Yesterday was the last day for hedge funds to submit their Q4 13-F filings, and the biggest reactions this morning can be found in the stock of Kinder Morgan which rises 9% pre-mkt after Berkshire reported a new stake. Autodesk also gained 2% post-mkt yday after Lone Pine took a new position. Several funds boosted or reported new stakes in JD.com while Jana Partners reported a new stake in Valeant. Both Icahn and Einhorn trimmed their AAPL holdings.

It has been a morning session of two halves.

In Asia, the mood was somber, and stocks fell with the Shanghai Composite (+1.1%) outperforming on another late session binge-fest by the National Team, and the Nikkei 225 (-1.4%), Hang Seng -1%, Kospi -0.2%, ASX -0.6%, Sensex -0.4% and the South Korean Won all down following news of the biggest Chinese Yuan devaluation in five weeks.

A conservative friend e-mailed yesterday, about Thomas Frank’s 2004 book, What’s The Matter With Kansas?:

Officers from the riot police force in France (Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité) have spoken out on Facebook saying that they believe a civil war is imminent.  In a post titled “Diary of a CRS” – police officers belonging to the Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité say why they think France on the brink of total civil war, and accuse the media are completely hiding certain unpalatable facts from the public. From the Facebook post: Here is the story “Diary of a CRS” you will not find anywhere else as totally forbidden!