UK division of Leica sees slower sales despite new camera launch December 13, 2013 THE UK division of Leica Cameras, the iconic camera brand used by celebrated photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, reported a slowdown in sales last year despite rolling out a new flagship camera. Leica Camera, which is owned by German parent company Leica AG and distributes cameras in the UK, reported a 12 per cent dip in turnover [...]
New York Report: Taper paranoia sees US stocks losing ground December 12, 2013 US STOCKS fell yesterday as retail sales rose solidly in November, adding to signs the economy is strong enough for the Federal Reserve to begin reducing the pace of monetary stimulus. Profit-taking also played a part in the market’s decline, with investors selling some stocks to lock in gains from this year’s rally. The S&P [...]
It’s Groundhog Day for investors as Fed tremors continue to scare markets December 12, 2013 European markets are in the red as investors fret over the prospect of reduced asset purchases by the Federal Reserve. Mike van Dulken, head of research at Accendo Markets says that those Fed tapering fears are "ruling the roost". A surprise improvement in last Friday's unemployment data was originally greeted by rallies in US equities, [...]
Fischer eyed as next Fed vice chairman December 11, 2013 STANLEY Fischer, who led the Bank of Israel for eight years until he stepped down in June, has been asked to be the Federal Reserve’s next vice chair once Janet Yellen takes over as chief of the US central bank, a source said. Fischer, 70, is widely respected as one of the world’s top economists.
New York Report: Wall St slides on Fed fears December 11, 2013 US stocks posted their largest drop in a month yesterday as traders locked in recent gains after a provisional budget deal out of Washington removed one of the near-term reasons for the Fed to keep up its current pace of economic stimulus. The bipartisan budget agreement reached late Tuesday would end three years of political [...]
Volcker Rule is nothing to celebrate and financial markets could suffer December 11, 2013 FORMER Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker made his way through the snowy streets of Washington, DC on 10 December to attend a celebratory lunch. To widespread applause, the new rule that bears Volcker’s name has now been finalised by the five regulatory agencies responsible for it. Yet after the thousand page rule has taken hold [...]
Markets aren’t buying what Carney’s selling, here’s why December 11, 2013 UK markets continue to believe that interest rates will rise in mid-2015 despite dovish noises from the Monetary policy Committee MPC, according to Capital Economics. MPC members have repeatedly tried to signal that if unemployment falls to seven per cent this will not automatically trigger a rise in interest rates. Overnight index swap (OIS) rates [...]
3 reasons why gold prices could bounce by the end of the year December 11, 2013 Gold prices could see a rally of about five per cent before the end of 2013, according to the chief executive of Compass Global Markets, Andrew Su. Sparking to CNBC, Su said that when a market becomes overly bearish, for him, it's a clear signal to buy – and this is the current case with [...]
UK banks get break from Volcker’s toughest plans December 10, 2013 BRITISH banks with US arms will be allowed to trade in UK government bonds on their own books, US authorities revealed yesterday, diluting earlier plans to ban the transactions. The incoming Volcker Rule is designed to stop banks trading on their own behalf on many financial markets, in a bid to stop what critics believe [...]
London Report: FTSE investors rattled by Fed tapering fears December 10, 2013 THE UK’S main share index fell in thin, choppy trade yesterday, led by a late selloff in travel operator Tui Travel and hit by concerns about a reduction of US monetary stimulus. The FTSE 100 turned lower in late trade as US stocks retreated from recent highs, showing investors’ reluctance to put money back into [...]