The Morning Rant

08/02/12 -- There's no deal on Greek austerity measures yet, but guess what, there's another meeting scheduled for later today. Greek protesters set fire to a German flag outside parliament yesterday I gather, clearly unhappy at what they see as foreign interference in their internal affairs.

Caught between a rock and a hard place the government there are desperate to push the new austerity measures through parliament to get one more big payday from the EU/ECB/IMF. The thing is, you, I and everybody else knows that this is a bit like lending money to a drug addict who is going to use half the money to pay off his dealer who is threatening to kill him, snort the rest of it and then want more cash next week before the first repayment is even due.

The euro is a bit steadier, reassured by reports that a deal is "very close".

This isn't even the deal with Greece's private bondholders either, that's different deal which is still on the back burner despite being called "a formality" the week before last.

In other news crude oil is up on heightened tensions in the Middle East as protesters in Tehran "stormed" British Embassy compounds. Suggestions that military intervention may be needed to halt the escalating violence in Syria is also supporting crude.

There's not much action in the grain markets as we all sit tight waiting for the USDA's next wild stab in the dark on Thursday.