.2529; Crude Oil (WTI): 61.48;  Gold (Spot): 1356

Best Regards, ARBIND

16 Feb 2018