FURTHER FURTHER READING
- Goodbye Juncker!
- Game theory and shareholder appraisal rights, with Carl Icahn.
- Today's rates volatility didn't have artificial causes.
- The market history of Chinese DVD piracy.
- Why the US additions to Basel III are the same old regulatory story.
- Short and to the point on mortgage REIT pain.
- The rise and rise of help to buy -- in the UK, Australia, and Canada.
ROUND-UP
Flat stocks unperturbed by Fed minutes. The S&P 500 closed up 0.02 per cent at 1,652.62 (Reuters).
"Several" voting members of the FOMC wanted to slow down bond-buying in June, but "many" wanted to wait for further improvement in the job market, according to the latest meeting minutes. The dollar fell 1 per cent against the euro, and 1 per cent against the yen following the release, as markets digested signs that a majority of voters will need more data before deciding to taper purchases (Financial Times). About half of the committee thought that the purchases might end altogether by the end of the year (Wall Street Journal).
US banks are already coming up with plans to 'optimise' the leverage ratio proposed by regulators this week. Strategies for dealing with the planned limit on debt levels include moving assets between subsidiaries, shortening the duration of derivatives and reducing credit commitments. At worst, bankers said, they could retain some earnings to meet the ratio, during the five years before its implementation (Financial Times).
The SEC approved rules allowing hedge funds to advertise to the (rich) general public. But the commission also made amendments requiring greater disclosure of 'general solicitation' to regulators, under the JOBS Act (Financial Times).
Book thrown at Apple: "Apple chose to join forces with the publisher defendants to raise e-book prices and equipped them with the means to do so... Without Apple's orchestration of this conspiracy, it would not have succeeded as it did," US District Judge Denise Cote said, ruling on Wednesday that the company violated antitrust law in pricing e-books. Apple is expected to appeal the decision (Reuters, Financial Times, judge's opinion).
PC market still dying. Shipments fell 10.9 per cent in the second quarter, according to Gartner data (Bloomberg).
