Financial Markets and Economy
The World Economy Needs Action, Not Words (Bloomberg View)
Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 major economies ended their meeting in Shanghai this weekend with the usual promises to bolster the global economy. They resolved to take all appropriate measures (and no inappropriate ones).
Emerging Stocks in Fourth Monthly Decline as China Rout Extends (Bloomberg)
Emerging-market stocks were set to drop for a fourth month as Chinese equities and crude oil extended declines.
Oil prices 'totally unacceptable', Nigerian president tells Qatar's ruler (Reuters)
The OPEC cartel needs to take action to stabilize the oil market because crude prices have fallen to "totally unacceptable" levels, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said on Sunday.
Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer which earns around 90 percent of its foreign exchange earnings from crude oil exports, has been hit hard by the erosion of vital revenues caused by the global slump in oil prices which has also hammered its currency.
5 Reasons Wall Street is Freaking Out About a Recession (Fortune)
As Janet Yellen testifies in front of Congress this week, it is safe to say that she is facing the period of greatest economic uncertainty since she took over the role of Fed Chair roughly a year and a half ago.
Bank of Japan’s Kuroda again grilled over negative rates (Market Watch)
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda was told again Monday to clarify the effects of negative rates on consumers, highlighting how he has become a target of opposition politicians.
“I have no expectations at all that financial institutions will impose negative rates on individual depositors,” Kuroda told opposition lawmaker Takeshi Shina.
Chile's Economy Starts 2016 Badly as Industrial Output Tumbles (Bloomberg)
Chiles economy started the year badly. Manufacturing and industrial output both fell more than analysts expected in January, while retail sales growth remained sluggish.
Brief recovery over as Chinese markets tumble again (BBC)
Chinese shares on Monday resumed their downward trend as the yuan weakened further.
The Shanghai Composite shed 2.7% to 2,687.9 points, dashing hopes that Friday's brief recovery could be sustained.
The index was down as much as 4.4% in the morning, hitting a 15-month low.
Huge steel and coal layoffs show just how big China's industrial slowdown really is (Business Insider)
China said on Monday it expects to lay off 1.8 million workers in the coal and steel industries, or about 15 percent of the workforce, as part of efforts to reduce industrial overcapacity, but no timeframe was given.
It was the first time China has given figures that underline the magnitude of its task in dealing with slowing growth and bloated state enterprises.
Citi: There's Been a Worrisome Change in the Market for New Corporate Debt (Bloomberg)
More 'no go' days are going on.
Amazon just signed a major deal that threatens Ocado — and Ocado stock is tanking (Business Insider)
Amazon just signed a major distribution deal with Morrisons, one of Britain's biggest supermarket chains, which threatens online grocery group Ocado.
Ocado's shares are crashing as a result. OCDO stock is down more than 7% this morning as investors try to figure out the potential damage that Amazon might do to Ocado.
Sweden's economy is on fire — but here's why that's terrible news for the country's central bank (Business Insider)
Sweden's economy is on a massive tear, but for the country's central bank, that's actually pretty awful news.
A Useful Overbought/Oversold Measure for Stocks (Trader Feed)
I encourage readers to check out the most recent Forbes post, detailing how a common information-processing bias has led to poor trading returns in the last year or two. When we make decisions as much for psychological reasons as logical ones, we become vulnerable to drawdowns.
The Three Charts That No Small Cap Asset Manager Wants You To See (Zero Hedge)
A funny thing happens to an index's valuation when you choose not to entirely ignore the companies that have negative earnings (i.e. losses). Ever wondered what the P/E ratio of the Russell 2000 was given that it is full of companies where the 'E' is negative? The answer is simple – and ugly – as The Wall Street Journal exposes, theaggregate P/E of the Russell 2000 is over 200x which perhaps explains the gaping chasm between bond and equity valuations for this highly credit-sensitive cohort.
Debt swaps become a tough sell for cash-strapped U.S. energy firms (Business Insider)
Highly-leveraged U.S. energy companies are struggling to carry out debt swaps as part of their survival strategy because plummeting oil and gas prices make investors either avoid such deals or demand tougher terms.
Investors say Mike Ashley treats Sports Direct like 'his own plaything' — and they're absolutely sick of it (Business Insider)
Investors in Sports Direct, the budget sporting goods retailer, are getting increasingly annoyed with the way that the company is run, and are calling for chairman Keith Hellawell to be sacked.
S&P 500 Futures Signal 2nd Day of Stock Losses; Valeant Slides (Bloomberg)
U.S. stock-index futures fluctuated, following a second weekly gain for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, after paring losses as China’s central bank stepped up efforts to cushion the country’s economic slowdown.
HSBC: No need to ban cash – it would take 20 years for everyone to withdraw their savings (Business Insider)
There's one hurdle to using negative interest rates to get people to stop saving and start spending – cash.
Politics
Iran's Elections Are Magic (Bloomberg View)
If you are following the Iranian elections, prepare to be dazzled. According to major news outlets from the BBC to the Associated Press, the reformists beat the hardliners.
But wait. Didn't Iran's Guardian Council disqualify most of the reformists back in January? Of course it did, but thanks to the magic of Iranian politics, many of yesterday's hardliners are today's reformist.
A Vote for Trump Is a Vote for Bigotry (The Daily Beast)
Political consulting and morality go together about as well as that famous fish and bicycle. Lawyers have constructed a neat paradigm obligating them to handle any and all clients, a very convenient way to maintain pretext of high road while taking any road possible. So it is with political consultants. For years when asked my positions on issues, my standard response has been, “I don’t have positions, I have clients.”
Technology
The Promise of Artificial Intelligence Unfolds in Small Steps (NY Times)
When IBM’s Watson computer triumphed over human champions in the quiz show “Jeopardy!” it was a stunning achievement that suggested limitless horizons for artificial intelligence.
Diabetes robot to help children (BBC)
A robot is being developed to mimic a diabetic toddler to help children recognise symptoms of the condition.
Robin, short for "Robot Infant", is being developed at the University of Hertfordshire and can speak words including "hungry" and "hug me".
Health and Life Sciences
New Brain Tech Speeds Up Learning By Reading Your Mind (Forbes)
Having a good tutor can go a long way toward helping you learn an instrument. But what if that tutor isn’t another human, but a technology that delves into the inner-workings of your brain to accelerate how quickly you learn? As bizarre as that sounds, it’s already possible, and with time it may become a standard-issue tool for would-be musicians and, eventually, anyone learning something challenging.
New NHS cancer drugs fund approved (BBC)
Cancer patients have been promised faster access to innovative medicines by NHS England.
It has announced changes to the heavily criticised and regularly overspent Cancer Drugs Fund, which pays for drugs the NHS has deemed unaffordable.
Life on the Home Planet
Tense wait for baby Slovenian 'dragons' (BBC)
In a Slovenian cave visited by a million tourists every year, a bizarre and rare amphibian is guarding a significant clutch of eggs.
The olm, a blind salamander found in cave rivers of the Balkans, is thought to live for more than 100 years but reproduces just once or twice a decade.
