Afternoon Call – 31st October 2008
- Another productive day in the Live Room today.
- We had 3 Live Calls, all 3 trades making very good profits.
- Our early morning bias towards dollar strength worked out very nicely.
- We had trading opportunities in the Yen crosses just before the Live Room opened.
GBP/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.6213
- Trade: Break of immediate support level on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bearish momentum
- Maximum move: 1.6115, (98 pips)
- 1st Level 1.6145, +68 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.6148, +65 (1/2 position)
- Trade was closed after the pair bounced of the 2nd support level.
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
USD/CHF - Long Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.1480
- Trade: Break of immediate resistance level on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bullish momentum
- Maximum move: 1.1542, (+62 pips)
- 1st Level 1.1535, +55 (full position)
- Trade was closed after the pair moved lower of the 2nd resistance level.
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
USD/CAD - Long Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.2190
- Trade: Breakout of pennant on the 15min chart
- (Alternative entry was the break of 1.2247 resistance level)
- 21CCI: Showing signs of a bullish bias
- Maximum move: 1.2378, (188 pips)
- 1st Level 1.2235, +45 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.2280, +90 (1/4 position)
- 3rd Level 1.2270, +80 (1/4 position)
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
UPDATE - US Session
USD/CHF
- Keep a close eye on the break of the 1.1541 resistance level and the trendline break.
- Possible move towards 1.1657
- Be careful with the news coming out in the US and that it is Friday.
EUR/JPY
- Look for the break of the trendline.
- We have had a strong reversal from the morning lows.
- 200MA is just above the trendline.
- Be careful with the news coming out in the US and that it is Friday.
USD/JPY
- Look for the breakout of the range.
- 99.09 on the upside and 96.41 below.
- Be careful with the news coming out in the US and that it is Friday.
EUR/USD
- Keep an eye on the 15min trendline.
- Overall pressure seems to be on the bearish side but we may get a reaction up.
- Be careful with the news coming out in the US and that it is Friday.
Friday, 31 October 2008
Thursday, 30 October 2008
Market Wrap, Thursday 30th October 2008
The FTSE closed up 23.46 points at 4,266, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 234.67 points at 6,223.78, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed up 23.92 points at 1,912.27. The miners did well today, with the banks also showing some confidence again. It was a good start on Wall Street too, after some decent US economic data for a change.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 100 points at 9,090, whilst the S&P500 was up 12 points at 942, and the Nasdaq up 19 points at 1,701. Whilst 100 points looks ok, this was well off the session high hit early on. News that the US economy had shrank less than forecast in Q3 helped, as well as the expected imminent interest rate cuts around the world.
Back here in London, the workers with the black stuff were doing well on the whole, with oil industry support companies doing better. Hopes of the price stablising were around, but that didn't help as oil was tarding down 3-bucks again at US$64.50 bbl. But AMEC closed up 62.5p at 493.25p, Petrofac up nearly 50p at 420p, and Wood Group closed up 24.25p at 230.25p. Major oiler RD Shell posted some very good figures, with Q3 profits up 71% at US$10.9bn. The company said it has increased its interim dividend by 11%, but the shares fell back 81p to 1,589p afer some profit-taking.
On to the miners, some upbeat updates helped the sector. Kazakhmys closed up nearly 33p at 301.25p, whilst Lonmin closed up 44p at 1,120p after both giving decent updates. Peers followed up, with BHP Billiton closing up 48p at 1,008p after saying that it has ruled out any cash incentive to be added to its all-share US$69bn offer for Rio Tinto. Rio closed up 89p at 2,766p.
On to the banks, where there were some continun-ing smilkes and relief. RBS closed up 2.8p at 66.8p, whilst HBOS closed up 6p at 94p, and Lloyds TSB up 18.3p at 197.5p.
Unilever closed down 7p at 1,336p after reporting underlying sales growth of 7.4% in the first nine months with 8.3% in Q3. The operating margin of 24.2% in the quarter was boosted by profits on disposals.
On to pharma giant Astrazeneca, who closed up 127p at 2,550p after announcing Q3 figures much better than expected.
Advertising group WPP Group closed up 31p at 363.5p despite warning that next year will be very tough and that it may also struggle to meet its 2008 margin targets.
On to house prices, where the news was that UK house prices fell 1.4% in October, which is 0.1% less than the 1.5% fall in September. This year prices are 14.6% lower than last year. Housebuilders didn't like this news, but hopes of an interest rate cut helped. Barratts closed up nearly 10p at 64p, Bovis Homes up over 17p at 321.25p, and Persimmons closed up nearly 21p at just shy of 272p.
On to leisure, where UK nightclub King Luminar closed down nearly 20p at 160p after announcing a 37% fall in H1 profits. Broker reaction was a 240p target, down from 260p.
Rolls Royce closed up over 26p at 314.25p after reporting it was trading in line with expectations. Broker Numis reiterated its 'add' stance and 330p target.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 100 points at 9,090, whilst the S&P500 was up 12 points at 942, and the Nasdaq up 19 points at 1,701. Whilst 100 points looks ok, this was well off the session high hit early on. News that the US economy had shrank less than forecast in Q3 helped, as well as the expected imminent interest rate cuts around the world.
Back here in London, the workers with the black stuff were doing well on the whole, with oil industry support companies doing better. Hopes of the price stablising were around, but that didn't help as oil was tarding down 3-bucks again at US$64.50 bbl. But AMEC closed up 62.5p at 493.25p, Petrofac up nearly 50p at 420p, and Wood Group closed up 24.25p at 230.25p. Major oiler RD Shell posted some very good figures, with Q3 profits up 71% at US$10.9bn. The company said it has increased its interim dividend by 11%, but the shares fell back 81p to 1,589p afer some profit-taking.
On to the miners, some upbeat updates helped the sector. Kazakhmys closed up nearly 33p at 301.25p, whilst Lonmin closed up 44p at 1,120p after both giving decent updates. Peers followed up, with BHP Billiton closing up 48p at 1,008p after saying that it has ruled out any cash incentive to be added to its all-share US$69bn offer for Rio Tinto. Rio closed up 89p at 2,766p.
On to the banks, where there were some continun-ing smilkes and relief. RBS closed up 2.8p at 66.8p, whilst HBOS closed up 6p at 94p, and Lloyds TSB up 18.3p at 197.5p.
Unilever closed down 7p at 1,336p after reporting underlying sales growth of 7.4% in the first nine months with 8.3% in Q3. The operating margin of 24.2% in the quarter was boosted by profits on disposals.
On to pharma giant Astrazeneca, who closed up 127p at 2,550p after announcing Q3 figures much better than expected.
Advertising group WPP Group closed up 31p at 363.5p despite warning that next year will be very tough and that it may also struggle to meet its 2008 margin targets.
On to house prices, where the news was that UK house prices fell 1.4% in October, which is 0.1% less than the 1.5% fall in September. This year prices are 14.6% lower than last year. Housebuilders didn't like this news, but hopes of an interest rate cut helped. Barratts closed up nearly 10p at 64p, Bovis Homes up over 17p at 321.25p, and Persimmons closed up nearly 21p at just shy of 272p.
On to leisure, where UK nightclub King Luminar closed down nearly 20p at 160p after announcing a 37% fall in H1 profits. Broker reaction was a 240p target, down from 260p.
Rolls Royce closed up over 26p at 314.25p after reporting it was trading in line with expectations. Broker Numis reiterated its 'add' stance and 330p target.
Forex - Afternoon Call & Update - Thursday 30th October 2008
Here's an update on this morning Live Room & Trades...
Afternoon Call – 30th October 2008
- A very good day in the Live Room today.
- We had 3 Live Calls, 2 trades making very good profits and 1 trade closed out flat.
- After an initial period of consolidation we had some late activity in the session.
EUR/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.3149
- Trade: Breakout of pennant on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bearish momentum
- MA: Break of 50MA after breaking through trendline
- Maximum move: 1.3030, (119 pips)
- 1st Level 1.3105, +44 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.3065, +84 (1/4 position)
- 3rd Level 1.3040, +109 (1/4 position)
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
GBP/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.6537
- Trade: Break of trendline on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bearish momentum
- MA: Break of 50MA after breaking through trendline
- Maximum move: 1.6425, (112 pips)
- 1st Level 1.6490, +47 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.6466, +71 (1/4 position)
- 3rd Level 1.6450, +87 (1/4 position)
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
USD/CHF - Long Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.1335
- Trade: Break of immediate resistance level on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Showing signs of a bullish bias
- Maximum move: 1.1357, (22 pips)
- 1st Level 1.1335, +0 (full position)
- Stop: Moved to breakeven when the pair reached 1.1355
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
The charts are supplied to subscribers via e-mail.
Afternoon Call – 30th October 2008
- A very good day in the Live Room today.
- We had 3 Live Calls, 2 trades making very good profits and 1 trade closed out flat.
- After an initial period of consolidation we had some late activity in the session.
EUR/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.3149
- Trade: Breakout of pennant on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bearish momentum
- MA: Break of 50MA after breaking through trendline
- Maximum move: 1.3030, (119 pips)
- 1st Level 1.3105, +44 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.3065, +84 (1/4 position)
- 3rd Level 1.3040, +109 (1/4 position)
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
GBP/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.6537
- Trade: Break of trendline on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Bearish momentum
- MA: Break of 50MA after breaking through trendline
- Maximum move: 1.6425, (112 pips)
- 1st Level 1.6490, +47 (1/2 position)
- 2nd Level 1.6466, +71 (1/4 position)
- 3rd Level 1.6450, +87 (1/4 position)
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
USD/CHF - Long Call
- Live Room Call: Entry on the break of 1.1335
- Trade: Break of immediate resistance level on the 15min chart
- 21CCI: Showing signs of a bullish bias
- Maximum move: 1.1357, (22 pips)
- 1st Level 1.1335, +0 (full position)
- Stop: Moved to breakeven when the pair reached 1.1355
- (Allow for few pips slippage on entry/exit levels)
The charts are supplied to subscribers via e-mail.
Forex - Morning Call - Thursday 30th October 2008
Here is the e-mail sent today. A Forex summary like this is sent to subscribers at 6am each morning.
Morning Call – 30th October 2008 (06:25 UK)
EUR/USD
-Low 1.2621, High 1.2990
-The Euro moved higher throughout the European and US session yesterday.
-This morning has seen the pair break through the key resistance level of 1.3000.
-1.3300 and 1.3400 are key resistance levels, we may get a move lower from these levels.
-In the Asian session this morning the pair made a high of 1.3291.
-A break of this sees the pair heading towards 1.3400, 1.3535.
-A move below yesterday’s high of 1.2990 would send prices lower.
-Support levels at 1.2845, 12755.
GBP/USD
-Low 1.5933, High 1.6475
-The Pound has advanced over 600 pips since yesterday’s low of 1.5993.
-There seems to be strong resistance at 1.6605.
-A break above 1.6615-20 region should provide gains towards 1.6682, 1.6770.
-We must observe at these resistance levels (1.6605, 1.6620) for a possible reversal.
-If we see prices moving through 1.6450 we will get a bearish momentum.
-Supports at 1.6310, 1.6200.
USD/JPY
-Low 96.07, High 98.45
-After falling in the Asian session yesterday the pair moved sideways.
-There were some gains of around 100 pips after the Fed announcement.
-A break above the Asian session high of 99.11 would push prices higher.
-There is resistance at 99.66, 100.57.
-We may get moves lower from these levels.
-A move below 97.90 has resistance at 97.40, 96.07 (yesterday’s low).
USD/CHF
-Low 1.1255, High 1.1585
-The USD/CHF finally managed to break out of the trading range of the last few days.
-As long key resistance levels hold we expect further losses in the pair.
-A move above 1.1335 has resistance at 1.1435, 1.1545
-Morning Asian session low is at 1.1209.
-If prices fall below 1.1255 we should see the extension towards 1.1200, 1.1130.
Morning Call – 30th October 2008 (06:25 UK)
EUR/USD
-Low 1.2621, High 1.2990
-The Euro moved higher throughout the European and US session yesterday.
-This morning has seen the pair break through the key resistance level of 1.3000.
-1.3300 and 1.3400 are key resistance levels, we may get a move lower from these levels.
-In the Asian session this morning the pair made a high of 1.3291.
-A break of this sees the pair heading towards 1.3400, 1.3535.
-A move below yesterday’s high of 1.2990 would send prices lower.
-Support levels at 1.2845, 12755.
GBP/USD
-Low 1.5933, High 1.6475
-The Pound has advanced over 600 pips since yesterday’s low of 1.5993.
-There seems to be strong resistance at 1.6605.
-A break above 1.6615-20 region should provide gains towards 1.6682, 1.6770.
-We must observe at these resistance levels (1.6605, 1.6620) for a possible reversal.
-If we see prices moving through 1.6450 we will get a bearish momentum.
-Supports at 1.6310, 1.6200.
USD/JPY
-Low 96.07, High 98.45
-After falling in the Asian session yesterday the pair moved sideways.
-There were some gains of around 100 pips after the Fed announcement.
-A break above the Asian session high of 99.11 would push prices higher.
-There is resistance at 99.66, 100.57.
-We may get moves lower from these levels.
-A move below 97.90 has resistance at 97.40, 96.07 (yesterday’s low).
USD/CHF
-Low 1.1255, High 1.1585
-The USD/CHF finally managed to break out of the trading range of the last few days.
-As long key resistance levels hold we expect further losses in the pair.
-A move above 1.1335 has resistance at 1.1435, 1.1545
-Morning Asian session low is at 1.1209.
-If prices fall below 1.1255 we should see the extension towards 1.1200, 1.1130.
Wednesday, 29 October 2008
Market Wrap, Wednesday, 29th October 2008
The FTSE closed up a healthy 280.43 points at 4,206.81, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 289.85 points at 5,989.11, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed up 38.17 points better at 1,888.35. The banks had a good day, as did the miners.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJIA was up 76.7 points at 9,141.82, while the S&P500 gained 7 points at 947.51 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 19.39 points at 1,668.86. US stocks were higher in morning trade, after the previous day's massive rally, with investors anticipating a half-point rate cut from the Federal Reserve and lifted by an unexpected gain in durable goods orders.
Back here in London, the banks had a good day. RBS closed up some 13%, or 7.2p at 64p, whilst Barclays was up 5%, HBOS up 19.4p at 88p, and KLloyds TSB up 16.7p at 179.2p. Some big percentage rises in there.
Staying with financials, Norwich Union owner Aviva closed up 65p at 324p, Old Mutual closed up 9p at 48p, The Pru up 47p at 295.25p, and Admiral closed up 53.5p at 922p.
On to the miners, where metal prices firmed. BHP clossed up 117.5p at 960p, Rio up 419p at 2,677p, Anglo American up 238p at 1,379p, and Lonmins up 64p at 1,076p. One negative in the mining sector was Ferrexpo, who closed down 13.5p to just shy of 40p after announcing that the CEO had resigned, adding that annual sales would be 5% to 10% lower than expected. The current share price down to 40p, a far cry from the 450-odd pence in July!
On to the black stuff, where oil gained about 4 or 5 bucks in a day, now trading nearer US$68 bbl. This helped the majors, with BP closing up 44.25p at just shy of 506p, RD Shell clsoing up 180p at 1,670p, and Cairn Energy closing up a decent 142p at 1,346p after am upbeat production update.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks closed up 3.75p at 223.5p, whilst clothing peer next closed up 111p at 1,011p, and Home Retail Group closed up nearly 18p at just over the 2-quid level at 200.75p. Staying with retail, and on to supermarkets, investors were also moving back in. Tesco closed up 13.7p at 332.3p, Sainsburys up 10.75p at 267.5p, and Morrisons closed up 11.75p at 245.5p. All this depite press reports that the UK retailers faced a challenging run-up to Xmas, as the October sales figures for the High Street were down again, according to the Confederation of British Industry.
On to travel, namely bus and coaches, where Stagecoach closed down 13.3p at 192.2p despite a fairly decent udate this morning.
Anyone spreadbetting should note that WorldSpreads seems to be doing well amongst all the doom and gloom. The spreadbet firm closed up 3.5p at 62p after saying that its H1 profits had doubled, and that it is confident of exceeding full year targets. We suggest you just stay in the Live Room and see the real profitable trades. Take the cash off them!
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJIA was up 76.7 points at 9,141.82, while the S&P500 gained 7 points at 947.51 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 19.39 points at 1,668.86. US stocks were higher in morning trade, after the previous day's massive rally, with investors anticipating a half-point rate cut from the Federal Reserve and lifted by an unexpected gain in durable goods orders.
Back here in London, the banks had a good day. RBS closed up some 13%, or 7.2p at 64p, whilst Barclays was up 5%, HBOS up 19.4p at 88p, and KLloyds TSB up 16.7p at 179.2p. Some big percentage rises in there.
Staying with financials, Norwich Union owner Aviva closed up 65p at 324p, Old Mutual closed up 9p at 48p, The Pru up 47p at 295.25p, and Admiral closed up 53.5p at 922p.
On to the miners, where metal prices firmed. BHP clossed up 117.5p at 960p, Rio up 419p at 2,677p, Anglo American up 238p at 1,379p, and Lonmins up 64p at 1,076p. One negative in the mining sector was Ferrexpo, who closed down 13.5p to just shy of 40p after announcing that the CEO had resigned, adding that annual sales would be 5% to 10% lower than expected. The current share price down to 40p, a far cry from the 450-odd pence in July!
On to the black stuff, where oil gained about 4 or 5 bucks in a day, now trading nearer US$68 bbl. This helped the majors, with BP closing up 44.25p at just shy of 506p, RD Shell clsoing up 180p at 1,670p, and Cairn Energy closing up a decent 142p at 1,346p after am upbeat production update.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks closed up 3.75p at 223.5p, whilst clothing peer next closed up 111p at 1,011p, and Home Retail Group closed up nearly 18p at just over the 2-quid level at 200.75p. Staying with retail, and on to supermarkets, investors were also moving back in. Tesco closed up 13.7p at 332.3p, Sainsburys up 10.75p at 267.5p, and Morrisons closed up 11.75p at 245.5p. All this depite press reports that the UK retailers faced a challenging run-up to Xmas, as the October sales figures for the High Street were down again, according to the Confederation of British Industry.
On to travel, namely bus and coaches, where Stagecoach closed down 13.3p at 192.2p despite a fairly decent udate this morning.
Anyone spreadbetting should note that WorldSpreads seems to be doing well amongst all the doom and gloom. The spreadbet firm closed up 3.5p at 62p after saying that its H1 profits had doubled, and that it is confident of exceeding full year targets. We suggest you just stay in the Live Room and see the real profitable trades. Take the cash off them!
Forex - Afternoon Call - Wednesday 29th October 2008
Carrying on from this morning in the live room...
Afternoon Call – 29th October 2008 (1pm UK)
- A relatively quite session this morning.
- We had 3 Live Calls, 2 trades closed out at breakeven and 1 with a small loss.
- We were anticipating a mild push through yesterday’s highs on the Euro and Pound.
- This positive move was expected after an initial move lower.
- The focus now is the FOMC rate decision during the US session.
- The futures markets are pricing in a ½% cut to 1.00%, with a 40% chance of a ¾% cut.
GBP/USD – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.6000.
- This was a break of the immediate support line.
- The 50MA was also penetrated above.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of moving towards bearish momentum.
- After the break of 1.6000 the pair made a low of 1.5965. (35 pips)
- After some sideways action we closed the trade at breakeven.
- Initial target area was 1.5950.
- (General room entry was 1.5990-95 and exit 1.5990-95)
- We had given a possible trade entry, in the morning call, on the break of 1.6112.
- The trade hit the first Level target of 1.6220. (+108 pips).
- (This trade occurred just before the Live Room opened).
USD/CAD -Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.2680.
- This was a break of this morning’s Asian session low.
- 1 hr and 15min charts, 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- After the break of 1.2680 the pair made a low of 1.2622. (+58 pips)
- The stop was moved to breakeven once the pair fell to 1.2640.
- Initial target was 1.2612, after making a low of 1.2622 the pair reversed.
- The trade was closed out at breakeven.
- Unfortunately having been closed out by 5-6 pips the pair made lows of 1.2470.
EUR/JPY - Long Call
- Live Room Call - Partial Entry on break of 124.04 then 124.51.
- 124.04 level was the break of the recent high.
- After the break of 124.51 the pair made a high of 124.73.
- On the break of 124.51 the stop was placed at initial entry level 124.04 region.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of bullish momentum.
- After making a high of 124.73 the trade reversed as was stopped out at 124.04.
- The average loss after partial entries was around 30pips.
GBP/JPY – Breakout trade
- Will be looking for a break out of this pennant on the 15min chart.
- Remember to take quick profits as the markets will be volatile due to FOMC decision.
Obviously the e-mail sent to subscribers has accompnaying charts explaining the set ups etc.
Afternoon Call – 29th October 2008 (1pm UK)
- A relatively quite session this morning.
- We had 3 Live Calls, 2 trades closed out at breakeven and 1 with a small loss.
- We were anticipating a mild push through yesterday’s highs on the Euro and Pound.
- This positive move was expected after an initial move lower.
- The focus now is the FOMC rate decision during the US session.
- The futures markets are pricing in a ½% cut to 1.00%, with a 40% chance of a ¾% cut.
GBP/USD – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.6000.
- This was a break of the immediate support line.
- The 50MA was also penetrated above.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of moving towards bearish momentum.
- After the break of 1.6000 the pair made a low of 1.5965. (35 pips)
- After some sideways action we closed the trade at breakeven.
- Initial target area was 1.5950.
- (General room entry was 1.5990-95 and exit 1.5990-95)
- We had given a possible trade entry, in the morning call, on the break of 1.6112.
- The trade hit the first Level target of 1.6220. (+108 pips).
- (This trade occurred just before the Live Room opened).
USD/CAD -Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.2680.
- This was a break of this morning’s Asian session low.
- 1 hr and 15min charts, 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- After the break of 1.2680 the pair made a low of 1.2622. (+58 pips)
- The stop was moved to breakeven once the pair fell to 1.2640.
- Initial target was 1.2612, after making a low of 1.2622 the pair reversed.
- The trade was closed out at breakeven.
- Unfortunately having been closed out by 5-6 pips the pair made lows of 1.2470.
EUR/JPY - Long Call
- Live Room Call - Partial Entry on break of 124.04 then 124.51.
- 124.04 level was the break of the recent high.
- After the break of 124.51 the pair made a high of 124.73.
- On the break of 124.51 the stop was placed at initial entry level 124.04 region.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of bullish momentum.
- After making a high of 124.73 the trade reversed as was stopped out at 124.04.
- The average loss after partial entries was around 30pips.
GBP/JPY – Breakout trade
- Will be looking for a break out of this pennant on the 15min chart.
- Remember to take quick profits as the markets will be volatile due to FOMC decision.
Obviously the e-mail sent to subscribers has accompnaying charts explaining the set ups etc.
Morning Market, Wednesday 29th October 2008
The FTSE was up some 5% this morning, which was expected after the US rally last night. The FTSE 100 was up over 200 points at 4,130 this morning, which was on top of the nigh-on 2% rise yesterday, but is still down 15% on the month. News from the UK's financial minister, Alistair 'someone please tell me what to do' Darling, was that he suggests world governments should adapt their country's economic policies to help tackle the fall-out from the global financial crisis (as opposed to trying to make it worse, then...?). Rumours were rife that the UK will be dropping its fiscal rules limiting borrowing levels. The Bank of England policymaker, Tim Besley, said yesterday that the UK economy would weaken further (another obvious statement), adding that interest rate cuts were not a 'magic bullet' as consumption might not respond to changes in borrowing costs. (He better shout louder as the US Fed Reserve will need a nudge on that front. They'll be down to 1% soon, it looks like. The dollar presses are working overtime.)
Over the pond last night, a big bounce of 10% was a reaction to further expected interest rate cuts and belief that maybe the bottom was now around, although many felt that there was some massive short positions being closed, which also helped the rise. Wall Street marked its second-best day ever on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones industrial average up 10.9 percent, the S&P 500 up 10.8 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index up 9.5 percent.
In the Far East today, the Nikkei 225 closed up 7.7%, whilst in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was up nearly 2%. Hopes in the Far East were that Japan would be cutting its interest rates later this week, so to follow on from the USA.
Oil was down nearly a buck to US$62 bbl overnight, but was recovering this morning. Gold was slightly up.
Back here in London, the banks and commodity sectors had some renewed interest, with mining shorts being closed as investors felt the sector was oversold. the banks had the trough feeders looking for some value too. There is hope that a global central banks interest rate cut will be on the cards again (much to the BoE's disgust, it may seem). The banks did well on the whole early doors, with the expected 0.5% cut in interest rate cuts in the US expected later today. RBS, Barclays, HSBC< HBOS, Lloyds TSB & Standard Chartered were all up between 3% and 17% this morning. Healthy rises there.
Staying with financials, namely insurance, The Pru, Norwich Union owner Aviva, Old Mutual and Standard Life were all up between 3.5% and 22% this morning.
Back to the black stuff, where oil pushing back up again saw the oil majors doing ok. BP was up 6.5% this morning, whilst RD Shell was up 6.3% and BG Group up 10.5% already this morning.
On to the miners, where there was also some demand, with BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, ENRC, Xstrata, Vedanta and Anglo American all up between 6% and 11% this mornin g. Some serious rallies there.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks was up 4.25% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was up 5%. All this depsite concerns on consumer spending this Xmas, whish is expected to be considerable less than last year.
Over the pond last night, a big bounce of 10% was a reaction to further expected interest rate cuts and belief that maybe the bottom was now around, although many felt that there was some massive short positions being closed, which also helped the rise. Wall Street marked its second-best day ever on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones industrial average up 10.9 percent, the S&P 500 up 10.8 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index up 9.5 percent.
In the Far East today, the Nikkei 225 closed up 7.7%, whilst in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was up nearly 2%. Hopes in the Far East were that Japan would be cutting its interest rates later this week, so to follow on from the USA.
Oil was down nearly a buck to US$62 bbl overnight, but was recovering this morning. Gold was slightly up.
Back here in London, the banks and commodity sectors had some renewed interest, with mining shorts being closed as investors felt the sector was oversold. the banks had the trough feeders looking for some value too. There is hope that a global central banks interest rate cut will be on the cards again (much to the BoE's disgust, it may seem). The banks did well on the whole early doors, with the expected 0.5% cut in interest rate cuts in the US expected later today. RBS, Barclays, HSBC< HBOS, Lloyds TSB & Standard Chartered were all up between 3% and 17% this morning. Healthy rises there.
Staying with financials, namely insurance, The Pru, Norwich Union owner Aviva, Old Mutual and Standard Life were all up between 3.5% and 22% this morning.
Back to the black stuff, where oil pushing back up again saw the oil majors doing ok. BP was up 6.5% this morning, whilst RD Shell was up 6.3% and BG Group up 10.5% already this morning.
On to the miners, where there was also some demand, with BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, ENRC, Xstrata, Vedanta and Anglo American all up between 6% and 11% this mornin g. Some serious rallies there.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks was up 4.25% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was up 5%. All this depsite concerns on consumer spending this Xmas, whish is expected to be considerable less than last year.
Forex Forecasts & Trades, Wednesday 29th October 2008
For those coming in the Live Room today - here's a sumamry of what we expect:
Morning Call – 29th October 2008 (06:25 UK)
EUR/USD
-Low 1.2324, High 1.2830
-After initial weakness yesterday, the Euro advanced strongly in the US session.
-Strong gains in the stock markets fuelled the rally.
-This morning, in the Asian session, the pair has reversed from its highs.
-We may see some further gains (not a deep correction) but after initial weakness.
-A move above 1.2800 should push prices towards the morning high of 1.2843.
-Resistance overhead is seen at 1.2900, 1.2944, 1.3005.
-On the downside, the break of 1.2670 sees prices moving towards 1.2590.
-Further support at 1.2555, 1.2511, 1.2442
GBP/USD
-Low 1.5397, High 1.6039
-After making a low in the Asian session the Pound gained in the European and US sessions.
-As with the Euro, the Pound advanced strongly in the US session as the stocks rallied.
-We can expect a pullback before any attempt is made to test the previous high.
-Asian high this morning is 1.6112.
-A break of this level would see prices facing resistance at 1.6220, 1.6320
-A move below 1.6000 would see support at 1.5950, 1.5870, 1.5800
USD/JPY
-Low 92.63, High 99.66
-The pair advanced strongly throughout the day yesterday.
-The rally in the Nikkei and possible intervention by BoJ gave support.
-We can expect the pair to give away some gains today after the run yesterday.
-A move above 98.50 sees resistance at 99.01, 99.66, 100.60
-A break of 96.85 see support at 96.00, 95.30 (fib), 94.26 (fib).
USD/CHF
-Low 1.1515, High 1.1657
-The pair is still trading in the range it has been over the last few days.
-Yesterday the USD/CHF saw a trading range of 140 pips.
-A move above 1.1586 see prices move into the consolidation range.
-We expect the pair to have a slight downward bias today.
-A break above 1.1615 would see the pair test yesterday’s high 1.1657 then 1.1713, 1.1749.
-Down below 1.1503 sees support at 1.1483, 1.1460 (fib), 1.1380
Come & Join the Live Room NOW.
Morning Call – 29th October 2008 (06:25 UK)
EUR/USD
-Low 1.2324, High 1.2830
-After initial weakness yesterday, the Euro advanced strongly in the US session.
-Strong gains in the stock markets fuelled the rally.
-This morning, in the Asian session, the pair has reversed from its highs.
-We may see some further gains (not a deep correction) but after initial weakness.
-A move above 1.2800 should push prices towards the morning high of 1.2843.
-Resistance overhead is seen at 1.2900, 1.2944, 1.3005.
-On the downside, the break of 1.2670 sees prices moving towards 1.2590.
-Further support at 1.2555, 1.2511, 1.2442
GBP/USD
-Low 1.5397, High 1.6039
-After making a low in the Asian session the Pound gained in the European and US sessions.
-As with the Euro, the Pound advanced strongly in the US session as the stocks rallied.
-We can expect a pullback before any attempt is made to test the previous high.
-Asian high this morning is 1.6112.
-A break of this level would see prices facing resistance at 1.6220, 1.6320
-A move below 1.6000 would see support at 1.5950, 1.5870, 1.5800
USD/JPY
-Low 92.63, High 99.66
-The pair advanced strongly throughout the day yesterday.
-The rally in the Nikkei and possible intervention by BoJ gave support.
-We can expect the pair to give away some gains today after the run yesterday.
-A move above 98.50 sees resistance at 99.01, 99.66, 100.60
-A break of 96.85 see support at 96.00, 95.30 (fib), 94.26 (fib).
USD/CHF
-Low 1.1515, High 1.1657
-The pair is still trading in the range it has been over the last few days.
-Yesterday the USD/CHF saw a trading range of 140 pips.
-A move above 1.1586 see prices move into the consolidation range.
-We expect the pair to have a slight downward bias today.
-A break above 1.1615 would see the pair test yesterday’s high 1.1657 then 1.1713, 1.1749.
-Down below 1.1503 sees support at 1.1483, 1.1460 (fib), 1.1380
Come & Join the Live Room NOW.
Tuesday, 28 October 2008
Market Wrap, Tuesday 28th October 2008
The FTSE 100 closed up 68.69 points at 3,921.28, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 7.51 points at 5,698.18, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed down 7.1 points at 1,844.81. Headline shares closed the session firmer, but off early highs, driven by financial issues as Aviva and Standard Chartered moved to the top of the leaderboard, and following a strong start to trading on Wall Street.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 204 points at 8,380, whilst the S&P500 was up 17 points at 866,. and the Nasdaq up 20 mpoints at 1,526. Trough feeders were out in force.
Back here in London, oil major BP closed up 23.5p at 461.5p after annoucing record profits for its 3rd quarter, which were up nigh on 150% on last time out at some £10 bln. Blimey. Peers liked the news, with RD Shell closing up 94p at 1,490p and BG Group up 46.5p at 710.5p. Staying with the black stuff, the price of oil was fairly steady at US$63 bbl.
On to the miners, where a decent start to the day tailed off, with most falling back later in the session. The Kazakh miners were said to be cutting production due to demand fears, resulting in share prices peeling back. ENRC closed down 36p at 270p, whilst national peer Kazakhmys closaed down 7.5p at 233p. Lonmin closed down 75p at 1,012p and Anglo American closed down 65p at 1,141p.
On to the banks, where Asian biased Standard Chartered had a good day, closing up 20p at 7-quid after saying in its interim statment that it continues to make good progress during the Q3 this year. Peers didn't do so well, with RBS closing down 0.4p at 56.8p, Barclays down 11.4p to 180p, and Lloyds TSB closing down 7.4p at 162.5p. HBOS did better, though, closing up 7.6p at 68.6p.
Staying with financials, insurance giant and Norwich Union owner Aviva closed up almost 14p at 259p after announcing some decent sales figures which were better than expected. Peers were mixed, with Admiral closing up 75.5p at 868.5p, Royal Sun Alliance cloising up 9.4p at 132.9p, but The Pru closing down over 28p at 248.25p.
On to the High Street, where retailers felt some pressure on the back of financial worries and concerns on spending. Marks & Sparks closed down 4.5p at just shy of 220p, whilst even supermarket King Tesco felt pressure, closing down 15p at 318.6p
On to travel, where bus and train operator Arriva announced a fairly upbeat statment helping the shares close up 14p at 590.5p. Peers also did well, with National Express closing up 8.5p at 560.5p, FirstGroup up 4.25p at 419.25p, Go-Ahead up 49p at 1,462p, and Stagecoach closed up 9.1p at 205.5p.
ARM Holdings closed up 17p to 97.5p after announcing a 17% rise in profit for Q3, which was better than expected, adding that US revenue in Q4 will also be at least at expectations.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 204 points at 8,380, whilst the S&P500 was up 17 points at 866,. and the Nasdaq up 20 mpoints at 1,526. Trough feeders were out in force.
Back here in London, oil major BP closed up 23.5p at 461.5p after annoucing record profits for its 3rd quarter, which were up nigh on 150% on last time out at some £10 bln. Blimey. Peers liked the news, with RD Shell closing up 94p at 1,490p and BG Group up 46.5p at 710.5p. Staying with the black stuff, the price of oil was fairly steady at US$63 bbl.
On to the miners, where a decent start to the day tailed off, with most falling back later in the session. The Kazakh miners were said to be cutting production due to demand fears, resulting in share prices peeling back. ENRC closed down 36p at 270p, whilst national peer Kazakhmys closaed down 7.5p at 233p. Lonmin closed down 75p at 1,012p and Anglo American closed down 65p at 1,141p.
On to the banks, where Asian biased Standard Chartered had a good day, closing up 20p at 7-quid after saying in its interim statment that it continues to make good progress during the Q3 this year. Peers didn't do so well, with RBS closing down 0.4p at 56.8p, Barclays down 11.4p to 180p, and Lloyds TSB closing down 7.4p at 162.5p. HBOS did better, though, closing up 7.6p at 68.6p.
Staying with financials, insurance giant and Norwich Union owner Aviva closed up almost 14p at 259p after announcing some decent sales figures which were better than expected. Peers were mixed, with Admiral closing up 75.5p at 868.5p, Royal Sun Alliance cloising up 9.4p at 132.9p, but The Pru closing down over 28p at 248.25p.
On to the High Street, where retailers felt some pressure on the back of financial worries and concerns on spending. Marks & Sparks closed down 4.5p at just shy of 220p, whilst even supermarket King Tesco felt pressure, closing down 15p at 318.6p
On to travel, where bus and train operator Arriva announced a fairly upbeat statment helping the shares close up 14p at 590.5p. Peers also did well, with National Express closing up 8.5p at 560.5p, FirstGroup up 4.25p at 419.25p, Go-Ahead up 49p at 1,462p, and Stagecoach closed up 9.1p at 205.5p.
ARM Holdings closed up 17p to 97.5p after announcing a 17% rise in profit for Q3, which was better than expected, adding that US revenue in Q4 will also be at least at expectations.
Forex Afternoon Update - Monday 28th October 2008
Update for those in the Live Room this morning:
Afternoon Call – 28th October 2008 (1pm UK)
- A quiet day compared to the previous trading sessions, but a positive one.
- We had 2 Live Calls, 1 made decent profit and 1 was a small tiring loss.
- Our general morning view was a slight dollar weakness.
- We expect the volatility to continue over the coming sessions.
- There maybe dollar highs before the deep correction takes place.
- The Dollar has weakened against the European pairs prior to the US session.
- Yen has also given up some recent strong gains as the Asian stock markets rallied.
- There is focus now to see if the Dollar has made a short term top.
- Similarly, whether the USD/JPY and the yen crosses have made short term bottoms.
GBP/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.5604.
- This was a break of a support level that was also used yesterday for an entry.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of moving towards bearish momentum.
- Subsequent break of the 50MA confirmed the downward move.
- After the break of 1.5604 the pair made a low of 1.5476. (128 pips)
- Half the position was closed at the down sloping Trendline.
- 1st Level 1.5525, +79 pips, 2nd Level 1.5604, +0
- After the first partial profit was taken the trade stopped out at breakeven.
- (Most of the people entered 1.5590-1.5600 region and exited 1.5525 and below)
USD/CHF - Long Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.1618.
- This was a break on the upper channel line of a recent trading range.
- The levels being observed were 1.1618 and 1.1553.
- Break of 1.1618 was confirmed by 21 CCI on the 15min chart.
- The trade made no real thrust upwards, making a high of 1.1649. (31 pips)
- The pair sold of and the trade was stopped out at 1.1600 (below 200MA).
- Trade resulted in a 25-30 pips loss.
- (General room entry was 1.1625 and exit 1.1595-1.1600)
USDCAD - Short Call
- Early morning setup - Entry on the break of trendline, 1.2890 (close of bar)
- The break of the trendline was anticipated after the break of the 50MA.
- 21 CCI was already showing a bearish momentum.
- Unfortunately, the break occurred just few minutes prior to the live session.
- Entry level was 1.2890, with the pair making a low of 1.2816. (74 pips)
- Partial profits were taken at the first support line that was indicated.
- 1st Level 1.2825,+65 pips, 2nd Level 1.2890, +0.
- After the first partial profit was taken the trade stopped out at breakeven.
Afternoon Call – 28th October 2008 (1pm UK)
- A quiet day compared to the previous trading sessions, but a positive one.
- We had 2 Live Calls, 1 made decent profit and 1 was a small tiring loss.
- Our general morning view was a slight dollar weakness.
- We expect the volatility to continue over the coming sessions.
- There maybe dollar highs before the deep correction takes place.
- The Dollar has weakened against the European pairs prior to the US session.
- Yen has also given up some recent strong gains as the Asian stock markets rallied.
- There is focus now to see if the Dollar has made a short term top.
- Similarly, whether the USD/JPY and the yen crosses have made short term bottoms.
GBP/USD - Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.5604.
- This was a break of a support level that was also used yesterday for an entry.
- 15min chart, 21 CCI was showing signs of moving towards bearish momentum.
- Subsequent break of the 50MA confirmed the downward move.
- After the break of 1.5604 the pair made a low of 1.5476. (128 pips)
- Half the position was closed at the down sloping Trendline.
- 1st Level 1.5525, +79 pips, 2nd Level 1.5604, +0
- After the first partial profit was taken the trade stopped out at breakeven.
- (Most of the people entered 1.5590-1.5600 region and exited 1.5525 and below)
USD/CHF - Long Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.1618.
- This was a break on the upper channel line of a recent trading range.
- The levels being observed were 1.1618 and 1.1553.
- Break of 1.1618 was confirmed by 21 CCI on the 15min chart.
- The trade made no real thrust upwards, making a high of 1.1649. (31 pips)
- The pair sold of and the trade was stopped out at 1.1600 (below 200MA).
- Trade resulted in a 25-30 pips loss.
- (General room entry was 1.1625 and exit 1.1595-1.1600)
USDCAD - Short Call
- Early morning setup - Entry on the break of trendline, 1.2890 (close of bar)
- The break of the trendline was anticipated after the break of the 50MA.
- 21 CCI was already showing a bearish momentum.
- Unfortunately, the break occurred just few minutes prior to the live session.
- Entry level was 1.2890, with the pair making a low of 1.2816. (74 pips)
- Partial profits were taken at the first support line that was indicated.
- 1st Level 1.2825,+65 pips, 2nd Level 1.2890, +0.
- After the first partial profit was taken the trade stopped out at breakeven.
Morning Market, Tuesday 28th October 2008
The FTSE was up about 75 points early doors at 3,998 as Asian performance spread West. Oil monster BP posted some very good numbers, too, which beat all expectations.
Over the pond last night, the DJI closed down 203.18 points at 8,175.77, whilst the S&P500 closed down 27.85 points at 848.92, and the Nasdaq down 46.13 points at 1,505.90. Not a good day over there on Wall Street, despite home sales rising in September, with fears on the global recession taking weight. Oil was at US$66 bbl. Expect a better start this afternoon after the positive start in London. The Federal Reserve starts its 2-day meeting to decide US interest rates, with a 0.5% cut expected. It looks like there could be a global decision on rates too, as ECB President, Jean-Claude Trichet, said yesterday that the ECB could possibly cut rates at its November meeting.
Back here in London, the banks were being picked up as the floor seems to be close. The Bank of England said in its twice-yearly Financial Stability report that the global banks' intervention should help the world's financial system, but added that this will also put big constraints on banks. The UK banks were mostly up, with RBS, HSBC, Standard Chartered, and HBOS added up between 2% and 6%. One or two others weren't though, with Barclays down 5p at 185p, and Lloyds TSB down a penny at 167p.
Staying with financials, and on to insurance, Norwice Union owner Aviva was up 13% after announcing a 12% rise in its first 9 month sales, adding that it may renegotiate a £1 bln payout to customers as a result of weaker financial markets. Aviva was up 30p at 275p, with peers mixed - Admiral up 80p at 873p, The Pru down 21p at 255p, and Royal Sun Alliance up 8p at 132p.
On to the black stuff, where heavyweight BP was up nearly 5% this morning after posting a nigh-on 150% rise in 3rd quarter replacement cost profits compared with last year, up to a record US$10 bln. The higher oil prices for the qurter helping there. Peers were also up, with RD Shell up 1.5%, Cairn Energy up 5%, and Tullow Oil up 1.3%.
On to the miners, where metal prices recovered some ground. BHP, Rio, Anglo, were up between 3.75% and 7.5% this morning, but not all was well in the sector as ENRC was down 3.5% and national peer Kazakhmys was down 2% after news from the Kazakh Industry and Trade Minister, Vladimir Shkolnik, who said that the companies are reducing output due to the current global economic turmoil.
Supermarket operators were under pressure again after spending concerns by consumers were talk again. Tesco was down 15p at 318p, whilst High Street King Marks & Sparks was down 4p at 220p.
In the Forex Live Room we had some good calls again.
Over the pond last night, the DJI closed down 203.18 points at 8,175.77, whilst the S&P500 closed down 27.85 points at 848.92, and the Nasdaq down 46.13 points at 1,505.90. Not a good day over there on Wall Street, despite home sales rising in September, with fears on the global recession taking weight. Oil was at US$66 bbl. Expect a better start this afternoon after the positive start in London. The Federal Reserve starts its 2-day meeting to decide US interest rates, with a 0.5% cut expected. It looks like there could be a global decision on rates too, as ECB President, Jean-Claude Trichet, said yesterday that the ECB could possibly cut rates at its November meeting.
Back here in London, the banks were being picked up as the floor seems to be close. The Bank of England said in its twice-yearly Financial Stability report that the global banks' intervention should help the world's financial system, but added that this will also put big constraints on banks. The UK banks were mostly up, with RBS, HSBC, Standard Chartered, and HBOS added up between 2% and 6%. One or two others weren't though, with Barclays down 5p at 185p, and Lloyds TSB down a penny at 167p.
Staying with financials, and on to insurance, Norwice Union owner Aviva was up 13% after announcing a 12% rise in its first 9 month sales, adding that it may renegotiate a £1 bln payout to customers as a result of weaker financial markets. Aviva was up 30p at 275p, with peers mixed - Admiral up 80p at 873p, The Pru down 21p at 255p, and Royal Sun Alliance up 8p at 132p.
On to the black stuff, where heavyweight BP was up nearly 5% this morning after posting a nigh-on 150% rise in 3rd quarter replacement cost profits compared with last year, up to a record US$10 bln. The higher oil prices for the qurter helping there. Peers were also up, with RD Shell up 1.5%, Cairn Energy up 5%, and Tullow Oil up 1.3%.
On to the miners, where metal prices recovered some ground. BHP, Rio, Anglo, were up between 3.75% and 7.5% this morning, but not all was well in the sector as ENRC was down 3.5% and national peer Kazakhmys was down 2% after news from the Kazakh Industry and Trade Minister, Vladimir Shkolnik, who said that the companies are reducing output due to the current global economic turmoil.
Supermarket operators were under pressure again after spending concerns by consumers were talk again. Tesco was down 15p at 318p, whilst High Street King Marks & Sparks was down 4p at 220p.
In the Forex Live Room we had some good calls again.
Monday, 27 October 2008
Market Wrap, Monday 27th October 2008
The FTSE closed down 37.22 points at 3,846.14, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 106.02 points at 5,687.54, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed down 50.51 points at 1,853.51. The market had been much lower during the session, and gained some later in the day to make the drop look less painful, as Wall Street pulled back from a poor start this afternoon.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 48 points at 8,427, closing the gap, whilst the S&P500 was down a point at 875, and the Nasdaq was down 9 points at 1,543. Whilst the worldwide recession looks not only certain, but accepted, the markets did recover some of the initial falls on opening. News from the US government that new home sales had actually gone up in September helped.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure again. The reasons are obvious, of course, but there is a feeling that we are close to buying levels. Especially if one is happy to sit back. However, HSBC was hit today, closing down 33p at 663p after news of big losses in Hong Kong, and further concerns that the emerging markets' growth will check, or at least slow down during the global recession. Standard Chartered closed down nearly 10%, and RBS down 6%. Asia and Latin America will not be amune. Others did better, though, with Barclays closing up 3.3p at 195.3p, Lloyds TSB closing up 4.1p at just shy of 170p, and HBOS closed up just over a penny at 61p. The floor may be close...?
Staying with financials, the insurers were also under pressure. Norwich Union owner Aviva closed down 2p at 245.25p after media news that it is reconsidering the terms of a planned £1 bln payout to the 'with profit' policyholders. Broker Peers fell too, with Standard Life closing down 2p to 190p, The Pru closing down 10p at 276.5p, and Legal & General down just over 2p at just shy of 69p.
On to the miners, where metals prices continued to fall back, causing the heavyweights to also fall. BHP closed down 23p at 845.5p, Rio down 34p at 2,443p, and Xstrata closed down 68.5p at 709p.
On to the black stuff, where oil was around the US$60 bbl level, causing the oil majors to suffer again. BP closed down 2p at 438p, RD Shell down 31p at 1,396p, and BG Group closed down 53p at 664p.
On to the pharmas, where AstraZeneca closed up 3% as it was looking a safer bet. News that the group will announce some decent figures this week were dowing the rounds. Peers also did well, with GlaxoSmithKline closing up 5% on the day.
Other safe havens were saught, namely tobacco stocks, with British American Tobacco closing up over 7%, and Imperial Tobacco closing up 4% on the day.
On to retailers, namely supermarkets, where recent pressure was relieved, as Tesco closed up 5% on the day., Sainsburys and Morrisons also followed north.
News that house prices had fallen by 7.3% in the year to October didn't surprise anyone, certainly not in our offices, with prices now at March 2006 levels, said Hometrack, the property consultancy firm. Other news was that house prices are expected to continue falling for another year, and wouldn't be recovering to last year's levels for another 5 years, said the Centre for Economics and Business Research. Hardly news to help the market. Mind you, ex FTSE 100 builder Persimmons announced that it anticipates trading results for the full year to be in line with expectations, which was taken well, helping the shares close up 10p to just over 227p.
Reckitt Benckiser closed down 21p to 2,577p despite a fairly decent trading update, which actually said that it had lifted its growth targets for the year.
The Market Bytes Live Trading Room had a good morning, with some decent calls. Check out this afternoon's Forex post for a short summary of trades.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 48 points at 8,427, closing the gap, whilst the S&P500 was down a point at 875, and the Nasdaq was down 9 points at 1,543. Whilst the worldwide recession looks not only certain, but accepted, the markets did recover some of the initial falls on opening. News from the US government that new home sales had actually gone up in September helped.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure again. The reasons are obvious, of course, but there is a feeling that we are close to buying levels. Especially if one is happy to sit back. However, HSBC was hit today, closing down 33p at 663p after news of big losses in Hong Kong, and further concerns that the emerging markets' growth will check, or at least slow down during the global recession. Standard Chartered closed down nearly 10%, and RBS down 6%. Asia and Latin America will not be amune. Others did better, though, with Barclays closing up 3.3p at 195.3p, Lloyds TSB closing up 4.1p at just shy of 170p, and HBOS closed up just over a penny at 61p. The floor may be close...?
Staying with financials, the insurers were also under pressure. Norwich Union owner Aviva closed down 2p at 245.25p after media news that it is reconsidering the terms of a planned £1 bln payout to the 'with profit' policyholders. Broker Peers fell too, with Standard Life closing down 2p to 190p, The Pru closing down 10p at 276.5p, and Legal & General down just over 2p at just shy of 69p.
On to the miners, where metals prices continued to fall back, causing the heavyweights to also fall. BHP closed down 23p at 845.5p, Rio down 34p at 2,443p, and Xstrata closed down 68.5p at 709p.
On to the black stuff, where oil was around the US$60 bbl level, causing the oil majors to suffer again. BP closed down 2p at 438p, RD Shell down 31p at 1,396p, and BG Group closed down 53p at 664p.
On to the pharmas, where AstraZeneca closed up 3% as it was looking a safer bet. News that the group will announce some decent figures this week were dowing the rounds. Peers also did well, with GlaxoSmithKline closing up 5% on the day.
Other safe havens were saught, namely tobacco stocks, with British American Tobacco closing up over 7%, and Imperial Tobacco closing up 4% on the day.
On to retailers, namely supermarkets, where recent pressure was relieved, as Tesco closed up 5% on the day., Sainsburys and Morrisons also followed north.
News that house prices had fallen by 7.3% in the year to October didn't surprise anyone, certainly not in our offices, with prices now at March 2006 levels, said Hometrack, the property consultancy firm. Other news was that house prices are expected to continue falling for another year, and wouldn't be recovering to last year's levels for another 5 years, said the Centre for Economics and Business Research. Hardly news to help the market. Mind you, ex FTSE 100 builder Persimmons announced that it anticipates trading results for the full year to be in line with expectations, which was taken well, helping the shares close up 10p to just over 227p.
Reckitt Benckiser closed down 21p to 2,577p despite a fairly decent trading update, which actually said that it had lifted its growth targets for the year.
The Market Bytes Live Trading Room had a good morning, with some decent calls. Check out this afternoon's Forex post for a short summary of trades.
Forex Update - Monday 27th October 2008
Another excellent morning in the Live Room. Decent Profits made again.
27th October 2008 – Afternoon Call (12:30pm UK)
- Another fantastic day in the Live trading room today.
- We had 4 Live Calls, 2 closed at breakeven and 2 making great profits.
- In the morning we mentioned a bias towards dollar strength.
- European session followed on from the Asian session with this projected bias.
- This gave us some great trading opportunities as the pairs broke key levels.
- The Yen has risen around 14% against the US Dollar and 30% against the Euro.
- Reports suggest that the Government and Central Bank are ready to sell the Yen.
- Any such move can be seen as a possible reversal in the Yen crosses.
GBP/USD – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.5604
- This was a break of the low made during the morning Asian session.
- 21 CCI confirmation of downward momentum.
- After the break of 1.5604 the pair made a low of 1.5273. (331pips)
- We scaled out of the overall position as the market started to move down.
- 1st Level 1.5520, +84 pips, 2nd Level 1.5399, +205, 3rd level 1.5410, +194.
- At each level, as partial profits were taken, we moved stops accordingly.
GBP/JPY – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 145.00
- This was a break of the low made during the morning Asian session.
- 21 CCI confirmation of downward momentum.
- After the break of 145.00 the pair made a low of 140.58. (442 pips)
- We scaled out of the overall position as the market started to move down.
- 1st Level 143.93, +107 pips, 2nd Level 143.00, +200, 3rd level 142.25, +275.
- At each level, as partial profits were taken, we moved stops accordingly.
Accompanying Charts sent to Subscribers.
Join the Live Trading Room NOW!
27th October 2008 – Afternoon Call (12:30pm UK)
- Another fantastic day in the Live trading room today.
- We had 4 Live Calls, 2 closed at breakeven and 2 making great profits.
- In the morning we mentioned a bias towards dollar strength.
- European session followed on from the Asian session with this projected bias.
- This gave us some great trading opportunities as the pairs broke key levels.
- The Yen has risen around 14% against the US Dollar and 30% against the Euro.
- Reports suggest that the Government and Central Bank are ready to sell the Yen.
- Any such move can be seen as a possible reversal in the Yen crosses.
GBP/USD – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 1.5604
- This was a break of the low made during the morning Asian session.
- 21 CCI confirmation of downward momentum.
- After the break of 1.5604 the pair made a low of 1.5273. (331pips)
- We scaled out of the overall position as the market started to move down.
- 1st Level 1.5520, +84 pips, 2nd Level 1.5399, +205, 3rd level 1.5410, +194.
- At each level, as partial profits were taken, we moved stops accordingly.
GBP/JPY – Short Call
- Live Room Call - Entry on the break of 145.00
- This was a break of the low made during the morning Asian session.
- 21 CCI confirmation of downward momentum.
- After the break of 145.00 the pair made a low of 140.58. (442 pips)
- We scaled out of the overall position as the market started to move down.
- 1st Level 143.93, +107 pips, 2nd Level 143.00, +200, 3rd level 142.25, +275.
- At each level, as partial profits were taken, we moved stops accordingly.
Accompanying Charts sent to Subscribers.
Join the Live Trading Room NOW!
Morning Market, Monday 27th October 2008
The FTSE was down 181 points at 3,702 in its first hour of trading, around 4.5% fall, but up around 37 points from the low after opening this morning. This is the lowest level for 5 1/2 years. Increasing concerns on the UK economy, and global economy impacting on the Uk economy being blamed. Media reported that PM Gordon Brown had said that we could all see further global joint interest rate cuts as the price of oil fell bacxk more. This should help inflation.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 312.30 points at 8378.95, whilst the S&P500 closed down 31.34 points at 876.77, and the Nasdaq down 51.88 points at 1552.03. Shares closed sharply lower and for the week, with fears of a worldwide recession pummelling equities around the globe, adding to evidence that the mortgage-related credit crisis has transformed into a crisis of international proportions
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 6.4% at a new 26-year low. Serious stuff. In Hong King the Hang Seng closed down 12.75% today.
Back here in London, it was the miners under pressure, with metal prices pulling back some more. Xstrata, ENRC, Lonmin, and Anglo American were all down 7% to 8% this morning.
On to the black stuff, where trading was now down to US$63 bbl. This being a far cry from the dizzy heights of $147 bbl reached just 2 or 3 months ago. The oil majors reacted, with BP down 4% this morning, RD Shell down 5%, and BG Group down over 5.5%.
On to the banks, where further pressure ensued. HSBC, Barclays, and Lloyds TSB were down between 5 to 10%.
Staying with financials, but on to insurance, further weakness was apparent. Standard Life wasd down nearly 7% this morning, whilst The Pru was down almost 4%, and Norwich Union owner Aviva down 8%. Press reported that Aviva was reconsidering the terms of a planned £1 bln payout to 'with profit' policyholders.
The London Stock Exchange (LSE:LSE) was down nearly 10% in early trading as concerns over the markets spread to who was providing the Bourses. Further news that the LSE was looking for a new Chief Executive by using the services of a high-profile recruiting firm did the rounds as well.
News that house prices were down 7.3% in the year to October didn't help sentiment, either. Prices were now back to March 2006 levels, property consultancy Hometrack said.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 312.30 points at 8378.95, whilst the S&P500 closed down 31.34 points at 876.77, and the Nasdaq down 51.88 points at 1552.03. Shares closed sharply lower and for the week, with fears of a worldwide recession pummelling equities around the globe, adding to evidence that the mortgage-related credit crisis has transformed into a crisis of international proportions
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 6.4% at a new 26-year low. Serious stuff. In Hong King the Hang Seng closed down 12.75% today.
Back here in London, it was the miners under pressure, with metal prices pulling back some more. Xstrata, ENRC, Lonmin, and Anglo American were all down 7% to 8% this morning.
On to the black stuff, where trading was now down to US$63 bbl. This being a far cry from the dizzy heights of $147 bbl reached just 2 or 3 months ago. The oil majors reacted, with BP down 4% this morning, RD Shell down 5%, and BG Group down over 5.5%.
On to the banks, where further pressure ensued. HSBC, Barclays, and Lloyds TSB were down between 5 to 10%.
Staying with financials, but on to insurance, further weakness was apparent. Standard Life wasd down nearly 7% this morning, whilst The Pru was down almost 4%, and Norwich Union owner Aviva down 8%. Press reported that Aviva was reconsidering the terms of a planned £1 bln payout to 'with profit' policyholders.
The London Stock Exchange (LSE:LSE) was down nearly 10% in early trading as concerns over the markets spread to who was providing the Bourses. Further news that the LSE was looking for a new Chief Executive by using the services of a high-profile recruiting firm did the rounds as well.
News that house prices were down 7.3% in the year to October didn't help sentiment, either. Prices were now back to March 2006 levels, property consultancy Hometrack said.
Friday, 24 October 2008
Market Wrap, Friday 24th October 2008
The FTSE closed down 228.93 points at 3,858.9, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 339.62 points at 5,789.03, and the FTSE Small Caps down 95.03 points at 1,900.76. A poor day, with banks taking hits and OPEC having an emergency meeting over the price of oil. The UK economy was confirmed as negative growth this morning, which kicked off the recession confirmation and subsequent reaction.
Over the pond it was also a poor start to their day, although it had turned off lows. By the time London closed the DJI wasd down some 298 points at 8,393, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 30 points at 878.61, and the Nasdaq down 56 points at 1,548. The global recession being confirmed being the cause, it seems.
Back here in London, with news that the economy shrank 0.5% in the last quarter wasn't met with smiles. This is the first time there has been a negative report for growth in 16 years.
The banks took another pounding. With Asia falling today, with Japan down 9.6% and Hong Kong 8%, the Asian-bias banks were hit hard. HSBC closed down 109p at 696p, and Standard Chartered closed down 142p at 758p. The other major banks also had a bad day, with RBS closing down 6.2p at 60.8p, Barclays down 26.25p at 192p, lloyds TSB down 6.2p at 165.8p, and HBOS down 12.9p at 59.9p. News from Lloyds TSB was that the merger with HBOS would be completed in January 2009.
On to the black stuff, where OPEC held an emergency meeting in Vienna today, where it decided to cut production by 1.5m barrels per day. Oil was trading at US$63-$64 bbl today during the London session, although seeped back up half a buck at time of writing. The oil majors were obviously hit, with BP down 25p at 440p, RD Shell closing down 72p at 1,427p, and BG Group down 57p at 717p.
On to the miners, where metal prices fell back on demand fears, although after a tough day the heavyweights showed some resilience, with BHP closing up 45.5p at 868.5p, Rio up 37p at 2,277p, Anglo American closing up 7p at 1,247p, and Antofagasta up 2.5p at 276.5p. Although one or two did close down, with ENRC closing down 64.5p at 329p.
On to the High Street, where John Lewis' report of a 7.6% drop in sales against last year was still hanging around on investors' minds. Marks & Sparks closed down 7p at just shy of 215p. The supermarkets were mixed today, with Tesco closing down 8.6p at 318p, but Sainsburys closing up 3p at just shy of 258p.
On to the bus & travel groups, where National Express gave an in-line tarding statement, which failed to impress, causing a close down 32.5p at 577.5p, whislt peer FirstGroup close down nearly 20p at 417.5p, and Stagecoach down 12.4p at 187.4p.
A breather at the weekend required, but many smiles for the Forex Live Room this morning where there were hundreds and hundreds of pips banked by the team and subscribers.
Over the pond it was also a poor start to their day, although it had turned off lows. By the time London closed the DJI wasd down some 298 points at 8,393, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 30 points at 878.61, and the Nasdaq down 56 points at 1,548. The global recession being confirmed being the cause, it seems.
Back here in London, with news that the economy shrank 0.5% in the last quarter wasn't met with smiles. This is the first time there has been a negative report for growth in 16 years.
The banks took another pounding. With Asia falling today, with Japan down 9.6% and Hong Kong 8%, the Asian-bias banks were hit hard. HSBC closed down 109p at 696p, and Standard Chartered closed down 142p at 758p. The other major banks also had a bad day, with RBS closing down 6.2p at 60.8p, Barclays down 26.25p at 192p, lloyds TSB down 6.2p at 165.8p, and HBOS down 12.9p at 59.9p. News from Lloyds TSB was that the merger with HBOS would be completed in January 2009.
On to the black stuff, where OPEC held an emergency meeting in Vienna today, where it decided to cut production by 1.5m barrels per day. Oil was trading at US$63-$64 bbl today during the London session, although seeped back up half a buck at time of writing. The oil majors were obviously hit, with BP down 25p at 440p, RD Shell closing down 72p at 1,427p, and BG Group down 57p at 717p.
On to the miners, where metal prices fell back on demand fears, although after a tough day the heavyweights showed some resilience, with BHP closing up 45.5p at 868.5p, Rio up 37p at 2,277p, Anglo American closing up 7p at 1,247p, and Antofagasta up 2.5p at 276.5p. Although one or two did close down, with ENRC closing down 64.5p at 329p.
On to the High Street, where John Lewis' report of a 7.6% drop in sales against last year was still hanging around on investors' minds. Marks & Sparks closed down 7p at just shy of 215p. The supermarkets were mixed today, with Tesco closing down 8.6p at 318p, but Sainsburys closing up 3p at just shy of 258p.
On to the bus & travel groups, where National Express gave an in-line tarding statement, which failed to impress, causing a close down 32.5p at 577.5p, whislt peer FirstGroup close down nearly 20p at 417.5p, and Stagecoach down 12.4p at 187.4p.
A breather at the weekend required, but many smiles for the Forex Live Room this morning where there were hundreds and hundreds of pips banked by the team and subscribers.
Forex Trades & Summary - Friday Morning 24 Oct 08
*****************
WHAT A MORNING!!!! FOREX TRADING AT ITS BEST.
The Live Room was the place to be. The Trades were called - just check out the summary.
24th October 2008 – Update (12:30pm UK)
- We had a great day with the trading calls in the Live Room today.
- We made 4 Live calls, all of which presented us with large triple digit gains.
- After the initial entries we scaled out of each position as the markets continued to fall.
- We must take care now as we may see a deep correction taking place after such falls.
- The morning call gave a bias towards the dollar showing some more strength.
- US session will be key to the next move in the currency pairs.
- The stock futures are indicating a very ugly opening in the US. YM -550, S&P -60, Nas -85
- European bourses are also taking a beating across the board, down 6-8%.
- Nikkei had earlier fallen nearly 10%.
- US stock futures were halted for a while after falling more then 6.5%.
- With such uncertainty and the great morning we have hard it is best that we observe for now.
EUR/USD
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 1.2745 level.
- This was a break of a strong support line that had been tested a few times previously.
- MA’s were showing bearish signals and the 21 CCI confirmed the downwards momentum.
- After the break the market made a low of 1.2492.
- A 250 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
GBP/USD
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 1.5998 level.
- This was called on the breakdown from the Asian session low.
- The pair had been falling after rebounding from the 50MA
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- UK GDP fell more then expected in 3Q, growth rate 0.3%, making recession a reality now.
- The low made after the entry was 1.5265.
- A 700 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
EUR/JPY
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 121.49 level.
- Entry was called on the break of the morning low.
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- Pressure from the losses in the Asian markets was weighing on the Yen crosses.
- Low made after entry was 113.70.
- A 750 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
GBP/JPY
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 152.80 level.
- Entry was called on the break of the morning low.
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- Pressure from the losses in the Asian markets was weighing on the Yen crosses.
- Low made after entry was 138.96.
- A 1300 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
JOIN THE MARKET BYTES LIVE ROOM AND SEE REAL TRADES BY GUYS ACTUALLY CALLING THEM MAKING THEM
New, Updated Trading Team at www.marketbytes.com. Real Traders. Real Winners.
*****************
WHAT A MORNING!!!! FOREX TRADING AT ITS BEST.
The Live Room was the place to be. The Trades were called - just check out the summary.
24th October 2008 – Update (12:30pm UK)
- We had a great day with the trading calls in the Live Room today.
- We made 4 Live calls, all of which presented us with large triple digit gains.
- After the initial entries we scaled out of each position as the markets continued to fall.
- We must take care now as we may see a deep correction taking place after such falls.
- The morning call gave a bias towards the dollar showing some more strength.
- US session will be key to the next move in the currency pairs.
- The stock futures are indicating a very ugly opening in the US. YM -550, S&P -60, Nas -85
- European bourses are also taking a beating across the board, down 6-8%.
- Nikkei had earlier fallen nearly 10%.
- US stock futures were halted for a while after falling more then 6.5%.
- With such uncertainty and the great morning we have hard it is best that we observe for now.
EUR/USD
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 1.2745 level.
- This was a break of a strong support line that had been tested a few times previously.
- MA’s were showing bearish signals and the 21 CCI confirmed the downwards momentum.
- After the break the market made a low of 1.2492.
- A 250 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
GBP/USD
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 1.5998 level.
- This was called on the breakdown from the Asian session low.
- The pair had been falling after rebounding from the 50MA
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- UK GDP fell more then expected in 3Q, growth rate 0.3%, making recession a reality now.
- The low made after the entry was 1.5265.
- A 700 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
EUR/JPY
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 121.49 level.
- Entry was called on the break of the morning low.
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- Pressure from the losses in the Asian markets was weighing on the Yen crosses.
- Low made after entry was 113.70.
- A 750 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
GBP/JPY
- Live Room Call – Entry on the break of 152.80 level.
- Entry was called on the break of the morning low.
- 21 CCI confirmed the bearish momentum.
- Pressure from the losses in the Asian markets was weighing on the Yen crosses.
- Low made after entry was 138.96.
- A 1300 pips fall from entry. Scale out exits were at various levels on the way down.
JOIN THE MARKET BYTES LIVE ROOM AND SEE REAL TRADES BY GUYS ACTUALLY CALLING THEM MAKING THEM
New, Updated Trading Team at www.marketbytes.com. Real Traders. Real Winners.
*****************
Morning Market, Friday 24th October 2008
The FTSE was down some 155 points at 3,933 in its first hour of trading. We are now down 20% this month alone, and 40% for the year so far. The energy stocks took a bit of a psting early doors as the global financial crisis was showingt hat we are entering a recession. The bonus from all this were the excellent forex trades called in the live room this morning. Big gains by all.
Last night, over the pond, the DJI closed up 172 points at 8,691.25, whilst the S&P500 closed up 11.3 ponts at 908.11, and the Nasdaq down nearly 12 points at 1,603.91. A late swing helping the market look more respectable.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 9.6%.
Back here in London this morning, we saw the price of the black stuff fall again to under US$66 bbl, with OPEC now certain to cut production in an expected emergency meeting today. BP was down 5% this morning, RD Shell nearly 5.5%, as was BG Group was down 5.4%. Rumours were around that BG Group was going to bid for Queensland Gas.
On to the miners, where it was all red. Metal prices were off again. Xstrata was down nearly 5%, Lonmins down 6%, Anglo American down 5%.
On to the banks where it was a sea of red as well. The banks were really under pressure. RBS was down 5%, Barclays 4%, Lloyds TSB 5%, HBOS 10%, HSBC 9% and Standard Chartered 6%.
Staying with the financials, the insureres were also all down, with the Pru down 7% and Aviva 6%.
On to the High Street, where news from John Lewis was that sales were all down. Marks & Sparks was down 3% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was down 2%
Last night, over the pond, the DJI closed up 172 points at 8,691.25, whilst the S&P500 closed up 11.3 ponts at 908.11, and the Nasdaq down nearly 12 points at 1,603.91. A late swing helping the market look more respectable.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 9.6%.
Back here in London this morning, we saw the price of the black stuff fall again to under US$66 bbl, with OPEC now certain to cut production in an expected emergency meeting today. BP was down 5% this morning, RD Shell nearly 5.5%, as was BG Group was down 5.4%. Rumours were around that BG Group was going to bid for Queensland Gas.
On to the miners, where it was all red. Metal prices were off again. Xstrata was down nearly 5%, Lonmins down 6%, Anglo American down 5%.
On to the banks where it was a sea of red as well. The banks were really under pressure. RBS was down 5%, Barclays 4%, Lloyds TSB 5%, HBOS 10%, HSBC 9% and Standard Chartered 6%.
Staying with the financials, the insureres were also all down, with the Pru down 7% and Aviva 6%.
On to the High Street, where news from John Lewis was that sales were all down. Marks & Sparks was down 3% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was down 2%
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Market Wrap, Thursday 23rd October 2008
The FTSE closed up 33.22 points at 4,074.11 today, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 134.44 points at 6,098.18, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed down almost 49 points at 1,992.73. It wasn't an exciting day, but some decent intra-day trades none the less.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 177 points to 8,696, whilst the S&P500 was up 15 points at 912, and the Nasdaq up 6 points at 1,622. The US opening well after yesterday's sell off.
Back here in London, the miners didn't have a good day, as metal prices fell back. Rio closed down 149p at 2,240p, whilst Anto closed down 14.5p at 274p, Lonmins down 71p at 1,162p, and Anglo down 35p at 1,240p. Anglo American gavce a 3rd quarter update that included a mention that it will review its capital expenditure.
On to the black stuff, where the price was up a couple of bucks to nealry US$69 bbl. This helped the majors, with BP closing up 22.25p at 465p, and RD Shell up 80p at 1,499p.
On to the banks, where RBS closed down another 1.3p at 67p, HBOS down nearly 2p at 72.8p, and Barclays down over 6p at 218.25p. Lloyds TSB did ok, though, closing up 4.5p at 172p. Staying with financials, fund manager Man Group closed up 1.25p at just shy of 353p.
On to the pharmas, where AstraZeneca closed up 65p at 2,395p after annoucing a 5 year deal with Cognizant.
Wolseley, the plumbing sipplies group, closed down 17.5p at 287.25p after saying it plans to close some branches and cut another 3,000 jobs due to current market conditions.
Go Ahead, the bus and train group, closed down 48p at 1,485p after a fairly decent trading update that said its bus division still grew despite bad weather in the summer. Peers fell too, with FirstGroup down nearly 2p at 437.25p, and National Express down 37.5p at 610p.
On to retail, where DSG International closed up 2p at 25.5p after reporting that H1 sales were actually no worse than expectated, adding that it doesn't see any problems with its banking arrangements.
Unilever closed up 50p at 1,407p after Nestle posted some decent figures.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 177 points to 8,696, whilst the S&P500 was up 15 points at 912, and the Nasdaq up 6 points at 1,622. The US opening well after yesterday's sell off.
Back here in London, the miners didn't have a good day, as metal prices fell back. Rio closed down 149p at 2,240p, whilst Anto closed down 14.5p at 274p, Lonmins down 71p at 1,162p, and Anglo down 35p at 1,240p. Anglo American gavce a 3rd quarter update that included a mention that it will review its capital expenditure.
On to the black stuff, where the price was up a couple of bucks to nealry US$69 bbl. This helped the majors, with BP closing up 22.25p at 465p, and RD Shell up 80p at 1,499p.
On to the banks, where RBS closed down another 1.3p at 67p, HBOS down nearly 2p at 72.8p, and Barclays down over 6p at 218.25p. Lloyds TSB did ok, though, closing up 4.5p at 172p. Staying with financials, fund manager Man Group closed up 1.25p at just shy of 353p.
On to the pharmas, where AstraZeneca closed up 65p at 2,395p after annoucing a 5 year deal with Cognizant.
Wolseley, the plumbing sipplies group, closed down 17.5p at 287.25p after saying it plans to close some branches and cut another 3,000 jobs due to current market conditions.
Go Ahead, the bus and train group, closed down 48p at 1,485p after a fairly decent trading update that said its bus division still grew despite bad weather in the summer. Peers fell too, with FirstGroup down nearly 2p at 437.25p, and National Express down 37.5p at 610p.
On to retail, where DSG International closed up 2p at 25.5p after reporting that H1 sales were actually no worse than expectated, adding that it doesn't see any problems with its banking arrangements.
Unilever closed up 50p at 1,407p after Nestle posted some decent figures.
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Market Wrap, Wednesday 22nd October 2008
The FTSE 100 closed down 189.21 points at 4,040.52, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 217.89 points at 6,225.22, and for those that are interested, the FTSE Small Caps closed down 47.43 points at 2,043.12. With the miners weighted, with metal prices falling back the FTSE was pulled down. The banks were also under pressure again.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 255 points at 8,779, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 28 points at 927, whilst the Nasdaq was down about 29 points at 1,668. The Dow went under 9k on opening.
Back here in London, with everyone now settling on the fact that the UK has now entered recession (but no-one wanted to be the first to say it), the fact that the Governer of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, finally mentioned it just made it ok for everyone else to say it publicly. This is the UK's first recession in 16 years, and accompanying news that the £STG had hit a 5-year low against the US$ also gave further concern. Especially when one thinks about the state of the US economy.
As we mentioned this morning, the National Institute for Economic and Social Research has forecast that the UK economy will shrink by 0.9% next year, which means 2009 will be the UK's first full year recession since 1991.
All this hit the banks, with RBS closing down 11p to 68.3p, Barclays down 18p to 224.5p, and HBOS closing down 7.8p to close at 74.7p.
Staying with financials, hedge fund manager Man Group actually closed up 10.25p at 354p after saying that the NAV of its main AHL fund was up 1.9% last week.
On to the miners, and back to the negatives, the heavyweight miners pulled the FTSE back as metal prices eased again. BHP closed down 87p at 880p, Rio down 171p at 2,389p, Xstrata closed down 148p at 923p, Kazakhmys down 47.25p at 257.75p, and Vedanta closing down 93.5p at 619.5p.
On to the black stuff, where the oil majors fell back as ouil was at the US$70 bbl level. BP closed down nearly 26p to just shy of 443p, whilst RD Shell closed down 67p at 1,419p.
On to the High Street, where Argos owner Home Retail Group closed up nearly 3p at just shy of 197p despite saying sales were down 3% at Argos and down over 10% at Homebase in the first half of the year 'til Auguist. B&Q owner Kingfisher, on the other hand, closed down over 6p at 106.7p as a reaction to the news. Staying with retail, but looking at supermarkets, Tesco closed down 16.1p at 321.7p, whilst sainsburys closed down nearly 13p at 252.5p, and Morrisons closed down 13p at 226.5p.
On to the pharmas, where GlaxoSmithKline closed up 15p at 1,143p after a decent update at Q3 figures that were better than expected. Sales in emerging markets helping the losses from generics competition.
On to travel, where some loose rumours were floating around about Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific were considering a bid for the UK's flag carrier, British Airways, saw BA's shares close 6p higher at 148p. BA didn't comment.
On to commercial property, where fall backs continued. Land Securities closed down 45p at 1,025p, Liberty International down 15p at 708p, and Hammersons closed down 13p at 697p.
Logistics & recruitment group Hays closed down nearly 10%, or 6p to 63p after news that the Office of Fair Trading named the recruitment company as one of eight firms that are under investigation for alleged price fixing relating to jobs in the construction industry.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 255 points at 8,779, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 28 points at 927, whilst the Nasdaq was down about 29 points at 1,668. The Dow went under 9k on opening.
Back here in London, with everyone now settling on the fact that the UK has now entered recession (but no-one wanted to be the first to say it), the fact that the Governer of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, finally mentioned it just made it ok for everyone else to say it publicly. This is the UK's first recession in 16 years, and accompanying news that the £STG had hit a 5-year low against the US$ also gave further concern. Especially when one thinks about the state of the US economy.
As we mentioned this morning, the National Institute for Economic and Social Research has forecast that the UK economy will shrink by 0.9% next year, which means 2009 will be the UK's first full year recession since 1991.
All this hit the banks, with RBS closing down 11p to 68.3p, Barclays down 18p to 224.5p, and HBOS closing down 7.8p to close at 74.7p.
Staying with financials, hedge fund manager Man Group actually closed up 10.25p at 354p after saying that the NAV of its main AHL fund was up 1.9% last week.
On to the miners, and back to the negatives, the heavyweight miners pulled the FTSE back as metal prices eased again. BHP closed down 87p at 880p, Rio down 171p at 2,389p, Xstrata closed down 148p at 923p, Kazakhmys down 47.25p at 257.75p, and Vedanta closing down 93.5p at 619.5p.
On to the black stuff, where the oil majors fell back as ouil was at the US$70 bbl level. BP closed down nearly 26p to just shy of 443p, whilst RD Shell closed down 67p at 1,419p.
On to the High Street, where Argos owner Home Retail Group closed up nearly 3p at just shy of 197p despite saying sales were down 3% at Argos and down over 10% at Homebase in the first half of the year 'til Auguist. B&Q owner Kingfisher, on the other hand, closed down over 6p at 106.7p as a reaction to the news. Staying with retail, but looking at supermarkets, Tesco closed down 16.1p at 321.7p, whilst sainsburys closed down nearly 13p at 252.5p, and Morrisons closed down 13p at 226.5p.
On to the pharmas, where GlaxoSmithKline closed up 15p at 1,143p after a decent update at Q3 figures that were better than expected. Sales in emerging markets helping the losses from generics competition.
On to travel, where some loose rumours were floating around about Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific were considering a bid for the UK's flag carrier, British Airways, saw BA's shares close 6p higher at 148p. BA didn't comment.
On to commercial property, where fall backs continued. Land Securities closed down 45p at 1,025p, Liberty International down 15p at 708p, and Hammersons closed down 13p at 697p.
Logistics & recruitment group Hays closed down nearly 10%, or 6p to 63p after news that the Office of Fair Trading named the recruitment company as one of eight firms that are under investigation for alleged price fixing relating to jobs in the construction industry.
Morning Market, Wednesday 22nd October 2008
The FTSE 100 was down 80 points at 4,150 this morning as the weakness in the US last night and Far East over night made everyone stop and check. The banks and commodity stocks took hits this morning.
Over the pond, last night the DJI closed at 9,044.66, down nearly 232points on the day, whilst the S&P500 closed down over 30 points at 955.05, and the Nadaq down over 73 points at 1,696.68. Updates, news, earnings and forecats were all downbeat really, giving cause for some negative sentiment again. Realism taking its place again. Texas Instruments and Sun Microsystems both gave poor updates causing the tech stocks to take a punch or two. Fears of a global recession are around.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 was down 6.8%.
Back here in London, the National Institute for Economic and Social Research forecasted that the UK economy would shrink by 0.9% next year, which means that will be the country's first full year recession since 1991. At a meeting in Leeds last night, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said that Britain's economy was probably entering its first recession in 16 years. He said that the outlook has not worsened as rapidly as it has in the past month for a very long time. The fact that BoE Governer King mentioned recession also put the recent positive hopes back on the abck-burner for now.
On to the black stuff, where oil was under US$70 bbl again, as concerns that output cuts by OPEC will not be enough to offset the weakening demand. BP was down 2.5% this morning, RD Shell down 2.3%, and BG Group down 2.5%.
On to the miners, where metal prices pulled back again. BHP, Rio, Xstrata, Anglo, Vedanta, and Kazakhmys were all down between 3.5% and 9% this morning. BHP actually said that demand from China looks like weakening, but added that the company hasn't been and won't trim production, as iron ore output was up by 15% for the quarter.
The banks did take hits early doors, with RBS, Barclays, HBOS, Lloyds TSB and Standard Chartered all down between 0.5% and 6% already.
On to retail, where Marks & Sparks, Next and B&Q owner Kingfisher were down between 1.5% and 5% this morning. Home Retail Group was down 4% this morning after it saying that it had cut the balance sheet value of its Homebase DIY store chain by 920m due to market conditions and a nigh-on 20% fall in H1 profit.
Over the pond, last night the DJI closed at 9,044.66, down nearly 232points on the day, whilst the S&P500 closed down over 30 points at 955.05, and the Nadaq down over 73 points at 1,696.68. Updates, news, earnings and forecats were all downbeat really, giving cause for some negative sentiment again. Realism taking its place again. Texas Instruments and Sun Microsystems both gave poor updates causing the tech stocks to take a punch or two. Fears of a global recession are around.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 was down 6.8%.
Back here in London, the National Institute for Economic and Social Research forecasted that the UK economy would shrink by 0.9% next year, which means that will be the country's first full year recession since 1991. At a meeting in Leeds last night, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said that Britain's economy was probably entering its first recession in 16 years. He said that the outlook has not worsened as rapidly as it has in the past month for a very long time. The fact that BoE Governer King mentioned recession also put the recent positive hopes back on the abck-burner for now.
On to the black stuff, where oil was under US$70 bbl again, as concerns that output cuts by OPEC will not be enough to offset the weakening demand. BP was down 2.5% this morning, RD Shell down 2.3%, and BG Group down 2.5%.
On to the miners, where metal prices pulled back again. BHP, Rio, Xstrata, Anglo, Vedanta, and Kazakhmys were all down between 3.5% and 9% this morning. BHP actually said that demand from China looks like weakening, but added that the company hasn't been and won't trim production, as iron ore output was up by 15% for the quarter.
The banks did take hits early doors, with RBS, Barclays, HBOS, Lloyds TSB and Standard Chartered all down between 0.5% and 6% already.
On to retail, where Marks & Sparks, Next and B&Q owner Kingfisher were down between 1.5% and 5% this morning. Home Retail Group was down 4% this morning after it saying that it had cut the balance sheet value of its Homebase DIY store chain by 920m due to market conditions and a nigh-on 20% fall in H1 profit.
Tuesday, 21 October 2008
Market Wrap, Tuesday 21st October 2008
The FTSE closed down today 52.9 points at 4,229.7, despite being up about 20 points during the day. Feeling is that whilst we may have hit the bottom, there are concerns that a global recession has now begun. The FTSE is down some 34% this year. Investors are also showing some pessimism towards the UK's GDP data that is due in a couple of days, with everyone seeming to expect some contraction, whilst UK retail sales figures confirming a slow down. News from the Confederation of British Industry was that 60,000 manufacturing jobs are expected to go before the end of the year as output falls back.
Over the pond, Wall Street was down after opening as well, which caused London to pull back. By the time London closed the Dow was down nearly 1%, or 86 points at 9,179, whilst the S&P500 was down 11 points at 974, and the Nasdaq down 26 points at 1,743.
Back here in London, the banks saw fall backs again, which begun as some profit taking but soon became genuine selling, with fears of the recession causing investors to jump ship again. RBS closed down over 6% today, whilst Standard Chartered closed down over 8%. RBS had closed up over 20% yesterday, so some fall back was expected, despite news that even after taking cash from the bail-out box the bank can still pay dividends. HSBC closed down over 3.5% today.
On to the miners, where Xstrata closed up 3.3% after rumoyrs that Brazil mining giant Vale is back in the running with takeover talk as it builds its stake to nearly 30%. Xstrata declined to comment, but did post decent 3rd quarter figures, and said that it was well placed with financing. It did say that copper production wasn't as good as hoped. Peers were also up, with Vedanta up 3.5%, Rio up 0.6%, whilst BHP actually closd down 0.8% today.
Staying with financials, but moving on to insurance, Legal & General closed up nealry 11%, whilst Royal Sun Alliance closed up 7%. The Pru helped the sector with a decent update, and closed up 5.5% itself, after announcing sales were up 15% for the 9 motnhs to end September, and also confirmed it was interested in US peer AIG's Asian business.
On to the black stuff, where the majors pulled back as the price of oil fell despite hopes that OPEC will cut production so to give strength to the price. BP closd down 1.7%, whilst RD Shell closed down 0.8%. BG Group closed up 5.4%, though, after a decent Broket summary note and opinion. Tullow Oil closed up 2.3% whilst midcap peer Heritage Oil closed up nearly 15% after announcing a new discovery in Uganda.
Over the pond, Wall Street was down after opening as well, which caused London to pull back. By the time London closed the Dow was down nearly 1%, or 86 points at 9,179, whilst the S&P500 was down 11 points at 974, and the Nasdaq down 26 points at 1,743.
Back here in London, the banks saw fall backs again, which begun as some profit taking but soon became genuine selling, with fears of the recession causing investors to jump ship again. RBS closed down over 6% today, whilst Standard Chartered closed down over 8%. RBS had closed up over 20% yesterday, so some fall back was expected, despite news that even after taking cash from the bail-out box the bank can still pay dividends. HSBC closed down over 3.5% today.
On to the miners, where Xstrata closed up 3.3% after rumoyrs that Brazil mining giant Vale is back in the running with takeover talk as it builds its stake to nearly 30%. Xstrata declined to comment, but did post decent 3rd quarter figures, and said that it was well placed with financing. It did say that copper production wasn't as good as hoped. Peers were also up, with Vedanta up 3.5%, Rio up 0.6%, whilst BHP actually closd down 0.8% today.
Staying with financials, but moving on to insurance, Legal & General closed up nealry 11%, whilst Royal Sun Alliance closed up 7%. The Pru helped the sector with a decent update, and closed up 5.5% itself, after announcing sales were up 15% for the 9 motnhs to end September, and also confirmed it was interested in US peer AIG's Asian business.
On to the black stuff, where the majors pulled back as the price of oil fell despite hopes that OPEC will cut production so to give strength to the price. BP closd down 1.7%, whilst RD Shell closed down 0.8%. BG Group closed up 5.4%, though, after a decent Broket summary note and opinion. Tullow Oil closed up 2.3% whilst midcap peer Heritage Oil closed up nearly 15% after announcing a new discovery in Uganda.
Morning Market, Tuesday 21st October 2008
The FTSE was up just 8 points this morning at 4,276, despite running up 70-odd points on opening, which was probably as a reaction to New York and the Far East. With yesterday's close up of almost 22 points at 4,282.67 there may be a little profit taking going on this morning, although the FTSE is up over 10% in the last 3 trading days at the moment, but down 33% this year.
Over the pond last night, the DJI closed up 413.21 points at 9265.43, whilst the S&P500 closed up 44.85 points at 985.40, and the Nasdaq closed up 58.74 points at 1,770.03. A decent rally, pushing the Dow above 9k again, was acredited to Bernanke's assurances and that he had backed another fiscal stimulus, saying he felt that 'consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate.'.
Globally this was seen as positive, as in the Far East the Nikkei 225 was up over 3%, or 300 points at 9,306, and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was down 1.8%, or 281 points at 15,041.
Back here in London, as said above, the FTSE was up early doors as a reaction to both the Far East and Wall Street's rally last night.
On to the banks, where some profit taking was evident, especially with RBS, which was down 5% this morning after such a high jump yesterday. HSBC also fell back this morning despite its expansion news yesterday regarding the Indonesian bank deal, in which is has acquired 89% of Bank Ekonomi. On the other hand, HBOS was having a much better monring, up some 8% after news that the bank's biggest shareholder, Standard Life, who moved in with support on its rescue takeover by Lloyds TSB. Lloyds TSB was also up 0.4% this morning as a result.
Staying with financials, namely insurers, The Pru was down 1% this morning, probably on profit taking after yesterday's gains after news that its sales were up 15% for the first 9 months. The Pru also said that it was sniffing with intent on buying some or all of AIG's Asian operations. Peers were up this morning, with Norwich Union owner Aviva up 6%, Legal & General up nearly 2%, and Admiral Group up nearly 4%.
On to the miners, where metal prices eased a little, but didn't cause too muchy of a stir. With the dollar getting stronger we also saw gold fall back to $780 oz. So, looking at the miners, where Xstrata was up 7% this morning after a decent 3rd quarter update, which included the fact that the firm has no significant debt refinancing requirements until 2011. Peers also did well, with ENRC up over 11% this morning, whilst Rio, Kazakhmys, Vedanta, and Anglo were up between 2% and 5%.
On to the oil majors, where BP, RD Shell and BG Group were up between 0.3% and 5.5% on the back of the oil price being up at US$74 bbl, and the fact that OPEC is looking very likely to cut production so to up the price some more. Tullow Oil was up 6% this morning, whilst Cairn Energy was up nearly 5%, and Herigage Oil, the mid table peer, was up 16% after announcing a new discovery in Uganda.
Over the pond last night, the DJI closed up 413.21 points at 9265.43, whilst the S&P500 closed up 44.85 points at 985.40, and the Nasdaq closed up 58.74 points at 1,770.03. A decent rally, pushing the Dow above 9k again, was acredited to Bernanke's assurances and that he had backed another fiscal stimulus, saying he felt that 'consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate.'.
Globally this was seen as positive, as in the Far East the Nikkei 225 was up over 3%, or 300 points at 9,306, and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was down 1.8%, or 281 points at 15,041.
Back here in London, as said above, the FTSE was up early doors as a reaction to both the Far East and Wall Street's rally last night.
On to the banks, where some profit taking was evident, especially with RBS, which was down 5% this morning after such a high jump yesterday. HSBC also fell back this morning despite its expansion news yesterday regarding the Indonesian bank deal, in which is has acquired 89% of Bank Ekonomi. On the other hand, HBOS was having a much better monring, up some 8% after news that the bank's biggest shareholder, Standard Life, who moved in with support on its rescue takeover by Lloyds TSB. Lloyds TSB was also up 0.4% this morning as a result.
Staying with financials, namely insurers, The Pru was down 1% this morning, probably on profit taking after yesterday's gains after news that its sales were up 15% for the first 9 months. The Pru also said that it was sniffing with intent on buying some or all of AIG's Asian operations. Peers were up this morning, with Norwich Union owner Aviva up 6%, Legal & General up nearly 2%, and Admiral Group up nearly 4%.
On to the miners, where metal prices eased a little, but didn't cause too muchy of a stir. With the dollar getting stronger we also saw gold fall back to $780 oz. So, looking at the miners, where Xstrata was up 7% this morning after a decent 3rd quarter update, which included the fact that the firm has no significant debt refinancing requirements until 2011. Peers also did well, with ENRC up over 11% this morning, whilst Rio, Kazakhmys, Vedanta, and Anglo were up between 2% and 5%.
On to the oil majors, where BP, RD Shell and BG Group were up between 0.3% and 5.5% on the back of the oil price being up at US$74 bbl, and the fact that OPEC is looking very likely to cut production so to up the price some more. Tullow Oil was up 6% this morning, whilst Cairn Energy was up nearly 5%, and Herigage Oil, the mid table peer, was up 16% after announcing a new discovery in Uganda.
Monday, 20 October 2008
Market Wrap, Monday 20th October 2008
The FTSE closed up 189.99 points at 4,253, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 64.47 points at 6,375.86, and for those interested the FTSE Small Caps closed up 8.42 points at 2,046.04. The oil majors and miners had a good day, as did the banks, really.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 103.22 points to 8,955, whilst the S&P500 was up 14 points at 954, and the Nasdaq up half of one point still at 1,711. Wall Street opened up with some confidence on London's day so far and that there was new confidence in the US government's efforts to sort the current financial sector and economy may be moving towards the right direction.
Back here in London, expansion plans for insurance giant The Pru were taken well, as news that the insurer is in advanced talks with two strategic investors to take a 20% stake in the company. The Pru intends to use the cash to make a move for US insurance giant AIG's Asian business in a deal said to be worth something like £8.6 bln. The Pru closed up 60.25p at 330.25p.
Staying with financials, but on to the banks, Lloyds TSB closed up 14.7p at 173.5p after Credit Suisse upped its target price to 175p from 170p. The banks do look like they are coming off the floor now. Hopes that the divvys will return also boosted the banks today. RBS closed up almost 16p at 84.5p, Barclays closed up 15.75p at 236.75p, and HSBC closed up 43.25p at 840p. HSBC have agreed a deal with an Indonesian bank, as well, cementing their Asian growth and approach to world banking and emerging markets.
On to the miners, where there were some good moves. BHP closed up 79p at 974.5p, Rio up 295p at 2,545p, Vedanta up 64.5p at 688.5p, and Anglo American closed up 65p at 1,360p.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was now up at US$74 bbl, helping the oil majors. BP closed up 45p at just shy of 477p, RD Shell closed up 144p at 1,494p, and BG Group closed up 49p higher at 772.5p.
On to retail, where Marks & Sparks is reported to be planning to cut many of its head office jobs after deciding to scal back expansion plans. The shares closed down 0.75p to 221p. Clothing peer Next closed up 42p at 9-quid, whilst supermarket chain Sainsburys had a very good day, closing up 15p at 265.5p.
On to housing, where Rightmove gave its figures for house prices saying that the asking prices were down in England & Wales by 4.9% from last year. This didn't help those that build houses, with Barratts closing down 8p at 55.25p, Bellway Homes down almost 20p at 400.5p, and Bovis Homes closing down 32.25p at just shy of 271p. There wewre also reports that Barratts had asked for some help with its land bank. Barratts has loads of land without planning permission, so it has asked in Credit Suisse for a bit of advice on it, the reports said.
William Hill jumped 23p to close at 189.5p after an upbeat trading statement this morning.
Cable & Wireless closaed down 3.3p at 138.8p after press reports that C&W's demerger plans have been put back 'til next year.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was up 103.22 points to 8,955, whilst the S&P500 was up 14 points at 954, and the Nasdaq up half of one point still at 1,711. Wall Street opened up with some confidence on London's day so far and that there was new confidence in the US government's efforts to sort the current financial sector and economy may be moving towards the right direction.
Back here in London, expansion plans for insurance giant The Pru were taken well, as news that the insurer is in advanced talks with two strategic investors to take a 20% stake in the company. The Pru intends to use the cash to make a move for US insurance giant AIG's Asian business in a deal said to be worth something like £8.6 bln. The Pru closed up 60.25p at 330.25p.
Staying with financials, but on to the banks, Lloyds TSB closed up 14.7p at 173.5p after Credit Suisse upped its target price to 175p from 170p. The banks do look like they are coming off the floor now. Hopes that the divvys will return also boosted the banks today. RBS closed up almost 16p at 84.5p, Barclays closed up 15.75p at 236.75p, and HSBC closed up 43.25p at 840p. HSBC have agreed a deal with an Indonesian bank, as well, cementing their Asian growth and approach to world banking and emerging markets.
On to the miners, where there were some good moves. BHP closed up 79p at 974.5p, Rio up 295p at 2,545p, Vedanta up 64.5p at 688.5p, and Anglo American closed up 65p at 1,360p.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was now up at US$74 bbl, helping the oil majors. BP closed up 45p at just shy of 477p, RD Shell closed up 144p at 1,494p, and BG Group closed up 49p higher at 772.5p.
On to retail, where Marks & Sparks is reported to be planning to cut many of its head office jobs after deciding to scal back expansion plans. The shares closed down 0.75p to 221p. Clothing peer Next closed up 42p at 9-quid, whilst supermarket chain Sainsburys had a very good day, closing up 15p at 265.5p.
On to housing, where Rightmove gave its figures for house prices saying that the asking prices were down in England & Wales by 4.9% from last year. This didn't help those that build houses, with Barratts closing down 8p at 55.25p, Bellway Homes down almost 20p at 400.5p, and Bovis Homes closing down 32.25p at just shy of 271p. There wewre also reports that Barratts had asked for some help with its land bank. Barratts has loads of land without planning permission, so it has asked in Credit Suisse for a bit of advice on it, the reports said.
William Hill jumped 23p to close at 189.5p after an upbeat trading statement this morning.
Cable & Wireless closaed down 3.3p at 138.8p after press reports that C&W's demerger plans have been put back 'til next year.
Morning Market, Monday 20th October 2008
The FTSE was up over 60 points this morning at 4,123, with some confidence returning that we could have hit the floor with many stocks. News over the weekend was that world governments have pledged about US$3.2 trillion as guarantees for bank deposits and inter-bank lending, trying to get some liquidity back. The market was also helped by the pledge from European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet, who said yesterday that the ECB will 'do what it takes' to restore confidence. Other news was from the Dutch bank, ING, who have also now gone to ask for government help, with a request for some €10 bln being inputted by the Dutch government.
Over the pond, on Friday the DJI closed down 127 points at 8852.22, whilst the S&P500 closed down nearly 6 points at 940.55, and the Nasdaq down almost 6.5 points at 1,711.29. There had been some profit taking at the end of the week's session, which pulled it down for the close. The Dow closed up for the week, which was seen as welcome.
News from China that growth was below forecasts shows that even those that were supposed to be less effected by the gloom were seeing some reaction at home.
Back here in London, confidence returned, with many feeling the crisis could be now under control. The miners and oilers did well this morning.
The miners saw buying coming back as metal prices bounced. Xstrata, Lonmin and Anglo were all up beltween 1.75% and 4% already this monring.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was up another 2-bucks a barrel. It looks more certain that OPEC will cut production so to get the price up some more. We think they'd be happy with the price settled just below $100 bbl, but we'll see how we progress. The oiol majors had a good start, with BP, RD Shell & Cairn Energy were all up over 3% this morning.
On to the banks, where it was fairly mixed and some were still treading carefully. The news on the government and ECB pledges was welcomed, as was the inter-bank lending rate dropping a little, but there is a little apprehension still in the air. Lloyds TSB was up 2.5% this morning, whilst the other party to the merger, HBOS, was up over half on one per cent. RBS was up 2.5% after weekend press news that private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has joined up with Swiss Re with pland to bid for a majority stake in RBS's insurance assets. Regarding RBS there are still some concerns this morning as news that the Fitch Rating of the bank had been downgraded. Barclays was down 2.5% this morning, whilst HSBC was down 1.75%.
Staying with financials, but on to insurance, The Pru was up nearly 15% this morning after weekend press reports that the insurance giant is in talks with two strategic partners. It was reported that The Pru is also sniffing with intent US insurance giant AIG's Asian business.
On to the High Street, namely supermarkets, where Tesco was down nearly 1% this moring and peer Morrisons was down 0.5%.
Over the pond, on Friday the DJI closed down 127 points at 8852.22, whilst the S&P500 closed down nearly 6 points at 940.55, and the Nasdaq down almost 6.5 points at 1,711.29. There had been some profit taking at the end of the week's session, which pulled it down for the close. The Dow closed up for the week, which was seen as welcome.
News from China that growth was below forecasts shows that even those that were supposed to be less effected by the gloom were seeing some reaction at home.
Back here in London, confidence returned, with many feeling the crisis could be now under control. The miners and oilers did well this morning.
The miners saw buying coming back as metal prices bounced. Xstrata, Lonmin and Anglo were all up beltween 1.75% and 4% already this monring.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was up another 2-bucks a barrel. It looks more certain that OPEC will cut production so to get the price up some more. We think they'd be happy with the price settled just below $100 bbl, but we'll see how we progress. The oiol majors had a good start, with BP, RD Shell & Cairn Energy were all up over 3% this morning.
On to the banks, where it was fairly mixed and some were still treading carefully. The news on the government and ECB pledges was welcomed, as was the inter-bank lending rate dropping a little, but there is a little apprehension still in the air. Lloyds TSB was up 2.5% this morning, whilst the other party to the merger, HBOS, was up over half on one per cent. RBS was up 2.5% after weekend press news that private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has joined up with Swiss Re with pland to bid for a majority stake in RBS's insurance assets. Regarding RBS there are still some concerns this morning as news that the Fitch Rating of the bank had been downgraded. Barclays was down 2.5% this morning, whilst HSBC was down 1.75%.
Staying with financials, but on to insurance, The Pru was up nearly 15% this morning after weekend press reports that the insurance giant is in talks with two strategic partners. It was reported that The Pru is also sniffing with intent US insurance giant AIG's Asian business.
On to the High Street, namely supermarkets, where Tesco was down nearly 1% this moring and peer Morrisons was down 0.5%.
Forex - Morning Session - Thoughts, Trades & Opinion
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Morning Call – European Session
20th October 2008 (06:00 GMT)
EUR/USD
• Low 1.3385, High 1.3515.
• The Euro has been trading in a tight range between 1.3400 and 1.3500 for the last few sessions.
• This morning the pair has bounced of the 1.3400 support level.
• We need to see a break of 1.3515 for an upside move. Resistance 1.3550, 1.3605, 1.3685.
• A bullish rally should see the pair testing the recent high area above 1.3750.
• Support is in 1.3425-35 region. A move lower here should see 1.3385 towards 1.3343 (16th Oct).
GBP/USD
• Low 1.7224, High 1.7383
• Pound traded in a very tight range, unable to break higher or lower.
• A break of Friday’s high of 1.7383 should be bullish. Resistance levels 1.7445, 1.7500, 1.7555. 1.7630.
• Asian session low was made at 1.7286.
• A break of 1.7286 would send prices lower with supports at 1.7224-35, 1.7197, 1.7130.
USD/JPY
• Low 100.58, High 101.78
• A break above Friday’s resistance level of 101.78 would signal higher prices.
• Once the 101.78 level is penetrated this should provide good support going forward.
• Further resistance at 102.50 then 102.90 - 00 area.
• Downside risk is a break below 101.40 (morning lows). Support 100.90 – 00, 100.60.
USD/CHF
• Low 1.1294, High 1.1396
• Traded in a tight range last Friday and is still within that range this morning.
• A break to the upside through 1.1396 should see prices move towards recent high of 1.1491.
• There is mild resistance at 1.1440.
• A break of 1.1294, the lower level of the channel, would lead to 1.1246, 1.1126 (10th Oct low).
USD/CAD
• Low 1.1774, High 1.1934
• A move above 1.1865 would lead to 1.1890 and then 1.1935 would be tested.
• A positive move above 1.935 is required for higher prices. Resistance at 1.1997.
• A break of 1.1774 support would send prices down towards 1.1750.
• There is a strong upwards Trendline that has been supporting the pair since 29th Sept.
• A break of this Trendline would be bearish, region 1.1730-60.
AUD/USD
• Low 0.6730, High 0.7010
• The Australian dollar has been very volatile, moving over 500 pips in the last two trading days.
• A move above 0.7010 would face resistance at 0.7075, 0.7120.
• A break of support at 0.6880 would signal the pair to move towards 0.6850, 0.6795, 0.6760.
Morning Call – European Session
20th October 2008 (06:00 GMT)
EUR/USD
• Low 1.3385, High 1.3515.
• The Euro has been trading in a tight range between 1.3400 and 1.3500 for the last few sessions.
• This morning the pair has bounced of the 1.3400 support level.
• We need to see a break of 1.3515 for an upside move. Resistance 1.3550, 1.3605, 1.3685.
• A bullish rally should see the pair testing the recent high area above 1.3750.
• Support is in 1.3425-35 region. A move lower here should see 1.3385 towards 1.3343 (16th Oct).
GBP/USD
• Low 1.7224, High 1.7383
• Pound traded in a very tight range, unable to break higher or lower.
• A break of Friday’s high of 1.7383 should be bullish. Resistance levels 1.7445, 1.7500, 1.7555. 1.7630.
• Asian session low was made at 1.7286.
• A break of 1.7286 would send prices lower with supports at 1.7224-35, 1.7197, 1.7130.
USD/JPY
• Low 100.58, High 101.78
• A break above Friday’s resistance level of 101.78 would signal higher prices.
• Once the 101.78 level is penetrated this should provide good support going forward.
• Further resistance at 102.50 then 102.90 - 00 area.
• Downside risk is a break below 101.40 (morning lows). Support 100.90 – 00, 100.60.
USD/CHF
• Low 1.1294, High 1.1396
• Traded in a tight range last Friday and is still within that range this morning.
• A break to the upside through 1.1396 should see prices move towards recent high of 1.1491.
• There is mild resistance at 1.1440.
• A break of 1.1294, the lower level of the channel, would lead to 1.1246, 1.1126 (10th Oct low).
USD/CAD
• Low 1.1774, High 1.1934
• A move above 1.1865 would lead to 1.1890 and then 1.1935 would be tested.
• A positive move above 1.935 is required for higher prices. Resistance at 1.1997.
• A break of 1.1774 support would send prices down towards 1.1750.
• There is a strong upwards Trendline that has been supporting the pair since 29th Sept.
• A break of this Trendline would be bearish, region 1.1730-60.
AUD/USD
• Low 0.6730, High 0.7010
• The Australian dollar has been very volatile, moving over 500 pips in the last two trading days.
• A move above 0.7010 would face resistance at 0.7075, 0.7120.
• A break of support at 0.6880 would signal the pair to move towards 0.6850, 0.6795, 0.6760.
Friday, 17 October 2008
Market Wrap, Friday 17th October 2008
The FTSE closed up 171.06 points at 4,032.45, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 31.32 points at 6,311.39, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps down 10.94 points at 2,034.39. The FTSE closed near its high, but it was a rollercoaster day, with the FTSE being up at its high early doors, then falling down and back up again. The miners and oil majors did well, but let's not forget the FTSE is down some 37% this year. Anyway...
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 50 points to 8,929, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 3 points at 944, and the Nasdaq down a point or so at 1,716. News that new home building was down to a 17-year low didn't help.
Back here in London, it was the miners that stood out. BHP closed up 84.5p at 895.5p, Rio up 2-quid at 2,250p, Xstrata up 36p at 950p, Anglo up 142p at 1,295p, and Anto up 10p at 297.5p.
On to the black stuff, where the price of a barrel was up nearly a buck at just shy of US$71 bbl. This helped the oil majors, with BP up 34.25p at just shy of 432p, RD Shell up 115p at 1,350p, and Tullow Oil up 31.25p at 487.5p.
The price of oil now being less than half its peak in the summer helped those that use the stuff. Airline British Airways was up 9.4p at 127.1p, cruise ship operator Carnival up 106p at 1,478p, and bus and coach operator FirstGroup closed up up 8.5p at 436p.
On to financials, where the insurers weren't sure where to go. Insurers had a mixed day, with Old Mutual closing up 2.3p at 51.9p, and Admiral up 77p at 912p, but others didn't fair as well, with The Pru closing down nearly 28p at 270p, Standard Life down tuppence at 208p, and Norwich Union owners Aviva closing down nearly 45p at just over 308p. Staying with financials, and carrying on from this morning, Schroders closed up 76.5p at 855p.
Whilst on financials, a quick mention of the banks, who were still nursing wounds, but getting some help. RBS closed up 5.5%, Barclays up 3.5% on the day, and HSBC closing up 3.3% on the day. HBOS didn't fair as well, though, closing down nearly 5% on the day.
On to the High Street, where the poor news of lower sales from John Lewis seemed to be by-the-by as Marks & Sparks closed up nearly 12p at just shy of 222p, whilst the supermarkets also did well with Sainsburys closing up 5.5p at 250.5p, Morrisons up 9.25p at 240.5p, and Tesco closing up over 20p higher at 338.5p.
On to commercial property heavyweights, where continued concerns held the FTSE back more than it would have been otherwise. Land Securities closed down 13p at 1,063p, British Land down 21p at 621p, and Hammersons down 55.5p at 726p.
Inchcape, the car retailer and distributor had a poor day after issuing a profit warning, closing down nearly 40% on the day, down nearly 49p at 78p.
And anyone for Bingo...? Rank Group closed up 7%, or nearly 4p at 60.5p after saying that sales may be down by 8% in its first 41 weeks of the financial year, but said that it had delivered a much stronger relative performance over the last six weeks, with revenue up 5%.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 50 points to 8,929, whilst the S&P500 was down nearly 3 points at 944, and the Nasdaq down a point or so at 1,716. News that new home building was down to a 17-year low didn't help.
Back here in London, it was the miners that stood out. BHP closed up 84.5p at 895.5p, Rio up 2-quid at 2,250p, Xstrata up 36p at 950p, Anglo up 142p at 1,295p, and Anto up 10p at 297.5p.
On to the black stuff, where the price of a barrel was up nearly a buck at just shy of US$71 bbl. This helped the oil majors, with BP up 34.25p at just shy of 432p, RD Shell up 115p at 1,350p, and Tullow Oil up 31.25p at 487.5p.
The price of oil now being less than half its peak in the summer helped those that use the stuff. Airline British Airways was up 9.4p at 127.1p, cruise ship operator Carnival up 106p at 1,478p, and bus and coach operator FirstGroup closed up up 8.5p at 436p.
On to financials, where the insurers weren't sure where to go. Insurers had a mixed day, with Old Mutual closing up 2.3p at 51.9p, and Admiral up 77p at 912p, but others didn't fair as well, with The Pru closing down nearly 28p at 270p, Standard Life down tuppence at 208p, and Norwich Union owners Aviva closing down nearly 45p at just over 308p. Staying with financials, and carrying on from this morning, Schroders closed up 76.5p at 855p.
Whilst on financials, a quick mention of the banks, who were still nursing wounds, but getting some help. RBS closed up 5.5%, Barclays up 3.5% on the day, and HSBC closing up 3.3% on the day. HBOS didn't fair as well, though, closing down nearly 5% on the day.
On to the High Street, where the poor news of lower sales from John Lewis seemed to be by-the-by as Marks & Sparks closed up nearly 12p at just shy of 222p, whilst the supermarkets also did well with Sainsburys closing up 5.5p at 250.5p, Morrisons up 9.25p at 240.5p, and Tesco closing up over 20p higher at 338.5p.
On to commercial property heavyweights, where continued concerns held the FTSE back more than it would have been otherwise. Land Securities closed down 13p at 1,063p, British Land down 21p at 621p, and Hammersons down 55.5p at 726p.
Inchcape, the car retailer and distributor had a poor day after issuing a profit warning, closing down nearly 40% on the day, down nearly 49p at 78p.
And anyone for Bingo...? Rank Group closed up 7%, or nearly 4p at 60.5p after saying that sales may be down by 8% in its first 41 weeks of the financial year, but said that it had delivered a much stronger relative performance over the last six weeks, with revenue up 5%.
Morning Market, Friday 17th October 2008
The FTSE was up 140 points at 4,001 this morning , whilst the FTSE 250mwas actually down 20 points at 6,310. Oil & Retail was up.
Oil was rising again helping the oil majors, which has been hit over the last couple of days.
Over the pond last night the DJI closed up 401.35 points at 8979.26, whilst the S&P500 closed up 38.59 points at 946.43, and the Nasdaq up 89.38 points at 1,717.71. A decent late run after some really heavy falls early doors due to poor economic data helped sentiment again. Oil had been under US$70 bbl for the first time in 12 months, which showed opinion, really.
Back here in London this morning, the oil majors had a decent start. Light Sweet was up over 70-bucks again (Nov del) which helped the majors recover some recent lost ground. BP was up 15p at 413p, RD Shell up 60p at 1,295p, and Tullow Oil up 12p at 468p.
On to the miners, where it was mixed. Rio was up 3p at 2,053p, BHP up 12p at 823p, Anglo was up 35p at 1,188p. On the other hand, Xstrata was down 70p at 843p, Anto down 15p at 272p, and Lonmin down 71p at 1,179p.
On to financials, namely insurance, where a decent start tailed back after a while. Old Mutual was up a panny at 50.75p, Admiral up 20p at 855p, Royal Sun Alliance up 2.5p at 122.5p, whilst The Pru was down 14p at 284p, and Norwich Union owner Aviva down 17.5p at 335p.
Hedge fund manager Man Group was up 9p this morning at 319p, whilst Schroders had a better morning, up 80p at 858p.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks was up 3p at 213p, whilst supermarket group Sainsburys was up 7p at 252p.
On to property, where Land Securities was down 40p at 1,036p, Hammersons down 30p at 751p, and British Land down nearly 20p at 623p.
Inchacape had a bad start this morning, down 47p at 80p after announcing a profit warning. Never a good sign.
Oil was rising again helping the oil majors, which has been hit over the last couple of days.
Over the pond last night the DJI closed up 401.35 points at 8979.26, whilst the S&P500 closed up 38.59 points at 946.43, and the Nasdaq up 89.38 points at 1,717.71. A decent late run after some really heavy falls early doors due to poor economic data helped sentiment again. Oil had been under US$70 bbl for the first time in 12 months, which showed opinion, really.
Back here in London this morning, the oil majors had a decent start. Light Sweet was up over 70-bucks again (Nov del) which helped the majors recover some recent lost ground. BP was up 15p at 413p, RD Shell up 60p at 1,295p, and Tullow Oil up 12p at 468p.
On to the miners, where it was mixed. Rio was up 3p at 2,053p, BHP up 12p at 823p, Anglo was up 35p at 1,188p. On the other hand, Xstrata was down 70p at 843p, Anto down 15p at 272p, and Lonmin down 71p at 1,179p.
On to financials, namely insurance, where a decent start tailed back after a while. Old Mutual was up a panny at 50.75p, Admiral up 20p at 855p, Royal Sun Alliance up 2.5p at 122.5p, whilst The Pru was down 14p at 284p, and Norwich Union owner Aviva down 17.5p at 335p.
Hedge fund manager Man Group was up 9p this morning at 319p, whilst Schroders had a better morning, up 80p at 858p.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks was up 3p at 213p, whilst supermarket group Sainsburys was up 7p at 252p.
On to property, where Land Securities was down 40p at 1,036p, Hammersons down 30p at 751p, and British Land down nearly 20p at 623p.
Inchacape had a bad start this morning, down 47p at 80p after announcing a profit warning. Never a good sign.
Forex - Morning Session - Thoughts, Trades & Opinion
The Market Bytes Live Room has top traders showing charts of the major currency pairs, as well as Gold & Oil, plus some Indicies, talking through what movements and trades to expect.
For those that don't subscribe to the Market Bytes live room (www.marketbytes.com) then this is an example of what gets sent out each morning to subscribers...
Morning Call – European Session
17th October 2008 (06:00 GMT)
• Stock Markets rally after recent losses
• Oil falls below $70 a barrel to the lowest level since June 2007
• Dollar falls back
EUR/USD
• Weak US data and a positive move in the stock markets helped the Euro move slightly higher yesterday.
• EUR/USD traded in a 190 pips range ending the day with a low of 1.3342 and a high of 1.3535.
• A low of 1.3342 was made yesterday and as long as this holds as support we should see a move higher.
• Again we will be looking for the morning’s high as a indication for a move higher. Break of 1.3515, a level we were looking at yesterday, should trigger a upwards bias. Indications are for a up move.
• A break of the highs would imply a move to 1.3600 and then looking to test recent high of 1.3684 (15th Oct).
• If we break the low of the Asian session 1.3420, we can expect a move back through support at 1.3375 towards the low of 1.3342.
GBP/USD
• After moving in a narrow range during the European session, Cable made its move late on in the day.
• GBP/USD traded with a low of 1.7140 and a high of 1.7355.
• A move through yesterday’s and this morning’s high region of 1.7355 should trigger a move to 1.7450, 1.7550. After yesterday’s market action, expecting a move higher.
• High made on the 14th Oct of 1.7630 is likely to be tested in the coming sessions.
• This morning low is at 1.7283, a break of this could see the market fall into the consolidation area of yesterday, ranging from 1.7200 to 1.7283.
• A break of 1.7200 would extend the downward movement to 1.7135.
USD/JPY
• After the previous day’s decline the Yen gained ground, recovering almost all of the losses.
• USD/JPY made a low of 99.25 and high of 101.70.
• Morning high in the Asian session is 101.78 which seems to be a decent resistance level.
• A break of 101.78 should trigger the market above 102.20, 102.50 then testing the peak of 103.01 made on the 14th Oct.
• Low of this morning is 101.10 and the region this and 101.30 seems to be good support. A break of this would trigger a slide down to 100.82, 100.50, 100.20, then to the recent low of 99.25.
USD/CHF
• USD/CHF broke through the resistance level of 1.1400, that was mentioned yesterday as a key level. Although there was some follow through the market peaked and reversed just as quickly, trading in a narrow range afterwards.
• USD/CHF made a low of 1.1283 and a high of 1.1491.
• The market has been in a consolidating period since then, ranging from 1.1325 to 1.1396.
• A break of this range on the upside should trigger the market towards 1.1442, 13th Oct high, then yesterdays peak.
• A move below 1.1325 would signal the market to 1.1285, then below 1.1250.
USD/CAD
• Following the Oil inventory figures, USD/CAD initially moved up. However, after hitting 1.1997 the market drifted lower even after Oil hit the low of this year.
• USD/CAD made a low of 1.1753 and a high of 1.1997.
• A break above 1.1835 should push market upwards. Initially to 1.1860 then towards 1.1950-1.1997 region.
• If we do not see the early push through the resistance levels 1.1835 – 1.1860 then we can expect the slide to continue.
• Support levels are at 1.1755, 1.1720 (Fib), 1.1692.
•
AUD/USD
• AUD/USD advanced strongly yesterday, gaining a huge 400 pips.
• AUD/USD made a low of 0.6520 and a high of 0.6939
• The morning’s high is at 0.6982, a break of this level with push the market higher. With support at 0.6865 – 80 region we should see further gains.
• A break to the upside will have resistance at, 0.7035, 0.7075, 0.7120.
• A break through on the downside of 0.6865 – 80 region will see market testing 0.6800, 0.6750.
For those that don't subscribe to the Market Bytes live room (www.marketbytes.com) then this is an example of what gets sent out each morning to subscribers...
Morning Call – European Session
17th October 2008 (06:00 GMT)
• Stock Markets rally after recent losses
• Oil falls below $70 a barrel to the lowest level since June 2007
• Dollar falls back
EUR/USD
• Weak US data and a positive move in the stock markets helped the Euro move slightly higher yesterday.
• EUR/USD traded in a 190 pips range ending the day with a low of 1.3342 and a high of 1.3535.
• A low of 1.3342 was made yesterday and as long as this holds as support we should see a move higher.
• Again we will be looking for the morning’s high as a indication for a move higher. Break of 1.3515, a level we were looking at yesterday, should trigger a upwards bias. Indications are for a up move.
• A break of the highs would imply a move to 1.3600 and then looking to test recent high of 1.3684 (15th Oct).
• If we break the low of the Asian session 1.3420, we can expect a move back through support at 1.3375 towards the low of 1.3342.
GBP/USD
• After moving in a narrow range during the European session, Cable made its move late on in the day.
• GBP/USD traded with a low of 1.7140 and a high of 1.7355.
• A move through yesterday’s and this morning’s high region of 1.7355 should trigger a move to 1.7450, 1.7550. After yesterday’s market action, expecting a move higher.
• High made on the 14th Oct of 1.7630 is likely to be tested in the coming sessions.
• This morning low is at 1.7283, a break of this could see the market fall into the consolidation area of yesterday, ranging from 1.7200 to 1.7283.
• A break of 1.7200 would extend the downward movement to 1.7135.
USD/JPY
• After the previous day’s decline the Yen gained ground, recovering almost all of the losses.
• USD/JPY made a low of 99.25 and high of 101.70.
• Morning high in the Asian session is 101.78 which seems to be a decent resistance level.
• A break of 101.78 should trigger the market above 102.20, 102.50 then testing the peak of 103.01 made on the 14th Oct.
• Low of this morning is 101.10 and the region this and 101.30 seems to be good support. A break of this would trigger a slide down to 100.82, 100.50, 100.20, then to the recent low of 99.25.
USD/CHF
• USD/CHF broke through the resistance level of 1.1400, that was mentioned yesterday as a key level. Although there was some follow through the market peaked and reversed just as quickly, trading in a narrow range afterwards.
• USD/CHF made a low of 1.1283 and a high of 1.1491.
• The market has been in a consolidating period since then, ranging from 1.1325 to 1.1396.
• A break of this range on the upside should trigger the market towards 1.1442, 13th Oct high, then yesterdays peak.
• A move below 1.1325 would signal the market to 1.1285, then below 1.1250.
USD/CAD
• Following the Oil inventory figures, USD/CAD initially moved up. However, after hitting 1.1997 the market drifted lower even after Oil hit the low of this year.
• USD/CAD made a low of 1.1753 and a high of 1.1997.
• A break above 1.1835 should push market upwards. Initially to 1.1860 then towards 1.1950-1.1997 region.
• If we do not see the early push through the resistance levels 1.1835 – 1.1860 then we can expect the slide to continue.
• Support levels are at 1.1755, 1.1720 (Fib), 1.1692.
•
AUD/USD
• AUD/USD advanced strongly yesterday, gaining a huge 400 pips.
• AUD/USD made a low of 0.6520 and a high of 0.6939
• The morning’s high is at 0.6982, a break of this level with push the market higher. With support at 0.6865 – 80 region we should see further gains.
• A break to the upside will have resistance at, 0.7035, 0.7075, 0.7120.
• A break through on the downside of 0.6865 – 80 region will see market testing 0.6800, 0.6750.
Thursday, 16 October 2008
Market Wrap, Thursday 16th October 2008
The FTSE 100 closed down 230.5 points at 3,849.09, whilst the FTSE 250 closed down 382.22 points at 6,234.9, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed down 95.92 points at 2,044.52. We hope no-one packed away their parachutes, as it looks like the last two days they'd have been handy. Oil was under US$70 bbl for the first time in 12 months.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 185 points at 8,392, whilst the S&P500 was down 20 points at 888, and the Nasdaq down 20 points at 1,609. News that the Philadlphia measure of factory activity and manufacturing data had turned sharply lower caused the sellers to return and stocks to fall.
Back here in London, it was the mining stocks that took a heavy pounding, coupled with lower metal prices on demand concerns and general poor sentiment again. Xstrata closed down 144p at 914p, Ferrexpo down 12.5p at 71p, Lonmins down 149p at 1,250p, ENRC down nearly 25p at just shy of 362p, and Vedanta down 113.5p at 632.5p.
On to the black stuff, where we were now sub-70 bucks a barrel. Light Sweet was under US$70 bbl for the first time in over 12 months. BP closed down nearly 17p at 397.5p, whilst RD Shell closed down 112p at 1,235p.
On to the banks, where the pressure was back on. Barclays closed down 26p at 213.5p whilst HBOS closed down 1.6p at 84.1p, although RBS remained unchanged at 65p and Lloyds TSB closed down just 0.2p at 150p. There is stil hope that banks will be able to pay dividends to investors despite taking cash from the bail-out box.
Staying with financials, insurer Legal & General closed down 7.8p at 64p despite a fairly decent trading update today.
The utilities looked safe for those wanting to put cash somewhere. Severn Trent closed up 10p at 1,266p and National Grid closed up 3.5p at 636.5p.
On to the High Street, where it wasn't very good news. Marks & Sparks closed down 12p at 210p, whilst the supermarkets were also out of favour, with Sainsburys closing down 12.25p at 245p, Tesco down 17.1p at 317.9p, and Morrisons down nearly 3p at 231.25p.
On to leisure, namely travel, where TUI Travel closed down a worrying 55.35p to 194.4p, that's over 20% on the day, as Germany's TUI said that it won't be bidding for the rest of the UK tour operator, whcih it already holdings 51% of. Peer Thomas Cookfell in sympathy, with a similar percentage drop as well, closing down 44p at 145.2p.
News from builder supplier merchant Travis Perkins was taken badly as it said that trading has been down in recent weeks and it reckons it will get worse, casuing the share price to fall down over 30%, or nearly 151p to 330.25p.
Trying to find something positive, we noticed that Britvic, the soft drinks producer closed up 12.25p at 184.25p after a denet set of update fifgures, saying that sales were up 29% to £926.5m, adding that earnings will be in line with expectations.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 185 points at 8,392, whilst the S&P500 was down 20 points at 888, and the Nasdaq down 20 points at 1,609. News that the Philadlphia measure of factory activity and manufacturing data had turned sharply lower caused the sellers to return and stocks to fall.
Back here in London, it was the mining stocks that took a heavy pounding, coupled with lower metal prices on demand concerns and general poor sentiment again. Xstrata closed down 144p at 914p, Ferrexpo down 12.5p at 71p, Lonmins down 149p at 1,250p, ENRC down nearly 25p at just shy of 362p, and Vedanta down 113.5p at 632.5p.
On to the black stuff, where we were now sub-70 bucks a barrel. Light Sweet was under US$70 bbl for the first time in over 12 months. BP closed down nearly 17p at 397.5p, whilst RD Shell closed down 112p at 1,235p.
On to the banks, where the pressure was back on. Barclays closed down 26p at 213.5p whilst HBOS closed down 1.6p at 84.1p, although RBS remained unchanged at 65p and Lloyds TSB closed down just 0.2p at 150p. There is stil hope that banks will be able to pay dividends to investors despite taking cash from the bail-out box.
Staying with financials, insurer Legal & General closed down 7.8p at 64p despite a fairly decent trading update today.
The utilities looked safe for those wanting to put cash somewhere. Severn Trent closed up 10p at 1,266p and National Grid closed up 3.5p at 636.5p.
On to the High Street, where it wasn't very good news. Marks & Sparks closed down 12p at 210p, whilst the supermarkets were also out of favour, with Sainsburys closing down 12.25p at 245p, Tesco down 17.1p at 317.9p, and Morrisons down nearly 3p at 231.25p.
On to leisure, namely travel, where TUI Travel closed down a worrying 55.35p to 194.4p, that's over 20% on the day, as Germany's TUI said that it won't be bidding for the rest of the UK tour operator, whcih it already holdings 51% of. Peer Thomas Cookfell in sympathy, with a similar percentage drop as well, closing down 44p at 145.2p.
News from builder supplier merchant Travis Perkins was taken badly as it said that trading has been down in recent weeks and it reckons it will get worse, casuing the share price to fall down over 30%, or nearly 151p to 330.25p.
Trying to find something positive, we noticed that Britvic, the soft drinks producer closed up 12.25p at 184.25p after a denet set of update fifgures, saying that sales were up 29% to £926.5m, adding that earnings will be in line with expectations.
Forex Forecasts & Trades, Thursday 16th October 2008
For those of you who subscribe to the Live Room you will be aware of these sumaries below. But here's a snippet for our readers...
EUR/USD
• Euro strengthened early on the back of weak US data but fell back as Stock markets tumbled.
• Yesterday mentioned a break of the support at 1.3515 would lead way to 1.3485, 1.3455. We had a break and a low of 1.3421 was made. This mornings low is 1.3343.
• Only a break of 1.3515 would see market moving higher, requiring breaks of further resistance points to maintain the move. Resistance seen at 1.3550-60 (50% Fib on latest swing).
• A break of this mornings low of 1.3421 led the market to make a fresh low at 1.3344. Break of this level could send the market to the lows of 1.3255 (10th October).
GBP/USD
• Volatile session in cable yesterday, initially moving higher and then giving way to the falls in the stock markets.
• The pound hit a peak of 1.7604 then fell, moving down over 200 pips during the US session.
• Yesterday mentioned a break of support at 1.7350-70 region should see declines. Market went down to 1.7135.
• For a move back up we have a resistance at 1.7370 that needs to be broken.
• If the resistance holds then we should see a drift back lower towards 1.7200 and maybe lower.
USD/JPY
• Huge losses on US stock markets led to the falls in USD/JPY and JPY crosses
• Key 101.00 level, as mentioned yesterday, was broken with the market making a low of 99.24 this morning.
• The region around the low 99.24 needs to hold if we are to see upwards movements.
• A move above this mornings high region 100.40-45 should see market moving towards the next resistance level which is at 100.90.
• If the morning high holds 100.40-45 then a break below the lows of 99.24 should next levels of support at 98.70, 97.89 (10th Oct low).
• The Trendline break mentioned yesterday at 101.94, gave a good downward trading opportunity.
USD/CHF
• Yesterday mentioned 1.1400 as a strong resistance level and if broken we should see the next resistance level of 1.1485-90 (6th - 7th Oct high).
• This morning the 1.1400 level has been broken making a high of 1.1490. A move above this high we can expect 1.1550 and above.
• Yesterdays low was 1.1298 and this mornings is 1.1312, break below these levels should see 1.1275, 1.1245, 1.1200.
USD/CAD
• Yesterday mentioned that if support of 1.1600 holds we should see a move to 1.1700 and further. A break of 1.1600 would lead to 1.1540. Market did break and low was made at 1.1535.
• A move back above 1.1600 gave a strong rally to above 1.1900
• Only a move above this mornings high of 1.1964 would see market above 1.2000. Recent high is 1.2125 (10th Oct).
• If the mornings high hold a correction can be expected. 1.1850, then below 1.1800, 1.1700.
AUD/USD
• Markets falling and drop in Oil prices gave weakness in the Australian Dollar.
• For prices to move higher we need to see this mornings high of 0.6798 breached. If this occurs we can expect to reach the next resistance at 0.6880.
• Yesterday’s low was 0.6493. If we see the resistance hold then the market will most likely move below 0.6700 and beyond.
EUR/USD
• Euro strengthened early on the back of weak US data but fell back as Stock markets tumbled.
• Yesterday mentioned a break of the support at 1.3515 would lead way to 1.3485, 1.3455. We had a break and a low of 1.3421 was made. This mornings low is 1.3343.
• Only a break of 1.3515 would see market moving higher, requiring breaks of further resistance points to maintain the move. Resistance seen at 1.3550-60 (50% Fib on latest swing).
• A break of this mornings low of 1.3421 led the market to make a fresh low at 1.3344. Break of this level could send the market to the lows of 1.3255 (10th October).
GBP/USD
• Volatile session in cable yesterday, initially moving higher and then giving way to the falls in the stock markets.
• The pound hit a peak of 1.7604 then fell, moving down over 200 pips during the US session.
• Yesterday mentioned a break of support at 1.7350-70 region should see declines. Market went down to 1.7135.
• For a move back up we have a resistance at 1.7370 that needs to be broken.
• If the resistance holds then we should see a drift back lower towards 1.7200 and maybe lower.
USD/JPY
• Huge losses on US stock markets led to the falls in USD/JPY and JPY crosses
• Key 101.00 level, as mentioned yesterday, was broken with the market making a low of 99.24 this morning.
• The region around the low 99.24 needs to hold if we are to see upwards movements.
• A move above this mornings high region 100.40-45 should see market moving towards the next resistance level which is at 100.90.
• If the morning high holds 100.40-45 then a break below the lows of 99.24 should next levels of support at 98.70, 97.89 (10th Oct low).
• The Trendline break mentioned yesterday at 101.94, gave a good downward trading opportunity.
USD/CHF
• Yesterday mentioned 1.1400 as a strong resistance level and if broken we should see the next resistance level of 1.1485-90 (6th - 7th Oct high).
• This morning the 1.1400 level has been broken making a high of 1.1490. A move above this high we can expect 1.1550 and above.
• Yesterdays low was 1.1298 and this mornings is 1.1312, break below these levels should see 1.1275, 1.1245, 1.1200.
USD/CAD
• Yesterday mentioned that if support of 1.1600 holds we should see a move to 1.1700 and further. A break of 1.1600 would lead to 1.1540. Market did break and low was made at 1.1535.
• A move back above 1.1600 gave a strong rally to above 1.1900
• Only a move above this mornings high of 1.1964 would see market above 1.2000. Recent high is 1.2125 (10th Oct).
• If the mornings high hold a correction can be expected. 1.1850, then below 1.1800, 1.1700.
AUD/USD
• Markets falling and drop in Oil prices gave weakness in the Australian Dollar.
• For prices to move higher we need to see this mornings high of 0.6798 breached. If this occurs we can expect to reach the next resistance at 0.6880.
• Yesterday’s low was 0.6493. If we see the resistance hold then the market will most likely move below 0.6700 and beyond.
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
Market Wrap, Wednesday 15th October 2008
The FTSE closed down 311.17 points at 4,083.04, whilst the FTSE250 closed down 387.33 points at 6,707.12, and for those that are interested, the FTSE Small Caps closed down 75.45 points at 2,143.54. The miners had a poor day, as did the oil majors as the price of the black stuff fell back more, on its way down to US$70 bbl.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 350 points at 8,960, whilst the S&P500 was down 45 points at 952, and the Nasdaq down 60 points at 1,719. Wall Street was digesting data that suggests there is a recession now taking shape.
Back here in London, news that unemployment was up another 164,000 for the 3 months to August wasn't taken well, and was wrose than expected. Unemployment is now at 5.7%, up 0.5% on the previous quarterly figure.
As mentioned at the top of the page, the miners had a poor day. As mentioned this morning, Rio said they would be reducing their capital spend as they had fears over future demand, as well as a problem in their Chilean copper mine that could cause a 15% drop in production over the next 9 months, and then peer Ferrexpo announced a cut in capital spend as well. Rio close ddown 469p at 2,357p, whilst Ferrexpo closed down 16.25p at 83.5p. Other heavyweight miners closed sharpluy down too, with BHP closing down 161p lower at 916p, Kazakhmys down 96.5p at just shy of 337p, and Xstrata down 258p at 1,058p.
On to the black stuff, where Light Sweet was down to about US$70 bbl, a far cry for the dizzy heights of $147 bbl that we were seeing just a few montha ago. The oil majors relected this fall back in crude price with BP closing down 32.5p at 414.25p, RD SHell down 104p at 1,347p, and BG Group down 96.5p at 740p.
In contrast, with oil falling back it gave a boost to big user Thomas Cook, who actually closd up 2.2p at 189.2p.
The falling oil price was seen as a boon for Thomas Cook, a rare gainer in the FTSE100, up 2.2p at 189.2p.
On to the High Street, where JJB Sports actually closed up 5.75p at 29.25p after confirming it has received a preliminary approach (by parties unknown) for its lifestyle division, which includes its Qube and Original Shoe Company.
Back to the negatives, were early promises of holding up saw the banks succomb to the pressure, with Barclays cloising down 6.5p at 239.5p, and Lloyds TSB closing down 1.1p at 150.2p.
On to the property giants, where fears of demand and the commercial property sector in general saw a sell off, with Hammersons closing down 75.5p at 788.5p, Liberty International down 49.5p at 804p, Land Securities down 56p at 1,101p, and British Land down 56.5p at 655.5p.
On to publishing, where Financial Times owner Pearson had a good start to the day after reporting sales up 8% to end September, with an opearating profit up 11%. However, the good feeling was sopon lost to the relentless pressure on the market today and the shares eventually closed down 8p at 551.5p.
The credit checking company Experian closed down 29.5p at 300.5p after a rather weak trading update, which said that sales growth for H1 was 13%, with organic revenue growth at 3%. Previous growth rates now being kept.
On to a techie, where software company Autonomy announced record Q3 figures showing revenue up 42%, which was much better than expected. The shares closed down 9.5p at 808.5p, though as everyone was generally depressed at the market, it seems.
The Pub group, Marston's, closed down 5p at 112p after reporting a decent year, but the initial gains in the day also tailed off.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down 350 points at 8,960, whilst the S&P500 was down 45 points at 952, and the Nasdaq down 60 points at 1,719. Wall Street was digesting data that suggests there is a recession now taking shape.
Back here in London, news that unemployment was up another 164,000 for the 3 months to August wasn't taken well, and was wrose than expected. Unemployment is now at 5.7%, up 0.5% on the previous quarterly figure.
As mentioned at the top of the page, the miners had a poor day. As mentioned this morning, Rio said they would be reducing their capital spend as they had fears over future demand, as well as a problem in their Chilean copper mine that could cause a 15% drop in production over the next 9 months, and then peer Ferrexpo announced a cut in capital spend as well. Rio close ddown 469p at 2,357p, whilst Ferrexpo closed down 16.25p at 83.5p. Other heavyweight miners closed sharpluy down too, with BHP closing down 161p lower at 916p, Kazakhmys down 96.5p at just shy of 337p, and Xstrata down 258p at 1,058p.
On to the black stuff, where Light Sweet was down to about US$70 bbl, a far cry for the dizzy heights of $147 bbl that we were seeing just a few montha ago. The oil majors relected this fall back in crude price with BP closing down 32.5p at 414.25p, RD SHell down 104p at 1,347p, and BG Group down 96.5p at 740p.
In contrast, with oil falling back it gave a boost to big user Thomas Cook, who actually closd up 2.2p at 189.2p.
The falling oil price was seen as a boon for Thomas Cook, a rare gainer in the FTSE100, up 2.2p at 189.2p.
On to the High Street, where JJB Sports actually closed up 5.75p at 29.25p after confirming it has received a preliminary approach (by parties unknown) for its lifestyle division, which includes its Qube and Original Shoe Company.
Back to the negatives, were early promises of holding up saw the banks succomb to the pressure, with Barclays cloising down 6.5p at 239.5p, and Lloyds TSB closing down 1.1p at 150.2p.
On to the property giants, where fears of demand and the commercial property sector in general saw a sell off, with Hammersons closing down 75.5p at 788.5p, Liberty International down 49.5p at 804p, Land Securities down 56p at 1,101p, and British Land down 56.5p at 655.5p.
On to publishing, where Financial Times owner Pearson had a good start to the day after reporting sales up 8% to end September, with an opearating profit up 11%. However, the good feeling was sopon lost to the relentless pressure on the market today and the shares eventually closed down 8p at 551.5p.
The credit checking company Experian closed down 29.5p at 300.5p after a rather weak trading update, which said that sales growth for H1 was 13%, with organic revenue growth at 3%. Previous growth rates now being kept.
On to a techie, where software company Autonomy announced record Q3 figures showing revenue up 42%, which was much better than expected. The shares closed down 9.5p at 808.5p, though as everyone was generally depressed at the market, it seems.
The Pub group, Marston's, closed down 5p at 112p after reporting a decent year, but the initial gains in the day also tailed off.
Morning Market, Wednesday 15th October 2008
The FTSE was down 40 points this morning at 4,342, with the miners taking most of the punishment, but banks easing as well. UK employment data is out this morning, which will put some light on the British economy at the moment as concerns continue to grow that it is heading into a deep recession. I think we all agree that much.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed down 76.62-points at 9,310.99, whilst the S&P500 was down 5.34 points at 998.01, and the Nasdaq down 65.24 points at 1,779.01. Concerns on the economy still evident, depsite the latest $250 bln input into the banks over there. Retail, consumer and the technology sectors were hit the most on Wall Street yesterday. Fears of a global recession intensified, as the Far East was also down today.
Back here in London, the miners took a bit of a beating early this morning, with metal prices falling back after Rio Tinto warned of Chinese demand slowing, adding that the world financial crisis being the main cause, and also said that there may be a delay in its plans to sell US$10 bln in assets. Rio was down over 5% early doors, BHP down 6%, Xstrata down over 7%, Anglo American also off 7%, and ENRC down nearly 9% this morning.
On to the black stuff, where oil was now at about US$79 bbl, with concerns on demand being cited there. Expect OPEC to cut production again soon. The oil majors pulled back as a rfesult of the fall in oil price, with BP, RD Shell, BG Group and Tullow Oil doen between 1.5% and 3.5% this morning.
On to the banks, where the bounce of the last two days was checked, with Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered down between 1% and 5% this morning. Lloyds TSB, on the other hand, was actually up 5% on news that the government was considering a change of mind on the divvy front, in that the bank would be allowed to pay dividends to investors despite having taken advantage of the government's £37 bln bail-out box last week. Otrher news with the banks was that some of the banks were pressing the government to lift the ban on dividend payments across the board, effectively taking a u-turn on its decision to ban divvies as part of the bail-out of the banking sector. HBOS was up 2.5% this morning, and RBS up 1.3%, as other banks held firm.
Staying with financials, the insurers were down after news that the FSA had now upped its diligence and scrutiny of the main players in the insurance market after concerns over solvency levels due to the stock market conditions. The Pru,. Old Mutual, Standard Lfe and Norwich Union owner Aviva were all down this morning between 0.25% and 5%.
Publishing giant Pearson, owners of the FT, were up nealry 4% this morning after saying that its EPS would be at the top end of expectations, especially if the US Dollar stays strong against £STG.
On to the pharmas, who were seen as safe and defensive, where AstraZeneca was up 0.5% and Shire Pharma up nearly 2% already this morning.
British Land went ex-div, so fell back accordingly, as did BAE Systems, down 3%, and medical supplier Smith & Nephew was also down after going ex-div.
A Techie mention - Software Group Autonomy was up nearly 4% this morning after posting a pre-tax profit of US$53.7m for the 3rd quaretr, which was better than expected, adding that it was still confident for ongoing progress.
Experian, the credit-checking giant, was down 6% this morning despite reporting a 13% rise in H1 revenue, after saying it had decided not to sell its price comparison Web site, Pricegrabber, citing current market conditions would put off anyone who would have normally have been interested.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed down 76.62-points at 9,310.99, whilst the S&P500 was down 5.34 points at 998.01, and the Nasdaq down 65.24 points at 1,779.01. Concerns on the economy still evident, depsite the latest $250 bln input into the banks over there. Retail, consumer and the technology sectors were hit the most on Wall Street yesterday. Fears of a global recession intensified, as the Far East was also down today.
Back here in London, the miners took a bit of a beating early this morning, with metal prices falling back after Rio Tinto warned of Chinese demand slowing, adding that the world financial crisis being the main cause, and also said that there may be a delay in its plans to sell US$10 bln in assets. Rio was down over 5% early doors, BHP down 6%, Xstrata down over 7%, Anglo American also off 7%, and ENRC down nearly 9% this morning.
On to the black stuff, where oil was now at about US$79 bbl, with concerns on demand being cited there. Expect OPEC to cut production again soon. The oil majors pulled back as a rfesult of the fall in oil price, with BP, RD Shell, BG Group and Tullow Oil doen between 1.5% and 3.5% this morning.
On to the banks, where the bounce of the last two days was checked, with Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered down between 1% and 5% this morning. Lloyds TSB, on the other hand, was actually up 5% on news that the government was considering a change of mind on the divvy front, in that the bank would be allowed to pay dividends to investors despite having taken advantage of the government's £37 bln bail-out box last week. Otrher news with the banks was that some of the banks were pressing the government to lift the ban on dividend payments across the board, effectively taking a u-turn on its decision to ban divvies as part of the bail-out of the banking sector. HBOS was up 2.5% this morning, and RBS up 1.3%, as other banks held firm.
Staying with financials, the insurers were down after news that the FSA had now upped its diligence and scrutiny of the main players in the insurance market after concerns over solvency levels due to the stock market conditions. The Pru,. Old Mutual, Standard Lfe and Norwich Union owner Aviva were all down this morning between 0.25% and 5%.
Publishing giant Pearson, owners of the FT, were up nealry 4% this morning after saying that its EPS would be at the top end of expectations, especially if the US Dollar stays strong against £STG.
On to the pharmas, who were seen as safe and defensive, where AstraZeneca was up 0.5% and Shire Pharma up nearly 2% already this morning.
British Land went ex-div, so fell back accordingly, as did BAE Systems, down 3%, and medical supplier Smith & Nephew was also down after going ex-div.
A Techie mention - Software Group Autonomy was up nearly 4% this morning after posting a pre-tax profit of US$53.7m for the 3rd quaretr, which was better than expected, adding that it was still confident for ongoing progress.
Experian, the credit-checking giant, was down 6% this morning despite reporting a 13% rise in H1 revenue, after saying it had decided not to sell its price comparison Web site, Pricegrabber, citing current market conditions would put off anyone who would have normally have been interested.
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Market Wrap, Tuesday 14th October 2008
At the close of play, the FTSE100 was up 137.31 points at 4,394.21 with the FTSE250 ahead 64.1 points at 7,094.45 and the FTSE Smallcaps 66.63 points better at 2,218.99. The leading shares that were expected to, did close higher, but off the highs of the session. The mining stocks did well, helping the index, as oil and metals rose.
Over the pond, Wall Street rose initially but did fall back after an initial decent opening rally. Tech stocks started to fall away, as news that the US government would be inputting US$250 bln in to the larger banks. By the time London closed, the DJI was up about 80 points at 9,468, whilst the S&P500 was up 8 points at 1,011, and the Nasdaq down nearly 21 points at 1,823.
Back here in London, the banks suffered mixed fortunes, with Barclays having the best day - up 30.75p at 246p, whilst Standard Chartered closed up 126p at 1,326p, and HSBC up nearly 10p at 859p. The 'merger duo' didn't fair as well, as HBOS had the worst day, down 4.7p at 85.3p, whilst Lloyds TSB closed down 10.7p at 151.3p. Staying with financials, hedge fund manager Man Group closed up over 7% today, whilst interdealer broker ICAP closed up 12.5%.
On the the black stuff, where oil was hanging around the US$80 bbl level. BP closed up 28.5p at 446.75p, RD Shell up 64p at 1,451p, and Tullow Oil up 45.5p at 559p.
On to the miners - a mixed day, where rising metals prices helped some of the heavyweights. Rio closed up 29p at 2,826p, Anglo up 31p at 1,660p, and Vedanta up 68.5p at 900.5p. Vedanta gave a healthy production update this monring. Xstrata, ENRC, Lonmin and Anto didn't have such a good day, though, all closing down, but nothing drastic.
On to retail - where the British Retail Consortium announced that like-for-like sales were down 1.5% for last month than for September 2007. The drop was the highest fall since April, and also means that sales have fallen 6 out of the last 7 months. Which takes us on to the High Street, where some retailers did better than others, as hopes that the banks recovering and some better, more positive sentiment would help them, with shoppers rushing out to spend cash again. Others didn't fair as well, with luxury goods retailer Burberry closing down over 33p at 288.75p after a downbeat statement warning of tough times ahead. It did add that profits last time out were better than expected. JJB Sports closed up 3.75p at 22.5p after announcing that it is currently in discussions regarding the potential sale of one or more of its none-core assets and businesses.
On to the supermarkets, where figures showed that budget supermarket Aldi was racing ahead with its growth, far outpacing its rivals by a healthy margin. But peers did well today, with Morrisons closing up 9.5p at 243.5p and Sainsburys closing up nearly 17p at 275p.
On to house prices, and those that build them, where the fall in UK house prices got worse in September, whilst house sales fell to the lowest level in at least 30 years, said a survey from RICS showed today. Persimmons closed down over 36p at 341p, Bovis down over 29p at just shy of 326p, but Bellway closed up 19p at 501p, this despite announcing falling sales and prices, but not as bad as expected.
Over the pond, Wall Street rose initially but did fall back after an initial decent opening rally. Tech stocks started to fall away, as news that the US government would be inputting US$250 bln in to the larger banks. By the time London closed, the DJI was up about 80 points at 9,468, whilst the S&P500 was up 8 points at 1,011, and the Nasdaq down nearly 21 points at 1,823.
Back here in London, the banks suffered mixed fortunes, with Barclays having the best day - up 30.75p at 246p, whilst Standard Chartered closed up 126p at 1,326p, and HSBC up nearly 10p at 859p. The 'merger duo' didn't fair as well, as HBOS had the worst day, down 4.7p at 85.3p, whilst Lloyds TSB closed down 10.7p at 151.3p. Staying with financials, hedge fund manager Man Group closed up over 7% today, whilst interdealer broker ICAP closed up 12.5%.
On the the black stuff, where oil was hanging around the US$80 bbl level. BP closed up 28.5p at 446.75p, RD Shell up 64p at 1,451p, and Tullow Oil up 45.5p at 559p.
On to the miners - a mixed day, where rising metals prices helped some of the heavyweights. Rio closed up 29p at 2,826p, Anglo up 31p at 1,660p, and Vedanta up 68.5p at 900.5p. Vedanta gave a healthy production update this monring. Xstrata, ENRC, Lonmin and Anto didn't have such a good day, though, all closing down, but nothing drastic.
On to retail - where the British Retail Consortium announced that like-for-like sales were down 1.5% for last month than for September 2007. The drop was the highest fall since April, and also means that sales have fallen 6 out of the last 7 months. Which takes us on to the High Street, where some retailers did better than others, as hopes that the banks recovering and some better, more positive sentiment would help them, with shoppers rushing out to spend cash again. Others didn't fair as well, with luxury goods retailer Burberry closing down over 33p at 288.75p after a downbeat statement warning of tough times ahead. It did add that profits last time out were better than expected. JJB Sports closed up 3.75p at 22.5p after announcing that it is currently in discussions regarding the potential sale of one or more of its none-core assets and businesses.
On to the supermarkets, where figures showed that budget supermarket Aldi was racing ahead with its growth, far outpacing its rivals by a healthy margin. But peers did well today, with Morrisons closing up 9.5p at 243.5p and Sainsburys closing up nearly 17p at 275p.
On to house prices, and those that build them, where the fall in UK house prices got worse in September, whilst house sales fell to the lowest level in at least 30 years, said a survey from RICS showed today. Persimmons closed down over 36p at 341p, Bovis down over 29p at just shy of 326p, but Bellway closed up 19p at 501p, this despite announcing falling sales and prices, but not as bad as expected.
Morning Market, Tuesday 14th October 2008
The FTSE was up again this morning, as expected. It was 140 points to the good at 4,396, which is healhy, especially as so much of a rise was seen yesterday. Hopes that inflation has peaked could be almost confirmed when the CPI figures are out later on. This could trigger another interest rate cut, as well. The news from the US also helped.
Over the pond, last night Wall Street reacted positively to the news that US Treasury will be injecting US$250 billion in to US banks gave more relief to investors and the markets in general. The DJI closed up 936.42 points at 9,387.61, the S&P500 up 104.10 points at 1,003.32, and the Nasdaq up 194.74 points to close at 1,844.25. A decent day.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 was up 14% on the day, boosted by the US news as well. 14% in one day was the biggest rise in the Nikkei's 58-year history.
Back here in London it was the banks that were doing well early doors. RBS was up 3%, Barclays was up 7.25%, Lloyds TSB up nearly 5%, and HBOS up 7.5%.
The insureres were also doing well, with Old Mutual up over 5% this morning and Norwich Union owner Aviva up 4%.
Staying with financials, Interdealer broker ICAP was up nearly 2% again, boosted by the bouyancy these last 2 days.
Financials have been boosted by a sense that a frozen credit market may be starting to thaw, but analysts said more monetary easing, in addition to a coordinated 50 basis point cuts by major central banks, would be needed.
On to the black stuff, where oil was up another US$2 bbl. BP was up 7% this morning, RD Shell up 5.5%.
The miners were up today, and gold jumped 2% as well. BHP up almost 5%, ENRC was up 2%, Rio up over 5%, and Xstrata up over 6%. News from BHP was that it said it was still cautious over China in the short-term, but said that the company has no plans to cut production despite some fears of lower demand. It added that its capital spending would continue as is, despite lower metal prices, as the company still remains bullish on long-term demand.
On to the High Street, where better sentiment in general has investors moving back in. Marks & Sparks was up another 4% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was up over 3% this morning. B&Q owner Kingfisher was up over 1.5% already too.
Over the pond, last night Wall Street reacted positively to the news that US Treasury will be injecting US$250 billion in to US banks gave more relief to investors and the markets in general. The DJI closed up 936.42 points at 9,387.61, the S&P500 up 104.10 points at 1,003.32, and the Nasdaq up 194.74 points to close at 1,844.25. A decent day.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 was up 14% on the day, boosted by the US news as well. 14% in one day was the biggest rise in the Nikkei's 58-year history.
Back here in London it was the banks that were doing well early doors. RBS was up 3%, Barclays was up 7.25%, Lloyds TSB up nearly 5%, and HBOS up 7.5%.
The insureres were also doing well, with Old Mutual up over 5% this morning and Norwich Union owner Aviva up 4%.
Staying with financials, Interdealer broker ICAP was up nearly 2% again, boosted by the bouyancy these last 2 days.
Financials have been boosted by a sense that a frozen credit market may be starting to thaw, but analysts said more monetary easing, in addition to a coordinated 50 basis point cuts by major central banks, would be needed.
On to the black stuff, where oil was up another US$2 bbl. BP was up 7% this morning, RD Shell up 5.5%.
The miners were up today, and gold jumped 2% as well. BHP up almost 5%, ENRC was up 2%, Rio up over 5%, and Xstrata up over 6%. News from BHP was that it said it was still cautious over China in the short-term, but said that the company has no plans to cut production despite some fears of lower demand. It added that its capital spending would continue as is, despite lower metal prices, as the company still remains bullish on long-term demand.
On to the High Street, where better sentiment in general has investors moving back in. Marks & Sparks was up another 4% this morning, whilst clothing peer Next was up over 3% this morning. B&Q owner Kingfisher was up over 1.5% already too.
Monday, 13 October 2008
Market Wrap, Monday 13th October 2008
A better day, to say the least. The FTSE closed up 324.84 points today at 4,256.90, a healthy 8.25% up on Friday's close. It was a good start and carried on, which was expected. I fact, it ended up the best one day percentage rise ever! Mind you, let's not get too carried away - the FTSE is still down some 34% this year.
With the government inputting some £37 bln today, £20 bln to RBS, £12 bln to HBOS and £5 bln to Lloyds TSB, the government (read taxpayer) now has 50% to 60% of some of the biggest banks in UK. RBS got £20 bln, with the government taking £5 bln in preference shares and £15 bln ordinary shares, if not taken up elsewhere, so effectively being underwritten by the government. RBS chief executive Fred Goodwin has resigned and will be replaced by Stephen Hester, the chief executive for British Land. Goodwin had to forego his planned £1.2m pay off, as well, although is in-line for a £590k per annum pension, so things aren't too bad for the 50-year old.
Over the pond there was a rally on opening, also in response to London and the weekend's meeting in Paris. The Eurozone leaders agreed that no major bank would 'go under'. The European plan involved the 15 Eurozone leaders all agreeing a pan-European bail-our plan in Paris yesterday. Govenrments have agreed to guarantee loans between banks until the end of 2009. They would also put money directly in to the banks by buying preference shares.
The miners had a great day today, clawing back some of the recent losses. More about that after the banks.
The banks had a mixed day, but were mostly up, except the 3 that took the bail-out box cash today. RBS got £20 bln, as mentioned above. HBOS & Lloyds TSB also had an input from the bail-out box. HBOS closed down another 27% at the news. Lloyds TSB said it had gone back to the table regarding the merger deal, dropping its offer to 0.605 of a Lloyds TSB share for every HBOS share. This is down from the 0.833 of a Lloyds TSB share that had been agreed on Sept. 18. Lloyds TSB closed down nearly 15% on the day, whilst RBS closed down 8.4%, although is looking fairly attractive at these levels, dilution or not. Upon completion of a successful merger, HBOS and Lloyds TSB are also expected to seek extra cash to help the new balance sheet.
The other majors did ok, though, with Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered all up between 3.75% and 20% on the day. Barclays has announced that it will attempt to raise its capital by £6.5 billion without government help, by offering a rights issue to current investors.
News from Germany was that the German government may make €500 bln available for the national banks. €400 bln of this as bank guarantees and another €100 bln of further state funding being made availble.
The French were at it too. President Nicholas Sarkozy said that the French government would guarantee all bank lending. France will use two entities to help banks - one offering €320 bln in guarantees on bank lending, and the other a €40 bln fund that can actually to take stakes in companies, similar to what the UK government has done with 3 UK banks today.
Then the world's top central banks also announced further measures to improve liquidity in short-term US dollar funding markets.
The interbank cost of borrowing in sterling, euros and dollars fell as confidence in money markets showed signs of returning as European governments took sweeping action to support the creaking banking system.
Staying with financials, the insurers all did well, with The Pru, Standard Life and Old Mutual up between 10% and 20% on the day. Hedge fund Man Group rebounded 15% after its recent hammering, and interdealer broker ICAP was also up nearly 13% on the day.
The energy stocks followed the black stuff. Oil rose and so did the majors. BP RD Shell, BG Group and Cairn Energy were all up between 8.8% and 16% on the day.
On to the miners, where higher metal prices helped all the heavweights here. BHP, Rio, Anglo, ENRC, Xstrata and Vedanta Resources were all up between 9% and 15% on the day.
On to the High Street, where the retailers were sure that the banks receiving cash would help prevent recessiuon conditions. Marks & Sparks was up 6% on the day, whilst clothing peer Next was up over 10%.
On to travel, where TUI Travel jumped a healthy 21% on the day, after its German sister TUI AG (which owns 51 percent of the company) said it would sell its Hapag-Lloyd unit to a bunch of German investors. This in turn increases the prospects of it buying out the British unit too.
With the government inputting some £37 bln today, £20 bln to RBS, £12 bln to HBOS and £5 bln to Lloyds TSB, the government (read taxpayer) now has 50% to 60% of some of the biggest banks in UK. RBS got £20 bln, with the government taking £5 bln in preference shares and £15 bln ordinary shares, if not taken up elsewhere, so effectively being underwritten by the government. RBS chief executive Fred Goodwin has resigned and will be replaced by Stephen Hester, the chief executive for British Land. Goodwin had to forego his planned £1.2m pay off, as well, although is in-line for a £590k per annum pension, so things aren't too bad for the 50-year old.
Over the pond there was a rally on opening, also in response to London and the weekend's meeting in Paris. The Eurozone leaders agreed that no major bank would 'go under'. The European plan involved the 15 Eurozone leaders all agreeing a pan-European bail-our plan in Paris yesterday. Govenrments have agreed to guarantee loans between banks until the end of 2009. They would also put money directly in to the banks by buying preference shares.
The miners had a great day today, clawing back some of the recent losses. More about that after the banks.
The banks had a mixed day, but were mostly up, except the 3 that took the bail-out box cash today. RBS got £20 bln, as mentioned above. HBOS & Lloyds TSB also had an input from the bail-out box. HBOS closed down another 27% at the news. Lloyds TSB said it had gone back to the table regarding the merger deal, dropping its offer to 0.605 of a Lloyds TSB share for every HBOS share. This is down from the 0.833 of a Lloyds TSB share that had been agreed on Sept. 18. Lloyds TSB closed down nearly 15% on the day, whilst RBS closed down 8.4%, although is looking fairly attractive at these levels, dilution or not. Upon completion of a successful merger, HBOS and Lloyds TSB are also expected to seek extra cash to help the new balance sheet.
The other majors did ok, though, with Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered all up between 3.75% and 20% on the day. Barclays has announced that it will attempt to raise its capital by £6.5 billion without government help, by offering a rights issue to current investors.
News from Germany was that the German government may make €500 bln available for the national banks. €400 bln of this as bank guarantees and another €100 bln of further state funding being made availble.
The French were at it too. President Nicholas Sarkozy said that the French government would guarantee all bank lending. France will use two entities to help banks - one offering €320 bln in guarantees on bank lending, and the other a €40 bln fund that can actually to take stakes in companies, similar to what the UK government has done with 3 UK banks today.
Then the world's top central banks also announced further measures to improve liquidity in short-term US dollar funding markets.
The interbank cost of borrowing in sterling, euros and dollars fell as confidence in money markets showed signs of returning as European governments took sweeping action to support the creaking banking system.
Staying with financials, the insurers all did well, with The Pru, Standard Life and Old Mutual up between 10% and 20% on the day. Hedge fund Man Group rebounded 15% after its recent hammering, and interdealer broker ICAP was also up nearly 13% on the day.
The energy stocks followed the black stuff. Oil rose and so did the majors. BP RD Shell, BG Group and Cairn Energy were all up between 8.8% and 16% on the day.
On to the miners, where higher metal prices helped all the heavweights here. BHP, Rio, Anglo, ENRC, Xstrata and Vedanta Resources were all up between 9% and 15% on the day.
On to the High Street, where the retailers were sure that the banks receiving cash would help prevent recessiuon conditions. Marks & Sparks was up 6% on the day, whilst clothing peer Next was up over 10%.
On to travel, where TUI Travel jumped a healthy 21% on the day, after its German sister TUI AG (which owns 51 percent of the company) said it would sell its Hapag-Lloyd unit to a bunch of German investors. This in turn increases the prospects of it buying out the British unit too.
Morning Market, 13th October 2008
The FTSE was up about 160 points this morning at 4,092, up 4% on the morning. This was quite expected after the weekend news regarding the banks and government plans. The new Eurozone deal would see all Europe's goverments take holdings/control of national banks. News from the majors here was that RBS, HBOS and Lloyds TSB will take up some of the funds available. RBS is looking for £20 bln to boost its balance sheet, but mostly not from the bail-out box. Barcalys is looking for £8 bln, apparently, with all coming from Insitutions and none from the bil-out box.
Anyway, the news here was the European plan to tackle the credit crunch and financial sector crisis that was agreed in Paris yesterday. 15 'Euro Zone leaders gathered to sort out a Euro wide plan. All agreed to guarantee loans between banks until the end of 2009. Each goveenrment would put money into the banks by buying preference shares. RBS are at the front of the queue. They want to boost their balance sheet (share capital input) by £20 bln, with a split between the government (£5 bln) in preference shares, and £15 bln being underwritten by the government but placed elsewhere. RBS chief executive Fred Goodwin has resigned, as expected, and will be replaced by Stephen Hester, who was the chief executive for British Land. Goodwin is expected to get a £2m pay off. Not bad. Next in-line for a bail-out box handout is HBOS & Lloyds TSB, subject to a successful merger. As mentioned at the top of the page, Barclays has said that it will attempt to raise its capital by £6.5 bln without the government's help, by raising money via a Rights Issue to investors and from other Institutions.
In the Far East we had already had a positive day, before London opened, as a reaction to this pan-European deal done yesterday in Paris. All of Australia, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and India were up by lunctime, but Shanghai China & Taipei Taiwan were both down today.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 128 points at 8,451.19, whilst the S&P500 down 10.70 points at 899.22, and the Nasdaq down 4.39 points at 1,649.51. A late rally was well received, after such a fallback earlier in the day. The DJI actually traded in a 1,000 point range - quite remarkable. Wall Street had fallen sharply earlier in the session for an 8th consecutive day, with the DJI down nearly 700-points after kick off, and actually fell under 8,000 for the first time since 2003. A global recession being on the cards, was the word. The Dow will be closed today as it's a holiday in the USA.
Anyway, the news here was the European plan to tackle the credit crunch and financial sector crisis that was agreed in Paris yesterday. 15 'Euro Zone leaders gathered to sort out a Euro wide plan. All agreed to guarantee loans between banks until the end of 2009. Each goveenrment would put money into the banks by buying preference shares. RBS are at the front of the queue. They want to boost their balance sheet (share capital input) by £20 bln, with a split between the government (£5 bln) in preference shares, and £15 bln being underwritten by the government but placed elsewhere. RBS chief executive Fred Goodwin has resigned, as expected, and will be replaced by Stephen Hester, who was the chief executive for British Land. Goodwin is expected to get a £2m pay off. Not bad. Next in-line for a bail-out box handout is HBOS & Lloyds TSB, subject to a successful merger. As mentioned at the top of the page, Barclays has said that it will attempt to raise its capital by £6.5 bln without the government's help, by raising money via a Rights Issue to investors and from other Institutions.
In the Far East we had already had a positive day, before London opened, as a reaction to this pan-European deal done yesterday in Paris. All of Australia, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and India were up by lunctime, but Shanghai China & Taipei Taiwan were both down today.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 128 points at 8,451.19, whilst the S&P500 down 10.70 points at 899.22, and the Nasdaq down 4.39 points at 1,649.51. A late rally was well received, after such a fallback earlier in the day. The DJI actually traded in a 1,000 point range - quite remarkable. Wall Street had fallen sharply earlier in the session for an 8th consecutive day, with the DJI down nearly 700-points after kick off, and actually fell under 8,000 for the first time since 2003. A global recession being on the cards, was the word. The Dow will be closed today as it's a holiday in the USA.
Saturday, 11 October 2008
Friday 10th - Wall Street Rallies After Initial Heavy Fall - Well Received
Over the pond yesterday, Friday, the DJI closed down 128 points at 8,451.19, whilst the S&P500 down 10.70 points at 899.22, and the Nasdaq down 4.39 points at 1,649.51.
A late rally was well received, after such a fallback earlier in the day. It was a fantastic reverse trade, if you could get it on.
The DJI actually traded in a 1,000 point range - quite remarkable. Wall Street had fallen sharply earlier in the session for an 8th consecutive day, with the DJI down nearly 700-points after kick off, and actually fell under 8,000 for the first time since 2003. A global recession being on the cards, was the word.
A late rally was well received, after such a fallback earlier in the day. It was a fantastic reverse trade, if you could get it on.
The DJI actually traded in a 1,000 point range - quite remarkable. Wall Street had fallen sharply earlier in the session for an 8th consecutive day, with the DJI down nearly 700-points after kick off, and actually fell under 8,000 for the first time since 2003. A global recession being on the cards, was the word.
Friday, 10 October 2008
Market Wrap, Friday 10th October 2008
The FTSE closed down another 366.02 points today at 3,947.78. That's down 9% on the day. It was another volatile day, with the FTSE actually running down some 10% after opening, then recovering about 5% of that, but falling back down again over the rest of session to close where it did. The FTSE is down about 23% on the week, its worst fall since 1987, and under 4,000 for the first time in 5 years.
Over the pond, we saw another negative opening, although not bad. The Nasdaq was fairly steady, at about even. President Bush came out of his week's hiding to address the US Nation - assuring them that the US government was doing all it could, and was 'moving aggressively' to address the financial markets' crisis. No-one listeneed to him last week, so he was hoping that something positive may come this week, now that the Dow had since fallen another 2,000 points, or whatever it is. President Bush included an observation in his speech that showed he is on the ball - "Anxiety was feeding the current round of plunges," he said. Not joyful elation, then...? Finance ministers and central bankers from around the world meet in Washington this weekend for the annual meeting of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and World Bank on 11-13 October.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure again. RBS, Barclays, and HSBC were down about 5%. Staying with financials, insurers Legal & General closed down 126% and The Pru down over 10%. Motor insurance group Admiral announced an upbeat statement, though, saying it was on track meet profit estimates for this year. It explained that it has seen double-digit growth on premium income and vehicles insured.
On to the black stuff, where oil was now down another 4-bucks on the day to US$82.50 bbl, but had been lower. BP closed down over 6% on the day.
On to the miners, where metals prices turned down again. BHP, Rio, Anglo, Xstrata, Anto, and Vedanta all close ddon wheavily, between 7% and 13% on the day.
On to retail, namely the High Street, where news in one of the tabloids said that Philip Green, the owner of Bhs, had taken a 3% stake in Sainsburys at a cost of something like £125m. The retailers didn't do well amongst all the gloom, with Marks & Sparks, Next, B&Q owner Kingfisher all down 3% to 6%, and supermarkets Tesco and Sainsburys down up to 10% on the day.
On to lesiure, namely travel, where news that Iberia has been busily buying up British Airways shares over the last week or two, taking advantage of the lower shareprice. Iberia has now doubled its stake to 7.3%.
Even the defensive stocks took hits, inclding the phramas and the tobacco firms. AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, British American Tobacco, and Imperial Tobacco were all down between 6.5% and 10% on the day.
3i Group closed down over 16%.
Over the pond, we saw another negative opening, although not bad. The Nasdaq was fairly steady, at about even. President Bush came out of his week's hiding to address the US Nation - assuring them that the US government was doing all it could, and was 'moving aggressively' to address the financial markets' crisis. No-one listeneed to him last week, so he was hoping that something positive may come this week, now that the Dow had since fallen another 2,000 points, or whatever it is. President Bush included an observation in his speech that showed he is on the ball - "Anxiety was feeding the current round of plunges," he said. Not joyful elation, then...? Finance ministers and central bankers from around the world meet in Washington this weekend for the annual meeting of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and World Bank on 11-13 October.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure again. RBS, Barclays, and HSBC were down about 5%. Staying with financials, insurers Legal & General closed down 126% and The Pru down over 10%. Motor insurance group Admiral announced an upbeat statement, though, saying it was on track meet profit estimates for this year. It explained that it has seen double-digit growth on premium income and vehicles insured.
On to the black stuff, where oil was now down another 4-bucks on the day to US$82.50 bbl, but had been lower. BP closed down over 6% on the day.
On to the miners, where metals prices turned down again. BHP, Rio, Anglo, Xstrata, Anto, and Vedanta all close ddon wheavily, between 7% and 13% on the day.
On to retail, namely the High Street, where news in one of the tabloids said that Philip Green, the owner of Bhs, had taken a 3% stake in Sainsburys at a cost of something like £125m. The retailers didn't do well amongst all the gloom, with Marks & Sparks, Next, B&Q owner Kingfisher all down 3% to 6%, and supermarkets Tesco and Sainsburys down up to 10% on the day.
On to lesiure, namely travel, where news that Iberia has been busily buying up British Airways shares over the last week or two, taking advantage of the lower shareprice. Iberia has now doubled its stake to 7.3%.
Even the defensive stocks took hits, inclding the phramas and the tobacco firms. AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, British American Tobacco, and Imperial Tobacco were all down between 6.5% and 10% on the day.
3i Group closed down over 16%.
Bank of England Auction Oversubscribed
Britain's central bank has offered overnight dollar funds every day for the past three weeks as part of globally coordinated action to ease strains in money markets.
News from the Bank of England this morning was that it had received bids worth 1.31 times the amount on offer at its US$30 bln auction of one-week funds. This was above the 1.17 cover at last week's auction.
The BoE said that there was less demand at its US$10 bln overnight auction, which received bids worth 0.85 times the amount on offer.
One helping stance is that the one-week dollar auction allowed those who participated in last Friday's one-week auction to roll over their funds again.
News from the Bank of England this morning was that it had received bids worth 1.31 times the amount on offer at its US$30 bln auction of one-week funds. This was above the 1.17 cover at last week's auction.
The BoE said that there was less demand at its US$10 bln overnight auction, which received bids worth 0.85 times the amount on offer.
One helping stance is that the one-week dollar auction allowed those who participated in last Friday's one-week auction to roll over their funds again.
Morning Market, Friday 10th October 2008
The FTSE 100 was down 300 points this morning, and down over 400 after opening - a 7% fall after opening. Something like £80 bln was wiped off the FTSE 100 value. We have had a nigh-on 20% drop this week alone. This could be more than a recession; it could be a depression. Global recession fears mounted, with investors not impressed by the (UK/US) governments' efforts and central banks attempts at trying to take pressure away and help the credit markets.
The banks and financial stocks all got hit on opening, following on from the US yetserday, which closed down heavily last night. Staying with the banks, HBOS was down 16% this morning, Lloyds TSB down 9% and Standard Chartered down 10%. Concerns whether to HBOS and LLoyds TSB merger will go ahead saw HBOS being sold off.
On to Insurer Aviva, which bucked the morning's fall with a small gain after saying that its surplus capital actually rose in the 3rd quarter, despite the falling stock markets. It added that it had increased its hedging as a support buffer against further market falls.
The banks and financial stocks all got hit on opening, following on from the US yetserday, which closed down heavily last night. Staying with the banks, HBOS was down 16% this morning, Lloyds TSB down 9% and Standard Chartered down 10%. Concerns whether to HBOS and LLoyds TSB merger will go ahead saw HBOS being sold off.
On to Insurer Aviva, which bucked the morning's fall with a small gain after saying that its surplus capital actually rose in the 3rd quarter, despite the falling stock markets. It added that it had increased its hedging as a support buffer against further market falls.
Thursday, 9 October 2008
Wall Street Crash - Dow Closes Down Another 7%
There was a big sell off in the last 90mins of trading on Wall Street this evening, after a steady fall for most of the session. The DJI closed down 678.91 points at 8,579.19, whilst the S&P500 closed down 75.02 points at 909.92, and the Nasdaq down 95.21 points at 1,645.12. It was not a good day.
Oil fell back some more, and was around the US$84.82 bbl, with OPEC now planning a meeting to organise a cut in production, just to get the price up again. That's nice of them.
Gold was up at US$910 oz, just as cash moved in to safer havens.
For Cable traders, GBP/USD was at 171.10. The Yen has been the big movers. AUS/JPY is down about 25% in a week, with the €UR/JPY something similar.
Oil fell back some more, and was around the US$84.82 bbl, with OPEC now planning a meeting to organise a cut in production, just to get the price up again. That's nice of them.
Gold was up at US$910 oz, just as cash moved in to safer havens.
For Cable traders, GBP/USD was at 171.10. The Yen has been the big movers. AUS/JPY is down about 25% in a week, with the €UR/JPY something similar.
Wall Street Update - DJI Under 9k, S&P down 38% from Last Year's High
One hour before closing, over the pond there is big selling still going on. The Dow has fallen under 9,000, causing a ripple of 'booing' on the floor. The S&P 500 hit its record level on this day last year, and today stands at 38% lower than that level reached. Quite remarkable.
A few rising shares include one or two of the strong tech stocks, like Apple Inc, for example. Otherwise it's a sea of red.
General Motors, for example, is down another 18% today to levels not seen for 58 years. Yes, 58 years.
A few rising shares include one or two of the strong tech stocks, like Apple Inc, for example. Otherwise it's a sea of red.
General Motors, for example, is down another 18% today to levels not seen for 58 years. Yes, 58 years.
Market Wrap, Thursday 9th October 2008
Despite a promising start this morning, the FTSE 100 closed down 52.9 points at 4,313.8. This was down from a peak of 4,512.5 this morning. We are now down to a new 4-year low. The US falling after initially opening up didn't help, causing a late sell off.
Over the pond, as mentioned above, Wall Street opened up, but soon turned down. As one may expect, the financial sector was being hit over there again. The Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) coincided with the ban on shorting period coming to an end. There were over 950 financial stocks that were on the list as not to be short-sold, but now the ban has expired it seems there are many who feel there is a way down to go yet.
Back here in London, the banks had quite a good morning, with the exception of Barclays, but many tailed back again as the session wore on. Barclays closed down over 13% today, whilst HSBC closed down 2%. As we mentioned this morning, Barclays is planning to do a rights offer of some sort to existing shareholders for some preference shares. £3 bln is the rumour. If the offer isn't taken up completely by investors then Barclays will have to dip in to the government's new rescue fund. Not all banks were down, though, with RBS up nearly 6%, Lloyds TSB up nearly 1%, and HBOS top of the pile with a 31% rise today. Whether we have truly reached the bottom can't be confirmed, but there are many who feel that the banks may be at or near the floor. There must be some bargains out there, was the talk. RBS looks very cheap, despite its balance sheet, as the balance sheet will get some help one way or another. LIBOR (inter-bank lending rate) came down today as a reaction to the 0.5% drop in interest rates yesterday, but it is still a dubious arena to be investing in at the moment.
On to the black stuff, where the oil majors turned down again after a promising start as oil was sub US$89 bbl again. BP closed down 1.8% on the day and RD Shell down 3.2%. Cairn Energy closed up 18% and Tullow Oil closed up nearly 9%, though. An announcement from John Wood Group, the oil services company, helped a 10% rise in share price after saying that trade had been strong for the year, and that it expected ongoing growth to continue.
On to the miners, where metal prices started to rise again after some heavy pressure lately. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anto, and Anglo were up nearly 5% to nearly 16% between them.
Recent safe haven sector, the utilities, saw some switching out of the sector's stocks to move to some bargain-looking stocks elsewhere. A sector downgrade by Dresdner Kleinwort didn't help, either, with Scottish & Southern Energy down nearly 7% after a downgrade to 'sell' from 'hold', International Power down 7% after a downgrade to 'reduce' from 'buy', and Drax down 5% after a downgrade to 'reduce' from 'buy'.
Over the pond, as mentioned above, Wall Street opened up, but soon turned down. As one may expect, the financial sector was being hit over there again. The Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) coincided with the ban on shorting period coming to an end. There were over 950 financial stocks that were on the list as not to be short-sold, but now the ban has expired it seems there are many who feel there is a way down to go yet.
Back here in London, the banks had quite a good morning, with the exception of Barclays, but many tailed back again as the session wore on. Barclays closed down over 13% today, whilst HSBC closed down 2%. As we mentioned this morning, Barclays is planning to do a rights offer of some sort to existing shareholders for some preference shares. £3 bln is the rumour. If the offer isn't taken up completely by investors then Barclays will have to dip in to the government's new rescue fund. Not all banks were down, though, with RBS up nearly 6%, Lloyds TSB up nearly 1%, and HBOS top of the pile with a 31% rise today. Whether we have truly reached the bottom can't be confirmed, but there are many who feel that the banks may be at or near the floor. There must be some bargains out there, was the talk. RBS looks very cheap, despite its balance sheet, as the balance sheet will get some help one way or another. LIBOR (inter-bank lending rate) came down today as a reaction to the 0.5% drop in interest rates yesterday, but it is still a dubious arena to be investing in at the moment.
On to the black stuff, where the oil majors turned down again after a promising start as oil was sub US$89 bbl again. BP closed down 1.8% on the day and RD Shell down 3.2%. Cairn Energy closed up 18% and Tullow Oil closed up nearly 9%, though. An announcement from John Wood Group, the oil services company, helped a 10% rise in share price after saying that trade had been strong for the year, and that it expected ongoing growth to continue.
On to the miners, where metal prices started to rise again after some heavy pressure lately. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anto, and Anglo were up nearly 5% to nearly 16% between them.
Recent safe haven sector, the utilities, saw some switching out of the sector's stocks to move to some bargain-looking stocks elsewhere. A sector downgrade by Dresdner Kleinwort didn't help, either, with Scottish & Southern Energy down nearly 7% after a downgrade to 'sell' from 'hold', International Power down 7% after a downgrade to 'reduce' from 'buy', and Drax down 5% after a downgrade to 'reduce' from 'buy'.
Morning Market, Thursday 9th October 2008
The FTSE opened better this morning, jumping about 2% on opening, and was at about 4,483, up 117 points, in its first hour. Some confidence returning, what with the interest rate cut and bail-out package. But don't get too carried away, the FTSE is down some 30% this year. Let's just hope we are at the bottom. We're sure there are many stocks that are fundamentally not much different than they were prior to this freefall, but have just been dragged down by the financial stocks. Look for the bargains. FThere is a G7 meeting in Wshinton tomorrow, with financial ministers and central bank chiefs from all the G7 countries attending.
Over the pond, last night the DJI closed down 189.96 points at 9,258.10, whilst the S&P500 closed down 11.29 points, and the Nasdaq closed down 14.55 points at 1,740.33. Another negative day, the 6th in a row. It had been quite a roller coater earlier on over on Wall Street, with the 0.5% interest rate cut really causing the swings as no-one really knew which way to go. It's a surreal scenario, at the moment. The New York Times said that the US Treasury Department is considering taking stakes in many of the US banks in a bid to restore confidence in the whole financial system.
In Iceland the financial watchdog said it was taking control of the country's biggest bank, Kaupthing, so to safeguard the national banking system. theer have been 3 takeovers in a week there.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 0.5% despite being up early in their session.
Back here in London this morning, the banks saw some trough-feeders moving in. RBS, Lloyds TSB, and HBOS were all up between 10% and 25%, but Barclays didn't do much as the Daily Mail said the bank is planning to get another £3 bln on the balance sheet. Apparently existing sharteholders will get first option on some new preference shares. If not enough is raised then Barclays will have to tap in to the government's rescue fund. That's the fund that Barclays denied they needed, the other day.
Staying with financials, Norwich Union owner Aviva was up some 8% this morning after saying it had been hedging to cover against stock markets falling.
On to the oil majors, where the price of the black stuff was under US$88 bbl. This wasn't reflected in the oil majors' share prices, though, with BP, RD Shell, BG Group and Cairn Energy all up between Energy 3% and 11% this morning.
On to the miners, who also recovered some lost gorund. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo, Anto, and Vedanta were all up between 5% and 12% this morning.
Recent defensive stocks, which had been attractive, saw some switching in to the now interesting commodities and banking stocks. Tobacco stocks fell back, as did the utilities.
Over the pond, last night the DJI closed down 189.96 points at 9,258.10, whilst the S&P500 closed down 11.29 points, and the Nasdaq closed down 14.55 points at 1,740.33. Another negative day, the 6th in a row. It had been quite a roller coater earlier on over on Wall Street, with the 0.5% interest rate cut really causing the swings as no-one really knew which way to go. It's a surreal scenario, at the moment. The New York Times said that the US Treasury Department is considering taking stakes in many of the US banks in a bid to restore confidence in the whole financial system.
In Iceland the financial watchdog said it was taking control of the country's biggest bank, Kaupthing, so to safeguard the national banking system. theer have been 3 takeovers in a week there.
In the Far East today the Nikkei 225 closed down 0.5% despite being up early in their session.
Back here in London this morning, the banks saw some trough-feeders moving in. RBS, Lloyds TSB, and HBOS were all up between 10% and 25%, but Barclays didn't do much as the Daily Mail said the bank is planning to get another £3 bln on the balance sheet. Apparently existing sharteholders will get first option on some new preference shares. If not enough is raised then Barclays will have to tap in to the government's rescue fund. That's the fund that Barclays denied they needed, the other day.
Staying with financials, Norwich Union owner Aviva was up some 8% this morning after saying it had been hedging to cover against stock markets falling.
On to the oil majors, where the price of the black stuff was under US$88 bbl. This wasn't reflected in the oil majors' share prices, though, with BP, RD Shell, BG Group and Cairn Energy all up between Energy 3% and 11% this morning.
On to the miners, who also recovered some lost gorund. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo, Anto, and Vedanta were all up between 5% and 12% this morning.
Recent defensive stocks, which had been attractive, saw some switching in to the now interesting commodities and banking stocks. Tobacco stocks fell back, as did the utilities.
Wednesday, 8 October 2008
Market Wrap, Wednesday 8th October 2008
The FTSE closed down 238.53 points today at 4,366.69 - a 4-year low. The 0.5% cut in interest rates didn't do much to help the markets. A £50 bln injection in to the banks, together with the 0.5% interest rate cut, was supposed to lift sentiment. The rate cut did briefly lift the FTSE 100, but it was short-lived. Another 5% drop today was the end result. The index has lost over 12% this week, which is on-track for its biggest weekly fall since the '87 crash. The FTSE is down 32% this year.
Over the pond, the DJI opened up down 200 points and then turned up. By the time London closed the DJI was down over 90 points at 9,405, whilst the S&P500 was down 12 points at 984, and the Nasdaq down 20 points at 1,734. Wall Street was down as everyone is preparing for the global doom and gloom slowdown and recession. There is going to be a serious economic slowdown. Ben Bernanke, the US Fed Res chairman, said that the US economy was being 'battered' by a financial crisis of "historic dimension". He did add, though, that he feels that inflation may not be as bad as expected as oil and other commodities were now pulling back.
Back here in London, the banks took even more of a pounding. Barclays closed down 27p at 258p, off 9.5% on the day, whilst Lloyds TSB closed down 12p at 213.5p, down over 5% today. All the major bank, bar HBOS, closed down between 2.4% and 11.5% today. HBOS actually closed up 25% on the day, making up over half of the 40% drop yesterday, as hopes that the acquisition by Lloyds TSB is looking more and more a certainty.
The bank rescue plan makes £200 bln available to the UK banks, so to help liquidity. The banks will increase their Tier 1 capital by £25 bln.
Staying with financials, the insurers were down too. The Pru, Old Mutual, Legal & General and Norwich Union owner Aviva were all down 2.5% to 5%. Hedge fund manager Man Group was down over 5%.
On to the miners, where Rio closed down 101p at 2,816p on general concerns of global demand. BHP, Rio, Anglo American, ENRC, Xstrata, and Vedanta Resources all closed down 2% to 14% on the day. Not a good day for the sector.
On to oil, where BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all closed down 4% to 7% on the day.
Sainsburys closed down 15% today on concerns that shoppers are switching to cheaper ranges and products. News that 10% stake holder Robert Tchenguiz had placed 168m shares in the company at £2.50 didn't help confidence. The supermarket group declined to comment on the placing, but had announced sales at the top end of expectations this morning. Peers all closed down after going ex-divvy, namely Tesco and Morrisons, whilst B&Q owner Kingfisher was also down after going ex-dividend.
On to Telecoms, where Vodafone clsoed down 2.1p at 123.7p.
Over the pond, the DJI opened up down 200 points and then turned up. By the time London closed the DJI was down over 90 points at 9,405, whilst the S&P500 was down 12 points at 984, and the Nasdaq down 20 points at 1,734. Wall Street was down as everyone is preparing for the global doom and gloom slowdown and recession. There is going to be a serious economic slowdown. Ben Bernanke, the US Fed Res chairman, said that the US economy was being 'battered' by a financial crisis of "historic dimension". He did add, though, that he feels that inflation may not be as bad as expected as oil and other commodities were now pulling back.
Back here in London, the banks took even more of a pounding. Barclays closed down 27p at 258p, off 9.5% on the day, whilst Lloyds TSB closed down 12p at 213.5p, down over 5% today. All the major bank, bar HBOS, closed down between 2.4% and 11.5% today. HBOS actually closed up 25% on the day, making up over half of the 40% drop yesterday, as hopes that the acquisition by Lloyds TSB is looking more and more a certainty.
The bank rescue plan makes £200 bln available to the UK banks, so to help liquidity. The banks will increase their Tier 1 capital by £25 bln.
Staying with financials, the insurers were down too. The Pru, Old Mutual, Legal & General and Norwich Union owner Aviva were all down 2.5% to 5%. Hedge fund manager Man Group was down over 5%.
On to the miners, where Rio closed down 101p at 2,816p on general concerns of global demand. BHP, Rio, Anglo American, ENRC, Xstrata, and Vedanta Resources all closed down 2% to 14% on the day. Not a good day for the sector.
On to oil, where BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all closed down 4% to 7% on the day.
Sainsburys closed down 15% today on concerns that shoppers are switching to cheaper ranges and products. News that 10% stake holder Robert Tchenguiz had placed 168m shares in the company at £2.50 didn't help confidence. The supermarket group declined to comment on the placing, but had announced sales at the top end of expectations this morning. Peers all closed down after going ex-divvy, namely Tesco and Morrisons, whilst B&Q owner Kingfisher was also down after going ex-dividend.
On to Telecoms, where Vodafone clsoed down 2.1p at 123.7p.
Interest Rates Down 0.5% - A Day Early !
Gordon Brown announced a global interest rate lowering oh half of one per cent to the house at 1pm today. China, Germany, USA, UK, etc - all lowered interest rates by 0.5%.
The Bank of England was to announce its rate decision tomorrow, Thursday, but the global synchronised cut has brought that forward.
The Bank of England was to announce its rate decision tomorrow, Thursday, but the global synchronised cut has brought that forward.
Morning Market, Wednesday 8th October 2008
The FTSE opened down 2% today, then fell another 4% in the next hour to 7% down, off 300 points at 4,304, with the Chancellor's statment to the LSE saying £50 billion will be inputted doing nothing for confidence in the financial sector and the economy. The FTSE is down 30% this year, down to a new 4-year low.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed down 508.39 points at 9447.11, the S&P500 down 60.66 points at 996.23, and the Nasdaq closed down 108.08 points at 1,754.88. The top 30 shares (the DJIA) closed down ove 500 points on the day. A big drop. This means that Wall Street has fallen on 5 consecutive days to a level not seen for 4 years. Investors have no confidence the Federal Reserve's actions on trying to stabilise and get some confidence back into the markets. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the US economy was being 'battered' by a financial crisis of "historic dimension". He added that the risk for inflation has eased as there are lower oil and other commodity prices.
In the Far East the Nikkei 225 closed down nearly 10% today.
Back here in London this morning, with a global recession on the cards, with talk on the floors of a 5-year downturn and doom and gloom.
The banks took more hits. The early 15minutes of thge day was a rollercoaster. Down 20%, up 10%, down 10%, and that was just RBS. Alistair "God knows how I'm the Finance Minister" Darling read a statement to the London Stock Exchange at 7am that spoke of a plan to offer banks short-term liquidity, with the Bank Of England making new capital available for the banks to enable the banking system to opearte with enough funds to maintain lending in the medium-term. After the initial vomit-inducing rollecoaster ramping up and down, the banks stablised somewhat - well, somewhat lower too, with all the major banks down 6% to 17% this morning alone. The one that baulked this fall was HBOS, who were up 16% this morning. HSBC had said that it has no plans to use any of the cash available at the moment.
Staying with the finanacials, the insurers were down. The Pru, Old Mutual, Legal & General, and Norwich Union owner Aviva all down 3% to 6% this morning.
Hedge Fund Man Group was off nearly 3%.
The price of the black stuff pulled back a bit too, with BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all down between 4% and 6% this morning.
On to the miners, where the slight recovery of metal prices was short-lived as they were under some pressure again, with concerns about global demand if the recession does take hold. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo American, Xstrata, and Vedanta were all off 4% to 7% this morning.
On to the High Street, where Sainsburys was down 8% this morning despite announcing a decent Q2 figures sumamry, which were at the top-end of expectations. However, the supermarket chain did say that the economic environment was set to remain "extremely challenging" (errr, don't we hear that from everyone? Is this addition on the end of the announcement what caused the 8% drop...? Was this a surprise...?). Apologies for sounding cynical, there. Peers Tesco & Morissons went ex-divvy. Other High Street peers must have been surprised by Sainsburys 'challenging conditions' mention, though, as Next was down 3% this morning, and Marks & Sparks was down 4%.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed down 508.39 points at 9447.11, the S&P500 down 60.66 points at 996.23, and the Nasdaq closed down 108.08 points at 1,754.88. The top 30 shares (the DJIA) closed down ove 500 points on the day. A big drop. This means that Wall Street has fallen on 5 consecutive days to a level not seen for 4 years. Investors have no confidence the Federal Reserve's actions on trying to stabilise and get some confidence back into the markets. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the US economy was being 'battered' by a financial crisis of "historic dimension". He added that the risk for inflation has eased as there are lower oil and other commodity prices.
In the Far East the Nikkei 225 closed down nearly 10% today.
Back here in London this morning, with a global recession on the cards, with talk on the floors of a 5-year downturn and doom and gloom.
The banks took more hits. The early 15minutes of thge day was a rollercoaster. Down 20%, up 10%, down 10%, and that was just RBS. Alistair "God knows how I'm the Finance Minister" Darling read a statement to the London Stock Exchange at 7am that spoke of a plan to offer banks short-term liquidity, with the Bank Of England making new capital available for the banks to enable the banking system to opearte with enough funds to maintain lending in the medium-term. After the initial vomit-inducing rollecoaster ramping up and down, the banks stablised somewhat - well, somewhat lower too, with all the major banks down 6% to 17% this morning alone. The one that baulked this fall was HBOS, who were up 16% this morning. HSBC had said that it has no plans to use any of the cash available at the moment.
Staying with the finanacials, the insurers were down. The Pru, Old Mutual, Legal & General, and Norwich Union owner Aviva all down 3% to 6% this morning.
Hedge Fund Man Group was off nearly 3%.
The price of the black stuff pulled back a bit too, with BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all down between 4% and 6% this morning.
On to the miners, where the slight recovery of metal prices was short-lived as they were under some pressure again, with concerns about global demand if the recession does take hold. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo American, Xstrata, and Vedanta were all off 4% to 7% this morning.
On to the High Street, where Sainsburys was down 8% this morning despite announcing a decent Q2 figures sumamry, which were at the top-end of expectations. However, the supermarket chain did say that the economic environment was set to remain "extremely challenging" (errr, don't we hear that from everyone? Is this addition on the end of the announcement what caused the 8% drop...? Was this a surprise...?). Apologies for sounding cynical, there. Peers Tesco & Morissons went ex-divvy. Other High Street peers must have been surprised by Sainsburys 'challenging conditions' mention, though, as Next was down 3% this morning, and Marks & Sparks was down 4%.
Chancellor: £50 bln Input --- + --- BoE: £200 bln Available
Alistair Darling confirmed that £50 billion of tax payers cash would be used in a rescue plan for the finacial sector in a statement to the London Stock Exchange.
The Bank of England has said that £200 billion will be made available for banks to help liquidity, as and when it's needed.
The Bank of England has said that £200 billion will be made available for banks to help liquidity, as and when it's needed.
Tuesday, 7 October 2008
Chancellor Agrees to £50 bln Financial Sector Bail-Out
News this evening was that Alistair 'what the Hell is going on?' Darling had confirmed that £50 bln would be made available for use to rescue the ailing UK financial markets.
Details of what is to excatly be done with the amount of cash mentioned will follow in a statement to the London Stock Exchange tomorrow morning at 7am, before the market opens.
One does feel that Alistair Darling would struggle to handle the accounts at a sweet shop, let alone the national budget, but rumours that he was seen catching a black cab to the Bank of England this evening so to try and find someone who knew what to do with the £50 bln were pure speculation.
Details of what is to excatly be done with the amount of cash mentioned will follow in a statement to the London Stock Exchange tomorrow morning at 7am, before the market opens.
One does feel that Alistair Darling would struggle to handle the accounts at a sweet shop, let alone the national budget, but rumours that he was seen catching a black cab to the Bank of England this evening so to try and find someone who knew what to do with the £50 bln were pure speculation.
Market Wrap, Tuesday 7th October 2008
The FTSE closed up 16 points today at 4,605.2. It was a rollercoaster today, with a slight close up to finish. The low of the day was 4,517, and the high was actually 4,745. 228 point range, and we finish up 16 points. A real rollercoaster today. Difficult to call, yet technical-wise some decent trades.
The banks took the hits with the news that 3 of them had been asking for some cash from the Bank of England. It was definitely confirmed that Darling had met with bank officials yesterday. Names in the frame were RBS, Barclays & Lloyds TSB. Barclays surprising us, as they have been out doing some hoovering on Lehman's fire sale stuff etc. These names weren't confirmed, anyway, so maybe it's HBOS and not Barclays...??!! No-one would confirm, anyway. Barclays CEO John Varley made a statement denying that they had or would request capital from the government, so maybe the rumours was completely speculative and false. RBS, though, look like it was defintely them at the front of the queue with cap in hand. We also heard a rumour that RBS-owned Coutts Bank was being touted too. Share prices were hit - RBS closed under a quid. down 40% to its lowest level for 15 years. Barclays closed down 9%, Lloyds TSB down 13%, and HBOS closed down a massive 41% on the day, the worst performaer in the FTSE today. One bank to buck this onslaught and freefall is HSBC, who are not exposed anywhere near as much to the UK markets, and are Far East and emerging markets bias. They closed up 2.2% on the day.
Oil ticked up again, giving some interest in the oil majors, with BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all up 3% to 4.6% on the day.
Metal prices were also recovering after a recent fall back on global demand concerns, and this gave some weight to the mining heavyweights. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo American, Vedanta and Antofagasta were all up, with 11% being the highest rise of the day.
Pharmas were seen as defensive, with Glaxo closing up 2% on the day and Shire Pharma closing up 3.3% on the day.
Even the drinks groups did well, with investors looking for safer havens and oversold compared to real fundamentals type stocks. Diageo closed up 55.% on the day, and SABMiller up over 10% on the day.
Not alot else to add, but recruitment company Michael Page reported a 14.6% increase in Q3 profits, despite the UK job market slowing down. The group has also seen strong overseas growth.
Northern Foods, the Marks & Sparks food supplier, gave an upbeat update, saying it was on course for profit to be in-line with expectations. There had been some concern that M&S food sales being down may have affected the suppliers' bottom line.
Oxford Biomedica had a good day after news that its partner, Sanofi-Aventis, was still working together with the development of its lead drug.
A closing note is thoughts on the Bank of England's interest rate decision due on Thursday. Concerns by the BoE on inflation will have to be thrown out the window, with a swift cut in interest rates expected. 0.5% (50 points) cut is expected, which would still be only have of what the Aussies did down under yesterday with their 1% cut. Still, something needs to be done to try and get people to spend some money or try and get the housing market to look like it may receive a welcome injection.
The banks took the hits with the news that 3 of them had been asking for some cash from the Bank of England. It was definitely confirmed that Darling had met with bank officials yesterday. Names in the frame were RBS, Barclays & Lloyds TSB. Barclays surprising us, as they have been out doing some hoovering on Lehman's fire sale stuff etc. These names weren't confirmed, anyway, so maybe it's HBOS and not Barclays...??!! No-one would confirm, anyway. Barclays CEO John Varley made a statement denying that they had or would request capital from the government, so maybe the rumours was completely speculative and false. RBS, though, look like it was defintely them at the front of the queue with cap in hand. We also heard a rumour that RBS-owned Coutts Bank was being touted too. Share prices were hit - RBS closed under a quid. down 40% to its lowest level for 15 years. Barclays closed down 9%, Lloyds TSB down 13%, and HBOS closed down a massive 41% on the day, the worst performaer in the FTSE today. One bank to buck this onslaught and freefall is HSBC, who are not exposed anywhere near as much to the UK markets, and are Far East and emerging markets bias. They closed up 2.2% on the day.
Oil ticked up again, giving some interest in the oil majors, with BP, RD Shell, and BG Group all up 3% to 4.6% on the day.
Metal prices were also recovering after a recent fall back on global demand concerns, and this gave some weight to the mining heavyweights. BHP, Rio, ENRC, Anglo American, Vedanta and Antofagasta were all up, with 11% being the highest rise of the day.
Pharmas were seen as defensive, with Glaxo closing up 2% on the day and Shire Pharma closing up 3.3% on the day.
Even the drinks groups did well, with investors looking for safer havens and oversold compared to real fundamentals type stocks. Diageo closed up 55.% on the day, and SABMiller up over 10% on the day.
Not alot else to add, but recruitment company Michael Page reported a 14.6% increase in Q3 profits, despite the UK job market slowing down. The group has also seen strong overseas growth.
Northern Foods, the Marks & Sparks food supplier, gave an upbeat update, saying it was on course for profit to be in-line with expectations. There had been some concern that M&S food sales being down may have affected the suppliers' bottom line.
Oxford Biomedica had a good day after news that its partner, Sanofi-Aventis, was still working together with the development of its lead drug.
A closing note is thoughts on the Bank of England's interest rate decision due on Thursday. Concerns by the BoE on inflation will have to be thrown out the window, with a swift cut in interest rates expected. 0.5% (50 points) cut is expected, which would still be only have of what the Aussies did down under yesterday with their 1% cut. Still, something needs to be done to try and get people to spend some money or try and get the housing market to look like it may receive a welcome injection.
Morning Market, Tuesday 7th October 2008
The FTSE was down some half of one per cent this morning, now down to a new 4-year low. This after yesterday's freefall. The FTSE was down about 15 points at 4,574, making the FTSE down nealry 30% this year. This is serious stuff.
News from Australia that inteerst rates had been cut drstically helped the Far east, so London opened up, as expected. Hoever, we soon turned down.
On to the banks, where it wasn't pretty. News that RBS is back talking to the government ref new funidng sent RBS down to a new 13-year low. Rumours that the government will have to invest billions of pounds into the UK banks, with REBS apparnelty top of the list of those with their caps in hand. RBS fell a massive 33% this morning, with peers following down. Barclays was down 15%, Lloyds TSB down nearly 20%, and HBOS down 17%, all amongst reports that there is a queue of UK High Street banks standing at the Bank of England wanting some cash, and quickly. The ususla response was forthcoming, with a Barclays spokesman categorically denying that the bank had asked for some cash from the government. Alastair [please help me]Darling (the Finance Minister, ex-Minister for Roads, with no finance experience with a plc, never mind a country) has said that a banking bill would be introduced to parliament today, Tuesday.
There was news around HBOS that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia has said it is in exclusive talks with HBOS about a potential takeover of its Australian operation, BankWest, which is estimated to be worth Aus$1.45 bln. Staying down under, the Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates by a surprising 1% with now some more hopes that the Bank of England will follow with a cut in the UK, with a 0.5% cut in rates expected.
Staying with financials, insurer Aviva was down 6.5%this morning, whilst peer The Pru was off 2%.
One positive was Thomson Reuters, who were up 1.8% this morning.
On to the miners, where metal princes were recovering. Many of the majors were up between 2% and 4% early doors.
The price of the black stuff was recovering a little, up from its US$89 bbl level, helpoiing BP up 0.8% and RD Shell up 0.9% this morning.
Pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline was up 2.2% and peer Shire Pharma up 3.6% as were seen as overold and quite defensive in this current turmoil.
News from Australia that inteerst rates had been cut drstically helped the Far east, so London opened up, as expected. Hoever, we soon turned down.
On to the banks, where it wasn't pretty. News that RBS is back talking to the government ref new funidng sent RBS down to a new 13-year low. Rumours that the government will have to invest billions of pounds into the UK banks, with REBS apparnelty top of the list of those with their caps in hand. RBS fell a massive 33% this morning, with peers following down. Barclays was down 15%, Lloyds TSB down nearly 20%, and HBOS down 17%, all amongst reports that there is a queue of UK High Street banks standing at the Bank of England wanting some cash, and quickly. The ususla response was forthcoming, with a Barclays spokesman categorically denying that the bank had asked for some cash from the government. Alastair [please help me]Darling (the Finance Minister, ex-Minister for Roads, with no finance experience with a plc, never mind a country) has said that a banking bill would be introduced to parliament today, Tuesday.
There was news around HBOS that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia has said it is in exclusive talks with HBOS about a potential takeover of its Australian operation, BankWest, which is estimated to be worth Aus$1.45 bln. Staying down under, the Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates by a surprising 1% with now some more hopes that the Bank of England will follow with a cut in the UK, with a 0.5% cut in rates expected.
Staying with financials, insurer Aviva was down 6.5%this morning, whilst peer The Pru was off 2%.
One positive was Thomson Reuters, who were up 1.8% this morning.
On to the miners, where metal princes were recovering. Many of the majors were up between 2% and 4% early doors.
The price of the black stuff was recovering a little, up from its US$89 bbl level, helpoiing BP up 0.8% and RD Shell up 0.9% this morning.
Pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline was up 2.2% and peer Shire Pharma up 3.6% as were seen as overold and quite defensive in this current turmoil.
Monday, 6 October 2008
Market Wrap, Monday 6th October 2008
The FTSE closed down 363.01 points today at 4,617.24 as the financials ector took a pounding. A global recession looks on the cards. The £ was down to a 2 1/2 year low against the dollar, with the German banks now causing further concern to Europe as a whole. In London there was not one blue chip stock in positive territory.
Over the pond it looked like meltdown, with the DJI down about 5% today so far, with the direction turning down again. The DJI was down some 350 points at 9,975, under that important 10k level, whilst the S&P500 was down 45 points at 1.054, and the Nasdaq down 95 points at 1,852. It was not good. Further falls look likely today, but whether a late rally will help is anyone's guess. Theer has been too much of a fall so far for there to see a close even lower, we're sure. But don't hold ytour breath.
Back here in London, the banks were way down. RBS closed down some 20% lower at 148.10p, whilkst Barclays closed down 54p, or nearly 15% down at 314p.
On to the miners, where metal prices were falling back on concerns demand would fall back, whcih obviously affected the mining heavyweights. Rio closed down 15% at 2,888p, down 510p on the day.
On to leisure, namely travel where easyJet closed down nearly 10p at 218p despite posuting a higher load factor than this time last year. Airline giant British Airways was back in sub 150p territory, as concerns whether traffic will continue to fall, and business traffic being an almost certainty to fall away.
Over in Germany, its finance ministry has agreed to a 50bn euro bail-out plan to rescue one of the major banks, Hypo Real Estate. Germany has also announced an unlimited guarantee for all private savings. Staying in Europe, Iceland has seen drastic reaction to bad banking news, and also the Krone hitting 200 to the €uro, which is out from about 120. Denmark also stepped in with the guarantee card too, saying that all bank deposits will be safe.
Over the pond it looked like meltdown, with the DJI down about 5% today so far, with the direction turning down again. The DJI was down some 350 points at 9,975, under that important 10k level, whilst the S&P500 was down 45 points at 1.054, and the Nasdaq down 95 points at 1,852. It was not good. Further falls look likely today, but whether a late rally will help is anyone's guess. Theer has been too much of a fall so far for there to see a close even lower, we're sure. But don't hold ytour breath.
Back here in London, the banks were way down. RBS closed down some 20% lower at 148.10p, whilkst Barclays closed down 54p, or nearly 15% down at 314p.
On to the miners, where metal prices were falling back on concerns demand would fall back, whcih obviously affected the mining heavyweights. Rio closed down 15% at 2,888p, down 510p on the day.
On to leisure, namely travel where easyJet closed down nearly 10p at 218p despite posuting a higher load factor than this time last year. Airline giant British Airways was back in sub 150p territory, as concerns whether traffic will continue to fall, and business traffic being an almost certainty to fall away.
Over in Germany, its finance ministry has agreed to a 50bn euro bail-out plan to rescue one of the major banks, Hypo Real Estate. Germany has also announced an unlimited guarantee for all private savings. Staying in Europe, Iceland has seen drastic reaction to bad banking news, and also the Krone hitting 200 to the €uro, which is out from about 120. Denmark also stepped in with the guarantee card too, saying that all bank deposits will be safe.
Morning Market, Monday 6th October 2008
The FTSE was down 240 points at 4,756 this morning, as worries went through the financial markets, with news from Germany over the weekend that another bank was asking for help. The banks were really under pressure.
In the Far East the Nikkei 225 closed down 4.3% today.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 157.47 points at 10325.38, whilst the S&P500 closed down 15.05 at 1,099.23, and the Nasdaq down 29.33 points at 1947.39. That's 3 session in a row that Wall Street has closed down. This despite the $700 bln rescue plan, but the concern being that it won't actually help the financial markets to start operating normally again, leaving the economy in this current limbo situation, with no-one wanting to spend money if they have it, and banks still frightened to loan it if they have it to loan. News over the pond on Friday that Wells Fargo will buy Wachovia in a US$15 bln paper deal ('stock-swap' merger) saw a reaction from Citigroup, who protested that Wachovia shouldn't have been atlking to anyone else as it was in discussions with them. We'll see what comes back on that one today. Investors on both sides are concerned whether the planned US$700 bln bail-out package agreed would be big enough to prevent a whole global recession.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure RBS, Barclays, HSBC and HBOS were down 5% to 14% already this morning. Alistair Darling has said that Britain would take action, with radical action prepared to be taken, with some considering of a taxpayer-funded recapitalisation of Britain's banks. There is some cross-party support, with central bank support, for an effective part-nationalisation of the sector itself. Germany has offered a blanket deposit guarantee for all cash investments. A deal was done to rescue lender Hypo Real Estate at the 2nd attempt.
Staying with financials, interdealer broker ICAP was dow2n 5% this morning.
And on to the insurers, Old Mutual was off 6.5% and Standard Life down 7.5% this morning.
On to the miners, where metal prices were falling back, as concernbs that the financial situation would affect how much raw materials may be needed. I.e.- demand could afll as less commercial and infrastucture building etc is commissioned. BHP, Rio, Xstrata, ENRC and Anglo were down between 8% and 16% this morning.
On to oil, where the price of the balck stuff was down another 3-bucks a barrel at US$91 bbl. BP and RD Shell both down 5% and Cairn Energy down 8% this morning.
On to the High Street, with press news that the UK's largest corporate insolvency specialist, Begbies Traynor, has said that a 'large' number of UK retailers could go bust in the new year. The big stores fell in response, with Marks & Sparks down 1.3% this morning, Next down 2.5%, and B&Q owner Kingfisher was down 3.4%.
In the Far East the Nikkei 225 closed down 4.3% today.
Over the pond on Friday, the DJI closed down 157.47 points at 10325.38, whilst the S&P500 closed down 15.05 at 1,099.23, and the Nasdaq down 29.33 points at 1947.39. That's 3 session in a row that Wall Street has closed down. This despite the $700 bln rescue plan, but the concern being that it won't actually help the financial markets to start operating normally again, leaving the economy in this current limbo situation, with no-one wanting to spend money if they have it, and banks still frightened to loan it if they have it to loan. News over the pond on Friday that Wells Fargo will buy Wachovia in a US$15 bln paper deal ('stock-swap' merger) saw a reaction from Citigroup, who protested that Wachovia shouldn't have been atlking to anyone else as it was in discussions with them. We'll see what comes back on that one today. Investors on both sides are concerned whether the planned US$700 bln bail-out package agreed would be big enough to prevent a whole global recession.
Back here in London, the banks were under pressure RBS, Barclays, HSBC and HBOS were down 5% to 14% already this morning. Alistair Darling has said that Britain would take action, with radical action prepared to be taken, with some considering of a taxpayer-funded recapitalisation of Britain's banks. There is some cross-party support, with central bank support, for an effective part-nationalisation of the sector itself. Germany has offered a blanket deposit guarantee for all cash investments. A deal was done to rescue lender Hypo Real Estate at the 2nd attempt.
Staying with financials, interdealer broker ICAP was dow2n 5% this morning.
And on to the insurers, Old Mutual was off 6.5% and Standard Life down 7.5% this morning.
On to the miners, where metal prices were falling back, as concernbs that the financial situation would affect how much raw materials may be needed. I.e.- demand could afll as less commercial and infrastucture building etc is commissioned. BHP, Rio, Xstrata, ENRC and Anglo were down between 8% and 16% this morning.
On to oil, where the price of the balck stuff was down another 3-bucks a barrel at US$91 bbl. BP and RD Shell both down 5% and Cairn Energy down 8% this morning.
On to the High Street, with press news that the UK's largest corporate insolvency specialist, Begbies Traynor, has said that a 'large' number of UK retailers could go bust in the new year. The big stores fell in response, with Marks & Sparks down 1.3% this morning, Next down 2.5%, and B&Q owner Kingfisher was down 3.4%.
Friday, 3 October 2008
Market Wrap, Friday 3rd October 2008
The FTSE closed up 109.91 points at 4,980.25, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 30.06 points at 7,995.54, and for those thta are interested, the FTSE SMall Caps closed up 4.8 points at 2,454.04. The miners and banks came back on today, with late strength too.
Over the pond, news that Wells Fargo had agreed to buy troubled bank Wachovia Corp was taken well. By the time London closed the DJI was up 223 points at 10,706, whilst the S&P500 was up 31 points at 1,145, and the Nasdaq up nearly 63 points at 2,039.
Back here in London, the banks did well. HBOS had the best day, closing up 30.4p at 200.5p, whilst RBS closed up 10.2p at 186.2p, Barclays up 30p at 368p, and Lloyds TSB up 28.25p at 290.25p.
On to the insurers, Old Mutual had the best day there, closing up 4.8p at 77.4p on news that Swedish subsidiary, Skandia, has been ordered to pay £47m to settle the long-running dispute over the sale of Skandia's asset management arm in 2002. Apparently £41m had already been put aside and the figure was well received.
With metal prices turning again and finding support, the mining heavyweights were attarctive again. Rio closed up 188p at 3,398p, Antofagasta up 31.25p at 380.25p, Anglo American up 77p at 1,781p, Lonmin closed up 20p to 1,701p, and Xstrata closed up 63p at 1,680p.
On to the black stuff, where oil majors saw buying as oil found support. BP closed up 17.75p at 467.75p, RD Shell up 50p at 1,590p, and Regal Petroleum closed up a very healthy 42p at 125p after media reports that RD Shell was moving in with a 3-quid a share bid worth US$1.2bn. Regal, however, denied the reports, but no-one listened.
On to retail, where Marks & Spencer closed up 12.25p to 239.5p after a Cazenove upgarde to 'outperform' from 'in-line', and JP Morgan upgraded the High Street wife haven to 'neutral' from 'underweight'. Targets varied from 235p to 290p.
On to leisure, namely travel, airline British Airways had the worst day on the board, closing down 12.7p at 165.4p after saying in an update that trading conditions were challenging and that longhaul premium traffic had fallen back after the summer, adding that forward bookings are being affected (and blamed) by the increased anxiety in financial markets.
On to property, namely the commercial guys, there was a poor day all round. Hammersons closed down 7.5p at 957.5p, and Liberty International down 6.5p at 922.5p.
Imperial Tobacco closed down 3p at 1,846p after a Citigroup downgrade to 'hold' from 'buy'.
On to the housebuilders where Taylor Wimpey closed up a small but significant 0.25p at 34.75p after saying that it is continuing discussions with its banks to restructure debt, and that a new covenant structure should be all sorted by the New Year.
Over the pond, news that Wells Fargo had agreed to buy troubled bank Wachovia Corp was taken well. By the time London closed the DJI was up 223 points at 10,706, whilst the S&P500 was up 31 points at 1,145, and the Nasdaq up nearly 63 points at 2,039.
Back here in London, the banks did well. HBOS had the best day, closing up 30.4p at 200.5p, whilst RBS closed up 10.2p at 186.2p, Barclays up 30p at 368p, and Lloyds TSB up 28.25p at 290.25p.
On to the insurers, Old Mutual had the best day there, closing up 4.8p at 77.4p on news that Swedish subsidiary, Skandia, has been ordered to pay £47m to settle the long-running dispute over the sale of Skandia's asset management arm in 2002. Apparently £41m had already been put aside and the figure was well received.
With metal prices turning again and finding support, the mining heavyweights were attarctive again. Rio closed up 188p at 3,398p, Antofagasta up 31.25p at 380.25p, Anglo American up 77p at 1,781p, Lonmin closed up 20p to 1,701p, and Xstrata closed up 63p at 1,680p.
On to the black stuff, where oil majors saw buying as oil found support. BP closed up 17.75p at 467.75p, RD Shell up 50p at 1,590p, and Regal Petroleum closed up a very healthy 42p at 125p after media reports that RD Shell was moving in with a 3-quid a share bid worth US$1.2bn. Regal, however, denied the reports, but no-one listened.
On to retail, where Marks & Spencer closed up 12.25p to 239.5p after a Cazenove upgarde to 'outperform' from 'in-line', and JP Morgan upgraded the High Street wife haven to 'neutral' from 'underweight'. Targets varied from 235p to 290p.
On to leisure, namely travel, airline British Airways had the worst day on the board, closing down 12.7p at 165.4p after saying in an update that trading conditions were challenging and that longhaul premium traffic had fallen back after the summer, adding that forward bookings are being affected (and blamed) by the increased anxiety in financial markets.
On to property, namely the commercial guys, there was a poor day all round. Hammersons closed down 7.5p at 957.5p, and Liberty International down 6.5p at 922.5p.
Imperial Tobacco closed down 3p at 1,846p after a Citigroup downgrade to 'hold' from 'buy'.
On to the housebuilders where Taylor Wimpey closed up a small but significant 0.25p at 34.75p after saying that it is continuing discussions with its banks to restructure debt, and that a new covenant structure should be all sorted by the New Year.
Morning Market, Friday 3rd October 2008
FTSE 100 was down 26 points at 4,884.6 this morning, after about an hour's trading. Concerns remain about the financial system as US jobless non-farm payroll figures are out later today.
The financial stocks were under pressure here in London. Interbank rates are still way higher than they should be, with current sentiment still low. Interdealer broker ICAP was down half on one percent, whilst the London Stock Exchange (LSE:LSE) was down nearlt 5% this morning after a Credit Suisse downgrade to 'neutral' from 'outperform'. Thomson Reuters was down over 1% fell 1.1 percent.
On to the Banks, where it was mixed. RBS was down 0.25%, and HSBC down 1.5%. Some bucked this, with Barclays up 3.75%, HBOS up 3.5% and Lloyds TSB up 2.5%.
On to the insurers, where Old Mutual was up 7% this morning after saying that its Swedish subsidiary, Skandia AB, will have to pay £47m in settlement of a dispute of the sale of Skandia's asset management arm dating back to 2002. £41m had already been set aside, apprently.
On to the miners, where the metals were down. Gold was hit by the stronger US dollar, platinum down to almost its lowest level in nearly three years, and others also down, including zinc and copper. This was reflected in the heavyweights, with Rio down 2.5% this morning, Lonmin down 3.5%, and Kazakhmys down 4%.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was now at US$94 bbl. The oil majors were hit by this, with BP, RD Shell, Tullow Oil & Cairn Energy down by 0.3% to 2%.
Imperial Tobacco was also down this morning after a Citigroup downgrade to 'hold' from 'buy'.
The financial stocks were under pressure here in London. Interbank rates are still way higher than they should be, with current sentiment still low. Interdealer broker ICAP was down half on one percent, whilst the London Stock Exchange (LSE:LSE) was down nearlt 5% this morning after a Credit Suisse downgrade to 'neutral' from 'outperform'. Thomson Reuters was down over 1% fell 1.1 percent.
On to the Banks, where it was mixed. RBS was down 0.25%, and HSBC down 1.5%. Some bucked this, with Barclays up 3.75%, HBOS up 3.5% and Lloyds TSB up 2.5%.
On to the insurers, where Old Mutual was up 7% this morning after saying that its Swedish subsidiary, Skandia AB, will have to pay £47m in settlement of a dispute of the sale of Skandia's asset management arm dating back to 2002. £41m had already been set aside, apprently.
On to the miners, where the metals were down. Gold was hit by the stronger US dollar, platinum down to almost its lowest level in nearly three years, and others also down, including zinc and copper. This was reflected in the heavyweights, with Rio down 2.5% this morning, Lonmin down 3.5%, and Kazakhmys down 4%.
On to oil, where the price of the black stuff was now at US$94 bbl. The oil majors were hit by this, with BP, RD Shell, Tullow Oil & Cairn Energy down by 0.3% to 2%.
Imperial Tobacco was also down this morning after a Citigroup downgrade to 'hold' from 'buy'.
Thursday, 2 October 2008
Market Wrap, Thursday 2nd October 2008
The FTSE 100 closed down 89.25 points at 4,870.34, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 51.09 points at 7,965.48, and for those interested, the FTSE Small Caps closed down 9.78 points at 2,449.24. The top shares were down after a weak start on Wall Street caused the earlier rally with the UK banks to tail off. Metal prices were falling again, affecting the miners too.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down about 274 points at 10,557, whilst the S&P500 was down 35 points at 1,126, and the Nasdaq down 61 points at 2,008. Trading was weak on Wall Street after opening, with further bad news on rising jobless claims. This despite hopes that the revised US$700 bln financial bail-out will also be passed by Congress after getting past the Senate yesterday.
Back here in London, the banks had a good start after the Senta passed the amended bill on help for the financial sector, but this good feeling soon faded after the US opened. RBS closed down 4p at 176p, Barclays down 3p at 338p, HSBC down 10.5p at 911.75p, but HBOS closed up 22p at 170.1p and so did Lloyds TSB, whos closed up 12p at 262p.
On to the miners, where the metals fell back, particularly copper, whichw as down 3%. Rio closed down 277p at 3,210p, BHP down 88p at 1,121p, Kazakhmys down 36.5p at 535.5p, Xstrata down 66p at 1,617p, Anglo American down 144p at 1,704p, and Vedanta closed down 123p lower at 912p.
On to the black stuff, where the price of a barrel was down to sub-$95 bbl levels, which caused the major oilers to fall too. BP closed down 14p at 450p, RD Shell down 38p to 1,540p, and Cairn energy down 204p at 1,890p.
On to the pharmas, where GlaxoSmithKline closed up 13p at 1,225p after announcing its closure on the long-standing US case over its antidepressant Paxil. Glaxo will pay insurers US$40m to reimburse health plans that paid for children and adolescents to receive the drug.
On to retail, where Marks & Spencer gave retailers some hope with some decent quarterly figures, albeit lower. Markls & Sparks said they'd had a 6.1% drop in sales, but this was better than expected, helpng the share price to close up 17p at 227.5p. Peer Next closed up 40p at 1,099p, Home Retail up 3.75p at 242.5p, and B&Q owner Kingfisher ended the day even at 135p, despite having a positive start. Ted Baker didn't do so well, despite expansion plans, closing down 8.25p at 337p after announcing higher H1 profits, but adding the usual old chestnut of current difficult trading in the High STreet.
Halfords, the car parts and cycle retailer, announced like-for-like sales down 1.1% in Q2, but adding that total group sales were up 1.5% on last year, helping the shares close up 16p at 272p.
News from Nationwide building society that UK house prices fell 1.7% in September was expected, but didn't concern the housebuilders too much. Barratts closed up 0.5p at 110p, Bovis Homes up 14.5p at 4-quid, and Persimmons closed up 8p at 393.25p. Building supplies company Wolseley closed up 3p at 404p.
Over the pond, by the time London closed the DJI was down about 274 points at 10,557, whilst the S&P500 was down 35 points at 1,126, and the Nasdaq down 61 points at 2,008. Trading was weak on Wall Street after opening, with further bad news on rising jobless claims. This despite hopes that the revised US$700 bln financial bail-out will also be passed by Congress after getting past the Senate yesterday.
Back here in London, the banks had a good start after the Senta passed the amended bill on help for the financial sector, but this good feeling soon faded after the US opened. RBS closed down 4p at 176p, Barclays down 3p at 338p, HSBC down 10.5p at 911.75p, but HBOS closed up 22p at 170.1p and so did Lloyds TSB, whos closed up 12p at 262p.
On to the miners, where the metals fell back, particularly copper, whichw as down 3%. Rio closed down 277p at 3,210p, BHP down 88p at 1,121p, Kazakhmys down 36.5p at 535.5p, Xstrata down 66p at 1,617p, Anglo American down 144p at 1,704p, and Vedanta closed down 123p lower at 912p.
On to the black stuff, where the price of a barrel was down to sub-$95 bbl levels, which caused the major oilers to fall too. BP closed down 14p at 450p, RD Shell down 38p to 1,540p, and Cairn energy down 204p at 1,890p.
On to the pharmas, where GlaxoSmithKline closed up 13p at 1,225p after announcing its closure on the long-standing US case over its antidepressant Paxil. Glaxo will pay insurers US$40m to reimburse health plans that paid for children and adolescents to receive the drug.
On to retail, where Marks & Spencer gave retailers some hope with some decent quarterly figures, albeit lower. Markls & Sparks said they'd had a 6.1% drop in sales, but this was better than expected, helpng the share price to close up 17p at 227.5p. Peer Next closed up 40p at 1,099p, Home Retail up 3.75p at 242.5p, and B&Q owner Kingfisher ended the day even at 135p, despite having a positive start. Ted Baker didn't do so well, despite expansion plans, closing down 8.25p at 337p after announcing higher H1 profits, but adding the usual old chestnut of current difficult trading in the High STreet.
Halfords, the car parts and cycle retailer, announced like-for-like sales down 1.1% in Q2, but adding that total group sales were up 1.5% on last year, helping the shares close up 16p at 272p.
News from Nationwide building society that UK house prices fell 1.7% in September was expected, but didn't concern the housebuilders too much. Barratts closed up 0.5p at 110p, Bovis Homes up 14.5p at 4-quid, and Persimmons closed up 8p at 393.25p. Building supplies company Wolseley closed up 3p at 404p.
Senate Approves Amended $700 bln Bail Out Plan...
LAST NIGHT - News which will be very welcome all round the global markets was that an amended bill managed to get passed by the senate.
The updated $700 bln plan to rescue the financial markets has now been approved.
The updated $700 bln plan to rescue the financial markets has now been approved.
Wednesday, 1 October 2008
Market Wrap, Wednesday 1st October 2008
The FTSE 100 closed up 57.14 points at 4,959.59, whilst the FTSE 250 closed up 26.18 points at 7,914.39, and for those that are interested the FTSE Small Caps closed up 31.98 points at 2,459.02. It ha dbeen better, but there were alot of day traders getting out again later on, as a late sell off in mining stocks was evident. The banks did well.
Over the pond, there was some concern that a new, tweaked, revised, amended bail-out deal may not be a certaincy. This also helped the London pull back too. Wall Street opened lower and held lower early doors, with this bail-out really not a done deal yet. By the time London closed, the DJI was down 138.35 points at 10,712.31, the S&P500 fell 16.69 points to 1,148.05, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 38.2 points at 2,053.68.
Back here in London, it was the banks that kept the UK market higher today. Barclays closed up 14.5p at 341p, Lloyds TSB up 23.5p at 250p, HBOS up 30.1p at 152.5p, and HSBC closed up 21.25p at 922.25p.
On to the miners, where metal prices faling back and some late selling saw nearly all the heavyweights close down. BHP closed down 50p at 1,209p, Vedanta down 118p at 1,035p, Anto down 19.5p at 380.5p, Lonmin closed down a heavy 461p at 1,860p after news that Xstrata wasn't continuing with its offer plan, Xstrata down 33p at 1,683p, and Anglo American closed down 7p at 1,848p. The exception was Rio, who closed up 16p at 3,4876p, after news that Australia's competition watchdog had given the nod to BHP's proposed $114bn bid for Rio, addig that it reckons the deal won't lessen competition too much.
On to sweeties and chocolate, where Cadburys closed down 8.5p at 557p on news that CFO Ken Hanna will be stepping down next April after 5 years with the group so he can pursue a number of non-executive appointments. Taking it easy, is the translation.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks closed up 8.75p at 210.25p, with a trading statament due out tomorrow being touted as fairly upbeat, whilst peer Next closed up 40p at 1,059p, and B&Q owner Kingfisher up 3.3p at 135p. Pizza giant Dominos closed down 5.75p at 191.5p despite saying that trading for its 3rd quarter was continuing to be strong, adding that it reckons it has benefited from customers saving money by choosing a takeaway meal rather than eating out.
On to the builders, where there was some returning investors on the scene on hops that there could possibly be an interest rate cut next time out. Barratts closed up 4.75p at 109.5p, Bellway up 3p at 543p, Bovis Homes up 8.5p at 385.5p, and Redrow up 4.75p at 166.25p. However, St. Modwen closed down 28p at 262p after putting out a downbeat statment, saying that occuptational demand is weakening.
Over the pond, there was some concern that a new, tweaked, revised, amended bail-out deal may not be a certaincy. This also helped the London pull back too. Wall Street opened lower and held lower early doors, with this bail-out really not a done deal yet. By the time London closed, the DJI was down 138.35 points at 10,712.31, the S&P500 fell 16.69 points to 1,148.05, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 38.2 points at 2,053.68.
Back here in London, it was the banks that kept the UK market higher today. Barclays closed up 14.5p at 341p, Lloyds TSB up 23.5p at 250p, HBOS up 30.1p at 152.5p, and HSBC closed up 21.25p at 922.25p.
On to the miners, where metal prices faling back and some late selling saw nearly all the heavyweights close down. BHP closed down 50p at 1,209p, Vedanta down 118p at 1,035p, Anto down 19.5p at 380.5p, Lonmin closed down a heavy 461p at 1,860p after news that Xstrata wasn't continuing with its offer plan, Xstrata down 33p at 1,683p, and Anglo American closed down 7p at 1,848p. The exception was Rio, who closed up 16p at 3,4876p, after news that Australia's competition watchdog had given the nod to BHP's proposed $114bn bid for Rio, addig that it reckons the deal won't lessen competition too much.
On to sweeties and chocolate, where Cadburys closed down 8.5p at 557p on news that CFO Ken Hanna will be stepping down next April after 5 years with the group so he can pursue a number of non-executive appointments. Taking it easy, is the translation.
On to the High Street, where Marks & Sparks closed up 8.75p at 210.25p, with a trading statament due out tomorrow being touted as fairly upbeat, whilst peer Next closed up 40p at 1,059p, and B&Q owner Kingfisher up 3.3p at 135p. Pizza giant Dominos closed down 5.75p at 191.5p despite saying that trading for its 3rd quarter was continuing to be strong, adding that it reckons it has benefited from customers saving money by choosing a takeaway meal rather than eating out.
On to the builders, where there was some returning investors on the scene on hops that there could possibly be an interest rate cut next time out. Barratts closed up 4.75p at 109.5p, Bellway up 3p at 543p, Bovis Homes up 8.5p at 385.5p, and Redrow up 4.75p at 166.25p. However, St. Modwen closed down 28p at 262p after putting out a downbeat statment, saying that occuptational demand is weakening.
Morning Market, Wednesday 1st October 2008
The FTSE was rather flat at first this morning, then rising steadily up over 1% at 4,960, whilst the FTSE 250 was up 1% at 7,970, with the banks being back in fashion. Hopes that US Senate will pass a new tweaked and amended version of the US$700 bln bail-out of the financial markets looks like going through later today.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed up 484.81 at 10,850.66, whilst the S&P500 closed up 58.32, and the Nasdaq up 98.60 at 2,082.33. Some positive action on Wall Street after such a dire day on Monday, with the Dow actually rising up to its 3rd highest ever points gain in a day. There was confidence that that a tweaked rescue plan would soon be on the table and get passed, helping to prevent furthr banks to go to the wall, or be taken out due to bad debt.
In the Far East the the Nikkei 225 was up 1% and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was up 0.8%.
Back here in London, it was the banks that were doing well. RBS doing well, Barclays (up 3.75%), Lloyds TSB (4.5%), HBOS (3.3%), and HSBC also doing well.
On to the miners, where BHP was up 3% this morning, whilst Rio was up 7% after Australia's competition watchdog gave the nod to BHP's proposed $114 billion bid for Rio, adding that the new super miner would be unlikely to substantially lessen competition. Meanwhile, Xstrata was up over 9% after saying it has decided against a bid for Lonmin due to current 'unprecedented uncertainty' in the financial markets. Lonmin was down 25% on the news.
On to the black stuff, where oil has edged up to nearly US$102 bbl, helping the oil majors. BP (up 0.8%), Cairn Energy (nearly 2% up), with BG Group and Tullow Oil also doing well, up as much as 1.5% this morning.
Last night over the pond, the DJI closed up 484.81 at 10,850.66, whilst the S&P500 closed up 58.32, and the Nasdaq up 98.60 at 2,082.33. Some positive action on Wall Street after such a dire day on Monday, with the Dow actually rising up to its 3rd highest ever points gain in a day. There was confidence that that a tweaked rescue plan would soon be on the table and get passed, helping to prevent furthr banks to go to the wall, or be taken out due to bad debt.
In the Far East the the Nikkei 225 was up 1% and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng was up 0.8%.
Back here in London, it was the banks that were doing well. RBS doing well, Barclays (up 3.75%), Lloyds TSB (4.5%), HBOS (3.3%), and HSBC also doing well.
On to the miners, where BHP was up 3% this morning, whilst Rio was up 7% after Australia's competition watchdog gave the nod to BHP's proposed $114 billion bid for Rio, adding that the new super miner would be unlikely to substantially lessen competition. Meanwhile, Xstrata was up over 9% after saying it has decided against a bid for Lonmin due to current 'unprecedented uncertainty' in the financial markets. Lonmin was down 25% on the news.
On to the black stuff, where oil has edged up to nearly US$102 bbl, helping the oil majors. BP (up 0.8%), Cairn Energy (nearly 2% up), with BG Group and Tullow Oil also doing well, up as much as 1.5% this morning.
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