SATURDAY 6/14/14; ISIS Extremists Behead Iraqi's

A military transport plane with nearly 50 passengers is shot down in East Ukraine as it attempts a landing in Luhansk. The Russians are arming the pro-Russian separatists with high-power weaponry. Putin’s aggression into East Ukraine increases, including tank movement across the border, as the world’s attention is fixated on Iraq.

The Iraq turmoil continues with the ISIS extremists pushing south to Baghdad. The nutcases are dragging Iraqi police and military from their offices and homes and beheading them. Mass beheadings are occurring creating fear and panic across Iraq. No wonder the Iraqi forces deserted and stripped from their uniforms to hide among the general population. The UN is extremely concerned about the deteriorating situation in Iraq on reports that hundreds of people are being executed. As the news grows uglier, President Obama appears in no hurry to act and says he is considering options over the coming days. The president attempts to distance himself from creating what may be the collapse of Iraq in a matter of days and weeks.

The president’s problems escalate by the day. 











[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

In a commencement speech at a graduation ceremony in Irvine, California, President Obama says that the folks (Congress) denying climate change are the same folks that say the moon is made of cheese. The wind and solar companies will dance with glee hearing these words. The FAN wind energy ETF is strongly higher this year and the TAN solar energy ETF has quadrupled since late 2012. A the same time, the president smacks coal every chance he gets so KOL the coal ETF is down -60% over the last three years.

FRIDAY 6/13/14; BOE Warns of Rate Hike Before Q2 2015; PPI; Consumer Sentiment

Today is Friday the 13th so superstitious folks will avoid black cats and walking under ladders. A full moon occurs today and equities are typically bullish moving through the full moon. Asian markets trade mixed with the NIKK, SSEC and HSI up from +0.6% to +0.9% while Australia’s key index and the KOSPI lose -0.4% and -1%, respectively.

Japan’s Prime Minister Abe says cuts to the corporate tax rate are planned over the coming years. The BOJ leaves policy unchanged with Governor Kuroda saying a moderate recovery is ongoing. Japan’s steel, metal and commodity stocks trade higher. The dollar/yen moves higher to 101.87 from a low of 101.67. Thus, the weaker yen sends the NIKK higher overnight. Yesterday the dollar/yen dropped from above 102 down to the 101.67 low so the stronger yen created the stock market selling in the States.

China’s retail sales data is better than expected and bank lending increases far more than expected over the last month. Chinese banks run higher gaining from +1% to +2%. The Aussie Dollar is at 0.9406 a seven-month high against the US Dollar. Iron ore and nickel prices continue leaking lower so metals and miners are slapped. Gold miners, however, trade higher, as gold catches a bid due to the Middle East turmoil.

The major European indexes are down -0.6% across the board. Euro 1.3574. Portugal’s 10-year yield is at 3.34% as the country does not take a final bailout payment since the economy appears to be rebounding. BOE’s Carney says interest rates may be raised sooner than investors expect. The current projection for the first rate hike is April 2015 so trades now expect a rate hike to occur in Q1 2015 rather than Q2 2015. A hike in rates would crimp mortgage lending and cool the runaway housing market. Carney is obviously very worried about the rapid rise in house prices creating economic instability. Pound 1.6974.

The higher house prices in London are now spreading throughout the UK. House developers such as Persimmon, Bellway, Baratt Development and Taylor Wimpey are all down -5% collapsing on Carney’s words. UK construction data is strong but does not aid the builders today. The spike in oil prices due to Iraq turmoil sends Easy Jet down -3.7% and Royal Dutch Shell up +1.3%.

Iraqi refugees are fleeing to the northern Kurdish region.
















[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

TRAN recovers +0.8% to the 8043 level testing the 20-day MA at 8047 from the underside. The biotech sector finishes down with IBB -0.1%. Utilities outperform with UTIL up +0.6%.  The retail sector, consumer staples and consumer discretionary finish flat to negative showing that challenges remain for the great American consumer. Crude oil pauses after the strong run higher in recent days. WTIC oil 106.77. Brent oil 113.50.

PCLN drops -3% and OPEN bounces +48% on the takeover news announced this morning. YELP is up +14% and GRPN +4% feeling love from the takeover talk. IGT jumps +11% on takeover chatter and EXPR gains +21% on news last evening about Sycamore Partners launching a move to acquire this retailer. MNKD gains +8%. Russia’s VIP drops -4%. TRLA bounces +3% saying that home buying is picking up but the homebuilders sell off with XHB -0.4%. Aluminum feels some love with AA up +3.6%. Copper gains +0.5% to 3.03 after dropping -5% over the last couple weeks.

For the week, the SPX loses -0.7%, the first down week after three strong up weeks. The INDU is down -0.9%, COMPQ down -0.3% and RUT loses -0.2%. The broader market is down more than tech and the small caps. TRAN drops -2% this week as crude oil (think fuel and energy costs) runs higher. WTIC crude oil gains nearly +4% due to the Iraq turmoil. Energy is the latest darling of long traders. XLE jumps +1.7% this week. Industrials and utilities take it on the chin. XLI -1.5%. UTIL -1.4%. XLU -1.2%. INTC catapults +6% this week. Semiconductors are on fire with SOX gaining +1.7% this week and up a huge +12% over the last month.

Under the Friday night cover of darkness, the IRS says the Lois Lerner emails are lost due to a computer crash. The IRS and Whitehouse had over one year’s time to turn over records but has refused to do so and now says the records are lost. The IRS scandal continues where conservative and Tea Party organizations were targeted and harassed by the IRS to help President Obama win the November 2012 presidential election. Lois Lerner is at the center of the investigation but refuses to testify and now the records have been apparently destroyed.

The continuing games by the politicians and government departments are sowing the seeds for dangerous social unrest in the future. Folks realize more and more each day that there are two sets of rules in America; one for the elite political and wealthy class and the second for everyone else. The social classes (rich versus poor) are separating and developing animosity towards each other due to the Fed and other central bankers making the rich richer while the middle class and poor folks carry their water. Government corruption, lies, incompetence and cover-ups only serve to fuel this future social unrest. Perhaps the US is headed towards another decade of civil disobedience and multi-city protests and violence like the 1960’s?

The unprecedented Fed and other central banker intervention has destroyed price discovery and twisted inter-market relationships into a knot. There is likely from 10% to 80% of fluff under the equities markets that will have to be reconciled at some point forward. The BOJ money-printing that destroyed the value of the yen over the last 18 months created the European stock and bond market recovery. The world is awash in easy money. To prove the ridiculousness, the French 10-year yield is under 1.70% at levels not seen since 1740. Yes, the year 1740 nearly 300 years ago. The Spanish 10-year yield is under 2.70% at the lowest yield since 1789.

In addition to the bond market gains, the European stock markets are at or near 6-year highs fueled by the weaker yen and other global central banker intervention. The European indexes print new highs as the continent remains mired in high unemployment, recession and depression. The final chapter of the Keynesian sugar-high saga, worshipped by Fed heads Greenspan, Bernanke and Yellen, as well as BOJ’s Kuroda, BOE’s Carney, ECB’s Draghi, and the PBOC, has yet to be written.

THURSDAY 6/12/14; IMF Issues Housing Crash Warning; LULU; Retail Sales; Business Inventories; Iraq Deteriorates

The dollar/yen is flat at 102. Asian stocks are down across the board. The NIKK and SPASX200 are down -0.6% and -0.5%, respectively, with other markets down lesser amounts. Japan April Machinery Orders drop -9.1% month over month but this is actually better than expected. China markets surprisingly trade lower since more mini-stimulus measures are announced.

Aussie May employment data is weaker than expected. Iron ore prices continue to leak lower and Fortescue Metals drops -5%. The Kiwi dollar hits a 3-week high after the RBNZ raises its benchmark rate to 3.25% from 3.00%. The Bank of Korea leaves its benchmark base rate unchanged at 2.5%. India’s BSE bucks the overall negative trend in Asia finishing slightly higher.

Oil prices climb higher as Iraq violence increases. WTIC crude is above 105 and Brent is above 110 and climbing. Militant radicals take over several Iraqi cities such as Mosul and Tikrit creating chaos and destabilization over a large portion of Iraq. The US war in Iraq appears to be a huge waste of American lives and money and there is plenty of blame to go around. After the 9-11 tragedy, President Bush is at fault for going into Iraq when the focus should have been on finding Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan instead.

President Obama is at fault for ending the Iraq occupation so suddenly over the last few years that a vacuum was created immediately filled by radical’s now re-exerting control over the entire country. Companies that provide support services for wars, such as HAL, profit greatly from all the human misery, making the top one percent even wealthier, while many veterans must now live their remaining days with debilitating injuries.

The IMF warns that a major housing crash may occur. Global house prices are at elevated levels in many countries fueled by the central banker intervention maintaining low rates. House prices are rising exceptionally fast in emerging markets such as China, Brazil and the Philippines. US and UK house prices continue higher with the largest price gains occurring in Australia, Canada, Sweden, Belgium and Norway. House prices are running below average in Japan, Germany, and peripheral European countries such as Greece and Spain.

Manhattan New York rents are at a five-year high. The central banker easy money fuels the stock market gains so the wealthy take profits and continue to buy real estate, art and other collectables driving these asset bubbles higher. Wealthy foreign buyers, especially Chinese and Russians, are buying global real estate to diversify and keep their money distant from their own governments. Thus, these cash buyers, with money to burn, continue to drive real estate prices higher while the average family cannot afford to take on a regular basic mortgage.

The World Cup football (soccer) tournament begins today in Brazil. There are limited strikes at Rio airports but the Sao Paolo protestors call off the transit and subway strikes. $11 billion is spent on the World Cup stadiums as much of the country lives in squalor only a stone’s throw away from the sports venues. Only 12% of the supporting infrastructure (roads, bridges, mass transportation) is built that was promised. President Dilma Rousseff pledges that Brazil will provide the best World Cup ever.

The US Open golf tournament begins at Pinehurst, North Carolina. Pro golfer Phil Mickelson is cleared of insider trading charges in CLX but the investigation continues in DF. Investor Carl Icahn and gambler Billy Waters remain under investigation concerning insider trading in CLX and DF.

Lululemon reports plunging profits and a potential long-term peak in customer sales. LULU assumes the downward dawg pose collapsing -7% pre-market adding to the near -3% lost in yesterday’s trading session. TWTR is up +0.4% pre-market on news of an executive shake-up. US futures are positive. S&P +2. Dow +15. Nasdaq +3. The 10-year yield continues higher to 2.66%.







[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

LE is a bright retail spot gaining +10% on better than expected earnings. Equities remain weak as copper continues deteriorating down -0.6% to 3.02. The 10-year yield drops to 2.62% down four basis points in the last couple hours. At 10:45 AM, the dollar/yen drops to 101.88 so the stronger yen sends equities lower. The SPX is down 9 points, -0.5%. The RUT small caps are down -0.7% printing negatively for three days in row stalling the strong upside rally from mid-May. TRAN -2.2%.

Russian tanks are crossing over the East Ukraine border to aid the pro-Russian separatists. Putin sneakily applies more aggression into Ukraine while the world’s eyes are fixated on the deteriorating situation in Iraq. The radical extremists, now in control of eastern Syria and a major portion of Iraq, are only 70 miles from Baghdad. The extremists are called the Islamic State of Iraq in Syria (ISIS). The charismatic leader is Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. The warning signs were in place for the last four or five months but to see this quick a collapse of Iraq is breathtaking. The Iraqi police and military forces are not fighting ISIS and instead abandoning their positions stripping out of their uniforms and leaving tanks, weapons and ammunition behind. The extremists then add the fire power to their ranks.

France wants air support provided to the Iraqi forces and of course looks for the US to do the dirty work but the US takes the position that Iraq is on its own. President Obama mentions that all options are on the table but it sounds like another hollow red line threat. The Iraqi forces are 270K strong with 30K in Mosul but apparently the Mosul forces simply abandoned their posts and ran for their lives. The Iraqi forces are a paper tiger. Refugees are leaving the Iraqi cities taken over by ISIS creating a humanitarian problem. Adding further chaos, Iran has said they will begin fighting Iraq if any of the turmoil approaches their border any closer which would likely launch the Middle East into a full-fledged WW III.

The Kurds in northern Iraq have taken over Kirkuk and want to maintain order in these oil fields and for the key Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline. Crude oil remains elevated all day long with WTIC crude approaching 107 and Brent running above 113. Americans are going to be shocked in a couple weeks at the higher gasoline prices. Gold is up to 1273 receiving a bid due to the geopolitical turmoil.

Equities weaken in further in the afternoon as trader’s heads begin to spin trying to keep all the rival factions straight in the Middle East. The rise in oil has everyone’s attention. The 30-Year Bond Auction is the strongest auction this week at a yield of 3.44%. A bid goes into Treasuries as equities weaken. The 10-year yield drops to 2.58% down eight basis points since this morning. Copper is very weak. The dollar/yen drops to 101.69. Euro 1.3557. The SPX is down 15 points with the Dow down triple digits and Nasdaq losing 40 points.

Defense and aerospace stocks are bludgeoned including GD, BA, NOC and LMT. GMCR gains +4% on rumors of KO buying a stake. RIO drops -3.4%. Elon Musk is opening up all of the Tesla patents to help build the electric car industry and charging station infrastructure faster on a common platform. TSLA -0.5%. Pharma NKTR is halted from trading. LULU set a sour tone for the retail sector with RTH collapsing -2.1% and XRT -1.3%.

Ford says the MPG ratings provided on vehicles are too high and plans to make goodwill payments to the 200K folks affected. The payments may be from $100 to $1100 which adds up to a hefty charge. F drops -2.3% and is down -3.3% this week. GM dances with glee as the negative attention can focus away from General Motors and towards the long traders’ recent favorite son Ford.

The day ends with the SPX down 14 points, -0.7%, to 1930. The Dow loses 110 points, -0.7%, to 16734. The Nasdaq loses 34 points, -0.8%, to 4298. The RUT drops 7 points, -0.6%, to 1159. The volume, although light, is the strongest volume over the last month. TRAN drops -2%. AMZN loses -2.8% as the new music service receives lackluster attention since the current hip musical artists are not available.

After the bell, INTC raises guidance and expects higher top line revenue. Intel cites a higher demand for business PC’s which are likely a result of the Windows XP support ending so companies are updating to new computers. INTC will benefit from this upgrade cycle and the positive news is a healthy barometer for the economy overall. INTC catapults +5% higher in AH trading. The chip sector is hot and will now remain hot.

Telecom FINR collapses -22% on weak earnings. European telecoms Orange, Bouygues and Iliad all trade higher today. NKTR resumes trading in the AH’s and jumps +8.5%. The S&P announces changes for next Friday’s index adjustment; IGT will be removed from the S&P 500 and will likely sell off tomorrow and XEC will be added which will receive a bid tomorrow. EXPR jumps +20% as Sycamore Partners prepares a bid for the company.

US authorities plan to sell 30K bitcoins on 6/27/14 valued at about $20 million that were seized as part of the Silk Road web site investigation. Bidders must deposit a refundable $200K to bid on the virtual currency. A larger lot of 144K bitcoin with a value near $90 million is also in US hands seized from Ross Ulbricht, the kingpin of the Silk Road operation, but is not yet on schedule to be sold.

The flood of immigrants into the US southern border from Mexico and Central America has developed into a humanitarian crisis. The Whitehouse is downplaying the situation but the news reports are increasing showing unsupervised children at processing centers and systems unable to handle the flood of immigrants. The alleged military deserter, Bowe Berghdal, that President Obama recovered in exchange for releasing five high-level terrorists returns to the US. Secretary of State Kerry warns that any of the five terrorists may be killed by the US if they fight again.

Street protests and violence continue in Venezuela as inflation is at a 50% annual pace. Food and water shortages show no sign of let-up. President Nicolas Maduro, hand-picked by Chavez before his death, watches his popularity drop daily.

WEDNESDAY 6/11/14; World Bank Lowers Growth Forecast; 10-Year Note Auction; Iraq Descends Into Chaos

Asia trades mixed again. The NIKK, SSEC and KOSPI print slight gains while Australia, India’s BSE and the Hang Seng each lose -0.3%. India reports strong export numbers. Miners are weak. Copper leaks lower. The World Bank cuts the global growth forecast to 2.8% from the prior 3.2%.

OPEC oil ministers meet in Vienna to discuss and set production quotas. The al-Qaeda takeover of Mosul, Iraq, will dampen oil production as well as the ongoing fight over splitting oil revenue with the Kurds that control northern Iraq. WTIC crude oil is nearing 105 and Brent is at 110. Gasoline prices at the pump will remain elevated which will hurt consumer retail spending.

Protests against Uber begin across Europe with taxi cab drivers recruiting friends, family and supporters to create bottle necks and traffic. Uber is in about 20 European cities. Protests in London and Madrid are ramping up the fastest. London police are setting location and time conditions for the growing demonstrations. The taxicab industry wants Uber to follow the same stringent regulations they follow while Uber believes its disruptive technology provides a better solution.

Executives at London’s top firms see higher bonuses year on year. The rich get richer because of central banker easy money. The UK ILO unemployment rate is 6.6% slightly better than the 6.7% expected and the lowest since January 2009. The Emirates cancel a large Airbus A350 order. Airline stocks are weak. Lufthansia collapses -15% the worst drop in 13 years on weak earnings, guidance and currency issues. Engine-maker Rolls Royce is down -5%. The EU launches a probe into tax practices of AAPL, SBUX and Fiat. European stocks trade lower across the board down from -0.6% to -1.0%.

At 4:30 AM, S&P futures -3. Dow -21. Nasdaq -5. The 10-year yield is 2.66%. Copper is slightly lower with gold and silver slightly higher. At 5:30 AM, S&P -7. Dow -45. Nasdaq -12. 








[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

Of additional interest is that despite disagreement with President Obama’s policies, most Americans always liked the president as a person, however, this sentiment is quickly deteriorating. The ongoing scandals and lying, and growing image of incompetence, are catching up to the president and the Whitehouse.

TUESDAY 6/10/14; European Yields Drop; Wholesale Trade; Dow New All-Time Closing High

Asia markets follow along from the US and move higher except for Japan. The dollar/yen drops to 102.36 so the stronger yen sends the NIKK -0.9% lower under 15K. India’s BESE takes a rest dropping -0.4%. The KOSPI jumps +1.1%. The Korean Won is at six-year highs against the dollar. Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite jumps +1% as presidential election debates are underway.

China inflation rises. The PBOC provides more easy money stimulus cutting the triple R’s for rural banks to support regional lending so the SSEC and HSI indexes bounce about +1% higher. Traders are addicted to central banker easy money. Equities go up on stimulus and money-printing announcements and then when stocks begin drifting lower threatening a correction, the central bankers step in to pump stocks higher once again. The five-year global saga continues. The PBOC plans further targeted stimulus for the Chinese economy. China is also reopening the IPO door allowing 50 companies to come to market. Said cynically, the central banker easy money can be used to buy these fledgling start-up companies that do not generate any profit.

In Harpsund, Sweden, leaders Merkel (Germany), Reinfeldt (Sweden), Rutte (Netherlands) and Cameron (UK) speak concerning the selection of the new head of the EU. Merkel backs Jean-Claude Juncker but Cameron is opposed. The speakers stress that the discussions are on policies and approach rather than directly addressing the sticky situation of approving Juncker as the new EU President, or not. Merkel says that European growth is fragile.

Euro is leaking lower to 1.3556 providing credibility to Draghi’s desire to weaken the euro and stimulate Europe’s economy. Italy bond yields collapse to multi-decade unprecedented lows. The Italy 10-year yield is 2.69%. Spain is 2.59% below the US representing lower borrowing costs for Spain versus the US. The 10-year Treasury yield is 2.62%. Germany 1.38%. Japan’s 10-year yield is under 0.60%.

UK industrial output gains +3% a robust number the greatest rise since 2011 but...........





[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

The SPX ends the session a hair lower at 1951 unable to print new all-time highs; however, the SPX has printed new record highs seven of the last nine days. The Dow gains a hair printing a new all-time closing high at 16945.92 but unable to print a new intraday all-time high. TRAN is unable to print a new all-time intraday or closing high. COMPQ is on the hair positive side closing at 4338. RUT is down -0.3% the only major index moving any substantive amount so traders are taking profits on the recent small cap bounce.

Underage immigrants are flooding into the US border at Mexico. President Obama should be enforcing the immigration laws but instead encourages illegal immigrants to enter the US. The president’s policies allow young immigrants to enter and stay in the US. In addition, the families of these young immigrants are then permitted to come to the US to care for the younger person. The Border States are overwhelmed and local economies disrupted. Tens of thousands of immigrants are entering the US to take advantage of the lax immigration policy. President Obama requests $1.6 billion in spending to handle the latest debacle. The president’s popularity hits a new low.

In a stunning shock to the Republican Party, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is defeated in the Virginia primary election. Cantor loses to the Tea Party economics professor Dave Brat. Cantor was seen as the successor for House Speaker John Boehner’s job. The traditional wing of the Republican Party professing the death of the Tea Party a couple weeks ago was far too premature.

The Tea Party republicans will now strengthen the battle against President Obama on future legislation rather than roll over and follow Keynesian policies like the traditional republicans. The American people are finally realizing there is no difference between democrats and republicans since they both believe in out-of-control government spending; demopublicans and repbublocrats. Perhaps electing people to office that can actually work together and develop and follow a budget, like an economics professor, is the desired path forward for America.

MONDAY 6/9/14; Japan GDP; Spain 10-Year Yield Falls Below US 10-Year Yield; AAPL Stock Split; SPX, Dow and TRAN New All-Time Highs

There is no trading in Sydney today due to the Queen’s birthday. The Aussie Dollar is 0.9356. Futures in Asian indexes are higher across the board before the new week of trading begins. Japan’s Q1 GDP is above estimates at 1.6% on quarter and 6.7% annualized. The forecast was 5.6%. The bump higher is due to the increase in consumer purchasing before the sales tax rise took effect and GDP will likely pull back down in Q2. Q3 will be key for Japan to see if the economy recovers and grows after the sales tax fluctuations line out.

[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

Fed’s Rosengren discusses methods for reducing the balance sheet after the targeted levels of inflation and employment are achieved. Equities weaken from noon on. At 2 PM, the SPX slips negative, only briefly, after running to a new all-time high at 1955.55 earlier. The broad indexes then stagger sideways into the closing bell.

The session ends with the SPX up a smidge printing a new all-time intraday high at 1955.55 and new all-time closing high at 1951.27. The Dow gains a small 18 points printing a new all-time intraday high at 16970.17 and new all-time closing high at 16943.10. TRAN is up a touch also printing a new all-time intraday high at 8256.79 and new all-time closing high at 8214.99.

The COMPQ gains 15 points, +0.3%, to 4336 nearing the February highs. Ditto the RUT up 11 points, +0.9%, to 1176. Small caps are the clear winner. The VIX moves higher closing above 11. Since both volatility and equities are up, one of them is wrong. Copper leaks lower helping market bears as commodities move higher helping market bulls. IGT gains +14% on news that it is exploring a potential sale of the company. NFLX drops -1.6% after a shareholder vote elects to leave the CEO role as is and not split the responsibility into a dual CEO and Chairman structure.

The global 10-year yields are remarkable with folks tripping over each other to buy troubled Spain, France and Ireland debt rather than US debt. The 10-year yields are; Italy 2.72%, US 2.61%, Spain 2.59%, Ireland 2.41% and France 1.70%. Spain can borrow money more cheaply than the US. The central bankers have twisted global markets into knots.

After the bell, CHS leaps +13% higher on news it is exploring options to sell the company. A study shows that the three worst majors to study in college from a job prospect perspective are fine arts, graphic design and archaeology.

A WFC report shows that four in 10 young people are consumed by debt mainly student loans with over one-half of their limited incomes going towards paying off the debt. Nearly 6 in every 10 young adults are living paycheck to paycheck. No wonder many are living at or moving back home to stay with their parents to reduce expenses.

A LUV jet collides with a JBLU jet on the tarmac at Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Wings are clipped but no injuries are reported. Flights are rescheduled since both planes require repairs. The near misses in the air, and now an actual ground collision, reinforce the perception that airline and airport safety practices are becoming lax.

SUNDAY 6/8/14; China Trade Data

Falling Chinese imports show that the domestic-led side of the economy may be struggling. Global demand for products remains strong so Chinese exports move higher with the trade surplus widening. Interestingly, the exports to the US are up but cut in one-half from the prior month and exports to Europe are slowing but exports to neighboring Asian nations doubled. Premier Li promises continued stimulus to encourage growth. The politicians and central bankers keep goosing the markets with easy money.

[Text is Redacted: Purchase June 2014-06 to Read the Complete Chronology]

HSY files a trademark infringement lawsuit against a Colorado-based pot confectioner manufacturing products too closely resembling Hershey’s famous chocolate products. Several CSX tanker rail cars and cars carrying steel derail in Pittsburgh. 

13 people die and dozens are injured at Karachi Airport, Pakistan, as armed militant gunmen attack the facility. Pakistan authorities retake the airport but the attack flares up again a few hours later. Ukraine’s newly-elected President Poroshenko is sworn in to office.