Links: 2013-08-27

Members only until the 11am newsletter goes out. Like yesterday, most of the links lack summaries or comments but I have some this time. I should also note that my attention is turning to the debt ceiling again as a potential problem for the US and global economy. It is amazing how often this comes up now. I think it happens so often that the chances of a default due to policy error are rising. 

Samsung Galaxy NX review | PC Pro

The ability to do this is what is killing Nikon and Canon.

Nothing screams shadow banking quite like a leveraged loan ETF | FT Alphaville

This is going to end badly:

“They are billed as a quick and easy way for investors to gain access to higher-yielding assets while still providing some protection if interest rates start to rise. They are ETFs which track portfolios of (floating-rate) bank loans.

And they are on fire.”

Indian rupee hits record low as confidence in government ebbs | Reuters

“The Indian rupee hit a record low and shares slumped on Tuesday after parliament’s approval of a $20 billion plan to provide cheap grain to the poor renewed doubts about the government’s resolve to control spending ahead of elections due next year.”

Baht Falls Toward Three-Year Low on Growth Concern; Bonds Drop – Bloomberg

Will Obama Make the Fed Even Worse? – Bloomberg

Clearly monetarism is NOT dead unlike what Paul Krugman has been saying.

BBC News – India infrastructure projects set to boost economy

“The Indian government has approved infrastructure projects worth 1.83tn rupees ($28.4bn; £17.7bn) to revive the economy and boost the falling rupee.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said 36 stalled projects in oil, gas, power, road and railways sectors were cleared.

“The message we are sending is that the investment cycle has restarted, and we are pushing it,” he said.”

Obama source predicts Summers will be named Fed chief soon

The death of the cloud has been greatly exaggerated — Tech News and Analysis

Ballmer’s biggest regret at Microsoft? Windows Vista | The Verge

Jobs, Robots, Capitalism, Inequality, And You | TechCrunch

A Collection of Quotes From Steve Ballmer – John Paczkowski – News – AllThingsD

Google Just Killed The Best Thing About The Chromecast (For Now) | TechCrunch

India’s fiscal deficit target getting more challenging: Fitch | Reuters

BBC News – Steve Wozniak: Microsoft resting on its laurels

Rupiah Slides to April 2009 Low as Policy Measures Disappoint – Bloomberg

More pain in Spain but signs of recovery – Telegraph

Brazil’s real defence falters as Fed leaves emerging markets to their fate – Telegraph

The Global QE Exit Crisis by Stephen S. Roach – Project Syndicate

The shock of inclusion: Why the NSA story has turned journalist against journalist — Tech News and Analysis

Feedly Pro Is Now Live For Everyone, Subscriptions Cost $5 A Month, $45 A Year

The 10 worst Android phones of all time « Android Phone Fans

Are tech firms the new movie villains? — Tech News and Analysis

Schneier on Security: Protecting Against Leakers

Junk Debt Exceeds $2 Trillion in Central Bank Repression – Bloomberg

ekathimerini.com | Greek exports post worst performance in three years

When Non-banking Experts Become Overnight Banking Experts | PRAGMATIC CAPITALISM

Is Marissa Mayer the right CEO for Yahoo? | Felix Salmon

Third-party Chromecast apps broken after update

The Good Society: Lessons Not (Yet) Learned | New Economic Perspectives

“The “influential body of opinion” remains too enthralled with monetary policy, too wedded to supply-side “solutions” and too focused on deficit reduction to allow us to build The Good Society. The rich and powerful, working through our elected officials, insist that There is No Alternative: we must spread sacrifice instead of prosperity, make tough choices rather than wise investments, focus on budget outcomes instead of human achievements. Theirs is a bleak world – at least for the masses – arrived at through the cultivation of fear and mysticism.”

Emerging Market Fund Outflows – Business Insider

“In 2 Charts, Here’s How Emerging Market Funds Are Hemorrhaging Cash Unlike Anything Seen In Years

the cash is leaving these economies, and one place you can see it most plainly is in the funds (equity and fixed income) that are dedicated to emerging markets.”

Barack Obama’s logic for bombing Syria: The United States will seek to put an end to Bashar Assad’s use of chemical weapons. – Slate Magazine

“President Obama will likely bomb Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria. Here is the logic—and limits—for the president’s plan of attack.”