Friday Morning Links

MUST READS
Spanish jobless rate soars to record 24.4% - CNA
Spain Downturn Deeper, Longer Than Assumed: S&P - CNBC
Spanish economy in “huge crisis” after credit downgrade - Reuters
Spain, Italy Bonds Drop on Spanish Rating Cut; Bunds Rise - Bloomberg
Bank of Japan boosts stimulus again, but fails to impress markets - Reuters
Bernanke Takes On Krugman’s Criticism Ignoring Own Advice - Bloomberg
Krugman and Bernanke in Academic Wonderland Deep in Outer Space - Mish
Reading Between the Dots of the Fed’s Latest Release - Bloomberg
Ben Bernanke vs. Paul Krugman - Washington Post
Can gold be used as a currency? - Salmon, Reuters
Debunking Bailout Myths - The Big Picture
H.L. Mencken was right - The Burning Platform
Political Science - aucontrarian

MARKETS/INVESTING
Oil below $104 after S&P cuts Spain debt rating - AP
Gold prices dip as Spain downgrade hurts euro - Reuters
How Recession Scars Will Haunt Young Investors - Fiscal Times
Dumb money still flocks to emerging markets - MarketWatch
The Market Is In For A Rude Awakening - Comstock Partners
OPEC is pumping at near record levels to plug the Iran hole - Sober Look
Gold Traders Get More Bullish as Central Banks Hoard More - Bloomberg
Gold rises on optimism US Federal Reserve will spur growth - Economic Times
What Britain’s Recession Means for UK Gold Investors - BullionVault
India festival season gold buying pales compared to 2011 - Commodity Online
A Plea for Sanity on Gold’s Monetary Role - Resource Investor

ECONOMY/WORLD/HOUSING/BANKING
Europe Is In Recession, the U.S. Isn’t Far Behind - RCM
Economists — you say you want a revolution? - LA Times
Cooling Job Market Takes Toll on U.S. Confidence - Bloomberg
Three Regional Fed Surveys Report Slower Growth In April - Capital Spectator
Recession-Wracked Greece Nears Vote That May Decide Fate in Euro - Bloomberg
ECB Must Go Back to ‘Normal’: Ex-Bundesbank President - CNBC
Slower China economy a worry for Western firms - Reuters
China’s property boom has peaked, forever - Telegraph
U.K. homebuyers become ‘prisoners in their own property’ - Telegraph
Foreclosure Activity Returns in Majority of US Markets - CNBC
Geithner, the President, and Wall Street’s Unpunished Crimes - HuffPost
My Speech Delivered at the New York Federal Reserve Bank - Wenzel, EPJ
Lacker Sees Fed May Need to Raise Rates in Mid-2013 - Bloomberg
Fear of inflation keeps Fed from doing its job - MarketWatch