KeNo's Housing and Economic Portal: Monday November 24 Housing and Economic stories

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Monday November 24 Housing and Economic stories

Cold Numbers on G.M. Crisis: A Peek Inside - (www.nytimes.com) If this Monday is like almost every other one this fall, the death toll from General Motors’ defective ignition switch will rise.

Inside a hushed suite of law offices here, 500 miles away from the automaker’s Detroit headquarters, the victim-compensation team led by Kenneth R. Feinberg will post its weekly update of the number of death and injury claims it has found to be eligible for payment by the automaker. G.M. is Mr. Feinberg’s client, paying him for his work, and weighing in behind the scenes on dozens of cases. But Mr. Feinberg has already identified well more than twice as many deaths from the defective switch than the company did — 32 instead of 13 — and is on pace to pinpoint many more. It is an unusual process, intended to show the company living up to its “civic duty” to help victims, as its chief executive, Mary T. Barra, has put it, while also sparing the automaker long and costly lawsuits. But in giving Mr. Feinberg sole discretion to determine who the victims are and how much money they should receive, G.M. could end up paying more money to more people than the courts would have allowed.

And It's Gone: Ukraine Admits "There Is Almost No Gold Left In The Central Bank Vault" - (www.zerohedge.com) Back in March we reported of a strange incident that took place just after the Ukraine presidential coup, namely that according to at least one source, "in a mysterious operation under the cover of night, Ukraine's gold reserves were promptly loaded onboard an unmarked plane, which subsequently took the gold to the US." Needless to say there was no official confirmation of any of this taking place, and in fact our report, in which we mused if the "price of Ukraine's liberation" was the handover of its gold to the Fed at a time when Germany was actively seeking to repatriate its own physical gold located at the bedrock of the NY Fed, led to the usual mainstream media mockery. Until now. In an interview on Ukraine TV, none other than the head of the Ukraine Central Bank made the stunning admission that "in the vaults of the central bank there is almost no gold left. There is a small amount of gold bullion left, but it's just 1% of the gold

Abe Delays Tax Hike, Calls Vote to Renew Mandate, NHK Says - (www.bloomberg.com) Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called for an early election and suspended an unpopular sales-tax increase as he looks to extend his mandate and bolster an economy mired in recession. Abe will dissolve the lower house of parliament on Nov. 21, he said at a press conference in Tokyo, after announcing an 18-month delay in implementing the planned tax increase to 10 percent from 8 percent, he said at a press conference in Tokyo. Earlier Abe ordered his ministers to start preparing a new stimulus package after data yesterday showed the economy contracted an annualized 1.6 percent in the third quarter. The recession didn’t mean his economic plan of monetary easing, stimulus spending and structural reform, known as Abenomics, was a failure, he said.

Greek Bonds Tumble As Bailout Talks Stall On $3bn Troika 'Savings' Demands - (www.zerohedge.com) Can beggars be choosers again? Judging by the drop in Greek bond prices, the answer is no. As Bloomberg reports, Greek PM Samaras is pushing back against Troika demands for up to $3 billion more savings (i.e. cuts to spending) in 2015. "It's crucial that Greek authorities work with the troika to complete the current review,” but with the government in Athens refusing to concede there is a funding hole, the standoff means Greece may miss a Dec. 8 deadline for agreement on the steps required to unlock the 'aid' tranche.

Iron Ore Bear Market Deepens as China Home Data Add to Concern - (www.bloomberg.com) Iron ore extended a tumble to the lowest level in more than five years as declining home prices in China added to concern that an economic slowdown in the biggest buyer will deepen, exacerbating an oversupply. Ore with 62 percent content delivered to Qingdao, China, retreated 4.4 percent to $71.80 a dry ton, the lowest level since June 2009, according to data from Metal Bulletin Ltd. yesterday. It’s 47 percent lower this year, heading for the biggest annual drop in data going back to 2009. The raw material fell into a bear market this year as BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP), Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA (VALE5) boosted output, spurring a global glut just as economic growth slowed in China. Prices may drop to less than $60 a ton next year as output rises further and demand remains weak, Citigroup Inc. said. China’s bad loans climbed in the third quarter by the most since 2005, while new-home prices declined, according to data this week, spurring speculation the cooling economy will weaken further.

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