Before the open – 13/08 August 13, 2013 The Nikkei rose nearly two per cent last night as exporters benefited from a weaker yen and business confidence was buoyed by a media report. The Nikkei newspaper cited government sources saying the government is considering a corporate tax cut to offset the planned increase in the sales tax, which drove confidence, although it’s still [...]
US regulators approve GlaxoSmithKline’s HIV drug August 13, 2013 The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved GlaxoSmithKline’s drug Tivicay, used to treat the most common strain of HIV (release). Specialist HIV company ViiV Healthcare owns the drug, and is formed of a joint venture between GSK, Pfizer and Shionogi Limited. GSK is the largest stakeholder, with 76.5 per cent of the company. [...]
German consumer price inflation rate accelerates as expected August 13, 2013 The rate of increase in German consumer prices accelerated to 1.9 per cent in July compared to the year before, according to the latest consumer price index (CPI) from the Statistiches Bundesamt Deutschland. This was up from 1.8 per cent annual inflation recorded the month before and in line with analysts' expectations. Compared to June [...]
CNBC Comment: A property bubble propelled by fear August 12, 2013 HOW many UK seaside resorts claim to be “Chelsea-on-Sea”? There are at least a dozen in Cornwall and Devon alone. One of them is Salcombe – where I was holidaying last week, and which has more Chelsea 4x4s clogging up its narrow streets than SW10. This may not be relevant to you, but a [...]
DailyFX: Analyst picks August 12, 2013 CURRENCY STRATEGIST CHRIS VECCHIO My pick: Closed short Aussie dollar-dollar Expertise: Fundamental and technical analysis Average time frame of trades: A few hours to a few weeks The Reserve Bank of Australia meeting led to steeper declines, but a quicker than anticipated reversal knocked my short Aussie-dollar position for a solid (but admittedly poorly managed) [...]
Bribery may be common practice for drugs firms in China August 12, 2013 Five drugs salesmen working for foreign companies operating in China have told the BBC their firms paid bribes to increase sales of products. None wanted to be identified and the BBC didn’t say which firms were involved. One said his company has paid around $1,000 to get its product back on the shelves at one [...]
Investigation into Deutsche Bank’s role in Libor scandal complete August 12, 2013 The German banking and finance regulator is ready to submit its report of Deutsche Bank’s role in the manipulation of interbank lending rates, a source close to the issue has told Reuters. BaFin has reportedly completed its investigation into Deutsche Bank concerning the manipulation of benchmark interest rates like Libor and Euribor and is ready [...]
Portugal quashes rumours of reneging on austerity obligations August 12, 2013 Portugal’s regional development minister Miguel Poiares Maduro has said the country is “fully committed” to meeting its bailout obligations, amid rumours it may dilute the terms imposed by the troika. Poiares Maduro was reacting to a report in Newspaper Weekly Expresso, which said the Portuguese government was considering a reduction in planned spending cuts from [...]
Spain refuses to back down in border dispute August 12, 2013 Spain has said it will not back down on Gibraltar border controls, a spokesperson for the foreign ministry has said. The government feels that controls are “legal and proportionate”. Tensions were raised after a dispute over fishing rights unleashed an underlying conflict regarding sovereignty, with Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy proposing the introduction of a [...]
Greece another step closer to meeting privatisation target with €654m sale of OPAP August 12, 2013 The Greek government has completed the sale of its 33 per cent stake in gambling firm OPAP to a Greek-Czech fund Emma Delta for €654m (£560m). The deal was agreed in May, but talks stumbled as Emma Delta requested changes be made to reduce the fees paid to Intralot and Scientific Games to run the [...]