• In Greece, pressure is building to make further cuts ahead of the October draft budget to parliament and the contentious bailout tranche. The Greek Minister of Finance Venizelos, lashed out at the euro-zone countries funding aid to the country. Papandreou canceled his planned trip to Washington and New York. There is a Noon (EDT) conference between Greek officials and the creditor troika. All of this is fodder for speculation, as last week’s optimism in Europe falters. From the Wall Street Journal.
• President Obama unveils his $3 trillion deficit-reduction plan today. Half of the plan is made up of tax increases focused on high wage earners and closing tax loopholes. This represents Obama’s opening salvo, and is sure to bring heated opposition from Republicans. From the New York Times.
• As loss estimates at UBS increase, Chief Executive Grubel is facing calls for resignation. A debate over spinning off the investment banking operations is heating up. From the Wall Street Journal.
• The Investment Company Institute released its fund flows data for the latest 4 months across investment managers. May to August outflows from U.S. equity funds totaled about $75B. That tops the October 2008 through February of 2009 period which saw $72.8B in outflows. Given recent market volatility, retail investors in the U.S. are fatigued. With this rampant bearishness, markets may be setting up for some decent upside action heading into year-end. From Bloomberg.