Economics and Investing:

Deranged Central Bankers Blowing Up The World – S.Q.

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Financial Crisis 2016: High Yield Debt Tells Us That Just About EVERYTHING Is About To Collapse

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Items from Professor Preponomics:

US News

What Energy Bankers are REALLY Saying: “We are looking to save ourselves now!” (Zero Hedge) Excerpt: “…anyone holding out for a big push higher across energy equities as a result of a wave of distressed equity M&A can give up: according to Credit Suisse the next wave of mergers will take place via ‘debt negotiations’, not equity buyout offers….” Warning: Commentary following the article may contain bad language and/or inappropriate avatar images.

US Oil Bankruptcies Spike 379% (CNN Money) Excerpt: “It looks pretty bad. We fully anticipate it’s only going to get worse….” Watch closely as well for news about bank exposure to potential debt defaults: From USA Today… How Bad Will It Get for the Banks?

International News

The Five Fears Stalking the Global Banking Industry (The Guardian) Excerpt: “China, emerging markets, the eurozone, oil and commodities all pose a threat to the banking sector this year.”

Opinion: Falling Oil Prices Will Bankrupt the Likes of Russia, Saudi Arabia (Market Watch) Excerpt: “We could soon be back in a full-scale sovereign-debt crisis, except this time it will be commodity exporters that are caught up in the maelstrom rather than peripheral eurozone countries. But just like the eurozone crisis, the losses will soon ripple out to the banking system, and before long there may well have to be series of emergency bailouts.”

IMF and World Bank Move to Forestall Oil-Led Defaults (Financial Times) Excerpt: “Azerbaijan depends on oil and gas for 95 per cent of its exports and the fallout of its currency weakness has sparked a series of protests across the country rattling the government of President Ilham Aliyev.”

Is Saudi Arabia Approaching an Economic Breaking Point? (The Globe and Mail) Excerpt: “This is a different Saudi Arabia. The days of the state taking care of the population from cradle to grave seems over. This could have massive ramifications for the kingdom and its people, from economics to politics. The existing social contract between the rulers and the ruled is under threat.”

Economist Suggests that Correa is Out of Touch with Ecuador’s Economic Crisis (Cuenca High Life) Excerpt: “Asked by Padilla about the economic situation, Correa replied that, compared with the country he inherited in 2007, “we’re now a middle-class family, with a cement house, a car, a legalized piece of land, children with education, health. Perhaps we’ve got a problem, perhaps we lost our employment, as head of the family, but he’s got a credit card to continue subsisting,” Correa said.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

The Effect of Deflation on Debt (The Nest) Seriously. Get out of debt! Excerpt: “Deflation has an even bigger risk. Because falling prices tend to reduce spending, deflation leads to a shrinking economy. If people buy fewer products, companies need fewer people to make them. This can lead to broad job losses. If you lose your job, you could end up unable to pay off your debt at all.”

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