Forex News | Currency News by Forexlive

US DATA: June KC Fed composite index 14 vs 1 in May, production 22 vs
-2.

Bought a final $4.9 bln today.

Tttttthhhhaaaat’s all folks!

Up to 22 in June from -2 in May. Helps confirm Chicago PMI…Risk on!

Until a month ago, Bruederle was the economy minister. He thought Greece was going to have to restructure then and he still thinks they will have to restructure in the future.

ATHENS (MNI) – A day after passing highly unpopular new measures to
cut spending, hike taxes and privatize state assets, the Greek
Parliament Thursday approved the legislation required to implement the
new austerity package.

The vote, 155 to 136, capped a tumultuous few days in Athens that
ended with a significant political victory for the ruling Socialist
Party of George Papandreou. However, the voting both Wednesday and
Thursday took place against a backdrop of escalating social tension,
violent clashes between protesters and police, and the destruction of
two Socialist Party offices on the island of Crete.

Given the widespread opposition to the measures, it seems likely
that Papandreou will face fierce social resistance as he attempts to
enforce the measures in the months to come.

The spending and tax measures, which are in addition to Greece’s
already established austerity plan, are meant to cut the deficit by an
additional E28 billion over the next three years. The privatization
plan, which is to be run by an independent agency, has a target of E50
billion in asset sales through 2015.

The vote was almost straight along party lines: the Socialists,
with a majority of 154 seats in the parliament, got one opposition vote,
and the rest of the opposing parties voted against the legislation.

However, in addition to the straight roll call vote on
implementation, Greek MPs were also being allowed to weigh in on
specific articles in the overall legislation, going on the record as
favoring some and opposing others.

That will provide a more nuanced picture. For example, the main
conservative opposition party, New Democracy, favors the spending cuts
and privatization provisions even though it rejected the package as a
whole – primarily for domestic political reasons. It firmly opposes the
tax hikes.

Passage of the measures was a condition of additional aid for
Greece, which would likely default on debt repayments by this summer
without a E12 billion loan tranche from its Eurozone partners and the
International Monetary Fund, a part of the E110 billion bailout package
established in May 2010.

With approval of the package, it is almost certain now that the
Eurozone finance ministers, due to meet in Brussels on Sunday, will
approve payment of their E8.7 billion share of the E12 billion tranche.
The IMF will almost certainly follow suit, releasing its E3.3 billion
share.

The money will keep Greece afloat financially until September, when
another EMU-IMF tranche is due, amounting to E8 billion. At that point,
the drama could begin anew, with the IMF and European officials scouring
Greece’s books to see if Athens is hitting its fiscal targets — and
likely demanding even more measures if it is not.

In the meantime, Eurozone officials and the IMF will be negotiating
with Greece the details of a second bailout plan, estimated between E100
billion and E120 billion. That plan is expected to have a contribution
from private creditors, including banks and insurance companies, who
hold billions of euros in Greek debt.

[TOPICS: M$X$$$,MGX$$$,M$$CR$,MT$$$$]

Thought it was over, eh?

It’s just on to a new phase, according to the Greek finmin…Ain’t it the truth.

US DATA: EIA nat gas data for Jun 24 wk: Storage +78 bcf to 2432 bcf.

–Senate Majority Leader Reid Says Senate Will Return July 5
–Sen. Reid: ‘So Much To Do’ to Fix Economy, Cut Deficit
–Reid: Failure To Hike Debt Ceiling Would Cause ‘Full Blown Recession’
–Senate Budget Chief Conrad Vows To Unveil Senate Dem Budget Next Week

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced
Thursday that the Senate’s Fourth of July recess next week will be
canceled, with senators being summoned back to Washington on July 5 for
an afternoon vote.

“We have work to do,” Reid said on the Senate floor. “There’s still
so much to do to put Americans back to work, to cut our deficit and
(get) our economy back to work … . That moment is too important, the
obstacle is too steep and the time is too short to waste even a moment.”

The Senate’s change is schedule is a clear response to the sharp
criticisms by President Obama about the recent congressional schedule.

At his news conference Wednesday, Obama urged Congress to stay in
Washington and hammer out a deficit reduction and debt ceiling
agreement.

“If the end of this week we have not seen substantial progress, we
are going to have to start having things canceled … and stay till we
get this done,” Obama said.

While Reid adjusted the Senate schedule, many observed that it has
been the House’s pattern of three weeks in Washington and then one week
off that has made budget negotiations so difficult over the past several
months.

The House has been off this week and is scheduled to be in a recess
the week of July 18. It seems likely that House GOP leaders will cancel
that recess if the debt limit impasse continues.

In his remarks, Reid said failure to pass the debt ceiling increase
in a timely way will throw the U.S. into a “full-blown recession” and
would likely lead to a “worldwide depression.”

Reid continued to blast congressional Republicans for failing to
work on a debt ceiling increase in good faith.

“Republicans walked away from the negotiations,” he said, referring
to the decision of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor last week to leave
the budget talks hosted by Vice President Biden.

“They (Republicans) did it in order to protect tax breaks for
millionaires and billionaires. That’s all it is,” Reid said.

Democrats in the Biden budget talks argued that additional revenues
should be part of the discussion. Republicans have said tax increases
should not be part of the agenda.

The Biden talks sought a deficit reduction package that can be
developed to coincide with this summer’s vote on debt ceiling
legislation.

The U.S. has already reached its $14.29 trillion debt ceiling.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said Congress must pass
legislation increasing the debt ceiling by August 2.

In comments on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Chuck Schumer said a
“grand bipartisan deal is possible” if Republicans drop their demand
that no revenue increase be part of the package.

Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad has said he is ready
to unveil next week a Senate Democratic budget alternative. Conrad has
said that his plan will be based on the work of the Simpson-Bowles
commission, cutting the deficit by $4 trillion over a decade.

House Republicans passed their budget plan in April.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

[TOPICS: M$U$$$,MFU$$$,MCU$$$]

US DATA: BLS released county data showing jobs +1,139k YOY for Q4:2010.
See http://bls.gov/news.release/cewqtr.nr0.htm

Off the highs of 80.88 in the last hour, but earlier reports were of stops  80.95/00, which may well be targeted into the 1500 GMT fix. Real money most recent buyers after initial stop buying from CTA ‘s

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