FED COULD BE STIMULATED BY NON-FARMS August 29, 2011 EQUITIES staged a decent recovery last week, despite the release of further poor economic data from the US, Europe and China. Last week’s trading was a return to the behaviour we became so used to over the past few years, and which has been less in evidence over the last couple of months. This is [...]
TRAVEL NOTES August 29, 2011 Victoria Falls adventure Action-loving travellers take note: Tongabezi Lodge in Zambia has teamed up with Bundu Adventures to offer an “Above and Below” package at Victoria Falls (see pic). You start with swimming in the Devil’s Pool, a natural lake at the end of the Zambezi river positioned above the boiling pot, right on the [...]
Bernanke speech fails to impress markets August 26, 2011 Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke stopped short of signaling further action to boost growth, but said it was critical for the economy’s health to reduce long-term joblessness. The FTSE 100 and Dow dropped more than one per cent after the comments in a speech which had been widely anticipated as a rallying point for the [...]
EU states extend ban on shorting August 25, 2011 FOUR European Union states yesterday extended their short-selling bans until at least the end of next month. Spain and Italy will persist with the measure until 30 September, while French and Belgian bans will continue until further notice. The German DAX fell as much as five per cent at one stage, on rumours of both a short [...]
Tensions rising again in the markets August 25, 2011 WHEREVER one looks, there is danger in the air. Global equities are down 10.2 per cent in August and 11.3 per cent in the year to date. European and UK shares are down 13 and 10.4 per cent respectively in August, and 16.8 per cent and 11.5 per cent so far this year, Evolution Securities [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 25, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES BREVAN HOWARD CAPITALISES ON TURMOIL Brevan Howard, the world’s largest macro hedge fund, has made close to $1.5bn over the past three weeks on the back of turmoil in the global markets. In a month in which equity markets worldwide have seen declines of more than 10 per cent, the gain comes as [...]
FTSE ends in the red as hopes of intervention from Fed wane August 25, 2011 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 fell yesterday, snapping three days of gains as investor hopes dwindled that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke would signal more stimulus measures and a rumour about a German short-selling ban triggered profit taking. The blue chip index fell deep into the red on talk a short selling ban may be enacted in [...]
Market falls ahead of Bernanke speech August 25, 2011 US stocks fell yesterday as investors raised cash ahead of a critical speech from Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, hoping he will give them a clearer picture of the Fed’s plans for the struggling economy. Several negatives contributed to the market’s weakness after three days of gains. Jitters over a sharp drop in German stocks and [...]
Gold falls $200 from record highs August 25, 2011 The price of gold has tumbled nearly three per cent to more than $200 below Tuesday’s record highs after the Chicago Metals Exchange Group hiked trading margins in the metal for a second time this month. Investment appetite for gold has cooled ahead of a widely awaited US central bankers’ meeting at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, [...]
Gold drops by more than five per cent as equities spring back August 24, 2011 GOLD plummeted by over five per cent yesterday — its sharpest decline in nearly three years — as some investors cashed in on its recent surge and switched to equities ahead of Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke’s hotly-anticipated speech at Jackson Hole. The precious metal – which soared to over $1,900 an ounce earlier in [...]