Opening Bell: 4.27.15

Greeks Add Pressure on Tsipras to Compromise as Talks Resume (Bloomberg)
Two opinion polls published over the weekend showed a continuing drop in support for the government’s confrontational stance in talks with the euro area and the International Monetary Fund. More than half of respondents in an Alco survey in Proto Thema newspaper said the government should compromise even if creditors reject Greek demands.

Greece Shuffles Bailout Negotiations Team (WSJ)
Greece has shuffled the team involved in bailout talks with the country’s international creditors, a senior government official said Monday, in a move that may reduce the influence outspoken Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has on the slow-moving negotiations.

‘Flash Crash’ Investigators Likely Missed Clues (WSJ)
Investigators overlooked evidence given to them just hours after the 2010 “flash crash” that could have enabled them to uncover the strategies of Navinder Sarao, the trader now accused of helping cause the violent selloff in stocks that day, according to members of a committee that oversaw the investigation. As a result, it took five years to find the traces of manipulation that authorities now say contributed to the wild swings in the U.S. futures market and the ensuing panic, the committee members said.

Deutsche Bank To Cut $3.8 Billion In Costs (Bloomberg)
Deutsche Bank AG’s plan to cut costs by selling Postbank and shrinking the securities business is leaving investors cold as the overhaul pushes back targets that management has failed to deliver. The stock fell the most in Frankfurt trading since October after Germany’s biggest bank lowered its profitability target under a new five-year plan announced Monday. The company didn’t provide details of how it will achieve additional annual cost savings of 3.5 billion euros ($3.8 billion) while it aims for a lower measure of financial strength than the current level.

Teen Suspended For Bomb-Themed 'Promposal' Calls Punishment 'Racist' (HP)
A Washington state high school student was suspended this week for wearing a fake bomb in the cafeteria to help him ask a girl to prom, and he believes the punishment he received was unjust. Ibrahim Ahmad, 18, carried a sign reading “I Kno it’s A little late, But I’m kinda… THE BOMB! Rilea, Will U Be My Date To Prom?” “I’m Middle Eastern, and I thought the bomb was kind of funny and clever,” Ahmad, a senior at La Center High School, told The Columbian. “I wasn’t wearing the vest for more than, like, 20 seconds. I asked her, took a picture, took it off, and then the school got upset.”

Fitch Downgrades Japan Over Fiscal Concerns (WSJ)
Fitch downgraded Japan’s long-term foreign and local credit issuer rating by one notch to A from A-plus, citing a lack of effort on behalf of the Japanese government to tackle fiscal consolidation in the budget for the current fiscal year.

More central banks meet, but ability to pilot economies in doubt (Reuters)
Most central banks have been easing policy since the start of the year and are set to do more, but it still isn't clear whether that new activism, which has pushed stock markets to record highs, will help the global economy much.

Jay Z Counters Reports of Struggles at Tidal Music Streaming Service (NYT)
Jay Z took to Twitter on Sunday to defend his new streaming music service Tidal, after news reports suggested that the app was slipping into early oblivion. In more than a dozen messages posted in rapid succession, Jay Z, the rap star and entertainment mogul, defended Tidal’s performance. “Tidal is doing just fine,” he wrote, noting that the company has “over 770,000” subscribers. “We have been in business for less than one month.”

Porsche Officials Said Unlikely to Testify in Hedge-Fund Case (Bloomberg)
Hedge funds waging an uphill legal fight against Porsche Automobil Holding SE seemingly notched a victory when a court asked 21 people, including company officials, to testify. The catch is most won’t talk.

Mystery Artist Wanksy Paints Penises Around Potholes To Get Them Fixed (HP)
Armed with a can of washable spray paint, an artist in Greater Manchester, England, has embarked on a worthy crusade: to rid the region of potholes… by drawing penises on them. The anonymous artist, who goes by the name “Wanksy,” told the Manchester Evening News that he decided to draw attention to the “appalling” pothole-ridden streets after some of his cyclist friends were badly injured on the roads. “I wanted to attract attention to the pothole and make it memorable. Nothing seemed to do this better than a giant comedy phallus,” he said.