OECD indicated the EU crisis as the major risk to the global economy. A firm action is needed to rectify the situation; for example, essential boost of the capacity of EFSF and more support from the ECB is required. The OECD projects the GDP growth in the EU to fall from 1.9% in 2011 to 1.6% in 2012 and an increase by 2.3%
The government of Belgium sold over 2 billion euros of bonds hitting the expected range despite recent downgrade of its rating by Standard & Poor Rating Services. Bids surpassed supply 2.6 times. The Belgian Debt Agency expected to sell from 1.5 billion to 2 billion euros of bonds in total. The yield on 10-year government bonds decreased by 9 basis points to 5.69%, reported FactSet
The Euro increased against USD after the successful Belgian auction where the sales exceeded the expected level causing a decline in the Belgium cost of borrowing. The success of the auction signals improving situation in the Eurozone and thus strengthens the Euro. EUR/USD hit 1.3398 during the European afternoon trade gaining 0.90%.
Qantas, the flag carrier of Australia, announced net income to be between A$140 m and A$190 m in 2011 as compared to A$417 m in 2010. The profit was impacted by the increased fuel prices and strikes of the company's employees demanding better working conditions and higher salary. The strikes affected over 70,000 passengers and cost A$19 m for the company .
Soybean futures increased on the more positive economic perspective for the EU caused by hopes that the EU leaders will put more efforts in struggling with the debt crisis. Soybean futures for January delivery rose by 1.4% on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange after 13-month low and approached USD 11.2312 a bushel at the early European trade.
Greek banks today are expected to reveal 3rd quarter losses. Banks are predicted also to disclose the write-downs of bonds. According to analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, Alpha Bank SA, Greek third biggest bank may report a loss of €14 m, while National Bank of Greece SA, the largest nation's lender is expected to report loss of €99 m. Banks also will be required to
Crude oil futures hit the six-week high being traded over USD 99 a barrel. Analysts claim that the increase in oil demand was caused by more positive outlook on the Eurozone economy. On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude oil futures for January delivery were traded at USD 99.72 at early European trade, surging by 3.05%.
Germany announced that the country does not support issuance of common bonds among triple-A-rated euro-zone members aimed at stabilizing their credit rating and establishing a barrier from spreading euro-zone crisis. Instead Germany suggested adopting stricter budget control among the members and rejecting budgets in case they break the limit.
On Monday trade German DAX 30 index advanced rapidly on growing investors' confidence that German and French politicians have agreed on a new stability treaty to restrain crisis. DAX index surged 3.6% reaching 5,690.93. Major winners in the index were Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank AG, each added about 7%. Auto producers Daimler AG and BMW gained 7.5% and 4.92% respectively.
Silver and Copper futures increased on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange showing a positive correlation with the gold futures that increased on the weaker USD against Euro. Silver for March delivery surged by 2.95% to USD 32.01 a troy ounce while copper futures for March delivery gained 3% to USD 3.382 a pound.
The factory output of Thailand decreased by 35.8% in October after the most severe flooding in the last 50 years. The floods impacted seventh largest industrial regions of the country. The output of disk drives declined by 52.45% in October with the overall fall in electronics production of 45.5%. Car manufacturing tumbled by 61.3%.
FTSE 100 surged after weekend reports suggesting that EU officials have made progress in taming region's debt crisis. The index is experiencing the first rebound since November 11. At the moment of writing FTSE 100 is 2.3% up at 5,283.48. Similar to Asia, banks and mining companies contributed positively to the index. Lloyds Banking Group PLC edged up 5.0% while shares of Antofagasta PLC increased 4.3%
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average added 1.56% on Monday trade partly recovering from last week losses. Index closed at 8,287.49 or 127.48 points up as European leaders declared they have agreed on way how to finance EFSF salvage fund. Commodity sector companies and banks were the major gainers in Japanese markets. Nomura Holdings Inc. surged 4.4%, JX Holdings Inc. gained 3.1% whereas Sumitomo Metal Industries Inc. jumped
Yandex, Russian search engine company, buys SPB Software, a mobile software firm, in order to increase its mobile offerings. Yandex sees a mobile industry as a crucial part of its expansion strategy; the takeover of SPB Software creates new possibilities for Yandex to penetrate mobile industry, said Arkady Volozh, CEO at Yandex. Yandex company also reported about successful performance this year; earnings for the Q3
Italy's cost of borrowing increased after the country sold 567 million euros of inflation-indexed government bonds that mature in 2023. The gross yield of bonds is 7.30% as compared to 2.90% in previous auction in March 2010. The rapid increase in the bond yields raise fears that the third-largest economy in Europe will seek another bailout. More significant test will be on Tuesday when Italy
On Monday Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index experienced first appreciation since November 22 and closed at 18,037.81, gaining 348.33 points or 1.97%. Financial stocks added on growing investor confidence that European officials have moved closer to tackling sovereign debt trouble. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. jumped 3.4% while Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. soared 3.6%. Energy and mining stocks also recovered: Jiangxi Copper Co. ascended
On Friday Dow Jones experienced a slight decline of 0.2% or 25.77 points, closing at 11.231.78. The total weekly loss for index was 4.8%. The major winner was Travelers Cos. Inc. as its shares added 1.2%, while Alcoa Inc. stocks surged 0.79%. Decline in the index was led by Chevron Corp dropping 1.56%, as oil prices fell sharply. Hewlett-Packard Company also provided substantial negative contribution to
The Bank of Israel announced its plan to decrease its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 points to 2.75%. The cut indicates Israel's concerns over the decline in the country's business activity as the amount of exports decreased due to a drop in demand of developed economies such as US and Europe that suffer from financial difficulties.
On Black Friday Nadaq Composite extended its 7-session loss and closed at 2,441.51 giving up 0.8% or 18.57 points. The total weekly loss for index was 5.1%. Decrease in the index was led by Micron Technology and Amazon.com losing 3.68% and 3.49% accordingly. Biggest gainers were Yahoo! Inc. which gained 1.07% and Expedia which advanced 1.01%.
On Friday S&P 500 index closed at 1,158.67 giving up 3.12 points or 0.3%. The total weekly loss for index was 4.7%. Downward trend through the week was mainly caused by surging European bond yields amid growing uncertainty regarding debt crisis. Energy stocks extended the major losses among 10 industries. Chevron Corp. declined 1.56%, Marathon Petroleum Corporation lost 1.71% while Devon Energy Corp. dropped 1.58%. Safeway
Chile growth is predicted to decrease in the next year as the country's export-led economy experiences difficulties caused by global economic instability, according to a report of OECD. The GDP growth is projected to be 4% in 2012 being below the government forecast of 5%. The country is also affected by the overall decline in copper prices as Chile is the world's largest producer of
Gold futures increased essentially above psychologically significant level of USD 1,700 an ounce after the USD declined against Euro on the signs of improving situation in the Euro Zone. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery cost USD 1,717.25 a troy ounce during the European morning trading, gaining 1.7%. EUR/USD reached 1.3398 within the European afternoon
Ratings agencies and banks are warning EU officials that euro zone risks are increasing rapidly as lawmakers are delaying implementation of any measures against the debt turmoil. Mansoor Mohi-uddin, UBS manager of foreign exchange strategy, emphasizes that markets move quicker and that European officials and investors are beginning to anticipate the end of the euro. Moody's also warned that credit risks will keep surging without
Primary dealers of US government securities said that Fed is planning to implement mortgage purchase program next quarter in order to inject additional money resources into the US economy. The Fed may purchase about $545 bn of home mortgage debt. Similar program was introduced in 2008 when Fed bought $2.3 trillion mortgage-related and Treasury bonds.