ROUND-UP
FT markets round-up: "Gold hogged the limelight as it tumbled to its lowest for more than two years, but sharp losses were also suffered by other metals and commodities, as well as equities, as disappointing Chinese economic data compounded concerns about the global economy. Gold fell more than $100, or 8 per cent, to as low as $1,350 an ounce as a sell-off that began on Friday accelerated rapidly. It managed to pull back to $1,364 late in the session. Silver fell nearly 10 per cent to $23.21 an ounce. Global equities continued to retreat from cyclical highs reached last week. The FTSE All-World index – which last week touched its best level since June 2008 – fell 1.7 per cent, while the S&P 500 closed 2.3 per cent lower – about 2.8 per cent off the record intraday peak struck last Thursday. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 index fell 0.6 per cent, as the mining sector had its worst day in 17 months." (Financial Times)
Blasts claim victims at Boston Marathon: "At least two people were killed and more than 20 were injured, some seriously, as two explosions rocked the Boston Marathon finishing line on Monday as hundreds of thousands of people thronged the city's streets for the race. Onlookers posted pictures on Twitter showing blood on sidewalks beside the finishing line on Boylston Street in the city centre, with people lying on the ground. According to local media, emergency personnel carried out a controlled detonation of a suspicious package." (Financial Times)
Citigroup earnings rise under new chief: "Citigroup reported its highest profits for three years in the first full quarter under new chief executive Mike Corbat, paving the way for greater share buybacks and bigger bonuses for executives. The third-biggest US bank by assets, which replaced Vikram Pandit with Mr Corbat as chief executive in October, made $3.8bn in net income for the first three months of the year compared with $2.9bn a year ago. Analysts had expected about $3.5bn." (Financial Times)
China enters era of slower growth: "China has entered an era of slower growth and must adjust to the end of three decades of double-digit annual economic expansion, the government warned on Monday. Economic growth unexpectedly slowed to 7.7 per cent in the first quarter compared with a year ago, according to the National Bureau of Statistics." (Financial Times)
Venezuela opposition contexts poll results: "Venezuela's opposition will contest Nicolás Maduro's unexpectedly narrow victory in Sunday's presidential election, plunging the country into tense uncertainty and raising fears of a political crisis. A full manual recount of the vote could take weeks after Mr Maduro, the handpicked successor of the late Hugo Chávez, won by a margin of just 235,000 votes, compared with his predecessor's victory by about 1.5m votes in last October's ballot." (Financial Times)
FURTHER FURTHER READING
- Treasury term risk premia and monetary tightenings.
- Mark Zandi: Washington's new housing czar?
- Miles Kimball on the market monetarists.
- Can Dodd-Frank fix mortgage servicing?
- Boston Fed chief Eric Rosengren recommends that any tapering of QE "should be done on the Treasury side".
- Tyler Cowen on Wolfgang Munchau on wealth disparities in the eurozone.
- The terrifying reality of long-term unemployment.
