SEC charges Goldman Sachs with fraud
The Wall Street investment bank, which has consistently denied working against its clients, is accused of creating a complex mortgage investment product which was designed to fail.

How an Icelandic volcano helped spark the French Revolution
Then as now, there were more wide-ranging impacts. In Norway, the Netherlands, the British Isles, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, in North America and even Egypt, the Laki eruption had its consequences, as the haze of dust and sulphur particles thrown up by the volcano was carried over much of the northern hemisphere.

Quick Overview

• U.S. jobless claims rose 24,000 last week to 484,000 -- more than expected.
  

• U.S. industrial production was up 0.1% in March and up 4.0% YoY
  

• The Philadelphia Fed's regional index of manufacturing increased from 18.9 to 20.2 in April.
  

• The New York Fed's regional index of manufacturing increased from 22.86 to 31.86 in March -- better than expected.
  
  
  
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• U.S. Retail sales jumped 1.6% -- the largest increase since November as consumers stepped up purchases of vehicles and wide range of goods. January sales were revised up to a 0.5% rise from 0.3%.
  

• U.S. consumer price index was up 0.1% in March and up 2.3% YoY.
  
• U.S. business sales were up 0.3% in February
  
• U.S. Inventories rose 0 .5%
  

• The Mortgage Bankers Association said that its index of mortgage applications fell 9.6% last week
  

• Industrial production in the EU rose 0.7% MoM and up 3.5% YoY
  

• New Zealand retail sales fell 0.6% in February
  

• Germany's cocoa grind saw its third consecutive year-on-year quarterly gain in the first three months of 2010, increasing by 10.31 percent, the association of German confectionery producers BDSI said on Tuesday.
  

• The U.S. DOE said:
  Supplies of crude oil fell 2.2 million barrels 354.0 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline fell 1.1 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil rose 500,000 barrels.
  Refinery use rose from 84.5% to 85.6% of capacity last week.
  Gasoline demand fell 2.8% YoY
  Distillate demand rose 0.4% YoY.

• U.S. foreclosure filings jumped 7% in Q1 of 2010 from the previous quarter, market researcher RealtyTrac said.

• China’s economic growth accelerated to 11.9 per cent in the first quarter

Quick Overview

• (Dow Jones)--Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) Monday cut its three-month gold forecast by 8% and raised its copper price forecast by 4.6%, citing stronger copper demand across Asia, Europe and the U.S.
  

• U.S. exports rose 0.2% in February while imports rose 1.7% . The result was $39.7 billion of net imports, up from $37.0 billion in January.
  

• Canada’s exports rose 2.8% in February while imports rose 0.9%. The result was net exports of C$1.4 billion, up from $754 million in January.
  

• YoY Japan’s producer prices fell 1.3% in March.

• China announced that it will raise fuel prices by 4 to 4.5% tomorrow.
  
  

The Greek people are being punished for Europe's errors
As I write, it appears that EU experts have agreed on a package of €20bn to €25bn at 350 points above the IMF tariff, or 5pc. This achieves nothing. Such wishful thinking has plagued the Greek/EMU crisis from the start. Simon Johnson, the IMF's former chief economist, said Greece needs €110bn to have any hope of pulling itself out of a tail-spin, given that the twin cures of default and devaluation are blocked. Even that may not work. Greece must squeeze a further 13pc of GDP from the budget to stabilise debt costs by 2012, and do so during a slump when every euro of tightening leads to €1.5 to €2 in lost demand. "The risk is of a viscious downward cycle," Mr Johnson wrote in the Huffington Post.

Greece Wins EU45 Billion Aid Pledge to Blunt Crisis
(Bloomberg) -- European governments offered debt- plagued Greece a rescue package worth as much as 45 billion euros ($61 billion) at below-market interest rates in a bid to stem its fiscal crisis and restore confidence in the euro.

Quick Overview

• Oppenheimer analyst Scott Burk said the very large crude carrier day rate was about $59,000 Friday, up from about $20,000 to $30,000 a few weeks ago.
  

• U.S. wholesale sales rose 0.8% MoM and 9.8% YoY
  

• U.S. Inventories rose 0.6% MoM but fell 7.4% YoY
  

• Canada's unemployment rate stayed at 8.2% in March,
  

• The USDA's 2009-2010 U.S. ending stocks estimate of:
  Corn was increased from 1.799 to 1.899 billion bushels.
  Soybeans remained at 190 million bushels.
  Wheat was reduced from 1,001 to 950 million bushels.
  Sugar was increased from 1.075 to 1.218 million tons.
  Cotton was reduced from 3.20 to 3.00 million bales.
  
  

• The USDA's 2009-2010 world ending stocks estimate of:
  Corn was increased from 140 to 144 million tons.
  Soybeans were increased from 61 to 63 million tons.
  Wheat was reduced from 197 to 196 million tons.
  Cotton was reduced slightly to 51 million tons.
  
  

• The USDA expects beef production to be down 1% in 2010
  
  

• The USDA expects pork production to be down 3% in 2010
  
  

• The USDA estimate's Florida's 2009-2010 orange crop up from 131 to 132 million boxes and the projected juice yield was raised from 1.53 to 1.56 gallons per box

• China ran its first monthly trade deficit in six years in March of $7.24 billion, down from a surplus of $7.61 billion in February. Customs official called the shortfall a blip.
  

Quick Overview

• A Nevada report said YoY revenue from gaming climbed nearly 14% in Feb.
  

• U.S. Jobless claims rose 18,000 last week to 460,000, more than expected.
  

• Japan's machinery orders fell 5.4% in February
  

• Australia's unemployment rate stayed at 5.3% in March
  

• EU retail sales in were unchanged in February and down 0.7% YoY
  

• U.K.’s manufacturing index rose 1.3% in February and up 1.4% YoY
  

Quick Overview

• The Mortgage Bankers Association's index of mortgage applications fell 11% last week.
  

• Agriculture’s rise on rumors China will soon allow the Yuan to go up.
  

• GDP in the EU rose 0 .1% in Q4 and fell 2.3% YoY
  

• Services in the U.K. fell from 58.4 to 56.5 in March
  

• The U.S. Energy Department said:
  Supplies of crude oil rose 2.0 million barrels last week to 356.2 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline fell 2.5 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil rose 600,000 barrels.
  Refinery use rose from 82.6% to 84.5% of capacity.
  Gasoline demand rose 1.7% YoY
  Distillate demand fell 0.2% YoY
  
  

Updates resume April 7

Quick Overview

• The Institute of Supply Management said services increased from 53.0 to 55.4 in March,
  
  

• U.S. Pending home sales rose 8.2% MoM and up 17.3% YoY
  
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• The US economy created 162,000 jobs last month as the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.75%

• (FT) China has offered to accelerate free trade agreement talks with India in a bid to balance a burgeoning trade relationship between two of Asia’s largest economies

The IMF should impose default on Greece to end the charade
Real GDP has fallen by less, 12.6pc. The rest is the effect of deflation. But what matters most for debt is nominal GDP. The same debt load has to be financed from a nominal economy that has shrunk by almost a fifth. That is why deflation can be so deadly, as it was from 1930-1933.

Quick Overview

• U.S. jobless claims fell 6,000 last week to 439,000.
  

• The ISM index of manufacturing rose from 56.5 to 59.6 in March -- stronger than expected.
  

• U.S. Construction spending fell 1.3% MoM and down 12.8% YoY

• Japan’s Tankan index rose from -25 to -14 in March
  

• Manufacturing index in the U.K. rose from 56.5 to 57.2 in March
  

• Manufacturing index in the Euro area rose from 54.2 to 56.6 in March

• (Reuters) - A Manhattan federal judge threw out a class-action lawsuit accusing Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's of defrauding investors about the safety of $63.4 billion of mortgage debt.

• India's government on Thursday brought into force a new law that makes education free and compulsory for every child from age 6 to 14 --

Quick Overview

• ADP Employer Services said that they show a loss of 23,000 U.S. private sector jobs in March
  

• Unemployment in the EU rose from 9.5% to 9.6% in February
  

• Consumer prices in the EU rose1.5% in March
  
  

• The USDA expects farmers in 2010-2011 to plant:
  88.8 million acres of corn, up 3% YoY.
  78.1 million acres of soybeans, up slightly YoY.
  53.8 million acres of wheat, down 9% YoY.
  13.9 million acres of spring wheat, up 5% YoY.
  10.5 million acres of cotton, up 15% YoY.
  
  
  

• The USDA said that on March 1st, there were:
  7.69 billion bushels of corn stocks, up 11% YoY.
  1.27 billion bushels of soybean stocks, down 2% YoY.
  1.35 billion bushels of wheat stocks, up 30% YoY.
  
  

• The U.S. Department of Energy said:
  Supplies of crude oil rose 2.9 million barrels to 354.2 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline rose 300,000 barrels
  Supplies of heating oil supplies rose 1.0 million barrels.
  Refinery use rose from 81.1% to 82.6% of capacity last week.
  Gasoline demand rose 1.5%
  Distillate demand fell 1.0% YoY
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• The Standard and Poors/Case-Shiller index of home prices in twenty cities fell 0.4% in January and down 0.7% YoY.
  

• The Conference Board's index of consumer confidence rose from 46.4 to 52.5 in March, better than expected.
  

• U.K.’s GDP rose 0.4% Q4 and fell 3.1% YoY
  

• Japan's unemployment rate was unchanged in February, at 4.9%
  Japan’s industrial production fell 0.9%.
  Japan’s household spending fell 0.5% in February
  

• (FT) Global miners have agreed to a record increase in iron ore prices after they signed deals to replace the 40-year-old pricing system based on annual contracts with new short-term deals linked to the spot market
  
  

• The WSJ reported that Apple plans to make an iPhone that will work with Verizon’s CDMA (Qualcomm) network
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• U.S. personal incomes were unchanged in February
  

• U.S. Consumer spending rose 0.3%.
  

• YoY Japan's retail sales rose 4.2% in February
  

• USDA said that there were 63.988 million head of hogs and pigs in the U.S. on March 1st -- down 2.8% YoY
  

• The World Gold Council said China's gold consumption was 11% of world demand in 2009 and that it was expected to double in the next ten years.

• Weekly soybean shipments = 29.3 mln bu; shipments to date exceed seasonal pace needed to reach USDA target by 170 mln bu & gap is growing (Arlan Suderman)

• The Reserve Bank of Australia sounded a hawkish warning over interest rates.
  

• China is expected to grow 12% in the first three months of this year due to faster-than-expected factory output.
  

• In 2009, China produced 189 million tons of crude oil, but imported an extra 199 million tons, and the oil import dependence well exceeded the warning line of 50%t for the first time to reach 51.29 percent.
  

• Demand for steel around the world will rise 11 percent in 2010 as the global economy recovers, World Steel Association said.

• (WSJ) Demand for uranium looks set to drive a fresh wave of Chinese investment in Australia-listed miners as nuclear power generators seek supply for dozens of planned reactors.
  
  
  
  

Quick Overview

• Shares started to trim their gains amid reports that a South Korean navy ship had sunk in waters near disputed maritime border with North Korea.

• Barack Obama and Russia's Dmitry Medvedev agreed on cuts in the nuclear arsenals of both nations.
  

• The U.S. economy grew at the fastest pace in six years during the final three months of 2009, fueled by a huge inventory adjustment, strong business investments and modest consumer spending, the Commerce Department estimated Friday. U.S. real gross domestic product increased at a 5.6% annualized pace in the fourth quarter, revised down from the 5.9% pace reported a month ago
  

• The University of Michigan's index of consumer sentiment unchanged at 73.6 in March,
  

• Euro zone / IMF officials reached an agreement to provide emergency aid to Greece, if necessary.
  

• YoY Japan's consumer prices fell 1.1% in February
  

• U.S. beef production totaled 1.96 billion pounds in February, down 2% YoY
  

• U.S. Pork production totaled 1.76 billion pounds in February, down 3% YoY

• The US Supreme Court has denied an injunction from Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox to close the Chicago Canal to block entry of Asian carp considered to be an invasive species that threaten the Great Lakes environment.
  The carp, which have made their way up he Mississippi from the Gulf of Mexico, grow up to 100 pounds and eat 40 per cent of their body weight a day.
  

Quick Overview

• U.S. Jobless claims fell 14,000 last week to 442,000
  

• YoY U.K. Retail sales rose 4.9% in February
  

• The International Grain Council predicted that world corn planting will be up 2% in 2010-2011

• (Reuters) - Euro zone leaders agreed on Thursday to create a joint financial safety net with the IMF to help debt-ridden Greece and to try to restore confidence in their common currency after weeks of wrangling.