| Latest Forum Topics / Straits Times Index |
 Post Reply
|
|
News Update!
|
|||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
04-Oct-2011 21:53
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Gold turns lower as wider markets slide
A graph with gold bars in the foreground
* Gold surrenders gains, succumbs to pressure from falling stocks * Dollar firms against currency basket, other commodities fall * Platinum widens discount to gold to nearly $200/oz By Jan Harvey LONDON, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Gold prices surrendered early gains on Tuesday to swing lower, caught up in hefty losses across the financial markets, as heightened concerns over the prospect of a Greek default prompted a sharp slide in equities and commodities. European shares fell 3.3 percent, oil prices slid more than $2 a barrel and industrial metals like copper and nickel saw selling on growing fears the euro zone sovereign debt crisis could be spreading to the banking sector. Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,652.80 an ounce at 1242 GMT, having earlier risen as high as $1,678 an ounce. Investors remained wary towards gold after it was caught up in a financial market rout in late September, which saw heavy selling of the metal to cover losses elsewhere. Prices fell 20 percent from the record $1,920.30 hit early in the month. " Against a sea of red, (gold) probably will continue to struggle, as its safe haven (appeal) has been somewhat put into question over the last month," said Saxo Bank senior manager Ole Hansen. " Further losses on the S& P, which are now likely considering how we are testing recent lows, could trigger addional long liquidation of profitable positions." " Gold has done pretty well considering the continued dollar strength," he added. " But it is probably also clear that following a $300 dollar correction, many are a bit hesitant jumping back in." European shares took another hit on Tuesday on fears Franco-Belgian bank Dexia may need to be rescued due to its exposure to Greek debt. Investors fear this is evidence that banks will be hit hard by the euro zone sovereign debt crisis. European finance ministers are considering making banks take bigger losses on Greek debt and have postponed a vital aid payment to Athens until mid-November. The STOXX Europe 600 Banking Index is down nearly 5 percent. Despite putting in its weakest performance in nearly three years in September, gold still managed to deliver its biggest quarterly gain of 2011 in the third quarter, and is up more than 15 percent so far this year. This is even after some gains in the dollar, which has inched up 1.4 percent this year versus the euro. Gold is usually pressured by a stronger dollar, which makes it more expensive for other currency holders. U.S. gold futures < GCv1> for December delivery were down $2.50 an ounce at $1,655.20. COMMODITIES SLIDE Among other commodities, oil and industrial metals such as copper and nickel fell as worries over the economic outlook hurt demand expectations for raw materials. Goldman Sachs reiterated its 12-month gold price target of $1,860 an ounce, at the same as it cut its 2012 forecasts for oil and copper prices. " As we expect gold prices will continue to be driven in large measure by the evolution of U.S. real interest rates and with our U.S. economic outlook pointing for continued low levels of U.S. real rates in 2012, we continue to recommend long trading positions," it said. Credit Suisse also raised its 2012 gold price forecast to $1,850 an ounce, saying the metal, as a clear beneficiary of the uncertainty and dislocations in financial markets, has further upside with the crises set to continue. Silver prices were up 0.2 percent at $30.39 an ounce. Spot platinum was down 1.2 percent at $1,478.99 an ounce, while spot palladium was up 1.2 percent at $586.97 an ounce. Platinum widened its discount to gold to nearly $200 an ounce in earlier trade, an unprecedented level, while the gold:platinum ratio -- the number of platinum ounces needed to buy an ounce of gold -- rose to 1.13, its highest since Reuters data began. Platinum prices were hurt by a 29 percent hike in CME Group trading margins on platinum futures, as the biggest operator of U.S. futures exchanges moved to tame market volatility. " Major automakers posted double-digit percentage U.S. sales gains for September.... (but) September car sales in Italy and France were weak, offsetting gains in Germany," said HSBC. " More than half of annual platinum and palladium demand is from the auto sector where it is a necessary component in the production of catalytic converters and particulate filters." (Reporting by Jan Harvey Editing by William Hardy) |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
04-Oct-2011 21:51
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
HK shares close down 3.4 pct
Hong Kong night skyline
HONG KONG, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares tumbled for a fourth straight session on Tuesday, as weakness in mainland oil producers and property names dragged the Hang Seng Index to a 2-1/2 year low ahead of a public holiday on Wednesday. The Hang Seng Index closed down 3.4 percent at 16,250.3 points, while the China Enterprise Index ended down 3.6 percent at 8,102.6 points. Financial markets in China are shut this week for an extended National Day holiday. HIGHLIGHTS: * Losses topping 36 percent in 2011 to date have pushed multiples for the China Enterprise Index of the top Chinese firms listed in Hong Kong, otherwise known as the H-share index, to its lowest since the 2008 financial crisis. It is currently trading at 6.8 times its 12-month forward earnings, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S data. This is also its second-lowest since 2003. * A small short squeeze provided respite for some Chinese property names. China Overseas Land & Investment , which lost 15 percent over three sessions before Tuesday, gained 3 percent. Its Hong Kong peers were top percentage losers among Hang Seng components, with Hang Lung Properties bleeding almost 7 percent. * Shares of CNOOC Ltd , seen most sensitive to movements in oil prices among the three Chinese oil companies, slumped almost 7 percent, partly tracking lower global oil prices. Losses of over 28 percent in the third quarter have pushed multiples to its lowest since the 2008 financial crisis. CNOOC Ltd is now trading at 6.5 times forward 12-month earnings, compared to 10.7 times median. (Reporting by Clement Tan Editing by Jonathan Hopfner) |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
|
|||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
04-Oct-2011 21:49
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
S& P 500 enters bear market
Times Square, New York
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 124.12 points, or 1.16 percent, to 10,531.18. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 12.43 points, or 1.13 percent, to 1,086.80. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 18.61 points, or 0.80 percent, to 2,317.22. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:55
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
REVEALED: The Real Reasons The Recession Still Isn't Over |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:51
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
|||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
|
|||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:43
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Recommendation Based on the charts and explanations above we recommend selling oil around 83.10 targeting 81.75 and 80.00. Stop loss with four-hour closing above 84.00 NB: Bull and Bear Fighting ... ... I believe 
|
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:38
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Asia $ outflow and back to USA USA is now HOPING for a hyper inflation... ... thus USD would remain weak and weaker Will we see crude oil at usd 114 ? ?? |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:33
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Commodities Climb Higher as Sentiment Lifted Temporarily Financial markets rebounded sharply amid expectations that European leaders will devise a plan to fix the sovereign debt crisis in the Eurozone. Wall Street jumped with DJIA and S& P 500 gaining +2.53% and +2.33% respectively. In the commodity sector, oil prices reversed early losses and ended the day adding modestly. The front-month contract for WTI crude oil climbed +0.49% during the day while the equivalent Brent crude contract closed flat. Gold slumped to a 2-month low of 1535 but then recovered and closed at 1594.8. While the increase in margin has sent gold much lower over the past few trading days, the yellow metal rose above 1600 today again as the broad market sentiment improved. While not confirmed it's said that European leaders are planning to expand the EFSF to 595B euro and Germany is suggesting banks and private institutions to reduce Greece's debt burden by taking a bigger loss on their Greek debt holdings. News reports also said that the ECB may reintroduce purchases of covered bonds at next week's meeting while the main refinancing rate may stay at 1.5%. ECB Executive Board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi reassured the market that the central bank would provide adequate liquidity what it's needed'. Indeed, it's likely that the ECB will step up easing in the next meeting. At a speech at the IMF and World Bank meetings President Jean Claude Trichet warned that the risks to the EU financial system have 'increased considerably' and that the Eurozone is that 'epicentre' of such crisis. Moreover, he stated that there's data showing a 'progressive drying-up of bank funding markets'. The comments indicated that the central bank has become more concerned about the banking system than the previous meeting. On the macro front, Germany's IFO business survey delivered pleasant surprise. Business climate index slipped to 107.5 in September from 108.7 a month ago. The market had anticipated a shaper decline to 106.5. Current assessment index fell to 117.9 (consensus: 115.5) in September from 118.1. Expectations index dipped to 98 (consensus: 97.4) from 100.1. In the US, new home sales slipped -3K to 295K in August. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
|
|||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:32
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Commodities Climb Higher as Sentiment Lifted Temporarily Oil prices climbed higher for a second consecutive day as market sentiment was boosted by potential fixes of the sovereign debt crisis in the Eurozone. The front-month contract for WTI crude oil price rose to as high as 82.80, a 4-day high. Gold prices also rebounded after plummeting below 1550 yesterday. Currently trading at 1670, the benchmark contract recovered more than 100 dollar of loss but remained shy below 1700. While the major reason for the selloff in recent days is CME’s margin increase, strength in the US dollar, dampening inflationary expectations, liquidation of previous gains in gold trading to cover losses in equities all contribute to the decline. That said, we retain our view that the yellow metal will resume its rally. Demand for safe-haven assets should stay robust as long as the following situations persist: default risks in European periphery intensify, global economy deteriorates further, and world central bankers look to add easing measures to stimulate the economy or at least keep interest rates low. It’s true that the rebound in financial markets today has been driven by hopes that European leaders will soon unveil measures to resolve the problems facing debt-ridden Greece and the drying-up of the European banking system. Yet, the better-than-expected German confidence index might have also helped. Despite recession fear, Germany’s Gfk consumer confidence index surprisingly stayed at 5.2 in October, compared with consensus of 5.1. This was probably driven by the resilient job market in the world’s largest economy. The US market is expected to open higher, carrying the strong sentiment in both Asian and European sessions. Concerning the dataflow, the S& P/Case-Shiller Composite-20 probably contracted -4.4% y/y in July, after declining -5.5% in the prior month. Consumer confidence might have added +2 points to 46.5 in September. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:25
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Fed Officials Express Doubt About Faster Inflation as Tool to Boost Growth Two Federal Reserve policy makers voiced wariness about the idea of spurring growth by letting inflation accelerate as they reiterated support for the central bank’s unprecedented monetary easing. Fed Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin said the central bank’s use of tools has been “completely appropriate” and that she would be “quite leery” of allowing higher inflation or price expectations in an attempt to lower real interest rates. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said faster inflation won’t reduce the housing glut. He also said “monetary policy is ultra-loose right now, and appropriately so.” Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and colleagues have discussed adopting specific levels of inflation and unemployment as conditions for keeping interest rates near zero. Only Chicago Fed President Charles Evans has public supported the idea of allowing price increases faster than 2 percent annually as a way to lower unemployment. “One of the explicit mandates of Congress is price stability, and keeping inflationary expectations anchored is, in my mind, extremely important,” Raskin, 50, said in response to an audience question yesterday in Washington after a speech to the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. The Federal Open Market Committee said Sept. 21 it will buy $400 billion of Treasury securities with maturities of six to 30 years through June while selling an equal amount of debt maturing in three years or less. Policy ToolsIt was the second straight expansion of unconventional monetary tools, following the August decision to say the benchmark interest rate will stay close to zero until at least mid-2013 instead of the previous, less-specific “extended period” language that had been in place since March 2009. Raskin indicated she might support unspecified further stimulus. While the effects of Fed actions have been “somewhat more muted than I might have expected,” she said, that shouldn’t imply that additional easing “would be unhelpful.” “Indeed, the opposite conclusion might well be the case -- namely, that additional policy accommodation is warranted under present circumstances,” she said in a speech, her first devoted to monetary policy since the former Maryland chief financial regulator joined the Fed almost a year ago. The FOMC at its Aug. 9 meeting considered conditioning its pledge to keep interest rates at record lows “on explicit numerical values for the unemployment rate or the inflation rate,” according to minutes released Aug. 30. More Clarity“Some members argued that doing so would establish greater clarity regarding the committee’s intentions and its likely reaction to future economic developments, while others raised questions about how an appropriate numerical value might be chosen,” the minutes said. The commitment should be contingent on joblessness falling to around 7 percent or 7.5 percent as long as inflation stays below 3 percent in the medium term, Evans said Sept. 7. Fed policy makers aim for long-run inflation of about 1.7 percent to 2 percent. Bullard, 50, referring to unsold homes, said yesterday that “I’m not sure inflation is really going to help you work that off.” Keeping prices stable “is the way to go here,” Bullard, who doesn’t vote on monetary policy this year, said at a forum in New York hosted by Medley Global Advisors and the Financial Times. “I don’t think high inflation is a very good solution to this problem.” Economic ChangesBullard repeated that he favored a “meeting-by-meeting approach” to setting the size of asset purchases so a program’s size responds to changes in the economy. U.S. stocks rose, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index increasing 2.3 percent to 1,162.95 in New York trading, as European officials discussed ways to tame the region’s debt crisis. Yields on 10-year Treasury notes rose seven basis points, or 0.07 percentage point, to 1.9 percent as of 5:50 p.m. in New York. One drawback to the commitment to keep the benchmark rate near zero is that it “may encourage a Japanese-style outcome in which the policy rate simply remains near zero and markets come to expect a mild rate of deflation,” Bullard said in his presentation yesterday. The so-called Operation Twist announced last week “should exert downward pressure on longer-term interest rates and help make broader financial conditions more accommodative, thereby supporting a stronger economic recovery,” Raskin said, reiterating a point from the FOMC’s statement. The FOMC cited “significant downside risks to the economic outlook, including strains in global financial markets.” The Fed also agreed to switch the reinvestment of its holdings of maturing housing debt to mortgage-backed securities from Treasuries. “Our announcement appears to have been successful in narrowing the spread between rates on agency MBS and Treasury securities of comparable maturity,” which had “widened substantially since earlier this year,” threatening to raise home-loan costs, Raskin said yesterday, referring to mortgage- backed securities. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:23
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
For other related diaries, please see DIARY - U.S. Federal Reserve DIARY - Polling Unit Diary DIARY - Key World Financial Events DIARY - Political and General news DIARY - Index of all Diaries DIARY - G7 Economic Indicators DIARY - Emerging Markets Cen Banks DIARY - Top Economic Events Please note the diaries mentioned above can be accessed only from Thomson Reuters products. Please find below a list of dates of meetings and interest rate decisions in 2011 from key central banks around the world. ======================================================== U.S. FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE Nov 01 - U.S. Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) holds two-day meeting on interest rates (to Nov. 2). Nov 02 - U.S. Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announces decision on interest rates, issues policy statement at 1815 GMT. Dec 13 - U.S. Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) holds one-day meeting on interest rates announces decision on interest rates and issues policy statement at 1815 GMT. ======================================================== EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK (Held in Frankfurt unless otherwise stated). Oct 06 - ECB Governing Council meeting, followed by interest rate announcement at 1145 GMT. News conference follows at 1230 GMT. Oct 20 - ECB Governing Council meeting. No interest rate announcements scheduled. Nov 03 - ECB Governing Council meeting, followed by interest rate announcement at 1245 GMT. News conference follows at 1330 GMT. Nov 17 - ECB Governing Council meeting. No interest rate announcements scheduled. Dec 08 - ECB Governing Council meeting, followed by interest rate announcement at 1245 GMT. News conference follows at 1330 GMT. Dec 21 - ECB Governing Council and General Council meeting. No interest rate announcements scheduled ( to Dec. 22). ===================================================== BANK OF JAPAN Oct 06 - Monetary Policy Meeting (to Oct 07) Oct 07 - Monetary Policy rate decision. Oct 27 - Monetary Policy Meeting. Nov 15 - Monetary Policy Meeting (to Nov 16) Nov 16 - Monetary Policy Meeting. Dec 20 - Monetary Policy Meeting (to Dec 21) Dec 21 - Monetary Policy Meeting. ===================================================== BANK OF ENGLAND Oct 05 - MPC meeting (to Oct 06) Oct 06 - MPC announces interest rate decision - 1100 GMT Nov 09 - MPC meeting (to Nov 10) Nov 10 - MPC announces interest rate decision - 1200 GMT Dec 07 - MPC meeting (to Dec 08) Dec 08 - MPC announces interest rate decision - 1200 GMT ======================================================== CANADA Oct 25 - Bank of Canada key policy interest rate announcement Dec 06 - Bank of Canada key policy interest rate announcement ======================================================= BANK FOR INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS (BIS)/G10 - All bi-monthly meetings take place in Basel, Switzerland, except where indicated Nov 07 - Bank for International Settlements (BIS) bi-monthly meeting. ======================================================= SWISS NATIONAL BANK Dec 15 - Swiss National Bank (SNB) monetary policy assessment (part of Media News Conference) - 0830 GMT ======================================================== RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA Oct 04 - Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board meeting. Announcement of interest rate decision at 0330 GMT Nov 01 - Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board meeting. Announcement of interest rate decision at 0330 GMT Dec 06 - Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board meeting. Announcement of interest rate decision at 0330 GMT ======================================================= RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND Oct 27 - Official Cash Rate (OCR) announcement (2000 GMT on Oct. 26) Dec 08 - Monetary Policy Statement and Official Cash Rate (OCR) announcement (2000 GMT on Dec 7) ======================================================== SWEDEN'S RIKSBANK Oct 26 - Swedish central bank meets on monetary policy (to Oct. 27). Dec 19 - Swedish central bank meets on monetary policy (to Dec. 20). ======================================================= ICELAND CENTRAL BANK Nov 02 - Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. Dec 07 - Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. ======================================================== NORGES BANK Oct 19 - Norwegian central bank's policy-setting executive board holds meeting on interest rates (rate decision 1200 GMT, news conference 1245 GMT). Dec 14 - Norwegian central bank's policy-setting executive board holds meeting on interest rates (rate decision 1300 GMT, news conference 1345 GMT). ======================================================= DANISH NATIONAL BANK Denmark's National Bank does not have regularly monetary policy meetings. The Board of Governors convenes whenever necessary but these meetings often coincide with the ECB. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 23:22
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
An Absolute ZeroThe Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) concluded a two-day meeting by initiating “Operation Twist.” The FOMC’s press release explained: “The Committee intends to purchase, by the end of June 2012, $400 billion of Treasury securities with remaining maturities of 6 years to 30 years and to sell an equal amount of Treasury securities with remaining maturities of 3 years or less. This program should put downward pressure on longer-term interest rates and help make broader financial conditions more accommodative.” This announcement initiated sell programs in almost every market. There are many reasons for this reaction, one of which was the recognition that every initiative has failed, and now, all they can think to do is drive down yields that are already below 2.00%! A reason for the Fed’s failure is the array of topics that never enter the mind of economists such as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke. These include money, credit, debt, and capital. The productivity of capital is an important consideration, one which most people understand, in their own words. A bank does not lend money to a business that can not earn its way to paying back the loan. A potential borrower understands the banker’s hurdle. (This refers to the majority of smaller banks in the country where the officers lose their jobs or worse when the bank fails if it adopts such a strategy.) An investor buys shares of common stock in a company that will produce the most from the least. The higher the profits produced per share, the more the shares should be worth. Ben & friends do not think this way. During the Fed’s quantitative easing schemes, the additional debt has produced nothing. The Federal Reserve, including the Board, the FOMC, and the thousands of Ph.D. researchers may not know even know of this relationship, but there is a growing understanding, intuitive or quantitative, that sees the Bernanke Fed as failing by a greater degree with every new initiative. During the 1980s, the change (rise) in non-financial domestic debt divided by the change (rise) in nominal Gross Domestic Product was 2.2. That is, for every $2.20 borrowed, the United States produced $1.00 of additional goods and services (nominal). In the 1990s, debt was less efficient. It took extra debt to accomplish the same. The ratio (rise in debt-to-GDP) was 2.7:1. Between 2001 and 2008, even more debt was needed to produce more stuff: the ratio rose to 4.2:1. The Fed has been rolling out its various quantitative initiatives since early 2009. The ratio of debt to production has been 3.7:1 (through June, 2011). But, the increase in transfer payments (1-in-7 Americans now receive food stamps, Cash for Clunkers, shovel-ready bank bailouts) exceeds the rise in nominal GDP by a wide margin. As a measure of financial efficiency, the ratio is now meaningless. The additional debt being manufactured is not producing any additional goods and services. The more Bernanke applies his senior thesis to the real economy, the less the economy is able to pay down old debt, much less manufacture additional goods and services to pay down the new debt. The Fed has pegged short-term interest rates at zero Operation Twist is an attempt to drive long-term rates to zero (or, close to it) the rise of incomes in the United States since 2008 has been zero “real” GDP growth since QE1 has been less than zero the FOMC is an absolute zero. Somebody in the past couple of weeks, I forget who (my apologies), compared the central bankers’ Mad Hatter policies to the strange physical transformations when approaching absolute zero (-273 Celsius). Solids, liquids, and gases behave strangely. We have arrived at that point with financial markets. The Authorities have lost control of the markets they have been manipulating. Desperate tactics, with untold unintended consequences, such as the Swiss National Bank doubling its monetary base last month, ensure more fanatical outbursts from the Fed, the ECB, and the Bank of Japan. In this setting, gold fell more than $150 last week. Other than remote islands, this is the best bargain around. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
|
|||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 22:06
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
World stocks on track to biggest gains since May
Graph with stacks of Australian dollars
* Oil, gold surge too, leading broad commodities rebound (Recasts, updates market activity and prices to U.S. session changes byline dateline, previous LONDON) By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Stocks on major world markets were headed for their largest daily gain in over four months on Tuesday, and oil and gold prices rallied too, as improving sentiment over the European debt crisis helped markets rebound from last week's selloff. The U.S. dollar fell against the euro for a third straight day. U.S. Treasuries prices also slipped, with 30-year bonds down by over two full points, as demand for safe-havens ebbed. [USD/] [US/] " The market is beginning to get the feeling that finally European lawmakers are moving out of their paralysis," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York. " Commodity prices are up across the board. There's hopes a global recession can be avoided." Stocks rose for a third straight day. By 9:43 a.m. EDT (1343 GMT), Wall Street's Dow Jones industrial average < .DJI> was up 207.64 points, or 1.88 percent, at 11,251.50. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index < .SPX> was up 20.91 points, or 1.80 percent, at 1,183.86. The Nasdaq Composite Index < .IXIC> was up 36.55 points, or 1.45 percent, at 2,553.24. The MSCI all-country world stock index < .MIWD00000PUS> was up 3.2 percent, on track to its largest daily gain since May 14. For the week thus far, the index is up 4.3 percent, after dropping more than 7.0 percent last week. The broad-based rebound follows expectations built over the weekend from meetings of the International Monetary Fund in Washington D.C. which signalled European policymakers were acting to contain Greece's debt problems and resolve a crisis threatening to engulf the world economy. Some officials have said plans were underway to boost the size of a regional bailout fund to cut Greece's debts and recapitalize banks, although others have underlined they these were at a very early stage. Germany has also said there are no plans to increase the size of the fund. [ID:nLDE78P01H] " Given so much uncertainty at the moment, there is room for both pessimism and optimism. The optimists have taken the forefront on hopes that we could see European politicians getting to grips with the current situation over the coming weeks," said Keith Bowman, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. " But there are still a lot of concerns. Investors remain sceptical." U.S. crude oil < CLc1> jumped almost 4 percent to above $83 per barrel. The spot price of gold < XAU=> , which tracks bullion, rose 1.7 percent to above $1650 an ounce. The broad-based Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index for commodities < .CRB> climbed 2.2 percent. (Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak in New York and Jeremy Gaunt, Jessica Mortimer and Atul Prakash in London) |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 22:04
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
U.S. home prices unchanged in July - Case Shiller
(Adds economists' quotes, byline)
By Margaret Chadbourn WASHINGTON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - U.S. home prices were unchanged on average in July in a sign that the weak housing market could be stabilizing, a survey showed on Tuesday. The S& P/Case Shiller composite index of single-family homes in 20 metropolitan areas was unchanged from a month earlier when adjusted for seasonal factors. Economists expected the seasonally-adjusted series to rise 0.1 percent. Prices declined 4.1 percent from July 2010. A weak jobs markets and a heavy load of household debt are helping keep Americans from buying homes despite historically low mortgage rates. Economists expect the sector will remain weak for years to come but the long slide in house prices since 2008 could be in sight. The Case Shiller 20 cities index is down about 31 percent from its peak in 2006. " You are quite close to some equilibrium between supply and demand," said Cary Leahey, an economist at Decision Economics in New York. The data was broadly in line with analysts expectations and does little to allay fears the United States could slip back into recession. < ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ INSTANT VIEW - House prices down in year [ID:nS1E78Q0B9] Graphic - S& P/Case-Shiller home prices change http://r.reuters.com/bef53sGraphic showing Graphic - U.S. Midwest manufacturing http://link.reuters.com/jyt93sR ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> On an unadjusted basis, prices in the 20 cities rose 0.9 percent month on month, topping expectations for a 0.7 percent rise. A government report on Monday showed new home sales slipped 2.3 percent in August to a six-month low, while prices also fell during the month. The U.S. Federal Reserve last week unveiled new measures to ease credit further for home buyers, but analysts caution that the level of mortgage rates is not the main hurdle to buying. Many economists are skeptical attempts to lower rates will help much because millions of Americas owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, which can effectively chain them to their properties while also preventing them from refinancing to lower their monthly costs. [ID:nS1E78M0WC] Indeed, some analysts say the steadying of prices might just be the result of a slowdown in the pace of foreclosures. " This might just be a temporary stabilization." said Patrick Newport, an economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts. (Writing by Jason Lange Additional reporting by Richard Leong in New York Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Andrea Ricci) |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 21:04
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Pivot: 2800 Our preference: Short positions below 2800 with targets @ 2650 & 2570 in extension. Alternative scenario: Above 2800 look for further upside with 2865 & 2930 as targets. Comment: the RSI is below its neutrality area at 50% Key levels 2930 2865 2800 2728 last 2650 2570 2400 NB = sti 2750 mild bull ? !! |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 20:59
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
U.S. wheat, corn rise on tight supply prospects
* U.S wheat rises a third day, corn gains nearly 2 pct
* Drought in U.S. to hamper wheat seeding * World stocks up on euro zone optimism By Jane Lee and Ivana Sekularac SINGAPORE/AMSTERDAM, Sept 27 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat and corn futures rose nearly 2 percent on Tuesday, extending gains from previous sessions, supported by a weaker dollar and forecasts for tightening supplies as drought affects planting. World stocks rose for a third straight session on Tuesday, with European shares up 2 percent, as investors took comfort from reports that officials were working to add to measures to calm the euro zone debt crisis. Chicago Board of Trade December corn < Cc1> increased 1.85 percent to $6.60 a bushel by 1100 GMT, so far sliding 17 percent from its June peak of near $8 a bushel. Prices have risen 4.3 percent this quarter, after a 9.3 percent drop in the three months to June 30. December wheat rose for a third day, gaining 1.74 percent to $6.59 a bushel by 1100 GMT, after hitting $6.61 a bushel at 1010 GMT. November soybeans edged up 1 percent to $12.72 a bushel. " The drought that has existed in the U.S. in the past 12 months is hampering the seeding programme for wheat for 2012," said Luke Mathews, a commodity strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney. " There's significant dryness in Argentina. The general perception is that prices have fallen too far, too fast." The front-month wheat contract < Wc1> has so far lost 26 percent since hitting this year's top of $8.93-½ a bushel in February and soybeans < Sc1> are down more than 13 percent from a high of $14.56 in August. " On the fundamental view, concerns remain over very dry weather conditions in the South of the U.S., damaging autumn sowing," French consultancy Agritel said in a daily note on Tuesday. " This is the same in Ukraine, while rapeseed does not grow well in France because first storms and then dry conditions impacted crop," it said. European benchmark November milling wheat was up 2.75 euros or 1.43 percent at 195.00 euros a tonne by 1050 GMT. It earlier rose to 195.75 euros, a level last seen on Sept 21. Drought has plagued the U.S. Plains hard red winter wheat region and 80 percent of the Ukraine's winter grain-sowing area. On Friday, private forecaster Informa Economics pegged 2011 U.S. all-wheat production at 2.044 billion bushels, down from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's estimate of 2.077 billion. U.S. hard red spring wheat harvest is forecast at 444 million bushels, down from USDA's estimate of 475 million bushels. SOYBEANS, CORN CBOT soybeans November contract will rebound further to $12.82 per bushel, according to Reuters technical analyst, Wang Tao. Informa cut its estimate for 2011 U.S. corn production to 12.62 billion bushels from 12.711 billion, while raising its U.S. soy harvest prediction to 3.092 billion bushels from 3.061 billion. The market is awaiting the Sept. 30 quarterly stocks report from the USDA as a gauge of corn demand from the feeding industry, Phillip Futures in Singapore said in a report on Tuesday. " Since feed accounts for around 40 percent of total corn consumption, any significant changes in behavior from this industry could aggressively move prices," the research house said. Widespread rumours last week that China would purchase up to 5 million tonnes of corn from the United States and Argentina have gone unconfirmed. China's emergence as a significant importer would bolster prices at a time corn supplies are estimated at 16-year lows, and traders say Beijing has to rely on imports of the grain to be used as animal feed because of its rapidly growing meat consumption. * Prices as of 1110 GMT |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 20:57
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Euro steadies, but sentiment fragile
(Updates prices, adds quote)
* Spain EconMin: No plans for 2 trln euro bailout fund * Resistance seen at $1.3580, traders inclined to sell rallies * Wariness about Japan intervention keeps yen in check By Jessica Mortimer LONDON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - The euro steadied against the dollar on Tuesday, but sentiment was fragile after comments by Spain's economy minister who tempered expectations of a radical and swift action by European policymakers to contain the worsening debt crisis. The single currency had gained earlier on talk policymakers were planning to boost the regional rescue fund, halve Greece's debts and recapitalise banks, all of which encouraged profit-taking on short positions after Monday's fall below $1.34. But the bounce proved short-lived, as Spanish minister Elena Salgado said plans to extend the region's EFSF bailout fund to 2 trillion euros were not on the table. The euro was last flat on the day against the dollar at $1.3540, above an eight-month low of $1.3360 but staying vulnerable to further falls back towards this trough. " Salgado poured cold water on the optimism that we saw first thing this morning," said Ian Stannard, head of European currency strategy at Morgan Stanley. " The market took some relief from reports that European authorities were looking at leveraging up the EFSF, but the reaction (to Salgado) highlights just how fragile that recovery is" . Oscillators such as the relative strength index suggested the euro may be near oversold territory, while traders said investors were still looking to sell the euro on any rally. Resistance loomed at $1.3580, a 38.2 percent retracement of its Sept. 15-26 decline, while traders reported offers above $1.3550 and more above $1.3570. But some traders also said with many in the market short of the euro, stop loss orders could be triggered above $1.3590 as investors take profit on those positions. " A lot of investors are looking to reset new short euro positions around $1.36," said Niels Christensen, currency strategist at Nordea in Copenhagen. The strategy to sell into a bounce in the euro was widespread as doubts persisted over policymakers' ability to craft a plan quickly to deal with the escalating crisis. ECB Board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi said on Monday the existing 440 billion euros in the bailout fund, known as the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), might be used as collateral to borrow from the European Central Bank, which would make more money available for crisis-fighting. . Austrian Finance Minister Maria Fekter said euro zone officials are set to discuss next Monday plans to leverage the EFSF. . " The exact terms and the speed at which action could be taken remains uncertain," said Alain Bokobza, head of asset allocation at Societe Generale. " The latest proposal leveraging the EFSF to boost its firepower to at least one trillion euro is still too hazy to lastingly reverse market sentiment in our view." Growing expectations that the European Central Bank could cut interest rates were also expected to weigh on the euro. Some ECB officials said on Monday that cuts could not be ruled out. Higher-risk growth-linked currencies rebounded after a recent sharp sell-off, helped by firmer equities, with the Aussie up 0.65 percent against the U.S. dollar at $0.9905 and the Kiwi up nearly 1 percent. YEN STILL STRONG The dollar traded at 76.40 yen , hovering close to record lows around 75.94 yen and keeping alive concerns that Japan could intervene again to stem its currency's gains. The yen has strengthened nearly 6 percent so far this year. Early on Tuesday, Japan's government said it wanted to bring forward steps to ease the pain some companies feel from a stronger yen and enact the measures before it completes an extra budget to fund reconstruction spending. " The yen is at levels where you can expect the Bank of Japan to come in. They won't like dollar/yen below 76, so they will be very much on alert," Nordea's Christensen said. The euro stood at 103.52 yen , having bounced from a fresh decade low of 101.95 yen hit on Monday, weathering some month-end selling from Japanese exporters. This week the euro zone faces plenty of hurdles, including votes this week in Finland and Germany on existing plans to revamp the EFSF structure. The Greek government votes on Tuesday on new austerity measures needed to secure aid. The dollar index edged down 0.35 percent to 78.076, off an eight-month peak of 78.863. (additional reporting by Anirban Nag Editing by Stephen Nisbet) |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 20:49
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Shanghai subway trains crash hundreds injured5 minutes ago By EUGENE HOSHIKO (AP:SHANGHAI) A Shanghai subway train crashed into another that was stopped underground Tuesday afternoon, injuring more than 210 people in the latest trouble for the rapidly expanded transportation system in China's commercial center. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 20:47
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
All Eyes Continue To Focus On EuropeHello traders everywhere! Adam Hewison here, co-founder of MarketClub with your mid-day market update for Monday, the 26th of September. Here we are on the first day of the last week of September, with the end of Q3 approaching on Friday. Are the equity markets building a base to go higher? Or is this just a pause before we start heading back down? All eyes continue to be focused on the European problem, especially Greece. We still believe Greece will default on their debt. And we still think that the politicians are looking for an easy way out of this economic malaise, unwilling to accept the consequences of their actions. Last week we saw all the markets under pressure. For the last couple of days we’ve seen some minor support coming to the equity markets. And just today we have seen support come into the metals markets at much lower levels than most folks anticipated. As always we rely on our Trade Triangle Technology which continues to point the way to profits. Now let’s go to the 6 major markets we track and update every trading day and see how we can create and maintain your wealth in 2011. ——– S& P 500 INDEX Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long SPY) (Short SH) 2 x Leveraged ETF’s: (Long SSO)(Short SDS) Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Negative Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trends = Negative Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Negative Combined Strength of Trend Score = – 90 After last week’s sharp fall, the S& P 500 index is doing a slow recovery. We do not believe this is changing the overall direction of this market, which we still believe to be bearish based on our Trade Triangle technology. Key level to watch this week is 1120. A close below this level represents a continuation to the downside for this index. The large technical flag formation that we have discussed in previous posts is still in a bearish mode. This also ignited an intermediate term Trade Triangle sell signal at 1136.07 for this index. We are looking for this market to continue on the defensive for the next several weeks. Perception is everything and investors are in a panic mode with the state of the economy and their portfolios. Short, Intermediate and Long-term traders should continue to be short this index. ——– SILVER (SPOT) Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long SLV) (Short the ETF SLV) Leveraged ETF’s: (Long AGQ) (Short ZSL) Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Negative Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trend = Negative Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Negative Combined Strength of Trend Score = – 90 The spot silver market is now lower for the year. We suspect that today’s low, which mirrored the lows seen in January, is going to at least hold the market for the time being. With all of our Trade Triangles negative, it is hard to make a compelling argument that this market is headed higher. We continue to just watch this market and see how it plays out. Traders who are following our Trade Triangle technology should be short this market with appropriate stops. As we have said before in these reports, markets slide faster than they glide, meaning they go down much faster than they go up. ————- GOLD (SPOT) Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long GLD) (Short the ETF GLD) Leveraged ETF’s:(Long UGL) (Short GLL) Futures: Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Positive Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trends = Negative Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Negative Combined Strength of Trend Score = – 70 Unlike silver, the gold market is higher for the year and also has a positive Trade Triangle still intact. This basically indicates that the long term trend for gold remains positive. This market is seeing massive liquidation and profit-taking and we expect it will regroup at or around current levels. We do not anticipate this market going straight up from here. Only long-term traders should maintain long positions with the appropriate money management stops in place. ————- CRUDE OIL (NOVEMBER) Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long USO) (Short the ETF USO) Leveraged ETF’s: (Long UCO) (Short DTO) Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Negative Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trends = Negative Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Negative Combined Strength of Trend Score = – 90 The November contract for crude oil appears to be finding support at the $78 a barrel level. While it is too early to say that this market has made a bottom, the action indicates that the momentum for the moment has stopped going down. All of our Trade Triangles remain negative, with resistance coming out just around the $81.80 level basis November. As you may recall we are tying the crude oil market with the equity markets. As the equity markets go, so does crude oil at the moment. Short, Intermediate and Long-term traders should continue to be short the crude oil market. ————- DOLLAR INDEX Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long UUP) (Short UDN) Leveraged ETF’s: (Long) (Short) Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Positive Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trends = Positive Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Positive Combined Strength of Trend Score = + 90 Despite the pullback from higher levels seen earlier today, the dollar index continues to remain in a positive mode. With all of our Trade Triangles positive, we expect to see further upside action. We remain positive on this index. Longer-term this market looks poised to move much higher. This index is coming from a large energy field that is capable of carrying it much higher, possibly up to the 80.00 – 81-00 area. Short, Intermediate and Long-Term traders should maintain long positions with the appropriate money management stops in place. ————- REUTERS/JEFFERIES CRB COMMODITY INDEX Suggested Trading Instruments: Non Leveraged ETF’s: (Long CRBQ) (Short the ETF CRBQ) Leveraged ETF’s: (Long UCO) (Short CMD) Futures: Futures Contracts are available to trade this market. Contact your broker Options: Options Contracts are available to trade this market.Contact your broker WARNING: Liquidity is some ETFs is very thin. Contact your broker for more information. ——– Monthly Trade Triangles for Long-Term Trends = Negative Weekly Trade Triangles for Intermediate Term Trends = Negative Daily Trade Triangles for Short-Term Trends = Negative Combined Strength of Trend Score = – 90 The Reuters/Jefferies CRB Commodity index came very close to testing the $300 level, with a low this morning of 300.15. This may be an interim low as this market continues to try and carve out a bottom for itself. At the moment with all of our indicators in a negative mode, we see no reason to try and pick a bottom here. We have been bearish on this index, putting aside any bias we had toward inflation. Remember the trend is your friend, and we expect the trend to continue until our Trade Triangles inform us that the trend has changed. Short, Intermediate and Long-Term traders should maintain short positions with the appropriate money management stops in place. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
|
krisluke
Supreme |
27-Sep-2011 20:45
|
||
|
x 0
x 0 Alert Admin |
Oil rises above $82 on Europe debt progress hope5 minutes ago By PABLO GORONDI Oil gained more than $2 on Tuesday, rising above $82 a barrel amid optimism that Europe was moving toward a major plan to prevent debt-strapped Greece from going bankrupt. |
||
| Useful To Me Not Useful To Me | |||
