Read more ~ Looking Ahead ~ Meetings and Events ~ What are we Looking for ...
October 17, 2011
Scenesetters for the Group of 20 nations in Paris this weekend said decisive action would be announced by Oct. 23, a deadline considered potentially unreal.
The patterns of communication can go awry, but it is generally accepted that the release of a big decision is proceeded with at least a few details that indicate, among other things, how many pots of coffee to make for the press conference.
Details at this point are few, but finance ministers meeting in Paris declared by Oct. 23 they would "decisively address the current challenges through a comprehensive plan."
Knowing investors are running out of patience, which usually happens when their investments go bust, finance leaders are aware it is time to throw them a bone, so to speak. If investors want a decision this week, leaders are saying, then we will give them one, even though the details are weeks away. And that's all that the market needs: investors with even less faith than they normally have in their political leaders.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday it will take weeks to figure out the details of a loan package for Greece, which erodes credence in the promise that the entire continent will have its ducks in a row by the end of the week.
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If the two-year pattern remains in place -- and most likely it will -- then Europe is far from willing to put a shock and awe program together that convinces investors they are ahead of the curve, rather than desperately trying to catch up to it.
In Asia, the chief executive officer and the senior vice president of Walmart China stepped down amidst a growing scandal over fraudulent pricing that has led to 35 employees being detained by authorities.
The Wall Street Journal said Monday that 25 employees are still being held and that seven were under house arrest.
In addition, reports last week said 13 Walmart stores in Chongqing were ordered closed for 15 days and the company would be fined $575,000. Allegedly, pork was mislabeled as organic, which would allow Walmart to charge a higher price for the product.
Granted, China is sensitive about rising food prices, but earlier reports also said Regional Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai is bucking for a promotion.
That seems like discount scare tactics. Someone is always bucking for a promotion, including attorneys general in the United States looking for a headline to help with next year's gubernatorial races. So, Bo Xilai wants a position with the Politburo Standing Committee. That would be a given, not a headline.
In international markets Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Japan rose 1.5 percent while the Shanghai composite index in China added 0.37 percent. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong gained 2.01 percent while the Sensex in India fell 0.34 percent.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia rose 1.66 percent.
In midday trading in Europe, the FTSE 100 index in Britain fell 0.18 percent while the DAX 30 in Germany shed 0.93 percent. The CAC 40 in France lost 0.36 percent while the Stoxx Europe 600 gave up 0.24 percent.
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