Last week showed an improving economy where the number of POSITIVE developments outnumbered NEGATIVE developments. And, the value of well-run companies moved higher.

Below is a succinct list of last week’s events:

Positives:
1) EU summit that actually accomplishes something, that of codifying greater fiscal hand holding amongst its members
2) ECB cuts rates 25 bps, adds 3 yr lending facility, lowers its collateral standards, and cuts RRR to 1%
3) Eurozone banks take advantage of Fed swap line price cut with massive uptake from ECB to ease yr end $ funding stress
4) Monti gov’t in Italy announces 30b euro/3 yr budget reduction plan
5) Univ of Michigan confidence best since June, almost 2 pts better than expected, now back in line with avg ytd
6) Initial Jobless Claims at 381k, lowest since Feb
7) MBA said refi’s rise 15.3% from lowest since July and purchases jump to most since April
8) CPI and PPI in China moderates, retail sales stronger than expected
9) RBA cuts interest rates

Negatives:
1) S&P threatens downgrades for all 17 Euro zone countries
2) Euro basis swap flat on week, remaining still very elevated notwithstanding swap line price cut
3) Shanghai index falls to lowest since Mar ’09, IP gains at slowest since Aug ’09 and HSBC PMI services falls to 3 month low
4) Australia jobs figure disappoints
5) US ISM services index falls to lowest since Jan ’10
6) TXN, ALTR, LSCC, and DD all preannounce negatively with still 3 weeks left in the year, collateral economic damage from European slowdown and more to come?
7) Brazil’s economic growth slows to 2.1% y/o/y, the slowest pace since a contraction in Q3 ’09 (Source: The Big Picture).