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August 31, 2007
by Elaine Frei
Prices on US Treasury bonds were down slightly on Friday ahead of the three-day Labor Day weekend in the United States.
Yields on two-year treasury bonds were at 4.14 percent Friday while five-year issues were yielding 4.25 percent, ten-year yields were at 4.53 percent and thirty-year paper yielded 4.82 percent.
Bond prices were affect by comments from Federal Reserve chairman Ben ...
by Elaine Frei
The Swiss franc was lower Friday after consumer price inflation dropped there in August, minimizing expectations of an interest rate hike there in September, sending it 0.3 percent lower to SFr1.6470 versus the euro, down 0.5 percent to SFr2.4340 in relation to the pound and 0.6 percent lower to SFr1.2070 against the greenback.
Meanwhile, the Japanese yen ended both the session and ...
by Stewart Douglas
Angela Merkel was today revealed on top of the Forbes List of Most Powerful Women, reflecting her standing in global politics and diplomacy amongst her contemporaries from the business and political world.
The German Chancellor came out on top of a list that included US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the Queen. The list also covered notable businesswomen ...
by Stewart Douglas
Stock markets across the world traded up on the day after numerous positive reports from within the US. On a day in which the Federal Reserve, the President and official figures reported a likelihood of an interest rate cut, markets were brimming with confidence.
After the sub-prime crisis has bogged down market trading over the last few weeks, any sign that bank ...
by Stewart Douglas
The rate of inflation in the US grew by a small margin than analysts had expected over the course of the last month, according to figures released today.
In official consumer price figures, prices have grown over the month of July, but even still fall below the rate of growth many analysts had forecast for the same period.
Based on the Federal Reserve's specifically preferred inflation guide, prices ...
by Elaine Frei
Prices for December wheat topped $8 per bushel for the first time on the Chicago Board of Trade Friday, going as high as $8.07 per bushel before falling back to $7.75 per bushel, a decline of 9 cents on the day on fears that recent gains could hurt demand and that farmers will plant more wheat to try to take ...
by Elaine Frei
Wall Street was higher after remarks from both President George W. Bush and Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke. Mr. Bush advocated reforms for the Federal Housing Administration and the tax code and asked mortgage lenders to work with borrowers in an effort to stem the growing tide of foreclosures, while Mr. Bernanke said that the Fed stands ready to ...
by Stewart Douglas
The continued housing problems in the US economy could be over, if new measures promised by President Bush and the Federal Reserve announced today come to fruition.
At a speech today, President George W Bush unveiled a combination of different measures to assist homeowner finding themselves in repayment difficulties, after rising foreclosures have lead to liquidity problems at many ...
by Stewart Douglas
Zimbabwe has taken drastic steps today in law enforcement as an attempt to bring inflation under control, according to reports from international news agencies today.
President Mugabe has decreed a nationwide ban on price increases in an attempt to keep inflation under control. The move will cover all wage rises and price increases to decrease inflation, with prison as a consequence for ...
by Stewart Douglas
The Indian economy has seen above expectation growth, particularly in manufacturing and services, according to figures released by the Indian Ministry of Statistics today.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had increased over the second quarter on the year before, rising by a staggering 9.3%, and continuing the growth the economy has enjoyed over the last few years.
Analysts had predicted the rate ...
by Kay Murchie
Cheyne Capital, the independent hedge fund manager, is the latest UK firm to hit problems following the problems in the credit markets.
The group’s Cheyne Finance fund will be liquidated after the recent sell-off reduced the value of some holdings. The fund was recently said to contain £3.3 billion of assets.
The scale of the losses at Cheyne Finance has not been divulged but ...
by Kay Murchie
PartyGaming, the world’s biggest online poker firm, made a half-year pre-tax loss of £23.4 million. The fall, due to the US online gaming ban, compared with profits of £159 million in the same period in 2006.
The group has asked the US government if it faces fines for taking bets before last October’s crackdown.
PartyGaming was founded in 1997 and is the world’s leading listed online ...
by Kay Murchie
Whitbread, the leisure giant, has deferred plans to hand back £900 million to its shareholders blaming the turmoil in the credit markets.
It had planned to borrow £600 million on the bond markets issuing debt secured on its hotel and restaurant property assets before handing the proceeds to investors. However, the group is now planning to buy back £300 million of its ...
by Kay Murchie
Amlin plc, the specialist insurance and reinsurance underwriting group, has seen its profits rise in the first 6 months of 2007. Pre-tax profits increased 54% to a record £185 million. After removing the positive effect of a £28.6 million swing in the foreign exchange translation of net non-monetary liabilities relative to 2006, underlying profit rose by 25.3% to £179.7 million (H1 ...
August 30, 2007
by Stewart Douglas
The dissenting member of the Bank of Japan policy committee today announced his feelings that the low Japanese interest rates may have been contributing to the wider global economic situation.
In a speech made today, the only dissenting member in the 8-1 decision to maintain interest rates at 0.5%, Atsushi Mizuno said that in his opinion the Japanese interest rate policy was ...
by Stewart Douglas
BAA, operator of major airports throughout the UK, has today announced its decision to lay off staff from its sites across the country in accordance with its recent review on efficiency.
Whilst roles in security and customer care would not be sacrificed, the potential losses, which according to some reports could amount to 2,000, could fall anywhere ...
by Stewart Douglas
The French 35-hour work week accused of leading to poor economic growth looks set to become a thing of the past, according to new French President Nicola Sarkozy and his tough agenda for economic reform.
In a speech made today, President Sarkozy announced he intended to work towards 'loosening' the 35-hour week, as a proactive attempt to drive growth and expansion through the French economy.
In his speech ...
by Stewart Douglas
US stock markets remained on edge throughout trade today amid speculation that the Federal Reserve is contemplating a decrease in interest rates, while European markets managed to gain some growth.
After news of an increased growth in the US economy, European markets gained some confidence as share prices grew, despite the lack of impact the news had on markets stateside.
The sub-prime saga in the US ...
by Stewart Douglas
Unemployment in the German economy fell by a much shorter number than had been expected, which may be a sign of problems in the labour market, according to official figures released today.
The figures released today by Germany's Labour Office show that unemployment fell by just 15,000 to 3.75 million, despite analysts predictions of a much larger fall representing the ongoing recovery of the ...
by Elaine Frei
Yields on US Treasury bonds were lower on Thursday as financial stocks dropped on continuing concerns surrounding mortgages.
Two-year Treasury bonds yielded 4.09 percent, while five-year issues were at a yield of 4.22 percent.
Meanwhile, ten-year yields fell to 4.5 percent and thirty-year paper yielded 4.82 percent.
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