Trading light in US as investors wait on the Fed August 28, 2012 US stocks ended little changed in another day of scarce activity yesterday after mixed economic data gave investors little reason to shift their focus from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke’s speech on Friday. The Fed chief is scheduled to address a conference of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and could announce new measures to [...]
Fed gave $46bn half-year profit to Washington August 27, 2012 THE FEDERAL Reserve gave a boost to the government’s balance sheet in the first half of the year, according to accounts released yesterday, whose unprecedented publication came after pressure to increase transparency following the credit crunch. The US central bank generated $47.5bn profit in the six months to June, of which it gave $46.4bn to [...]
Something for everyone in forecasting equity markets August 27, 2012 FOR such a highly paid group of professionals the great and the good of the financial markets have been behaving in somewhat lemming-like fashion once again. Rather than judging important allocation decisions based on economic and stock fundamentals, it’s been more about “will they or won’t they”. There we were, for example, in the early [...]
Apple on a high after court win August 27, 2012 US stocks were barely changed in light volume yesterday as investors waited for signs from central banks about stimulating the weak economy, though Apple’s shares hit a record high after a major court victory. Apple rose two per cent to $676.56 after the iPad maker won a $1bn judgment in a patent lawsuit against Samsung [...]
Central Bank elixir isn’t certain – but expect volatility August 27, 2012 THIS weekend’s economic symposium at Jackson Hole has the power to monumentally shake world markets, which is what voracious traders – subdued by the summer’s low trading volumes – will want to see. With both Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), due to speak [...]
The glistening appeal of precious metals returns August 27, 2012 SENIOR MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT UP UNTIL last week, gold and silver – like a Parisian in August – appeared to have shut up shop for the summer. In contrast, equity markets had pushed higher in a low volume melt-up that brought the Dow and S&P 500 up to levels last seen in December 2007. Even [...]
Analyst picks for 28 August 2012 August 27, 2012 CURRENCY STRATEGIST CHRIS VECCHIO My pick: Short Aussie-dollar Expertise: Fundamental and technical analysis Average time frame of trades: A few hours to a few days Despite the rally that came after minutes of the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting were released, the Aussie-dollar has broken down to fresh lows for the month of August. Given this [...]
Fed Bank sells last AIG assets August 23, 2012 The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has sold its remaining assets of insurer American International Group (AIG), the bank said yesterday. It sold securities for a gain of $6.6bn (£4.2bn).
FTSE buoyed by hopes of global stimulus August 23, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index inched higher yesterday, steadying after sharp falls in the previous session, underpinned by a recovery among heavyweight miners on expectations of fresh global stimulus measures from central banks. Mining stocks tracked firmer copper prices, which were up over 1 per cent at a one-month high as the demand picture for metals [...]
Fed looks set to ease fairly soon barring swift rebound August 23, 2012 The Federal Reserve is likely to deliver another round of monetary stimulus “fairly soon” unless the economy improves considerably, minutes from the US central bank’s latest meeting suggested. While the 31 July-1 August meeting occurred before some encouraging economic data, including a stronger-than-expected rise in July payrolls, policymakers were pretty categorical about their dissatisfaction with [...]