Financial Markets and Economy
Obama Lambasts Fox News, Jon Stewart Puts The Final Nail In Their Coffin (Liberals Unite)
During a panel discussion at Georgetown University this week, President Obama lambasted FOX and the media at large, but mostly FOX, for their narrative of the poor as lazy, parasitic, sloths.
During the discussion, Obama said: Over the last 40 years, sadly, I think there’s been an effort to either make folks mad at folks at the top, or to be mad at folks at the bottom. And I think the effort to suggest that the poor are sponges, leeches, don’t want to work, are lazy, are undeserving, got traction.
(Video here)
The Middle Class Has a Debt Problem (Bloomberg View)
Of all the burdens weighing on the American middle class, one has grown immensely in recent years: debt. Absent reform, it presents one of the gravest threats to the prosperity of the typical family.
For much of the past century, easier access to credit benefited most Americans. It helped them buy what many see as the necessities of a middle-class life — a home, a car, an education. Those assets, in turn, gave them the stability and earning power they needed to build wealth. Regular mortgage payments acted as a form of saving, making home ownership almost synonymous with financial security.
Interest Rates And The Bond Market: Why You Should Care (Value Walk)
Over the past couple of days, the bond market has had a bit of a snit. Rates for government bonds have risen—meaning that prices have dropped—around the world.
Take a look at the rates on the 10-year U.S. Treasury in the chart below, from MarketWatch.com.
Study First to Give Investor Views on Complexity in Corporate Financial Reporting (CFA Institute)
Now that standard setters know what investors want in their financial reports, can they make them truly less complex?
Here’s where things currently stand: For years, corporate managers, auditors, and accountants have complained that financial statements are too long and complex, and that this complexity increases companies’ compliance costs.
Dear Bureau Of Labor Statistics, About Those Plunging Gasoline Prices… (Zero Hedge)
One of the major reasons for yesterday's market surge to new record highs was the surprise drop and miss in the April wholesale inflation report, or rather make that deflation, when the BLS announced that PPI in April had dropped by 0.4%, far below expectation of a 0.1% increase, of which the BLS said "over 30 percent can be attributed to the index for gasoline, which decreased 4.7 percent."
What Is Weighing On The U.S. Dollar? (Andrew Sachais, Seeking Alpha)
As consumer spending declines in the U.S., growth projections are being revised lower, weighing on the strength of the dollar. The U.S. currency is represented by PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish(NYSEARCA:UUP)
Australia’s 2015 Budget “An Investment In Confidence”: Morgan Stanley (Value Walk)
Australia’s 2015-16 budget is incrementally positive for the economic growth outlook, alongside the Reserve Bank of Australia’s renewed easing cycle and China’s mini-stimulus program, notes Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS).
Daniel K Blake and team at Morgan Stanley in their May 13, 2015 research report titled: “Australia Macro+: Budget steps taken, but a leap required” note the biggest surprise from the budget was the A$5.5 billion “Jobs and Small Business Package”.
Peter Schiff, more bullish than ever, sees gold headed to $5,000 an oz. (Market Watch)
Despite a ho-hum performance year to date for gold, Peter Schiff, chief executive officer at Euro Pacific Capital, is still betting on gold’s eventual climb to $5,000 an ounce.
Schiff’s persistent call is more than 300% higher than the Thursday’s settlement at $1,225.20 an ounce on Comex, which marked the highest close for the yellow metal since mid-February.
Commerce to Offer New Ways to Measure the Economy (Wall Street Journal)
How’s the economy doing? That depends on how you measure it.
The Commerce Department this summer will add to its gross domestic product calculations with two new sets of figures on economic output. The new numbers, available June 30, should give some new insight on the economy’s behavior–and offer new fodder for economists, politicians, journalists and any other observer who wants to argue over the country’s health.
Shares of Candy Crush-maker King Digital are getting smoked (Business Insider)
Shares of Candy Crush-maker King Digital were down as much as 11% in after hours trade on Thursday after its outlook disappointed.
In the first quarter, the company reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.61, topping expectations for $0.53. Revenue came in at $569.5 million above expectations for $553.8 million. Gross bookings totaled $604.5 million in the quarter.
As Money Pours Into Peer-to-Peer Lending, Some See Bubble Brewing (Bloomberg)
Is peer-to-peer lending out of control?
There’s certainly some cause for concern. Consider these facts: P2P loan volume is poised to hit $77 billion this year, a 15-fold increase from just three years ago. LendingClub, the No. 1 player worldwide, is trading at a market value of about $7 billion even though it lost $33 million last year. And in a flashback to the subprime mortgage boom, P2P startups have begun bundling and selling off loans through securitizations.
A top banker's scandalous departure appears to be damaging Jefferies' rank in one important Wall Street deals metric (Business Insider)
Investment bank Jefferies has struggled on M&A league tables in the wake of the departure of one of its top healthcare bankers.
In 2014, the bank saw its reputation and some of its top execs dragged through the mud, as part of healthcare investment banker Sage Kelly’s messy divorce.
Stocks and Trading
It's been almost a year since this many traders were betting against stocks (Business Insider)
It's been almost a year since traders were betting against the S&P 500 like this.
According to data from UBS, as of last week, traders continued to add to short positions on S&P 500 E-mini futures, meaning these folks were betting that stock prices would fall.
Netflix's stock set open above $600, could mark its fastest-ever $100 milestone (Market Watch)
Netflix Inc.'s NFLX, +3.09% stock surged 2.3% in premarket trade Friday, and was set to trade $600 for the first time ever during regular trading hours, following news that the company was in talks to enter China's online-video market. A close above $600 on Friday would come just 22 trading sessions after the stock's first close above $500, which would be its fastest-ever achievement of a $100 milestone. After the first close above $400 on Jan. 28, 2014, it took 307 session to close above $500 for the first time on April 16, 2015. It 97 sessions to climb from $300 to $400; 699 sessions to get from $200 to $300; 155 sessions to rise from $100 to $200; and 1993 session to get from its debut on March 23, 2002, when it closed 12% above its $15 initial-public-offering price on a pre-split-adjusted basis. Prior to a 2-for-1 split on Feb. 12, 2004, the highest close was $77.66 on Jan. 22, 2004.
Politics
When Presidents Attack (New Yorker)
We like our Presidents imperturbable, except when we don’t. We expect them to be dispassionate in times of difficulty, equable and unruffled in the face of setbacks, slights, and partisan attacks. Yet we also, from time to time, want to see a flash of indignation, a controlled burn. President Obama has shown so little of that kind of passion that his self-control has long been seen as a liability. In his performance at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner last month, Obama made light of that fact; he introduced “Luther,” the Presidential “anger translator,” who gave voice to Obama’s inner churn. The twist at the end of the skit was an outburst by Obama himself, making clear that, when provoked, he can express outrage perfectly well on his own.
Republicans Prepare for Painstaking Nomination Fight (Time)
After Mitt Romney’s bruising nomination fight in 2012, Republican Party officials changed the rules in an effort to streamline the 2016 primaries. But the increased influence of super PACs and an unusually deep bench of candidates mean the changes could have the opposite effect intended.
Several Republican presidential hopefuls are already preparing for a long, blistering and potentially inconclusive nominating fight that could go all the way to the national convention.
Technology
Apple Says First HomeKit-Enabled Devices Land Next Month (Tech Crunch)
Apple has been relatively quiet on HomeKit, the protocol it announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference last year for connecting its devices to third-party smart home gadgets and accessories. But that changed today.
The company provided the following statement to TechCrunch confirming that HomeKit-enabled devices will come to market starting next month, meaning users won’t have to wait much longer to get first-hand experience with Apple’s new take on connected home tech.
Health and Life Sciences
HPV Vaccine Compliance (Science Based Medicine)
There are few home-runs in medicine. Most of our choices have some sort of trade-off – drugs have side effects, interventions have risks, and many treatments have marginal benefits. Sometimes, however, medical science hits one out of the park and develops a treatment that is safe, effective, cost effective, and convenient. Any dispassionate view of the evidence can only lead to one conclusion, leading to the absence of any legitimate scientific or medical debate.
I think the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine falls into this category. We have learned that many oral and genital cancers are caused by a sexually transmitted virus, HPV. Getting vaccinated against several strains of this virus prior to becoming sexually active effectively protects against infection by the virus, and dramatically reduces the risk of these cancers. Think about it – we can prevent cancer with a vaccine. This is a no-brainer.
'Hydrogels' boost ability of stem cells to restore eyesight and heal brains (Science Daily)
Toronto scientists and engineers have made a breakthrough in cell transplantation using a gel-like biomaterial that keeps cells alive and helps them integrate better into tissue. In two early lab trials, this has already shown to partially reverse blindness and help the brain recover from stroke.
Led by University of Toronto professors Molly Shoichet and Derek van der Kooy, together with Professor Cindi Morshead, the team encased stem cells in a "hydrogel" that boosted their healing abilities when transplanted into both the eye and the brain. These findings are part of an ongoing effort to develop new therapies to repair nerve damage caused by a disease or injury
Life on the Home Planet
‘King of the Blues’ Legend B.B. King Dead in Las Vegas at Age 89, His Attorney Says (Time)
Blues legend B.B. King has died in Las Vegas at age 89, his lawyer says.
Attorney Brent Bryson tells The Associated Press that King died peacefully in his sleep at 9:40 p.m. PDT Thursday at his home in Las Vegas.
The one-time farmhand brought new fans to the blues and influenced a generation of musicians with his heartfelt vocals and soaring guitar on songs such as “The Thrill Is Gone.”
The Forgotten History Of How Brown v. Board of Education Nearly Came Down The Wrong Way (Think Progress)
When the nine U.S. Supreme Court justices first met to discuss public school segregation, there were only four certain votes to abolish the practice. Justice William Douglas later wrote that three members of the Court, Chief Justice Fred Vinson and Justices Stanley Reed and Tom Clark, were inclined to uphold Jim Crow, while two others, Felix Frankfurter and Robert Jackson, “expressed the view that segregation in the public schools was probably constitutional.” Though Frankfurter offered a different account shortly after the Court handed down its decision inBrown v. Board of Education, claiming that he would have provided the fifth vote in favor of integration, that still means that the Court’s vote in this seminal case balanced on a knife’s edge.
