Friday January 29 2016 Housing and Economic stories

TOP STORIES:

[Evans-Pritchard] World faces wave of epic debt defaults, fears central bank veteran - (www.telegraph.co.uk) The global financial system has become dangerously unstable and faces an avalanche of bankruptcies that will test social and political stability, a leading monetary theorist has warned. "The situation is worse than it was in 2007. Our macroeconomic ammunition to fight downturns is essentially all used up," said William White, the Swiss-based chairman of the OECD's review committee and former chief economist of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). "Emerging markets were part of the solution after the Lehman crisis. Now they are part of the problem, too." William White, OECD.  "Debts have continued to build up over the last eight years and they have reached such levels in every part of the world that they have become a potent cause for mischief," he said. "It will become obvious in the next recession that many of these debts will never be serviced or repaid, and this will be uncomfortable for a lot of people who think they own assets that are worth something," he told The Telegraph on the eve of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Here's Why International Business Machines Corp. Stock Dropped To A 6-Year Low - (www.bidnessetc.com)  International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM) has putting a considerable amount of effort into its cloud and software business units for some time now. Its core business unit has recently been taking a turn for the worse. After a series of bad ratings by analysts, and below par revenue numbers, the company finally had an instance of optimism, when it reported a higher than expected earnings per share (EPS) figure, and revenue, for 4QFY15. The company reported $22.1 billion in revenue, while Street analysts had expected the same to come in at $22.02 billion. EPS was recorded at $4.84, compared to the consensus of $4.81.

Shrinking Sovereign Wealth Funds Are Ducking Davos - (www.bloomberg.com) In the days of the commodity boom a few years ago, oil-rich nations and their petrodollar wealth were the darlings of the World Economic Forum. A panel that included Kuwaiti, Saudi and Russian sovereign-wealth fund officials was one the hottest tickets at Davos in January 2008, just before oil prices surged to $150 a barrel. It was a time when crude producers were accumulating billions of dollars in debt and equities, plus real estate, sports teams and other trophy assets. So influential were the fund managers that a group of bank chiefs told them behind closed doors at the Swiss resort to become more transparent, or risk antagonizing American legislators. Now, with oil below $30 a barrel, the situation has reversed. Instead of buying U.S. Treasuries, British department stores and French soccer teams, producing countries are selling, helping depress already-spooked markets. Only a handful of wealth-fund heads are scheduled to appear at the 2016 annual forum of the rich and powerful. And not one panel is devoted to the topic.

Saudi Arabia Said to Ban Betting Against Its Currency - (www.bloomberg.com) Pressured by plunging oil prices and costly wars in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia moved to stamp out speculation that it might be forced to break the link between its currency and the dollar. Authorities this week ordered banks to limit traders’ ability to bet against against the riyal, whose peg to the dollar has been a bulwark of the kingdom’s economic and financial stability since its introduction three decades ago. Officials aimed “to kill this speculative activity over the sustainability of the riyal peg," Apostolos Bantis, a credit analyst at Commerzbank AG, said by phone from Dubai. "Over time, this measure will lead to an easing of the forwards because it will make it far more risky for investors to do this trade."

Fannie Mae Plunges Below $1, Tumbling 70% From 2015 Peak: Chart - (www.bloomberg.com) Fannie Mae plunged below $1 a share, falling for a seventh straight trading day. The mortgage-finance company, which operates under U.S. conservatorship, declined 10 percent to 99 cents at 9:33 a.m. in New York, compared with a peak closing price last year of $3.31.

OTHER STORIES:

Chinese Stocks Slide in Hong Kong as Weak Currency Spurs Outflow  - (www.bloomberg.com)
China Money Rate Jumps to Nine-Month High on Outflows, Hoarding - (www.bloomberg.com)
Asian Stocks Resume Declines as Japan Drops, Energy Shares Slide - (www.bloomberg.com)
Yen Rises as Tumbling Asian Stocks Diminish Appetite for Risk - (www.bloomberg.com)

IBM revenue falls 8.5 percent as strong dollar weighs - (www.reuters.com)
Confidence among CEOs sags as China's slowdown spooks Davos - (www.reuters.com)
China Is Getting Less and Less Bang for Its Credit Buck - (www.bloomberg.com)
Big banks continue retreat from mortgages - (www.cnbc.com)
Kazakh Banks Face Double Bind on Deposit Rule as Tenge Plummets - (www.bloomberg.com)