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Daily Archives: October 27, 2014

Regional Economic Outlook: Middle East and Central Asia

IMF – Regional Economic Outlook: Middle East and Central Asia, October 2014.

“Despite setbacks, an uneven global economic recovery continues. Largely due to weaker-than-expected global activity in the first half of 2014, the growth forecast for the world economy has been revised downward to 3.3 percent this year, 0.4 percentage point lower than in the April 2014 World Economic Outlook. Global growth is projected to rebound in the second half of 2014 and into 2015 driven by strengthening growth in both advanced and emerging market economies. Accommodative monetary policy, favorable financial conditions, and a reduced pace of fiscal consolidation provide a favorable backdrop for stronger growth in the United States and the euro area. Emerging market and developing economies will likely profit from a recovery in external demand associated with faster growth in advanced economies as well as from strengthening domestic demand, in part linked to new measures to support activity (notably in China). By contrast, low growth in Russia, a country with important economic links, particularly for the Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA) region, reflects the impact of geopolitical tensions on foreign investment, domestic production, and confidence  Downside risks have increased since the spring. Increased geopolitical tensions, linked to the Russia-Ukraine situation and continued strife in some countries in the Middle East, could prove persistent, hampering recovery in the countries directly involved and taking a toll on confidence elsewhere. And a worsening of such tensions could lead to sharply higher oil prices, asset price declines, and further economic distress. Financial market risks include a reversal of the recent risk spreads and volatility compression triggered by a larger-than-expected increase in U.S. long-term rates—which would also tighten financial conditions for emerging markets. Secular stagnation and low potential growth in advanced economies remain important medium-term risks. For emerging markets, despite downward revisions to forecasts, the risk remains that the projected increase in growth next year will fail to materialize (at least in full) and that potential growth is lower than currently projected. And risks of a hard landing in China in the medium term, owing to excess capacity and the credit overhang, remain a concern.”

How Facebook Is Changing the Way Its Users Consume Journalism

NYT – Ravi Somaiya: “Many of the people who read this article will do so because Greg Marra, 26, a Facebook engineer, calculated that it was the kind of thing they might enjoy. Mr. Marra’s team designs the code that drives Facebook’s News Feed – the stream of updates, photographs, videos and stories that users see.… Continue Reading

Decoding Stock Market Behavior with the Topological Quantum Computer

Racorean, Ovidiu Sorin, Decoding Stock Market Behavior with the Topological Quantum Computer (June 25, 2014). Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2514779 “A surprising image of the stock market arises if the price time series of all Dow Jones Industrial Average stock components are represented in one chart at once. The chart evolves into a braid… Continue Reading

European Central Bank’s in-depth review shows banks need to take further action

News release: “The European Central Bank (ECB) has today published the results of a thorough year-long examination of the resilience and positions of the 130 largest banks in the euro area as of 31 December 2013…Key results of comprehensive assessment of 130 largest euro area banks: Capital shortfall of €25 billion detected at 25 participant… Continue Reading

CRS – The Appointment Process for U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominations

The Appointment Process for U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominations: An Overview, Denis Steven Rutkus, Visiting Scholar. October 22, 2014 “In recent decades, the process for appointing judges to the U.S. circuit courts of appeals and the U.S. district courts has been of continuing Senate interest. The responsibility for making these appointments is shared by… Continue Reading

Customer Choice and the Power Industry of the Future

Customer Choice and the Power Industry of the Future. Richard J. Campbell Specialist in Energy Policy September 22, 2014 “Some observers argue that new technologies are leading to a distributed generation (DG) future for customers, supported by utility base load generation and infrastructure. Various states and jurisdictions have begun initiatives to look at what a… Continue Reading

JPMorgan Data Breach Involves Information on 76 Million Households

JPMorgan Data Breach Involves Information on 76 Million Households, 7 Million Small Businesses, CRS Legal Sidebar, October 23, 2014 “JPMorgan did not provide individual customers with notice of the breach because it believed that it had no obligation to do so because no “sensitive customer information” was involved in the data breach. This means that… Continue Reading