Financial Markets and Economy
Oil prices under pressure on doubts over output cuts (Reuters)
Oil prices were under pressure on Monday due to doubts that large oil producers will reduce production as promised and on expectations that U.S. production would increase again this year.
Shenzhen Stocks Sink Most in 10 Months in Sudden Afternoon Drop (Bloomberg)
Stocks in China’s second-largest equity market plunged the most in 10 months, underscoring the increasing fragility of the nation’s financial assets.
5 Ominous Signs for Stocks and Bonds (Bloomberg)
Watch the fund-flow data, says Eric Balchunas, and you'll have second thoughts about that post-election run in the stock market.
Our Big Mac index of global currencies reflects the dollar’s strength (The Economist)
IT IS perhaps not surprising that the worst-performing major currency in the world this year is the Turkish lira.
China Builder Delays Earnings Again After Keeping Them a Mystery for Two Years (Bloomberg)
The first property developer from China to default on dollar bonds said last week it needed more time to release earnings already delayed by about two years. It’s the kind of treatment bond investors have gotten used to.
Higher Seattle Minimum Wage Hasn't Hurt Restaurant Jobs Growth After A Year (Forbes)
Someone I know had posted a link about a fast food CEO who said that higher business growth followed minimum wage hikes in California. According to KQED, Bill Phelps, chief executive of Wetzel’s Pretzels, which has more than 100 outlets in the state, was "shocked" when business rose after a wage increase.
Excerpts from The Wall Street Journal Interview with Wolfgang Schäuble (The Wall Street Journal)
Wolfgang Schäuble, the finance minister of Germany since 2009, spoke with The Wall Street Journal in an hour-long interview at his Berlin office on Friday. Following are excerpts from the interview.
Germany Could Cut Corporate Tax Rate, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble Says (The Wall Street Journal)
Germany could reduce its corporate tax rate in the wake of similar moves in the U.K. and the U.S., German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble said.
8 men own the same wealth as the poorest half of the world (World Economic Forum)
New research by Oxfam says just eight men own the same wealth as the poorest half of the world’s population.
Can You Build A Startup In A Day? I Tried And Here's What Happened (Forbes)
And there we go! The orders started coming in. Slowly but surely. Of course, for the early orders I relied on Paul Graham’s idea of doing things that don’t scale. I was actually going to the grocery store, picking out all boxes of K-cups that customers had ordered, putting individual pods into boxes from the craft store, hand-writing thank you notes, and then sending them out.
'Significant' oil supply-demand gap possible in three to four years: IEA's Birol (S&P Global Platts)
Oil price volatility is here to stay, notwithstanding recent producer pledges of output cuts aimed at calming the international market, the executive director of the International Energy Agency said Friday.
It Can Power a Small Nation. But This Wind Farm in China Is Mostly Idle. (NY Times)
On the edge of the Gobi Desert, the Jiuquan Wind Power Base stands as a symbol of China’s quest to dominate the world’s renewable energy market. With more than 7,000 turbines arranged in rows that stretch along the sandy horizon, it is one of the world’s largest wind farms, capable of generating enough electricity to power a small country.
More on the Economic Hardship of Young Adults (Naked Capitalism)
In the US, the cost of the aftermath of the crisis has fallen heavily on young people, mainly due to bad policy responses to the crisis that we’ve described at length as it was happening: the failure to restructure bad loans (particularly mortgages) and impose costs on banks and investors, not just homeowners; the refusal to engage in enough fiscal spending, not just during the crisis but in deficit fights during the Obama Administration.
Stagflation And Recession Risk In 2017 (Kevin Wilson, Seeking Alpha)
For those who remember, the era of stagflation in the 1970s was fairly traumatic. There were two surges of stagflation, one in 1973-1975, and the second in 1978-1981.
Chile, Mexico, U.S. Have Highest Inequality Rates, OECD Says (Bloomberg)
Chile, Mexico and the U.S. are the developed countries with the highest rates of inequality, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said in a report.
Companies
Philip Morris jolted by Indian proposal to ban foreign tobacco investment (Reuters)
Philip Morris International is fighting to keep a toehold in India's $11 billion tobacco market, as the government considers further tightening foreign investment rules in the sector, according to documents seen by Reuters.
These Are the Oldest Businesses in Every State (Entrepreneur)
A number of businesses have been around since before our nation was even established. In fact, some of the oldest businesses in the U.S. date back to the early 1600s.
JPMorgan upgrades Indonesian stocks to 'neutral' after row (Reuters)
JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) upgraded its investment recommendation on Indonesian stocks to "neutral" from "underweight" on Monday, partially reversing a move it made in November that upset the government.
Amazon Has A Lot More Room To Scale Before The E-Commerce Retail Market Is Saturated (Amazon.com)
A lot of investors have looked at Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) with consternation, as the company has not only not followed the normal pattern or retailers in general, but it also hasn't followed the pattern most tech companies have followed in the recent past.
Ringling Bros. Shutdown: The End of the Circus Industry? (The Wall Street Journal)
For generations, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus proved itself an enduring family entertainment, a show so popular that its self-proclaimed status as “The Greatest Show on Earth” was simply accepted as a matter of fact.
Technology
China's anti-Teslas: cheap models drive electric car boom (Reuters)
More electric cars are sold in China than in the rest of the world combined, but are mainly locally-branded models that are cheaper and have a shorter range than those offered by foreign automakers such as Tesla (TSLA.O) and Nissan (7203.T).
A handful of startups are launching ride-hailing for children (The Economist)
“HELICOPTER parent” may sound like an insult, but given the chance, most parents would probably opt for the help of a chopper to zoom little ones between school, football practice and piano lessons.
Taxi races show black cabs beat Uber on speed but not cost (New Scientist)
A group of researchers led by Anastasios Noulas at Lancaster University, UK, recently raced to settle the debate over which taxi service is fastest. They ran a three-day experiment taking 29 journeys from different locations around London. One researcher hailed a taxi from the Uber app while another took a traditional black cab to the same destination, with the route left up to the driver.
LG is very proud that the G6 doesn't catch fire (Engadget)
What do you think the LG G6's tentpole feature will be? The extra-tall display? The slicker, not-so-modular design? Nope. If you ask LG right now, it's about… not blowing up.
Samsung's Note 7 probe points blame at batteries (Engadget)
Samsung has concluded that the Galaxy Note 7's fires and explosions were caused by battery problems, not the phone's hardware or software, Reutersreports. The information comes from "a person familiar with the matter," rather than an official source, but Samsung will reportedly release the full results from its investigation on January 23rd.
Politics
Trump threatens German carmakers with 35 percent U.S. import tariff (Reuters)
U.S President-elect Donald Trump warned German car companies he would impose a border tax of 35 percent on vehicles imported to the U.S. market, a plan that drew sharp rebukes from Berlin and hit the automakers' shares.
Donald Trump to hold talks with Vladimir Putin 'within weeks' of becoming President (Independent)
The President-elect and his team have reportedly told British officials they will meet the Russian leader within weeks of Mr Trump's inauguration.
Connect the following 7 dots. Do you see a pattern? Robert Reich (Daily Kos)
Is Donald Trump entrenched in a relationship with Vladimir Putin? Looking at the signs it’s beginning to appear that he not only is, but has adopted Putins political stances.
Red-state Democrats turn against Sessions for AG (Politico)
Red-state Senate Democrats, under political pressure to back Jeff Sessions for attorney general, are rebelling against his nomination to be the nation’s top law enforcement official by citing his opposition to a 2013 domestic violence law that overwhelmingly passed Congress four years ago.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble Warns Trump Administration on Free Trade, Russia (The Wall Street Journal)
One of Germany’s most influential politicians issued stern warnings about the dangers posed by protectionist economic policies and an assertive Russia seeking to undermine Western democracies, underscoring the risk of a rift between incoming U.S. President Donald Trump and an important ally.
Donald Trump’s presidency is about to hit Mexico (The Economist)
WHEN an asteroid hit Earth 66m years ago, wiping out the dinosaurs and 75% of plant and animal species, it hurt Mexico first.
Why Republicans hate Obamacare (The Economist)
IT HAS been called “the most dangerous piece of legislation ever passed”, “as destructive to personal and individual liberties as the Fugitive Slave Act” and a killer of women, children and old people. According to Republican lawmakers, the sources of each of these quotes, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), or Obamacare, is a terrible thing.
‘Kompromat’ and the Danger of Doubt and Confusion in a Democracy (NY Times)
Since the emergence of an unverified dossier with salacious claims about President-elect Donald J. Trump, Americans have debated the ramifications of the arrival of “kompromat” as a feature of American politics.
The Brutal (and Fact-Checked) Numbers on Killing Obamacare (Mother Jones)
Donald Trump and congressional Republicans emerged victorious in November thanks in part to their repeated denunciations of Obamacare. At a rally in July, Trump noted the efficacy of attacks on the Affordable Care Act: "One of the things that gets constantly…the biggest applause is a repeal and replacement of Obamacare."
Germany's vice chancellor, responding to an interview with President-elect Donald Trump, has rejected threats by Trump to put tariffs of up to 35 percent on German automakers if they set up plants in Mexico instead of the U.S. and try to export cars to the U.S. from there.
How Davos Brings the Global Elite Together (NY Times)
Heads of state, captains of industry, prominent academics, philanthropists and a retinue of journalists, celebrities and hangers-on will descend Tuesday on Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum.
“Inflatable Trump Roosters” Are Being Sold In China (Buzzfeed)
It was erected to usher in the Year of the Rooster on the Chinese zodiac calendar, which will begin eight days after President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated.
Davos Elite Eat $40 Hot Dogs While "Struggling For Answers", Cowering in "Silent Fear" (Zero Hedge)
For those unfamiliar with what goes on at the annual January boondoggle at the World Economic Forum in Davos, here is the simple breakdown.
Former MI6 agent Christopher Steele's frustration as FBI sat on Donald Trump Russia file for months (Independent)
Christopher Steele, the former MI6 agent who investigated Donald Trump’s alleged Kremlin links, was so worried by what he was discovering that at the end he was working without pay, The Independent has learned.
Health and Biotech
Experts just released another report urging all young women to take this daily supplement (Science Alert)
Whether it’s antioxidants, multivitamins, probiotics, or good old Vitamin C, the sad truth is that most supplements and vitamins you see on your supermarket shelves are useless – and could even be dangerous for your health.
Life on the Home Planet
44 million face ‘crippling’ ice storm this weekend (Today)
Tens of millions throughout the plains and the Midwest are bracing for dangerous winter conditions that could last for several days. NBC’s Blake McCoy reports for TODAY and Indra Petersons has the latest forecast.
Syrian rebels to attend Kazakhstan peace talks (Reuters)
Syrian rebel groups have decided to attend peace talks backed by Russia and Turkey in Kazakhstan to press for full implementation of a ceasefire they say has been widely violated by the government and its Iranian-backed allies.
Bananas could be on the edge of extinction (Business Insider)
There is a major event affecting the world's banana supply. If the disease succeeds, we could be left without the bananas we grew up with.
At least four dead, 12 hurt in gunfight at Mexico music festival: organizers (Reuters)
At least four people were killed and 12 were injured early on Monday when a gunman opened fire outside the Blue Parrot nightclub in Mexico's Playa del Carmen resort during the BPM electronic music festival, organizers said in a statement.
Coral Bleaching is Killing Reefs. Is the Answer a Great Migration? (Scientific American)
Divers paddle nearby, ready to guide our path or rescue us. Everyone is tense because the water is choppy. One wrong wave could toss the 7,000-pound Nomad into the ship’s stern. Magee, a member of the Nekton mission, flips a switch, and our four-hour journey to the seafloor begins.
Japanese whalers have been caught with a dead minke whale in protected waters (Science Alert)
A Japanese whaling ship has been caught with a dead minke whale on board while sailing through protected Australian waters, according to anti-whaling group, Sea Shepherd.
