Nikkei to be dragged down by demand slump May 25, 2009 THINGS can’t get any worse for Japan, it seems. That at least is the view held by the Bank of Japan, which upgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in three years, despite a record economic contraction in the first quarter of 2009. GDP data released last Thursday showed that the Japanese [...]
THE GLOOMY NEWS ISN’T ALL OVER YET May 25, 2009 THERE was a little corrective activity in the middle of last week, but the story this quarter for the S&P 500 has been positive: the index has notched up gains of over 11 per cent. But we shouldn’t start getting too excited just yet. The S&P’s gains sit uncomfortably with the gloomy rhetoric that is [...]
THE TIPSTER May 25, 2009 RETAIL sales might have been under pressure during the downturn but last week’s bigger-than-expected rise and a flurry of good corporate results have boosted the outlook. Picks of the sector are Mothercare, Britvic and online retailer ASOS. Mothercare came out with some great results on Wednesday and although the shares look relatively expensive at a [...]
Gilt prices on course to fall as UK public debt threatens credit rating May 25, 2009 MARKETS were rattled last Thursday when ratings agency Standard & Poor’s announced that it had downgraded its outlook on Britain’s AAA credit rating to “negative” from “stable” for the first time since October 1993. Lower credit ratings result in higher borrowing costs because the borrower is considered more likely to default on its debt. If [...]
Traders should look to Asia for volatility and long-term bets May 25, 2009 WHATEVER Alistair Darling might be saying about V-shaped recoveries, in Europe and the US most of the talk is about a slow and protracted upturn. It’s otherwise in Asia, where economies are widely tipped to be the first to pull out of the global recession. There are three reasons for this: firstly, lower commodity prices [...]
POLITICS CAN RARELY MOVE THE MARKETS May 25, 2009 When Richard Nixon was asked what he would be doing if he wasn’t President, he said: “Buying stocks on Wall Street”. One can only imagine the headlines. But it does raise the question, do politics and the markets ever mix? With our political system being dragged through the gutter will there be an effect on [...]
A futuristic “art” hotel in Poznan replaces room keys with iPhones May 25, 2009 I AM standing in the middle of a dark hallway, pressing an application on an iPhone that is not mine. While I wait it’s saying something in Polish, which I hope is “opening door.” Cha-ching: a bleeping noise and the sound of a lock decoupling. I push into my room. This is not your average [...]
Brit women humbled at French Open May 25, 2009 BRITISH No1 Anne Keovathong admits she will have to swallow a few jokes after her French Open debut ended swiftly with a humbling 6-0, 6-0 defeat to top seed Dinara Safina. The Londoner’s thrashing was the start of a miserable day for British women at Roland Garros, with Katie O’Brien and Melanie South both falling [...]
Prepare for an onslaught, warns Geech May 25, 2009 BRITISH and Irish Lions coach Ian McGeechan insists this summer’s tour of South Africa will be more difficult than when he last triumphed there 12 years ago. The Scot famously led the Lions to a 2-1 victory over the hosts back in 1997 to follow up his success there as a player 23 years previous. [...]
Travelling fans hit by booze ban as Rome chiefs get tough May 25, 2009 FANS of Manchester United and Barcelona have been hit with a total alcohol ban in order to prevent crowd trouble ahead of tomorrow night’s Champions League final in Rome. Local authorities have enforced the ban from 11pm tonight to 6am on Thursday throughout the entire city. Over 67,000 fans are expected in the Italian capital [...]
