peppertree
peppertree's JournalChristine Lagarde to replace Mario Draghi as European Central Bank President
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde has emerged as the choice to replace Mario Draghi as President of the European Central Bank (ECB) President later this year following two days of tense negotiations in Brussels.
Officials in Berlin say that Chancellor Angela Merkel is a fan of Lagarde and she would enjoy widespread support from among the governing Christian Democrats.
The combination of Lagarde and Von der Leyen however was proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron in a conversation with Merkel on Monday night, an EU official said.
Lagarde, 63, a lawyer by trade who has no direct monetary policy experience, has served as France's Finance Minister from 2007 until 2011, when she took over as IMF Managing Director following the resignation of her French countryman, Dominque Strauss-Kahn, who left the post in Washington after being accused of sexual assault during a visit to New York.
Lagarde faces immense challenges, however, when she takes over from Draghi in a few months' time.
These include the region's moribund growth prospects, its stubbornly-low inflation rate and the nearly-depleted ECB toolkit that has spent more than €2.6 trillion in government, agency and corporate bond purchases and only once managed to lift the region's consumer price index into the Bank's 'just below 2%' target.
At: https://www.thestreet.com/investing/fixed-income/christine-lagarde-to-replace-mario-draghi-as-european-central-bank-president-15008902
IMF Director Christine Lagarde with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Argentine President Mauricio Macri during the G20 summit in Buenos Aires last year.
Lagarde's tenure at the IMF has been strongly supported by the Trump administration. But she has reaped criticism for a record, $56 billion bailout of Argentina, 77% of which is being used to finance capital flight - against the IMF's own rules.
Undisturbed Ancient Roman shipwreck found off the coast of Cyprus
Archaeologists have discovered an ancient, Roman-era wooden ship, complete with cargo, off the eastern coast of Cyprus.
In a statement, Cyprus’ Department of Antiquities said the wreck is the “first undisturbed Roman shipwreck” found in the Mediterranean island nation’s waters.
The ship belongs to the period after Rome annexed the island in 58 BC.
Amphorae found in and around the wreck identify the ship as a merchant vessel that transported cargo between Syria and the southern coast of modern Turkey, known in ancient times as Cicilia.
The wreck was found near the resort town of Protaras by volunteer divers with the University of Cyprus’ underwater archaeological research team.
At: https://www.geek.com/news/undisturbed-ancient-roman-shipwreck-found-off-the-coast-of-cyprus-1793830/
Views of the amphorae and shipwreck remains from the recent archaeological find in Cyprus.
This was the first undisturbed Roman shipwreck ever found in Cyprus.
Argentine candidate Alberto Fernandez takes aim at IMF deal: 'loans are financing capital flight'
Alberto Fernández, the main challenger to incumbent President Mauricio Macri in Argentina's elections this October, said today that if elected he would seek to "rework" Macri's bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), calling it "harmful."
Fernández, whose center-left Front for All (with running mate and former President Cristina Kirchner) is leading in most polls, met with IMF executives Alejandro Werner and Trevor Alleyne today to discuss his "deep concern" over the $56.3 billion bailout negotiated by Macri in 2018.
"I conveyed to the IMF our willingness to rework the agreements without demanding more from our people," Fernández said. "We seek to stabilize the economy in order to grow as a necessary condition to paying our debts."
Centrist candidate Roberto Lavagna, currently polling in third place, reiterated Fernández's concerns to Werner and Alleyne this afternoon.
International Macri Fund
Fernández has accused the IMF of "financing Macri's campaign by indebting Argentina."
The bailout is the largest in IMF history and makes up 61% of its loan portfolio - leading local critics to refer to the IMF as the "International Macri Fund."
Fernández noted moreover that of the $39 billion disbursed so far, $30 billion were used to finance speculative capital flight.
"Article VI of the IMF states that 'no member may use the general resources of the Fund to face capital flight'," he pointed out.
"The objectives that were set at the time of granting the loan have been absolutely distorted."
From bubble to bailout
Macri turned to the IMF - who had supported his policies - when a $60 billion carry-trade debt bubble known locally as the "financial bicycle" collapsed in April 2018.
The crisis cut off Argentina's access to foreign credit markets, and forced the central bank to raise interest rates. The ensuing recession - the second since Macri took office in 2015 - has led to a 5.8% fall in GDP, a 24.6% collapse in fixed investment, and 261,000 registered job losses.
Inflation has meanwhile risen to 57.4% - the highest since 1991.
At: https://money.usnews.com/investing/news/articles/2019-06-27/argentine-presidential-candidate-alberto-fernandez-takes-aim-at-imf-deal
Argentine opposition leader Alberto Fernández (right) with IMF Western Hemisphere head Alejandro Werner and IMF Argentina division head Trevor Alleyne (left) during their meeting in Buenos Aires earlier today.
Fernández believes the IMF has been financing Macri's campaign at Trump's behest, leaving Argentines to foot the bill.
Of $39 billion borrowed from the IMF so far, moreover, 77% have been used to finance speculative capital flight - in direct violation of the IMF's own rules.
Crew member from Brazilian president's plane detained in Seville with 39 kilos of cocaine
The Spanish Civil Guard on Tuesday arrested a military crew member from a plane used by the Brazilian Air Force to fly President Jair Bolsonaro on international trips.
Sources from the Civil Guard confirmed that the man was in possession of 39 kilos (86 pounds) of cocaine when he was detained.
The arrest was made when the plane in which the suspect was flying made a stopover at around 2pm at Seville airport in the south of Spain.
The arrested man, a 38-year-old petty officer whose identity has not been supplied, got off the plane with a suit bag and an item of hand luggage. When Spanish officers checked the bag, they found it filled with 39 kilo packets of cocaine. “It wasn’t even hidden among clothes,” the same sources explained.
The aircraft was headed to Japan, where it was due to be used as a reserve plane for the Brazilian leader, who was to fly to the same destination in another aircraft to take part in the G-20 meeting taking place this week in Osaka.
The arrest is a blow for the right-wing Bolsonaro, who campaigned last year on toughening drug laws - including reinstating the death penalty, even for non-capital crimes - and who frequently praises Brazil’s armed forces.
At: https://elpais.com/elpais/2019/06/26/inenglish/1561557312_000835.html
Far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during a recent Evangelical rally.
Today's arrest of a Brazilian presidential aircraft crew member carrying pure cocaine with a street value of around $1 million, contrasts sharply with Bolsonaro's law-and-order bluster.
Urged by Trump, U.S. Supreme Court rejects Argentina appeal over YPF energy firm
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Argentina's bid to fend off a lawsuit by investment fund Petersen seeking retroactive compensation for shares in the now-nationalized energy firm YPF.
The cases, YPF v. Petersen, 18-575, and Argentine Republic v. Petersen, 18-581, involve a bankrupt Argentine investor (Petersen) suing Argentina and YPF for $1.74 billion over its 2012 renationalization.
The justices left in place a lower court ruling that allowed Petersen to sue after Argentina's government refused to buy back its shares. The Trump administration in May urged the Supreme Court not to take up the appeals.
Petersen, controlled by Argentina's Ezkenazi family but now based in Madrid, owned 25% of YPF stock at the time of its renationalization.
The Argentine Government expropriated 51% of YPF's shares (all from Madrid-based Repsol) for $5 billion; but declined to tender an offer to buy out other shareholders - something Petersen claims YPF's by-laws required.
Petersen later sold its stake in the lawsuit to London-based third-party litigation funder Burford Capital for $18 million; Burford took advantage of today's news to sell a 10% stake for $100 million.
Burford would reportedly net most the proceeds from the lawsuit (around $1 billion). They also own lawsuits from the former Spanish owners (some currently in prison) of Aerolíneas Argentinas, which was likewise renationalized in 2008 after years of mismanagement.
YPF, with $15.5 billion in annual revenue, produces 45% of Argentina's oil and gas, sells 56% of its gasoline and is the nation's largest firm of any type. Founded in 1922 as the first state-run oil company in the world, YPF grew to supply 75% of Argentina's oil needs by 1968 but was privatized in 1993.
Following Repsol's majority acquisition in 1999, investment and output at YPF fell even as profits rose - ultimately prompting former President Cristina Kirchner to renationalize the firm in 2012.
At: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&tab=wT&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pagina12.com.ar%2F202307-fallo-contra-argentina-por-la-expropiacion-de-ypf
Former Argentine President Cristina Kirchner, with (from left) Petersen Group chair Sebastián Eskenazi and Repsol chair Antoni Brufau, shortly before YPF's 2012 renationalization.
Eskenazi, who controlled a 25% stake in YPF, claims his share should have been bought out when Repsol's was.
He later sold his lawsuit for $18 million to third-party litigation funder Burford Capital - which stands to net around $1 billion.
The case recalls Argentina's long-running vulture fund dispute, in which hedge funds led by Paul Singer's Caymans-based NML demanded payouts of up to 1600% for old, defaulted bonds bought from resellers (NML netted an estimated 1180%).
Local energy policy observers believe the Burford suit is being encouraged by the Trump administration to force YPF to sell its stake in the Vaca Muerta formation, whose technically recoverable 3,244 trillion ft³ of shale gas and 27 billion barrels of shale oil make it among the leading such sources in the world.
Unemployment is rising in eight Trump states; polls show some have turned on him
Unemployment rates edged up year over year in Mississippi, Arizona, North Carolina, Indiana, South Carolina, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska, according to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
All eight states went to Trump in 2016.
Trump’s net approval rating remains high in most of these states. But more people in Arizona and North Carolina disapprove of his job as president than approve, according to the latest Morning Consult poll.
It's unlikely that all eight states, which have a combined 73 electoral votes, would flip to the Democratic candidate in 2020.
Trump lost the popular vote in 2016, but won in the Electoral College thanks in large part to victories in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan, which all voted for Democrat Barack Obama twice. Employment edged up year over year in all three states.
At: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/21/unemployment-rising-in-8-states-that-voted-for-trump.html
Trump regales Mississippi supporters with his tall tales last year.
At +17%, his net approval in Mississippi is the highest in the nation. The state's stagnant economy tells a different story.
Berlin backs five-year rent freeze amid housing pressure
Berlin's left-wing government of Social Democratic Mayor Michael Müller has approved a plan to freeze rents in the German capital for the next five years.
Rents have risen sharply in the city and there have been rallies urging the authorities to keep housing affordable.
The plan is expected to become law in January. It could apply to 1.4 million properties, but not to social housing - regulated separately - or new builds.
The average monthly rent for a furnished Berlin flat is about €1,100 (£983; $1,232).
Berlin rents however rose by 7% in the first quarter of this year, and in the past decade rents have doubled as the booming city has become a magnet for job seekers.
At: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48677393
Berlin's Social Democratic Mayor Michael Müller: Cohesiveness counts.
New York lawmakers OK marijuana decriminalization
Source: Washington Times
Lawmakers in New York state have voted to eliminate criminal penalties for public possession and use of marijuana after efforts to legalize pot stalled.
The measure would reduce low-level criminal charges for unlawful possession of marijuana to a violation, which comes with a fine similar to a parking ticket. The penalty would be $50 for possessing less than one ounce of pot or $200 for one to two ounces.
In an effort to address decades of racial disparities in drug arrests, the bill would also allow for the expungement of past convictions for possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, proposed his own plan for legalization earlier this year. He said he’ll sign the decriminalization bill, noting that he called for a similar step five years ago.
Read more: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jun/21/new-york-lawmakers-ok-pot-decriminalization/
New York Sen. Jamaal T. Bailey, D-Bronx (left) fist bumps Sen. Timothy M. Kennedy, D-Buffalo, after Bailey’s legislation expanding decriminalization legislation for marijuana passed on June 20.
Gov. Cuomo has indicated he'll sign the bill.
Argentina's Macrisis: Unemployment reaches 10.1% - highest in 13 years
Data published today by Argentina's Statistics and Census Institute (INDEC) show that the nation's unemployment rate rose in the first quarter to 10.1%.
The rate represents a 1.0% increase from the 9.1% recorded in the previous quarter - and the highest since a 10.2% rate in the third quarter of 2006, as the country was recovering from its 2001-02 collapse.
INDEC also reported GDP fell 5.8% in the first quarter of 2019 from the same time last year. Domestic demand fell 12.4%, of which fixed investment (construction and machinery) collapsed by 24.6%.
Some 296,000 registered jobs were lost between January 2018 and March 2019 - equivalent to 2.2 million jobs lost in the U.S.
The data showed that the incidence of unregistered labor rose from 33.9% of the total to 35% - indicating that unemployment would be higher but for growing reliance on often precarious self-employment.
Inflation in May meanwhile reached 57.4%, with wholesale prices up 68.5%. Real wages were down 11.3% in March from the same time last year - and 18.6% from their high point in November 2015.
Some 58% of Argentines fear losing their job according to a recent study, while 75% report losing purchasing power.
Bicycle crash
The latest unemployment data represent a sharp increase from the 5.9% inherited by Macri in late 2015, when he was narrowly elected on promises to spark sluggish growth with deregulation and tax cuts.
Costly corporate tax cuts failed to spur investment or exports, and $68 billion has instead left the country since he took office. Macri resorted to foreign borrowing to cover said losses, more than doubling Argentina's public foreign debt to over $200 billion.
A $60 billion carry-trade debt bubble known locally as the "financial bicycle" ultimately collapsed in April 2018, triggering the current crisis and forcing Macri to resort to a record, $57 billion IMF bailout.
At: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&tab=wT&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politicargentina.com%2Fnotas%2F201906%2F29495-el-peor-dato-el-gobierno-de-macri-llevo-la-desocupacion-a-los-2-digitos.html
Pedestrians walk by a homeless encampment in Buenos Aires' financial district.
The city's living standard was second only to neighboring Montevideo among large Latin American cities. But rising unemployment and 60% inflation rates has doubled the number of homeless since Macri took office in late 2015.
EU court declares Germany's highway tolls illegal
The European Court of Justice ruled Tuesday that highway tolls in Germany are illegal because they unfairly penalize drivers from other European Union countries.
The Luxembourg court’s ruling means Germany will have to drop or revise its highway toll system.
The case was brought by Austria, which complained that the levies of up to 130 euros ($146) a year are discriminatory and therefore illegal under EU law.
All motorists have to pay the toll according to their vehicle’s size and engine type - but German taxpayers can file for refunds.
At: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/eu-court-declares-germanys-highway-tolls-illegal/2019/06/18/78577fbe-91b6-11e9-956a-88c291ab5c38_story.html
Complicit bureaucrats and locals get fast-track treatment from then-Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt in a Austrian cartoon lampooning German toll roads.
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