Succinct summation of week’s events:
Positives:
1) Aug ISM manufacturing not as bad as feared, staying above 50 but barely 2) Brazil cuts interest rates by 50 bps to 12%
3) Aug retail comps and vehicle sales both in line with expectations, we’ll take in line
4) 2nd and 3rd largest Greek banks set to merge with Qatar stepping up with more money to better capitalize the combination
5) Irish 10 yr yield ends the week just shy of lowest since Jan.
Negatives:
1) Even while not expecting much, Aug Payrolls a big disappointment
2) Greek yields spike with 1 yr yield up 1200 bps on the week to 72%, Italian and Spanish yields also move higher, Italian 5 yr CDS at record high
3) PMI’s in South Korea, Taiwan, France, Italy, UK and Sweden all fall below 50, China, Germany and India barely above
4) Evans and Kocherlakota want more Fed easing, still believe that interest rates aren’t low enough and printing more will somehow help the economy. Scary thoughts
5) Bloomberg and Conference Board confidence #’s follow weakness seen in UoM
6) S&P/Case-Shiller HPI at 3 month low and just hair off 8 yr low
7) Euro economic confidence falls to lowest since May ’10.
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