Standard & Poor's after revision of its criteria downgraded Commonwealth Bank of Australia and three its most significant competitors. Westpac Banking Corp, Commonwealth, National Australia Bank Ltd. and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. were downgraded on level from AA to AA-. Chirs Viol UBS AG' credit analyst suggests it still is a good rating as it keeps Australian banks among top rated financials globally.
Citigroup is considering to replace its Japanese division CEO Darren Buckley in forthcoming month, said 2 officials familiar with situation. Buckley is expected to resign after the Citibank Japan has been penalized by Financial Services Agency for inappropriately explaining product risk exposure to retail clients. The bank has received punishment for the 3rd time in 7 years. Citigroup is looking for
On Friday Asian stocks were modestly fluctuating around yesterday's closing prices awaiting for US nonfarm payrolls statistics due later Friday. Economists expects jobless rate to be steady at 9% with 125,000 jobs added. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost 0.5%, South Korea's Kospi edged down 0.4% while Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.4%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index added 0.5% while Japan's Nikkei Stock Average advanced 0.2%.
On Thursday US shares experienced mild fluctuations ahead of Friday's US jobs report. S&P 500 Index declined 0.2% or 2.37 points to 1,244.59. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also lost 0.2% or 25.65 points to 12,020.03. Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.2% 5.86 points to 2,626.20.
The IMF announced it is going to lower the projected growth rate as difficulties in financial system triggered by the debt crisis in the euro-zone push down global economic output. The expected growth rate is 4% in 2011 being 0.3% lower than it was projected in June this year, according to IMF WEO report.
The USD rose at the Asian trading as investors' confidence in the greenback improved slightly anticipating the US jobs report due today. The dollar index approached to 78.329, edging up from 78.293 at the late North America trade on Thursday. The euro lost 0.02% against greenback falling to $1.3461 from $1.3467.
China's grain production increased by 4.5% on a yearly basis achieving 571.21 million tonnes this year, according to National Bureau of Statistics. The country China reaped 546.48 million tonnes of the commodity in 2010 indicating 4.5% increase in grain output in 2011.
Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President announced France and Germany have to cooperate as close as possible to facilitate stabilization in the euro-zone. He stressed that the euro will exist only if the Eurozone economies are tied together and put joint efforts to resolve the crisis. More rigorous financial discipline is necessary with sanctions for members that did not comply with their obligations, he added.
Residential house prices declined for the third consecutive month in November as a result of government restriction policy, according to report of China Real Estate Index System. The average price for residential property in 100 cities surveyed dropped by 0.28% on a monthly basis. In response property developers have commenced selling houses with over 20% discount weighting down on prices.
The IPO of Alliance Aviation Services was priced at 1.60 Australian dollars a share. After four days the company raised A$74 million that is essentially lower than planned A$120 million. The shares are in the modest range from 10 and 11.4 times earnings for the next fiscal year or from A$2.00 and A$2.30 a share.
Natural gas futures surged after the release of the weekly US Energy Administration report on gas supplies that indicated a decrease in commodity supply in the previous week. Natural gas futures for January delivery gained 3.1% to $3.66 per million British thermal units.
Brazilian stocks increased following the announcement of the government's tax-reduction programme aimed at boosting economic growth. Brazil's benchmark Ibovespa added 2.4% to 58,255.01 when Brazil's central bank decreased benchmark interest rate by 11%. The rest of Latin America also experienced increase in stock prices. Argentina's Merval gained 0.6% to 2,579.03, Mexico's IPC rose by 0.4% to 36,987.69 and Chile's IPSA equity index edged up 0.2% to
Yahoo Inc.'s shares increased by about 5% in preopen trade after Alibaba and other Chinese partners announced they might take a stake of 20% in Yahoo Inc. However, some sources inform there is no any bids placed at the moment. Alibaba Group has not made a decision yet, said John Spelich, spokesman of Alibaba.
UK benchmark FTSE 100 Index managed to extend gains on Thursday fuelled by country's major banks and miner companies. Index gained 0.4% to 5,527.52. HSBC Holdings PLC gained 1.3%, while Standard Chartered PLC edged up 2.8%. Fresnillo PLC advanced 4% and Randgold Resources Ltd. traded up 1.3%. Retailer Kingfisher PLC also added to index after its shares climbed 3% on announcement about improved sales in the third
On Thursday Dow Jones Industrial Average extended gains and reached 2-week high and biggest jump in two years inspired by the cut in dollar swap rates. Index rallied 4.24% or 490.05 points to 12,045.68. J P Morgan and Chase led the blue-chip index adding 8.4%. Bank of America also managed to recover and closed 7.1% up. Boeing Company jumped 5.26% and
According to US Labour Department statistics, there has been hired 650,000 workers aged from 16 to 24 during last three months. That is the biggest surge in young people employment since 2007. Young workers were hit more severely by last recession. In 2010 unemployment level for college graduates aged 24 and younger reached all time record high. However, since August young employees
Walt Disney Co. has announced of raising company's annual dividend by 50%. The new dividend will be increased from 40 to 60 US cents and will be delivered on January 18, company said in its statement. Disney who is also an owner of ABC TV network is going to pay back cash also via stock repurchases. Yesterday Disney added 5.4%
Wheat futures have bleak prospects for extending gains in the next year as there is a supply surplus in the market, reported Goldman Sachs ,Wall Street investment bank. Wheat futures declined by 5.5% in November. Investors also look forward to report of U.S. Department of Agriculture due later today that may improve the market sentiment.
Iraq' crude oil production increased by 2.2% in November to 2.135 million bpd from 2.088 million bpd in October. The country signed a contract with Royal Dutch Shell and Mitsubishi envisaging Iraq to process natural gas from oil fields in Basra. The contract is worth $17 billion and is considered to be a milestone in Iraq' history, said Elaibi, the oil minister of Iraq.
China started to adjust its monetary policy in order to adapt the financial system of the country amid deteriorating economic environment. The first step the China's government undertook was a reduction in reserve requirement ratio to 21%. The cut is likely to inject about 350 billion yuan into economy. However, analysts claim the country will adjust the policy further; for example, China may increase interest
China's aluminium output is likely to surge by 60% in the next 4 years, announced Hu Changping, Director of China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association. Total output will increase to 40 milllion tonnes as compared to the current level of 25 million tonnes. However, LME aluminium prices fall this year to $1950/tonne, losing 25% since the beginning of 2011 mostly because of weak economic outlook and
The USD declined against major currencies while the euro edged up slightly on the results of the wake auctions of France and Spain. The dollar index was down to 78.250 from 78.345 in North American trade on Wednesday. The euro remained steady edging higher to $1.3477 from $1.3446.
Wheat futures experienced gains approaching close to two-week high due to improved market sentiment after successful France's and Spain's bond auctions. On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, wheat futures for March delivery achieved $6.1888 a bushel at the European morning trade, adding 0.78% since opening.
Google Inc.'s Chrome browser has become number two Internet browser overtaking Mozilla's Firefox. Currently Google Chrome has 25.69% market share as compared with 4.66% two year ago. Meanwhile, Firefox has 25.23% as compared to the market leader Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer that holds 40.63% of the worldwide search engine market.