Here's my summary of the key news overnight in 90 seconds at 9 am, including news that Europe is in the headlines again.
There was some relief for Cyprus today as German MPs approved the €10 bln of EU/IMF loan package to the Cypriot government, giving the green light for the plan agreed last month. The Bundestag confirmed the mood by also agreeing to an extra seven years for Ireland to repay its bailout.
Meanwhile, France has put the brakes on austerity. It said it would ask its EU partners and the European Commission for an extra year to cut its public deficit below a targeted 3% of GDP. They are still a long way above that. They have brought their deficit down from 5.2% at the end of 2011 to 4.5% in 2012, but the EU wants a French 2013 deficit of 3.7% of GDP. Germany will be grumpy.
Staying in France, IMF chief Christine Lagarde has been summoned to appear in court in May over an inquiry into alleged abuse of authority when she was the French finance minister.
Meanwhile Dutch unemployment has jumped in March to 8.1% from 7.7%. The problems in Europe are not just in the south.
Better news in Japan: their exports rose and their trade deficit narrowed in March.
And in China, home price averages in key Chinese cities were higher in March, indicating recent government efforts to control the unruly real-estate market are having little effect.
From Australia, we are hearing that their trade talks with China have stalled. The problem is Beijing wants its state-backed companies the right to buy Australian assets up to $1 billion without regulatory scrutiny. Hard-ball negotiating by China.
In New York, stocks are lower in mid-day trade with the Dow down another 0.8%. Precious metals are slightly higher but industrial metals are lower again. Oil is unchanged in overnight trade.
The Kiwi dollar starts today lower at 84.1 USc, 81.7 AUc, and our TWI is at 77.6.
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Japan's trade deficit quadruples
Japan's trade deficit quadrupled in March, figures showed Thursday, as the weakening yen made fuel imports much more costly, even as it helped the country's once-squeezed exporters.
The value of goods that came into the country was 362.4 billion yen (£2.4bn) higher than that of exports in the month, four times the gap from the same period a year earlier.
Compared with March 2012, the yen was worth around 16 pc less in March this year, vastly boosting the cost of the dollar-priced fossil fuels that Japan has to import.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/10002450/Japans-trade-deficit-quadruples.html
Geoffrey Kendrick, head of European foreign exchange strategy at Nomura, says he believes most of the BoJ’s plan was now reflected in its price against the dollar.
He expects the yen to hit Y100 against the dollar but to drift sideways afterwards, as the low yields on offer in the US send cash to riskier, more profitable locations.
Mr Kendrick also suggested high beta currencies, such as the Mexican peso, the Australian dollar, the South African rand and the Russian rouble, were most likely to benefit.
However, the sheer scale of the BoJ’s planned expansion has convinced others, with UBS’s economics team, for example, arguing the yen is “only about half way through its current declining trend”.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/126faadc-a2b1-11e2-bd45-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=#axzz2QqUA4DETThe Australians have every right to investigate investments of this magnitude, particularly when those investments as a collective may be, at a future point, strategic placements allowing them to destabilise the economy or , power bargain for more control.
You have to consider the rhetoric coming out of the PRC concerning the build up of U.S. Naval forces in the South Pacific.
China has objected to the build up saying the U. S. was primarily responsible for the potential destabilisation in the "South Pacific" region with the emphasis on it being China's territory to marshall.....and believe me that includes us.
Now the likes of Key n Co who only see dollar signs spinning in font of their eyeballs, cannot be expected to have the foresight or the necessary tools to investigate such things , given their record on Naval intelligence (oxymoron) S.I.S. and of course the GCSB is excused while having it's hands full tackling super criminals like Dot.Com.
The talk is getting tougher out of China....You brudy Aussie, you sticky sticky nose in a Chinese bisaness oncea too often , you get a face full of Dragon fart...smarta guy..!
And I bet I know just what would call on us in time....do you not pay attention...? The Chinese are demanding more and more that ...their..people come in and build these things...Chinese labor....not jobs for us...the job for us is, for the blooody OIO to get out it's rubber stamp that's says .."OK can do" job done , have a small wad of cash.
Heeeeloooooo yourself Kimy....er, I think your not quite seeing the negative in having a Chinese Naval Port......Free trade agreements, should not encompass foreign military's access to any port in N.Z. unless invited to do so.....
It appears you and I have a different concept of Freedom and Prosperity.....as I said no..! when the man wanted to buy my children offering me a wallow in money right now.
Anyways maybe we should just leave it there, as it is confusing following your opinions more often than not.
I mean that in the sense of contradicting yourself on occassion.
Wish you the best of luck...and hey I was just pulling your chain on the manhole thing , no offence meant by it...I rather fancied you were the thicker skinned type....and I think I prolly got that right.
Cheers .
as many nations across the african continent have found to their dismay .. they get forced into reciprocal arrangements for their mineral resources, accepting chinese infrastructure developments in exchange which involves importing chinese equipment and materials even if they are available locally, while local labour doesnt get a look in. All imported chinese labour. Then after the job is done it starts falling apart. Many stories like that coming out of africa. They're not happy. Want a bullet train? Got a couple available.
Come on Kimy surely you are smarter than this? When the big guy (empire) does a deal with the little guy it is always in the big guys favour, not matter what the window dressing. How about we forget trade deals and focus on using our natural resources here. Only fish hook is our reliance on imported energy.
What you are really saying is that you prefer out wealth to be stripped by China over America. You may well be right but I don't know I would want to put my eggs in that basket as I suspect they may prove a worse taskmaster. You are also saying that you expect China to prevail over the US in the Pacific region and that there won't be a backlash from the US should you be wrong. I suspect you don't know the full repercussions that our anti nuke policy had to the ANZUS agreement.
Take a look at the US supply lines to the middle east oil, dissects the pacific right? South of that will be US territory or alliances in the long run.
Here's the perfect opportunity for a leetle Friday Fun, BH.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/8570102/Result-for-operation-Gummy-Bear
Who knew that our revered GBH was so multi-talented?
This has got conspiracy written all over it waymad, a possible plot by Bernard to associate Gummy Bears with Criminal behaviour...... yes that's it..!
Well mainly because, I just could'nt bear to picture GBH in his crime fighting tights utility belt crammed full of Gummy Bears.................... .....sticky paws.
Central Bankers Say They Are Flying Blind - http://www.cnbc.com/id/100650518
Anyone who i interested or read 'The seven Sisters" May enjoy this from Al jazeera
The Secret of the Seven Sisters A four-part series that reveals how a secret pact formed a cartel that controls the world's oil.
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/specialseries/2013/04/201344105231487582.html
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