Eurozone

On Friday, US trade deficit data for the month of October came in lower than anticipated. The balance of trade printed at negative $43.5B, less than the $43.9B that was expected. This may lend credence to the possibility that the Federal Reserve's plan is working: that is, a weakening of the US...

The European Summit—which had been anticipated all week—concluded early Friday. Given expectations, the results seemed to be underwhelming. Yet, US equity futures were trading up Friday morning, perhaps evidence of the fact that investors had bought into the deal enough so as to calm concerns. On...

On Thursday, the European Central Bank opted to drop its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.00%. The ECB's president, Mario Draghi, cited worsening economic conditions in the Eurozone as the primary motivator behind the rate cut. This comes in contrast to Draghi's predecessor—Jean-...

On Friday, Eurozone officials will meet at a summit to decide on possible treaty changes affecting the general makeup of the European Union. Market commentators and euro officials alike have built up expectations for the summit, and many may be anticipating a form of a grand bargain that would...

Thousands of people protested the Russian election results on Monday. An estimated 5,000-10,000 people were in attendance, many of which were detained by authorities. According to the election results, Putin's United Russia party won 50% of the vote. This was down noticeably from the last Russian...

On Monday, ISM Non-Manufacturing Composite for the month of November printed at 52.0, down from the prior reading of 52.9 and well below expectations of 53.8. The reading is a broad-based assessment of the state of the service sector in the US. Of its subcategories, the reading for employment...

As the debt crisis in Europe has exacerbated in severity, speculation has grown that Japan could soon find itself in the same situation as the indebted euro nations. That is, facing extraordinary interest rates and the prospect of default. Kyle Bass of Hayman Capital has spearheaded this thesis,...

Dow futures spiked early on Friday morning when it was reported that the European Central Bank (ECB) might lend money to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Speculation is that the money lent by the ECB to the IMF would be funneled back to Europe in the form of IMF aid. Many market...

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi told the European Parliament on Thursday that the eurozone must become more integrated. Draghi said that the most important step in leading the eurozone out of its current sovereign debt crisis would be to create a new "shared fiscal compact" in which...

As the financial crisis in Europe continues to worsen, China announced that it will cut bank reserve levels for the first time in three years. The Chinese government is concerned that the problems faced by Europe and the United States could cause the Chinese economy to slow down. The People's Bank...

Finance ministers from the 17 countries that use the euro as their currency met on Tuesday in yet another effort to avoid a financial collapse that could mean the end of the euro. The finance ministers are discussing a wide range of possible solutions to the current sovereign debt crisis. The...

Moody's Investors Service announced on Tuesday that the subordinated debt of 87 banks from 15 European countries is at risk of downgrade. Moody's blamed the possible bank downgrades on the reduced likelihood that the banks would receive state support in the event of a banking collapse. Eurozone...

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski made an unusual appeal to Germany in a desperate attempt to get Germany to do more to save the eurozone from collapse. The Polish foreign minister said that a eurozone collapse was the biggest threat to the security and prosperity of Poland and that...

Italian government 3-year bond yields reached euro-era highs during the country's latest bond auction. While the Italian government was successful in raising 7.5 billion euros ($10 billion) during the auction, the steep interest rates that it was forced to pay are troubling. The interest rate that...

According to various reports, Black Friday 2011 was significantly more successful than Black Friday 2010. The National Retail Federation reports that retail sales jumped 16% from the prior year, and shoppers spent on average roughly $35 more per person. The trend in online retail was even more...