Despite good results, Japan is still struggling November 16, 2009 GIVEN that the country has been languishing for much of the past 15 years, it came as something of a surprise to hear that Japan’s economy grew by a healthy 1.2 per cent in the third quarter of 2009, as exports and business investment rebounded. The stronger-than-expected data cheered the country’s Nikkei index, which rose [...]
CRUDE OIL’S STALL SPELLS BAD NEWS November 16, 2009 DAVID MORRISONCFD MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT DESPITE assurances to the contrary, the US administration wants a weaker dollar. Investors have seen this, however, and discount US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner’s call for a strong dollar as simply hot air. Meanwhile the clear message from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is that US interest rates will [...]
Pressure still on for BA, despite the Iberia deal November 16, 2009 BRITISH AIRWAYS’ agreement to a $7bn merger with its Spanish rival Iberia has highlighted just how much the airlines have struggled during the recession. A surging oil price ahead of the financial crisis had put pressure on costs, which saw both businesses and consumers tighten their belts, causing passenger numbers to slump. The merger, said [...]
THE TIPSTER CHRISTMAS HAS ARRIVED EARLY IN THE MARKETS November 16, 2009 THE FTSE 100 smashed through 5,300 yesterday, rising 86 points to close at 5,382.67. For weeks the blue-chip index had been struggling to get through this resistance level but yesterday, it was firmly back on the upward trend. Has the traditional Santa rally started early? If so, the next target level would be the 5,500 [...]
Beer-bellies meet spread bets as arrows fly this week November 15, 2009 MENTION the name Mervyn King in the City and most readers of this newspaper will think of the chap who’s in charge of the Bank of England. But there is another fellow with the same name, who is far more at home on the oche than discussing the finer points of quantitative easing. This other [...]
Copper looks red hot for next year November 15, 2009 COPPER’S status as a widely used industrial metal meant it was always going to do well in 2009. Restocking, East Asian growth and growing confidence in the global economic recovery saw the price of the red metal on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rise to as high as $6,700 a tonne earlier in the year. [...]
YUAN’S PEG A PROBLEM FOR STRONG EURO November 15, 2009 JANE FOLEYRESEARCH DIRECTOR, FOREX.COMCURRENCY flexibility in Asia is a contentious issue, so the appearance of US President Barack Obama and US Treasury secretary Tim Geithner at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) meetings last week immediately brought the topic back into the spotlight. Geithner made the most of the opportunity to stress the importance of flexible [...]
THE TIPSTER RETAILERS TRY TO BEAT THE RECESSION November 15, 2009 SO FAR, so good for the British retailers, it would seem. The likes of Marks&Spencer, Next and J Sainsbury have all released better-than-expected third quarter figures, and the latter is once again looking like an attractive proposition. Although lower food inflation might be expected to hit bumper sale figures, both the supermarket and its rival [...]
British Airways and Iberia merger sends FTSE soaring November 12, 2009 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 hit its highest close in three weeks yesterday as British Airways soared with investors cheered as a merger with Iberia looked imminent, while gains were also powered by strength in banks. But the rise was limited by falls in commodity prices hitting miners and energy stocks, which together constitute a third of [...]
Dow’s winning run ends as energy falls November 12, 2009 THE Dow industrials six-day winning streak came to a halt yesterday as a drop in oil prices pulled energy stocks lower and a guarded outlook from Wal-Mart fanned worries about consumer spending. Stocks were also undermined by a US dollar rally, as its safe-haven appeal rose after several policymakers around the world warned the economic [...]
