Financial Markets and Economy
‘Irrepressible’ Air Travel Defies Global Economic Growth Slump (Benchmark, Bloomberg)
For all the world’s economic malaise, there’s a bright spot above the clouds: Airline passenger traffic grew 6.4 percent last year, the most in five years.
Germans and Austrians Protest E.U. Trade Talks With U.S. and Canada (NY Times)
BERLIN — Hundreds of thousands of people rallied across Germany and Austria on Saturday to urge their governments not to sign new agreements being negotiated for European Union trade deals with the United States and Canada.
Oil is setting up for a monster rally (Business Insider)
In a note out Tuesday, Savita Subramanian, the head of US equity and quant strategy at BAML, said the bank had upgraded the sector to "Overweight" from "Market weight," with the expectation that it will outperform the S&P 500.
Danes Love Their High Taxes (Benchmark, Bloomberg)
Its citizens pay some of the highest taxes in the world, so an administration that promises to slash them should be on to the political equivalent of a slam dunk.
Markets Have Become More Dependent on Central Banks, Says BIS (The Wall Street Journal)
ZURICH—Recent developments in financial markets underscore how dependent they have become on central banks, the chief economist of the Bank for International Settlements said Sunday.
Warning Indicator for China Banking Stress Climbs to Record (Bloomberg)
A warning indicator for banking stress rose to a record in China in the first quarter, underscoring risks to the nation and the world from a rapid build-up of Chinese corporate debt.
What $100 Can Buy, State by State (NY Times)
Spend enough time traveling around the United States and you’re bound to notice a dramatic variation in what a dollar can buy.
Merkel’s Refugee Policies Put to Latest Electoral Test in Berlin (Bloomberg)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s refugee policy is facing its second electoral test within weeks as Berlin voters cast their ballots Sunday for a new city government.
The Standoff Between Big Oil and Big Corn (NY Times)
A decade ago, lawmakers in Washington tried to address a trifecta of thorny challenges with one simple fix that has turned out to be anything but easy to assess.
Central bankers group issues stark warning on world economy (The Guardian)
Financial markets have coped well with the Brexit vote and other potentially disruptive political developments but asset prices may be running too high and the risks to market stability are growing, a report has warned.
Nothing special: MBAs are no longer prized by employers (The Economist)
FINDING a competitive edge is an obsession for those looking to take an MBA. Prospective students spend hours researching the minute details that will take their application from the middle of the pile to the top, and land them a place at a business school that promises plentiful rewards.
Horseman Capital Ready For Bear; Pares Back China Shorts, Details Bet Against Consumer Staples (Value Walk)
Horseman Capital Management, the $2.5 billion fund manager whose Horseman Global fund was up 31.26% in 2008, once again has its long / short dial set for bear as they wait for a coming “capitulation.”
The innovation game (The Economist)
WHICH is the world’s most innovative country? Answering this question is the aim of the annual Global Innovation Index and a related report, which were published this morning by Cornell University, INSEAD, a business school, and the World Intellectual Property Organisation.
The SEC's Former Top "HFT Expert" Joins HFT Titan Citadel (Zero Hedge)
Last April, we commented on the most blatant (pre) revolving door we had ever seen at the SEC (and there have been many): the departure of the SEC's head HFT investigator, Gregg Berman, who during his tenure at the agency (whose alleged purpose is to keep the "market" fair, efficient and unmanipulated) did everything in his power to draw attention away from HFTs. He did that, for example, by blaming Waddell and Reed for the May 2010 flash crash.
Left behind (The Economist)
IT HAS been a week since Mohammed Sani moved to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital. A scrawny 22-year old from Kebbi State in the north-west, he came looking for work. He has certainly found it.
Companies
Profits overboard (The Economist)
THE collapse of Hanjin Shipping, a South Korean container line, on August 31st brought home the extent of the storm in shipping. The firm’s bankruptcy filing left 66 ships, carrying goods worth $14.5 billion, stranded at sea.
Politics
A Trump Empire Built on Inside Connections and $885 Million in Tax Breaks (NY Times)
The way Donald J. Trump tells it, his first solo project as a real estate developer, the conversion of a faded railroad hotel on 42nd Street into the sleek, 30-story Grand Hyatt, was a triumph from the very beginning.
How deplorable are Trump supporters? (The Economist)
IN HER defence, Hillary Clinton did warn that she would be “grossly generalistic” before she began. “You can put half of Trump supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables”, the Democratic nominee for president of the United States said at a fundraiser on September 9th, before classifying her opponent’s voters as “racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it”.
VICE News reporter arrested outside a Donald Trump campaign event (VICE News)
Alex Thompson, a reporter for VICE News, was arrested by Houston Police today while inquiring about press access to an event held for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at the Omni Westside Hotel.
Yep, Trump just made another ‘joke’ about assassinating Hillary Clinton (Think Progress)
Friday was not a particularly good day for Donald Trump. He finally admitted President Obama was born in the United States, but two of the three things he said in his very short statement were brazenly false (that Hillary Clinton started the birther controversy and that he “finished” it).
‘Hamilton’ Producer Tells Senate Show’s Tickets Are Too Pricey (Bloomberg)
Florida Senator Bill Nelson wanted to see "Hamilton" on Broadway, but he wasn’t about to pay $800 for a ticket.
Technology
Windows Insiders can send and receive texts on Skype for PC (Engadget)
Windows Insiders who still miss the experimental Messaging everywhere feature may want to get the latest version of Skype Preview for PC and Mobile. Microsoft has updated the app to be able to send and receive text messages on Windows 10 computers, so long as Skype Preview is the default messaging application on their Windows 10 Mobile devices.
Alienware: VR rigs will become the new Wii thanks to laptops (Engadget)
Almost exactly seven years ago, Alienware joined the Tokyo Game Show for the first time to launch its redesigned machines since Dell's acquisition.
Awesome tech you can’t buy yet: Atomizing faucet nozzles, robot hands, and more (Digital Trends)
At any given moment, there are approximately a zillion crowdfunding campaigns on the web. Take a stroll through Kickstarter or Indiegogo and you’ll find no shortage of weird, useless, and downright stupid projects out there, alongside some real gems. In this column, we cut through the worthless wearables and Oculus Rift ripoffs to round up the week’s most unusual, ambitious, and exciting projects. But don’t grab your wallet just yet.
Life on the Home Planet
India blames Pakistan as Kashmir attack kills 17 soldiers (Reuters)
India accused Pakistan of being behind Sunday's separatist attack on an army base near their disputed frontier that killed 17 soldiers, in one of the most deadly attacks in Kashmir in a quarter-century-old insurgency.
Powerful Blast Injures at Least 29 in Manhattan; Second Device Found (NY Times)
A powerful explosion caused by what the authorities believe was a homemade bomb injured at least 29 people on a crowded sidewalk in the bustling Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan on Saturday night, according to the police.
New York City: At least 29 wounded in 'intentional' explosion (BBC News)
The cause of the blast late on Saturday in Chelsea remains unclear. Mayor Bill de Blasio described it as "intentional" but said that there were no known links to terror.
Sea Level Rise Is Already Driving People From the Marshall Islands (Wired)
There may be music in the roar of the sea, as Byron eulogized, but the waves can also bring creeping unease. On low-lying fragments of land like the Marshall Islands, the tides are threatening to take away what they previously helped support: life.
The World Hits A Global Warming Milestone This Month. Going Back Will Be Costly (Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago)
The world was abuzz last week when China and the U.S. formally joined the Paris Agreement. As the world’s two biggest emitters, this was indeed good news and a positive step forward in confronting climate change.
Hate Crimes Against American Muslims Most Since Post-9/11 Era (NY Times)
WASHINGTON — Hate crimes against American Muslims have soared to their highest levels since the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, according to data compiled by researchers, an increase apparently fueled by terrorist attacks in the United States and abroad and by divisive language on the campaign trail.
8 People Injured During Stabbing Attack at Minnesota Mall (NY Times)
ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Eight people were injured during a stabbing attack at a Minnesota shopping mall that ended with the suspected attacker — who was dressed in a private security uniform and made references to Allah — shot dead by an off-duty police officer, authorities said.
