“Don’t short a DULL market” — unknown

1. China Eases Again with Bank Reserves Cut — following the country’s soft GDP data last week, China’s central bank cut the reserve requirement ratio for all banks by 100 bps to 18.5%, adding more liquidity to the world’s second-largest economy to combat slowing growth. China’s GDP is still expected to fall to a quarter-century low of around 7% this year from 7.4% in 2014, even with the additional stimulus.
2. Bird flu Hits Iowa Chickens as Virus Outbreak Escalates — MarketWatch, U.S. Department of Agriculture reported an Iowa farm’s flock of about 5.3 million chickens has been hit with avian influenza, marking a sharp escalation of the virus outbreak that has rattled the poultry industry since it began late last year. Poultry companies and animal-health officials are struggling to respond to the worst outbreak of avian influenza in years, with cases in upper Midwest states like Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa rapidly mounting over the past two weeks.
3. China to Open Card Markets — the no. 2 economy’s bank card-clearing market will be open to foreign competitors beginning June 1 2015. It comes as China rebalances its economy toward consumption and liberalizes the finance sectors. Visa (V) & MasterCard (MA) are the beneficiary.
4. US Business Investment Plans Fall for 7th Straight Month — the Commerce Department reported non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, declined 0.5 percent last month after a revised 2.2 percent drop in February, which was the biggest drop since July 2013. The decline likely weighed down by a strong dollar and lower energy prices, suggesting the economy could struggle to rebound from a soft patch hit at the start of the year.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: