Trump, Powell Met at White House to Discuss Economy – Reuters
US President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell met at the White House, their second meeting since Powell started the job in February 2017 and soon after became the target of frequent criticism from the president who had appointed him.
Lawmakers Urge US Government to Tighten Export Controls to China on Security Fears – Reuters
Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer and Republican Senator Tom Cotton urged the US government to swiftly issue rules to make it harder to export sophisticated technologies to China that Beijing can use to boost its military.
Japan Lower House Passes US Trade Deal; Auto Tariffs Still in Question – Reuters
Japan’s lower house of parliament approved on Tuesday a limited trade deal Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed with the United States, clearing the way for tariff cuts next year on items including US farm goods and Japanese machine tools.
Trade Flows Set to Stay Weak, Says WTO – Wall Street Journal
Global flows of goods across borders are on course to grow at the weakest pace since the financial crisis, according to the World Trade Organization, as trade tensions and rising tariffs continue to weigh on exports and imports.
Hedge Funds See Diminishing Returns in Trump’s Tweets – Financial News
From tariffs to the Fed, the president’s social media can rock markets — but is the effect fading?
To Save the Euro, Turn it into a Digital Stablecoin – Financial Times
A bond-backed currency would overcome problems created by incomplete monetary union.
Fed’s Mester: US Monetary Policy ‘in a Good Spot’ – Reuters
The current level of interest rates is appropriate for the US economy and the Federal Reserve should now pause as it monitors how the economy evolves, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said.
Hong Kong Violence is Trickling into Portfolios Outside Asia – Bloomberg
Investors may be divided on the scope of the threat posed by escalating protests in Hong Kong, but there’s growing evidence money managers are starting to rethink their positions.
Kuroda Denies Ever Saying BOJ has Unlimited Tools to Ease Policy – Reuters
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda denied ever saying the central bank can deepen negative interest rates unlimitedly, or that it had unlimited ammunition to ramp up stimulus.
EU Reaches Deal on 2020 Budget – Reuters
European Union governments, parliament and the executive Commission reached a deal on the bloc’s 2020 budget that boosts spending on fighting climate change, EU border protection and setting up Europe’s own satellite system.
Why Economists Get Things Wrong – BBC
Today, trust in economists is barely above that of politicians.
Regulatory News
RBNZ to Ramp Up Monitoring of BNZ Over Capital Calculation Errors – Reuters
New Zealand’s central bank said it was stepping up monitoring of Bank of New Zealand after identifying weaknesses in the bank’s capital calculation processes.
Ex-Hedge Fund Trader Gets 40 Months for Mismarking Scheme – Bloomberg
A former trader at the defunct hedge fund Premium Point Investments was ordered to spend almost 3 1/2 years in prison for conspiring with the firm’s co-founder to overvalue its assets in order to attract new investors and keep clients from leaving.
Bad Clocks Block Forex Best-Ex – Risk
To get a good deal in fast-moving forex markets, buy-side firms need to know the time. Some don’t.
Isda Updates Ibors Fallback Definitions – FOW
Isda expects to finalise a protocol for legacy Ibor contract fallbacks by the end of the year.
Crypto News
China Crypto Crackdown Elicits Binance, Tron Weibo Appeal – Bloomberg
Crypto giants Binance Holdings Ltd. and Tron have been banned on China’s largest micro-blogging service amid what appears to be fresh steps to crack down on digital currency trading.
R3’s David Rutter: ‘What Facebook Did was Ridiculously Stupid’ – Financial News
The blockchain company CEO on the roll-out of Libra and necessity of keeping an open mind.
SEC Takes Another Look at Rejected Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Proposal – Coin Telegraph
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission is reviewing its decision to reject the Bitcoin exchange-traded fund filing from Bitwise Asset Management and NYSE Arca.
Bitcoin Should Hit $150,000 Before an ETF Can Work, Fundstrat’s Lee Says – Bloomberg
The $200 billion cryptocurrency market is far too small for an exchange-traded fund to work, according to Fundstrat Global Advisors LLC’s Tom Lee.
How Ethereum is Shaping Up to Be a Digital Finance Powerhouse – NewsBTC
The store of value narrative has largely been applied to Bitcoin over the past couple of years. BTC is often labeled ‘digital gold’ and this year’s hodling has proved that people are still willing to hold on to it for a longer term. Ethereum is evolving in a different way but it is also turning into a similar store of wealth as the ecosystem matures.
Company News
Asset Manager Russell Investments Put Up for Sale – Financial Times
Private equity owner TA Associates has hired Goldman Sachs to explore a sale of Russell Investments, putting the $293bn asset manager on the block as part of a wave of consolidation in the fund management industry, according to people briefed on the matter.
Citi Says Ex-Trader Can’t Show it Steered DOJ Probe – Law360
A former trader acquitted of criminal charges for allegedly manipulating foreign exchange markets should voluntarily walk away from suing Citigroup Inc. for $112 million, having failed to show the bank lied to prosecutors to limit its own legal exposure, the financial giant said in New York federal court.
Eurex Begins Clearing Euro Short-Term Rate Swaps – Profit & Loss
Eurex Clearing has cleared its first euro short-term rate swap trades.
CLS October FX Volumes Show Slight Decline – Profit & Loss
The average daily volume of FX trades submitted to CLS in October was $1.79 trillion, down from $1.84 trillion the previous month, but up 4.6% from the $1.71 trillion reported in October 2018.
Banks Team Up for ‘Ion Replacement’ Project – Risk
A group of European and UK banks is considering building its own fixed income trading software, in a move that could allow members to cut ties with the market’s biggest vendor, Ion.
Market Savvy
Foreigners Sell US Treasuries, Outflows Largest Since December 2018 – Reuters
Foreigners sold US Treasuries in September, with outflows hitting their largest since December last year, data from the US Treasury department showed, a move analysts said was consistent with central banks selling dollar assets to support their weak currencies.
Leading Global Investor Warns of ‘Monetary Reset’ – Sydney Morning Herald
A leading global investor has warned that negative interest rates are a sign that the financial system is not working and will eventually force a reset of the debt-fuelled economic growth model that’s been in place for more than two decades.
RBA Weighed Policy Easing, Opted to Assess Past Cuts’ Impact – Bloomberg
Australia’s central bank considered cutting interest rates at its latest meeting, but decided instead to hold steady and monitor the impact of earlier easing amid concern that households were being spooked by very low borrowing costs.
Trade Uncertainty Casts a Pall on Latam Currencies; Brazil’s Real Hits Life Low – Reuters
Latin American currencies started the week with declines as conflicting headlines surrounding US-China trade talks kept investors on the sidelines, while Brazil’s real closed at an all-time low.
Fistful of Fed Liquidity May Spell Trouble for Almighty Dollar – Bloomberg
It doesn’t look good for the dollar.