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FT ALPHAVILLE
The ECB has announced a deadline of Monday, March 25th for Cyprus to put in place an EU/IMF programme in order to maintain the current level of Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA) to Cypriot banks. Click through to Alphaville for the announcement and commentary.
And so we're waiting for Plan B on Thursday. Various, erratic Hail Marys — Hail Vladimirs — were not looking good as Plan Bs as Wednesday closed. Meanwhile, we turn to Lee Buchheit and Mitu Gulati's 3-page paper on Cyprus. We'd recommend reading it, or going back to it, given the likelihood of uninsured depositor flight whatever plan is now adopted. Joseph takes us through it.
The China flash manufacturing PMIs have beaten expectations this month, coming in at 51.7 compared to 50.4 in February, and above the forecast consensus of 50.8. On balance this looks convincing, particularly with new orders stronger at 53.3 compared to 51.4 previously, and the new export orders subcomponent up to 51.1 from 50.3 in February. The pricing components can be seen as reassuring on inflationary pressures. The weak points that stand out to us is that finished inventory is now expanding; and employment growth, which while positive, is continuing to decelerate. Follow the link for Kate's full analysis.
NEWS
Banks in Cyprus were ordered to remain shut until Tuesday as Cypriot and European officials anxiously hunted for alternatives to an abortive plan to tax bank deposits as part of a €10bn bailout. Trading will be suspended on the stock exchange for the rest of this week while talks between Cyprus's finance minister Michael Sarris and his Russian counterpart Anton Siluanov are continuing on Thursday, Reuters reported. (Financial Times)
JPMorgan's board of directors is expected to this week back the bank's current leadership structure, rejecting calls from some shareholders to strip Jamie Dimon of his chairmanship in the wake of the company's "London Whale" trades. Investors have called on the board to split Mr Dimon's dual position as chairman and chief executive, in an effort to eradicate alleged conflicts of interest within the investment bank and strengthen oversight of the company. (Financial Times)
Google announced that its YouTube video site has hit a billion regular visitors, matching a similar milestone reached by Facebook last October, as mobile devices and global internet growth power web companies to unprecedented scale. (Financial Times)
US immigration reform. More than 3,000 lobbyists have been engaged in the battle in Washington over immigration, including some acting for private prison companies, which are among the groups with the most to lose from comprehensive reform. As the bipartisan "gang of eight" prepares to bring their plan for immigration reform to the Senate next month – a central plank of which would be creating a pathway to citizenship for the 12m people illegally in the US – everyone from Microsoft to farmers is pressing for an overhaul, while opponents are pushing back. (Financial Times)
Accel raises $475m tech fund in record time. Accel Partners, the technology venture capital group, has closed its fourth European fund in record time, underlining investor interest in the region's tech start-ups. The $475m Accel London IV fund will focus on investments in Europe and Israel and brings Accel's funds under management for the two regions to $2bn. (Financial Times)
Markets: Stocks and the euro are sliding after poor data out of the eurozone and lingering uncertainty over the Cyprus bailout raised fresh fears about the bloc's economy. A burst of worry about US corporate earnings is also hitting investor sentiment. These factors are counteracting the support provided by optimism that the US and Chinese economies are improving and that central banks will continue to favour aggressive monetary easing. (FT's Global Market Overview)
