Gold and silver rose to 16-week highs in New York on speculation that weakening U.S. growth and turmoil in Ukraine will boost demand for the precious metals as a haven. Economic activity in the U.S., as measured by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s national index, for January was at minus 0.39, compared with analysts’ median estimate of minus 0.2. A below-zero reading indicates below-trend growth. Ukraine’s […]
Indian central bank Governor Raghuram Rajan warned that inflation remained the biggest threat to growth, diverging from the nation’s finance chief, who highlighted diminishing price pressures. A developing economy like India that is seeking higher growth rates can tolerate higher inflation than advanced nations, Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said in an interview in Sydney, where he was attending the Group of 20 meetings with Rajan. Chidambaram, who […]
|By Ole Hansen| Commodities showing strong gains for a third week with positive performances seen across all sectors, not least agriculture where coffee and sugar were strong performers followed by precious metals. Growth-dependent commodities such as energy and industrial metals also showed a positive return but were held back by another decline to a seven-month low in Chinese manufacturing confidence. Adverse weather across the Americas continues to […]
Only a thin blue hoarding separates the busy shopping district of Downtown Dubai from the new waterside office and residential area of Business Bay – yet the two locations feel worlds apart. Turn right along a narrow road from The Dubai Mall and you are suddenly faced with piles of sand and heaps of junk. Shiny green glass buildings stand next to half-finished structures of grey skeletal […]
Facebook Inc will buy fast-growing mobile-messaging startup WhatsApp for $19 billion in cash and stock in a landmark deal that places the world’s largest social network closer to the heart of mobile communications and may bring younger users into the fold. The transaction involves $4 billion in cash, $12 billion in stock and $3 billion in restricted stock that vests over several years. The WhatsApp deal is […]
It is only a matter of time before the stock market plunges by 50% or more, according to several reputable experts. “We have no right to be surprised by a severe and imminent stock market crash,” explains Mark Spitznagel, a hedge fund manager who is notorious for his hugely profitable billion-dollar bet on the 2008 crisis. “In fact, we must absolutely expect it.” Unfortunately Spitznagel isn’t alone. […]
Global stocks erased their losses for the year as growing confidence in the U.S. economy and a rally in emerging markets restored $3 trillion of value. The MSCI All-Country World Index advanced for a ninth straight day yesterday, lifting the value of world equities to $62.1 trillion from this year’s low of about $59 trillion on Feb. 4, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The gauge of developed […]
The two most-accurate gold forecasters are holding to their bearish forecasts for 2014 even after the metal posted its best start to a year since 1983. Futures rose 9.7 percent in 2014 through Feb. 14, rebounding from the biggest annual drop in three decades, and reached a three-month high. Holdings in exchange-traded products backed by bullion increased by 3.2 metric tons last week, the most since December […]
A widening probe of the foreign-exchange market is roiling an industry already under pressure to reduce costs as computer platforms displace human traders. Electronic dealing, which accounted for 66 percent of all currency transactions in 2013 and 20 percent in 2001, will increase to 76 percent within five years, according to Aite Group LLC, a Boston-based consulting firm that reviewed Bank for International Settlements data. About 81 […]
|By Steen Jakobsen|The negative start to this year came as a surprise to most investors as we came into the new year with the usual euphoria and expectations of a stock market ending 2014 up 10-15% and a Europe and US in continued recovery but January soon became all about a potential EM crisis which ended up hurting even developed markets return in this year first month. […]
West Texas Intermediate crude rose for the first time in three days as an improved U.S. economy bolstered the demand outlook in the world’s biggest oil consumer. Futures climbed as much as 0.7 percent in New York, extending a fifth weekly gain. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer confidence held at 81.2 this month, topping the median estimate of 80.2 in a Bloomberg News […]
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued a show-cause notice to Etihad Airways, asking whether the Abu Dhabi-based carrier violated takeover rules in acquiring a 24 percent stake in Jet Airways, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said. SEBI issued the notice to Etihad on Wednesday and asked for a response on why it should not make a tender offer to Jet […]
Kickstarter, the fundraising platform used by millions of people to raise capital for creative projects and businesses, said on Saturday that hackers had gained access to some of its customers’ data earlier this week but that the breach had been repaired. “No credit card data of any kind was accessed by hackers. There is no evidence of unauthorized activity of any kind on all but two Kickstarter […]
UAE telecom firm du has agreed terms on a $720 million loan which will be used to replace two existing debt facilities and lower the company’s funding costs, two banking sources said on Sunday. The five-year loan will be provided by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia’s Samba Financial Group, the sources who both have knowledge of the matter said. They […]
Arvind-Kejriwal who pledged to root out corruption after steering to power in Delhi, was a man in a hurry and set a scorching pace to try to fulfil his anti-graft legislative agenda but his tumultous journey as Chief Minister ended in seven weeks. As the controversy over the Jan-Lokpal-Bill deepened with Lt Governor Najeeb advising the Delhi-Assembly Speaker against allowing its tabling and Congress and BJP opposing […]
Gold rose 0.5 percent to a three-month high on Thursday, targeting a break above $1,300 after disappointing U.S. retail sales data weighed on the dollar and increased bullion’s appeal as a currency hedge. The dollar index tumbled 0.4 percent after U.S. retail sales fell unexpectedly in January and the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week, in the latest signs of slowing […]
HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum has been cleared of any wrongdoing following a doping scandal at his Godolphin racing organisation that saw a trainer banned for eight years, an internal report said on Wednesday. HH Sheikh Mohammed, Dubai’s ruler and Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE, commissioned a report by Lord Stevens, the former Metropolitan Police chief commissioner, to investigate the scandal and interview key […]
U.K. billionaire Richard Branson said his Virgin Galactic venture is on track to carry its first fare-paying passenger to the edge of space this year, and that he plans to take his family on a flight some time in 2014. Virgin Galactic, which completed the third rocket-powered supersonic flight of its SpaceShipTwo vehicle from Mojave Air and Space Port in California last month, is on course to […]
India, the world’s biggest sugar producer after Brazil, will introduce a subsidy on raw sweetener exports to boost shipments amid a domestic glut, a government official said. The cabinet approved a 3,333 rupees ($54) a metric ton subsidy for exports in February and March and will review the amount in April, the official, who asked not to be named because the person isn’t authorized to speak to […]
CNN has reported on the plight of Burj Khalifa residents who faced the threat of unplugged air-conditioning and out of service elevators in a dispute with developer Emaar Properties over unpaid service fees. “ What is it like to live in the tallest building in the world? “Well, if the elevators stop, not that great. “Unplugged air conditioning and out-of-service elevators became a real threat for residents of […]
Gold retreated from the highest level since November as a five-day advance damped physical demand and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen pledged to continue with a gradual tapering of stimulus. Bullion for immediate delivery lost as much as 0.6 percent to $1,284.15 an ounce, and was at $1,286.78 at 3:12 p.m. in Singapore. Prices climbed to $1,293.93 yesterday, the highest level since Nov. 14, capping a […]
Asian stocks climbed, Australia’s dollar strengthened to its highest in a month and commodities rallied after Chinese trade data exceeded estimates. European equity futures increased while the U.S. currency weakened and gold halted a five-day gain. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 1.1 percent as of 4:12 p.m. in Tokyo as a measure of Chinese shares in Hong Kong headed toward the biggest two-day gain since November. […]
Google Inc., the company that leads Internet search, has gained a new superlative: top dealmaker. From buying a digital-thermostat developer to selling a mobile-phone business, Google has executed more deals than any company in the world over the past three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg through January, up from 13th place in the three years prior. Advertising-firm WPP Plc was second, followed by chipmaker Intel […]
The Bitcoin Foundation said the Mt. Gox Bitcoin exchange in Tokyo is to blame for technical faults that prevented customer withdrawals of the virtual currency that lost as much as 21 percent of its value today. “The issues that Mt. Gox has been experiencing are due to an unfortunate interaction between Mt. Gox’s implementation of their highly customized wallet software, their customer support procedures and their unpreparedness,” […]
