In US economic data the national activity index eased from +0.29 to +0.14 in October. The Markit services "flash" index eased from 57.1 to 56.3 in November. And the Dallas Federal Reserve index was steady at +10.5 in November.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 25, 2014
Australian shares have surged on Monday with the ASX 200 Index up 1.1 per cent and closing above 5350pts. A surprise rate cut by China's central bank on Friday has led the mining and energy producing companies higher. This follows five consecutive days of weakness from local shares; the worst week in Australia since June 2013.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 24, 2014
Gina Rinehart is the richest person in Australia and would likely remain that way for a long time. One reason behind her wealth, aside from inheriting Hancock Prospecting established by her father, Lang Hancock, is her bucking business trends.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 24, 2014
The surprise of stimulus on Friday night saw a mass risk-on event for global risk equities.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 24, 2014
The People's Bank of China (central bank) has cut the 12-month lending rate by 40 basis points to 5.60% and the 12-month deposit rate by 25bps to 2.75%.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 24, 2014
The Australian sharemarket has finished the session weaker for a fifth straight day. The All Ords (XAO) slipped 0.2 percent to 5,292, while the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) fell 0.2 percent to 5,304. Eight out of 10 sectors were lower, led by Utilities, which lost 1.5 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 has fallen 2.7 percent this week on heavy selling in the materials and energy sectors.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 21, 2014
Australian shares are losing ground for the fifth day and remain only modestly above the 5300pt level. The ASX 200 Index is down by 0.1 per cent at lunch and takes the losses to 2.6 per cent this week. Should nothing change this afternoon this will be the worst week for local shares since June 2013.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 21, 2014
Global markets were mixed as investors focusing on specific economic factors driving sentiment. Equities in the US managed to recover from the FOMC meeting minutes, with investors responding positively to some solid housing data and a sharp bounce in the Philly Fed manufacturing index. The CPI release was also interesting, coming in ahead of estimates; service prices drove the reading despite goods prices actually falling.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 21, 2014
In the US, the Philadelphia Fed Business Activity Index lifted from 20.7 to 40.8 in October - its highest reading since 1993. The new orders sub-index was at the highest level in 26 years. US Consumer prices were unchanged in October to be 1.7% higher than a year ago. The tame result was driven by a slide in energy prices (-1.9%) and gasoline prices (-3%) in October. Excluding food and energy prices were up 0.2% to be up 1.8% on a year ago.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 21, 2014
Australian shares extended their losses this afternoon with hefty losses from the miners a major drag. The ASX 200 Index slumped by 1 per cent to 5316.2 and makes it the worst week since early December 2013 for local shares. Equities have fallen for four straight days and are trading at fresh one-month lows.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 20, 2014
New York residents have been warned to brace for more snow this weekend.
Nov 20, 2014
Equity trading is getting ugly again; the US has been absent-mindedly meandering higher over the past month yet that lead has not transferred to Asian markets (disregarding the spending machine that is Japan).
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 20, 2014
In the US, housing starts fell by 2.8% to a 1.009 million annual rate in October. Analysts had tipped a result near 1.025m. But building permits were stronger than expected, up 4.8%. The mortgage market index rose by 5.2% in the latest week. And there were net capital outflows totalling US$55.6m in September.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 20, 2014
The ASX 200 continued to lose ground over the course of the afternoon. While the market finished around session lows, the more discouraging aspect of the session was the index breaking down through the 5400 level. In the last day the market had shown some signs of support around this key support level, although today's close indicated that the sellers had won out. The more important measure will be whether the index closes above 5400 on a weekly closing basis.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 19, 2014
In the last two and a half weeks there have been only 3 occasion on which the ASX 200 has risen. The weaker trend was once again in force at the open of trade on Wednesday. While the early losses for the ASX 200 were contained; the index was down 18 points at the low of the session; it appeared clear that sellers were still keen to test the index in terms of support around the 5400 mark. Whether the market holds above this level will be one of the key matters to resolve over the remainder of the...
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 19, 2014
The final market altering event of 2014 is now underway. I've been keenly watching political and fiscal events that have transpired in Japan over the past month. Last night they reached a pinnacle at Prime Minster Abe's press conference.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 19, 2014
In the US, producer prices rose by 0.2% in October to be up 1.5% over the year. Core prices (ex food & energy) rose by 0.4% to be up 1.8% on a year ago. The NAHB housing market index improved from 54 to 58 in November.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 19, 2014
Local shares have been dipping in and out of positive territory so far today with investors remaining indecisive. The ASX200 Index is unchanged and has been approaching the 5400pt mark; a level not breached since late October.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 18, 2014
That general feeling of unease only intensified with the release of Japan's third quarter GDP figures yesterday.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 18, 2014
In the US, industrial production fell by 0.1% in October, short of forecasts tipping a 0.2% gain. The New York Fed manufacturing index rose from +6.17 to +10.16 in November.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 18, 2014
Australian shares finished in the red for the fifth time in six days with the ASX200 Index slipping by 0.8 per cent. The local market slumped by 1.7 per cent last week and US equities finished mixed on Friday.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 17, 2014
X-rays revealed a DHL box labelled as toys actually contained chopped body parts of an infant such as the head, foot and heart. The staff of the global courier company discovered on Saturday the grisly contents as they prepared to ship the box from Bangkok to three Nevada addresses, The Age reports.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 17, 2014
There is a general feeling I get from commentary, investors and the market itself that we all want 2014 to finish now, locking in the gains we've seen this year.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 17, 2014
The open of trade on Monday saw the ASX 200 go the way it has done for most sessions in recent weeks, down. The low point of the morning saw the index at a deficit of 34 points, although there was no sign buyers were keen to start a new week by taking advantage of lower prices. The weaker bias was informed by the unconvincing outcomes for US and European equity markets at the weekend. US share markets finished mixed on Friday. The Dow Jones was down by 18 points or 0.1% but the S&P 500 index was...
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 17, 2014
Gina Rinehart is Australia's richest person with an estimated wealth of $22 billion. She would likely hold on to that title for a long time not only because she has rightly invested in coal and iron ore which are still the country's top export earners despite the low price of the two commodity in the international market.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 17, 2014
Australian shares are managing to creep into positive territory after a weaker start for the fifth day. The ASX 200 Index (a measure of market performance) is up ~0.1 per cent. A close to 4 per cent slump in the oil price is holding back energy stocks most.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 14, 2014
The lull in equities continued, with no major catalysts to keep the rally going. There was some downside pressure as oil prices continue to deteriorate and investors digest the prospect of an early rates lift-off. Fed member Dudley was on the wires reaffirming that policy will be tailored to market conditions, essentially confirming that policy is data-dependent.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 14, 2014
In the US, new claims for unemployment insurance (jobless claims) rose by 12,000 to 290,000 in the latest week. The Job Opening and Labour Turnover (JOLTS) figures shows job openings fell from a 6-year high of 4.853 million in August to 4.725 million in September, below forecasts centred on 4.823m.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 14, 2014
Australian shares closed in the red for the fourth day with the ASX 200 slipping by 0.4 per cent. An improvement from the miners after a 3 per cent slump in just two sessions helped limit the losses.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 13, 2014
Australian shares are sliding for the fourth day taking the losses this week to 1.8 per cent. The ASX 200 index is down 0.4 per cent and is trading below the 5450 mark. It has been a rocky ride for markets in recent months however with local shares surging by 6 per cent over the past month.
Vittorio Hernandez
Nov 13, 2014
