Financial Markets and Economy
U.S. oil prices rise on start of summer driving season (Business Insider)
U.S. oil prices were lifted early on Tuesday by the start of the peak demand summer driving season, although international fuel markets were weighed down by rising output in the Middle East, which mostly serves Asian customers.
Three reasons why the S&P 500 is primed and ready for big gains (Market Watch)
Get ready for “flaming June.”
Brent crude lower on strong Middle East oil output (Reuters)
Brent crude prices fell on Tuesday on rising output from the Middle East and ahead of an OPEC meeting on Thursday, while U.S. crude edged higher as the summer driving season began.
Major Markets on Course to End Month Higher (Wall Street Journal)
Global stock markets were mostly steady Tuesday, on track to end the month higher despite mounting expectations for a U.S. interest rate rise.
Hedge funds are getting help from pollsters so they can place big bets on the EU Referendum (Business Insider)
Hedge funds and banks are commissioning private opinion polls on voters' intentions in the upcoming EU referendum so they can trade on the result, according to the Financial Times.
Risky Reprise of Debt Binge Stars U.S. Companies Not Consumers (Bloomberg)
Consumers were the Achilles’ heel of the U.S. economy in the run-up to the last recession. This time, companies may play that role.
These are the 3 things Chinese investors are most excited about right now (Business Insider)
The imminent opening of Disneyland Shanghai, the virtual reality revolution, and the increase in the number of electric cars on the roads are getting investors in China seriously excited right now, according to Credit Suisse.
Economic Report: Consumer spending jumps 1% in April (Market Watch)
Consumer spending leaped 1% in April to mark the biggest gain in almost seven years, as Americans splurged on new cars and trucks. Higher gas prices also contributed.
Lost Decade for Value Stocks Tests Faithful Who Say End is Nigh (Bloomberg)
Hopes are high again for buying low.
The Case for Stimulus, in Three Charts (Bloomberg View)
After seven years of growth, there are still signs that the U.S. economy isn’t running at full capacity. It's a problem that the Federal Reserve and Congress can and should address.
Why the window for stock-market bears is ‘closing rather quickly,’ in one chart (Market Watch)
While it’s been more than a year since the S&P 500 hit a record high, that’s not necessarily a reason for market bears to celebrate.
The Untold Story Behind Saudi Arabia’s 41-Year U.S. Debt Secret (Bloomberg)
Failure was not an option.
It was July 1974. A steady predawn drizzle had given way to overcast skies when William Simon, newly appointed U.S. Treasury secretary, and his deputy, Gerry Parsky, stepped onto an 8 a.m. flight from Andrews Air Force Base. On board, the mood was tense. That year, the oil crisis had hit home. An embargo by OPEC’s Arab nations—payback for U.S. military aid to the Israelis during the Yom Kippur War—quadrupled oil prices. Inflation soared, the stock market crashed, and the U.S. economy was in a tailspin.
One-Minute Plunge Sends Chinese Stock Futures Down by 10% Limit (Bloomberg)
Chinese stock-index futures plunged by the daily limit before snapping back in less than a minute, the second sudden swing to rattle traders this month.
Euro-Area Inflation Rate Stays Negative as ECB Mulls Outlook (Bloomberg)
Euro-area consumer prices failed to increase for a fourth consecutive month, highlighting policy makers’ struggle to stoke inflation despite multiple rounds of stimulus.
There's Little Positive About Negative Rates (Bloomberg View)
My doctoral adviser, Miles Kimball, recently said some very kind things about me on his blog, Confessions of a Supply-Side Liberal. As Miles says, my views on most issues are very similar to his. So in the spirit of friendly debate, I thought I would try to highlight one of the few areas where we do disagree — the idea of very negative interest rates.
Lost Year in Nigeria Under Buhari Leaves Economy on Knees (Bloomberg)
Muhammadu Buhari took office as Nigeria’s president a year ago on a wave of optimism that the ex-military ruler could revive a nation battered by falling oil prices and decades of corruption.
Dismay in oil Twitterverse upon popular U.S. crude trader's exit (Reuters)
Oil traders keep a low profile.
VW profit gains as carmaker battles to overcome crisis (Business Insider)
Volkswagen posted a surprise increase in first-quarter operating profit as the carmaker is pushing steps to overcome its diesel emissions scandal.
Great Plains Energy to Buy Westar Energy for $8.6 Billion (Wall Street Journal)
Missouri-based Great Plains Energy Inc. on Tuesday said it agreed to buy Kansas’ Westar Energy Inc. for roughly $8.6 billion, a major consolidation in the utilities sector that the companies hope will lead to more controlled costs and consumer rates.
China Buying Sparks Bitcoin Surge (Wall Street Journal)
Chinese investors are pumping up bitcoin again, sending prices up nearly 16% in the past four days, just two years after the country was at the center of a boom and bust in the crypto-currency.
Goldman Sachs raises odds of China share inclusion in MSCI indexes to 70 percent (Business Insider)
Goldman Sachs has increased the probability that MSCI will include mainland Chinese shares in its indexes to 70 percent, citing recent steps taken by Beijing to remove obstacles for global money managers to invest in the country's equity markets.
HSBC Tightens Hong Kong Safe-Deposit Box Rules to Boost Defenses (Bloomberg)
HSBC Holdings Plc is strengthening its oversight of its safe-deposit boxes in Hong Kong as the U.K. bank moves to bolster its defenses against financial crimes.
Politics
U.S. Election's Anti-Trade Tone Tops Worries of Emerging Countries (Bloomberg View)
For some time, tighter monetary policy by the U.S. Federal Reserve was perceived as the largest external economic threat to emerging countries, especially by those countries themselves.
Judging from discussions with officials from those nations, as well as private-sector participants, this may no longer be the case. Another concern — the anti-globalization and anti-trade rhetoric of the U.S. presidential election — has pushed worries about the Fed to the No. 2 slot, for both good and bad reasons.
Donald Trump Soured on a Deal, and Hong Kong Partners Became Litigants (NY Times)
Donald J. Trump, who has made reversing America’s trade imbalance a pillar of his campaign, often portrays himself as uniquely capable of wringing concessions out of China through hard-nosed business tactics he has honed over the years.
Technology
A Robot Can Help Teach You Spanish (PSFK)
Tega is a smartphone-based socially assistive robot developed in the MIT Media Lab. Teachers insert Android-based tablets into Tega’s furry face, which power the robot’s interactions and movements. Onboard speakers and external cameras mirror emotional responses like excitement.
Will Robo-Ubers Kill Car Ownership? (Scientific American)
No question about it: self-driving cars are big news. Already a long list of car models—from Honda, Volvo, GM, Ford, Audi, Mercedes, Tesla, and others—automate some aspects of driving. They offer smart cruise control that goes all the way down to 0 mph, meaning they can drive automatically in stop-and-go traffic, braking and accelerating without ever risking a collision. They can change lanes for you—or stay in the lane for you. They can self-parallel park or head-in park. About the only driving they can't yet do themselves is make turns.
Health and Life Sciences
Genetic Testing For Cancer Risk Is On The Rise But Is It Smart? (Forbes)
At the upcoming meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncologists (ASCO), more than 150 presentations are planned on recent discoveries about how genes may predict cancer. The presenters range from health research luminaries like the Mayo Clinic to for-profit companies such as Myriad Genetics. The data from the closely watched conference will no doubt fuel the growing trend of healthy people getting tested to determine their future risk of developing cancer—and the resulting questions about who really needs to undergo such testing.
Vaccines might be able to stop Alzheimer’s plaques from forming (New Scientist)
Our brain’s defence against invading microbes could cause Alzheimer’s disease – which suggests that vaccination could prevent the condition.
Alzheimer’s disease has long been linked to the accumulation of sticky plaques of beta-amyloid proteins in the brain, but the function of plaques has remained unclear. “Does it play a role in the brain, or is it just garbage that accumulates,” asks Rudolph Tanzi of Harvard Medical School.
Life on the Home Planet
Mafia Expert Roberto Saviano Denounces London As “The Most Corrupt Place On Earth” (Forbes)
Roberto Saviano, the mafia expert, has described London as the most corrupt place on the planet. The investigative journalist made his name by exposing the practices of the infamous Camorra clan centered in the Italian city of Naples.
The Rich Aren’t Fleeing Higher Taxes After All (TIME)
Now a new study by researchers at Stanford University and the Treasury Department suggests those arguments may be a bluff by wealthy residents who don’t want to pay–the fiscal equivalent of your Facebook friends claiming they’ll “move to Canada” if their chosen candidate doesn’t win the White House.
