MORNING BRIEFS

Asian markets advance, led by financial stocks
Financial stocks led most Asian-Pacific markets higher Friday as economic fears were eased by indications that stimulus efforts will continue worldwide. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.6%, China's Shanghai Composite increased 0.3% and South Korea's Kospi Composite improved 1.3%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.9%, New Zealand's NZX 50 moved up 0.5% and Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.7%. The Wall Street Journal (06 Nov.)

Economists: High U.S. productivity might not create jobs
Economists were encouraged by an annualized 9.5% spike in U.S. productivity, but they warned that the improvement might not cut unemployment in the short term. Much of the improvement came from employers finding ways to get more work done with fewer people, freezing or cutting pay, and reducing hours worked. The Washington Post/The Associated Press (11/6)

*good luck getting this instituted for the future
IASB proposes change to banks' reporting of loan losses
An accounting rule proposed by the International Accounting Standards Board would oblige banks outside the U.S. to report expected loan losses earlier. Banks would have to provide for losses from the start of a loan, as opposed to waiting for losses to occur and reporting them as they happen. "This is not a cosmetic change -- this is a fundamental shift in measuring credit losses on loans," said Andrew Spooner, Deloitte's lead expert on financial instruments. Financial Times (tiered subscription model) (05 Nov.)

*of course they will get off, its the american way and jurors are really clueless
Jurors in Bear Stearns trial must weigh whether execs lied
With a U.S. fraud trial ending, jurors must decide whether former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin lied to investors or whether the prosecution presented a "misleading" case, as defense counsel put it. This is a case of "black and white lies," prosecutor Ilene Jaroslaw said. The defense counsel said the prosecution gave jurors a "misimpression" and "misleading sound bites." Reuters (05 Nov.)

Eurozone's surprise drop in retail sales cools recovery hopes
Retail sales dropped 0.7% across the eurozone in September compared with the previous month. Economists polled by Reuters were looking for 0.2% growth. "These figures are consistent with the idea that the recovery will be moderate over the coming quarters," said Nick Kounis, chief economist at Fortis. Forbes/Reuters (05 Nov.)

*but I thought they had all of this oil and gas revenue? Look for 1998 all over again.
Russia to issue debt to finance budget deficit
For the first time since defaulting on government bonds in 1998, Russia is seeking to make a debt offering to reduce its budget deficit, Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin said. Russia's gold and foreign-currency reserves are sufficient to cover the proposed $17.8 billion issuance, Kudrin said. Spending on economic stimulus led to the deficit. "The exit from these packages will take a few years, and during this time, we'll have a budget with a deficit," Kudrin said. "We're funding this deficit from capital markets." The New York Times (05 Nov.)