WMPs and China's shadow banking whack-a-mole game: The China Banking Regulatory Commission last week issued several strict-sounding new rules applying to the issuance of Wealth Management Products. The investment products have seen massive growth in the past year, with assets tripling to RMB10tn in the past two years, equivalent to 10 per cent of all China's bank deposits. Apart from upsetting share prices of mainland Chinese banks, Kate wonders: what are the new rules actually going to achieve - if anything? Expectations reconsidered at the BoJ: As the Bank of Japan starts trying to meet some mightily high expectations, David points to the changing relationship between the yen and US, Japanese rates. It's more exciting than it sounds... if you're into that kind of thing. "Uncomfortable" reading material: The Salz Review, looking at business practices at Barclays, is out. Paul's post has more. Les holdouts misérables: As the pari passu saga in New York rattles towards its (potential) end, the contest of wills and/or highly-paid lawyers between Elliott and Argentina goes on elsewhere, of course. On that note Joseph suggests we pay attention to how the Cour de cassation in France treated some of NML's judgement debt last week. Health insurers prevail in Medicare fight with Washington: "Shares of health insurance companies soared Tuesday after federal officials scrapped proposed payment cuts to carriers that run Medicare plans amid pressure from senior citizens and lawmakers. Insurers including Humana, UnitedHealth Group and Cigna Corp. get paid by the federal government to run Medicare plans for more than 14 million Americans. Known as Medicare Advantage plans, the policies have been a growth spot for insurers as baby boomers turn 65 and appeal to seniors with perks like free gym memberships. Nearly one in three people on Medicare is on such a plan. A debate in the open on the Fed: "Charles Evans, president of the Chicago Fed, said the U.S. must avoid the fate of deflation-plagued Japan as he argued for maintaining record easing. "There's still work to do," he said at yesterday's forum. Richmond's Jeffrey Lacker raised the specter of 1970s-style inflation as he warned against keeping interest rates low for too long. "I am trying to look around the bend, trying to anticipate what could go wrong," he said." (Bloomberg) (New York Times) BP puts US wind power units up for sale, estimated to be worth about $1.5bn, as it continues its retreat from renewable energy to focus on its core oil and gas business. BP was the only large oil group with a substantial wind operation. The International Monetary Fund will contribute 1 billion euros over three years to the 10 billion euro bailout for Cyprus, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said in a statement on Wednesday. Lagarde said she expected the IMF board to approve the funds in early May. Ofgem fines SSE £10.5m over mis-selling: SSE has been fined £10.5m by Ofgem, the UK energy regulator, for using misleading sales practices to lure consumers away from their existing supplier. Putin decree targets elite's foreign assets: Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has moved to inject some moral fibre into the country's top-level bureaucrats and state employees by giving them a three-month deadline to close their foreign bank accounts and divest themselves of offshore assets - or face the sack. Israel strikes at sites in Gaza Strip: The Israeli Air Force struck two sites in the Gaza Strip overnight, the first such attack since last November's Operation Pillar of Defence, after a night that also saw Israel return fire in the Golan Heights region bordering Syria. Markets: European stock markets followed Asian exchanges lower on Wednesday, paring some of the gains made in a surprisingly buoyant, data-defying performance the previous day. The French CAC 40 and Germany's Dax both fell 0.2 per cent, and the FTSE 100 declined 0.3 per cent writes the FT's Global Markets viking Robin Wigglesworth.