Financial Markets and Economy
Mexico Peso Trades at One-Month High After Presidential Debate (Bloomberg)
The Mexican peso traded at a one-month high after Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump exchanged barbs in the second U.S. presidential debate.
Deutsche Bank exec says its €46 trillion derivatives book isn't as risky as it sounds (Reuters)
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Deutsche Bank is continuing to cut back the size of its derivatives book, which is not as risky as investors may believe, Chief Risk Officer Stuart Lewis told German weekly paper Welt am Sonntag.
There’s a devastatingly simple explanation for America’s economic mess (The Washington Post)
Ever since the financial crisis, the U.S. economy has grown at a stubbornly slow rate, far less than the 3 percent that was widely considered a sign of good health. This disappointing outcome — the Federal Reserve expects the economy to grow only about 1.8 percent this year — has been blamed by economists on many factors: the financial crisis in 2008, fiscal fights in Washington, Europe's repeated debt crises, China's slowdown and more.
BOE Bought 507 Million Pounds of Corporate Bonds in First Phase (Bloomberg)
The Bank of England said it has bought 507 million pounds ($641 million) of corporate bonds since starting its program last week, beating analysts’ forecasts.
Disorder In OPEC Ranks? Iraq To Increase Oil Output (Forbes)
This has to trouble OPEC, and mostly Saudi Arabia, who has been trying to micromanage global oil prices over the past few weeks with announcements to agree to agree to production cuts at OPEC’s next meeting in November.
World Gone Mad, Part 1: “Huge Demand” To Lend Italy Money For 50 Years (DollarCollapse.com)
You read that right. Not only is Italy selling 50-year bonds, but people are lining up buy them.
Investor fears mount as FTSE reaches near-record highs (The Telegraph)
The FTSE 100 soared to near record highs this week, but as the blue-chip index rose so did investors’ fears that the market was overvalued and primed to crash. Last year the index passed the levels seen in the dotcom bubble, when it hit 6,930 in December 1999.
Finance leaders issue fresh warnings amid Deutsche worries, pound rout (Reuters)
World finance leaders issued fresh warnings about economic stability risks on Friday amid worries about a massive U.S. fine for Deutsche Bank destabilizing Germany's largest bank, a sharp fall in the British pound and weak global growth.
OPEC's Miracle Might Just Be a Mirage (Bloomberg)
Saudi Arabia's oil minister actually did it. He stood up and U-turned on behalf of the world's biggest crude exporter, much to the relief of fellow OPEC leaders.
If gold gets below $1,250 an ounce, start buying: Goldman (Market Watch)
The reaction in gold prices to the possibility of a U.S. interest-rate hike at the end of the year has been “larger than we anticipated,” said Goldman analysts Max Layton, Mikhail Sprogis and Jeffrey Currie, in a note released Friday. That leaves risks surrounding their year-end outlook of $1,280 an ounce as “moderately skewed to the downside,” said the analysts.
China must wean itself off debt addiction if it is to avoid financial calamity, warns IMF chief (Telegraph)
Markus Rodlauer, deputy director of the IMF's Asia-Pacific department, said the world's second largest economy was approaching a tipping point where its rapidly growing financial sector and surge in shadow credit could undermine the state's ability to contain the fallout from a crash.
The Truly Scary Clowns: Central Bankers (Barron's Asia)
It’s a plague that besets our nation, threatening our peace, the safety of our children, indeed our well-being. I speak, of course, of clowns.
Creepy clowns, lurking in plain sight. Not some ghastly figure with Oompa Loompa orange skin and a petrified crown of yellow hair, or a seemingly staid matron with a horrifyingly cringe-inducing cackle when amused.
How Bots Are Fueling High-Speed Bitcoin Trading (Coin Desk)
Investors have benefited from algorithmic ('algo') trading programs under many different circumstances, but these 'trading bots' can prove particularly valuable to those interested in cryptocurrencies.
'It is a game changer': Banks ponder the meaning of life as Deutsche Bank agonizes (Reuters)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – It wasn't just Deutsche Bank that was grappling with big questions about the future at the International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington last week.
Deutsche Bank CEO Returns Home Empty-Handed After Failing To Reach 'Deal' With DOJ: Bild (Zero Hedge)
Following the seemingly endless procession of short-squeeze-fueling trial balloons last week – from settlement rumors to German blue-chip bailouts to Qatari investors – Germany's Bild newspaper confirms the rumors that sparked weakness on Friday: Deutsche bank CEO John Cryan has failed to reach an agreement with the US Justice Department.
Warren Buffett's favorite metric says stocks are way too expensive (Advisor Perspectives)
Market Cap to GDP is a long-term valuation indicator that has become popular in recent years, thanks to Warren Buffett. Back in 2001 he remarked in a Fortune Magazine interview that "it is probably the best single measure of where valuations stand at any given moment."
You would think there are some very good reasons to improve the security of credit cards in America: 15 billion and 13.1 million, to be precise. Those are the number of dollars stolen and victims who lost that money in the last year, respectively, according to estimates from Javelin Strategy & Research.
Economic ‘Recovery’ Feels Weak Because the Great Recession Hasn’t Really Ended (The Real News Network, Naked Capitalism)
KIM BROWN, TRNN: Welcome to The Real News Network. I’m Kim Brown, in Baltimore. With the worst of the great recession, supposedly, behind us, economic analysts still see signs that we’re not yet completely out of the woods. A new report released Wednesday by the International Monetary Fund shows that some banks in the United States and Europe may not be strong enough to survive another downturn, even with States assistance.
The world’s finances are looking quite frightening right now – here’s how you can understand what’s happening (Independent)
The curse of the financial news article is the “big number” presented with little or no context.
The objective is often less to inform than to impress, or sometimes frighten.
Ray Dalio Warns A 1% Rise In Yields Would Lead To Trillions In Losses (Zero Hedge)
Last week, we shared with readers a fascinating presentation that Bridgewater's Ray Dalio made to NY Fed staffers at the 40th Annual Central Banking Seminar held on Wednesday, October 5, 2016.
How To Be Like Trump And Avoid Taxes In Retirement (Forbes)
There’s been a lot of talk in the news about how Donald Trump may have paid zero taxes over as long as an 18 year period, something he has called “smart.” This is due to a provision that would have allowed him to use business losses in one year to offset income in other years.
Hotels: Occupancy Rate on Track to be 2nd Best Year (HotelsNewsNow.com, Calculated Risk)
The U.S. hotel industry recorded positive results in the three key performance metrics during the week of 25 September through 1 October 2016, according to data from STR.
In year-over-year comparisons, the industry’s occupancy increased 1.8% to 70.0%. Average daily rate (ADR) was up 1.3% to US$126.95. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) grew 3.2% to US$88.83.
Companies
Tesla is gearing up for a surprise product announcement — and Elon Musk says it'll be 'unexpected by most' (Business Insider)
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is gearing up for a big October.
Musk said on Twitter that there will be a new product announcement before October 28th's solar roof unveiling. He said the other product announcement is "unexpected by most."
Qatar Airways strikes Boeing deal worth $19bn (The Telegraph)
Qatar Airways has placed an order for up to 100 Boeing aircraft in deal worth an estimated $18.6bn (£14.9bn). The state-owned airline has agreed to buy 30 of Boeing’s 787-9 Dreamliners and 10 of its b-market 777-300 aircraft worth $11.7bn.
Philadelphia court orders Uber, Lyft to stop operating in the city (updated) (Engadget)
Ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft deal with legal and regulatory issues all the time, but the battle is heating up in Philadelphia. A Common Pleas Court judge ordered the two companies to stop operating in the city yesterday, but both are still offering rides to customers today.
EpiPen Maker Mylan To Pay $465 Million For Shifty Medicaid Billing Practices (Reuters)
(Reuters) – Mylan NV on Friday said it will pay $465 million to settle the question of whether misclassification of its EpiPen emergency allergy treatment resulted in underpayment of rebates to the U.S. Medicaid healthcare program.
The company has come under scrutiny for raising prices on the lifesaving EpiPen sixfold in less than a decade, making the devices unaffordable for a growing number of families.
Politics
Clinton Camp Sees Trump Event As A 'Stunt' (Associated Press)
Hillary Clinton's campaign says Donald Trump is continuing a "destructive race to the bottom" by appearing with a group of women who have accused former President Bill Clinton of rape and unwanted sexual advances.
Why Republicans Are Probably Stuck With Donald Trump (NY Times)
The recording that emerged on Friday revealing Donald J. Trump speaking in vulgar and demeaning terms about women prompted extraordinary backlash from Democrats and Republicans, raising questions about whether the Republican Party could dump its nominee at the last minute and find someone more viable a month before Election Day.
U.S. government officially accuses Russia of hacking campaign to influence elections (The Washington Post)
The Obama administration on Friday officially accused Russia of attempting to interfere in the 2016 elections, including by hacking the computers of the Democratic National Committee and other political organizations.
How Donald Trump Could Send Republicans Crashing Down (NY Times)
You do not need a statistical model to know that Donald J. Trump is in a lot of trouble.
His chances were already in jeopardy heading into the second presidential debate Sunday. Hillary Clinton’s lead has grown steadily over the last two weeks, and she was ahead by five to six percentage points before a videotape revealed Mr. Trump bragging about groping women and getting away with it because he’s a celebrity.
Ted Cruz endorsed Trump two weeks ago – he now says it was the media’s fault (Think Progress)
Senator Ted Cruz, who was the last man standing against Trump in the Republican primary, endorsed his former opponent on September 23.
Cruz famously refused to endorse Trump in an unusual speech to the Republican National Convention, where he urged delegates to vote their “conscience.”
Nearly Half The Adults In Britain And Europe Hold Extremist Views (Buzz Feed News)
Almost half of the adults in 12 European countries now hold anti-immigrant, nationalist views, according to major new research that reveals the spread of fringe political views into the mainstream.
Team Trump’s misguided crusade to make adultery a 2016 issue (MSNBC)
On NBC’s “Meet the Press” yesterday, Trump campaign surrogate Rudy Giuliani continued to focus his attention on Bill Clinton’s extra-marital affairs for reasons that don’t seem to make a lot of sense. Host Chuck Todd asked, “Are you the right person to level this charge?” reminding the former mayor he has his own record of infidelities.
Inside Trump Tower, an Increasingly Upset and Alone Donald Trump (NY Times)
It has been his pride and his palace, a soaring black skyscraper overlooking Manhattan that seemed to match Donald J. Trump’s ambition and ostentatiousness.
But Trump Tower, since Friday afternoon, has become a kind of lonely fortress for its most famous occupant, who holes up inside, increasingly isolated and upset, denounced almost every hour by another Republican official
Technology
Samsung Galaxy Note 7: Second 'safe' replacement catches fire (BBC News)
A second replacement Samsung Galaxy Note 7 device, deemed safe by the company, has caught fire in the US, US media report.
Samsung has been forced to issue new models of the smartphone following complaints of faulty batteries.
Apple v. Samsung heads to Supreme Court: What you need to know (CNet)
The biggest patent case to hit the modern tech world is back again.
Apple and Samsung will appear before the US Supreme Court on Tuesday to argue why their opponent was wrong when it came to a patent case from 2012. This is the first time a design patent case has been examined by the Supreme Court since the 1800s.
Solar Powered Clothing You Can Plug Your Phone Into (Bloomberg)
If allowing your smartphone to run out of power during the day doesn’t make you feel silly enough, consider this: Every hour it’s idle in your pocket or bag, the sun is bathing the earth in enough energy to run the world economy for a year.
Your Next Friend Could Be a Robot Your Next Friend Could Be a Robot (The Wall Street Journal)
Within 24 hours of plugging in her Amazon Echo, Carla Martin-Wood says she felt they were best friends. “It was very much more like meeting someone new,” she says.
A Computer Can Now Translate Languages as Well as a Human (Singularity Hub)
I remember standing on the platform at Tokyo Station watching my train to Nagano — the last train of the day — pulling away without me on it. What ensued was a frustrating hour of gestures, confused smiles, and head-shaking as I wandered the station looking for someone who spoke English (my Japanese is unfortunately nonexistent).
Health and Biotech
First evidence emerges that women's ovaries can grow new eggs (Science Alert)
Women are well aware that the number of eggs they're born with is all they'll ever have, and when they inevitably run out, they can no longer have children. Hence the pressure of the biological clock.
“It’s a Powerful Time to Reshape Healthcare Across the Planet” (Singularity Hub)
We are living in a world that is global and exponential. Technology is taking things that used to be scarce and making them abundant—and these forces are reshaping the fields of medicine and healthcare in completely novel ways.
Life on the Home Planet
There's a tower in China that eats smog — and 800 more might be coming (CityLab)
Air quality is so poor in Beijing that on bad days it’s hard to see buildings across the street. Strategies to live more safely in such an environment abound, and no wonder: The journal Nature recently found that air pollution leads to the premature death of three million people every year, mainly in Asia.
CEO Of Backpage.com Arrested, Charged With Pimping (NPR)
The CEO of Backpage.com, a classifieds website that allows users to post escort ads, was arrested Thursday on felony pimping charges.
We have money to fight climate change. It's just that we're spending it on defense (The Guardian)
One year ago this week, I was sitting in a cramped hotel room with 15 other staffers in Las Vegas for Bernie Sanders’ first debate for the presidential nomination. The question came from CNN: “What is the greatest national security threat?” Pundits criticized and mocked him for weeks after he answered “climate change”. But he was right.
The true scale of nuclear weapons will give you serious anxiety (Science Alert)
When you think about nuclear weapons, the first things that probably come to mind are the devastating attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
Those bombings changed the world forever, but here’s a rather sobering thought – since the first test in 1945, some 2,475 nuclear bombs have been detonated around the world, and they’ve gotten significantly more powerful.
