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GDP accelerates in Thailand more than expected

admin — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:34:38 +0000

Thailand’s economy released today its report to show the gross domestic product (GDP) in Thailand for the second quarter of the year, where the Thai economy expanded more than analysts’ expectations as exports increased, helping the recovery to rebound, and facing the political turmoil impact during April and May.

The Thailand’s annualized gross domestic product inclined 9.0% during the second quarter of the year, compared with a previous 12.0% a year earlier, while the actual reading came higher than expectations that referred to 8.0%.

Moreover, quarterly gross domestic product for the second quarter rose by 0.2%, compared with a previous reading 3.8% during the first quarter, which was revised to 3.3%, while the analysts’ expectations were set at -1.4%.

Analysts indicates that higher exports is the main reason behind the expansion, while it is a possibly offset the decline in consumer demand, whereas the monetary policy of the Bank of Thailand may hike the interest rate by 25 basis points in upcoming period.

According to the Thailand’s report, where the nation’s exports rose 46% during June from a year earlier, which is the most in more than 18 years, before cooling to a 20.6% pace last month.

Today’s report showed that the exports of cars and electronics advanced from the previous, and the tourists are rebounding Phuket’s beaches after protests ended.

On the other side, the Central Bank of Thailand indicates that the economy may expand as much as 7.5%, which would be the strongest pace since 1995, helping the curb the Asian financial crisis in which Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea.

Monetary policy noted that overseas sales may decrease during the second half of the year, reflecting that a cooling demand in the global economy, even as the government raised its exports growth target by 20%.

Published on Mon, Aug 23 2010, 06:21 GMT

fxstreet.com

Stocks shaky on more bad news from the US…

admin — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 15:40:14 +0000

More US data means more bad news as of late. Yesterday the initial claims data show another increase, this time to 472k, while the ISM dived to 56,4 pts., far deeper than the market anticipated While the first reflects a tendency evident from the start of this year, the latter confirms a deterioration in economic performance in the US. The data fits in the bearish stock market scenario with the Dow and S&P500 futures making new lows (at 9560 and 1006 points respectively).

…while euro rebounds…

During the last couple of years investors got used to a positive correlation between the stock markets and the EURUSD or at least to the money flowing towards the USD in uncertain times. Yesterday, as the major stock indices hit fresh 2010 lows in a response to poor US figures, the EURUSD was on its way up. It actually skyrocketed from 1,22 to 1,25 – the biggest move in this direction since the downtrend began in Dec’09. It automatically spurred talks of investors selling the dollar on deteriorating US fundamentals, especially given the superb performance of German exporters. Would that be true, the euro could be on a longer trip up and fore mostly, market reactions would reverse (with the euro now gaining on the poor US data and sliding on good one).

The trick, however, is that the situation was influenced by the ECB drawing back cash from the giant annual repo. First of all, the European banking sector didn’t apply for as much of a roll-over (shorter term operations) as market expected – a sign of decent liquidity and a good news for the euro. Second, the operations could have caused some direct demand for the euro on the spot market. Therefore, one should be cautious with declarations of longer-term changes in attitude towards the euro.

Nevertheless, one could have observed some early signs of trend reversing or at least stabilization on the EURUSD for a while (not going for fresh lows despite negative influence of the stock markets and premiums on debts of many European countries still around the highs), and therefore yesterday’s shot upwards was more likely to happen. A key resistance for the pair at the moment lays at 1,2660.

…sending gold down

If the euro’s upshot surprised some investors, gold’s tumble left them speechless. Despite the dollar’s depreciation and elevated fears on the stock markets, gold not only didn’t move up but it literally crashed with ounce prices going temporarily below 1200 USD. Some link this directly to positive signs from the European banking sector (alleviating fears and thus prompting liquidation from long gold positions) but the true reason might be an exhaustion of demand. Gold prices might have just completed a full 5-wave structure (or are about to do so in a near future) sending prices from 680 to 1260 USD per ounce and a large scale correction may be around a corner.

Events to watch – payrolls, payrolls, payrolls

If there is anything capable of changing the market picture in a significant way it is definitely the payrolls release (8.30 ET, 14.30 CET). However, for this to happen, the data needs to at least show a rise in employment in a private sector by some 120k which was expected a week ago (actual expectations might have slipped since then). The consensus for the headline is at -110k because of (this time negative) an impact from the census hiring.

Published on Fri, Jul 2 2010, 08:54 GMT

fxstreet.com

Amid missteps, retailers eye more assortment cuts

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 13:51:34 +0000

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – Retailers strive for the perfect mix of products that will boost sales and keep costs down — but the experience of some, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N), in pruning merchandise shows that getting the recipe just right, can be tricky business.

More than 40 percent of retailers reduced the number of different items, or SKUs, on their shelves in 2009 and nearly the same number expect to make additional cuts, according to a survey released by the Nielsen Co on Tuesday.

Limiting the product assortment can help retailers like Walmart and drugstore giant Walgreen Co (WAG.N) and grocers Kroger Co (KR.N) and Supervalu Inc (SVU.N) cut costs, but the risk is that shoppers will take their money elsewhere if they are unable to find an item.

“The message to retailers is to choose carefully when it comes to deciding which products to trim,” Stuart Taylor, Nielsen’s vice president of custom analytics, said at the market research firm’s Consumer 360 conference in Las Vegas.

“There aren’t a lot of rules of the road,” said Taylor, who called SKU reduction a process, rather than a one-time event.

“At the end of the day, everything is a trade off,” said Chris Shaw, HJ Heinz Co’s (HNZ.N) senior manager of client business planning, who works with retailers tweaking their selection.

According to Nielsen, 7 percent of shoppers who did not find the personal-care item they were looking for said they would leave a store without buying an item in the category. More importantly, some shoppers said they would leave without buying anything.

If just 0.5 percent of grocery shoppers were to leave a store without making a purchase, the lost sales would equal as much as $1.5 billion, according to Nielsen, which sells products and services to help retailers finesse assortment.

Most consumers haven’t yet noticed that overall assortment is down about 1 percent, Taylor said, adding that just over one-third of shoppers polled by Nielsen actually said they were seeing product variety increase.

HIGH-STAKES PROPOSITION

The stakes are high in the grocery arena, where retailers are battling to offer the lowest prices to consumers who are suffering from continued joblessness.

Supervalu Chief Executive Craig Herkert has said the company plans to pare SKUs in some categories by as much as 25 percent.

Kroger, which already has trimmed its selection of breakfast cereals, is believed to be undertaking similar efforts, though its executives have remained tight-lipped about their plans.

Walmart is the highest-profile retailer to have gone public with the pain associated with clearing the wrong items from shelves.

When it reported fourth-quarter results in February, Walmart said its program to overhaul stores hurt sales as shoppers adjusted to new layouts and product selections.

The world’s biggest retailer, which last year got almost half of its U.S. sales from the grocery category, removed slower-selling items and replaced them with faster-selling or more popular products as part of a store remodeling program.

In March, Walmart said it returned roughly 300 items to U.S. stores after executives said the retailer “disappointed” customers by not stocking them.

The company found that not offering particular sizes or flavors of some foods sent some shoppers elsewhere, even if the missing item was a one-pound bag of brown rice.

(Editing by Maureen Bavdek, editing by Leslie Gevirtz)

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Goldman warns of more litigation, investigations

admin — Mon, 10 May 2010 03:01:41 +0000

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs Group Inc, facing fraud charges from U.S. securities regulators, on Monday warned that more litigation and investigations could be coming.

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Goldman, in a quarterly regulatory filing, said it faces a number of probes and reviews, which could be damaging to Wall Street’s most influential firm.

It said it anticipates additional shareholder actions and other investigations related to its offerings of collateralized debt obligations, which are at the heart of charges against the firm filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Goldman shares have tumbled more than 20 percent since the SEC accused the bank on April 16 of failing to tell investors who bought risky debt tied to subprime mortgages that hedge fund manager John Paulson helped select the underlying portfolio for the security and was shorting the deal.

Goldman shares, which closed Friday at $142.99, were up 3.5 percent in premarket trading. Equities looked poised for a rally after tumbling last week.

Goldman, in its filing, said the SEC case “could result in collateral consequences to us that may materially adversely affect the manner in which we conduct our businesses.” It said certain outcomes could impact the firm’s ability to act as broker-dealer or provide certain advisory and other services to U.S.-registered mutual funds.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Goldman had begun settlement talks with the SEC.

Some analysts and investors have speculated that scrutiny surrounding Goldman would lead to the resignation of Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein. But at the bank’s annual shareholder meeting on Friday, Blankfein said he had no plans to resign.

MORE INVESTIGATIONS

For the past year, Goldman has faced a backlash over its quick rebound from the financial crisis, while benefiting from various government bailout programs, and its bonus pool, which topped $16 billion last year.

The SEC’s fraud charges have heightened the public furor against the firm, which has been cast as profiting from the subprime mortgage meltdown.

Goldman, criticized for not disclosing it had received notice last year of the likelihood of SEC charges, discussed several investigations on Monday, including probes by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the UK’s Financial Services Authority related to CDO offerings and related matters.

The bank said it is cooperating with a number of investigations and reviews into its sales and trading operations related to corporate and government securities and other financial products.

The firm also said it is facing investigations and reviews relating to the 2008 financial crisis, including the establishment and unwinding of credit default swaps with American International Group Inc. Goldman has been criticized for benefiting from the government rescue of AIG.

Inquiries into the financial crisis are also looking at Goldman’s transactions with Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers.

Goldman also disclosed that it is subject to inquiries related to its transactions with the government of Greece, including financing and swap transactions.

(Reporting by Steve Eder; editing by John Wallace)

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FedEx profit more than doubles, tops expectations

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:26:02 +0000

FedEx profit more than doubles, tops expectations
FDX.N
) raised its outlook and posted sharply higher profit, but its shares fell as its domestic volume numbers disappointed investors’ hopes for a U.S. economic recovery.
Profit for its fiscal third quarter ended Feb 28 was $239 million, or 76 cents per share, up from $97 million, or 31 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts on average had expected 72 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Revenue rose 7 percent to $8.7 billion.
Like its main rival, Atlanta-based United Parcel Service Inc (
UPS.N
), FedEx is considered a bellwether of U.S. economic activity. When the economy does well, companies and consumers ship more goods; in a recession, package volumes drop.
“FedEx’ share price today is more a prism of people’s attitude about the economy than it is about FedEx,” said Edward Jones analyst Dan Ortwerth.
FedEx’ International Priority average daily package volume increased 18 percent, led by exports from Asia. But its domestic average daily package volume grew only 1 percent.
Memphis-based FedEx raised its earnings forecast for the full year to a range of $3.60 to $3.80 a share, from a previous view of $3.45 to $3.75. Analysts on average expected $3.64.
FedEx forecast fourth-quarter earnings of $1.17 to $1.37 per share. Analysts expected $1.26.
The company said it was reinstating employee compensation programs it had cut in response to the recession. Ortwerth said this was a sign of confidence in the economy.
FedEx shares were down 0.3 percent to $89.50 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

feeds.reuters.com

Stocks rise on the promise of more cheap money

admin — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 05:57:48 +0000

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke reassured lawmakers interest rates will remain low, driving stocks higher on Wednesday as investors welcomed the promise of more cheap money.
Banks, which have benefited from borrowing rates at historic lows, led the market higher. Bank of America (
BAC.N
) was the Dow’s biggest percentage gainer, rising 2.45 percent.
Investors overlooked a 47-year-low in the pace of new home sales and the generally somber tone taken by Bernanke on the economy.
“Although we’re not going to have robust growth, it is going to generate low interest rates for a long time and a lot of liquidity,” said Keith Springer, president of Capital Financial Advisory Services in Sacramento, California.
Semiconductor shares recovered most of the previous session’s losses, with Micron Technology Inc (
MU.O
) up 5.6 percent at $9.09, and Intel Corp (
INTC.O
) up 1.5 percent at $20.70. The PHLX semiconductor index .SOXX rose 1.9 percent.
JPM.N
) rose 2.4 percent to $40.85 and the KBW bank index .BKX jumped 2.3 percent.
Despite Wednesday’s gains, the major indexes are still negative for the week after Tuesday’s decline, the largest in nearly three weeks for the market.
gained 91.75 points, or 0.89 percent, to 10,374.16. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index .SPX rose 10.64 points, or 0.97 percent, to 1,105.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index
advanced 22.46 points, or 1.01 percent, to 2,235.90.
On the Nasdaq, Autodesk Inc (
ADSK.O
) shot up 8.7 percent to $27.89 a day after the software maker posted better-than-expected quarterly profit.
MON.N
) shares fell 2.5 percent to $74.04 on reaction to a weaker-than-expected second-quarter outlook and persistent struggles with its glyphosate business.
Home builders’ stocks tumbled after government data showed sales of newly built single-family homes fell to a record low.
D.R. Horton Inc (
DHI.N
) slid 1.8 percent to $12.34, and the Dow Jones Home construction index .DJUSHB fell 0.7 percent.
HRB.N
) shares tumbled 12.2 percent to $17.32 after the largest U.S. tax preparer said it would not be able to meet its fiscal 2010 outlook, blaming high levels of unemployment that have led to a drop in tax filings.
Elsewhere, securities regulators adopted a new rule that restricts short selling in stocks that have fallen more than 10 percent on any given day, more than a year after the financial crisis provoked cries to rein in investors who bet on a stock’s decline.
“It is unclear what the long-term effect is going to be,” said Bernie McSherry, senior vice president of strategic initiatives at Cuttone & Co in New York. “It seems like a fairly watered-down version of the initial proposal.”
About 7.63 billion shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, below last year’s estimated daily average of 9.65 billion.
Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a ratio of about 11 to 4, while on the Nasdaq, more than five stocks rose for every three that fell.

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BofA approved more than $4 billion for 2009 pay: report

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:14:08 +0000

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Bank of America Corp has approved more than $4 billion in 2009 pay for its investment bankers and traders, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The payout is about 19 percent of the $23 billion in revenue the company made from its investment banking and capital markets divisions, according to the Journal, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Each banker and trader will collect an average $300,000 to $500,000 for 2009, a figure close to what Bank of America paid in 2006, its peak year for such payouts, the report said.
Bank of America was not immediately available for comment.
On average, a quarter of the payout will be in cash and the rest will be deferred payments of restricted stock or cash paid over one and a half or three years and tied to the bank’s stock price, the Journal said.
It said some senior bankers getting seven-figure payouts would get 5 percent of their payout in cash. Some payments will be subject to clawbacks, the report added.
Earlier on Tuesday, Bank of America Corp said in a regulatory filing that Chief Executive Brian Moynihan would receive a new base salary of $950,000 beginning on January 1.
, Editing by Ian Geoghegan)

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GBPUSD squeezes higher to resistance level. 1.6182 comes more into focus

admin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:12:02 +0000

Foreign exchange trading carries a high level of risk that may not be suitable for all investors. Leverage creates additional risk and loss exposure. Before you decide to trade foreign exchange, carefully consider your investment objectives, experience level, and risk tolerance. You could lose some or all of your initial investment; do not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. Educate yourself on the risks associated with foreign exchange trading, and seek advice from an independent financial or tax advisor if you have any questions.
FXDD provides references and links to selected blogs and other sources of economic and market information as an educational service to its clients and prospects and does not endorse the opinions or recommendations of the blogs or other sources of information. Clients and prospects are advised to carefully consider the opinions and analysis offered in the blogs or other information sources in the context of the client or prospect’s individual analysis and decision making. None of the blogs or other sources of information is to be considered as constituting a track record. Past performance is no guarantee of futures results and FXDD specifically advises clients and prospects to carefully review all claims and representations made by advisors, bloggers, money managers and system vendors before investing any funds or opening an account with any Forex dealer. Any news, opinions, research, data, or other information contained within this website is provided as general market commentary and does not constitute investment or trading advice. FXDD expressly disclaims any liability for any lost principal or profits without limitation which may arise directly or indirectly from the use of or reliance on such information. As with all such advisory services, past results are never a guarantee of future results.

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Dow plunges more than 200 points for second straight day (AFP)

admin — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:01:33 +0000

.
slumped 216.90 points (2.09 percent) to 10,172.98, posting its third straight session of triple digit losses and its biggest weekly drop since February 2009.
tumbled 60.14 points (2.67 percent) to 2,205.29 and the Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 24.72 points (2.21 percent) to 1,091.76.
.
for their own benefit — and traditional activities, like making loans and collecting deposits.
Analysts said the stock selloff over the last two days underscored market concerns.
“The president might be on the right warpath to soothe the American public, yet the market is telling him to be careful about using regulatory
,” said Patrick O'Hare of
Briefing.com
.
“What we see in front of us is a market that doesn't like the idea of excessive regulation since excessive regulation curtails earnings potential,” he said.
Also Friday, doubts grew over Bernanke's renomination as key Democrats voiced opposition, prompting a renewed expression of support from the
.
“If he is not reappointed I think the markets would have a fit. Already we have seen that in the markets…what has happened in the last couple of hours is related to the events around Bernanke,” said
,
.
Two members of Obama's party announced they would vote against Bernanke, underscoring a shift in the political landscape after the loss of a seat in Massachusetts that ended the Senate supermajority for the party.
Obama believes the Senate will confirm Bernanke, a
.
's moves to clamp down on lending to cool an overheating Chinese economy also dragged down the market amid concerns over possible easing of the the global economic recovery from recession.
“Frankly, we see
tightening as the biggest factor at work this week. Its actions are highlighting for
that the easy money that fueled the 2009 rebound is going to be less easy to get in 2010,” O'Hare said.
“Naturally, this has to take some wind out of risk trades.”
Banking stocks extended their losses.
fell 3.68 percent to 14.90 dollars,
by 5.25 percent to 27.80 dollars,
by 3.40 percent to 39.16 dollars and
by 4.20 percent to 154.12 dollars.
rose 0.56 percent to 16.11 dollars after notching a stronger-than-expected
of 3.0
in the fourth quarter, down 19 percent from a year earlier.
Fast-food chain McDonald's rose 0.30 percent to 63.39 dollars after its net profit jumped 23 percent in the fourth quarter to 1.216 billion dollars.
fell 5.66 percent to 550.01 dollars despite a quarterly profit that surpassed expectations of most
.
was mixed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond fell to 3.598 percent from 3.611 percent Thursday and that on the 30-year bond rose to 4.510 percent from 4.506 percent.

us.rd.yahoo.com

Buffet’s share split may tempt more small investors

admin — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:54:41 +0000

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Warren Buffett’s move to split Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B shares will tempt smaller investors to buy into the once high-priced stock and could lead to its eventual inclusion in the S&P 500 index.
Shareholders of Berkshire, the Omaha, Nebraska-based insurance and investment company, approved on Wednesday a 50-for-1 split of Class B shares in connection with the conglomerate’s takeover of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp at a special meeting in Omaha.
The split pares the partial shares Berkshire issues to BNSF investors. Buffett said at the meeting that the split was needed to make the transaction easier for small investors.
Investment managers and analysts expect the move will boost demand for the B shares, which closed New York Stock Exchange trade at $3,476, up more than 4 percent after the vote. With the split, each share would be worth about $69.
“This will definitely increase demand. The high share price left out many people from getting involved in something they otherwise would very much like to have,” said Patrick Watson, an analyst at Capital Cities Asset Management in Austin, Texas.
Advisers said the split would boost liquidity and could raise the chances that Berkshire may be included in the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index, which could further increase demand for the stock.
“It will be a good situation if it gets into the S&P 500, since there is all that built-in buying with different index funds,” said Alan Lancz, head of Alan B. Lancz & Associates Inc., an investment advisory firm in Toledo, Ohio.
Berkshire is the largest U.S.-based company by market value not included in the S&P 500 because the highly priced shares traded on thin volume. Before the split, the Class B shares traded at six times the price of Google, the highest priced stock in the S&P 500 at $580.41 a share.
One tripping point for Berkshire’s inclusion in the index is its first quarter loss last year, said Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at Standard & Poor’s Indices in New York. S&P looks for four straight quarters of profitability when choosing stocks to include in the index.
“There are other criteria such as leverage and balance sheet that could make up for that one-time item. And let’s face it, the last year has not been the best for earnings for anyone,” said Silverblatt, though he gave no indication that Berkshire was being considered for inclusion in the index.
Buffett, 79, had never split Berkshire’s stock. One of the world’s most respected investors, Buffett reasoned in the past that splits could attract speculators rather than the long-term investors he prefers.
Buffett controls 31.6 percent of the voting power of Berkshire stock and advisers said it was surprising that the so-called “Oracle of Omaha” would dilute the value of his pricey shares.
“Buffet has never been someone to split the stock. But when they launched the B shares, it was a de facto split, so it is really moot,” said Richard Steinberg, of Steinberg Global Asset Management Ltd in Boca Raton, Florida, who manages about $470 million, including over 4 million in Berkshire shares.
Jeffrey Saut, chief investment strategist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, said the “un-Buffett-like” split followed the move to buy BNSF at a premium — a move Saut called equally out of character for an investor known for exemplifying the creed of buying low.
“I think he was just sitting on too much cash. There is talk he will pass the torch and I think he was worried the heir apparent could invest in the wrong thing,” Saut said.
While most advisers thought the split would be a boost for the stock, others thought the move could attract the kind of investors that Buffett had long worried about.
“History shows that stocks that are split to achieve a lower price are degraded,” said Frank Pavilonis, senior market strategist at Lind-Waldock, a retail brokerage firm, in Chicago.
Increased demand will likely lead to more analysts at Wall Street firms and other major brokerages to cover Berkshire, which has received little attention from research analysts. The issuance of “buy” ratings could help reinforce demand, advisers said.
“Some people feel more comfortable when they see things in writing and can get reports from several different firms,” said Lancz.

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