INVESTORS’ GLOSSARY February 17, 2010 CREDIT DEFAULT SWAP (CDS) A CDS is a derivative instrument that can protect the holder of corporate or sovereign debt from the event that a company or government defaults on their debt obligations. It works like a basic swap: the buyer of the CDS gives the seller a series of payments. In return, the buyer [...]
Good day for blue-chips sees FTSE flirt with the 5,300 level February 17, 2010 Britain’s top share index rose for the third consecutive day yesterday, led by financials and miners on bullish corporate results and economic data, and adding to growing optimism over the health of the global economy. The FTSE 100 ended up 32.58 points, or 0.6 per cent at 5,276.64, touching a two-week high during the session [...]
US shares gain as data boosts mood February 17, 2010 Stronger-than-expected corporate results and upbeat economic data drove US stocks higher yesterday as they fed expectations the recovery will bolster corporate profits. Deere & Co, the world’s largest farm equipment maker, led markets after its results beat expectations and it raised its outlook for the year ahead. Shares gained five per cent to $56.48. The [...]
Competition still fierce as grad vacancies go up February 17, 2010 THE graduate recruitment market is showing significant signs of improvement in 2010 after being brought to all but a standstill by the recession, according to two recently published reports. But while there is positive news, many of this year’s graduates will be lucky to see its effects, with competition remaining extremely intense. A study published [...]
Strong Barclays results help FTSE to chalk up solid gains February 16, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares closed sharply higher yesterday as Barclays led a banking sector rally after its 2009 forecast-beating results, and oils and miners were buoyed by firmer commodity prices. The FTSE 100 ended up 76.59 points, or 1.5 per cent, at 5,244.06, extending gains into a second consecutive session after closing 0.5 per cent higher [...]
US stocks boosted by Merck earnings February 16, 2010 US stocks posted their biggest daily percentage gain in three months yesterday after strong revenue from drugmaker Merck and regional manufacturing data instilled confidence in the economic outlook. Resource related shares were among the strongest gainers as a weaker US dollar sparked buying in oil and other commodities. The CRB commodities index marked its largest [...]
Technical signs point to dollar domination over the euro February 16, 2010 THE latest revelation in the Greek debt saga is that investment banks on Wall Street helped Greece and other southern European economies to move some of their debt off of their balance sheets through the use of securitisation and swaps over the past 15 years. This allowed them to reduce their official budget deficit figures [...]
RISK TRADE IS HEADING DOWN UNDER February 16, 2010 TURN on financial television these days and you see nothing but a procession of analysts offering their eulogies for the Eurozone. In fact, the worries about the fragmentation of the EU have become so uniform and the chorus of euro bears has become so loud that the euro may be due a bounce as short-term [...]
Play the Asian growth story using the baht February 16, 2010 LAST week the Vietnamese authorities devalued the dong by 3.4 per cent against the US dollar, the second adjustment to the currency in three months. But, its Asian neighbours are not going to follow its lead, and some currencies could actually appreciate in the coming months. The Bank of Thailand specifically ruled out a devaluation, [...]
The Tipster February 16, 2010 EURO-dollar has had an aggressive move lower from the November high of $1.5411 to a low of $1.3531 last week. Looking at the longer-term charts the $1.35 – $1.37 region is fairly significant. We would expect to see a short to medium term bounce from these levels, driven primarily by investors taking their profits. Although [...]