TRANSITION ST. ASAPH

• Greece Considers Exit from Euro Zone

“The debt crisis in Greece has taken on a dramatic new twist. Sources with information about the government’s actions have informed SPIEGEL ONLINE that Athens is considering withdrawing from the euro zone. The common currency area’s finance ministers and representatives of the European Commission are holding a secret crisis meeting in Luxembourg on Friday night.”

• Greek Aid Program Needs a ‘Further Adjustment,’ Juncker Says After Meeting
• Greek Finance Ministry says report of Eurozone exit is ‘completely untrue’
• JPM Reports Global Economic Growth Slowest Since August 2009
• Ten reasons for thinking the world economy is turning soft

“Evidence of a sharp slowdown in both the European and world economies continues to mount.”

• Bill Gross Says US Economic Growth Is Insufficient to Sustain Jobs
• ‘Flash crash’ worries go global
• ‘The UK Will Need a Bailout Soon’: Jim Rogers
• RBS First Quarter Earnings Hit by Irish Bad Debts
• Steelmakers Pump Up Volume

## Fault lines/flashpoints/military ##

• Turkey’s Middle East drive falters in ‘Arab Spring’
• Syrian army braced for ‘day of defiance’
• Uganda: The food and fuel crisis behind the unrest
• Report: Israel acquiring another submarine
• Iran’s supreme leader tells Ahmadinejad: accept minister or quit
• Singapore elections marked by online buzz of discontent
• Tunisian police battle anti-government protesters

## Energy/resources ##

• A Look at the Serious Energy Shortages in India and Pakistan
• OPEC unlikely to debate quota hike at June meeting
• Brazil miner Vale expects China build-out to continue
• Kenya: Petrol Shortage May Last Seven Days
• Acute fuel shortage makes situation much worse in Yemen
• Coal shortage may trip 42000 MW of new power projects in India
• Aviation: Melboure airport’s power blackout
• Oil Prices Will Top Highs After Correction: Goldman
• Spain May Soften 2020 Renewable Energy Goal as Electricity Subsidies Grow
• Demand, not speculation, cited by IEA for rising oil prices

## Got food? ##

• Africa urged to ban food production for bio fuel
• Hard times mean Cuban coffee tastes of peas again
• Food Inflation Still a Worry Despite Commodities Rout
• Water shortages threaten food future in the Middle East

## Environment/health ##

• Fears grow as flooding worsens in multiple US states
• Drug makers seeking global guinea pigs
• US Energy Dept. seeks fracking guidelines
• Radioactive Water Pumped Into Mississippi River

## Intelligence/security/internet/systemic breakdown ##

• Ghosts of September 11th
• The Agendas Behind The Bin Laden News Event
• Obama to Navy SEALs Who Raided Bin Laden: ‘Job Well Done’ (Fox News)
• Osama bin Laden dead: bin Laden was masterminding fresh atrocities from compound
• Terrorism and Political/Civil Unrest Top List of Business Travel Concerns
• Domestic Surveillance Court Approved All 1,506 Warrant Applications in 2010 (US)

## Japan ##

• Prime minister orders 3 reactors at Hamaoka halted out of safety concerns
• Toyota’s new vehicles sales in China dive 23.5% in April
• 66 firms go bust in aftermath of massive quake
• Tepco starts flooding No. 1 reactor vessel
• New TEPCO reactor cooling system running by late May

## China ##

• Majority of Chinese still cannot afford home
• China fines Unilever for talking about price rises
• A Deep Dive Into China’s Growing Lust For Luxury Goods
• China cities face power shortages

• U.K. Producer Prices Increased More Than Forecast in April

## US ##

• Whitney Defends Her Prediction of ‘Hundreds of Billions’ in Muni Defaults
• Report: Nearly Half Of Detroiters Can’t Read
• Restaurants Lift Prices as Inflation Hawks See Fed Behind Curve
• Nearly 10,000 Lose Power South Of Dayton
• Amid job growth, ‘total unemployment’ rises to 15.9 percent
• BLS Jobs Report: Nonfarm Payroll Headline Number Looks Good, Beneath the Surface, Awful
• PriceStats – The Beginning Of The End For BLS Data Manipulation?
• As People Not In Labor Force Hit New Record, Those Who “Want A Job Now” Jump By 232,000 In One Month
• Mississippi River barge traffic stopped due to flooding
• Nation’s CEOs paid better last year than in 2007
• Fannie Mae Seeks $8.5 Billion More From Taxpayers
• Home Prices Hit New Post-Crash Lows
• Analyst: Data show Las Vegas halfway through housing downturn
• Foreclosure Hits Las Vegas’s High End
• Strategic defaults could get very ugly
• Delta Air Offers Buyouts to Trim Jobs Amid 4% Capacity Cut
• U.S. Consumer Credit Rose $6 Billion in March, Fed Says
• Credit Card Balances Rise: Are Consumers Stretched?
• Florida bank fails; 40 shuttered in 2011