This page has been archived and commenting is disabled.

News That Matters

thetrader's picture




 

 

By www.thetrader.se

 

Ft.com
China’s exports and imports grew at their slowest pace in more than two years in December as foreign and domestic demand ebbed, reports Reuters. Annual exports grew 13.4 per cent in December, just below http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824411/chinese-trade-growth...

China’s overall trade surplus last year fell to $155bn, its lowest level since 2005, underscoring how slowing global growth and rising Chinese demand are reshaping the country’s economy. The falling trade surplus could ease pressure on China to accelerate the appreciation of the renminbi, in a year when US election politics have turned up the rhetoric over Chinese trade policies. US Treasury secretary Tim Geithner arrives in Beijing on Tuesday for a two-day visit to discuss trade and economic issues, and he is also expected to press for Chinese co-operation on recent US sanctions on Iranian oil transactions. China’s trade surplus shrank last year as imports grew faster than exports, partly due to Beijing’s growing purchases of commodities like iron ore and crude oil.http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/e4611332-3b42-11e1-be4b-00144feabdc0.html...

Mahindra & Mahindra has launched a US television campaign to publicise its claim to be the world’s largest tractor maker by volume – a milestone for the Indian industrial conglomerate – overtaking John Deere, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/824351/mahindra-hits-milest...

Royal Bank of Scotland is determined to press ahead with plans to pay out promised bonuses to investment bank boss John Hourican and other top staff, says the FT. The newspaper reported on Monday that RBS investment banking boss Mr Hourican is in line for a £4m payout under the terms of a deferred grant of shares from 2009, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824691/rbs-to-press-on-with...

The Securities and Exchange Commission has warned that US financial institutions’ disclosures have been “inconsistent in both substance and presentation”, specifically regarding sovereign debt exposure and financial and non-financial debt exposure, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824421/sec-asks-for-more-in...

Negotiations on a new European treaty to reinforce budget discipline in the eurozone are making rapid progress and there is “a good chance” of reaching agreement by the end of January, according to Angela Merkel, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824581/merkel-hails-eurozon...

UK banks are rapidly withdrawing from far-flung overseas businesses and other divisions considered superfluous to their strategies, says the FT. Lloyds Banking Group has appointed Rothschild to helphttp://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824451/lloyds-rbs-withdraw-...

Alcoa, one of the world’s largest aluminium companies, has highlighted the impact of the European debt crisis on corporate profits, reporting its first quarterly loss on an underlying basis since 2009 and announcing plant closures and cutbacks in Italy and Spain, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824441/european-crisis-forc...

Tokyo Electric Power fell as much as 12 per cent after the Nikkei newspaper said the government may buy common shares to take control of the utility, reports Bloomberg. The stock fell to 153 yen, the lowest intra-day price since June 9 last year. http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/10/824431/reports-japan-govern...

Fresh evidence of strain in eurozone financial markets in the shape of negative yields on German short-term debt weighed on Wall Street on Monday, the FT reports. In a sign that traders remain keen to seek safety for their capital, http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/824281/traders-cautious-aft...

The euro retraced from a 16-month low on Monday against the dollar, Reuters reports, as markets are await any announcements from a meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Berlin. http://ftalphaville.ft.com/thecut/2012/01/09/822921/euro-bounces-off-low...

Wsj.com
Asian stock markets were higher Tuesday amid growing optimism the U.S. economic recovery was gaining fresh momentum, with improved earnings expectations for tech companies supporting the Seoul market, while shares in China advanced on moves by Beijing to open up its capital markets further to foreign investors. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.5%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.1% and South Korea's Kospi Composite was 1.7% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.6%, China's Shanghai Composite rose 1.5% and India's Sensex added 1.3%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 28 points in screen trade.  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020412420457715157309149584...

Consumer borrowing leapt as holiday spending kicked in late last year, according to a new Federal Reserve report that hinted the era of household debt reduction that has held the economy back for years might be entering a new, milder phase. The Fed said Monday that household borrowing on credit cards, car loans, student loans and other kinds of installment debt rose at a 9.9% seasonally adjusted annual rate in November, the fastest monthly increase since November 2001. That was when the economy was bouncing back from the Sept. 11 terror attacks and Detroit car companies were rolling out zero-percent http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020425750457715118206385400...

UniCredit SpA's €7.5 billion ($9.6 billion) capital increase got off to a shaky start Monday after the bank's shares fell sharply, bringing the stock's total decline to more than 44% in the last four trading sessions and putting pressure on the rights issue. UniCredit shares were recently down €0.27 or 10.5% at €2.29, the biggest loser among European financial stocks. They were sharply underperforming the Stoxx Europe 600 banks index, which was down slightly. Shares in its Turkish joint venture, Yapi Kredi, also fell because of the negative start to the rights issue offer, traders said.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020412420457715036154957719...

Weaker-than-expected industrial output in November indicate Germany is heading toward a cooler period, but experts say the euro-zone's largest economy will avoid a deep recession and might escape a slump altogether if private demand and exports pick up the slack. Also out Monday were encouraging data showing Germany's trade surplus widened in November and exports increased on a monthly basis, suggesting trade might have benefited fourth quarter economic output. In adjusted terms, industrial output decreased 0.6% in November, after rising 0.8% in October, the German economics ministry said Monday. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020412420457714994134840754...

After laying dormant for years, political risk in Russia is back, and that has some investors going cold on the ruble. Russia's currency has weakened by 3% against the dollar since the largest protests of the post-Soviet Union era erupted following disputed parliamentary elections held Dec. 4. The ruble began 2011 as one of the world's best-performing currencies, thanks to its dual characteristics: It is the currency of a commodity-producing nation and of an emerging market. Before the elections, which observers say were riddled with ballot-box stuffing and other violations, the ruble was bouncing back from a late-summer selloff across riskier assets, thanks to rising oil prices. Russia is the world's second-largest crude-oil exporter.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020343690457715108172303840...

Marketwatch.com
It’s not yet time for conservative investors to get back into the stock market — but it could be close. That’s the message of a stock timing model that keys off the CBOE’s Volatility Index. In its simplest form, the model calls for going to cash whenever the VIX rises above its median level of just shy of 20, and staying there until the VIX drops back below. A buy signal could be close at hand, however: The VIX is now back to the low 20s — and could easily drop below its long-term median in the next week or two.  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/cash-is-still-king-at-least-for-now-201...

Treasury prices rose for a second day on Monday, pushing yields down slightly, keeping benchmark securities in a narrow range as traders look to Europe and other markets for direction. Bonds turned up in mid-morning action as U.S. stocks lost early gains, but have stayed up even as equities turned around.  Yields on 10-year notes , which move inversely to price, fell 1 basis points to 1.96%, after rising to 1.99% before Wall Street opened. A basis point is one one-hundredth of a percentage point.   http://www.marketwatch.com/story/treasurys-slip-on-merkel-sarkozy-commen...

Bloomberg.com
Oil rose in New York for the first time in four days before a meeting of European leaders to tackle the European debt crisis. OPEC can’t intervene against Western plans to block Iranian oil, Venezuela said. Futures rose as much as 0.5 percent as Germany’s chancellor prepared to meet the International Monetary Fund’s managing director today in Berlin. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries can’t get involved in a dispute between the U.S. and Iran over sanctions, Venezuela’s oil minister Rafael Ramirez told reporters yesterday in Caracas. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-09/oil-trades-near-lowest-this-yea...

Turkiye Halk Bankasi AS  told Indian oil refiners it may no longer be able to act as an intermediary for their purchases of Iranian crude, four people with knowledge of the matter said. Executives from the crude-processing companies met with Indian oil ministry officials yesterday to discuss alternatives, including routing remittances through Russia, the people said, declining to be identified because the information is confidential. Other options include stopping purchases from Iran altogether and importLLHPCLing from other countries, they said. Indian officials are scheduled to visit Tehran for trade talks starting Jan. 16, two of the people said. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-09/india-said-to-be-told-turkey-ma...

Cnbc.com
Chief executives and analysts have lowered expectations by so much for earnings reporting season, stocks may continue their 2012 gains as results come in higher than expected. A fifth of the companies in the S&P 500 have come out with negative warnings about fourth quarter results, compared to just 30 with positive preannouncements, according to Thomson Reuters. This three-to-one ratio is the most negative since the heart of the recession in 2008. http://www.cnbc.com/id/45931965

The U.S. is in a "mild recovery" that is "broad and strengthening," JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Morgan told CNBC Monday. "When you look at all the sectors — corporate, middle market, business, consumer — for the most part they’re better than they were a year ago, and we even think housing is near the bottom if you look at rental prices, supply and demand, household formation," Dimon said. "So I hope we have a growing economy." http://www.cnbc.com/id/45932717

The soaring national debt has reached a symbolic tipping point: It's now as big as the entire U.S. economy. The amount of money the federal government owes to its creditors, combined with IOUs to government retirement and other programs, now tops $15.23 trillion. That's roughly equal to the value of all goods and services the U.S. economy produces in one year: $15.17 trillion as of September, the latest estimate. Private projections show the economy likely grew to about $15.3 trillion by December — a level the debt is likely to surpass this month. http://www.cnbc.com/id/45928149

BBC.co.uk
A general strike in Nigeria over the elimination of a fuel subsidy has brought the country to a standstill. Shops, offices, schools and petrol stations around the country closed on the first day of an indefinite strike. In Lagos and other cities, thousands marched against the removal of the subsidy, which has doubled fuel costs. Police fired on protesters in Kano in the north, reportedly killing two and wounding many. Another demonstrator died in a clash with police in Lagos. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16464922

Telegraph.co.uk
Angela Merkel has warned that German support for the financial transaction tax (FTT) is not guaranteed, in a move that could open up a rift with France just days before the next European summit. The German Chancellor said she supported French President Nicolas Sarkozy's demand to introduce the controversial tax but that her government was split. "We don't have an agreement on this within the government, but personally I will campaign for [the tax]," she said.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9003618/Germanys-stan...

Increased immigration has had nothing to do with rising unemployment in the UK, even during the recession, a think-tank concluded in a new report. The number of migrant workers coming to the UK over the past decade has had little or no impact on joblessness, with "no association" between rising immigration and an increase in Jobseeker's Allowance claims, the study by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) found.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/9003320/Immigrants-are-not-causi...

The Government must act now to repair the blow to business confidence dealt by the eurozone debt crisis, or risk an even greater setback for Britain's ailing economy, the British Chambers of Commerce warned. The BCC said in its latest quarterly survey that although a technical recession with two successive quarters of negative growth was "not a foregone conclusion", at least one quarter of contraction was very likely in the first half of 2012. "Britain's economy is at a critical stage – and now is not the time to shy away from the radical decisions needed to inspire confidence and increased investment for years to come," said John Longworth, the BCC's director general. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/9003466/UK-economy-likely-t...

Guardian.co.uk
Retail sales in December up 4% as bargain hunters piled into shops. British Retail Consortium said December was the best trading month of the year with a dazzling pre-Christmas week of trading. A rush to the shops to snap up bargains in the last days before Christmas provided shops and stores with one of their best trading months of 2011 in December, the British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday.http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/jan/10/retail-sales-up-december

Smh.com.au
Oil traded near the lowest price in more than a week in New York as investors speculated that increasing US crude stockpiles and signs of weakening growth in Europe indicate fuel demand may falter. Crude for February delivery was at $US101.46 a barrel, up 15 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:26 p.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday slipped 0.3 per cent to $US101.31, the lowest close since Dec. 30. Prices rose 8.2 per cent in 2011, the third annual increase.
http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/oil-nears-oneweek-low-20120110-1p...
Gold traded flat on Monday, moving in tandem with equities and riskier assets, as investors focused on technical resistance and kept fretting about the euro zone debt crisis. The precious metal's moves mirrored the euro and S&P 500 US stock index, which also rose early and then gave up gains to trade nearly unchanged. Gold faces technical resistance at its 200-day moving average at $US1633 an ounce, after a late December sell-off that briefly sent it into a bear market, analysts said.  http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/gold-trades-flat-as-investors-fre...

Hungary's plunging bonds and falling currency pushed Prime Minister Viktor Orban into his first major U-turn in office in order to return to the negotiating table with the International Monetary Fund. The risk of the country failing to reach an agreement with the lender sent the forint last week to a record low, pushed default risk to a record high and lifted government borrowing costs to the highest level since 2009. Talks for Hungary's second bailout in four years broke down last month as the government refused to alter a central bank law that the EU said threatens the monetary authority's independence.http://www.smh.com.au/business/world-business/hungary-runs-out-of-option...

Xinhuanet.com
China's booming online gaming market raked in 42.85 billion yuan (6.79 billion U.S. dollars) in 2011, a 32.4-percent year-on-year increase, officials said. Of the total revenue, domestically developed games took the lion's share of 63.4 percent (27.15 billion yuan), up 40.7 percent year-on-year, said Sun Shoushan, deputy head of the General Administration of Press and Publication, at an annual symposium on digital gaming. The mobile gaming industry also reported rapid growth in China, with revenues up 86.8 percent to 1.7 billion yuan in 2011, said Sun.http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2012-01/10/c_131352364.htm

Cs.com.cn
Property prices in China will continue to decline in the first half of the year before gradually stabilizing in the second, and real estate investment will plummet, industry analysts said on Monday. A property fair on Jan 1 in Haikou city, Hainan province, attracts a lot of potential consumers. Industry insiders say the value of property sales and prices will come under huge pressure this year, but a sharp decline is unlikely."The economic slowdown, increased capital pressure on property developers and the growing supply in the market all point to a further fall in home prices this year, especially in the first six months," said Yue Sen, a researcher with REICO, a research institution affiliated with China Real Estate Chamber of Commerce. http://www.cs.com.cn/english/ei/201201/t20120110_3202893.html

Thehindu.com
“We are in a more dangerous situation than in 2008,” said George Soros, Chairman of prominent hedge fund Soros Fund Management, here on Monday, referring to the ongoing crisis in the eurozone. “We now face the prospect of a deflationary vicious circle, which is going to affect the real economy, the morning after a 25-year long party of leveraging,” said Mr. Soros, while participating in a conversation with Anurag Behar, Vice-Chancellor, Azim Premji University, and CEO, Azim Premji Foundation. Creditor nations such as Germany, he said, “are calling the shots by dictating the rules of a draconian austerity” programme in Europe. http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/article2789649.ece

Economictimes.com
The relative economic decline of the US has led many economists and policymakers to question the US dollar's position as the world's anchor currency. Suggested alternatives range from a global reserve system to even a return to gold. While recent efforts to internationalise the Chinese yuan have only added to the expectation of a shift in the international monetary system, we believe the US dollar will remain the dominant global currency for a long time to come. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/comments-analysis/us-dollar-...

Yonhapnews.co.kr
South Korea's exports of automobiles surged 13.7 percent on-year to a new high last year on brisk shipments to Europe and Asian countries, the government said Tuesday.
The country shipped a total of 3,151,930 cars in 2011, compared with 2,772,107 vehicles exported a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2012/01/10/0501000000AEN2012011...
Fin24.com
Opec will not get involved in the standoff between Iran and Western powers over its nuclear programme, Venezuela's oil minister said on Monday during an official visit by Iran's president to Venezuela. The Islamic Republic is facing toughened sanctions by the United States meant to force a halt to its uranium enrichment program, which Washington says is aimed at creating weapons. Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful. http://www.fin24.com/Markets/Commodities/Opec-not-getting-involved-in-Ir...

Tehrantimes.com
The huge gas field, named Sardar Jangal, which has been recently discovered in Iran’s territorial waters in the Caspian Sea, has the capacity to produce 880,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, MP Asadollah Abbasi told the Fars news agency. Ali Osouli, managing director of Khazar Oil Company, announced in December 2011 that “the field holds an estimated 8 billion barrels of crude oil.”  “An exploratory well has been drilled in the gas field to give new details on its hydrocarbon reserves,” the Shana new agency quoted Osouli as saying. http://tehrantimes.com/economy-and-business/94386-irans-sardar-jangal-ga...

Iran plans to connect its national power electricity grid to Russia by the next calendar year which will end on March 20, 2013, Iran power generation transmission and distribution management company (TAVANIR) managing director stated. Iran will exchange up to 15 billion kilowatt hours (BkWh) of electricity with its neighboring countries by the end of the current year, up 50 percent year on year, Homayoun Haeri added, the Mehr news agency reported http://tehrantimes.com/economy-and-business/94385-iran-plans-to-connect-...

Thetrader.se
Last year we saw huge volatility in the market, still the index closed practically speaking flat. Big volatility is scaring ordinary people out of the market. The prospects going forward, with the HFT still growing, look similar to last year. Much ado about nothing, or? From The New Yorker; In other words, while crazy volatility may be great for traders (who live for the chance to make two per cent a day), it’s lousy for the rest of us, and for the economy as a whole. It isn’t just that volatility costs ordinary investors money http://www.thetrader.se/2012/01/10/human-nature-and-volatility/

Over the past few weeks, investors used to setting their economic expectations based on a “stream of anecdotes” approach have seen their economic views evolve roughly as follows: “After a brief ‘scare’ during the third quarter, economic reports have come in better than expectations for weeks – a sign that the economy is on a gradual but predictable growth path; Purchasing managers reports out of China and Europe have firmed, and the U.S. Purchasing Managers Indices have advanced, albeit in the low 50?s, but confirming a favorable positive trend, and indicating that the U.S. is strong enough to pull the global economy back to a growth path, or at least sidestep any downturn; New unemployment claims have trended gradually lower, and combined with a surprisingly robust December payroll gain of 200,000 jobs, provides a convincing signal that job growth is on track to improve further.” http://www.thetrader.se/2012/01/09/leading-indicators-and-the-risk-of-a-...

 

 

- advertisements -

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
Tue, 01/10/2012 - 10:30 | 2049942 eazyas
eazyas's picture

Buy silver !

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!