JP Morgan's revelation about a $2bn loss on trades by its CIO office made waves in Asian markets, which are headed for the biggest weekly decline since November, says Bloomberg. The bank's shock disclosure, made after the market closed, sent shares in the bank down by about 6 per cent and prompted renewed calls for tougher regulation. A bank spokesman told Reuters that no-one at JP Morgan was paid on profits or losses outside the private equity division. Here's our take on the 10-q revelation and the excruciating conference call that followed. China's inflation was below the government's target for a third month, giving more room to ease policy, says Bloomberg. Consumer prices rose 3.4% from a year earlier after a 3.6% gain in March. That matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of 35 economists but fell short of the government's 4% annual goal. Facebook's IPO has so far seen weaker than expected demand, reports Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters cites two unnamed sources as saying the IPO is already oversubscribed. It is expected to price on May 17. Meanwhile, an FTC investigation into Facebook's Instagram acquisition could postpone closure of the deal well beyond the Q2 target set out in its IPO documents, says the FT, citing two people familiar with the matter. Experts said the investigation would likely take six to 12 months. Spain will be offered more time to hit EU budget deficit targets, but only if new conditions, including an independent audit of its bank rescue plan, are met. The FT reports some members of the Spanish government were reluctant to accept the offer for fear of spooking investors, but European Commission data is expected on Friday to show the country is still missing its target. Chesapeake Energy has about $1.4bn of previously unreported liabilities over the next decade through off-balance-sheet financial deals that involved receiving upfront cash from banks in exchange for future deliveries of oil and gas, says the WSJ, citing several county courthouse documents. Most estimates of the liabilities were for less than $600m. Qatar's sovereign wealth fund plans to buy at least 10 per cent of Xstrata as part of a long-held strategy to invest in Glencore, the FT says, suggesting the Gulf state could provide crucial support to the pair's $90bn merger deal. Several Xstrata shareholders have said they would hold out for a better offer from Glencore. Guy Hands is ploughing £20m of his own money into his underperforming private equity fund in an unusual move to retain his best dealmakers as revenues fall, reports the FT. Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay the US $202m to settle a civil lawsuit by the Justice Department that it knowingly misled the Federal Housing Administration over mortgages that qualified for federal insurance, reports the FT. Deutsche admitted to some of the claims. Moody's has warned that global banks" tendencies to avoid new capital requirement rules and load up on debt will continue to put pressure on their creditworthiness. Mark LaMonte, chief credit officer of financial institutions, told the FT rules around risk weighting "may not be able to keep up with" the banks" movements into new products. Its review of 17 large banks is due to be completed in mid-June. Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson told company executives on Thursday that he never provided a resume or incorrect information to Yahoo, says Reuters, citing a source familiar with the situation. Marc Faber says QE3 is needed to avoid a 1987-style stock market plunge in the second half. Wealthy French seek to emigrate after Hollande victory. Mark Carney: Flexible inflation targeting is the right framework for central banks. Gillian Tett: The advancement of "voluntary repression." Cov-lite loans are making a comeback. This entry was posted by Kate Mackenzie on Friday, May 11th, 2012 at 5:38 and is filed under Uncategorised.