“The most pressing problem at the moment is Greece”- Benno Galliker, a trader at Luzerner KantonalbankImpact: MediumSwiss stocks advanced for the fourth day in five on Thursday, as the German Parliament voted for increase of the European Financial Stability Facility. The Swiss blue-chip index SMI, a measure of the largest and most actively traded companies, rose 1.03%, or 56.95 points,
“Sentiment towards major purchases is depressed”- Robert Gardner, chief economist at NationwideImpact: HighHouse prices in U.K. edged higher 0.1% to £166,256 in September, while quarter on quarter figures have remained static, said the Nationwide Building Society on Thursday. "Providing the UK recovery gradually gathers momentum in the months ahead, we continue to expect house prices to move sideways or to
“I’m not convinced that this bailout package [bigger EFSF] is going to be remotely enough for the euro zone itself”- Wilbur Ross, chairman of WL Ross & Co.Impact: HighAn absolute majority of German parliament members, 523 in favor versus 85 opposing, voted for increase of the European Financial Stability Facility from €123 billion to €211 billion on Thursday, providing an
“Consumer spending was recovering after the quake, but that rebound is pretty much over”- Yoshiki Shinke, a senior economist at Dai-Ichi Life Research InstituteImpact: MediumYear on year retail sales in Japan plummeted 2.6% in August, after 0.6% increase in July, said the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Indus-try on Thursday. Economists expected the reading to decline moderate 0.6%.“Consumer spending was