Thursday, April 07, 2011

Quick Overview

  • Republicans are pushing legislation that would dramatically expand offshore drilling before mandating new safety requirements.


  • The ECB raised the benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to 1.25%.


  • The surge of hot money that has vexed many emerging markets may slow dramatically once the U.S. Federal Reserve begins raising interest rates, the International Monetary Fund said.


  • The U.S. appears to have an off-balance-sheet, unrecorded debt burden of close to 500% of GDP! We are out-Greeking the Greeks -- Bill Gross, PIMCO.


  • U.S. jobless apps fell 10,000 to 382,000.

  • Costco (CSCO) sales rose 13% in March.

  • Disputes over abortion and environmental issues pose late hurdles to a  budget agreement.

  • The expanding dry conditions in the Southern United States are causing pastures to deteriorate and dimming prospects for a wheat crop. According to some experts, sufficient precipitation could salvage the wheat crop. However, others think that it is already too late and that the crop is in too poor a condition for even that prospect.

  • More than 25% of Japan's domestic pork, 18% of its beef and 22% of its poultry production comes from areas affected by the earthquake, tsunami or radiation from the Fukushima nuclear plant.

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