Here's my summary of the key news overnight in 90 seconds at 9 am, including news EU officials are non-plussed by the reaction to their tax on Cypriot deposits. You know that is the case because they are blaming the negative market reaction on 'speculators' - a catch-all term they are using for people who object to the partial bank account confiscation.
However, policy makers have signaled some flexibility on how the unprecedented bank tax will be applied, seeking to overcome the outrage that threatens to derail the nation’s bailout.
Cyprus was working on a last-minute proposal to soften the impact on smaller savers after a parliamentary vote on the measure central to a bailout was postponed. It has closed its banks until Thursday local time. Meanwhile, the Russians are getting very unhappy.
HSBC is under attack again. Argentina's government says it has filed charges against its local subsidiary, accusing the company of helping third parties to engage in tax evasion and money laundering. Internationally, the bank is set to cut thousands more jobs as it moves to more outsourcing.
Overnight a truly huge industrial order was announced. Lion Air of Indonesia has ordered NZ$30 billion worth or aircraft from Airbus, snatching away one of Boeing's most loyal accounts. It is for 234 airplanes.
In China, average new home prices rose sharply in February from a month earlier, a development that could give Beijing added reason to clamp down on the fast-heating property market.
The rush to build new homes is gathering pace in Australia too. As we reported yesterday, Sydney is moving into a major new construction phase raising their targets significantly.
House building will be the new growth industry on both sides of the Tasman, reversing years of neglect. It will impact the New Zealand economy in a significant way as the catch-up gathers pace.
The Dow started Monday trading down but has clawed back much of that Cyprus-induced loss by mid-day. Oil is up, and gold has pushed up though US$1,600 per oz.
The kiwi dollar starts today basically unchanged at 82.6 USc, 79.4 AUc, and the TWI is at 75.9.
7 Comments
If, as I have read, Cyprus has bank depositys of 900% of GDP, who the hell is paying the interest?
Probably Auckland mortgage holders via offshore funding
Oh and by the way lets not forget JK wanted this for us,
"Let me make a broader point: we’ve now seen three island nations around Europe become huge international banking hubs relative to their GDPs, then get into crisis because their domestic economies don’t have the resources to bail out those metastasized banking systems if something goes wrong."
So sure all the dodgy money comes here and we as voters would carry the cost. when it goes wrong. Time this bozo was voted out, he clearly is happy to keep shafting NZers with all the costs and risks while he and his mates live in hawaii with their profits safe.
regards
Very good steven, I agree with you here. And if this theft of Cyprus deposits proceeds (and I know a lot of it is hooky Russian money, but) a precedent will have been set and such will become the de rigueur of emergency central bank action (our own OBR eg). With regard JoKey your right again and look at the loons lining up to take his place after the next election!
Regards. Ergophobia
Meanwhile as Cyprus and the EU melts down the US craziness continues,
"Republicans are explicitly confirming that there is no compromise that is acceptable to them to get the cuts they themselves say they want. The GOP position, with no exaggeration, is that the only way Republican leaders will ever agree to paying down the deficit they say is a threat to American civilization is 100 percent their way; they are not willing to concede anything at all to reach any deal involving new revenues to reduce the deficit, or to get the entitlement reform they want, or to avert sequestration they themselves said will gut the military and tank the economy."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2013/03/17/a-moment-of…
regards
How much longer will the American public take the Republicans seriously?
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