Quick Overview

• U.S. pending home sales fell 4.7% in May and down 14% YoY.
  
  

• Services in the U.K. fell from +17 to -2 QoQ, the lowest since 1992.
  

Quick Overview

• U.K. manufacturing output fell 0.5% in May.
  

• Germany’s industrial production fell 2.4% in May.
  
  

• The USDA said:
• 62% of the corn crop was rated good to excellent -- up 1% WoW.
  59% of the soybean crop was rated good to excellent -- up 1% WoW.
  69% of the spring wheat crop was rated good to excellent -- down 5% WoW.
  45% of the cotton crop was rated good to excellent -- unchanged.

Quick Overview

• India may increase edible oil imports by more than 80 % in the four months to October.
  

• Argentina's House approved the president's sliding-scale grain and soybean export tax plan Saturday, sending the bill to the Senate for a vote. However, farm groups have warned that a Congressional endorsement of the tax may lead them to go back on strike.
  

Insurer Allianz raises pressure on G8 for climate action A climate consultancy, Ecofys, carried out the study on behalf of environmental organization WWF and — interestingly — the insurance company Allianz.
Insurers like Allianz are particularly exposed to the consequences of climate change in the rich world where most of their clients are based. Increasingly violent weather could make it too expensive for them to sell policies to cover business and homes in areas that are particularly to hurricanes and flooding.

Quick Overview

• U.S. unemployment rate remained at 5.5% in June.
  
  

• U.S. jobless claims were up 16,000 to 404,000.
  
  

• The Institute of Supply Managements' index of services fell from 51.7 to 48.2 in June,
  
  
  

• The European Central Bank increased its interest rate from 4.00% to 4.25%, as expected.
  
  

• Retail sales in the Euro area rose 1.2% in May.
  
  

• Services index in the U.K. fell from 49.8 to 47.1 in June.
  
  

• India banned all export of corn to protect domestic supplies.
  
  

• China Customs data show that during the first five months of this year, China's foreign trade value rose 26.2% over the same period last year to US$1.01 trillion. India was the fastest growing among its trading partners. Trade with India rose 70.3% to $24.2 billion, making it Chinas eighth largest trading partner.
  
  

• Forecasters generally reduced the extreme hot temperatures that had been predicted in the Midwest next week.
  
  

• A new Israeli study on rats, using red wine with red meat, has shown that red wine works against some of the harmful substances produced by red meat.
  
  

Quick Overview

• U.S. factory orders rose 0.6% in May.
  

• Producer prices in the Euro area rose 1.2% in May and up 7.1% YoY.
  

• Australia’s retail sales rose 0.7% in May.
  

• The U.S. DOE said:
  Supplies of crude oil fell 2.0 million barrels to 299.8 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline rose 2.1 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil supplies rose 1.2 million barrels.
  Refinery use improved from 88.6% to 89.2%.
  Gasoline demand fell 1.7% YoY
  Distillate demand fell 0.5% YoY.
  
  

• Rising fuel costs prompt Maersk to cut 2,000 FEU from its Asia-Europe capacity in early July.
  

• Dave Tolleris of WXRisk.com said temperatures in Des Moines, Iowa, will top 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) for at least 12 days from July 6 to July 20 with little rain.

Quick Overview

• The Institute of Supply Management's manufacturing index rose from 49.6 to 50.2 in June, stronger than expected.
  

• U.S. construction spending fell 0.4% from April's pace and down 6.0% YoY
  

• YoY U.S. auto sales in June were down 28%
  

• Manufacturing in the Euro area fell from 50.6 to 49.2 in June, the lowest in three years
  

• Unemployment in the Euro area stayed at 7.2% in May.
  

• Australias manufacturing fell from 51.2 to 47.0 in June.
  

• Japan's Tankan Index fell from +11 to +5 in the second quarter.
  

• Manufacturing in the U.K. fell from 49.5 to 45.8 in June.
  

• Australia kept the interest rate unchanged at 7.25%.
  

• The International Energy Agency said oil supplies may not keep up with demand through 2013 and ABC News reported Israel is increasingly likely to attack Iran this year.
  

• Soybeans rose above $16 on speculation the worst Midwest flooding in 15 years will limit gains in U.S. production.
  

• The IMF said high oil and food prices have pushed some developing nations to the "tipping point."
  

• Legg Mason said it will incur further losses to support the net asset value of its money-market funds.
  

• Sugar hit a four months high after a report said that Brazil is converting more cane into ethanol.

Quick Overview

• The Chicago Purchasing Managers' index rose from 49.1% to 49.6% in June
  

• Canada GDP rose 0.4% in April and up 1.2% YoY
  

• The USDA estimated:
  87.33 million acres of corn were planted, down 7% YoY.
  74.53 million acres of soybeans were planted, up 17% YoY.
  63.46 million acres of wheat were planted, up 5% YoY.
  9.25 million acres of cotton were planted, down 15% YoY.
  

• USDA quarterly grain stocks report:
  4.03 billion bushels of corn, up 14% YoY.
  676 million bushels of soybeans, down 38% YoY.
  306 million bushels of wheat, down 33% YoY.
  
  
  
  

Shadow of war looms as Israel flexes its muscle
Martin Van Creveld, Israel's leading military historian, said there were some in the Israeli government who were indeed serious about a military option. But he said the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, would probably not be affected by Israel flexing its military muscles. 'I would be very surprised if the Iranians cave in. I think they are going to follow the same road as every nuclear country has followed since the 1960s [including Israel]; namely they are going to build nuclear weapons without admitting it,' he said. 'And I don't see this made the world into a worse place. I am convinced the outcome is going to be a balance of power and I personally think that a nuclear Iran may not be such a bad thing for the world... Iran is a third-world country. I don't see why people are so afraid of it.'

Quick Overview

• The CFTC has reiterated it has the power to stop trading in futures in emergencies. Pelosi told the CFTC to use its powers and bring a halt to excessive speculation.
  

• U.S. personal incomes rose 1.9% in May and consumer spending rose 0.8%. All credited to the stimulus checks.
  

• U.S. core rate of personal consumption expenditures rose 0.1% in May and 2.1% YoY.
  

• The University of Michigan's index of consumer sentiment fell from 59.8 to 56.4 in June,
  

• Canada’s industrial product prices rose 0.6% in May and 2.4% YoY
  

• GDP in New Zealand fell 0.3% QoQ, but rose 3.0% YoY.
  

• YoY the U.K.'s GDP rose 2.3% in the first quarter
  

• YoY Japan's inflation rose 1.5% in May
  YoY Japans household spending fell 3.2% in May
  

• The total number of people online will climb to 1.8 billion by 2012, encompassing roughly 25 percent of the planet, with the highest growth rates in areas such as China, Russia, India and Brazil, according to a report by Jupiter Research.
  
  

• Researchers at the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke are studying how applying
  gentle electrical current to the scalp can improve learning.
  

Barclays warns of a financial storm as Federal Reserve's credibility crumbles
Barclays Capital said in its closely-watched Global Outlook that US headline inflation would hit 5.5pc by August and the Fed will have to raise interest rates six times by the end of next year to prevent a wage-spiral. If it hesitates, the bond markets will take matters into their own hands. "This is the first test for central banks in 30 years and they have fluffed it. They have zero credibility, and the Fed is negative if that's possible. It has lost all credibility," said Mr Bond.

Quick Overview

• U.S. GDP rose 1.0% in the first quarter and up 2.5% YoY.
  

• U.S. existing home sales were at an annual rate of 4.99 million units, up 2.0% in May. At the current sale pace, this represent a 10.8 month supply.
  

• The state agricultural secretariat in Parana, Brazil said that recent frosts there have cut corn production by 1.3 million tonnes, or 20%.
  

• The International Grains Council lowered its world production forecast for corn by 7 million tonnes to 756 million tonnes.
  

• The International Grains Council raised its estimate of 2008/09 world wheat production to a record 658 million tonnes. This is up 8 million from their last estimate.
  

• A Goldman Sachs analyst said investors should sell Citigroup shares short as losses mount from troubled debt.

Quick Overview

• U.S. New home sales were at an annual rate of 512,000 units in May, down 2.5% from April's pace. YoY new home sales are down 37%.
  

• U.S. Durable goods orders were unchanged. Excluding transportation, orders were down 0.9%.
  

• Industrial new orders in the Euro area rose 2.5% in April and up 11.8% YoY.
  

• Warren Buffett said growth is slowing and inflation is really heating up.
  

• American Express said business conditions continue to weaken in the U.S. and so far this month credit indicators deteriorate beyond expectations.
  
  
  

• The U.S. DOE said:
  Supplies of crude oil rose 800,000 barrels last week to 301.8 million barrels
  Supplies of gasoline fell 100,000 barrels
  Supplies of heating oil rose 400,000 barrels.
  Refinery use fell from 89.3% to 88.6% last week.
  Gasoline demand was down 2.1% YoY
  Distillate demand was down 1.1% YoY.
  
  

• Nebraska Cattlemen and Texas Governor Perry are asking the Environmental Protection Agency to reduce the ethanol mandate to 4.5 billion gallons
  

• India's textile industry is asking the government to freeze cotton exports until the end of this year to prevent a shortage of domestic supplies.
  

• The National Agricultural Statistics Service is conducting surveys in flood affected areas this week to get updated information for next Monday's acreage report. The original surveys were conducted before the severe flooding of the past week.

Quick Overview

• The S&P/Case-Shiller index of U.S. home prices fell 1.4% in April and down 15.3% YoY.
  

• The Conference Board's index of consumer confidence fell from 58.1 to 50.4 in June
  

• The Richmond Federal Reserve's index of manufacturing fell from -3 to -12 in June
  

• India's central bank raised interest rates to 8.5% from 8%, and raised reserve ratio requirements to 8.75% from 8.%.
  

• Stats Canada estimated:
  25.1 million acres of wheat were planted, up 16% YoY.
  15.8 million acres of canola were planted, up 7% YoY.
  2.97 million acres of corn were planted, down 13% YoY.
  2.99 million acres of soybeans were planted, up 3% YoY.
  
  

Quick Overview

• The Chicago Fed’s index of national activity improved from -1.23 to -.96 in May
  
  

• Business confidence in Germany fell from 103.5 to 101.3 in June

Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol
What is most remarkable about what they are doing is that instead of trying to reengineer the global economy – as is required, for example, for the use of hydrogen fuel – they are trying to make a product that is interchangeable with oil. The company claims that this “Oil 2.0” will not only be renewable but also carbon negative – meaning that the carbon it emits will be less than that sucked from the atmosphere by the raw materials from which it is made.

Israel flexes muscles with 'Iran attack' drill “Iran must be stopped by all possible means,” Mr Olmert told an American pro-Israeli lobbying group earlier this month

Morgan Stanley warns of 'catastrophic event' as ECB fights Federal Reserve
Just as then, the dollar has plummeted far enough to cause worldwide alarm. In August 1992 it fell to 1.35 against the Deutsche Mark: this time it has fallen even further to the equivalent of 1.25. It is potentially worse for Europe this time because the yen and yuan have also fallen to near record lows. So has sterling

Quick Overview

• Canada’s retail sales rose 0.6% in April
  

• Mexico's central bank raised its overnight rate by 25 basis points to 7.75%.
  

• India's inflation rose to its highest level in 13 years, accelerating to 11.05% after a fuel price hike.
  
  

• YoY South Africa’s gold production fell 10.1% in April

Quick Overview

• U.S. leading indicators rose 0.1% in May -- better than expected.
  

• The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's regional index of manufacturing fell from -15.6 to -17.1 -- weaker than expected.
  
  

• The U.S. Labor Department said that jobless claims fell 5,000 last week to 381,000.
  
  

• China announced they are increasing their subsidized gasoline prices 16% and diesel prices 40%.
  
  

• Canada’s consumer prices rose 1.0% in May and 2.2% YoY.
  

• U.K.'s retail sales rose 3.5%.
  

• A high-ranking member of the feed industry in China warned overnight that it could face an annual corn-deficit of 400 million bushels by 2010, requiring increased imports. Rapidly increased demand for meat in the Chinese diet is fueling the rise in demand for feed grains and protein, suggesting imports of U.S. corn. Some trade sources have suggested that China may need to begin importing U.S. corn as early as this next year... (Arlan Suderman Farm Futures)
  
  

• Reuters reported that a fungal disease in Indonesia is threatening the quality of 60% of the cocoa crop.