Next Update Thursday (THINKING)

I Can’t Think!
The Twitterization of our culture has revolutionized our lives, but with an unintended consequence—our overloaded brains freeze when we have to make decisions.

Quick Overview

• The ISM’s factory index rose to 61.4 from 60.8.

• Bernanke said downside risks to the recovery have receded, and the risk of deflation has become negligible.

• Ford February US sales rose 14%. GM's US auto sales rose 46%

• The global cocoa market is forecast to swing into a surplus of 119,000 metric tons in the 2010-11 crop marketing year compared with a revised 66,000-ton deficit in 2009-10, the International Cocoa Organization said.

• Gold prices rose to within $10 of their record high on Tuesday, while silver hit a 31-year high.

• (Bloomberg)Russia, the world’s biggest palladium producer, is shipping the smallest amount of metal to Switzerland in 15 years

Quick Overview

• The ISM index rose to 71.2 from 68.8 last month, the highest level since July 1988.

• The International Grains Council has lowered its forecast for Philippines rice stocks this year by 20% to a 13-year low of 1.6 million tons or 12% of annual consumption.

• U.S. Pending home resales fell 2.8 % after a revised 3.2 % decrease the prior month.

• U.S personal income rose 1.0% in Jan. -- marking the biggest increase in a year and a half.

• U.S. consumer spending rose 0.2%.

• Japan's industrial production in January climbed 2.4 percent from the previous month, marking the third straight month of increase.

• Australian business chiefs predicted a patchy economic growth outlook for 2011, with trade exposed industries particularly hit by the strength of the Australian dollar.

• Euro Dollar interest rates are approaching ZERO (100=0). Wondering where the next “big” move will be. UP or DOWN?

• The US Monetary Base is in new high ground.

• Silver lending rate is still below zero.

• Canada’s GDP rose 3.3% following an upwardly revised 1.8% gain in the previous three months. The Bank of Canada could raise rates sooner rather than later.

Quick Overview

• Warren Buffett: "We are not natively smarter than we were when our country was founded nor do we work harder. But look around you and see a world beyond the dreams of any colonial citizen. Now, as in 1776, 1861, 1932 and 1941, America's best days lie ahead."

• Existing home sales rose for the third month in a row in January and they now exceed year ago levels. Sales rose by 2.7% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.36 million homes, which is also up 5.3% from year-ago levels.

• (FT) Northern Rock is poised to launch a range of mortgages offering up to 90 per cent of a property’s value, marking the nationalized bank’s return to riskier lending three years after its collapse and government bail-out.

• US durable goods orders rose 2.7% in January

• US first time claims for unemployment benefits fell 22,000 to 391,000 in the week ending February 19

• (FT) The Republican plan to slash government spending by $61bn in 2011 could reduce US economic growth by 1.5 to 2 percentage points in the second and third quarters of the year, a Goldman Sachs economist has warned.

• (Bloomberg) -- Japan’s public pension fund, the world’s largest, said it may become a net seller of bonds to cover payments in the world’s most rapidly aging society.

• Faced with stiff opposition from Republicans in Congress the EPA will trim costs to control toxic air pollution by 50%. Some half-dozen bills have been introduced this year to block agency regulation.

• A new Reuters report that looked at maternity leave in 190 countries show 178 guarantee paid leave for new mothers, nine have undefined policies and only three - just three - offer "no legal guarantee of paid maternity leave," -- One of those three is the United States.

I’m on strike this week -- next update Sunday

Quick Overview

• Moody's raises flag on Japan debt -- says outlook now negative.

• The S&P, Case-Shiller index of U.S. home values in 20 cities fell 2.4%, the biggest YoY decrease since December 2009.

• U.S. Feb. consumer confidence 70.4 vs 64.8 in Jan.

Why Isn't Wall Street in Jail? Financial crooks brought down the world's economy — but the feds are doing more to protect them than to prosecute them

The mental stumbling block, for most Americans, is that financial crimes don't feel real; you don't see the culprits waving guns in liquor stores or dragging coeds into bushes. But these frauds are worse than common robberies. They're crimes of intellectual choice, made by people who are already rich and who have every conceivable social advantage, acting on a simple, cynical calculation: Let's steal whatever we can, then dare the victims to find the juice to reclaim their money through a captive bureaucracy. They're attacking the very definition of property — which, after all, depends in part on a legal system that defends everyone's claims of ownership equally. When that definition becomes tenuous or conditional — when the state simply gives up on the notion of justice — this whole American Dream thing recedes even further from reality.

Quick Overview

• Palestinians staged an angry protest Sunday against the United States' veto Friday of a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel's settlement policy.
• Unrest in the Mideast is lapping at the shores of oil kingpin Saudi Arabia.
• At least 2,000 protesters gathered in a square in Morocco's capital on Sunday to demand that King Mohammed give up some of his powers and clamp down on government corruption.
• The death toll from four days of violence centered on the Libyan city of Benghazi has passed 100.
• Jittery Chinese authorities wary of any domestic dissent have staged a concerted show of force to squelch a mysterious online call for a "Jasmine Revolution" apparently modeled after pro-democracy demonstrations sweeping the Mideast.

• Soros tells CNN Obama has lost control of the domestic political agenda, Republicans are in charge of domestic agenda and will push to cut services in blow to economy.
• Geithner warns that the Republicans pact to slash the budget by $61bn will hit the economy's fragile recovery.

• China raised the prices of gasoline and diesel by 350 yuan (about 53.2 U.S. dollars) per tonne beginning Sunday.

• Texas is preparing to give college students and professors the right to carry guns on campus.

• (Bloomberg) India, the biggest sugar user, may permit exports of 500,000 metric tons as output tops demand for the first time in three years.

• Victory in the Southern Ocean Day for the Whales
  
  
  It's official – the Japanese whaling fleet has called it quits in the Southern Ocean, at least for this season. And if they return next season, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society will be ready to resume their efforts to obstruct and disable illegal Japanese whaling operations. Sea Shepherd estimates that over 900 whales have been saved this year !!

  
  
  
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• China raised reserve requirements for the second time this year to counter inflation and curb property-price gains.

• Silver futures climb to their highest level in about 31 years.

• Mexico buys another 6.1 mln bu US corn.

• Sugar may be in surplus next year Kingsman says

• Cotton dropped on expectations that next season’s harvest may run ahead of demand.

• (FT)Lisbon insists it has no need of a financial rescue, denying reports that the country is under pressure from other Eurozone governments to turn to the EU for assistance.

• Abbott (ABT) increased the dividend 9%.

• General Motors (GM) said it wanted to explore the potential to export vehicles manufactured in China, with South America and South Korea as initial target markets.

• The Chinese car market has experienced an explosion in demand with a record 13.7 million vehicles sold last year.

• Malaysia's GDP in 2010 grows 7.2%.

• Foreign investment in Russia fell 50% in 2010

• Farmland values in U.S. Midwest rose 12% in 2010
  
  
• The single most important decision in evaluating a business is pricing power,” Buffett told the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission in an interview released by the panel last week. “If you’ve got the power to raise prices without losing business to a competitor, you’ve got a very good business. And if you have to have a prayer session before raising the price by 10 percent, then you’ve got a terrible business.”

Quick Overview

• The U.S first time claims for unemployment benefits rose by 25,000 to 410,000 -- a bit worse than expectations.

• The manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region reached its highest level in seven years last month.

• The U.S CPI rose a 0.4% in January and 1.6% Yoy. Food is up 1.8% YoY, energy is up 7.3%. Gasoline is up 13.4% YoY. Excluding food and energy the index was 1.0% YoY.

• China is contemplating the possibility of cutting import taxes to increase imports so that they can increase the supplies of food commodities.

• YoY foreign direct investment to China rose 23.4% to $10 billion in January.

• The cotton market locked the 700 point limit today -- reaching a record high of $2.04.

• Israel's economy rose 7.8% in Q4 of 2010

• Russia's unemployment rose to 7.6 % in January

• Eurozone construction fell 1.8% in December 2010

• Brazil's GDP rose 7.8% in 2010.

• The FT reports that mints are running out of silver and have started to ration coins. (check the silver lending rate on that page )

• Hanjin Shipping, the world's ninth biggest container shipper, predicted global container shipments would grow up to 8% this year.

• U.S. exports of steelmaking coking coal rose to 55 million tons in 2010, the highest level since 1991.

• Coal will continue to play an important role as an energy commodity in the coming years, with worldwide demand only likely to peak in 2020, Mr Philip Lowe the European Commission’s director general for energy said.

Quick Overview

• U.S. wholesale prices rose 0.8% in January. Core PPI, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.5%-- the largest gain since October 2008.

• US Housing starts rebounded to 596,000 in Jan.

• (FT) As G20 ministers prepare to discuss inflation, Robert Zoellick, the World Bank president, has said food prices are rising to 'dangerous levels' and have already pushed another 44m people into extreme poverty.

• China's holdings of US Treasury’s in December totaled $891.6 billion, compared to $895.6 billion in November.

• (MarketWatch) -- Japan and India on Wednesday signed an agreement to abolish tariffs on about 94% of the goods traded between the two countries within a decade.

• YoY Deutsche Börse reported its Q4 loss widened to 61.2 million Euros from a loss of 33 million Euros. The German exchange said it would buy NYSE Euronext for about $9.5 billion.

• U.S. Sen. David Vitter, (R., La.) said “Louisianans are desperate to get back to work, I love fish and wildlife, but my top economic priority is to stop the economic devastation caused to humans by the moratorium." So he’ll block President Barack Obama's nominee to head the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service until the administration issues at least 15 permits for deep-water drilling exploration.

• (Bloomberg)Drought in wheat-growing regions in China, the world’s largest producer, may persist for a further month and rain may come “too late” to avert damage to crops, pushing prices higher, British Weather Services said.

Print me a Stradivarius   How a new manufacturing technology will change the world

Next update Wednesday

Quick Overview

• U.S. consumer sentiment rose to 75.1 from 74.2 in Jan.

• China’s sugar imports will probably rise to the highest in 16 years after drought and frost in the country’s main growing region curbed domestic production, according to a report from Sucden.

• (Bloomberg) -- Sugar-cane crushing in Brazil’s main producing region probably will fail to rise in the coming 2011-12 season for the first time since 2000, according to Sucden, the trading arm of Sucres et Denrees SA.

• (Bloomberg) -- A global sugar shortage will be exacerbated this year as cold weather in China and flooding in Australia cuts harvests, likely fueling a rally in prices from the highest level in 30 years, according to Kingsman SA.

• (Bloomberg) -- The smallest U.S. beef-cow herd in almost five decades will shrink this year partly because the incentive to expand is waning for a growing number of farmers near retirement age, according to industry researcher Cattlefax.
• The number of cattle in Australian feedlots fell 3.7% QoQ to 737,429, and down 4.3% YoY. Australia is the second-biggest global beef exporter by volume after Brazil

• The UN said the outbreak of foot- and-mouth in Asia is "unlike anything that we´ve seen for at least half a century."

• Mexico's corn crop has been damaged by a freeze. It has damaged as much as 4.2M tons in Mexico, creating new worries with stocks at their tightest level in 15 years.

• Rabobank anticipates US soy oil stocks will end 2010-11(September) at 5.4% stock to use ratio, the lowest level in 34 years.

• PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Google has become a leading purveyor of ads by scammers who prey on struggling homeowners, according to a study released today by Consumer Watchdog, and the nonpartisan, nonprofit public interest group has asked the Federal Trade Commission to stop the Internet giant from hosting the ads.

• The U.S. trade deficit rose to 40.6 billion dollars in December.

• The Spanish economy shrank by 0.1% in 2010

• YoY Japan's GDP fell 1.1% in October-December -- not as bad as feared.

• Snowfalls in China’s major wheat growing regions failed to ease a drought, a government agency said.

• (Bloomberg) -- China reported a smaller-than- forecast trade surplus of about $6.5 billion in January as a rebounding economy and rising commodity costs helped drive a 51 percent gain in imports.

• China imported 364,240 metric tons of copper, copper alloy and semifinished products in January, an increase of 5.7% MoM and a rise of 25% YoY.

(FT) Long view: History supports bond yield fears
When worried about the short-term future, look to the long-term past for guidance

Quick Overview

• Growth in Macau and a bounce in Las Vegas helped Wynn Resorts push its bottom line back into the black in Q4.

• Kraft Q4 income fell 24% YoY.

• The U.S. government ran a budget deficit of $50 billion in January.

• EBay expects the revenue from PayPal to double in the next two years.

• U.S. weekly jobless claims drop 36,000

• Bank of England keeps interest rate unchanged at record-low 0.5 %.

• Japan's wholesale prices rose 1.6% YoY Jan.

• Cisco and Akamai issued weak earnings forecasts

• (FT) Some of the rules on newly policed swaps markets will be introduced after the July deadline, says the head of the CFTC, the main derivatives regulator.

• Sovereign debt fears returned to the Eurozone -- ECB is forced to buy Portuguese bonds.

• (FT) Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York, has thrown his weight behind the proposed merger of Deutsche Börse and NYSE Euronext, calling the deal "very good for New York". (The CME is worried)(Ice broke out)

• (Spiegel) The Swiss vote in a referendum this Sunday on a measure to collect military-issue weapons. The aim is to store guns in public arsenals, rather than at home -- and cut down on domestic violence But it could end a tradition of gun ownership associated with Swiss independence and the legend of William Tell.

• Korea kept the seven-day repurchase rate at 2.75%

• (Bloomberg) -- Nokia Oyj, the world’s biggest maker of mobile phones, said it’s forming a software partnership with Microsoft Corp., a bet that together the two companies can better challenge Google Inc. and Apple Inc.

Quick Overview

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its projection for the U.S. corn end of year supplies 70 million bushels to 675 million = BULLISH 18.2-day supply.
• The USDA estimated world corn ending stocks at 122.51 million metric tons, down from 127 million reported in January = a 37-year low
• USDA projected 2010-11 soybean ending stocks of 140 million bushels, unchanged from the January estimate.

• USDA U.S. Carryout
• Soybeans 0.140
• Corn 0.675
• Wheat 0.818
• Cotton 1.90
• Rice 52.8

• USDA World Carryover
• Wheat 177.8
• Corn 122.5   = 54.3-day supply, tightest in the last 37 years
• Soybeans 58.2
• Cotton 42.8
• Rice 93.9

• The USDA cut by 1% to 8.70m tonnes its forecast for the US orange crop.  Juce yield was cut 2% to 1.57 gallons per box

• Coke said it earned $5.77 billion, or $2.46 a share, up from $1.54 billion, or 66 cents a share, in the same quarter of 2009.

• Corporate insiders continue to sell  more of their companies' shares than they purchase.

• Disney said it earned $1.33 billion, or 68 cents a share, in the period ended Dec. 31, compared with a profit of $844 million, or 44 cents, in the same quarter a year earlier.

• (Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Boerse AG is in advanced talks to buy NYSE Euronext

• (Blomberg) -- At least two members of the Federal Open Market Committee may vote against extending a stimulus program if the pace of U.S. economic growth climbs, according to Pacific Investment Management Co.’s Anthony Crescenzi.
  

Quick Overview

• The UN said that China's wheat crop faces a "critical situation" if a drought across most of its range does not break.
• (Dow Jones)--Wheat futures on China's Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange rose sharply Wednesday, climbing 5.4% due to worries that worsening drought conditions could cut into the country's grain output this year.
  
  
  

• The Federal Reserve should seriously consider pulling back on its $600 billion stimulus program given stronger growth and a brighter jobs picture, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker said on Tuesday.

• Euro zone’s economy grew by 0.3 % in Q3

• China raised rates to 6.06% from 5.81% on the last day of the Chinese New Year holiday to try to temper inflation. The one-year deposit rate was raised to 3 % -- still 2% less than the CPI.

• McDonald’s global sales rose 5.3% in January

• Elwynn Taylor: Dr. Wolter gives La Nina a 50%+ chance of lasting through 2011, for now the likely US corn yield stands at 155BPA, next update is 5 March.

Quick Overview

• Indonesia's economic expansion accelerated in the October-December period to 6.9% on year from 5.8% in the previous three months.

• (Bloomberg) -- Indonesia, the third-biggest rice importer in Asia, is seeking to “strengthen” its stockpiles to protect the poor against rising costs, according to Bayu Krisnamurthi, Deputy Minister of Agriculture.

• Celeres estimates Brazils 2010-11 soy crop at 69.8 MT.

• Canada estimates oat stocks at 2.1 million tons as of Dec. 31, down 31% YoY.

• U.S. consumer borrowing rose in December by $6.1 billion to $2.41 trillion.

Quick Overview

• The US Grains Council expects China to import 3 to 9 million metric tons of corn (118 to 354 million bushels) in the current year.

• U.S. Unemployment declined to 9% in January from December’s 9.4%

• Brazil's industrial output rose 10.5% in 2010.

• The IMF fears rising unemployment around world: The IMF's Strauss-Kahn said some 30 million jobs were lost during the financial crisis, but it was a small figure compared with the 400 million jobs the world has to provide to young people.

• YoY Japan's monetary base rose 5.5 %.

• Indonesia raised rates by 25 basis points.

• (WSJ) Hackers have penetrated the computer network of the company that runs the Nasdaq Stock Market numerous times over the past year.

• Bush has had to call off a trip to Switzerland next weekend because of the threat of his arrest.

Einstein was right - honey bee collapse threatens global food security
Apian atrophy is a more immediate threat than global warming, and can be solved, yet has barely risen onto the policy radar screen. This is surely a misjudgment.
Einstein was not always wrong.

Next update Sunday

Quick Overview

• Paper money is made of cotton -- "intrinsic" value anyone?

• The DOE said:
• Supplies of U.S. crude rose by 2.6 million barrels last week
• Supplies of gasoline rose by 6.2 million barrels, due in part to reduced travel resulting from winter weather.
• Supplies off distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, fell by 1.6 million barrels, a larger than anticipated drop.

• Top Wall Street firms are urging the U.S. Treasury to create an ultra-long bond with a maturity of between 40 to 100 years

• Treasury officials said that the government may not hit its $14.3 trillion debt limit until the end of May.

• (Spiegel) The terror attack on Moscow's main airport last week has fuelled the flames of xenophobia in Russia. The Kremlin isn't intervening to halt the trend that could cause deep rifts in the country's multiethnic society.

• Sugar futures rose amid concerns the worst storm to hit Australia in over 80 years would damage  sugar crops.

• Worldwide mobile data traffic will increase 26-fold during 2010 – 2015 reaching 75 exabytes a year by 2015 due to a projected surge in mobile Internet-enabled devices delivering popular video applications and services, according to the Cisco® Visual Networking Index (VNI) Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast for 2010 to 2015.
  
  

Quick Overview

• The ISM factory index rose to 60.8 exceeding the most optimistic forecasts.

• GM January U.S. sales rose 21.8%
• Ford sales rose 13.3% rise in January.
• Chrysler U.S. sales rose 23% in January

• U.S construction spending fell 2.5% in December.

• A politician in Germany has been sentenced to pay a fine of 1,500 Euros or spend 50 days in jail because he allegedly called Thilo Sarrazin, the author of an incendiary book about Muslim immigrants, an "ass."

• New 30-month high for soybeans, corn and rice.
• New high for copper.
• New high for sugar (July)
• 
  
• Arlan Suderman soybean comments: This year's domestic stocks are estimated to be just 140 million bushels or a 15-day supply; the tightest of the past 40 years.

Quick Overview

• U.S. consumer spending up 0.7% in December

• The ISM said Monday its gauge of business activity rose to 68.8 in January from 66.8 in December

• Exxon Mobil reported a 53% increase in its fourth-quarter profit on Monday.

• EU CPI rose 2.4% in January, up from 2.2% in December

Quick Overview

• China should steadily increase its holdings of gold, silver and other precious metals, People's Bank of China adviser Xia Bin was quoted as saying.

• Japan's industrial output rose a stronger-than-expected 3.1% in December

• (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. cattle herd shrank to the smallest size in 53 years as of Jan. 1, as feed costs climbed and beef producers slaughtered more animals to take advantage of higher prices.

• South Kore will cull 2.9 million animals to deal with the country’s worst outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.

• Merkel says Germany will never abandon euro.

George Friedman on Egypt (Stratfor)
So what we’re really asking here is the geopolitics of the Middle East has been built on the American-Egyptian-Israeli relationship certainly since 1977 — and perhaps before that. Is that about to change? If that changes, it has enormous consequences.

Warning shot for America and Europe as S&P downgrades Japan
Dylan Grice, a noted Japan bear at Societe Generale, said the country's ageing crisis would bite in earnest in two to three years, causing pensioners to run down their assets. The savings rate has already dropped from 15pc of GDP in 1990 to under 3pc. It may soon turn negative, depleting reserves needed to soak up state debt.

Quick Overview

• (Bloomberg) -- Stocks worldwide plunged the most since November, crude oil jumped and the dollar gained against the euro after protests in Egypt intensified

• Spain's unemployment rate rose to 20.3% in Q4 from 19.8% in Q3.
• Spain plans to raise the retirement age to 67 from 65.

• U.S. Consumer sentiment index eased to 74.2 from 74.5
• U.S. fourth-quarter GDP up 3.2%
• U.S. Personal consumption rose 4.4%, the most since the first quarter of 2006

Quick Overview

• Japan’s credit rating was cut by S&P one step to AA-

• Pending U.S. home sales were up 2% in December

• U.S. orders for durable goods fell 2.5%.

• U.S. first time claims for unemployment benefits rose by 51,000 last week.

• U.S bookings for capital goods like machinery and communications gear excluding aircraft climbed 1.4 percent after a 3.1 percent gain in November, the Commerce Department reported.

• South Korea posted its fourth- largest current account surplus in 2010, remaining in the black for the 13th straight year, the central bank said.

• (Xinhua) Quotes at Davos forum:
• "The increase in inequality is the most serious challenge for the world. I do not think the world is paying enough attention." -- Zhu Min, a special adviser at the International Monetary Fund and a former deputy governor of the People's Bank of China.
• "The gap between rich and poor is growing without relent. Global justice is a prerequisite for sustainable development and we have to understand that our lifestyle is not sustainable." -- President of the Swiss Confederation Micheline Calmy-Rey.
• "We are all optimists here, but when we look at the big issues on the global agenda, there is pessimism. We do not want this meeting to be one of despair. You fight possible burnout with renewed self-confidence. This should be a meeting of constructive optimism." -- Klaus Schwab, funder and executive chairman of the WEF.
• "All our efforts to further develop the world economy will be for nothing if we fail to defeat terrorism, extremism and intolerance, if we fail to eradicate altogether these evils which are the greatest danger to mankind."
• "Our task is to turn Russia into a more attractive place for the best minds in the world." -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
• "There is a global economic recovery ... balance sheets are strong, confidence is rising ... We have a glass that is half-empty and half-full."
• "The fiscal problem is very serious. The bond vigilantes have not yet woken up in the U.S. in the way they have in the euro zone. Unless the U.S. addresses this fiscal problem, we are going to see a train wreck."
• "In many of these emerging markets two-thirds of their consumer-price indexes are food, energy and transportation. When these things rise it becomes a really significant social cost." -- U.S. economist Nouriel Roubini nicknamed "Dr Doom."

Quick Overview

• The Egyptian (the world’s biggest wheat importer) authorities have moved to ban demonstrations.

• Sales of U.S new single-family homes rose in December to an annual rate of 329,000, the highest since April when a federal tax credit gave the market a temporary boost. New home sales were down 14.4% in 2010.

• The EIA said:
• Supplies of crude-oil rose 4.8 million barrels.
• Supplies of Gasoline rose 2.4 million barrels
• Supplies of Distillate rose 100,000.

• South Korea's economy posted an annual growth rate of 6.1 % in 2010, an eight-year record high.

• New budget CBO estimates released Wednesday predict the U.S. government's deficit will hit almost $1.5 trillion this year, a new record.

• Bangladesh raised the rice import target to 1.2 million metric tons for the year ending June 30, from 600,000 tons s in November.

• (Dow Jones)--China's grain demand will likely increase by 4 million metric tons a year over the next five years, while supply of agricultural products in China will face huge pressure, Vice Agricultural Minister Chen Xiaohu said Thursday.
  
  

Quick Overview

• (Bloomberg) -- The La Nina weather pattern that caused flooding in Australia and a dry spell in South America may persist through August, curbing corn and soybean output in the U.S. and China, Commodity Weather Group LLC said.

• The Conference Board’s index of U.S. sentiment increased to 60.6 from a revised 53.3.

• (Bloomberg) -- Parts of the Dodd-Frank financial services overhaul face a “potential undoing” by Republican proposals to cut spending, senior House Democrats said.

• J&J said that fourth-quarter sales fell 5.5% to $15.6 billion from last year's quarter.

• (S&P/Case-Shiller index) U.S. home prices fell 1% in November

• British Q4 GDP fell 0.5% --  first decline since 2009

• Corning (GLW) profit rose 41 % in Q4

Quick Overview

• (Standard Chartered) Global GDP will rise to $143 trillion by 2030 from $62 trillion in 2010.

• Justice Thomas said the employment of his wife, Virginia Thomas, was “inadvertently omitted due to a misunderstanding of the filing instructions.”

• Intel raised the quarterly dividend by 15% to 18.12 cents.

• Cotton rose by the 5 cent daily limit to $1.6194 per pound, the highest in the 141-year trading history.

• Amgen’s net income rose 10% in Q4.

• Union Pacific has reported a profit of US$2.8 billion for last year, 47 % more than in 2009 attributed to a 20 % increase in freight revenue to $16.1 billion.

A Tribute to Olbermann: Why He Is Different from the Pundits at Fox News
Really, I want to use this space to say "thank you" to Olbermann.

Thank you for your humor and insight, which was consistently smart and observant.

Thank you for giving voice to the anger so many of us felt during the Bush presidency, when few on television would do so. People accuse you of being "over the top," but when bad things are happening in the government or media, and too many are ignoring them, I don't want political commentators to be subtle.

Thank you for talking about the lies and fake journalism at Fox News when so many of us knew it was going on, but few on television would talk about it.

Thank you for always backing up your charges with facts, at a time when so many television news personalities, especially at Fox News, don't care about facts.

Thank you for having the guts to share your experiences navigating the health care system with your dying father, despite the personal pain doing so must have caused, all so you could educate viewers about the real experiences of those interacting with the system.

And thank you for regularly standing up for what was right, regardless of the consequences. You may not carry the objective legacy of Edward R. Murrow (whose "Good night and good luck" you borrowed for your sign-off line) into the 21st century, but you certainly embody his commitment to journalists playing the role of shining a light on the workings of government to ensure the American people have the information they need to be informed citizens. You consistently labored to urge politicians to act for the betterment of the country, adhering to longstanding American values of justice, equality and fairness.

Thank you.

Quick Overview

• The International Grains Council estimates 2010-11 record-high world rice production, up 2.8% YoY.
• IGC says world wheat stocks for 2010-11 are higher at 185 million metric tons.
• IGC 2010-11 world corn production was dropped 1.0 million metric tons, with losses in the U.S. and Argentina.

• (Dow Jones)--Brazil's 2010-11 soy crop may reach a record after recent rains in Rio Grande do Sul state, according to an analyst at Informa Economics FNP.

• Erik Prince, no longer with Blackwater or its successor organisation, is involved in a multimillion-dollar programme financed by several Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates, to deploy forces to suppress pirates at their shore bases, reports AP.

• China exported 1,575 tons of silver last year, down 58% YoY.
• Platinum imports by China rose 40% in 2010.

• Informa U.S. acreage estimates for 2011:
• Corn=90.9 million up from Dec. estimate of 90.76.
• Soybeans=76.65 million down from Dec. estimate 77.57.
• Wheat=40.99 million up from 39.502 in Dec.
• Cotton=13.34 million up from 294,000 in Dec.

• Spot Sugar Prices 36.25 Up 1.16

• GE’s fourth-quarter earnings rose 51%

• Soybean oil is supported by ongoing concerns about heavy rains hurting palm oil output in Indonesia and Malaysia, the world's top two producers.
  

  
  
• Speaker Boehner has declined -- once again -- to attend a state dinner, this time with Chinese president Hu Jintao

Quick Overview

• The EIA said: Supplies of crude oil fell 2.6 million barrels for the week ended Jan. 14. Analyst’s s had expected a decline of 2.2 million barrels.
• Supplies of gasoline rose 4.4 million barrels
• Supplies of distillates rose 1 million barrels.

• U.S. economic indicators rose 1% in December

• U.S sales of existing homes rose 12.3%

• The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's index of regional factory activity fell to 19.3 in January from 20.8 last month.

• U.S. unemployment claims retreated to 404,000 from 441,000 in the prior week.

• China's CPI rose 4.6 % YoY in December, slightly lower than the 28-month high of 5.1% in November.

• Brazil raised its key interest rate to 11.25% in a bid to cool inflation.

• The Buenos Aires Cereals Exchange cut its estimate  for Argentina's commercial corn production to 19.5 million metric tons, down 850,000 tons from last week's estimate.

• Sales of 1-ounce American Eagle silver coins have totaled 4,588,000 in January, heading for a record, according to data from the U.S. Mint. (too popular??)
  
  
• China's announces $1.8 billion Soybean purchase.
• (FT) General Electric expects “solid double-digit” sales growth in China this year and “for a long period of time”, although revenues there have fallen short of expectations, chief executive Jeff Immelt has said.

No update today

Quick Overview

• "Drought conditions in both the U.S. and China's winter wheat areas are a serious cause for concern and could be a key factor inhibiting the needed wheat supply recovery," said Macquarie.

• U.S. housing starts fell to 4.3 % to a 529,000 annual rate in December. Permits for new construction rose to an annualized rate of 635,000 in December - the highest level since last March.

• Long Beach terminals handled 6.3 million TEU in 2010, a 1.2 million TEU increase of 25 % YoY, the biggest annual leap since 1971 when the port leased the first container terminal.(DJ)

• China to cut food weighting in CPI composition.
  
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• The NY Fed index rose to 11.9 from a revised 9.9 in December.

• The National Association of Home Builders index flat at 16 for the third straight month.

• Sales at Japanese department stores dropped 1.5% YoY.

• Philippines extends zero tariff on wheat for 6 months.

• China's electricity consumption maintained its steady growth last year, up 14.56 % YoY.
  
  
• China’s 2010 cotton imports rose 86% YoY
  

  
  
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  (FT)The US Securities and Exchange Commission is facing a budget squeeze from the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

Quick Overview

• The world refined copper market is expected to have a 500,000-metric-ton to 600,000-ton deficit in 2011, even with a significantly weaker demand scenario, according to JPMorgan Securities Ltd.

• (Bloomberg) -- India’s government may ban exports of wheat products, reduce taxes on milk powder and bar essential commodities from trading in futures markets as part of steps to slow gains in food inflation, the Economic Times reported.

• The USDA estimates the 2010 corn crop at 12.447 billion bushels on yield of 152.8 bushels per acre, down from its prev. estimate of 12.54 billion on a yield of 154.3 bushels per acre. This implies domestic ending stocks are at a 20.2 day supply -- the 2nd tightest in 50 years.

• The USDA estimates the 2010 Soybean crop at 3.329 billion bushels on yield of 43.5 bushels per acre, down 30 million from its previous estimate. This implies a 15.2-day supply -- the tightest in 40 years.
• The USDA has reduced the size of the 2010-11 Florida citrus crops by 3 million boxes to 140 million 90-pound boxes.

• China is to allow imports of Canadian seal meat and oils, Canada's fisheries minister says; hopeful new market access will restore a sealing industry battered by an EU seal products import ban.

• Australia's unemployment rate fell by 0.2 % to 5.0%.

• MoM Japanese core machinery orders fell 3.0%

• China raised reserve requirements by 50 basis points -- the fourth time in little more than two months.

Next update Jan. 16

Quick Overview

• Japan pledged to buy bonds backed by European governments.

• (MW) Speculation intensifies that Portugal will be forced to seek a bailout.
• Portugal does not need to apply for EU aid, Spain's Economy Minister said.

• One week after taking office, California Governor Jerry Brown announced a balanced state budget on Monday which slashes state spending by 12.5 billion U.S. dollars.

• A Fed. official said he would set the bar "very high" for the central bank to stop short in its planned $600 billion in bond purchases, but that the Fed may need to begin considering a reversal of policy by year end.

Quick Overview

• China's soybean imports will likely expand 5%-10% a year over the next five years, with imports in 2011 around 54 million-55 million tons, the Chinese Grain Network said
• Chinas exports grew 31.3% YoY to 1.58 trillion U.S. dollars while imports rose 38.7 % to 1.39 trillion U.S. dollars, said the GAC.
• Chinas December sales of passenger cars rose 26.7% YoY to just under 1.5 million units.

• Inflationary threats have become a 'general feature' among the world's emerging economies, Jean-Claude Trichet, European Central Bank president warns.

• Germany signaled it may agree to expand euro zone’s €750bn rescue facility.

• Australia's retail sales rose 0.3% in November

• (Sea Shepherd Conservation Society) Anti-whaling activists are promising more attacks after throwing smoke grenades and "flash bangs" at Japanese whalers in the Southern Ocean today.
• Perth Mint: Physical gold demand exceeds current availability
• Pima County Sheriff Clarence W. Dupnik: "To inflame the public on a daily basis, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, has impact on people, especially who are unbalanced personalities to begin with" 

Quick Overview

• U.S. Payrolls increased 103,000, less than the median projection of 150,000

• (Reuters) - Algeria is to suspend customs duties and value added tax on imports of white sugar until Aug. 31, the government announced on Saturday in response to a wave of riots over rising food prices

• High Plains Journal: The average value of an acre of farmland in Iowa increased 15.9% in 2010, according to an annual survey conducted by Iowa State University Extension. Mike Duffy, ISU Extension economist who conducts the survey, said the statewide average land value as of Nov. 1 this year was $5,064 an acre, up $693 per acre from 2009.

• The highest court in Massachusetts affirmed a lower court’s ruling invalidating two foreclosure sales because the banks did not prove that they actually owned the mortgages at the time of  foreclosure.

Europe unveils sweeping plans to govern reckless banks
The plans allow oversight bodies to place a "permanent presence" of inspectors in the offices of suspect banks, adopting a scheme already pioneered by Spain’s central bank. There will be annual stress tests, geared to shocks of "low probability but high impact".
Regulators will be able to order bank boards to fire directors, desist from any activity, reduce leverage, sell off assets, or restructure debt.
In extreme cases, they will have pre-emptive powers to take over the entire bank and decapitate top management, perhaps when Tier I capital ratios fall below an fixed level. Stronger banks will be required to help cover the costs of failure by weaker peers, creating a further buffer between the financial industry and the taxpayer.

Quick Overview

• Australian Bureau of Meteorology: The Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) value for December of +27 is the highest December SOI value on record, as well as being the highest value for any month since November 1973.

• U.S. jobless benefits climb 18,000 to 409,000 last week

• The Fed balance sheet rose to $2.418 trillion in the week ended Jan. 5 from $2.403 trillion the prior week.

• Britain raised the national sales tax to 20% from its previous 17.5 %, as part of its efforts to trim the near-record public spending deficit.
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• John Boehner put Michelle Bachmann on the “Intelligence” Committee.

Quick Overview

• U.S. payrolls expanded by 297,000 in December as companies boosted payrolls by the most since records began in 2001.

• Record high food prices and the likelihood of further increases in the year ahead are raising the specter of a repeat of the food riots that broke out in 2007-08, a senior economist at the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization said Wednesday.

• U.S. crude oil inventories fell 4.16 million barrels to 335.3 million last week.

• China's 2010 corn output is estimated at 172 million metric tons, down 940,000 tons from the previous estimate.

• The US Department of Agriculture's Buenos Aires bureau lowered its estimate of Argentine corn production by 1.0m tonnes.

• the ISM index rose to 57.1% in December

• (Bloomberg) -- The Pentagon underestimated the speed at which China has developed and fielded a ballistic missile that may be capable of hitting a maneuvering U.S. aircraft carrier, the head of Navy intelligence said today.

Regulators Resist Volcker Wandering Warning of Too-Big-to-Fail
“I wouldn’t lend you a dime if I knew you loved to gamble at a casino,” said Kahn, the chairman of investment advisers Kahn Brothers Group Inc., in an interview..

..“I’m sorry,” Reed, 70, said in an interview. U.S. lawmakers were wrong in 1999 to repeal the Depression-era Glass- Steagall Act, he said. The act required the separation of institutions involved in capital markets from those engaged primarily in traditional customer services, such as taking deposits and making loans..

..“My greatest fear for the last year has been an economic collapse as bad as the Great Depression,” Miller said in an interview. “My second greatest fear was that the economy would stabilize and begin to recover and the financial industry would have the clout to defeat the fundamental reforms that our nation desperately needs. My greatest fear seems less likely, lately, but my second greatest fear seems more likely every day.”

Quick Overview

• 12/20/10 China's soybean imports in November rose 47% compared with October and 90% YoY, to 5.48 million metric tons, the General Administration of Customs said Tuesday. Total imports from January to November increased 31% to 49.4 million tons.
• China November natural Rubber imports rose 53% vs 55% in October.
• China’s November Uranium imports at 2,181 tons rose 100% YoY.

• (Bloomberg) -- Uranium stocks, already trading at higher valuations than their national benchmark indexes, will rise further amid predictions the price of the fuel may surge as much as 30 percent, investors and analysts said.

• Dec. 24 (Bloomberg) -- One unidentified company has the potential to own at least 90 percent of the copper in warehouses monitored by the London Metal Exchange, the largest such position in two years, bourse data showed.

• Th People’s Bank of China increased key one-year lending and deposit rates by 25 basis points on Christmas Day in its second move since mid-October.
• "Inflation expectations are direr than inflation itself," Wen said, urging people to remain confident and government agencies to act to stabilize prices

• Sales of new single-family houses in the United States increased 5.5 percent in November.

• U.S. existing-home sales rose 5.6% MoM in November.

• French household consumption in manufactured goods rose by 2.8% in November.

• The IMF announced on Tuesday the conclusion of the limited sales program covering 403.3 metric tons of gold that was approved by the IMF in September 2009.

• Severe drought in major wheat production provinces of Henan, Hebei and Anhui has sparked supply concerns for 2011.

• Indonesia will raise a tax on crude palm oil exports to 20% for January from 15% this month

• 12/28/10 The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city composite home-price index fell 1.3% MoM and 0.8% YoY. Including homes that are in or close to foreclosure, there’s inventory of 7.2 million homes, or roughly 21 months of supply

• U.S. consumer confidence fell to 52.5 in December from an upwardly revised 54.3 in November.
• U.S. retailers 2010 holiday sales rose 5.5 % for the best performance in five years.
• The Chicago purchasing manager’s index rose from 62.5 to 68.6, the highest level since the late 1980s and above expectations.

• 1/2/11 QoQ Singapore’s GDP rose 6.9% in the three months through Dec. 31.

• The Centre for Economics and Business Research said the likelihood the euro area will exist in its current structure in a decade is 20 % as governments take unsatisfactory measures to tackle economic imbalances.

• 1/4/10 GM on Tuesday reported a 7.5% increase in December U.S. sales -- Ford reported a 6.7% increase.

• U.S. factory orders rose 0.7% in November, ahead of forecasts for a 0.1% increase.