Europe

One week ago, despite the ECB's last ditch attempt to reflate the bond market by monetizing corporate bonds in hopes this spills over into stocks (via buybacks) and and broad inflation, Bank of America's Michael Hartnett was adamant: "sell the rally." He wasn't the only one: just a day earlier, after the market's violent kneejerk reaction lower to the ECB's (apparent) unwillingness to push rates even lower, Evercore ISI's chief technician, Rich Ross said "I'm Out. My Bullish tactical call is over."

Turkey and the EU came back to the negotiating table on Thursday and Friday in Brussels in the latest installment of a long-running attempt to hammer out a deal that will help stem the flow of refugees into Europe.

Germany, Sweden, Austria, and a number of other countries are quite literally breaking under the pressure and everyone involved fears things could get far worse as winter turns to spring and the Balkan route thaws.

A decade ago, Irish pub owner Bertie Currie was clearing land behind his pub in order to make room for a driveway. While digging behind McCuaig’s Bar in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, Currie discovered the tomb of three human beings underneath a large, flat stone. As The Washington Post reports, Currie’s discovery could alter the way we look at Irish history forever: [W]hat Currie had stumbled over was an ancient burial that, after a recent DNA analysis, challenges the traditional centuries-old account of Irish origins.

As of this moment, the DXY dollar index currently just above 95, is lower than where it was a year ago, but that does not stop companies from using it as an excuse for continuing earnings weakness.  Case in point, Tiffany & Co (which once used to be a bellwether for the luxury consumer and the overall market, but lately not so much) which moments ago reported Q4 earnings of $1.46, beating consensus expectations of $1.40, on inline revenues of $1.21bn, 6% lower than a year ago, as sales in the US, Asia Pacific and Europe all declined in the mid-single digits, offset by a 9% rebound in Ja