He differentiated between bad leaks “coming out of intelligence and various departments” and good leaks from the White House staff, which just involve people who “want to love me and they’re all fighting for love.”
.. When a reporter asked about Vladimir Putin’s recent decision to expel 755 workers from the American Embassy, Trump demonstrated once again that there is absolutely nothing Putin can do that will make our president criticize him. (“No, I want to thank him, because we’re trying to cut down on payroll. … We’ll save a lot of money.”) What do you think he’d have said if Putin had jailed our diplomats? Expressed gratitude for the free room and board?
.. On Friday he claimed he was just being sarcastic. Still, he couldn’t resist adding, “But we have reduced payroll very substantially.”
There’s certainly something about Putin that makes Trump go gaga. Maybe the North Korean craziness is his attempt to impress Putin with his own manly manhood.
.. Speaking of Venezuela, Trump spoke vaguely about “a possible military option” there, too.
.. Trump tends to talk big and act, um, minimally. Try counting the moments of real change, drama or even strong reaction over the last six months that go beyond verbal, and before you’ve gotten through the fingers on one hand, you’ll probably already be down to the firing of the Mooch.
.. People who’ve dealt with the private Trump often say they found him less crazy than the public version.
Of course, he’s definitely a lazy thinker who doesn’t like to confront a memo longer than a page. But nobody’s perfect.
Goldman Sachs Begins Selling Some of Controversial Venezuelan Bonds
Goldman Sachs Asset Management has begun selling some of the $2.8 billion in Venezuelan bonds it acquired in a deal involving the country’s central bank
.. The Wall Street firm’s asset-management arm sold at least $300 million face amount of the bonds to a small group of hedge funds in recent days
.. GSAM’s purchase of the bonds in May drew harsh criticism from Venezuelan opposition leaders and some investors for supplying cash to the authoritarian regime of President Nicolás Maduro.
.. Four or five hedge funds in London and New York bought the bonds of state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela SA, or PdVSA, due in 2022 from Goldman for about 32.5 cents on the dollar, slightly more than the 31 cents the firm paid when it purchased the bonds from Venezuela’s central bank in May
.. Goldman sold the debt to promote trading of the bonds, which the firm hopes will push prices up and legitimize the securities in the eyes of other investors
.. some firm executives have said privately that Goldman’s chief mistake wasn’t in buying the bonds—which it felt it obligated to do on behalf of clients in its funds—but in going it alone, buying nearly all of the $3 billion issuance.
.. Goldman and the new buyers of the debt are betting that a regime change in Venezuela could lift bond prices even if the country defaults.
Flood of Dollar Debt Could Come Back to Haunt Emerging Economies
Emerging-market companies are binging on U.S. dollar debt and that could become a source of trouble in some parts of the world if growth slows, interest rates rise or the dollar resumes its ascent.
.. U.S. dollar debt stood at $3.6 trillion in emerging markets through the third quarter of 2016, an all-time high
.. a bout of investor risk aversion could expose $135 billion worth of corporate credit to repayment problems.
.. If the dollar appreciates faster than expected, some corporate borrowers, especially those who derive their revenues largely in local currencies, could find themselves in a currency mismatch and be forced to ask the central bank for help—which not all central banks are positioned to do.
.. Countries such as India and the Philippines, which have relatively low stocks of external debt and healthy foreign-exchange reserves, are in better shape, analysts say. Economies such as Malaysia and South Africa, which have small currency reserves and high levels of dollar-denominated debt, are at particular risk. Venezuela and Turkey look especially vulnerable.
.. Venezuela’s state-run oil company PdVSA was late on its coupon payments worth $404 million in November, in an apparent struggle against low oil prices and falling foreign-exchange reserves.
.. “There are potential vulnerabilities looking further ahead, particularly if the Fed were to raise rates much more aggressively than what the market has priced at the moment,”