Forex Overnight: USD trading higher
The USD has strengthened against most of its major counterparts this morning, as signals from the Federal Reserve failed to alleviate investor concerns about global economic growth. At 6am, the EUR has dropped 0.2% against the USD to $1.4345, while the GBP has lost 0.3% against the USD to $1.6275.
The JPY has advanced marginally against the USD, while it has gained 0.2% against the EUR. Today, the Japanese Finance Minister, Yoshihiko Noda, indicated that one-sided moves in the JPY can hurt growth in Japan.
The AUD has weakened 0.4% against the USD, after the Australian consumer sentiment index dropped to the lowest level since May 2009.
UK Stocks: Expected to open in the green
FTSE 100 is expected to firm 42 points, at open.
Bank of England Quarterly Inflation Report and Nationwide Consumer Confidence are the key economic releases scheduled for today.
Standard Life,
Dragon Oil,
TUI Travel,
Smurfit Kappa Group and
Interserve are scheduled to report their results later today.
According to Reuters,
HSBC Holdings is nearing a deal to sell its U.S. credit card business, worth more than $30.0 billion, to Capital One Financial Corp.
According to the Economic Times,
Vodafone is moving Colman Deegan, the group head for mergers and acquisitions, to Mumbai, as the CFO, to plan and complete the listing of its operations in India.
GlaxoSmithKline and XenoPort, Inc. have announced that a supplemental New Drug Application has been submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, seeking approval of Horizant Extended-Release tablets for the management of postherpetic neuralgia in adults.
Jac Nasser, the Chairman of
BHP Billiton, has indicated that the company is confident about the long term outlook for the U.S. and Australia.
Asia: Trading higher
Asian markets have snapped their losing streak this morning, following the overnight rally on Wall Street.
At 6 am, the Nikkei is trading 1.2% higher at 9,052.5.
Tokyo Electric Power has risen sharply, after its company President, Toshio Nishizawa, indicated that government support would protect the company from insolvency. Among banking sector stocks,
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group have paced gains.
Inpex Corporation is trading higher, in line with the gain in crude oil prices.
South Korean markets have advanced, with
LG Electronics and
Samsung Electronics leading gains among electronic sector stocks. In Hong Kong, banking sector stocks have rebounded from their previous session losses, with
HSBC Holdings and
Bank of China moving higher. In the Chinese markets,
Zijin Mining Group Company is trading positive, after its first half year profit exceeded consensus estimates.
US Stocks: Futures trading lower
At 6 am, the S&P 500 futures have weakened by 3.3 points.
Key economic indicators scheduled for release include MBA Mortgage Applications, Wholesale Inventories and Monthly Budget Statement.
Cisco Systems,
News Corporation,
Polo Ralph Lauren,
Macy’s and
Computer Sciences Corporation are scheduled to announce their results today.
In after hours trading yesterday,
The Walt Disney lost 1.2%, despite posting better-than-expected quarterly earnings, following weakness in its studio segment revenues.
Amtech Systems slumped 15.5%, after orders fell sharply in the third quarter, despite robust third quarter results that beat analyst expectations. A sharp drop in second quarter earnings led
MBIA 5.9% lower.
China New Borun lost 2.8%, following weaker-than-expected revenue projection for the third quarter.
Cree climbed 9.6%, as its fourth quarter results beat consensus estimates. Better-than-expected margins in its third quarter led
Vitesse Semiconductor 19.5% higher. Other key gainers included
SMART Technologies,
Endeavour International and
Solazyme, which surged 14.6%, 12.1% and 11.9%, respectively.
The S&P 500 index closed 4.7% higher, yesterday, rebounding sharply from previous day’s losses, after the Federal Reserve pledged to retain its accommodative monetary policy at least until 2013.
Bank of America,
Hartford Financial Services and
Citigroup surged 16.7%, 15.5% and 12.3%, respectively, reflecting increased risk appetite amongst investors.
Alpha Natural Resources,
Alcoa and
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold advanced 12.9%, 8.0% and 7.5%, respectively, tracking higher commodity prices.
Pfizer climbed 5.6%, after it was included in a broker’s “Conviction Buy” list.
Ford Motor rallied 9.9%, after a broker added the company to its “U.S. 1” list.
Cablevision Systems plunged 12.8%, after its second quarter earnings came in below market expectations.
European Stocks: Likely to open in positive territory
DAX and CAC are likely to open stronger by 33 and 13 points, respectively.
German CPI and French Current Account, Industrial Production & Manufacturing Production are scheduled for release today.
Nestle SA,
GDF Suez SA,
E.ON AG and
Commerzbank AG are scheduled to report their results later today.
Consumer Watchdog, the public interest group, has told regulators that AT&T’s proposed $39.0 billion purchase
of Deutsche Telekom AG’s subsidiary, T-Mobile USA, should be rejected, as it would lead to higher prices for consumers.
Commerzbank AG has announced that its Chief Financial Officer, Eric Strutz, plans to step down when his contract expires in March 2012.
Telenet Group Holding NV has announced the initiation of its stock buyback program, and would provide weekly updates of shares bought back to cover stock option awards to management.
Saab AB’s North American President, Tim Colbeck, has stated that its parent,
Swedish Automobile NV is in "real and substantive" talks with potential investors.
Macro Update
Fed to keep rates at record low at least through mid-2013
The U.S. Federal Reserve has announced that it would keep its benchmark interest rates near zero at least through mid-2013.
China’s July exports rise 20.4%
China’s July exports have risen 20.4% Y-o-Y, with the trade surplus at $31.5 billion.
UK GDP grew 0.6% in three months through July
The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) has estimated that U.K.’s GDP rose 0.6% in the three months ended July, compared to a 0.2% growth recorded in the three months ended June.
Tertiary Industry Activity Index in Japan rises in June
The Tertiary Industry Activity Index in Japan has climbed 1.9% in June, on a seasonally adjusted basis, exceeding consensus expectations for a 1.0% rise.
South Korea unemployment rate remains unchanged in July
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in South Korea remained unchanged at 3.3% in July.
Australian Consumer Confidence drops in August
The Consumer Sentiment Index in Australia has declined 3.5% M-o-M in August, to 89.6, registering the lowest level since May 2009.
Economic Calendar
|
Country
|
BST
|
Economic Indicator
|
Relevance
|
Consensus/*Actual
|
Previous
|
Frequency
|
|
Germany
|
7:00
|
Consumer Price Index - Harmonised (YoY) (Jul)
|
PPP
|
2.40%
|
2.40%
|
Monthly
|
|
Germany
|
7:00
|
Consumer Price Index (YoY) (Jul)
|
PPP
|
2.40%
|
2.40%
|
Monthly
|
|
France
|
7:45
|
Current Account (Jun)
|
P
|
-
|
-€5.50 bn
|
Monthly
|
|
France
|
7:45
|
Industrial Production (MoM) (Jun)
|
P
|
-
|
2.00%
|
Monthly
|
|
France
|
7:45
|
Industrial Production (YoY) (Jun)
|
P
|
-
|
2.60%
|
Monthly
|
|
France
|
7:45
|
Manufacturing Production (MoM) (Jun)
|
P
|
-0.10%
|
1.50%
|
Monthly
|
|
France
|
7:45
|
Manufacturing Production (YoY) (Jun)
|
P
|
6.80%
|
5.40%
|
Monthly
|
|
UK
|
10:30
|
BoE's Quarterly Inflation Report
|
PPP
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
UK
|
10:30
|
BoE's Governor King Speech
|
PPP
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
US
|
12:00
|
MBA Mortgage Applications (W/E)
|
P
|
-
|
7.10%
|
Weekly
|
|
US
|
15:00
|
Wholesale Inventories (Jun)
|
P
|
1.00%
|
1.80%
|
Monthly
|
|
US
|
15:30
|
EIA Crude Oil Stocks change (W/E) (Barrels)
|
P
|
-
|
1.00 mn
|
Weekly
|
|
US
|
19:00
|
Monthly Budget Statement (Jul)
|
PP
|
-$140.00 bn
|
-$43.10 bn
|
Monthly
|
|
Japan
|
0:50
|
Tertiary Industry Index (MoM) (Jun)
|
PP
|
1.90%*
|
0.80%
|
Monthly
|
|
Japan
|
0:50
|
Domestic Corporate Goods Price Index (MoM) (Jul)
|
P
|
0.20%*
|
0.10%
|
Monthly
|
|
Japan
|
0:50
|
Domestic Corporate Goods Price Index (YoY) (Jul)
|
P
|
2.90%*
|
2.60%
|
Monthly
|
|
Japan
|
0:50
|
Housing Loans (YoY) (Q2)
|
P
|
2.40%*
|
2.70%
|
Quarterly
|
|
UK
|
-
|
Nationwide Consumer Confidence (Jul)
|
PP
|
-
|
51.00
|
Monthly
|
Note: PPPHigh PPMedium PLow
Corporate Calendar
|
Country
|
Company Name
|
Index
|
Announcement
|
|
UK
|
Interserve Plc
|
FTSE All Share
|
Interim
|
|
UK
|
Quintain Estates & Development Plc
|
FTSE All Share
|
Trading
|
|
UK
|
Standard Life Plc
|
FTSE All Share
|
Interim
|
|
UK
|
TUI Travel Plc
|
FTSE All Share
|
Trading
|
|
Germany
|
Commerzbank AG
|
DAX 30
|
Q2 Earnings Release
|
|
Germany
|
E.ON AG
|
DAX 30
|
Q2 Earnings Release
|
|
Germany
|
Fresenius SE & Co KGaA
|
DAX 30
|
Q2 Earnings Release
|
|
Germany
|
Henkel AG & Co KGaA
|
DAX 30
|
Q2 Earnings Release
|
|
France
|
GDF Suez SA
|
CAC 40, EuroStoxx 50
|
Interim
|
|
US
|
Cisco Systems Inc
|
S&P 500
|
Q4 Earnings Release
|
|
US
|
Computer Sciences Corporation
|
S&P 500
|
Q1 Earnings Release
|
|
US
|
Harman International Industries Inc
|
S&P 500
|
Q4 Earnings Release
|
|
US
|
Macy's Inc
|
S&P 500
|
Q2 Earnings Release
|
|
US
|
News Corporation
|
S&P 500
|
Q4 Earnings Release
|
|
US
|
Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation
|
S&P 500
|
Q1 Earnings Release
|
Ex-Dividend Calendar
|
Country
|
Company Name
|
Index
|
Announcement
|
|
UK
|
BT Group Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Final Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
GKN Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Interim Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
Rio Tinto Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Interim Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
RSA Insurance Group Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Interim Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
Schroders Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Interim Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
Standard Chartered Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Interim Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
Barclays Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Quarterly Ex-Dividend
|
|
UK
|
Unilever Plc
|
FTSE 100
|
Quarterly Ex-Dividend
|