Restaurant Chains Get Burned by Overexpansion,
New Rivals - (www.wsj.com) Glut
of eateries, competitors offering prepared meals-to-go create pileup of
business casualties. The U.S. is having one of its biggest restaurant shakeouts
in years, as an oversupply of eateries and new rivals offering prepared meals
to go claim what is expected to be a growing number of casualties. In one
recent week alone, three restaurant companies filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection, including Così Inc.;
Rita Restaurant Corp., parent of the Don Pablo chain, and Garden Fresh Corp.,
which operates Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes. At least five other
restaurant operators have filed for court protection this year, with
restructuring plans that call for restaurant closures.
Why
Italy’s Banking Crisis is Spiraling to Heck - (www.wolfstreet.com) Things
have got so serious in Italy that the only two things propping up the country’s
crumbling banking sector — apart from the last few remaining crumbs of public
faith in the system — are two inadequately capitalized bad bank funds, Atlante
I and the imaginatively named Atlante II. Both funds are operated by a deeply
opaque Luxembourg-based private firm called Quaestio SGR. The firm is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Quaestio Holding S.A, which is itself jointly owned by a
bizarre mishmash of organizations, including Fondazione Cariplo (37.65%), an
influential “charitable” banking foundation; Fondazione Cassa dei Risparmi di
Forlì (6.75%), a regional savings bank; Cassa Italiana di Previdenza e
Assistenza dei Geometri liberi professionisti (18%), a bank for professional
freelance surveyors (no, seriously); Locke S.r.l. (22%), an obscure Milan-based
holding company; and Direzione Generale Opere Don
Bosco (15.60%),
a Roman Catholic religious institute. No surprises there.
Greece's lenders to launch new review as Athens
digs in on debt relief - (www.bloomberg.com) Greece
and its creditors start a fresh round of talks this week on reforming its labor
market, a tricky task for a leftist government sliding in opinion polls but
needed if the recession-hit state can ever win debt relief. Prime Minister
Alexis Tsipras was re-elected a year ago promising to fight to revive
collective bargaining and resist reforms that may lower the minimum wage. But
he also needs a swift conclusion of the review to achieve Athens's primary goal
of restructuring a mountain of debt, the highest in the euro zone, and
mollifying an increasingly jaded public worn by years of austerity and
unemployment. Some opinion polls show Tsipras trailing opposition conservatives
by up to 10 points, so the pressure is on for him to deliver.
Ecuador
cuts Julian Assange's internet access: WikiLeaks - (www.reuters.com) Anti-secrecy
group WikiLeaks said on Monday that its founder Julian Assange's internet was
shut down by the government of Ecuador, deflecting blame from the U.S. or
British governments which have sparred with Assange for releasing sensitive
material. "We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assange's internet access
Saturday, 5 pm GMT, shortly after publication of (Hillary) Clinton's Goldman
Sachs speechs (sic)," the statement from WikiLeaks said. Assange has lived
and worked in Ecuador's London embassy since June 2012, having been granted
asylum there after a British court ordered him extradited to Sweden to face
questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female WikiLeaks
supporters.
Market
Myth Shattered: Ned Davis Warns "There's No More Cash On The
Sidelines" - (www.zerohedge.com) While
the "cash on the sidelines" myth has infuriated
many,
it remains a staple excuse for why there's always a buying opportunity in
stocks when the market dips. However, as Ned Davis Research warns "we can't find much cash on the
sidelines... and when we do it seems mostly offset by debt/liabilities," crushing
yet another pillar of strength for stocks.
Saudi Bank Stress Builds as Kingdom’s Cash Injection Falls Short - (www.bloomberg.com)
May Urged to Reveal Brexit Strategy as Lawmakers Push for Vote - (www.bloomberg.com)
Merkel Calls Brexit ‘Deep Cut,’ Says EU Must Work Together - (www.bloomberg.com)
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