Bloomberg:
- Putin Says Ukraine Talks Positive, Political Deal Mulled. Russian President Vladimir Putin said talks with his Ukrainian counterpart over separatist fighting that’s killed more than 2,000 people were “positive” as the parties began discussions for a political resolution. “Russia, for its part, will do everything for this peace process,” Putin said today after meeting Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko at a summit of the Customs Union trading bloc in Minsk that also included the leaders of Kazakhstan and Belarus and European Union foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton. “In our opinion, it should start as soon as possible.” Poroshenko said on Twitter after the talks that Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan backed a Ukrainian peace strategy to stem battles between the army and pro-Russian insurgents who have sought to break off the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the nation’s east. He didn’t elaborate on what the plan entailed and Putin didn’t mention it as he addressed reporters.
- Asian Stocks Climb on U.S. Confidence, Durable Goods Data. Asian stocks rose after U.S. data on durable goods and consumer confidence boosted optimism in the strength of the world’s largest economy. Boral Ltd. (BLD) surged 6.2 percent as profit at the Australian producer of building materials topped estimates. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., Japan’s third-biggest shipper, rose 3.7 percent on a report it will target a return on equity of 10 percent in five years. Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd. sank 2.7 percent in Sydney after reporting profit in line with its target. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) gained 0.2 percent to 148.69 as of 9:39 a.m. in Hong Kong, with the gauge trading within 1 percent of a six-year high.
- Russia-Ukraine Talks Yield Little Progress on Ending Conflict. Putin Promises Support but Focuses on Trade Issues in Peace Talks With Poroshenko. Face-to-face talks between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents failed to produce a breakthrough for ending the conflict over eastern Ukraine, as Kiev released videos of captured Russian soldiers and rebels pushed toward a government-held city. The one-on-one session, which Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko described as "tough and complex," ended early Wednesday after a day of talks on the crisis in the Belarusian...
- Islamists in Iraq Rely on Mines, Booby Traps in Battlefield Strategy. Opposing Kurdish Forces Say Islamic State Militants Patient, Willing to Take Losses. Islamic State insurgents have planted land mines and other explosives to stall a Kurdish push to retake this town, an unfolding battlefield strategy that foes describe as built on patience, the element of surprise and a willingness to take losses. The fighters borrowed the tactic from their predecessors, al Qaeda in Iraq, who used improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, to prevent U.S. forces from retaking ground during...
- Warren Buffett's Tax Whopper. Obama's business front man finances 'corporate deserters.'
- Helping Ukraine Is a U.S. Imperative. A good relationship with Russia is important, but not if it can break solemn promises with impunity.
- Lawmakers demand vote on US military action against ISIS. President Obama and military leaders are weighing a host of factors as they consider expanding airstrikes into Syria, including the Assad regime’s demand to seek permission first and warnings that the strikes could trigger ISIS retaliation. But they soon could face another complication: Congress.
Zero Hedge:
Business Insider:
Financial Times:
Evening Recommendations- Evidence of direct Moscow military involvement in Ukraine grows. Kiev published videos on Tuesday of what it said were 10 Russian paratroopers captured inside Ukraine, in the strongest evidence yet of the increasingly overt presence of Russian forces in the east of the country.
- None of note
- Asian equity indices are unch. to +.50% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 97.50 -1.5 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 65.0 -1.5 basis points.
- FTSE-100 futures -.20%.
- S&P 500 futures -.02%.
- NASDAQ 100 futures +.01%.
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
- (DCI)/.47
- (TIF)/.85
- (BWS)/.35
- (CHS)/.26
- (BF/B)/.72
- (WDAY)/-.14
- (GES)/.29
- (BYI)/1.12
- (WSM)/.53
10:30 am EST
- Bloomberg consensus estimates call for a weekly crude oil inventory decline of -944,440 barrels versus a -4,474,000 barrel decline the prior week. Gasoline supplies are estimated to fall by -1,435,000 barrels versus a +585,000 barrel gain the prior week. Distillate supplies are estimated to fall by -343,100 barrels versus a -960,000 barrel decline the prior week. Finally, Refinery Utilization is estimated to fall by -.49% versus a +1.8% gain the prior week.
- (RKT) 2-for-1
- The 5Y $35B T-Note auction, German GFK Confidence report, weekly MBA Mortgage Applications report and the (HMY) investor day could also impact trading today.
No comments:
Post a Comment