US shares advanced on Monday lifted by Apple Inc's decision to issue dividends amid improved home builder sentiment. S&P 500 index gained 0.4% or 5.58 points and finished at 1,409.75, Dow Jones Industrial Average index added 0.05% or 6.51 points and closed at 13,239.13 while Nasdaq Composite surged 0.76% or 23.06 and settled at 3,078.32.
The China's government is moving towards allowing to trade country's currency more freely, said Wen Jiabao, China's PM. He also stressed that the Yuan free trade will be allowed ‘at the right time'. The additional reforms and financial regulations are necessary for internationalization of the Yuan, he added.
China and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) have reported that they plan to set up a fund worth 1 billion US Dollars aimed at developing markets of Latin America. The fund will provide financial backup for private and public sector projects as well as it will invest in equity markets. The Export-Import Bank of China and IDB will provide 150
Canada's wholesale sales decreased in January after soaring in the preceding month, reported Statistics Canada. The wholesale sales posted a 1.0% decline in January while experts expected a 0.4% increase. The major sector contributing to a fall was motor vehicles and car parts industry. On an annual basis, the wholesale sales advanced by 4.0% in January, following a 6.7% gain
Gold futures were lower during the Asian session on Tuesday after rallying on the increased gold buying of the central banks. The yellow metal was pressured as Fed official announced there would not be any additional easing measures in the US. COMEX gold April contract traded at 1,662.85 US Dollars per ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, falling by
New industrial orders in Italy declined essentially in January after preceding month's gains, reported STAT. The new industrial orders in Italy decreased by 7.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis while analysts expected only a 3.8% fall. Considering yearly changes, the orders declined by 5.6% in January, confronting the projections of a 2.9% decrease.
Crude oil futures faced strong downward pressure after Federal Reserve official reported that the US economic recovery still faces challenges. However, escalated geopolitical tensions limited the losses. Light, sweet crude oil futures for May delivery traded at 108.21 US Dollars per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, tumbling by 0.23%.
The Australian Senate has passed the regulation that implies imposing 30% tax on coal and iron ore mining businesses. The new tax will generate 10.6 billion Australian Dollars in the next three years from the largest companies like Rio Tinto, Xtrata and BHP Billiton. The tax revenue will be directed to other industries of the country. The new regulation comes
European stock markets paused on Monday after a rally to eight month record high in previous week. Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 0.12% to 272.07, German DAX slipped 0.05% to 7,154.22 and French CAC 40 index tumbled 0.47% at 3,577.88. UK FTSE 100 index gave up 0.08% and closed at 5,961.11 while Athens General index bucked the negative overall movement and rallied 1.57%
Australian currency fell on Tuesday amid investor speculations Chinese economic expansion is likely to slow, hampering demand for Australia's exports. Aussie slipped 0.4% versus greenback to USD 1.0567 in Sydney trade and gave up 0.3% against Yen to JPY 88.18. Meanwhile Kiwi dropped 0.3% against US Dollar to USD 0.8238 and edged lower also 0.2% versus Japanese currency to JPY
The greenback ascended versus most of its counterparts on news China's steel manufacturing is slowing, curbing demand for currencies dependent on Asian growth. US dollar climbed 0.3% versus Aussie to USD 1.0576 and advanced to against Japanese currency to JPY 83.43. Greenback traded USD 1.3236 per Euro. Currently EUR/USD is trading at USD 1.3236 and USD/JPY is trading at JPY 83.40.
The current account surplus of the Euro Zone widened more than initially expected in January, reported the ECB. The Euro Zone's current account surplus widened to 4.5 billion Euros on a seasonally adjusted basis in January as compared to 3.4 billion Euros in December. Experts predicted the indicator to approach 4.3 billion Euros in January.
China, the second largest oil consumer in the world after US raised diesel and gasoline prices, second time in less than two months as crude rallied in February. Prices will be increased by CNY 600 (USD 95) per metric ton from today. Refiners are going to charge 7.8% more for diesel and 7% more for gasoline. Oil provider shares declined
German DAX index retreated from last week gains and traded lower on Monday as investors made a pause. Car makers created the biggest losses for the index. BMW AG tumbled 2% after Goldman Sachs confirmed the buy rating on the share but discarded it from its conviction-buy list. Daimler AG fell 0.9% and Volkswagen AG lost 1.9%. On the upside
British FTSE 100 index declined on Monday as dropping commodity prices negatively affected the value of resource shares. Financials also provided substantial downward contribution. National Grid fell 1.9% after Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock from buy to neutral citing valuation grounds. On the upside Vodafone Group advanced 0.8% after Sunday Times reported the firm may save GBP
Rural commodities were mixed on Friday on the depreciating greenback and expectation of the strong US export demand. Wheat price advanced due to growing interest in the US wheat. Meanwhile, global wheat stocks are ample but adverse winter weather in the EU may increase demand for the commodity. Corn also rallied over the day drawing strength from high soybean prices
Energy commodities surged on Friday on the weaker US Dollar and escalated geopolitical tensions. The commodity group was earlier exposed to the speculation on the US and the UK's decision to release strategic oil reserves. However, rumours were later denied thus pushing the energy prices up. Meanwhile, Asian countries are attempting to be excluded from Iranian oil embargo. US inflationary
Precious metals were mixed on Friday with slightly higher silver and gold prices and falling platinum and palladium futures. The commodity group continued to be exposed to the Fed decision not to implement next round of quantitative easing in the US soon. At the same time, weaker US Dollar and dismal economic data from US both created correction of the
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index kept declining after recent rally in previous week. The index fell 0.95% or 202.56 points and closed at 21,115.29 on Monday as investors locked in profits. Aluminum Corp. of China fell 4.2% after company reported a substantial drop in 2011 profits. The main loosing stock was Esprit Holdings which tumbled 4.8%. Property shares supported the
Asian shares traded mostly in the positive territory on Monday as investors anticipated economic news from US. Nikkei 225 index gained 0.2%, South Korea's Kospi added 0.6% and Australian S&P/ASX 200 index soared 0.3%. Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.2% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index bucked the upward trend and finished 1% down.
United Parcel Service expanded its bid for TNT Express by 5.6% to EUR 5.16 billion to shelter the largest deal in UPS history and beat the offer from Deutsche Post AG. Atlanta-based UPS raised its offer price from EUR 9.0 a share to EUR 9.5 a share. TNT shares added 1.8% on the announcement in Amsterdam trading session.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average modestly advanced on Monday, reaching a record high since earthquake in March 2011. Nikkei 225 index soared 0.19% or 18.69 points and closed at 10,148.52. The gains were limited as several electricity providers declined on news Citigroup Inc. lowered its recommendation on the utility companies. Kansai Electric slipped 4.2% and Tokyo Electric fell 3.6%. Strengthening Yen
Dow Jones Industrial Average index slightly declined on Friday as unpredicted fall in US consumer sentiment weighed down on shares. Blue chip index slipped 0.15% or 20.14 points and settled at 13,232.62 with industrial and consumer service sectors creating the biggest losses. On the upside the main gainer was Bank of America which rallied 6% on news its proportion of
S&P 500 index modestly climbed on Friday as gains were limited by an unexpected drop in consumer confidence in March. US index added 0.11% or 1.57 points and closed at 1,404.17 with energy shares posting the biggest gains. Consol Energy jumped 5.2% and Peabody Energy advanced 4.9%. On the downside Pultegroup fell 3.3% and Ford Motor lost 3%. On weekly