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May 23, 2005
by Brian Turner
In Europe the euro held its own on Monday even though political turmoil was on the rise in the region. Among the factors influencing the political climate was a call for early elections in Germany.
German equities rose on the belief that the early election will send German chancellor Gerhard Schröder out of office and increase the ...
May 20, 2005
by Brian Turner
The Australian government, in the last stage of privatizing Telstra, the former telecommunications monopoly, has said that it expects to realize around A$30 billion in the sale of its remaining 51.8 percent of shares in the company.
This estimate is based on a share price of A$5.25 each. However, that price is well ahead of prices at which shares in the ...
by Brian Turner
Russian steel company Evraz will soon become the latest Russian company to offer shares on the London Stock Exchange.
The company is expected to raise between $393 million and $495 million with its initial public offering, which is expected to start trading shortly after June 1. The listing comes at a time when steel prices seem to have reached a ...
by Brian Turner
In prepared remarks for a speech to be delivered before the Economic Club of New York on Friday, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said that while the rising energy prices of the past two years constitute a “prominent” effect on the US economy, it does not rise to the level of effect that events such as the September 11 attacks, two ...
by Brian Turner
In Washington, DC, the US Federal Aviation Administration Thursday published a proposed regulation in the Federal Register that would prohibit US companies from launching advertising billboards into orbit.
The FAA is basing the proposed regulation on an act of Congress that bans “obtrusive” space advertising. Title 49 of the United States Code defines obtrusive space advertising as “advertising in outer space ...
by Brian Turner
Equities markets were up for the day and week in London on Friday, as was the FTSE Eurofirst 500, while Tokyo was down. In New York, meanwhile, stocks were down for the day at mid-session, but looked to be headed for an up week overall.
In London, the FTSE 100 was up 0.2 percent to close at 4,971.8 ...
by Brian Turner
After the release of a flurry of economic date in recent weeks, some analysts predicted that the US dollar’s recent rally would come to a halt, but after a stall in the middle of the week, the dollar hit a high for the year in relation to the euro and a one-month high against the yen on Friday.
By the ...
May 19, 2005
by Brian Turner
Crude oil prices fell further on Thursday after gaining early in the day on word from OPEC that it might slow down production if US inventories continue to climb.
The 10 OPEC nations that operate under quotas are currently pumping around 1 million barrels per day above the official limit of 27.5 million barrels per day.
When production from Iraq, ...
by Brian Turner
A number of factors allowed the US dollar to return to its rally Thursday after two days of very little movement.
The fact that unemployment claims fell seemed to confirm a trend toward growth in the US economy, while an increase in imports from Pacific Rim countries served to offset indications of slowing consumer spending.
The dollar gained 0.1 percent in ...
by Brian Turner
Asian equities markets were up across the board on Thursday on Wall Street gains, weak oil prices, and news that US inflation is in check.
Tokyo markets had their best day since the beginning of the year as the Nikkei 225 rose 2.2 percent to 11,077.16 and the Topix index was up 2 percent to 1,131.42. Export-oriented stocks did ...
by Brian Turner
Prices on U.S. Treasury bonds rose and yields fell Thursday as news of fewer unemployment claims trumped a weaker-than-expected result from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s index of business activity in influencing investors.
The business activity index fell to 7.3 in May, down significantly from 25.3 in April.
Meanwhile, first-time unemployment filings stood at 321,000, down by 20,000 from the previous ...
by Brian Turner
Data released this week by Brazil’s ministry of environment indicate that in the year ending in August of 2004 approximately 26,130 square kilometers of Amazon rainforest were destroyed, a six percent increase over the previous twelve months and the second-highest amount of last deforested since measurements began to be taken in 1988.
This rate of destruction was much higher than had ...
by Brian Turner
According to a survey jointly conducted by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) and technology research house IDC, over a third of all software used last year on personal computers was pirated.
This amounted to a $33 billion loss for the industry, the report said.
The good news was that the 2004 rate of 35 percent was ...
May 18, 2005
by Brian Turner
Yields on US Treasury bonds feel to a three-month low on Wednesday on weak inflation figures, continuing credit market nerves, and worries about growth in Europe.
In New York at mid-day, 2-year Treasury bonds were down 3.3 basis points to yield 3.566 percent, while the 10-year bond was yielding 4.073 percent, a drop of 4.8 basis points.
In Europe, ...
by Brian Turner
Crude oil prices were down by over a dollar per barrel on Wednesday as inventory data showed that US stockpiles have reached a six-year high.
Crude oil inventories were up by 4.3 million barrels on the week, to a total of 334 million barrels. Imports averaged 10.9 million barrels per day, up from 867,000 barrels per day the previous week. ...
by Brian Turner
In its semi-annual report to Congress on exchange rates and trade, the US Treasury warned China that it expects China to revalue its currency within six months.
Treasury Secretary John Snow emphasized that the US was not demanding full revaluation immediately, but that it does expect appropriate intermediate steps that will support full revaluation when it takes place.
A senior ...
by Brian Turner
The equities markets in Tokyo were mixed on Wednesday.
The Nikkei 225 closed 0.1 percent higher at 10,835.41. This was the first time in over a week that the Nikkei had shown a gain for the day; the previous seven days had produced a cumulative loss of 3.3 percent.
The Topix index, however, fell 0.2 percent to close at ...
by Brian Turner
The minutes of the most recent meeting of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, released Wednesday, reveal that the committee voted 8 to 1 to leave interest rates in the UK where they are.
The interest rate currently stands at 4.75 percent.
This is the ninth month in a row that the committee has ...
by Brian Turner
The Bolivian government on Tuesday night enacted a law that will raise taxes on gas and oil and force changes to existing contracts with oil producers.
One of the most alarming provisions of the law to foreign companies operating in the country replaces existing risk-sharing agreements with new arrangements imposed by the government within 180 days of the law’s ...
May 17, 2005
by Brian Turner
The London equities markets were up on Tuesday as the FTSE 100 closed 0.3 percent higher at 4,898.5 and the FTSE 250 ended the day up 0.4 percent at 6,830.7. Trade was slow at only 2.8 billion shares.
Asset management group Schroders was one of the day’s leaders on higher-than-expected first quarter data and an announcement that it ...
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In Europe the euro held its own on Monday even though political turmoil was on the rise in the region. Among the factors influencing the political climate was a call for early elections in Germany.
German equities rose on the belief that the early election will send German chancellor Gerhard Schröder out of office and increase the ...
The Australian government, in the last stage of privatizing Telstra, the former telecommunications monopoly, has said that it expects to realize around A$30 billion in the sale of its remaining 51.8 percent of shares in the company.
This estimate is based on a share price of A$5.25 each. However, that price is well ahead of prices at which shares in the ...
Crude oil prices fell further on Thursday after gaining early in the day on word from OPEC that it might slow down production if US inventories continue to climb.
The 10 OPEC nations that operate under quotas are currently pumping around 1 million barrels per day above the official limit of 27.5 million barrels per day.
When production from Iraq, ...
Yields on US Treasury bonds feel to a three-month low on Wednesday on weak inflation figures, continuing credit market nerves, and worries about growth in Europe.
In New York at mid-day, 2-year Treasury bonds were down 3.3 basis points to yield 3.566 percent, while the 10-year bond was yielding 4.073 percent, a drop of 4.8 basis points.
In Europe, ...
The London equities markets were up on Tuesday as the FTSE 100 closed 0.3 percent higher at 4,898.5 and the FTSE 250 ended the day up 0.4 percent at 6,830.7. Trade was slow at only 2.8 billion shares.
Asset management group Schroders was one of the day’s leaders on higher-than-expected first quarter data and an announcement that it ...