Investment: Rough Times For Gold And Silver
As global liquidity dries up, gold and silver prices remain under downward pressure from investors selling off positions to go to cash and head for safety in the US dollar.
Read MoreAs global liquidity dries up, gold and silver prices remain under downward pressure from investors selling off positions to go to cash and head for safety in the US dollar.
Read MoreA notable feature of the recent trading on the Australian stock market has been the dramatic drop in daily turnover. Whether this is important or not for the market or for us as investors, is subject to much debate. The turnover is low compared to what? Were previous periods normal? Does mindless turnover really matter and if you are not a seller should you care?
Read MoreMarkets were rattled yesterday by the news that Chinese manufacturing activity contracted sharply this month to a 32-month low.
Read MoreGlobal and Chinese crude steel production slowed in October to their lowest levels in 10 months, figures from the World Steel Association this week confirmed.
Read MoreProperty developer Stockland says it’s still on track to match 2010-11 earnings per share figures, despite a slow start to the current financial year.
Read MoreBlueScope Steel, which will get hundreds of millions of dollars money under the carbon tax in compensation and free permits for the steel industry, has surprised investors by launching an ”accelerated "fund raising to cut debt.
Read MoreThe World Bank is more optimistic about China’s prospects than some of its putative leaders.
Read MoreUS and European stocks were hammered on Monday, after Moody’s Investors Service issued a dire warning on French bonds, and Asian markets were dampened by pessimistic remarks made by a high-ranking Chinese official.
Read MoreAn unexpected trade deficit in October for Japan, thanks to a surge in expensive energy imports, such as LNG, while exports fell for the first time in three months.
Read MoreOil grabbed the attention last week in New York with the first move above the $US100 a barrel mark for the first time in four months
Read MoreOnce again it’s going to be events in Europe, plus the US which will dominate financial markets this week.
Read MoreDespite all the claims and counter claims about global warming, carbon taxes, and new sources of ‘green’ energy, one thing continues to standout when you look at the global energy scene: Australia is sitting pretty.
Read MoreIn contrast to the caution at the BHP meeting, the upbeat nature of Thursday’s strategic briefing from Goodman Fielder’s newish CEO, Chris Delaney, was at odds with the company’s lacklustre performance.
Read MoreWe had two very different outlooks from companies at opposite ends of the current corporate ladder in Australia.
Read MoreThere was a clear sense of ‘flight’ by some of the world’s biggest investors in the November Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey of global fund managers.
Read MoreThe recent economic developments in Europe are not unlike those that confronted investors in late 2007 and early 2008.
Read MoreThe contrast yesterday on global markets was dramatic: in Europe another spike in market interest rates renewed pressure on Italy, Spain, the euro and the eurozone itself.
Read MoreThe National Australia Bank says the outlook for Australia’s manufacturing industry is bleak with output falling by almost 1% in the September quarter.
Read MoreThe shape of the new prudential management system for Australia’s banks and financial system generally is taking its final shape and should be finalised next year.
Read MoreShares in Melbourne-based industrial services company Spotless Group Ltd closed up a few cents yesterday, after media reports claimed that it was about to get a second approach from a private equity group.
Read MoreSome commentators would have you believe that the country’s banks are about to fall on hard times as the eurozone problems lift the cost of money and make life generally tougher for financial stocks.
Read MoreWe learned nothing really significant from the minutes of the Melbourne Cup meeting of the Reserve Bank board which cut interest rates by 0.25%.
Read MoreDuluxGroup shrugged off the impact of floods, a sluggish building industry and weak retailing to report a solid 13% rise in underlying net profit for the September 30 year to $77.6 million.
Read MoreFertiliser and explosives maker Incitec Pivot delivered a 20% jump in annual profit yesterday but sees a much slimmer rise this year.
Read MoreAs expected, the Japanese economy rebounded sharply in the September quarter, ending the recession thanks to the impact of the early reconstruction efforts after March’s devastating earthquake and tsunami.
Read MoreItaly is due to auction three billion euros of five-year government bonds tonight our time, an event that will tell us much about how the market sees the weekend changes in the country’s government and leadership.
Read MoreAustralian shares are expected to start the week higher with the futures market pointing to a 1% gain when trade resumes today.
Read MoreEurope will again dominate the coming week (see the first story), but there other issues we should be alert to, such as the approaching deadline for US to find more than a trillion dollars of spending cuts by November 23, the day before Thanksgiving.
Read MoreThe outlook for Europe is worsening by the day, it seems, despite a steadying in markets overnight Thursday.
Read MoreChinese crude steel output has fallen nearly 10% since last May as the slowdown in Australia’s most important export partner continues.
Read MoreThe week’s flow of data from China confirms one point: China is the growth centre of the global economy, and Australia is one of its premier suppliers of raw materials.
Read MoreNow watch attitudes towards the state of the Chinese economy change after a sharp fall in monthly consumer and producer inflation in October.
Read MoreGuess, what, housing finance continues to improve, and after last week’s rate cut, consumer confidence jumped sharply.
Read MoreIt’s been well known that the department store sector of retailing has been doing it tough for most of the past year, and figures released on Tuesday from Westfield confirmed that with news of a large, 3.8% fall in sales in the September quarter.
Read MoreShopping centre owner Westfield Group has confirmed its full year financial guidance after a mixed sales performance in the September quarter.
Read MoreAnother mixed report from business about confidence and conditions in October.
Read MoreWe had another solid trade performance in September, which capped a strong three months for the country’s trade account.
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