By Joshua Keating
The buying and selling of territory between states is a lot less common than it was in the days when European powers held vast overseas empires and there was significantly more terra nullius to be claimed….
On the other hand, given how many territorial disputes China is involved in at the moment, a study of how these conflicts have been resolved peacably in the past might not be a terrible idea.
via Why is China afraid of the Louisiana Purchase? | FP Passport.
BY STEPHANIE KLEINE-AHLBRANDT
The wave of anti-Japanese protests that swept across dozens of cities in China this weekend, prompted by Tokyo’s purchase of three disputed islands, has obscured a potentially more worrying development that risks drawing the two countries into a larger conflict: China’s adoption of a legal framework empowering it to expel foreign vessels in disputed waters in the East China Sea.
……More frequent Chinese patrols in the area, along with the Japanese Coast Guard continuing to patrol near the islands, raises the risk of maritime clashes higher than it has ever been. Although the two countries have dealt with past run-ins — such as when the Japanese Coast Guard arrested a Chinese skipper in 2010 after his boat collided with a Japanese vessel — and succeeded in cooling tensions, the current situation is of a different order. That act could be attributed to an overzealous Chinese fisherman. But now, a skirmish between official law enforcement vessels in the current context could prove irresolvable.
via Dangerous Waters – By Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt | Foreign Policy.
By Marc Chandler
Look at the turn around in the current account. In the 12-months through July, the euro area recorded a seasonally adjusted cumulative current account surplus of almost 63 bln euros, which is about 0.7% of the region’s GDP. The comparable figure in the 12-months through July 2011 was a deficit of a little more than 22 bln euros….
The weakness of the euro area economies has slowed imports and several countries, including some in the periphery, have seen a pick up in exports. Growth differentials probably is the more significant explanation, but we do recognize that from last November through July, the euro had declined about 10% on a trade-weighted basis……
While the current account is intuitively clear, the financial account is surprising. As the euro was falling in July to multi-year lows, talk circulated of capital flight. Yet, the financial account showed a net inflow of 18 bln euros of combined portfolio and direct investment.
via Europe’s Balance of Payments account shows sizeable portfolio inflow.
The FTSE 100 is headed for a test of primary resistance at 6000/6100. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates buying pressure. Expect strong selling at resistance, because of the number of previous peaks at this level, but breakout would offer a long-term target of 6750*.
* Target calculation: 6000 + ( 6000 – 5250 ) = 6750
Europe is recovering strongly, with Dow Jones Europe Index testing primary resistance at 260/265. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates buying pressure. Breakout above 265 would signal an advance to 310*.
* Target calculation: 260 + ( 260 – 210 ) = 310
The TSX 60 is headed for the upper channel of its broadening wedge at 725 on the daily chart. Bearish divergence on 21-day Twiggs Money Flow warns of medium-term selling pressure. Retreat below 700 would warn of a swing to the lower wedge border.
* Target calculation: 700 + ( 700 – 640 ) = 760
The S&P 500 hesitated at its upper trend channel. Follow-through below 1460 would indicate a test of the lower channel and support at 1400. Bearish divergence on 21-day Twiggs Money Flow continues to warn of a correction.
* Target calculation: 1420 + ( 1420 – 1280 ) = 1560
By Martin Hesse and Christoph Pauly
EU Commissioner Michel Barnier has asked experts to examine the possibility of splitting up major European banks to avoid future bailouts at taxpayers’ expense. But even less radical intervention in the banking sector could have drastic consequences for the industry, and its powerful lobby is resisting any such change……
[Daniel Zimmer, head of the German Monopolies Commission] notes that Germany has already taken steps in the right direction. Under the new German restructuring law, when a bank is in trouble the most critical parts of the institution can be transferred to a bridge bank, allowing the remainder to be liquidated. In such cases, the shareholders and most of the bank’s creditors would not be compensated. A fund made up of contributions from banks would cover restructuring costs.
But there is a problem with the new system. “In a worst-case scenario, a bank has to be split up into vital and other parts within a single weekend,” says Zimmer. “This is only possible if there is already a clear separation between the two parts beforehand.” This is why Zimmer believes it makes sense to establish the dividing line in advance, in a manner similar to what Britain’s Vickers Commission envisions.
via EU Commission Considering Splitting Up Banks to Avoid Future Bailouts – SPIEGEL ONLINE.
By NELSON D. SCHWARTZ
The boom in American corporate profits, which has far outpaced the gains in the broader economy since the end of the last recession, is faltering.
Giants like FedEx and Intel, two bellwethers of the global economy, are warning of lower quarterly profits because of weakness in worldwide demand. Overseas companies are feeling the pinch, too. Burberry, the British luxury retailer which had seemed immune to a slowdown, is offering a similar warning.
via Earnings Outlook in U.S. Dims as Global Economy Slows – NYTimes.com.
Better Markets, a pro-financial reform Wall Street watchdog, estimates the total loss of American wealth since Sept. 15, 2008, when Lehman filed for bankruptcy, as $12.8 Trillion dollars — almost one year’s GDP. Better Markets president & CEO Dennis Kelleher calls for effective regulation of systemically important Wall Street firms to prevent a recurrence of the GFC.
[gigya width=”576″ height=”324″ allowFullScreen=”true” src=”http://d.yimg.com/nl/techticker/site/player.swf” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” flashvars=”show&vid=30617677&”]
The Euro broke out above its trend channel and resistance at $1.2750 on the daily chart to signal a primary up-trend. Recovery of 63-day Twiggs Momentum above zero confirms. Target for the advance is the 2012 high of $1.35*.
* Target calculation: 1.275 + ( 1.275 – 1.20 ) = 1.35
Pound Sterling is correcting to support around €1.22 against the Euro. Breach of the rising trendline would warn that a top is forming, while retreat of 63-day Twiggs Momentum below zero would indicate a primary down-trend.
Canada’s Loonie is retracing to test the new support level after breaking above resistance against the greenback at $1.02. Breakout confirms the primary up-trend indicated by long-term bullish divergence on 63-day Twiggs Momentum. Target for the advance is $1.08*.
* Target calculation: 1.02 +( 1.02 – 0.96 ) = 1.08
The Aussie Dollar is testing resistance at $1.06 against the greenback. The 63-day Twiggs Momentum trough above zero signals a primary up-trend. Breakout above $1.06 would confirm. Expect resistance at $1.075/$1.08, but target for an advance would be $1.10*.
* Target calculation: 1.06 + ( 1.06 – 1.02 ) = 1.10
I commented a few days ago that apart from a bad case of Dutch Disease — where capital inflows and increased revenues from resources projects drive up the exchange rate and harm other export industries — the Australian dollar is at risk of developing “Swiss Disease” — where flight to a safe haven currency also drives up the exchange rate, destroying local export industries. Professor Warwick McKibbin has a point:
“When a portfolio shift into Australian currency is observed, the exchange rate change should be completely offset so the shock only affects the money markets rather than the real economy. If the shock cannot be observed precisely then the central bank should “lean against the wind”, that is intervene to slow down the extent of appreciation of the exchange rate.”
The RBA should be selling dollars to protect local export industries from rapid appreciation of the currency.
The Aussie Dollar is headed for resistance at ¥83.50 against the Japanese Yen. Recovery of 63-Day Twiggs Momentum above zero indicates a primary up-trend. Breakout would signal an advance to ¥88*.
* Target calculation: 84 + ( 84 – 80 ) = 88
