Here's my summary of the key news overnight in 90 seconds at 9 am, including news of the very cold weather is now affecting some northern hemisphere economies.
Earlier there have been reports that both housing and retail sales have been dented. Now the Federal Reserve said US factory output fell in January due to the "severe weather" that hit some parts of the country. Output fell by 0.8%, the biggest drop in four-and-a-half years. Compared with a year earlier, output was up by 1.3%.
In China, data out over the weekend showed bank lending jumped more-than-expected in January, suggesting government concerns about credit expansion aren't tamping down borrowing.
Other China data showed that consumer prices rose 2.5% in the year to January, but they were up 1.0% from December, pushed ahead by food prices mainly. Beef and sheepmeat prices continued their rises.
ASB rate has cut its 2 year home loan rate in a 'limited time special offer' to 5.95% the lowest of its main rivals for that term.
There is news for Christchurch company Martin Aircraft which hopes to bring the first commercial jetpack to market in 2016. It is seeking NZ$5 million in early additional capital raising of a formal listing launch.
And staying in New Zealand, data out on Fridays showed Fonterra's milk collections across New Zealand for the first eight months of the season were 4.2% higher than the same period last season.
On Friday in New York the Dow closed back up over 16,000, oil tracked sideways, and gold continued to regain its safe haven status pushing on up to almost US$1,320/oz.
The NZ dollar has risen against the US dollar over the weekend and starts today at 83.7 USc, 92.5 AUc and the TWI is at 78.4.
[By the way, there will be no video version today. In a breathtaking piece of incompetence, Chorus and Telecom have cut us off our internet connection on Friday on the blind assumption they could connect us to UFB on schedule. They have not come close to that (after 4 months), but they still cut our ADSL service. Rather than reversing their mistake, they told us to wait until 'business hours' before they will look at reconnecting it again.]
If you want to catch up with all the changes on Friday, we have an update here.
The easiest place to stay up with today's event risk is by following our Economic Calendar here »
16 Comments
Commented yes. But with any attempt to look at the bigger picture? No. Dogged resistance to that one, eh?
I suspect he doesn't have patience for spinners of narrow-focus nonsense, either. How long has your precious 'median multiple' been extant, vs anything meaningful - like the millions of years it took to form oil/coal/gas, or the thousands it took us to multiply to our present overshoot, or the 200 it took us from start to Peak?
No meaningful answer - just like religion. Cling to belief; that somehow you can grow over a finite landscape forever, increase population forever, without increased contention. Based on a 30-year blip - a parallel to 7-day planet-creation and the rib nonsense. Silly assumptions both.
Oh, forget data, logic, maths, competance that has a liberal bias. Just do a GOP, go for la la land make believe...yeah sure.........
Actually looking at some recent snips from the US news services AGW denial is being hard to hold up, even for the GOP.
regards
At this point in the history of our species, that is a stupid comment, Hugh. Just remember that there will be readers here who can reason. Try addressing them, maybe.
http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/blog/earth_overshoot_day_2013_around_the_world
Otherwise you just look a fool, and only fools will be your travelling-companions. Sad, really.
Isn't the Fairfax poll always a bit skewed toward the Nats?
Those vacant shop premises on the high street are not exactly moving much.
Fairfax, yes...
shops vacant, and in the malls.
People are feeling better off? pay increases? for some, a few, most nada.
Not that labour are any more switched on mind, just as wilful to ignore the imperitive for change that Peak Oil dictates.
regards
The Nats are ahead because of Labour stupidity . Not moving from the TAX-AND SPEND mindset and not coming up with any coherent plan or policy on anything will keep them out of office.
Kiwis are not going to be fooled again by Labours antics , we all know we will be taxed more to pay for someting we dont see as beneficial to the person paying
Cunliffe and Labour are not in touch with the Kiwi electorate who have got used to them raising taxes for targetted handouts and pet projects .
That $60 / week election bribe for young families was a perfect example of their " raise a new tax on some hard-woring bugger and give it away to someon else" policies .
Yes. Looking at Fairfax's polls and Election results, I always subtract a bit from National to get somehting closer to an election result.
> breathtaking piece of incompetence
I asked an engineer why we had lost internet... the answer was "oh yes, if we are doing work on the lines we just cut the line to you mate".... I asked "dont you bother to tell people ".. he looked confused! Seems that "always on" ADSL; actually is not.
After a year of them trying to fix problems with "drop outs" on our line they finally got it to 2-3 a day.. which is "within tolerance" for an "Always On" connection!
I could go on...
:/
Egypt is going to blow:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/16/egypt-population-explosion…
Population surging and resources depleting (the country became a net oil importer 3 years ago as its oil field production tumbled and its consumption rose). They are in a race with Pakistan over the edge of the cliff.
Look away, nothing we can learn from them though.
One thing, Pakistan has nukes, unlike eqypt (as far as I know). Just think some hungry army chiefs sell one or 2 to the taliban, or al qaeda, now that would make things "interesting".
Or maybe lob a few at the Indains...
regards
Only watch this if you really, really want to understand what is actually going on in the oil markets (and what is happening to Big Oil in particular). Steve Kopits is a highly respected independent oil analyst, and here he is in an hour long presentation at a Colombia University forum. Many of his slides are data rich, but your investment will be well repaid:
http://energypolicy.columbia.edu/events-calendar/global-oil-market-fore…
Greeted by silence.....but arnt houses doing well...oh look the NZD went up 2cents today...
Interesting....
If thi is one thing to watch today, this is it.
regards
And I thought jet packs had been around for years - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4K8zz9eI4-8
Always thought the angle of attack was critical. If you get of just a few degrees off upright its just a case of whether you power into the ground or cut power and take your chances with a back back of Kerosene. Also your feet could get quite hot.
The sky like the sea is unforgiving of mistakes, just more so.
Falling retail sales and the weather....
"It was so cold in January that even the internet froze"
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-14/it-was-so-cold-january-even-in…
Interesting piece...
regards
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