Owner: Wandering around Financial Cities URL:http://louis-fina.blogspot.com Join Date: Fri, 07 Mar 2008 03:49:25 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Based in Hong Kong, and will be at London few months later, I strive to write my comments on economies and markets in a more global level. Yes, we lack a global perspective among Hong Kong financial writers. Site statistics:Click here
I am back 2008-06-10 09:54:33 I am back!Although I have not posted anything for more than a month, I am very aware of what's going on in the markets and in the world. Before going forward to look at the latest news, I will first write my comments on big news happened in the past month which has an impact relevant even now, and future.Look forward to my thoughts on inflations, commodities, stocks, LIBOR setting, currencies, an
Stocks 2008-06-11 10:27:31 From Bloomberg:U.S. stocks retreated for a fourth day, led by banks and railroads, on speculation faster inflation may force central banks around the world to raise interest rates.The global risk of faster inflation comes in very untimely. Economy has been slowing amid the subprime mortgage crisis, but rising commodities prices have driven inflation into the fastest pace in years. Faster inflati Read more:Stocks
Strong (?) US dollar 2008-06-11 10:07:14 From Bloomberg:Fed Board Vice Chairman Donald Kohn and Fed Bank of St. Louis President Jim Bullard are scheduled to deliver speeches. Investors added to bets the central bank will raise interest rates this year, increasing the allure of dollar denominated- assets. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson this week said he would ``never'' rule out currency intervention.Another piece from Bloomberg:Federal Read more:Strong
George Soros spoke at LSE 2008-06-11 09:44:22 George Soros
, alumnus of the London School of Economics and Political Science, spoke at his alma mater (and my school, soon) to launch his new book. The lecture can now be watched on the LSE website. The comments were insightful.
Read more:George
, George Soros
Oil again... 2008-06-13 10:24:54 Two news related to oil.First one is about Exxon Mobil, from Reuters:Exxon Mobil Corp said on Thursday it is getting out of the retail gas business in the United States as sky-high crude oil prices squeeze margins. Those branded service stations may be the most public aspect of Exxon's business, but they account for a small part of the company's profits. Out of the roughly 12,000 Exxon
Breaking News at Lehman Brothers (Update 1) 2008-06-12 10:52:41 From Reuters:LehmanBrothers
Holdings Inc said on Thursday it demoted its chief financial officer, Erin Callan, and that it had named a new chief operating officer, days after the investment bank said it expects to post a $2.8 billion quarterly loss. Lehman, whose shares fell another 8 percent in premarket trading, is facing a crisis of confidence. Its shares have tumbled 62 percent so far t Read more:Breaking
, Update
Links for 12/6/2008 2008-06-12 10:30:10 Crude Oil Falls as Dollar's Gain Reduces Appeal of Commodities Crude oil fell for the third time this week as a strengthening U.S. dollar reduced the appeal of commodities as an inflation hedge.Treasury 10-Year Note Yields Rise to Year High on Retail Sales Treasuries fell, pushing the yield on the benchmark 10-year note to the highest level this year, after a larger-than-expected gain in retail sa
Are there bubbles in commodities? 2008-06-12 10:03:13 I believe so.Let's focus on oil for the time being. Yes, the supply of oil is very limited, as the production of crude oil is likely to come to the peak level (peak oil). My good friend following oil drilling equipment companies told me, half of the oil buried underground will never be able to drilled out. So why the production is likely to come to the peak? Because of the viscosity of crude o Read more:commodities
Links for 14/6/2008 2008-06-14 10:19:47 Some thoughts on macroeconomic models ... Thus, our most popular macro economic model that is now used by central bankers has no theory of why after a boom comes a bust. Booms and busts always find their origin outside the macroeconomic landscape.Chinese inflation falls but pressures build Chinese consumer price inflation, which had been at 11-year highs in recent months, fell from 8.5 per cent in
Paint it blue: on post-M&A integration 2008-06-14 10:05:06 Few days ago, I discussed with a friend about integration
of ABN AMRO with RBS after the consortium led by RBS Group plc acquired ABN AMRO. ABN AMRO's bankers said RBS want to paint the office blue.A very important motivation to acquire a company is synergy. Two companies can eliminate business units (and people) which overlapped, and this produces cost synergy. They will also have wider range Read more:Paint
Yahoo! Inc and Corporate Governance 2008-06-13 11:02:43 From Bloomberg:Yahoo
! Inc. (YHOO) Chief Executive Officer Jerry Yang's five-month conflict with Microsoft Corp. ended yesterday. The outcome may not be good for him or the Internet company's investors.Yahoo said yesterday it scrapped talks after Microsoft refused to pay the $47.5 billion it offered last month. Instead Yang unveiled a partnership with Google Inc. While that deal may add $800 millio
Links for 13/6/2008 2008-06-13 10:42:43 Economy gauge up, growth rate still recessionary A gauge of future U.S. economic growth edged up in the latest week and its annualized growth rate was unchanged, remaining in recessionary territory, a research group said on Friday.U.S. Stocks Advance as Oil Declines; UAL, AMR, Citigroup Gain U.S. stocks rose, paring the week's losses, after oil retreated and some measures of inflation matched econ
3 articles from the Economist 2008-06-15 06:49:53 I have briefly read through some of the articles from the latest issue of the Economist
. These are the 3 articles I would like to share with my readers:The trouble with pensions:While defined benefit (DB) pension schemes were dominating in the past, defined contribution (DC) plans are more popular now. Employers bear the investment risk for DB plans, but now, the employee have to bear the risk.
Links for 16/6/2008 2008-06-16 10:15:02 Barclays Jumps in London Trading, May Sell New Shares Barclays Plc jumped in London trading after the bank eased concerns that selling more stock will hurt current shareholders and said earnings last month were better than a year earlier.U.S. Stocks Fall on Economic, Energy Concern; GE Shares Retreat U.S. stocks fell for the first time in three days after a bigger-than-forecast drop in New York ma
AIG fires CEO 2008-06-16 09:51:31 From Reuters:The world's biggest insurer, American International Group Inc, replaced CEO Martin Sullivan on Sunday after it suffered two quarters of record losses from risky mortgage bets and its share price more than halved over the past year. Sullivan is the latest Wall Street chief -- including former Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Charles Prince and Merrill Lynch & Co's Stan O'Neill - Read more:fires
What Mervyn King can do? 2008-06-17 10:22:44 From Bloomberg:The U.K. pound dropped the most in two weeks against the euro as traders pared bets that the Bank of England will increase interest rates on speculation worsening inflation will stifle economic growth. The currency also snapped two days of gains versus the dollar after a government report showed inflation last month reached the fastest pace in at least a decade, promptin
Links for 17/6/2008 2008-06-17 10:13:37 Goldman close to $7 bln SIV restructure: sources Goldman Sachs Group Inc has nearly completed a long-awaited rescue of a $7 billion structured investment vehicle, sources said, just as it adjusts to the credit crunch by laying off hundreds of bankers.UK inflation hits 3.3 percent in May Britain's inflation rate rose more than expected in May to its highest since the Labour government came to power
News: Morgan Stanley's profit drops 2008-06-18 09:03:05 From Reuters:MorganStanley
on Wednesday said quarterly earnings plunged 56 percent on trading losses and slowdown in investment banking, despite $1.43 billion of pretax gains from asset sales. The second-largest U.S. investment bank reported income from continuing operations of $1.03 billion, or 95 cents a share, for its fiscal second quarter, ended May 30, down from $2.36 billion, or $2.45 Read more:profit
, Morgan Stanley
RBS credit rating lowered 2008-06-27 08:31:03 From Bloomberg:
Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, the second-biggest bank in Britain, had its credit
rating lowered at Moody's Investors Service, which cited "higher volatility'' in its securities unit and greater risk of loan defaults in the U.K. RBS fell 1.3 percent in London trading after Moody's lowered the Edinburgh-based bank's financial-strength rating to B from B+ and its senio
Big rumour: HSBC buys UBS (!?) 2008-06-24 10:25:49 From Reuters:
Shares in Swiss bank UBS (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose nearly 4 percent in early trade on Tuesday and traders referred to market rumors British bank HSBC (HSBA.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) could make a bid for the world's largest wealth manager. UBS shares were 1.7 percent higher at 22.44 Swiss franc at 3:35 p.m. EDT, having risen to 23 francs Read more:rumour
Links for 3/7/2008 2008-07-03 09:51:25 Trichet Says Rate Increase Will Bring Down Inflation European Central Bank President Jean- Claude Trichet played down prospects of further interest-rate increases, saying the quarter-point move today will help the bank bring inflation back below 2 percent.Euro Falls as Trichet Signals One Rate Increase May Be Enough The euro fell the most against the dollar in more than three weeks after European
Links for 30/9/2008 2008-09-30 13:05:56 Bank Crisis Shatters Global Calm, IMF Data Show
The banking industry's travails in the U.S. and Europe have shattered a decade of relative calm in global finance, according to a research report published earlier this month by the International Monetary Fund.
House prices suffer another record drop
Prices of U.S. single-family homes were down a record 16.3 percent in July from a year earlier, ac
Breaking News: Rescue Plan REJECTED! 2008-09-29 14:24:42 From Bloomberg:The financial-rescue plan intended to restore confidence in the U.S. banking system collapsed in partisan wrangling as the House of Representatives voted down the proposal backed by the Bush administration and congressional leaders of both parties.This is when Economics meet Politics. When decisions related to economy is influenced by politics, everything becomes unpredictable Read more:Breaking
, Rescue
Bad Deal: buying ABN AMRO 2008-09-29 04:11:54 Last year, the consortium of the Royal Bank of Scotland, Fortis, and Banco Santander bought ABN AMRO. This deal was made almost at the height of market, and now we have no idea where the bottom is, so the deal was almost certainly a bad deal as they have overpaid ABN AMRO. RBS has already raised additional capital earlier before, and now Fortis has to be bailout.From Bloomberg:Fortis,
UK to nationalise Bradford & Bingley 2008-09-29 04:00:28 From FT:The government on Monday confirmed it was nationalising Bradford
& Bingley after hammering out a deal with the Spanish bank Santander, which will buy the embattled UK mortgage lender’s £21bn deposit book and branch network for about £600m.This confirms that the credit crunch is actually hitting UK quite badly. I have summarized the views from different people on the UK econom
Bailout, Free-market, and Capitalism 2008-09-26 05:00:46 From Motley Fool:We believe that if the Paulson Plan is done correctly, American taxpayers will profit not only from the return of lending capacity to our banks, but also from these troubled investments. However, the plan should embrace the tenets of free-market capitalism. The government should demand equity stakes in the banks.The discussion of the bailout plan seems to be less smooth as th Read more:Capitalism
Bailout plan near 2008-09-25 15:17:40 From Bloomberg:
Congressional negotiators said they reached an agreement in principle on a $700 billion financial- rescue package to inject fresh capital into paralyzed credit markets.
The lawmakers agreed that a plan to let Treasury buy the troubled assets of financial firms should contain provisions strengthening oversight, limiting executive pay and preventing foreclosure, Senate Banking Commi
First bank run in Hong Kong in more than a decade 2008-09-25 08:16:06 From Bloomberg:Hong Kong
's government, regulators and richest man came to the aid of Bank Of East Asia Ltd. after "malicious rumors'' about its financial stability spurred the city's first bank run in more than a decade
.
Financial Secretary John Tsang said the rumors were "unfounded'' and the bank has enough capital to serve its clients. Joseph Yam, head of Hong Kong's central bank, urged deposit Read more:First
Links for 25/9/2008 2008-09-25 05:16:22 U.S. will lose financial superpower status | Editor's Choice | Reuters
Germany blamed the Anglo-Saxon capitalist model on Thursday for spawning the global financial crisis, saying the United States would lose its financial superpower status and have to accept greater market regulation.
Bail-out fears hit credit markets
Amid uncertainty about the plan’s prospects, US money market funds control
Links for 23/9/2008 2008-09-23 04:13:08 Paulson Plan May Push National Debt to Post-World War II Levels
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's $700 billion proposal to stabilize the banking system may push the national debt to the highest level since 1954, threatening an erosion of foreign appetite for U.S. bonds.
Beyond crisis management
EVERY financial crisis involves a tug of war between the tacticians and the strategists. The tactici
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