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A General Gets Knifed

"In an administration that loves leak investigations, this is arguably the most significant one to date. The foreign-policy implications of identifying the Stuxnet virus as the handiwork of U.S. spies were enormous. The Obama administration's protests against Chinese cyber-espionage are undermined by the fact that America fired the first shot in a global cyberwar. And it arguably led to an escalation. U.S. intelligence believes that the cyberattack on the facilities of Saudi Aramco last year was carried out by the government of Iran. Yet there were members of the intelligence community who believe that the Stuxnet leak had its benefits." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingA General Gets Knifed

American killed in Egyptian clashes as Muslim Brotherhood offices attacked

"Egypt suffered renewed outbreaks of violence on Friday as Muslim Brotherhood offices were attacked in at least four provinces, two days before the scheduled start of mass protests against the president and Brotherhood associate Mohamed Morsi. Two people were killed in Alexandria on Friday – one was an American bystander who was watching an attack on local Brotherhood offices – and 70 were injured. Clashes were reported in several other cities between Morsi's often secular-minded critics, who seek his immediate resignation, and his allies in the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups, who defend his democratic legitimacy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerican killed in Egyptian clashes as Muslim Brotherhood offices attacked

Egypt’s army threatens to ‘intervene’ if unrest continues

"Egypt’s defence minister warned on Sunday that the army will intervene if violence breaks out in the country where opponents of President Mohamed Morsi are planning rallies against him this month. 'The armed forces have the obligation to intervene to stop Egypt from plunging into a dark tunnel of conflict and infighting,' Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned on the eve of the first anniversary of Morsi’s election as opposition leaders clamoured for his resignation. Morsi’s opponents, who accuse him of hijacking the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak’s regime, plan a rally on June 30 to mark the day Morsi was sworn in as Egypt’s first civilian and Islamist president." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEgypt’s army threatens to ‘intervene’ if unrest continues

US army blocks access to Guardian website to preserve ‘network hygiene’

"The US army has admitted to blocking access to parts of the Guardian website for thousands of defence personnel across the country. A spokesman said the military was filtering out reports and content relating to government surveillance programs to preserve 'network hygiene' and prevent any classified material appearing on unclassified parts of its computer systems. A spokesman for the Army's Network Enterprise Technology Command (Netcom) in Arizona confirmed that this was a widespread policy, likely to be affecting hundreds of defence facilities." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS army blocks access to Guardian website to preserve ‘network hygiene’

Italy could need EU rescue within six months, warns Mediobanca privately

"Mediobanca, Italy’s second biggest bank, said its 'index of solvency risk' for Italy was already flashing warning signs as the worldwide bond rout continued into a second week, pushing up borrowing costs. The report warned that Italy will 'inevitably end up in an EU bail-out request' over the next six months, unless it can count on low borrowing costs and a broader recovery. Emphasising the gravity of the situation, it compared the crisis with when the country was blown out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1992 despite drastic austerity measures. Italy’s €2.1 trillion (£1.8 trillion) debt is the world’s third largest after the US and Japan." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingItaly could need EU rescue within six months, warns Mediobanca privately

Central banks sell record sums of US debt

"Central banks sold a record amount of US Treasury debt last week while bond funds suffered the biggest-ever investor withdrawals as markets shuddered at the prospect of the US Federal Reserve ending its quantitative easing programme. Holdings of US Treasuries held at the Fed on behalf of official foreign institutions dropped a record $32.4 billion to $2.93 trillion, eclipsing the prior mark of $24 billion in August 2007. It was the third week of outflows in the past four. Private investors are also dumping fixed income. US funds were the worst hit, with withdrawals totalling $10.6 billion, but emerging market debt funds also saw record redemptions of $5.6 billion." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCentral banks sell record sums of US debt

British central bank softens rules for banks to give economy £70bn boost

"The UK’s big four lenders will be able to reduce their cash and cash-like assets by 20pc under the recommendation, made by the Bank’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC). The excess 'liquidity' could then be used 'to support lending to the real economy', it said. The FPC estimated the impact of the rule change on the big four to be 'around £70bn'. Interest rates have been at a record low of 0.5pc for more than four years and households have become increasingly reliant on such cheap credit. The proportion of borrowers on variable rate mortgages linked to the 0.5pc rate is close to a historical high, the Bank said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritish central bank softens rules for banks to give economy £70bn boost

Mocking Germans Adds Irish Insult to Banking Injury

"Irish politicians say jibes at Germans by some of the country’s former bankers undermine their case for securing help to cut the 64 billion-euro ($83 billion) bill for saving the financial system. John Bowe, a former executive at the now defunct Anglo Irish Bank Corp., sang 'Deutschland Ueber Alles', according to recordings of 2008 conversations that were published this week. Irish borrowing costs surged in 2010 as investors grew concerned about the mounting burden on the taxpayer. Now the government is trying to persuade German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other euro-region leaders to refund part of what was spent on saving the country’s lenders." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMocking Germans Adds Irish Insult to Banking Injury

Official figures reveal Ireland is back in a recession

"Ireland’s bailed-out economy slumped back into recession in the second half of last year, and continued to shrink in the first quarter of 2013, official figures showed on Thursday. GDP tumbled 1.0 percent in the third quarter of 2012 and by 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter, meeting the definition of a recession, according to revised data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), which added that the economy shrank 0.6 percent in the first quarter of this year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOfficial figures reveal Ireland is back in a recession

Tempers fray in France as drastic cuts loom

"President Francois Hollande has already angered much of his own Socialist base with plans to cut spending next year in absolute terms for the first time since 1958, but this may be just start of the battle. The Cour des Comptes said France is not even 'halfway' through its fiscal squeeze. The warnings came as a blizzard of grim news dashed hopes for a rapid recovery from two years of slump. A recent study by Pew Foundation said French support for the European Project has crashed from 60pc to 40pc over the past year. Just 22pc now think EU economic integration is positive." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTempers fray in France as drastic cuts loom