Wednesday January 20 2016 Housing and Economic stories

TOP STORIES:

Arch Coal files for bankruptcy - (www.reuters.com)  Arch Coal, the second-largest U.S. coal miner, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday with a plan to cut $4.5 billion in debt from its balance sheet in the midst of a prolonged downturn in the coal industry. Missouri-based Arch Coal has been saddled with debt since its $3.4 billion acquisition of International Coal Group in 2011, which came at the peak of coal prices. A subsequent sharp drop in prices, stricter pollution controls and increasing competition from natural gas has made it difficult for heavily indebted producers like Arch Coal to overhaul their balance sheets. Arch said on Monday it has an agreement with more than 50 percent of its first-lien lenders for its debt-cutting plan and enough capital to run its operations smoothly throughout the restructuring process.

MIDEAST STOCKS-Saudi sinks to four-year low; Egypt mixed - (www.reuters.com) Jan 11 Saudi Arabia's stock market extended losses on Monday to reach a new four-year low as investors sold off ahead of earnings season, while Egypt's market was mixed in thin trade. Saudi's bourse was down 1.2 percent at 6,020 points as of 0900 GMT after briefly breaching the critical 6,000 level. It has fallen 12.8 percent this year and hit its lowest level since October 2011 in early trade. "Technical indicators show the index is oversold but remains in a downtrend, a break below 6,000 could trigger further declines" said a note by Saudi's Riyad Capital. The banking sector fell 0.6 percent, taking its losses to 9.8 percent in 2016. National Commercial Bank (NCB), the largest bank by assets, dropped 2.2 percent and Bank Albilad slumped 4.1 percent.

China’s Hunger for Commodities Wanes, and Pain Spreads Among Producers - (www.nytimes.com) Chile is expanding its largest open-pit copper mine below the northern desert to dig up 1.7 billion additional tons of minerals, even as metal prices plummet around the globe. India is building railroad lines that crisscross the country to connect underused coal mines with growing urban populations, threatening to dump more resources into an already glutted market. Australia is increasing natural gas production by roughly 150 percent over the next four years, as energy companies build half a dozen export terminals to serve dwindling demand. Across the commodities landscape, this worrisome mismatch mainly traces back to the same source: China.

Chaos and Violence: How New Year's Eve in Cologne Has Changed Germany - (www.spiegel.de) A lot happened on New Year's Eve in Cologne, much of it contradictory, much of it real, much of it imagined. Some was happenstance, some was exaggerated and much of it was horrifying. In its entirety, the events of Cologne on New Year's Eve and in the days that followed adhered to a script that many had feared would come true even before it actually did. The fears of both immigration supporters and virulent xenophobes came true. The fears of Pegida people and refugee helpers; the fears of unknown women and of Chancellor Angela Merkel. Even Donald Trump, the brash Republican presidential candidate in the US, felt it necessary to comment. Germany, he trumpeted, "is going through massive attacks to its people by the migrants allowed to enter the country." For some, the events finally bring to light what they have always been saying: that too many foreigners in the country bring too many problems along with them. 

Hong Kong Protesters Seek Answers From China on Bookseller - (www.bloomberg.com) Hong Kong protesters fearful of greater Chinese interference in local affairs rallied Sunday to demand answers about a missing bookseller, even after the man’s wife said he urged people stay home. Thousands marched from Hong Kong’s government center to the Beijing government’s liaison office, where they called on authorities to provide information about Lee Bo and four other missing people who published and sold books critical of the ruling Communist Party. Lee’s disappearance, which was reported Jan. 1, has reignited debate about party influence in Hong Kong, a former British colony that enjoys independent courts and freedom of expression under the terms of its return to China.

OTHER STORIES:

China forex regulator says will ramp up risk control efforts - (www.reuters.com)
Currency Devaluations by Asian Tigers Could Hinder Global Growth - (www.nytimes.com)
California regulators weigh measures to curb giant methane leak - (www.reuters.com)
Germany's Merkel toughens tone on migrants as protesters gather - (www.bloomberg.com)

Tensions High on Korean Border as North Raises Threat of War - (www.bloomberg.com)
Vietnam accuses China of threatening regional air safety - (www.bbc.com)
Saudi Arabia may take more measures against Iran in execution row: foreign minister