US unemployment drops to December 2008 low despite weaker job creation numbers September 6, 2013 A weak number from the US gives nonfarm payrolls at 169,000 in August, from 104,000 seasonally adjusted jobs added in the previous month. That 104,000 is revised way down from 162,000 last month, and June's number see revisions from 188,000 to 174,000. So that's three weak numbers in a row. Markets were looking for a [...]
Fed’s Evans says monetary policy isn’t on a preset course but expects rates rise in 2015 September 6, 2013 The Fed's Charles Evans has said that the Federal Reserve should hold on tapering of quantitative easing – a reduction in the rate of expansion of the US' monetary base – until inflation picks up. Evans said that he expects the first Fed funds rate increase to come in late 2015, with unemployment below seven [...]
Carney snubbed as UK debt costs soar September 5, 2013 THE COST of the British government’s 10-year debt spiked to a two-year high yesterday, as markets read into fresh signs from the US and UK that easy money could start drying up sooner than expected. The rising price of the government’s borrowing pours more cold water on Bank of England governor Mark Carney’s plan to [...]
New York Report: Wall St edges higher as data cheers investors September 5, 2013 US stocks edged up yesterday rising for a third day after strong data indicated improving economic conditions, with caution capping gains ahead of Friday’s payrolls report and its implication on the Federal Reserve’s stimulus program. Markets continue to deal with the possibility of a US-led strike against Syria, and US President Barack Obama faced growing [...]
Draghi still dovish say analysts September 5, 2013 Some analyst feedback to European Central Bank president Mario Draghi's presser: Christian Schulz, senior economist, Berenberg: ECB President Draghi noted some further progress in the defragmentation of the Eurozone financial system. For example, interest rates on loans to companies of up to €1m, a proxy for SME financing conditions, have dropped a little further in [...]
Lloyds sale could be delayed by Syrian crisis and threat of Fed tapering September 5, 2013 The sale of the government's 39 per cent stake in Lloyds may be delayed by Syrian turmoil and potential tapering by the US Federal Reserve, as the reprivatisation remains conditional on market performance. Any intervention in Syria is likely to act as a shock to aggregate supply, with consequences for oil prices, and foreign policy [...]
Central bank decision day: Carney will sit tight, but could Draghi be a dove? September 5, 2013 Kit Juckes, Societe Generale: If you take history as a guide you could be drawn into simple US and European monetary policy conclusions: Sustained policy de-coupling has n ever happened, Fed rates reach lower lows, UK rates usually reach higher highs and the ECB lags the others. Markets are pricing in a faster pace of [...]
Syrian parliament invokes strange Shakespearean allegory in letter to UK MPs September 4, 2013 (Salanio and Salarino encounter Shylock) The Syrian parliament appears to have dropped a reference to Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice” in a letter to UK MPs. In the second paragraph of a document obtained by Sky News, Mohammad Jihad al-Laham, speaker of the people’s assembly of Syria, writes: We write to you as fathers and [...]
US firms report strong summer as taper looms September 3, 2013 BUOYANT figures from the US manufacturing and construction sectors released yesterday have added to the case for a reduction in the Fed’s QE programme soon. Both Markit and ISM’s purchasing managers’ indexes (PMI) for manufacturing in August showed the sector in growth. Markit’s headline figure was 53.1, slightly lower than in July, while ISM’s was [...]
Stenson elevated by triumph September 3, 2013 GOLF: Sweden’s Henrik Stenson has swept to top spot in the FedEx Cup standings following a two-shot win at the Deutsche Bank Championship on Tuesday. Stenson equalled the tournament record of 22 under par.