New Zealand and Australian Dollars kept appreciating against most of their peers on Tuesday on investor optimism EU finance ministers have come closer to the solution of region's debt crisis amid Greek progress in debt swap agreement. Aussie climbed to $1.0525 while Kiwi surged to $0.8111 on Tuesday trade. Australian Dollar currently might be overpriced, suggest some analysts. Currently AUD/USD
The composite leading index advanced 0.8% last month after 0.9% increase in November. The increase was observed in the 8 out of 10 elements of the index. Manufacturing was the main contributor to the increase in index with rallying automobile sector. Retail sales, employment, real estate market and money supply also added to the increase.
The EU approved embargo on the Iranian oil as a protest to the Iranian nuclear project. The sanctions imply immediate ban on all the new oil contracts from the country, freeze of the assets of the Iran's central bank and total ban on the precious metals trade with the country's bank. Iran continues to deny that it is developing nuclear
German DAX Index lost 0.2% on Friday but opened 0.5% higher on Monday, as investors awaited for the results of Euro area finance minister meeting. Euro hit this year's record high, touching $1.3 as Greek officials claimed they are making progress in talks with private creditors. Financial sector posted the biggest gains for the index. Commerzbank added 12.8% and Deutsche
After giving up 0.2% on Friday, UK FTSE 100 Index recovered on Monday, lifted by the progress in Greek debt talks amid Euro Zone finance minister meeting. UK benchmark added 0.6% climbing to 5,764.37, led by resource, energy and financial shares. Royal Bank of Scotland surged 1.9%, while Lloyds Banking improved by 1.6%. The main winner was Essar Energy, which
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average traded flat on Monday's rather silent trading session amid Chinese New Year holidays. Nikkei 225 finished 0.01% or 0.46 points down at 8,765.90. On the upside index was supported by export-oriented companies with Sony Corp. surging 4%, Mazda Motor Corp. adding 1.6% and Casio Computer Co. gaining 1.7%. Olympus Corp. rallied 8.1% after the company avoided
Australian S&P/ASX 200 experienced a drop on Monday, fuelled by lower than expected growth in produce price index in the 4th quarter amid enduring Greek debt talks. Australian benchmark index slipped 0.34% or 14.50 points to 4,225.10, led by technology and resource sectors. Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. dropped 3.7% and Newcrest Mining Ltd. slipped 0.7%. Financials also posted some loss
Dow Jones Industrial Average Index soared on Friday, supported on the upside by technology stocks. The blue chip index improved 0.8% or 96.50 points and settled at 12,720.48. IBM provided significant contribution to the index, as company's stocks rallied 4.43% after IBM told its 4th quarter earnings added 4.4% and predicted its 2012 earnings to climb above expectations. Intel Corp.
S&P 500 Index slightly rose on Friday, closing near 6-month record high, lifted by positive earnings reports from Microsoft and IBM. US benchmark climbed 0.1% or 0.9 points and finished at 1,315.38. Financials and technology stocks posted the biggest gains. Microsoft stocks jumped 5.7%, after the company told the sales of Xbox games and Office software created stronger than expected
European stocks closed lower on Friday, as investors anticipated negatively the lingering Greek debt talks. On weekly basis, however, most stocks gained. Stoxx 600 ended 0.3% down at 255.85, while UK FTSE 100 closed 0.2% lower at 5,728.55. Both French CAC 40 index and German DAX also finished 0.2% down at 3,321.50 and 6,404.39 respectively.
China's fiscal income achieved a record high level of 10.37 trillion Yuan last year, reflecting 25% increase from the preceding year, according to the Ministry of Finance. Analysts suggest that the accelerating revenues growth may allow more tax reductions and economic stimulus to prevent hard lending. At the same time, fiscal spending attained 10.89 trillion Yuan last year, indicating an
US shares closed up for a third straight week, lifted by good performance results from IBM and Microsoft. S&P 500 Index gained 0.1% or 0.9 points and finished at 1,315.38, Dow Jones Industrial Average Index climbed 0.8% or 96.50 points and settled at 12,720.48. Meanwhile Nasdaq Composite lost 0.1% or 1.63 points, closing at 2,786.70.
Crude oil futures continued to face losses on Monday as investors awaited the Greece's debt deal that will impact the development of country in the future. Light, sweet crude oil futures for March delivery traded at USD97.83 a barrel during Asian session, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, dropping 0.5% since opening.
Germany and France are looking for the ways to relax the worldwide banks' capital rules to limit negative impact on the real economy. Finance ministers of France and Germany are going to call for special treatment for financial institutions that are involved in insurance business. Moreover, ministers will urge essential clauses of the Basel III guidelines on the basic capital
After climbing for four consecutive days, Loonie weakened on Friday, as government statistics showed nation's inflation slowed at faster pace than analysts had predicted. Cooler inflation may curb central bank's officials to increase benchmark interest rate. Canadian Dollar fell 0.2% to C$1.0132 in Toronto evening trade. Currently USD/CAD is trading at C$1.0130.
Energy sector faced downward move in 2011 with energy stocks being lower worldwide. However, there are signs of recovery in Latin America. Global energy companies plan to boost spending on production and exploration by about 9%, especially concentrating on shale resources and deep-water projects, reported Dahlman Rose&Co. This move may stimulate Latin American energy sector as investors are likely to
Chinise crude steel production jumped 8.9% on a yearly basis, approaching 683.27 million tons in 2011. The pace of the expansion of the sector was 0.4% slower than in 2010. However, the country remains the world's top steel producer. Steel industry saw 295.2 billion Yuan overall profit last year, reflecting a 29.9% jump from the previous year.
Gold eased up on Monday at the holiday trading as China, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia are closed for Lunar New Year. COMEX gold futures for delivery in February traded at USD1,664.95 a troy ounce, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, adding 0.06% since opening.
Olympus shares surged 7% after the company avoided being delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The company was accused of accounting malpractice worth USD1.7 billion. The TSE put the company on close watch and imposed a fine of USD130,000. The decision of TSE implies that Olympus will still have access to the equity capital.
Australia's PPI increased less than expected last quarter, reported the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The indicator grew by 0.3% last quarter on a seasonally adjusted basis from 0.6% in Q3. Experts predicted the PPI to add 0.4% over the period.
Trust in the government deteriorated all over the world, reported the Edelman Trust Barometer. People blame government in the political and financial turmoil of 2011. Overall trust decreased by 9% attaining 43%. Meanwhile, trust in business declined to 53% from 56% over the year. The only survey participant that faced an essential increase in business trust from 61% to 71%
Spain and Italy called for an essential increase of the rescue fund of the EU and a boost of the financial stimulus by the ECB. Mario Monti said that the ESM has to be doubled to EUR 1 trillion to improve investor confidence in the indebted states; the move was supported by Spanish foreign minister. The measure followed Angela Merkel's
Australian and New Zealand Dollar climbed against most of their counterparts on Monday amid speculations, upcoming US reports may show US economy is recovering. Australian Dollar appreciated close to 12-week record high, hitting $1.0486, while New Zealand Dollar strengthened to $0.8071. Currently AUD/USD is trading at $1.0488, while NZD/USD is trading at $0.8069.
European Union officials today are going to announce oil embargo on Iran. The imposed sanctions will not only prohibit the imports of Iran crude but also place restrictions on nation's trade with precious metals including gold, said two persons familiar with situation. Iran exports about 2.2 m barrels of crude oil per day and around 18% is created for European