The following is a rundown of the day’s news drawn from other media sources with topics curated just for Money and Markets readers:Â personal security and freedom, Obama and Putin at breaking point, business and finance
Personal Security and Freedom
Christians and Muslims Join Forces to Combat Modern Slavery
The Roman Catholic Church, Church of England and al-Azhar, the Cairo-based seat of Sunni Muslim learning, came together on Monday for a rare display of interfaith action among them in calling for an end to modern slavery within 20 years.
Quake Fear Grips Los Angeles
The magnitude 4.4 earthquake that struck near Westwood is the most significant shake in Southern California since a 5.5 earthquake hit Chino Hills in 2008, a U.S. Geological Survey seismologist told reporters at a news conference Monday morning.
Professor Calls For Climate Change ‘Deniers’ to be Imprisoned
A professor with Rochester Institute of Technology has called for the incarceration of any American who actively disagrees that climate change is solely caused by human activity.
Lawrence Torcello, a philosophy professor with a Ph.D. from the University at Buffalo, published the comments as part of an essay submitted to the academic website The Conversation.
Boeing 777 Hijackers Performed ‘Terrain Masking’ Manoeuvre Practised by Fighter Jets to Avoid Radar Detection
Claims today that the missing Malaysian Airlines jet dropped to an altitude of 5,000ft to avoid radar lends credibility to reports by villagers that they saw bright lights and loud noises at about the time the aircraft is thought to have made a ‘U-turn’.
Airlines Use Digital Technology to Get Even More Personal
One airline system that delves even more deeply into business travelers’ data was rolled out late last year by the Australian carrier Qantas Airways. It enables Qantas to monitor, in real time, social-media conversations taking place within its airport lounges.
Obama and Putin at Breaking Point
Russian and Crimean Parliaments Sign Treaty of Accession
Even while declaring that Moscow will not seek to expand its holdings in Ukraine, Putin also promised that Russia will do what it must to protect the rights of Russians living abroad — which suggests that he intends to play a role in eastern Ukraine, with its large Russian population.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Laughs at Obama’s Sanctions
In a later tweet addressed to “Comrade @BarackObama,” he asked, “what should do those who have neither accounts nor property abroad? Or U didn’t think about it?” Another Russian on the sanctions list, Vladislav Surkov, also seemed unconcerned.
Exclusive: Russia Will Sanction U.S. Senators
U.S. senators, congressmen and top Obama administration officials are sure to be on Vladimir Putin’s sanctions list; a response to the Obama Administration’s announcement on Monday that 7 Russian officials and 4 Ukrainian officials would be barred from holding assets or traveling to the United States.
Obama, Putin at Breaking Point
“This has the potential to end very badly,” said Richard Fontaine, president of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS). “I don’t think this means war, but this could spell the beginning of a long period of extreme diplomatic alienation between the West and Russia.”
Business and Finance
Markets Rally After Vladimir Putin’s Speech
“Putin’s speech didn’t indicate he is looking for an escalation of the crisis. All the focus was on Crimea rather than any further areas of Ukraine,” said Guillaume Tresca, emerging-market strategist at Crédit Agricole.
Minecraft Maker’s Profit Soars
Mojang, a tiny developer based in Stockholm’s hip Södermalm district with fewer than 40 employees, increased revenue by 38% last year to 2.07 billion Swedish kronor ($330 million), the company’s chief financial officer said. Mojang is a closely held company and will soon publish its full figures with Swedish authorities.
Frothy IPO Market a Bubble for the 1%
“The Fed has managed to create a bigger stock market bubble than the one we had in the 1990s and a bigger real estate bubble than the one that burst in 2008,” shouts Euro Pacific Capital’s Peter Schiff in the attached video. “Imagine how bad it’s going to be when these two bubbles burst simultaneously.”
What Markets Want to Hear from Fed Chair Yellen This Week
Even as the Fed further reduces its stimulus program, Coronado argues that $55 billion in monthly bond purchases is “still a lot of money” to inject into the economy. That stimulus will keep the markets “resilient” and prolong higher interest rates for a lot longer.
Best wishes,
The Money and Markets Team
