Good morning New York,
FT ALPHAVILLE
Paul, on why UK bank mis-selling of swaps is more complicated than you think.
In a guest post, Yukon Huang of the Carnegie Endowment argues that China's imbalances are not inherently problematic.
NEWS
Highest reading for the composite eurozone PMI in two years. August's reading of 51.5 was the largest figure since June 2011, with the new orders index rising above 50 for the first time since July 2011 (Reuters). Exports helped push the eurozone economy to 0.3 per cent growth in 2013's second quarter, according to the latest Eurostat data (Bloomberg).
UK services are growing at the strongest pace since December 2006, according to the 60.5 reading on August's PMI (Bloomberg).
Five-month high for the China services PMI. The Markit/HSBC index rose to 52.8 in August, from 51.3 in July (Reuters).
Olympus is to be prosecuted by the UK's Serious Fraud Office over its accounting scandal. The charges cover allegations that "certain representations" made by Gyrus, a UK subsidiary, to auditors over 2009 and 2010 accounts were "misleading, false or deceptive in a material particular". The SFO investigation began in late 2011 after Olympus ousted its chief executive, Michael Woodford, who had raised concerns over adviser fees (Financial Times).
Ryanair profit warning. The budget airline said it would cut winter capacity in response to weakening fares, warning that full-year profit targets might be missed. Net profit will now be at the lower end of a €570m to €600m range, it said (Wall Street Journal). Ryanair shares fell up to 15 per cent in Dublin, their worst day since October 2009 (Bloomberg).
The redevelopment of Shell's UK base is in doubt after a last-minute government review. The Shell Centre project in London had won local authority approval weeks before Tuesday night's intervention (FastFT).
S&P's latest legal argument in court battle with US: "retaliation for [S&P's] exercise of their free speech rights with respect to the creditworthiness of the United States of America..." (Wall Street Journal).
