The glistening appeal of precious metals returns August 27, 2012 SENIOR MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT UP UNTIL last week, gold and silver – like a Parisian in August – appeared to have shut up shop for the summer. In contrast, equity markets had pushed higher in a low volume melt-up that brought the Dow and S&P 500 up to levels last seen in December 2007. Even [...]
American regulator denies claim that it has an anti-British stance August 8, 2012 THE US regulatory body at the centre of allegations against Standard Chartered yesterday came out fighting against criticism that it had acted without consulting its fellow watchdogs, and denied that the case was proof of an anti-UK bias. One of the New York’s state financial services department’s senior officials told City A.M. yesterday that the [...]
Osborne faces a delicate balancing act on train ticket hikes August 14, 2012 WHEN the majestic Shard formally opened earlier this summer I was interested to learn that its architect Renzo Piano only catered for 48 car parking spaces in the building’s bowels. “It’s another big shift,” he was quoted as saying. “To tell people, look, stop going around in cars.” Piano’s thinking makes a lot of sense. [...]
LOWER OIL PRICES LIKELY TO REMAIN AS GROWTH SLOWS June 25, 2012 SENIOR MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT LAST week, Brent crude oil traded below $88.50 – a level last seen in November 2010. Back then, crude was in the early stages of a rally which would take it above $126 four months later. The rally was driven, to a great extent, by the US Federal Reserve’s second round [...]
After the Muslim Brotherhood won Egypt’s presidency, should liberals be concerned? June 25, 2012 YES Samer Libdeh Although the Muslim Brotherhood stated that it will support and defend civil and minority rights, it remains to be seen whether this will happen in practice. The first test will come over the formation of a new government and whether Freedom and Justice, the Brotherhood’s party, will reach out to all sectors [...]
FTSE falls as market shows caution over further economic slowdown August 13, 2012 BRITAIN’S top shares fell in thin volume yesterday while investors were unnerved by signs the global economic slowdown is deepening and Europe’s response to its debt crisis may face political hurdles. Cyclical mining and oil & gas stocks weighed after data showed Japan’s economy expanded at half the pace expected in the second quarter and [...]
FTSE shrugs off Standard Chartered slump to reach a four-month high August 7, 2012 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 climbed to its highest close in four months yesterday, with heavyweight miners and energy stocks rallying on expectations of global economic stimulus and outweighing a steep sell off in Standard Chartered. The bank’s shares plunged 16.4 per cent in their biggest one-day sell off in four years after New York’s top bank [...]
Technology shares push Wall St lower July 12, 2012 US stocks edged lower yesterday, led by technology shares, while diminished chances of monetary stimulus from major central banks prompted investors to shy away from risky assets. The Dow briefly moved into positive territory in sync with Procter & Gamble’s advance, with the blue-chip average bouncing off technical support at 12,500, analysts said. The S&P [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 25, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES EU plan to rewrite budgets The European Union would gain far-reaching powers to rewrite national budgets for Eurozone countries that breach debt and deficit rules under proposals likely to be discussed at a summit this week, according to a draft report seen by the Financial Times. State-backed cyber attack cost UK company £800m, [...]
As Syria nears civil war, has the Arab Spring proven a general success across the region? June 10, 2012 YES Brendan O’Neill The idea that the Arab Spring has become an Arab Winter reveals more about Western prejudices than about reality in the Middle East. Many say the upheaval was more akin to Iran 1979 than France 1789, with Islamists rising. Yet if Islamists are doing well, it is by default a result of [...]