Banks drop but FTSE treads water ahead of Fed decision June 22, 2011 BRITAIN’S top share index closed marginally lower yesterday, as weakness in banks offset gains in defensive stocks with investors jostling positions ahead of a US interest rate decision. London’s blue chip index bobbed around but closed down 2.32 points at 5,772.99, as cautious investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s assessment of the economy and any plans [...]
Shares dip on lack of QE3 suggestion June 22, 2011 US stocks dropped yesterday after the Federal Reserve acknowledged the sluggish pace of the US economic recovery without hinting at further plans for stimulus. The Fed said the recovery was proceeding more slowly than it had expected. In his news conference, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke offered nothing to motivate investors to buy equities. Without new [...]
Looking into the Fed’s crystal ball June 21, 2011 CHARLES SCHWAB LIZ ANN SONDERS We believe monetary policy is largely on hold for the near to medium-term. It’s unlikely the Fed will begin to let its balance sheet shrink; as such, “QE 2.5” – reinvesting proceeds from maturing Treasuries to maintain the level of its balance sheet – would be considered a go once [...]
OIL PULLBACK BRIGHTENS A GLOOMY VISTA June 20, 2011 THE equity market sell-off which began in May has seen most major global stock indices break below significant technical support levels. The S&P 500 and Russell 2,000 are now both trading near their 200-day moving averages (MA). For the S&P, this comes in at 1,260, with a break below here suggesting a test of 1,246 [...]
THE TIPSTER June 20, 2011 IMAGINATION Technologies reports its earnings on Wednesday, but it has got off to a bad start this week, plunging some 8 per cent after analysts had it downgraded. The shares have fallen through the 100-day moving average and support, to around 450p. This might not be the end of the bad news,. Some suspect it [...]
Greek government reshuffles to push austerity plan June 16, 2011 Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou is planning to form a new cabinet and seek a vote of confidence from his fractious Socialist party to try to push through an austerity package and avoid default. Papandreou must pass the new 5-year campaign of tax rises, spending cuts and sell-offs of state property to receive a new [...]
King: we were right to hold rates June 15, 2011 THE Bank of England could have stopped inflation rising above target but chose to prioritise economic output by keeping rates at their historic low, governor Sir Mervyn King told the City last night. Raising interest rates “would have meant a weaker recovery, or even further falls in output, despite our having experienced the worst downturn [...]
Core inflation edges up in US June 15, 2011 AMERICA is facing the dreaded prospect of “stagflation”, key economic data releases suggested yesterday. Underlying inflation rose to its highest in almost three years in May, while separate reports exposed disappointingly flat industrial and manufacturing activity. US industrial output edged up just 0.1 per cent in May as supply chain disruptions from Japan’s earthquake stalled [...]
Fed up at work? Don’t slow down, gear up for an entrepreneurial adventure June 15, 2011 OVER 60 per cent of people confess to not being engaged by their work, and 30 per cent of employees feel their strengths would be better suited to another career, according to a Towers Perrin/Gallup poll. A lot of people clearly want to work elsewhere. But for all the talk of “transferable skills,” moving into [...]
Sarkozy blames speculation June 14, 2011 FRENCH president Nicolas Sarkozy lashed out at commodity speculators yesterday, arguing that tighter controls would prevent spiralling global prices. Sarkozy, head of the G20 group of the world’s leading economies, said he wants to see new rules requiring minimum cash deposits with a central authority for all commodities derivatives deals, not just those on formal [...]