China: Inflation Up, Growth Slowing
The sharp increase in China’s inflation rate in the year to March has had an immediate impact with the Government again lifting the reserve asset ratio for banks to a new high.
Read MoreThe sharp increase in China’s inflation rate in the year to March has had an immediate impact with the Government again lifting the reserve asset ratio for banks to a new high.
Read MoreInflation continues to worry markets (as we said in Friday’s weekly Air) with a spate of reports on Friday night adding to concerns, as well as a misreading of the latest US consumer price inflation.
Read MoreAustralian bank stocks got a boost on Friday ahead of the March interim reporting period early next month for Westpac, the ANZ and the NAB.
Read MoreGold jumped Friday and silver on a heady mixture of inflation worries in the US (which were groundless), higher oil prices and more worries in Europe about Greece and Ireland after the latter’s sovereign debt rating was cut by Moody’s.
Read MoreA short week in many countries because of Easter.
Read MoreCompared with gold, the action has been in silver for much of the past year.
Read MoreIn February big global investors abandoned their reserve and went for risk, only to pull back in early March, before the March 11 disasters in Japan.
Read MoreA week where inflation concerns continued to shuffle into the spotlight across Asia.
Read MoreBank of Queensland shares took a couple of tough bits of news in their stride yesterday, closing up 8c at $9.85 after the bank confirmed a sharp fall in interim earnings and the surprise impending loss of long time CEO David Liddy.
Read MoreGold prices could reach or top $US1,600 an ounce by the end of the year, which would put them up by around 10% on current prices, according to the London-based metals consultancy, GFMS.
Read MoreThe Japanese government downgraded its assessment of the economy in its monthly report yesterday as the impact of the March 11 quake, tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear crisis take a grim toll on activity and confidence.
Read MoreGambling giant Tabcorp Holdings yesterday has reported a 5.4% rise in normalised net revenue for the March quarter.
Read MoreShares in the uranium miner ERA fell to a 16 year low yesterday in the wake of an earnings warning late Tuesday night and then gloomy comments from yesterday’s AGM.
Read MoreRio Tinto’s 75% owned NSW coal arm, Coal and Allied, revealed rise in production and a rise in sales for the March quarter as the company rode out fluctuating demand and the impact of the March 11 quake and tsunami on the economy of its largest export market, Japan.
Read MoreRio Tinto is heading for sharp slowdown in first half profit growth after revealing bigger than expected falls in iron ore and coal production and exports in the three months to March.
Read MoreMore problems for Leighton Holdings and Hastie Group yesterday.
Read MoreQueensland coal miner Macarthur Coal has warned that further heavy rain in March means it is likely to keep a force majeure in place until the end of this month.
Read MoreThe Fukushima nuclear crisis is helping drain the strength from the Japanese economy.
Read MoreAs expected, business conditions rose in March, but confidence remains weak, according to the latest monthly survey from the National Australia Bank.
Read MoreAfter ignoring Japan for 10 days, world markets got a reminder yesterday that the world’s third biggest economy continues to be hurt by the impact of the tsunami, earthquakes and the Fukushima nuclear crisis which won’t go away.
Read MoreAs expected, shareholders in West Australian Newspapers Holdings have approved the $4.1 billion purchase of Seven Media Group to create Seven West Media.
Read MoreJoining Leighton in the downgrade stakes yesterday was a much smaller contractor, Hastie Group, the air conditioning company, which has been struggling to balance the books for December 31, as well as maintain the confidence of its banks.
Read MoreMore details of China’s March trade performance (and that for the quarter), tells us the economy is actually looking a bit more sluggish than some think.
Read MoreTrading in Leighton shares remains suspended until Thursday to allow the company and its advisers time to raise the $757 million in new capital after the company confirmed huge losses and no final dividend for the year to June 30.
Read MoreIt’s about time the ASX and ASIC suspended BHP Billiton and Woodside Petroleum for a cooling off period because the market is being fed contradictory information about just what is happening.
Read MoreShares took second place to commodities last week.
Read MoreA big test today for Leighton Holdings, its board, former management, its big German shareholder Hochtief AG and that company’s biggest shareholder ACS of Spain.
Read MoreChina recorded a small trade surplus in March.
Read MoreJust looking at the way commodities went late last week, you’d be excused for thinking that the world was in the midst of an economic boom.
Read MoreA relatively quiet week in Australia for economic data this week, a busy week in the US and Europe, but attention will really focus on the release of economic data for China for March and the March quarter on Friday.
Read MoreThe AMP’s Chief Economist, Dr Shane Oliver says there are a lot of worries in and around markets at the moment.
Read MoreWith Portugal asking for help, Europe now has three basket cases whose begging bowls have or will be filled with 275 billion euros of aid from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
Read MoreMarkets in Europe and the US fell overnight after a 7.1 magnitude aftershock rattled the same area of Japan that was hit a month ago today by the huge earthquake and tsunami.
Read MoreCopper prices face a curious outlook in 2011.
Read MoreA strong jobs report will not be ignored at the Reserve Bank, but you bet there will be a flock of commentators, lobbyists and their employers who will ignore it and still insist that the Australian economy is sluggish, two speed and worse.
Read MoreRio Tinto has just fallen short of effective control of Riversdale Mining.
Read MoreA sense of action around drilling contractor Ausdrill which yesterday asked big shareholders for nearly $150 million a day after former Leighton Holdings boss Wal King popped up as a director (his first new board seat).
Read MoreHome loans dropped for a second consecutive month in February, as the housing industry struggles in the aftermath of the summer flooding and weaker overall demand.
Read MoreToyota is still struggling to return its Japanese car plants to full operation almost four weeks after the March 11 disasters as it faces a credit rating cut because of the damage to its already strained financial state.
Read MoreA day after China lifted interest rates for a second time this year and fourth time in six months to increase pressure on high levels of inflation; the Asian Development Bank said inflation was the "top priority" for the region.
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