Benzinga's Political Round Up (BHP, LMT, GD)

Japan intervened in the currency market last night, marking the first time it had done so since 2004. Japan was concerned the yen to dollar ratio had gotten too low, hurting the country's exporters. A weaker yen should benefit Toyota TM, Honda HMC and other Japanese manufacturers. China is concerned over BHP Billiton's BHP bid for Potash POT, saying that it could put China into another battle over pricing power with BHP, this time for potash. The French and Germans have aligned in their outlook that the Euro is a bad thing. 55% percent of Europeans voiced negative sentiments about the currency. 60% of French and 53% of Germans disapprove of the currency. This could hurt shares of the CurrencyShares Euro Trust ETF FXE. The Senate announced it may cut as much as $8 billion the defense spending bill, with cuts in for F-35 fighter jets, combat ships and missile-defense equipment. This could potentially have a negative effect on Lockheed Martin Corp. LMT and General Dynamics Corp. GD, two of the country's largest defense contractors.