Quick Overview

• Federal Reserve policymakers were unanimous in the view last month that inflation, not economic weakness, was their major worry.

• Machinery orders in Japan were down 5.2% in February, more than expected.
  
  
• The International Monetary Fund estimates 2007 real GDP growth:
• US 2.2%.
• Canada 2.4%
• U.K 2.9%
• Euro Area 2.3%
• Japan 2.3%
  
  
  

• The U.S. DOE said:
  Supplies of crude oil were up 700,000 barrels to 333.4 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline were down 5.5 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil supplies were down 1.2 million barrels.
  Gasoline demand was up 2.5% YoY, and distillate demand was down 1.3% YoY

Gas guzzler penalty fuels debate
California drivers who buy new Hummers, Ford Expeditions and other big vehicles that emit high levels of greenhouse gases would pay a fee of up to $2,500.
And drivers who buy more fuel-efficient cars — like the Toyota Prius or Ford Focus — would receive rebates of up to $2,500, straight from the gas-guzzlers' pockets.

Quick Overview

• The Bank of Japan kept the interest rate unchanged at 0.50%.
  

• Nickel prices broke through the $50,000 mark for the first time on Tuesday, leading a surge in base metals prices as traders returned to their desks following the Easter break.
  

• The USDA's 2006-2007 U.S. ending stocks estimate for:
  Corn was increased from 752 to 877 million bushels.
  Soybeans were increased from 595 to 615 million bushels.
  Wheat was reduced from 472 to 422 million bushels.
  Sugar was increased from 1.686 to 1.743 million tons.
  Cotton was increased from 8.80 to 9.20 million bales.
  

• The USDA's 2006-2007 world ending stocks estimate for:
  Corn was increased from 88 to 92 million tons.
  Soybeans were increased from 57 to 61 million tons.
  Wheat was kept at 121 million tons.
  Cotton was increased from 52.4 to 52.6 million bales.
  

• The estimated soybean production in Argentina was increased from 44.0 to 45.5 million tons.
  

• The estimate for Brazil was increased from 57.0 to 58.8 million tons.
  

• Brazil expects the 2007-2008 coffee crop at 37.5 million (60-kg) bags, more than expected.
  
  

• The USDA reduced its estimate of the Florida orange crop from 132 to 131 million boxes, but increased the juice yield from 1.62 to 1.65 gallons a box.
  
  

Quick Overview

• Brazil's main stock index surged past 47,000 points on Monday, setting yet another record, and the nation's currency neared two per dollar.
  
  

• Berkshire Hathaway, has bought a 10.9% stake in Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., becoming the railroad’s largest shareholder.
  
  

• Gasoline pump prices jumped 18 cents in the past two weeks to $2.79 a gallon, the highest since September, analyst Trilby Lundberg said in her latest filling station survey released Sunday.

Robert Fisk: The true story of free speech in America
Sami al-Arian is 49 but he stayed on hunger strike for 60 days to protest the government outrage committed against him, a burlesque of justice which has, of course, largely failed to rouse the sleeping dogs of American journalism in New York, Washington and Los Angeles.
All praise, then, to the journalist John Sugg from Tampa, Florida, who has been cataloguing al-Arian's little Golgotha for months, along with Alexander Cockburn of Counter Punch.

Conservatives for the Constitution
Rejecting the suggestion that conservatives must remain silent because Bush is supposedly one of their own, Viguerie says, "Conservatives must not fail to oppose the massive expansion of presidential powers out of fear they will be aid and comfort to the Left. Concern about one branch of government acquiring excessive power should not be the providence of liberals, moderates, or conservatives. It must be the concern of all Americans who value liberty…"

Representatives okay Real ID ban Supporters of the ban said New Hampshire needs to send a clear statement that the federal government strayed too far.
"It is probably the worst piece of blackmail to come out of the federal government. This is pure, unadulterated blackmail," said. Rep. Sherman Packard, a Republican from Londonderry.

Quick Overview

• U.S. Unemployment rate improved from 4.5% to 4.4% in March with a net gain of 180,000 jobs, better than expected.
  

• U.S. Average hourly earnings were up 0.3% in March and up 4.0% YoY.

Climate change
The resulting document predicts the same sorts of consequences as its predecessor did in 2001, but with much greater confidence and precision, says Camille Parmesan, a professor at the University of Texas who vetted part of it. By her count, the chapter on current impacts alone rests on a review of over 1,000 academic studies, most of them already published—compared with about 100 last time around.

Quick Overview

• China today raised its reserve ratio by 0.5 points to 10.5%, which was the sixth hike in less than a year.
  
  

• The U.S. Labor Department said that jobless claims were up 11,000 last week to 321,000.
  
  

• The unemployment rate in Canada was unchanged at 6.1%.
  

• The Bank of England keep the interest rate unchanged at 5.25%.
  

• The U.S. Department of Energy said underground supplies of natural gas were up 58 billion cubic feet at 1.569 trillion cubic feet. Supplies are down 7% YoY.
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• The Institute of Supply Management's index of U.S. services dropped from 54.3 to 52.4 in March.
  

• Factory orders rose 1% in February following the biggest drop in six years, the Commerce Department said Wednesday
  
  

• An index of services in the U.K. increased from 57.4 to 57.6 in February, a sign of continued expansion.
  

• Eurostat said that retail trade volume in the Euro area was up 1.2% YoY.
  

• The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) said that:
  Supplies of crude oil were up 4.3 million barrels last week at 332.7 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline were down 5.0 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil were down 200,000 barrels.
  YoY gasoline demand was up 1.7% and distillate demand was down 1.9% YoY.
  

• GFMS Ltd. said world gold mine production was down 3% in 06, the lowest level in ten years.
  

The botched US raid that led to the hostage crisis
A failed American attempt to abduct two senior Iranian security officers on an official visit to northern Iraq was the starting pistol for a crisis that 10 weeks later led to Iranians seizing 15 British sailors and Marines.

Quick Overview

• The National Association of Realtors said U.S. pending home sales increased from 108.5 to 109.3 in February, more than expected.
  
  

• Industrial consumption of silver, used in film, batteries and medical devices, grew 11 percent to a record 409.3 million ounces in 2005, GFMS Ltd. said.
  
  
  

• Arrivals of cocoa beans from the Ivory Coast's, were around 920,500 metric tons, down by 2.3% between Oct. 1 and March 31.
  
  
  

• Copper rose to the highest in five months on speculation that mine output may lag behind demand, especially from China.

Quick Overview

• Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President William Poole said the U.S. central bank's main concern remains inflation and he could be inclined to raise interest rates if price pressures did not ease.
  

• New Century Financial Corp. filed for bankruptcy Monday amid a surge in homeowner defaults, the biggest mortgage lender to collapse in the U.S. housing market.
  

• The Supreme Court Monday ordered the federal government to take a new look at regulating carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles, in a rebuke to the Bush administration’s policy on global warming, the Associated Press reported.
  
  

• The Institute of Supply Management's index of manufacturing dropped from 52.3 to 50.9 in March, slightly weaker than expected.
  
  

• Australia's retail sales were up 0.9% in February, better than expected.
  

• Japan's index of business sentiment, dropped 25 in December to 23 in March.
  

• Manufacturing index in the U.K. fell from 55.4 to 54.4 in March, more than expected.
  

• The USDA' said rain is badly needed in most Florida OJ areas.
  

• China announced that they will buy $12.5 billion worth of U.S. goods in May, including $2 billion of soybeans and $500 million of cotton

Quick Overview

• U.S. Personal income was up 0.6% in February and U.S. consumer spending rose 0.6%.
  U.S. Core rate of personal consumption expenditures rose 0.3% in February and 2.4% YoY.
  The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index fell from 91.3 to 88.4 MoM.
  The Chicago purchasing managers index rose from 47.9 to 61.7 MoM, more than expected.
  U.S. Construction spending rose 0.3% MoM.
  The U.S. said it will impose duties on imports of coated paper from China, raising fears of protectionism.

• Japans unemployment rate was 4.0% in February, the lowest in over eight years.
  Japans household spending in Japan was up 1.3% in February, stronger than expected.
  Japans Industrial production was down 0.2% in February, stronger than expected.
  YoY Japans consumer prices were down 0.2% in February.
  

• Canada's real GDP increased 0.1% in January and 2.0% YoY.
  Canada’s Industrial Product Price was up 4.4% YoY.
  

• Inflation in the euro 13 region will probably reach 1.9 percent in March, the European Union said Friday.
  The unemployment rate in the Euro area fell from 7.4% to 7.3% in February.
  Business sentiment in the Euro area rose from 109.7 to 111.2 MoM.
  

• The unemployment rate in France fell from 8.5% to 8.4% MoM, the lowest in 24 years.
  

• GDP in New Zealand rose 1.5% YoY.
  

• India's central bank raised interest rates to 7.75%.
  

• The USDA's Prospective Plantings report expects:
  90.45 million acres of corn planted this spring, up from 78.3 million acres a year ago. (The biggest corn plantings since 1944) (est. 87.98)
  67.14 million acres of soybeans, down from 75.5 million acres a year ago. (est. 69.17)
  60.30 million acres of wheat, up from 57.3 million acres a year ago.
  12.15 million acres of cotton, down from 15.27 million acres a year ago.
  

• The USDA said that on March 1, 07 there were:
  6.07 billion bushels of corn stocks, down 13% YoY.
  1.78 billion bushels of soybean stocks, up 7% YoY.
  856 million bushels of wheat stocks, down 12% YoY.
  
  
  

Updates resume March 31st.

Quick Overview

• The Conference Board index of U.S. consumer confidence dropped from 111.2 to 107.2 in March, weaker than expected.
  

• German business confidence rose from 107.0 to 107.7 in March, stronger than expected.
  

• The U.S. military denied reports that Iran fired a missile at a U.S. ship in the Persian Gulf. The rumors sent oil prices up more than 8 percent in after-hours trading.

Bloomberg Special Report - Phantom Shares
relinked

Quick Overview

• U.S. New home sales were weaker than expected down 3.9% from January's pace. This # is dimming hopes for a rebound in the housing market and increasing worries about the health of the economy
  

Quick Overview

• U.S. Leading indicators were down 0.5% in February, six of ten indicators showing a decline.

• U.K. Retail sales were up 1.4% in February, more than expected and the biggest jump in two years after
  

• The Fed said its holdings of Treasury and agency debt kept for overseas central banks rose $10.79 billion in the week ended March 21, to $1.882 trillion.
  

• Japans land prices increased 0.1% in 2006, the first increase in 16 years. Commercial land prices increased 2.3% and land in metropolitan areas increased more.
  

• The USDA said there were 483.6 million pounds of frozen pork in storage on February 28, 2007, down 8% YoY.
  

• The USDA said there were 732 million pounds of frozen orange juice concentrate in U.S. cold storage, down 32% YoY.
  

• The U.S. Department of Energy said that underground supplies of natural gas were up 17 billion cubic feet last week at 1.533 trillion cubic feet.