United States

• Global stocks, dollar and oil cool ahead of Doha meeting (Reuters)
• Oil Falls Before Doha as Global Markets Brace for Weekend Risk (BBG)
• China Growth Slows; Revival Policies Appear to Gain Traction (WSJ)
• White House hopefuls Clinton, Sanders joust in Brooklyn brawl (Reuters)
• Trump talks up 'New York values' as protesters demonstrate against him (Reuters)
• Sanders Can’t Clarify Wall Street Plan in Testy Clinton Debate (BBG)
• Goldman's Blankfein Said to Push Deepest Cost Cuts in Years (BBG)

There has been some muted cheering at the Fed (and the Obama administration) when as a result of numerous statewide minimum wage hikes, average hourly earnings finally started to rise in early 2016, recently hitting a 2% annual increase, even if on a weekly basis they dropped to post-recession lows as the number of hours worked actually dropped confirming the decline in US output continues.

Good news is still bad news after all.

After last night's China 6.7% GDP print which while the lowest since Q1 2009, was in line with expectations, coupled with beats in IP, Fixed Asset Investment and Retail Sales (on the back of $1 trillion in total financing in Q1)...

This week, SU-24 fighter-bombers buzzed a U.S. destroyer in the Baltic Sea. The Russian planes carried no missiles or bombs. Message: What are you Americans doing here?

In the South China Sea, U.S. planes overfly, and U.S. warships sail inside, the territorial limits of islets claimed by Beijing. In South Korea, U.S. forces conduct annual military exercises as warnings to a North Korea that is testing nuclear warheads and long-range missiles that can reach the United States.

Submitted by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.com,

If you are a longtime activist in the Liberty Movement then you are well aware that elections do not matter in terms of the future direction our nation takes. Presidents are puppets of international financiers, and so are most legislators. Whenever a president does attempt to go against the system, he either ends up shot by a “lone gunman,” or his office is disgraced by a conveniently-leaked scandal.