STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Friday, 12 September 2014

[Tansy_Gold]

[font size=3]STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday, 12 September 2014[font color=black][/font]

SMW for 11 September 2014

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON 11 September 2014
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Dow Jones 17,049.00 -19.71 (-0.12%)
[font color=green]S&P 500 1,997.45 +1.76 (0.09%)
Nasdaq 4,591.81 +5.28 (0.12%)


[font color=red]10 Year 2.55% +0.04 (1.59%)
30 Year 3.28% +0.03 (0.92%) [font color=black]


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[font size=2]Market Conditions During Trading Hours[/font]
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(click on link for latest updates)
http://tools.investing.com/market_quotes.php?
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[font size=2]Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold[center]

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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Market Data and News:[/font][/font]
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Economic Calendar
Marketwatch Data
Bloomberg Economic News
Yahoo Finance
Google Finance
Bank Tracker
Credit Union Tracker
Daily Job Cuts
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Economic Blogs:[/font][/font]
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The Big Picture
Financial Sense
Calculated Risk
Naked Capitalism
Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong
Bonddad
Atrios
goldmansachs666
The Stand-Up Economist
The Automatic Earth
Wall Street on Parade
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Essential Reading:[/font][/font]
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Matt Taibi: Secret and Lies of the Bailout


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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Government Issues:[/font][/font]
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LegitGov
Open Government
Earmark Database
USA spending.gov
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Videos:[/font][/font]
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Charlie Rose talks with Roubini
Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
William Black: This Economic Disaster
Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn
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[font color=red]Partial List of Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 [/font][font color=red]
2/2/12 David Higgs and Salmaan Siddiqui, Credit Suisse, plead guilty to conspiracy involving valuation of MBS
3/6/12 Allen Stanford, former Caribbean billionaire and general schmuck, convicted on 13 of 14 counts in $2.2B Ponzi scheme, faces 20+ years in prison
6/4/12 Matthew Kluger, lawyer, sentenced to 12 years in prison, along with co-conspirator stock trader Garrett Bauer (9 years) and co-conspirator Kenneth Robinson (not yet sentenced) for 17 year insider trading scheme.
6/14/12 Allen Stanford sentenced to 110 years without parole.
6/15/12 Rajat Gupta, former Goldman Sachs director, found guilty of insider trading. Could face a decade in prison when sentenced later this year.
6/22/12 Timothy S. Durham, 49, former CEO of Fair Financial Company, convicted of one count conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud.
6/22/12 James F. Cochran, 56, former chairman of the board of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and six counts of wire fraud.
6/22/12 Rick D. Snow, 48, former CFO of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and three counts of wire fraud.
7/13/12 Russell Wassendorf Sr., CEO of collapsed brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group Inc. arrested and charged with lying to regulators after admitting to authorities he embezzled "millions of dollars" and forged bank statements for "nearly twenty years."
8/22/12 Doug Whitman, Whitman Capital LLC hedge fund founder, convicted of insider trading following a trial in which he spent more than two days on the stand telling jurors he was innocent
10/26/12 UPDATE: Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta sentenced to two years in federal prison. He will, of course, appeal. . .
11/20/12 Hedge fund manager Matthew Martoma charged with insider trading at SAC Capital Advisors, and prosecutors are looking at Martoma's boss, Steven Cohen, for possible involvement.
02/14/13 Gilbert Lopez, former chief accounting officer of Stanford Financial Group, and former controller Mark Kuhrt sentenced to 20 yrs in prison for their roles in Allen Sanford's $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
03/29/13 Michael Sternberg, portfolio mgr at SAC Capital, arrested in NYC, charged with conspiracy and securities fraud. Pled not guilty and freed on $3m bail.
04/04/13 Matthew Marshall Taylor,fmr Goldman Sachs trader arrested, charged by CFTC w/defrauding his employer on $8BN futures bet "by intentionally concealing the true huge size, as well as the risk and potential profits or losses associated."
04/04/13 Matthew Taylor admits guilt, makes plea bargain. Sentencing set for 26 June; faces up to 20 years in prison but will likely only see 3-4 years. Says, "I am truly sorry."
04/11/13 Ex-KPMG LLP partner Scott London charged by federal prosecutors w/passing inside tips to a friend in exchange for cash, jewelry, and concert tickets; expected to plead guilty in May.
08/01/13 Fabrice Tourré convicted on six counts of security fraud, including "aiding and abetting" his former employer, Goldman Sachs
08/14/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout charged with wire fraud, falsifying records, and conspiracy in connection with JP Morgan's "London Whale" trade.
08/19/13 Phillip A. Falcone, manager of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, agrees to admit to "wrongdoing" in market manipulation. Will banned from securities industry for 5 years and pay $18MM in disgorgement and fines.
09/16/13 Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout officially indicted on charges associated with "London Whale" trade.
02/06/14 Matthew Martoma convicted of insider trading while at hedge fund SAC (Stephen A. Cohen) Capital Advisors. Expected sentence 7-10 years.
03/24/14 Annette Bongiorno, Bernard Madoff's secretary; Daniel Bonventre, director of operations for investments; JoAnn Crupi, an account manager; and Jerome O'Hara and George Perez, both computer programmers convicted of conspiracy to defraud clients, securities fraud, and falsifying the books and records.
05/19/14 Credit Suisse, which has an investment bank branch in NYC, agrees to plead guilty and pay appx. $2.6 billion penalties for helping wealthy Americans hide wealth and avoid taxes.
09/08/14 Matthew Martoma, convicted SAC trader, sentenced to 9 years in prison plus forfeiture of $9.3 million, including home and bank accounts







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[font size=3][font color=red]This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.[/font][/font][/font color=red][font color=black]

[Demeter]

1. OR, an undergraduate degree in accruing unearned power and wealth.

[Demeter]

2. This Friday is Euchre Night

so, unless I get out of work early, the Weekend thread will be late.

As compensation, I will offer this hint of topic: it's out of this world! A 48th anniversary blast from the past by way of the future!

Anybody willing to guess?

[antigop]

3. Star Trek premiere? nt

[Demeter]

4. You win!

inveterate Trekkie that I am, I couldn't resist the chance to wallow in an alternate future. As a vacation from the current madness.

[antigop]

5. Hey, great! Do I win a pony? nt

[Demeter]

6. A unicorn! With Sparkles and rainbows!

I may have to delete this picture...it's making me ill.

[Demeter]

7. Cuteness antidote

"Terrorism is the best political weapon for nothing drives people harder than a fear of sudden death". - Adolph Hitler


"In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs it is the rule." - Friedrich Nietzsche


"The easiest way to gain control of a population is to carry out acts of terror. [The public] will clamor for such laws if their personal security is threatened". - Josef Stalin


"I hate those men who would send into war youth to fight and die for them; the pride and cowardice of those old men, making their wars that boys must die." - Mary Roberts Rinehart


"Is it not a strange blindness on our part to teach publicly the techniques of warfare and to reward with medals those who prove to be the most adroit killers?" - Marquis de Sade

proving you can find ANYTHING on the Internet

[Crewleader]

8. Number of aging Americans paying student loans soars -U.S. report

Number of aging Americans paying student loans soars -U.S. report

By Scott Malone

BOSTON, Sept 10 Thu Sep 11, 2014

(Reuters) - The rising cost of higher education is dogging Americans into retirement, with people aged 65 and older still carrying some $18.2 billion in unpaid student loans, according to a federal report released on Wednesday.

While the Government Accountability Office report noted that relatively few U.S. households headed by people 65 or over are carrying student loans, the value of the unpaid debt had spiked from $2.8 billion in 2005, before the financial crisis.

That debt is concentrated in a small number of homes. Just 4 percent of households headed by someone 65 or older carried student loan debt as of 2010, up from 1 percent in 2004.

http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/09/10/usa-education-debt-idINL1N0RB1X820140910

[xchrom]

9. The 10 Most Important Things In The World Right Now

http://www.businessinsider.com/10-most-important-things-in-the-world-right-now-september-12-2014-2014-9

1. The United States and the European Union have agreed to broaden sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis. U.S. President Barack Obama said he would offer more details on Friday. Sources told Reuters that the U.S. planned "to sanction Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, and to further limit other Russian banks' access to U.S. capital."

2. Olympic track star Oscar Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homocide on Friday after being cleared of murder charges on Thursday for shooting his girlfriend last year.

3. Australia raised its terror threat from medium to high over the growing threat of militant groups in Iraq and Syria. In a news conference, Prime Minister Tony Abbott stressed that the country was not in imminent danger, but there is growing evidence of Australians connected to Islamist groups.

4. T.J. Lane, a 19-year-old serving a life sentence in prison after killing three high school students in 2012, was captured early Friday after escaping with two other inmates in Lima, Ohio. One of the prisoners, Clifford Opperud, is still believed to be at-large.

5. Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen's charity will reportedly donate $9 million to help fight the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, Reuters said.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/10-most-important-things-in-the-world-right-now-september-12-2014-2014-9#ixzz3D6CTLlHj

[xchrom]

10. Senator Challenges Zuckerberg: 'Hire American Workers For A Change'

http://www.businessinsider.com/senator-challenges-zuckerberg-hire-american-workers-2014-9

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) had some harsh words for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in a speech he delivered on the Senate floor Wednesday evening that was published in the National Review on Thursday.
The speech attributed President Barack Obama's plans for potential executive action that would offer amnesty to some undocumented immigrants to meetings between White House officials and "the world’s most powerful corporate and immigration lobbyists and activists who think border controls are for the little people." Sessions identified Zuckerberg as a leader among pro-immigration business people.

"Mr. Zuckerberg — who has become the top spokesman for expanding the admission of foreign workers — championed the Senate immigration bill for which all of our Democratic colleagues voted," Sessions said. "One of the things the bill did was double the supply of low-wage foreign workers brought into the United States for companies such as Facebook."

Sessions pointed to Zuckerberg's non-profit pro-immigration advocacy group FWD.us as evidence of the Facebook founder's influence on policy. He also noted a Business Insider report from last year describing how Zuckerberg bought four properties surrounding his home for privacy.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/senator-challenges-zuckerberg-hire-american-workers-2014-9#ixzz3D6CyF4Uc

[xchrom]

11. Venezuela Takes Its Anti-Smuggling Campaign To A New Level

http://www.businessinsider.com/r-venezuela-extends-night-closure-of-colombia-border-to-stop-smuggling-2014-9

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela said on Thursday it would extend an overnight closure of its border with neighboring Colombia for another three months in a campaign to stop widespread fuel and food smuggling.
The measures to stop traffic crossing between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., and limit the movement of cargo vehicles during the day, were introduced in mid-August to combat the lucrative business in smuggling heavily subsidized Venezuelan products.

"We are going to pursue and punish smugglers with double severity," President Nicolas Maduro said, announcing the three-month extension. "They are looting the republic."

Venezuela's gasoline is the cheapest in the world, and many other goods from cooking oil to corn flour are sold with large discounts in state stores, enabling thousands to live off a thriving contraband trade along the border with Colombia.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-venezuela-extends-night-closure-of-colombia-border-to-stop-smuggling-2014-9#ixzz3D6Dcns6i

[xchrom]

12. POROSHENKO: Ukraine And Europe Will Ratify A Pact Next Week

http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-poroshenko-says-ukraine-to-ratify-eu-pact-next-week-2014-9

Kiev (AFP) - President Petro Poroshenko said on Friday that the Ukrainian and European parliaments would meet on September 16 to jointly ratify an historic agreement pulling his country further out of Russia's reach.
Poroshenko also told an international conference in Kiev he hoped to secure a "special status" for Ukraine with NATO during his visit to Washington next week when he will meet US President Barack Obama and deliver a keynote address in Congress.

His announcements came on the same day that the European Union applied its most punishing economic sanctions to date against Russia for its alleged support for pro-Kremlin insurgents fighting against Kiev's rule.

Poroshenko called the planned simultaneous ratifications of Ukraine's trade and political association agreement with the European Union by the two parliaments on Tuesday an "historic moment" that defines his country's future.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-poroshenko-says-ukraine-to-ratify-eu-pact-next-week-2014-9#ixzz3D6E2xMLw

[Demeter]

14. Michael Hudson: Losing Credibility – The IMF’s New Cold War Loan to Ukraine

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2014/09/michael-hudson-losing-credibility-imfs-new-cold-war-loan-ukraine.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NakedCapitalism+%28naked+capitalism%29

By Michael Hudson, a research professor of Economics at University of Missouri, Kansas City, and a research associate at the Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, who publishes regularly at his website. His latest book is “The Bubble and Beyond”

In April 2014, fresh from riots against the kleptocrats in Maidan Square and the February 22 coup, and less than a month before the May 2 massacre in Odessa, the IMF approved a $17 billion loan program to Ukraine’s junta. Normal IMF practice is to lend only up to twice a country’s quota in one year. This was eight times as high.

Four months later, on August 29, just as Kiev began losing its attempt at ethnic cleansing against the eastern Donbas region, the IMF signed off on the first loan ever to a side engaged in a civil war, not to mention being rife with insider capital flight and a collapsing balance of payments. Based on fictitiously trouble-free projections of the ability to pay, the loan supported Ukraine’s currency, the hryvnia, long enough to enable the oligarchs’ banks to move the money quickly into Western hard-currency accounts before the hryvnia plunged further and was worth even fewer euros and dollars.

This loan demonstrates the degree to which the IMF is an arm of U.S. Cold War politics. The loan terms imposed the usual budget austerity, as if this would stabilize the war-torn country’s finances. The financings obviously were devoted mainly to rebuilding the army. The war-torn East can expect to receive nothing even nothing even though its basic infrastructure has been destroyed for power generation, water, and hospitals. Civilian housing areas that bore the brunt of the attack are also unlikely to profit from the IMF’s uncharacteristic generosity.

A quarter of Ukraine’s exports normally are from eastern provinces and sold mainly to Russia. But Kiev has been bombing Donbas industry and left its coal mines without electricity. Nearly a million civilians are reported to have fled to Russia. Yet the IMF release announced: “The IMF praised the government’s commitment to economic reforms despite the ongoing conflict.” No wonder there was almost no comment in the news or even the business press!...The IMF’s Articles of Agreement forbid it to make loans to countries that clearly cannot pay, prompting its economists to complain at their Washington meeting that their institution was violating its rules by making bad loans “to states unable to repay their debts.” One official called its Debt Sustainability Analysis, “‘a joke,’.... In practice the IMF simply advanced however much a country needed to pay its bankers and bondholders, pretending that more austerity would enhance the ability to pay, not worsen the debt trap, while Kiev also used the loan for military expenses to attack the Eastern provinces...Ukraine’s main problem is that its debt is denominated in dollars and euros. There seems only one way for Ukraine to raise the foreign exchange to repay the IMF and NATO creditors rounded up to help Westernize the economy: by selling its natural resources, headed by gas rights and agricultural land...

AND IT GOES ON....THIS IS A HORRIFYING, REAL-TIME ECONOMIC HIT. SHOCK AND AWE, INDEED.

[xchrom]

13. The CIA Thinks ISIS Could Have Nearly 32,000 Fighters

http://www.businessinsider.com/cia-islamic-state-2014-9

Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria now have about 20,000 to 31,500 fighters on the ground, the Central Intelligence Agency said Thursday, much higher than a previous estimate of 10,000.
"CIA assesses the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (IS) can muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria, based on a new review of all-source intelligence reports from May to August," CIA spokesman Ryan Trapani said in a statement.

"This new total reflects an increase in members because of stronger recruitment since June following battlefield successes and the declaration of a caliphate, greater battlefield activity, and additional intelligence," he said.

It comes a day after President Barack Obama vowed to expand an offensive against IS extremists, a plan which foresees new air strikes against IS in Syria, expanded attacks in Iraq and new support for Iraqi government forces.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/cia-islamic-state-2014-9#ixzz3D6ErlXwT

[xchrom]

15. IMF'S LAGARDE SAYS WOMEN VITAL FOR GLOBAL RECOVERY

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_JAPAN_WOMEN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-12-04-59-20

TOKYO (AP) -- Empowerment of women and equal opportunities are crucial for driving a stronger global economic recovery, and for revitalizing Japan, the head of the International Monetary Fund said Friday.

The global recovery is too tepid and too turbulent, IMF chief Christine Lagarde told a gathering organized by the Japanese government and business groups to support Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's campaign to promote a bigger role for women in the economy.

"Even after the crisis abates, we will face grave challenges to growth," Lagarde said.

The global economy is not utilizing women effectively and is "tossing away economic growth at a time when it cannot afford such wanton waste," she said, noting the influence wielded by women, who account for about 70 percent of all consumer spending.

[Demeter]

16. Apple Said to Negotiate Deep Payments Discounts from Big Banks

APPLE DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH TROUBLE? NOW IT WASNTS TO BECOME A BANK...OR AT LEAST, A CREDIT CARD SERVICE

http://bankinnovation.net/2014/09/apple-said-to-negotiate-deep-payments-discounts-from-big-banks/

Apple reportedly has reached deals to lower its card transaction fees with five of the largest financial institutions in the nation as part of the Silicon Valley giant’s to-be-launched payments venture. The financial institutions are American Express, JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Capital One, and Bank of America...The first thing Apple has done is convince these four FIs to consider transactions from Apple’s upcoming payments venture — said to launch with its forthcoming iPhone 6 introduction — as “card present” transactions, which carry a lower discount rate than “card not present” transactions, because of lower fraud risk. Beyond that, Apple has also managed to bump down the actual “card present” rate by 15 to 25 basis points, according to people with knowledge of the talks. Normal “card present” discount rates, which are shared by issuers and networks but determined by the network, are about 1.5%, which means that Apple appears as though it will get around a 10% discount on the processing rate it will pay. Last quarter, Apple generated $4.5 billion of iTunes revenue — this implies that Apple will save at least $27 million as a result of these deals with the banks. Of course, more revenue volume is expected upon launch of Apple’s payments venture.

Reports about the Apple payments platform continue to surface. Re/Code and Bloomberg reported that financial networks Visa, MasterCard, and American Express were in talks with Apple, and, on the merchant side, our report regarding discussions with Nordstrom led to a wave of reports on Apple’s retail partnerships. But why does Apple need a deal with the banks? By partnering with Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, Apple will be able to conduct these transactions and cut banks out of the process all together. So why partner with the issuers? According to Noyes, while banks control the card-present/not-present rates, the networks negotiate the rates with payments processors. The differences can be dramatic. Apple was apparently adamant about getting the card-present rates and told issuers that it would assume some of the fraud risk inherent in every transaction by providing a secure element via biometric authentication (its TouchID feature) and location data provided through an NFC chip. The Apple payments platform will work with all of their cards.

Banks offered the discounted fee for two reasons: for the Apple payments platform to accept all of the cards from the issuers, and for Apple to assume some of the liability by including two secure elements that will authenticate transactions — location data via the NFC chip, and biometric security. This is essentially a wash for the financial services industry: they lowered fees for Apple for the privilege of being included in Apple’s payments initiative, but managed to put some of the transaction risk to Apple. This deal could also lead to issuers making similar security-focused deals to ease the risk, and accompanying compliance costs, with the tech industry. Banks own transaction data. It is not clear whether or not Apple will have access to this extremely valuable data.

On Apple’s side, the deal with the issuers was the “polite” way of entering the financial services industry. We’ve heard of only one one other merchant that has received a price break similar to Apple’s (cough, cough Walmart). Who knows whether Apple’s deals will foster additional price reductions on card transactions for retailers.

[xchrom]

17. US BUDGET DEFICIT DIPS TO $128.7 BILLION IN AUGUST

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_BUDGET_DEFICIT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-11-14-41-18

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The federal government ran a lower budget deficit this August than a year ago, remaining on track to record the lowest deficit for the entire year since 2008.

The August deficit was $128.7 billion, down 13 percent from the $147.9 billion deficit recorded in August 2013, the Treasury Department said Thursday in its monthly budget report.

With just one month left in the budget year, the deficit totals $589.2 billion, 22 percent below last year's 11-month total.

The Congressional Budget Office expects the government to run a sizable surplus in September that will allow the government to close out the budget year with a deficit of $506 billion, the lowest since 2008.

The improvement this year has occurred because of a 7.7 percent increase in tax revenues that offset a smaller 0.8 percent increase in spending. Revenues have been boosted by an improving economy and a tax increase that started taking effect in January 2013 that raised taxes on upper income individuals and eliminated a tax break workers had been getting on their Social Security taxes in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

[xchrom]

18. NEVADA GOVERNOR ENACTS TESLA TAX BREAK PACKAGE

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TESLA_SPECIAL_SESSION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-12-05-27-33

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) -- Calling it one of the most important pieces of legislation in Nevada history, Gov. Brian Sandoval signed into law an unprecedented package of incentives to seal a deal to bring Tesla Motors' $5 billion battery factory to the Silver State.

The "gigafactory" is expected to bring more than 20,000 jobs and $100 billion to Nevada's economy over the next 20 years. It will be the biggest lithium battery factory in the world and is critical to the electric car-maker's plans to begin mass marketing a more affordable line of the vehicles within three years.

One lawmaker said it was the most important development in Nevada since the construction of the Hoover Dam southeast of Las Vegas during the Great Depression

"It doesn't get any bigger than this," Sandoval said as he put his signature to four bills late Thursday night, shortly after the state Legislature unanimously approved the package that includes tax credits and other incentives worth up to $1.3 billion.

[xchrom]

19. WORLD STOCKS DRIFT AS INVESTORS AWAIT FED MEETING

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FINANCIAL_MARKETS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-12-05-23-19

KEEPING SCORE: France's CAC 40 slipped 0.2 percent to 4,430.96 and Germany's DAX lost 0.3 percent to 9,667.69. Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.2 percent to 6,811.51. U.S. stocks were set to open slightly lower, with Dow futures dipping 0.1 percent to 16,949.00. S&P 500 futures down 0.1 percent to 1,987.80.

SUBDUED MOOD: Market momentum is fading and investors are struggling to find catalysts to drive stock prices higher, especially as anticipation builds that the Federal Reserve is closer to winding down its economic stimulus and raising interest rates. In the absence of major economic indicators, geopolitical tensions also weighed on investor sentiment after the U.S. announced tighter sanctions on Russia and a wider military campaign against the Islamic State group.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.3 percent to close at 15,948.29, underpinned by the weakening yen which boosts earnings of exporting companies. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4 percent to 2,041.86 after the country's central bank kept its policy rate at 2.25 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.3 percent to 24,595.32 but the Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China rose 0.9 percent to 2,331.95. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6 percent to 5,514.10.

CURRENCIES: The greenback is staying strong ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting next week. Some investors believe the Fed will provide more clues on the timing of possible rate hikes. The dollar was at 107.22 yen, a fresh six-year high, from 107.06 late Thursday. The euro inched down to $1.2922 from $1.2925.

[xchrom]

20. USDA BOOSTS CORN, SOYBEAN HARVEST TO NEW RECORDS

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CROPS_GIANT_HARVEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-11-19-51-45

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- The nation's corn and soybean farmers will bring in by far the largest harvest ever this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday in a new report.

Corn farmers are expected to harvest nearly 14.4 billion bushels of corn, up from last year's 13.9 billion bushel record. The yield of 172 bushels per acre is significantly higher than the previous record set in 2009 of 165 bushels per acre.

Record yields will be set in 18 states, the USDA said, and 10 states including Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska, the top three producers, have the highest number of ears per corn stalk ever.

A massive harvest has been expected this year as adequate rain and cool temperatures made for favorable growing conditions. The expectations have driven corn and soybean prices significantly lower, but that isn't expected to make much of a short-time difference in consumer food prices. However, since the grains are staples in livestock feed, lower prices could eventually lead to a decline in the cost of beef, pork, chicken and milk.

[xchrom]

21. JUSTICE DEPT. SEEKS NEW TOOL AGAINST DATA FRAUD

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CREDIT_CARD_THEFT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-12-04-06-51

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Working to combat an increasingly lucrative crime that crosses national boundaries, Justice Department officials are pressing for a new law to help them prosecute criminals overseas who traffic in stolen credit cards.

Authorities say the current law is too weak because it allows people in other countries to avoid prosecution if they buy and sell stolen card data entirely outside the United States.

The Justice Department is asking Congress to amend the law to make it illegal for an international criminal to possess, buy or sell a stolen credit card issued by a U.S. bank no matter where in the world the transaction occurs.

Though prosecutors do have existing tools and have brought international cybertheft cases in the past year, the Justice Department says a new law is needed at a time when criminals operating largely in Eastern Europe are able to gobble up millions of stolen credit card numbers and commit widespread fraud in a matter of mouse clicks. Companies and banks, too, have been stung by faraway hackers who have siphoned away personal information.

[xchrom]

22. Government Bonds Fall Around World as Ruble Slides to Low

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-11/asian-futures-mixed-as-oil-climbs-while-pound-holds-gains.html

Government bonds fell around the world as the Federal Reserve moves closer to increasing interest rates, while Russia’s ruble tumbled to a record amid new sanctions. The Australian dollar led a decline in higher-yielding currencies.

German 10-year yields rose two basis points to 1.06 percent at 7:20 a.m. in New York as the rate on similar-maturity Treasuries touched a six-week high of 2.57 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.2 percent, snapping a five-day streak of losses, while U.S. equity index futures were little changed. Emerging-market stocks fell for a seventh day after Chinese lending data trailed estimates. The Australian dollar slid as much as 0.6 percent to 90.43 U.S. cents, its weakest level since March 24. Oil led a rebound in commodities from a five-year low.

U.S. data is forecast by economists to show strengthening retail sales, adding to the case for the Fed to raise borrowing costs. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is meeting with the region’s finance ministers in Milan as the European Union expands its Russia sanctions list, adding 15 companies, including state-controlled energy firms, and 24 people.

“There has been quite a significant shift in terms of interest-rate expectations in the U.S.,” said Mitul Kotecha, the Singapore-based head of Asia-Pacific foreign-exchange strategy at Barclays Plc. “Higher U.S. yields combined with the relative outperformance of U.S. data is helping to propel the dollar forward. There’s a real contrast now between expectations of U.S. monetary policy and Europe and Japan.”

[xchrom]

23. Georgia County Fights to Retain the Right to Raise Its Own Taxes

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-12/georgia-county-fights-to-retain-the-right-to-raise-its-own-taxes.html

The Democratic-controlled county government that’s home to Atlanta is fighting Republican legislators determined to make it the only county in Georgia unable to raise its own taxes.

Fulton County leaders last month approved the first property-tax increase in 23 years to close a shortfall of more than $35 million in its $625.4 million general-fund budget. In a move being watched by credit analysts, six Republican lawmakers from affluent areas sued, saying the increase violates a law passed last year that forbids Fulton County -- and only Fulton County -- from raising taxes.

“‘Why’ is the million-dollar question,” said John Eaves, chairman of the county commission. “We’re one of 159 counties in Georgia. To me, it’s the height of partisan politics.”

The fight is the latest episode in a long civil war between more prosperous, whiter and Republican suburbs in north Fulton County and blacker, poorer and more Democratic areas to their south. The struggle, which includes a so-far unsuccessful push to secede, echoes those in Southern U.S. cities including Memphis, Tennessee; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Birmingham, Alabama. Affluent areas there have worked to divorce local governments and school systems that include the poor.

[xchrom]

24. ’Tax Reform’ Cry Hampers Effort to Curb Inversions

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-12/-tax-reform-cry-hampers-effort-to-curb-inversions.html

Republicans and business allies such as House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce say they know the way to stop companies from changing addresses to cut their tax bills: Reform the tax code.

Yet that call for the first major revision of the U.S. tax system in three decades hasn’t translated into action and won’t anytime soon. There’s no consensus on what changes would prevent companies from fleeing the system. And the inertia in Washington is opening the way to further deals, known as inversions.

“The people who are arguing that this needs to be done in the context of corporate tax reform are basically arguing that we shouldn’t stop it,” said Kimberly Clausing, an economics professor at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, who studies international taxation.

The act-now vs. go-big debate among lawmakers has left Congress in a deadlock on inversions, prompting Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew to say he will decide on possible administrative action in the “very near future.”

[xchrom]

25. Recession Threat Ignored as Europe Profit Revisions Jump

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-11/europe-earnings-bulls-beat-bears-first-time-since-2012.html

In the tug-of-war between investor optimism and analyst skepticism in Europe, the advantage is going to the equity bulls.

Analysts who raised profit estimates for European companies exceeded those cutting them this month for the first time since April 2012, a sign of optimism after corporate income fell in two of the last three years. A revision index compiled weekly by Citigroup Inc. turned positive on Sept. 5 after the European Central Bank unexpectedly cut interest rates and announced a plan to buy securities.

“It’s good to finally see revisions improve as analysts feed the lower euro into their forecast models,” said Lars Kreckel, a London-based global equity strategist at Legal & General Investment Management. “With the ECB becoming more proactive, it seems everything is coming into place for a positive story.”

The Euro Stoxx 50 Index rallied 60 percent in the two years through June and its valuation increased to the most expensive on record in July. Gains outran profits as earnings fell 8 percent last year, rose 1 percent in 2012 and declined 11 percent in 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

[xchrom]

26. Draghi Says Investment Rebound Needs Reform and Stimulus

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-11/draghi-says-investment-rebound-needs-both-reform-and-stimulus.html


Investment in the euro area’s economy will only return to pre-crisis levels if governments work with the European Central Bank to achieve reforms and stimulate growth, ECB President Mario Draghi said.

“A decisive rise in investment is essential to bring inflation closer to where we would want to see it, to stimulate the economy, and to bring down unemployment,” Draghi said at an event in Milan late yesterday. “No monetary stimulus, indeed no fiscal stimulus, can be successful unless accompanied by the right structural policies -- policies that foster potential growth and instill confidence.”

Since June, the Frankfurt-based ECB has cut interest rates, pledged cheap bank loans, and committed to purchasing private-sector debt in a bid to rekindle lending and fend off deflation. At the same time, policy makers are urging governments not to drag their feet on measures to free up labor markets and boost demand.

“The level of business investment in the euro area has only slightly improved since 2008, whereas in the U.S. it is above its pre-crisis level,” Draghi said. “We will not see a sustainable recovery unless this changes.”

[xchrom]

27. Ex-Welder Preparing to Rule Sweden Promises Nordic Welfare Dream

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-12/ex-welder-preparing-to-rule-sweden-promises-nordic-welfare-dream.html

Stefan Loefven, a former welder who was raised by foster parents after his mother abandoned him at 10 months, plans to reinstate the traditional pillars of Nordic welfare he says Sweden has lost.

The 57-year-old union boss is closing in on becoming Sweden’s first Social Democratic premier in eight years, according to polls ahead of the Sept. 14 election.

“The reality is working against the government,” said Loefven, who was raised by a lumberjack and a home-care provider after being given up by his biological mother. “There are cracks in the welfare in such a way that people no longer feel safe.”

Perceived as pragmatic and business friendly while heading the IF Metall union, Loefven is now calling for higher payroll taxes and levies on banks to raise unemployment and sickness benefits that were cut by Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. He also plans to outspend Reinfeldt in building railways, housing, improving education and creating public sector jobs to bring down Scandinavia’s highest unemployment rate.

[Hotler]

28. Palin Family Allegedly Involved In A Brawl

http://news.yahoo.com/palin-family-allegedly-involved-brawl-190208427.html

A majority of the Palin family — Sarah, Todd, Bristol, and Track — was allegedly involved in a booze-filled brawl over the weekend in which the former vice presidential candidate reportedly screamed, “Don’t you know who I am?”

“Word is that Bristol has a particularly strong right hook, which she employed repeatedly, and it’s something to hear when Sarah screams, “Don’t you know who I am!” Coyne reported.

Stay classy Sarah.

[Crewleader]

29. Today's Cartoon

[Hotler]

30. Gee, I don't think I saw any of these people attending any of the ....

9/11 memorial services. I would of thought that they of all people would be front and center to pay their respect to those that died on that day.

[Tansy_Gold]

31. There went my appetite for the next 24 hours.

[Hotler]

32. Sorry about that.