US
Treasury Yields Reach 2-Year High as Job Gains Boost Taper Bets – Bloomberg
“The benchmark 10-year note yield rose 25 basis points, or 0.25 percentage point, to 2.74 percent this week in New York, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader prices, closing at the highest level since August 2011. The price of the 1.75 percent security due in May 2023 fell 2 2/32, or $20.63 per $1,000 face amount, to 91 1/2.
The yield on the 30-year bond rose 21 basis points to 3.71 percent. “
Mortgage REITs Slide Most Since 2011 on Fed Tapering Concern – Bloomberg
Banks may have to hold even more capital to cover risk | Reuters
Yes, the Sequester Is Affecting the Job Market – NYTimes.com
Pimco Total Return Fund posts record outflows of $9.6 billion | Reuters
Why Obama Was Never Going To Be A Civil Liberties Champion | TechCrunch
Europe
Swedish housing bubble | LARS P SYLL
ECB cannot solve euro zone crisis: Bundesbank chief | Reuters
Worries mount for German “Mittelstand” as election looms | South China Morning Post
Commentary: Germany Ignores Benefits of US Surveillance – SPIEGEL ONLINE
German Trust in US Lowest Level Since Bush Years after NSA Scandal – SPIEGEL ONLINE
“Ongoing revelations about the NSA spying scandal have pushed German trust in the US to its lowest level since the presidency of George W. Bush. A new survey also finds that Germans want Chancellor Merkel to stand up to Washington.”
Economics
The fundamental problem of modern economics | LARS P SYLL
DSGE models – empirically irrelevant and logically incoherent | LARS P SYLL
Reconciling Modern Monetary Theory with the Wisdom of Mark Thoma | Beat the Press
NSA
In Secret, Court Vastly Broadens Powers of N.S.A. – NYTimes.com
Documents: Sweden wiretapping Russia for the NSA – Falkvinge on Infopolicy
The NSA/GCHQ metadata reassurances are breathtakingly cynical | Technology | The Observer
Technology
BBC News – Samsung issues weaker than expected profit forecast
“It has estimated an operating profit of 9.5 trillion won ($8.3bn; £5.5bn) for the quarter. Most analysts had expected a figure closer to 10.1tn won.”
BBC News – Yahoo acquires moviemaking app Qwiki
Yahoo to Buy Software Firm Xobni for About $70 Million – Bloomberg
Nikon President Eyes Smartphone Users as Compact Sales Fall – Bloomberg
App developer Shazam gets $40 million backing from tycoon Carlos Slim | Reuters
On why Google killed Google Reader
The Death Of Google Reader Opens The Door To A Smarter Subscription Ecosystem | TechCrunch
Three Reasons Why Vendors Can’t Do Both Legacy and Cloud – Todd McKinnon – Voices – AllThingsD
Verizon in Canada could spark shift to single North American communications market | Toronto Star
Apple’s security strategy: make it invisible | Macworld
Apple’s iPhone 5 estimated to have sold more than 2X faster at launch than Galaxy S4
S&P cuts Nokia rating further on Siemens venture buyout | Reuters
EM
Another little China growl | FT Long Short
“As always, stocks are cheap for a reason. Perhaps China’s credit bubble will burst with a bang, in which case banks will need propping up by the state. Foreign shareholders will not be at the top of the list to be saved. Even if the credit bubble deflates slowly, profitability is going to be tougher in future.”
China signals will cut off credit to rebalance economy | Reuters
“China said on Friday it would cut off credit to force consolidation in industries plagued by overcapacity as it seeks to end the economy’s dependence on extravagant investment funded by cheap debt”
China Suspends PMI Details in New Hurdle for Analysis: Economy – Bloomberg
This sends a bad signal on the integrity of Chinese data just as the market is slowing due to credit tightening in China. The downside risk here is large despite the relatively low P/E’s. Earnings are likely to come down, especially for banks.
Egypt Rating Cut by Fitch on Concern Turmoil to Curb Growth – Bloomberg
Indonesia Foreign-Exchange Reserves Fall to Two-Year Low – Bloomberg
The EM sector is still the place to watch for volatility from both credit tightening in China and tapering volatility in the US.
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