News: 2014-03-04
This is a bit overkill on Ukraine but it’s a big story
Ukraine
Ukraine crisis sends wheat and corn prices soaring | Business | theguardian.com
Ukraine crisis: Russia is in no position to fight a new cold war – FT.com
Vladimir Putin will get away with it again – sanctions would harm us more than them – Telegraph
EU threatens Russia with sanctions amid market turmoil – Telegraph
BBC News – Ukraine: UK rules out Russia trade curbs?
“The government will not curb trade with Russia or close London’s financial centre to Russians as part of any possible package of sanctions against Moscow, according to an official document.”
Putin’s Crimean Crime – NYTimes.com
“Putin’s Crimean message to President Obama and the West is clear: Not one inch further. After NATO’s expansion into the Baltic states (and how critical NATO’s protection looks now to Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia), after the European Union’s embrace of the likes of Poland and Romania (freed, like the Baltic states, from the Soviet empire), after the humbling by NATO of Serbia (Russia’s Orthodox ally), after the West’s perceived manipulation of a United Nations mandate to have its way in Libya — after all this the Russian president, as he has already made clear in Syria, is saying: “Game over.””
Ukraine crisis: sanctions won’t worry Vladimir Putin – Telegraph
“Like Mr Hague, US Secretary of State John Kerry has condemned Putin’s “brazen act of aggression”, warning of harsh retaliation in the form of a diplomatic and economic squeeze. While there has been no detail, such measures would presumably include visa bans, asset freezes and restrictions on Russian investment and trade with the West – actions that would no doubt provoke an instant tit-for-tat response. But, as a document seen yesterday in Downing Street made clear, Britain is very wary about introducing any sanctions.”
What Could Cause a Ukraine Default? – Real Time Economics – WSJ
Who’s to blame for the unravelling of Ukraine? | Ukraine | spiked
Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder thinks cancelling the Russian involvement in the G8 is meaningless. Worse, he thinks it decreases the ability to hold talks with the Russians in order to solve the Ukraine problem. He has a lot more negative to say about EU diplomacy here than about the Russians.
Gazprom says Europe to depend more on Russian gas in years to come | Reuters
EconoMonitor : All About the Ukraine-Russia Conflict. First, Know What We Don’t Know
Why Ukraine Has Lost Crimea – Bloomberg View
Russia wins second Crimean war | Al Jazeera America
“Russian victory in Crimea especially rocks the U.S., the EU and NATO because more than half of Ukraine — including the rich, industrialized cities of Kharkiv, Donetsk, Odessa, Mariupol and Melitopol — is highly sympathetic to the Kremlin. Kharkiv has seen mass demonstrations against the “illegitimate” Kiev government. Russian speakers have stormed and occupied government facilities in Donetsk, where the City Council has denounced the Kiev government and called for a referendum “on the region’s status.””
“For half an hour, without wavering in his steely stare and without repetition, deviation or hesitation, the Russian president explained to our small group how he had been betrayed by the West. When al-Qaeda destroyed the Twin Towers in New York on 9/11 in 2001, Russia rallied behind the US. When Tony Blair and George Bush went to war in Iraq in 2003, Russia did not stand in their way, even though it disagreed with the invasion.”
“The newly appointed head of Ukraine’s navy has sworn allegiance to Crimea in front of the region’s unrecognised pro-Russian leader, as Russian forces consolidate their hold on the Black Sea peninsula.”
EU to urge mediation with Russia over Ukraine | Reuters
Economics Data
Manufacturing in U.S. Expands More Than Projected: Economy – Bloomberg
U.S. factory activity growth hits highest since May 2010: Markit | Reuters
Consumer Spending in U.S. Rose More Than Forecast in January – Bloomberg
U.S. auto sales flat, incentives could hit profit | Reuters
“companies book the sales for their balance sheets on the wholesale level, so “every field agent for every manufacturer” is going to press dealers to take more vehicles when they are already oversupplied.”
UK manufacturing activity increases for 11th month in a row – FT.com
BBC News – Manufacturing growth in the eurozone eases in February
Slovenia returns to GDP growth after eight quarterly declines | beyondbrics
Britain/Europe
‘Most widespread house price rises in 10 years’ – Telegraph
The ECB is irrelevant and the Euro is a failure
BBC News – Cyprus bailout hit as privatisation bill fails
“International efforts to bail out Cyprus’ debt-laden economy have been thrown into doubt after its parliament rejected a key part of the plan.”
North America
No One Can Live on $7.25 an Hour | Kurt A. Gardinier
Parts of U.S. Seeing Coldest March Temperatures Since 1800s
Emerging Markets
India Looks Set to Miss Growth Target – Real Time Economics – WSJ
To see the problems of emerging markets look to Turkey – FT.com
“Turkey is now on track to run a current account deficit of more than 5 per cent of GDP for its fifth straight year. This puts the country in a rare predicament. Since 1960, 15 large economies have run a current account deficit of this scale and duration. They include Poland and Norway in the 1970s, Brazil in the 1970s and 1980s, Thailand in the 1990s and Greece in the last decade. Of these countries, 13 saw growth slow significantly over the subsequent five years, from a mean pace of 5.8 per cent to 3.2 per cent; and 11 suffered a currency crisis.”
Markets
Pimco Total Return Posts $1.6 Billion in Redemptions – Bloomberg
Technology
Twitter Took Home the Only Oscar That Matters
Behind the Preplanned Oscar Selfie: Samsung’s Ad Strategy – WSJ.com
“At one point Samsung was getting about 900 mentions a minute on social media, according to Kontera, a company that tracks content on social media sites.”
How Messaging Apps Make Money – Digits – WSJ
Oscars 2014: Complete List of Winners
Meet the seven people who hold the keys to worldwide internet security | Technology | The Guardian
“What these men and women control is the system at the heart of the web: the domain name system, or DNS. This is the internet’s version of a telephone directory – a series of registers linking web addresses to a series of numbers, called IP addresses. Without these addresses, you would need to know a long sequence of numbers for every site you wanted to visit. To get to the Guardian, for instance, you’d have to enter “77.91.251.10” instead of theguardian.com.”
Nest for Tesla: App Lets Model S Owners Heat Car Remotely
Icahn Vs. Andreessen: Battle Royale | TechCrunch
“In a letter issued to eBay shareholders Monday, Icahn again called for eBay to come forward with a full accounting of Andreessen’s involvement in the sale of Skype:”
Gartner: 195M Tablets Sold In 2013, Android Grabs Top Spot From iPad With 62% Share | TechCrunch
Climate change threatens to bring eradicated viruses back from the dead | The Verge
“despite being frozen for over 30,000 years, Pithovirus sibericum still packs a punch: a simple thawing procedure allowed it to infect a throng of unsuspecting single-cell organisms for the first time in thousands of years. And given that climate change is already causing the ground to thaw in regions such as the Arctic and parts of Alaska, scientists fear that this lab experiment could eventually take to the field, leading to the spontaneous revival of ancient and unknown viruses.”
Auto Internet
Apple to Bring iPhone Software to Cars – Digits – WSJ
Infotainment Systems: A Comparison – AutoTrader.com
What is Apple CarPlay? | Technology | theguardian.com
“CarPlay requires special, bespoke equipment supporting Apple’s iPhone to be fitted into cars, which means that car manufacturers will have to build it in at the factory.”
Ford Gets Diplomatic About Apple’s CarPlay And Its Microsoft Ties | TechCrunch
Volvo Shows Apple CarPlay In New Video, Says Wi-Fi Connectivity Is ‘Coming Soon’ | TechCrunch
Apple’s New CarPlay System Will Turn Tens Of Millions Of Cars Into iPhone Accessories | TechCrunch
Security/Privacy
Self-Destructing And Encrypted Message App Wickr Raises $9M Series A Led By Alsop Louie | TechCrunch
Mt. Gox Source Code Leaked By Hackers Along With Team Information, Customer Data | TechCrunch
Mt Gox collapse could ultimately help bitcoin cause: NY regulator | Reuters
” Lawsky wants to attract healthy bitcoin operators to the state, and has floated the idea of launching a “BitLicense” to regulate operators in the industry, and to align any new rules with existing financial regulation.”
Disconnect Search for Android Makes Your Web Searches Private
Florida Cops’ Secret Weapon: Warrantless Cellphone Tracking | Threat Level | Wired.com
Schneier on Security: Choosing Secure Passwords
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