The economy of the UK is expected to fall into crisis in the first half of 2012 as households continued to reduce spending, said a person familiar with the matter. The government has to ease its prudent policies to boost growth, claims Niesr. The UK economy is likely to contract by 0.1% this year but expend by 2.3% in the
The employment in US probably expanded in January as nation's firms are gaining confidence in US recovery despite European debt troubles. Analysts questioned by Bloomberg predict the payrolls to climb by 140 000 compared to 200 000 increase in December. Hiring rate and wage increase are needed to provide consumer spending which make up 70% of total economy.
Rural commodities showed mixed performance on Wednesday, with grain commodities continuing to grow and coffee and corn continuing to fall. Wheat was the top gainer over the day, advancing 11.24%. Wheat was supported by the growing speculation that Russia plans to cut its exports. Moreover, unfavorable weather conditions in Ukraine that may curb crop pushed the wheat price higher. Meanwhile,
Energy commodities, excluding Brent oil, tumbled on Wednesday after the EIA report indicated higher than expected oil stockpiles in the US. However, strong PMI data releases from the US, the EU and China limited the losses. Crude oil may gain support on the fresh developments over Iranian nuclear programme as the US officials consider imposing striker sanctions against Iran's oil
Base metals rallied on Wednesday amid strong manufacturing data from the US, the EU and China. Industry metals also found additional support on the weaker Euro. However, stockpiling of aluminum at the LME warehouses limited the gains for the metal. Copper and nickel may gather momentum on the expected supply disruptions as workers of BHP Billion may continue the strike
Precious metals advanced on Wednesday amid broadly weaker US Dollar on the positive economic data from the Euro Zone. Gold jumped by 0.33, approaching two-month high of USD 1743.53 per troy ounce. The yellow metals also continued to draw support from the Fed's decision to keep low interest rates until mid-2014. Other precious metals followed the gold's suit and rallied
German DAX 30 index slightly appreciated on Thursday, lifted by Deutsche Boerse as European Union prohibited its planned USD10bn merger with NYSE Euronext, claiming the deal would violate fair rivalry principles as other exchange operators would not be able to compete. Deutsche Boerse jumped 3.7% on the announcement. On the downside Deutsche Bank plunged 2% after lender reported 76% drop
FTSE 100 Index fluctuated between gains and losses on Thursday amid Xstrata merger rumors and Unilever's plunge. Xstrata jumped 10% and Glencore rallied 6% on news about possible merge between both commodity firms. The gains were offset by Unilever PLC which posted small increase in its profit and gave cautious forecasts for 2012. AstraZeneca PLC and Royal Dutch Shell PLC
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average climbed on Thursday along with other Asian share indices as investor sentiment was lifted by positive manufacturing statistics from US and Europe. Nikkei 225 surged 0.76% or 67.03 points and finished at 8,876.82 Car makers supported the index with Honda Motors jumping 3.3% after unexpectedly reporting gains in US market. Nomura Holdings jumped 7.1% after publishing
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rallied on Thursday fuelled by financial and commodity shares amid improvement in global manufacturing data. Hang Seng Index added 2% or 406.08 points and settled at 20,739.45. Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. jumped 3.8%, oil giant Cnooc Ltd. surged 4.1%, while HSBC Holdings PLC gained 3.2%. Clothing retailer Esprit Holdings partly recovered from yesterday's drop
17 nation currency slipped against US Dollar on Thursday as Greeks kept struggling over debt swap agreement and Spanish borrowing costs surged after nation's bond auction. Euro lost 0.5% against Japanese currency to JPY 99.80 and edged down 0.4% against US Dollar to USD 1.3108. Currently EUR/JPY is trading at JPY 99.76 and EUR/USD is trading at USD 1.3106.
Asian share markets gained on Thursday, supported by European and US manufacturing data. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index and Shanghai Composite Index each added 2.0%, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index surged 1%. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average gained 0.8%, while South Korea's Kospi climbed 1.3%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average Index surged on the first February trading session, lifted by worldwide optimism about manufacturing and US employment market. The blue chip index advanced 0.66% or 83.55 points and finished at 12,716.46, supported by industrial and financial shares. Bank of America lead the gains, climbing 3.2%, followed by Hewlett Packard, adding 2.8%. On the downside McDonalds posted
S&P 500 Index rose on Wednesday, supported by expansion in US, Chinese and European manufacturing amid progress in Greek debt talks. The index added 0.89% or 11.68 points and closed at 1,324.09 with all 10 sectors posting gains. Whirlpool jumped 13.5% after reporting better than predicted quarterly profit and claiming it expects shipments to North America increase by 3% this
Building approvals in Australia tumbled in December, reported the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The building approvals declined by 1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in December while experts predicted a 2.1% rise. Considering yearly changes, the building approvals shrank by 24.4% in December.
Chinese copper imports are expected to fall in the next months amid buildup of copper's inventories and lack of arbitrage opportunities. Bloomberg survey indicated that copper inventories at the Shanghai warehouses increased by 300,000 tons over the last month. Currently, LME copper traded at USD 8,5000 per ton, reflecting almost 15% fall from its record high of USD 10,000 per
China's crude oil imports are expected to face the six year high slowdown in growth, reported China National Petroleum Corp. Over 2011, oil imports expanded by 6% as compared to a 17.5% increase in the preceding year. However, natural gas imports are likely to grow by 45%, approaching 45 billion cubic meters as gas demand may account for 5% of
Swiss reported the record high trade balance last year. The trade balance posted a surplus of CHF 23.8 billion in 2011, reflecting 22% increase since 2010. Strong chemical products' trade last year contributed to the increase, said Federal Customs Administration. Over the year, exports increased by 2.1% as compared to a 7.2% jump in 2010 while imports declined by 0.1%
China plans to increase the minimum rice purchase price this year to stimulate farmers to increase grain output. The minimum Indica rice purchase price will be raised to USD 16.01 per 50 kg, reported the National Development and Reform Commission. At the same time, the Japonica rice purchase price will be raised to USD 22.18 per 50 kg.
US equities markets surged on Wednesday, lifted by improvements in world wide manufacturing data. S&P 500 Index gained 0.89% or 11.68 points and closed at 1,324.09. Dow Jones Industrial Average Index added 0.66% or 83.55 points and finished at 12,716.46 while Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.22% or 34.43 points to 2,848.27.
China's manufacturing activity grew last month, with the PMI expanding to 50.5 as compared to 50.3 in the preceding month. The figure was above the expectations of 48, reported the National Bureau of Statistics. The increase signalled more stability in the economic development in the country and may stimulate further policy easing. The major contributors to the expansion in the PMI were
Gold futures advanced during the Asian session on Thursday as strong manufacturing data from the US, EU and China returned investors' confidence in the global economic recovery. COMEX gold futures for delivery in April traded at USD 1,757.11 per troy ounce during the electronic trade, on the New Mercantile Exchange, soaring by 0.15%.
The US manufacturing activity expanded less than initially expected in January, with the PMI growing by 1 point to 54.1 in January as compared to 53.5 in the preceding month, reported the Institute for Supply Management. Experts predicted the PMI to gain 1.4 points to 54.5 last month. However, the New Orders Index added 2.8 points achieving 57.6, posting gains
Australia faced a surplus in the trade balance of goods and services in December. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the surplus widened in December by USD 366 million from November, attaining USD 1,709 million. Meanwhile, goods and services credits increased by 2% to USD 27,792 million last month.