Bondholders
Urged U.S. to Curb Russia Sanctions, Fitch Says - (www.bloomberg.com) The
U.S. is holding off on sanctions against some Russian companies because it
doesn’t want to hurt American holders of their debt, according to Fitch
Ratings.
“We’ve heard quite a lot of anecdotal evidence that there’s actually a lot of
consultation with big investors and bondholders in terms of what sanctions
might be imposed by the U.S.,” James Watson, a managing director at Fitch, told reporters
today in London.
“It seems there has been a significant push back on potentially sanctioning
companies that have significant foreign debt.” Fitch has spoken with investors
over the past month, he said. The Obama administration on April 28 named seven
individuals, including Igor Sechin, chief executive officer of oil giant OAO
Rosneft, and 17 companies linked to Putin’s inner circle, such as
InvestCapitalBank and Volga Group. Other companies include OOO Stroygazmontazh,
a gas-pipeline builder, OAO Sobinbank and ZAO Zest, a leasing company. Russia’s Micex Index (INDEXCF) of shares climbed for a third day after
the latest round of sanctions failed to penalize the country’s major companies
or banks.
Marc Faber: We haven't had
the big correction...yet - (www.cnbc.com) Technology
stocks may have suffered a sell-off in the last few weeks, but the U.S. market
as a whole is still set for a dramatic correction this year, Marc Faber, the
market watcher known as "Dr. Doom" told CNBC Wednesday. The
editor and publisher of The Gloom, Boom and Doom Report said that he
personally favors emerging market securities that are still "cheap,"
adding that he had even made investments in Iraq last year. In early April, the
wider technology sector was hit by a selloff in momentum stocks which saw the Nasdaq Composite Index fall below 4,000 points for the first
time since early February. Momentum stocks are fast-rising stocks which can
unexpectedly reverse when investors fear they have overshot and a bubble is
brewing. The Nasdaq Composite suffered its worst weekly hit since June
2012, and recorded its longest weekly losing streak since late 2012. Telecommunication, social media,
and biotechnology companies were all part of the move lower, but Faber believes this
selling will eventually hit the wider indexes, with energy and utility companies seeing
a sharp pullback. Faber reiterated his concerns that equities were
facing a crash that could be worse than the financial world saw in 2008.
Mortgage Applications Sink To Lowest Level
Since December 2000 - (www.businessinsider.com) Applications
for U.S. home mortgages fell last week to their lowest level since December
2000 as both refinancing and purchase applications declined, an industry group
said on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally
adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both
refinancing and home purchase demand, fell 5.9 percent to 333.2 in the week
ended April 25. That was the lowest level since December 2000, the group said. "Purchase
application volume remains weak despite other data which indicated the overall
pace of economic growth is picking up. The combination of higher rates, new
regulation and tight inventory are all leading to a weaker spring market than
we have seen in years," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's chief economist. The
MBA's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications declined 6.9 percent,
while the gauge of loan requests for home purchases, a leading indicator of
home sales, fell 4.4 percent.
U.S.
Lost $11.2 Billion in GM Bailout, TARP Report Says - (www.bloomberg.com) The
U.S. Treasury’s bailout fund lost $11.2 billion on the rescue of General Motors Co. (GM) with the government’s exit of the largest
U.S. automaker, a report said. The total includes $826 million that the
Treasury wrote off in March for its remaining claim in old GM, the special inspector general for the
Troubled Asset Relief Program said in a report to Congress today. In December, the
government had put the loss at about $10.5 billion on its $49.5 billion
investment. The Treasury sold its remaining shares in GM in December, signaling
the end of Government Motors, as the Detroit-based automaker was derisively
labeled by some critics after the U.S. government stepped in with emergency funding
in 2008. Bailouts from the George W.
Bush and Barack Obama administrations helped GM avoid
liquidation and reorganize in a 2009 bankruptcy that has given new life to the
company.
China
Steel Industry Facing Harshest Ever Operating Environment - (www.bloomberg.com) China’s steel industry, the world’s biggest, is
facing the harshest operating environment ever,Baoshan Iron & Steel Co. (600019) said, as a credit squeeze and
overcapacity weighs on the sector and economic growth slows. “Some
less-competitive mills will find it hard to continue,” He Wenbo, chairman of
China’s biggest publicly-traded steelmaker, said today in a web cast. The environment is “harsher than any years in
the past,” he said. The comments underscore the challenges facing China’s steel
sector, producer of about half the world’s steel. The nation’s major
steelmakers had a combined loss of 2.3 billion yuan ($367 million) in the first
quarter, according to an industry group. At the same time, data this month
showed the Chinese economy expanded 7.4 percent in the first three months of
the year, the weakest pace in six quarters. China isn’t likely to “initiate
massive stimulus policies on investment in the second quarter, but may have a
series of fine-tunes to ensure economic steadiness,” He said. The government
may push forward major infrastructure projects including railways and may
implement some “loosening’ of monetary policy to prevent a further slowdown,
the chairman said.
China
to conduct naval drills with Russia in East China Sea - (www.reuters.com)
Masked gunmen tighten grip on eastern Ukraine - (www.reuters.com)
Masked gunmen tighten grip on eastern Ukraine - (www.reuters.com)
Putin
Says Sanctions Jeopardize U.S., EU Energy Deals - (www.bloomberg.com)
Russia says EU should be 'ashamed' over sanctions - (www.reuters.com)
Russia says EU should be 'ashamed' over sanctions - (www.reuters.com)
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