Europe

In an overnight session dominated by the latest political developments out of the US where Hillary Clinton officially claimed the democratic nomination, the financial newsflow focused on China's trade data, where exports fell 4.1% from a year earlier, in line with expectations, but imports dropped 0.4% from a year earlier, the smallest decline since they turned negative in November 2014, likely reflecting higher commodities prices but really driven by "imports" from Hong Kong which rose to $2.48b, the highest since at least 1999; and a 243% y/y surge in dollar term, also a historical high.

Submitted by John Mauldin via MauldinEconomics.com,

Two polls were recently released that call the European Union in question.

A poll in Italy reported that the Five Star Movement (a populist political party that wants to hold a referendum on whether Italy should remain in the European Union) was the most popular political party in the country ahead of local elections scheduled for next month. 

Fasanara Capital's Francesco Filia sends over the following list of things he is watching, as well as the following seven charts he believes will show the upcoming key inflection points.

THINGS TO WATCH

Footage has been leaked showing the German military in uniform attending a meeting with organisers of this years Bilderberg 2016. According to InfoWars, the video footage shows German officers meeting with Hotel Taschenbergpalais Kempinski staff, discussing with them security plans for the Bilderberg meeting. This years Bilderberg meeting is going to focus on the upcoming Europe in-out referendum happening in the UK, with leaders expected to discuss ways they can stop Britain for voting for a Brexit outcome.

In the latest development that is certain to raise the heat under Merkel's cabinet and may lead to even higher support for Germany's anti-immigrant AfD party, Reuters reports that migrants in Germany committed or tried to commit some 69,000 crimes in the first quarter of 2016, according to a police report "that could raise unease, especially among anti-immigrant groups, about Chancellor Angela Merkel's liberal migrant policy."