Plus the latest edition of Fukushimapocalypse Now!
We get straight to it, starting in the U.S. with this grim reality from Al Jazeera America:
Median wage falls to lowest level since 1998
While incomes and jobs stagnate, top earners and corporate profits continue to gain
Meanwhile, Banksters Behaving Badly, as always. From the Washington Post:
SAC pleads guilty to insider trading, agrees to pay $1.2 billion penalty
The beleaguered hedge fund owned by billionaire Steven A. Cohen agreed to pay $1.2 billion to settle charges accusing it of encouraging rampant insider trading for more than a decade, a record deal that could sink one of Wall Street’s most successful hedge funds.
Channel NewsAsia Singapore brings us a bit of good news:
US factory orders rise 1.7% in September
US factory orders rose 1.7 percent in September led by aircraft orders, ending two months of declines, the Commerce Department said on Monday.
As does Jiji Press:
U.S. New Auto Sales Up 10.6 Pct in Oct.
New auto sales in the United States in October increased 10.6 pct from a year before to 1,208,036 units, up for the first time in two months, U.S. research firm Autodata Corp. said Friday.
More corporate misdeeds, from USA TODAY:
J&J to pay $2.2B in drug marketing penalties
The federal government alleges J&J illegally paid doctors and pharmacies kickbacks to promote three drugs for unapproved uses.
Ditto, via the Los Angeles Times:
California probe of campaign donations sheds light on ‘dark money’
Probe of millions raised by a Republican consultant in 2012 and routed through nonprofits tracks a twisting trail.
From CNBC, inflating away:
‘Definitely a bubble brewing’ in stocks: Pro
The market might be heading into bubble territory, but it’s not time to get out of stocks yet, Simon Baker of Baker Avenue Asset Management said Monday.
Salon covers another grim reality:
Child care is more expensive than college in a majority of states
A new report reveals that child care is the single largest expense for families in 22 states
And new research reported at the American Public Health Association’s Boston conclave reveals another economic drag, via Newswise:
Firearm Injuries Cost More Than $16 Billion in Hospital Care Over 9 Years
According to the research, 275,939 victims of gunfire in the U.S. resulted in 1.7 million days of hospital service — an average of 6.7 days per incident. The average cost of medical treatment for each hospitalization was $59,620. Additionally, roughly one in three patients was uninsured.
Off to Europe with a mixed report from EUbusiness:
Eurozone manufacturing rallies, despite French PMI drop
Eurozone manufacturing activity held firm in October despite unexpectedly weak signals from France, a closely-watched survey indicated on Monday.
From EUbusiness, consolidation on the cheap:
Fewer banks with fewer assets in euro area: ECB
The number of banks in the 17-country eurozone has declined over the past five years and they significantly reduced their balance sheets, the European Central Bank said on Monday.
EUbusiness again, with the neoliberal agenda strong as ever despite all those NSA stories and ornamental raginking:
US, EU to hold second round of trade talks Nov 11-15
The United States and the European Union will hold a second round of trade talks this month to create a massive transatlantic free-trade zone, the two governments announced Monday.
Britain next, starting with a headline from BBC News, covering a largely symbolic gain — though more than 400 employers have signed on. The new living wage is non-binding, and equates to $12.20 an hour, while the legal minimum wage is the equivalent of $10.06:
Living Wage rise provides a boost for low paid workers money
The living wage is calculated according to the basic cost of living.
More than 30,000 low paid workers will receive a pay rise worth up to £400 a year after a rise in the voluntary “living wage” rate.
Old Blighty next, with separation anxiety from the London Telegraph:
Public-support for EU membership is ‘wafer-thin’, says David Cameron
The Prime Minister says he wants to spend time ahead of a possible in/out referendum in 2017 on getting Britons’ “consent” for EU membership
Off to the Emerald Isle, with backs turned. From the Irish Independent:
Unions refuse to meet troika on its final mission
THE Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has rejected an invitation to meet the troika during its latest review mission after walking out of a meeting in the summer.
EurActiv takes us to Germany, with social democrats declaring the price for partnership with the Iron Chancellor:
SPD wants wage floor, dual citizenship included in German coalition deal
Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) will not agree to a “grand coalition” with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives without agreement on core issues including labour market reforms and expanding dual citizenship, its leader said.
El País brings us to Spain and a really Big Box:
Wholesale expansion
Costco is preparing to enter the Spanish market
The giant American discount chain will be opening outlets in Seville and Madrid next year
From thinkSPAIN, activism in the face of bakruptcy at a failing major appliance manufacturer:
Fagor appliance manufacturer workers stage lock-in over factory closure
EMPLOYEES facing the chop at a leading electrical appliance firm staged a lock-in yesterday (Monday) at one of the factories and plan to stay there ‘for as long as is necessary’ to make bosses reconsider.
El País counts a cost of crisis followed by the austerian bludgeon:
Crisis wipes 80,000 Spanish households off the map
Immigrants leaving the country and young people moving back home considered prime reasons
The Independent covers more victims:
The great Spain robbery: Pensioners protest as the watch their life savings vanish into the banks’ black hole
Pensioners are set to be the biggest losers in the Spanish banking crisis as they see their life savings vanish
And BBC News covers royal scandal:
Spanish royal’s property impounded in corruption case
A judge in Spain has ordered properties belonging to the king’s son-in-law to be impounded amid a corruption scandal that has embarrassed the royal family.
El País notes that others not engaged in corruption face housing woes of their own:
S&P sees Spanish house prices continuing to fall into 2016
Agency believes Sareb bad bank will find it difficult to meet home sales target
The Portugal News take us to Lisbon and news of a strike:
Partial Lisbon ferry strike all week
A partial strike by ferries on the Tagus at Lisbon means only minimum services are running on Monday morning. The workers began seven days of strikes on Sunday, affecting peak-time services between Lisbon and Barreiro on the south bank.
The Portugal News covers the costs of the austerity imposed to appease the Troika on behalf of lenders and vulture funds:
National health service debt halved by year end
The Portuguese Ministry of Health expects to close the year with total outstanding debt of €1.5 billion, a total deemed “historically low” by State Secretary Manuel Teixeira in a parliamentary debate Monday.
Italy next, with a threat via the London Telegraph:
Italy’s Mr Euro urges Latin Front, warns Germany won’t sell another Mercedes in Europe
The plot is thickening fast in Italy. Romano Prodi – Mr Euro himself – is calling for a Latin Front to rise up against Germany and force through a reflation policy before the whole experiment of monetary union spins out of control.
After the jump, Greek meltdown continues, Russian xenophobia, Chinese neoliberalism on steroids, Fukushimapocalypse Now! And much, much more. . .
To Greece, where vulture funds begin to circle. From To Vima:
Greek systemic banks are considering offers for their “red loans”
Foreign Investment funds have made non-binding offers for 260 billion euros worth of non-serviceable loans
It has been estimated that about 29% of business loans granted by the four largest banks are considered to be non-serviceable. These red loans are worth approximately 260 billion euros.
From the Greek Streets has a terse response:
Oh, No! Not again!
But the big new is the Troika’s return and the ensuing suffering certain to come. From the Greek paper Eleftherotypia by Kostas Koufogiorgos:
The big guns arrive.
From Neos Kosmos, wishes:
Stournaras hopeful of agreement with troika
Greece’s Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras has called for “common sense” to prevail in the government’s latest talks with the troika
But there are problems. From EnetEnglish.gr:
Tough negotiations ahead as troika returns
Talks to begin on Tuesday
Troika insists that measures amounting to €2–2.5bn need to be taken in 2014, as the memorandum states that the 2014 budget must to do all that is necessary to achieve a primary surplus equal to 2.5% of GDP
Capital.gr delivers some stroking from a Troikarch:
Asmussen: Much has been accomplished in Greece
European Central Bank executive board member Joerg Asmussen said Monday criticism of Germany’s economic model from the U.S. Treasury and the International Monetary Fund is only partially justified.
According to Wall Street Journal, Mr. Asmussen rejected as “incorrect” claims that Germany’s export success comes at the price of undermining other countries, speaking on German public television.
To Vima fills a need:
Over 100,000 taxpayers apply for heating oil benefit last week
About one out of six taxpayers who qualify for the heating oil benefit has submitted an application
And ANSAmed covers an action:
Greece: Wednesday’s strike to disrupt train, bus services
Hospital and ambulance workers also due to walk off job
More from To Vima:
Public transport unions participate in Wednesday’s strike
Employees in OSE and Suburban Rail will participate in the 24-hour joint GSEE and ADEDY strike
The public transport unions have announced their intention to join the strike. The country’s largest trade unions GSEE and ADEDY have announced a 24-hour worker strike for Wednesday the 6th of November, demanding employment for everyone and the reinstatement of collective bargaining and democratic rights.
ANSAmed reports accounts receivable:
Greece: unpaid electric bills grow by 4 mln euros a day
And Macropolis asks a fiduciary question:
When will Greek banks operate as credit institutions again?
Despite the successful recapitalisation process and continued restructuring of the Greek banking sector, the credit transmission mechanism towards the real economy remains severely impaired.
Greek Reporter covers a grim reality:
Thousands of Homeless in Greece
During the last year, the rate of homeless people in Athens is rising. The number of Greeks that have ended up on the streets, sleeping on benches is dramatically rising due to unemployment. The social services of municipalities do not have time to respond to new demands for support, and the social solidarity network is spreading.
And To Vima covers a tractorcade:
Heraklion: Farmers protest real estate tax on agricultural land
Farmers from Crete threaten to escalate their protest in Athens if their demands are not addressed
Kathimerini English covers another labor action:
Ministry tells rectors to take action
A proposal by the Education Ministry for the rectors at two universities to force administrative employees to end a two-month strike that is jeopardizing the start of the academic year was flatly rejected Monday.
From To Vima, the latest on the lone survivor of the latest political murders:
Condition of critically injured 29yo Golden Dawn member improves
Police investigation focusing on camera footage and eye-witness reports
According to the doctors at the “Gennimatas” hospital, the condition of 29-year-old Golden Dawn member Alexandros Gerontas has improved. Gerontas, who was seriously injured during a lethal shooting outside the offices of the ultra nationalist party on Friday, was treated for gunshot wounds and is being kept in an ICU.
Background form EnetEnglish.gr:
Death in seven seconds
CCTV footage captures gun attack on Golden Dawn members
Police say video footage shows perpetrator shooting his victims in the head and body at close range while they lay wounded on the ground
Kathimerini English raises suspicions:
Police suspect new group behind killing of two Golden Dawn members
Counterterrorism officers investigating the murder last Friday night of two members of the neofascist Golden Dawn outside the party’s offices in Neo Iraklio, northern Athens, are focusing on a closed circle of suspects linked to attacks that have been claimed by the Sect of Revolutionaries, a terrorist group believed to have been inactive since the murder of the journalist Sokratis Giolias in July 2010, Kathimerini understands.
And ANA-MPA covers the politics:
PM Samaras tells TV interview he ‘will not allow democracy to bow to criminal violence’
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, speaking during his first ever interview with a television channel on Monday evening, said that he would “not allow democracy to bow to criminal violence.”
Cyprus next, with an announcement from ANSAmed:
Crisis: Troika embarks on second week meetings in Cyprus
The Independent takes us to Russia and the latest outburst of xenophobia:
Nationalists rally ‘against tolerance’ and immigrants in Moscow
The Moscow Times has more:
Rally Shows Rise of Nationalist Sentiment
Thousands of Russians poured into the streets of dozens of towns across the country Monday to voice nationalist sentiments on a holiday that was established by the government in 2005 to celebrate the unity of Russia’s diverse population.
To India with the Financial Express and a bit of good news for banksters:
Earnings of five state-run banks better than expected
Star performer Bank of India’s profit soared over 105% to Rs 622 crore in September quarter.
China next, where neoliberalism marches on, via The Guardian:
China prepares to liberalise finance as hedge funds and estate agents salivate
Beijing is making preparations to let its money off the leash, and the repercussions will be felt everywhere
China Daily hints at problems ahead:
New warning on overcapacity
Banks told not to lend to projects in five sectors. China’s central ministries on Monday sent a stern message about the implementation of a key document aimed at tackling excess industrial capacity.
And China Daily covers a phenomenon:
China’s business service sector boosts economy
China’s non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index reached a 14-month high of 56.3 in October from 55.4 in September, suggesting a stable expansion of domestic demand.
From Want China Times, an evolutionary step:
Labor costs see Foxconn move production lines to Guizhou
Taiwan-based contract manufacturing giant Foxconn — also known as Hon Hai — has been forced to move production lines away from China’s coastal regions because of the rising labor costs, with southwest China’s Guizhou province being the latest destination, reports Shanghai’s First Financial Daily.
And the Global Times cites a concern:
Inflationary pressure expected to increase
Inflation is likely to have accelerated in October to the highest level this year, several agencies predicted Monday, pushing policymakers to turn their focus from maintaining growth to curbing inflation.
From SINA English, a headline of interest:
Xi calls for targeted policies to fight poverty
President learns about research development, calls for innovation
And South China Morning Post reports a man arguuing for what makes him rich:
Free speech and internet are key to China’s reform, says Google’s Eric Schmidt
The world’s No 2 economy will stall unless its people can speak freely, Eric Schmidt says
And Xinhua points to another problem:
Smog to cause “notable” impact on economy: report
Smog brings notable negative effects to the climate, environment, health and economy, according to a new report calling for greater attention to the problem and effective measures to control it.
Japan next, with the Mainichi on bankster/gangster blowback:
Financial institutions enhancing loan inspections after yakuza lending exposed
Regional banks, insurance companies and credit companies have begun reviewing how they offer loans through affiliates in the wake of a scandal in which a major bank was found to have overlooked loans to organized crime groups.
On to Fukushimapocalypse Now!
The Japan Daily Press offers relief:
US to help TEPCO with dangerous Fukushima fuel rods removal
The removal of the nuclear fuel rods from the cooling pool of the disaster-stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant is touted to be one of the most dangerous processes in the decommissioning of the nuclear facility – dangerous enough that it could spark a whole new nuclear disaster if done wrong.
The Japan Times intermediates:
Tepco to conduct fuel removal test at reactor 4
The test was requested by the Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization. The government-affiliated agency called for an initial test that would include transporting a protective fuel cask from the No. 4 storage pool to another pool in a different building about 100 meters away, to provide more stable conditions for cooling spent fuel, the sources said.
And the Asahi Shimbun covers another font of blowback:
Debate begins for governments over Ishiba’s no-return remark
Local communities have been stunned by a ruling party executive’s suggestion that the government should clearly define areas where evacuees severely impacted by the Fukushima nuclear disaster can never return, as debate begins over the heretofore taboo issue.
While the South China Morning Post offers comic relief:
Fukushima holiday village proposed to tap fascination with disaster
Promoter counts on interest in ‘dark tourism’ to attract visitors to a proposed holiday village next to site of Japan’s worst atomic accident
The Guardian gives us our other energy sources/other problems entry:
China’s dam boom is an assault on its great rivers
Touted as a low carbon source of energy, China’s hydropower projects are wreaking havoc on river systems across the country and southeast Asia, reports Yale Environment 360
Raw Story warns:
Global food supply threatened by climate change, says leaked UN document
A leaked UN document says that climate change will threaten the world’s food supply in coming years. The document comes from the assessments of a scientific panel the UN appointed to research the impacts of climate change.
Another climatic blowback, via The Guardian:
Polar bear attacks: scientists warn of fresh dangers in warming Arctic
Two people injured in latest attack as hungry bears deprived of access to sea ice increasingly look for food on land
And the International Business Times gives us our last entry,
Humans ‘Will Shrink’ as Climate Change Causes Mammal Dwarfism
Researchers say mammal body size reduced significantly during two global warming events
There’s even an anthem for our minuscule world-to-come:
