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July 23 (Reuters) – The euro dipped to the day’s low against the dollar on Friday after a newspaper report said several of Spain’s 18 savings banks have failed tests to see how strong they would be if economic circumstances were more adverse. [ID:nLDE66M041]
The euro dipped to as low as $1.2864 EUR= on trading platform EBS, down 0.2 percent on the day.
(Reporting by Masayuki Kitano)
July 14 (Reuters) – Global diversified miner Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) (RIO.L) on Wednesday reported a 2 percent fall in second-quarter iron ore production from a year earlier and raised concern about a possible double-dip recession in OECD countries and a slight slowdown in Chinese growth.
Rio Tinto, the world no.2 producer of the steel making raw material, also said it was running its iron ore mines close to capacity and forecast total 2010 production of 234 million tonnes.
For a table on second-quarter production: [ID:nSGE66C0JC] (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Ed Davies)
* Spain downgrade not a surprise, factored in – analyst
Stocks
* Charts tentatively signal chance of rebound
* Nikkei on track for worst monthly fall in over 1 yr
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO, May 31 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average slipped 0.2 percent on Monday, as trading firms lost ground after commodities prices fell following a downgrade in Spain’s credit rating that reinforced worries about euro zone debt issues.
But a number of exporters including Canon Inc (7751.T) edged higher as the yen fell back against the dollar and the euro, with market players saying investors were bargain hunting on any dips in stock prices.
Fitch cut Spain’s credit rating by one notch on Friday, saying the country’s economic recovery will be more muted than the government forecast due to its austerity measures. The downgrade helped send Wall Street lower ahead of a three-day weekend. [ID:nLDE64R1ZE] [ID:nN28218151]
Market players said however the impact of the rating cut on the broader market was limited for now, noting that many analysts had expected the move and only the timing was a surprise.
“While Fitch did cut Spain’s rating, S&P did the same thing in April, so it’s not as if the move was all that new,” said Takashi Ushio, head of the investment strategy division at Marusan Securities.
“There’s the sense that the Nikkei may be about to start a bit of a rebound. It’s held up quite well even though Wall Street fell. But gains will definitely be capped around 10,000 for now.”
The benchmark Nikkei .N225 shed 20.27 points to 9,742.71 while the broader Topix was flat at 828.14.
The Nikkei has lost 12 percent during May as of the end of trade on Friday, putting it on track for its worst one-month performance in well over a year.
But technical indicators are starting to point tentatively towards a possible rebound, with the Nikkei’s relative strength index (RSI) climbing above 30 late last week. Anything under 30 is considered oversold.
The Nikkei’s MACD has also stopped falling and appears to be inching upwards.
“The Fitch ratings cut on Spain shows that the European issues have not yet been cleared up at all, and this prompted selling of overseas stocks,” said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager at the equity division of Nikko Cordial Securities.
“Yet while there’s a trend towards a stronger yen, it isn’t pronounced, and it’s possible that Wall Street’s falls may have been exaggerated by investor desire to take profits ahead of a three-day weekend. All of this may limit falls.”
The euro rose 0.6 percent against the yen to 112.56 yen EURJPY=R while the dollar rose 0.3 percent against the yen at 91.38 yen JPY=
Canon rose 1.1 percent to 3,780 yen and TDK Corp (6762.T) crawled up 0.4 percent to 5,360 yen.
Honda Motor Co (7267.T) was slightly firmer at 2,783 yen. It said it expected production at a China parts plant, the centre of a labour dispute, to resume on Monday. [ID:nTOE64U029]
Trading houses slid after metals prices fell on Friday in the wake of the Spain ratings cut.
Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T) shed 1.5 percent to 2,042 yen and Mitsui & Co (8031.T) lost 2 percent to 1,295 yen. Itochu Corp (8001.T) fell 1.7 percent to 745 yen. (Reporting by Elaine Lies; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
May 31 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average lost 0.2 percent on Monday after a downgrade of Spain’s credit rating reinforced worries about euro zone debt issues, spooking global investors and sending Wall Street lower.
Stocks | Asian Markets | Global Markets | Financials
But a number of exporters including Canon Inc (7751.T) edged higher as the yen fell back against the dollar and the euro, with market players saying bargain hunting was likely on any dips.
The benchmark Nikkei .N225 shed 14.52 points to 9,748.46, while the broader Topix was flat at 878.13. (Reporting by Elaine Lies)
The Australian pilots of a Cathay Pacific flight who managed to steer an Airbus A330 plane to safety at Hong Kong’s airport after both its engines malfunctioned have been hailed as heroes.
Cathay Pacific said in a statement that the plane’s left engine had shut down as the aircraft made its landing approach at Hong Kong’s international airport on Tuesday with 309 passengers on a flight from Surabaya in Indonesia.
The right engine also began to “cut out inexplicably, leaving the [pilots] to cope with dips and surges in power and the prospect of the plane plunging into the sea short of [the airport],” the South China Morning Post reported.
The emergency landing caused all four tyres on the left hand side of the plane to deflate, while two on the right side also deflated, the airline said.
Passengers were evacuated on emergency inflatable slides. There were eight injuries.
“It was an amazing piece of piloting in extremely testing circumstances,” one colleague of the two Australian pilots was quoted as saying by the South China Morning Post.
“One engine was shut down completely and the other was going on and off. They effectively landed the plane on half an engine.
“Their stories will come out in due course when the investigation is complete but what they did was nothing short of heroic. It’s a miracle they managed to get the plane down safely,” the paper quoted another Cathay Pacific staff member as saying.
Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation department said it would investigate the “serious aircraft incident” and release a report in a month’s time.
(Reuters) – The U.S. economy is on the path to achieving self-sustaining growth, although the jobs outlook remains uncertain, White House economic adviser Larry Summers said in a newspaper interview to be published on Saturday.
“I think the economy appears to be moving toward escape velocity,” Summers said in an interview with the Financial Times. “You hear a lot less talk of W-shaped recoveries and double-dips than you did six months ago.”
Summers, a former Treasury secretary who advises President Barack Obama, said the economic recovery appeared to have “started earlier and more vigorously” than in previous downturns.
Obama’s action on healthcare, energy and education should help to restore confidence and stimulate the economy in the months ahead, Summers added.
However, he warned that it was still unclear whether companies would start taking on more workers or whether more action is needed to fuel the recovery.
“Whether firms will start hiring more as it becomes less tenable to do more with less and you will see some extra pick-up in employment beyond what is justified in output, or whether we are just going to have to grow the economy harder to put people back to work is not certain,” he said.
“What I think is certain is that we walked back from the brink of depression and that there is a great deal under way that should result in increased job creation.”
Summers gave the interview before the release on Friday of data showing U.S. employers created jobs in March at the fastest rate in three years.
Obama said it was the best news on the jobs front in two years. About eight million Americans have lost their jobs since the start of the recession.
(Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by Elizabeth Fullerton)
London, March 31 (ANI): Eccentric pop diva Lady Gaga demands only a cup of tea and a small plate of cheese before a concert.
Gaga likes to have a decaf coffee or a strong cup of tea before she goes to perform on stage.
Her usual requests have healthy products like ‘low-fat milk’, ‘salsa and guacamole dips’, and ‘whole wheat bread’ and ‘crackers’.
The singer’s drinks list is absolutely alcohol free and only includes ‘Dr Pepper’, ‘ginger ale’, 12 bottles of ‘still water’ and a dozen bottles of ‘mineral water’.
The flamboyant diva, 24, needs a jar of honey, demands a tray of assorted meats and a whole roast chicken.
“Despite her out-there image, this rider proves that Lady Gaga is actually quite down-to-earth and normal compared to the diva-like demands of some pop stars,” the Daily Star quoted a music industry source as saying. (ANI)
* Nikkei edges down, ex-dividend takes off 70 points-analysts
Stocks | Financials
* Next quarter may see further gains, perhaps up to 12,000
* Seven & I climbs on brokerage upgrade
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO, March 29 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei stock average lost 0.5 percent on Monday as investors moved to lock in profits after the benchmark finished at an 18-month high on Friday, but expectations for gains next quarter limited falls.
The Nikkei’s Friday rise, which at one point briefly took it over 11,000, plus the fact that Friday was the last day for investors to buy many Japanese stocks and still get dividends on them for the business year that ends this month, mean the benchmark is vulnerable to dips, market players said.
But expectations for the next quarter, particularly after Japanese results, will limit any slides as investors turn their eyes to a host of indicators and events this week, including U.S. jobs data on Friday.
“At this point, we’re predicting that some 80 percent of companies are likely to see improved profits, and some analysts are even more optimistic,” said Nagayuki Yamagishi, a strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.
“This optimism will really start showing up in the market at the end of April, when Japanese earnings move into high gear, and in the next quarter the Nikkei may well rise as far as 12,000.”
The benchmark Nikkei .N225 shed 57.24 points to 10,939.13 after earlier falling as low as 10,901.20. Market players said the ex-dividend impact was likely to have trimmed about 70 points from the Nikkei.
The broader Topix fell 0.3 percent to 963.40.
Other market players said that while the Nikkei is likely to grind steadily higher during the next quarter, rises may be limited to around 12,000, after which stocks could fall back a bit on a sense that valuations are no longer so inviting.
According to I/B/E/S, the Nikkei’s price-to-book ratio is currently at 1.3, compared to 2.2 for Hong Kong and 1.6 for Korea. The Topix is even more appealing at 1.2.
Shares with high dividends, such as drugmakers, were vulnerable.
Eisai (4523.T), which fell on Friday on news it would not seek early approval for its sepsis medication, extended losses by 3.9 percent to 3,365 yen. Fellow drugmaker Astellas Pharma (4503.T) lost 3.1 percent to 3,330 yen and Takeda (4502.T) lost 2.9 percent to 4,130 yen.
Seven & I Holdings (3382.T) climbed 3.6 percent to 2,249 yen after Morgan Stanley Japan Securities analyst Yukimi Oda upgraded the company’s shares to “overweight” from “equal-weight” and raised the price target to 2,700 yen from 2,400 yen, saying Seven & I was the retailer set to gain the most from a slower CPI fall and better employment. (Reporting by Elaine Lies)
TOKYO, March 29 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average slipped 0.8 percent on Monday as investors moved to lock in profits after the benchmark finished last week at an 18-month high, with defensive shares such as drugmakers hit especially hard.
Stocks | Financials
The benchmark Nikkei .N225 lost 90.06 points to 10,906.31, while the broader Topix fell 0.8 percent to 959.10. (Reporting by Elaine Lies)
A 25 per cent decrease in the number of alcohol-related assaults has been recorded in Wilcannia since an alcohol restriction trial began last year.
The Barrier local area command began the six month trial last September, which saw the Wilcannia Club Hotel and the Golf Club agree not to serve full-strength alcohol before 2:00pm (AEDT).
The Licensing Sergeant for the command, Wayne Demery, says the trial has been a success.
“The licensees at Wilcannia have been very supportive of this trial and they’ve seen the positive effects on their community,” he said.
“I don’t think it’s having a great effect on trade, the people of Wilcannia have adjusted to what the conditions are and they’re very compliant with it.”
Police say the voluntary alcohol restrictions will continue for another six months.
London, March 17 (ANI): Michael Lynton, chairman and chief executive of Sony Pictures, has called for healthier alternatives to snacks such as butter dipped popcorn in cinemas.
Lynton urged a convention of cinema owners in Las Vegas to help manage the bulging concerns related to obesity by introducing granola bars, fruit salad, yogurt and vegetable crudités with dips.
“I can almost imagine the Romans eating popcorn and drinking Coke at the Colosseum 2,000 years ago. But by bringing healthier snacks into your concession stands you would be helping our country meet an urgent public health need,” Times Online quoted him as saying.
Lynton pointed out he was not looking to “close the window for popcorn, soda and candy” and realised what problems could be faced on the health drive.
He said: “I don’t think giant tubs of spinach or broccoli is a good idea. And nobody wants to eat cauliflower while watching Spider-Man, or drink a 40oz cup of prune juice.”
Lynton added: “I’m just talking about adding some healthier items to what you already sell.”
Deirdre Flynn, spokesman for the Popcorn Board, a non-profit organisation funded by US popcorn processors, said: “If you ask most consumers what they consider the number one movie snack, they will tell you it’s popcorn. Popcorn and movies have gone hand in hand since the early 1900s.” (ANI)
Washington, Mar 5 (ANI): US First Lady Michelle Obama has admitted President Barack Obama is struggling to quit smoking.
She addressed the doctors” report on the president”s health.
“What the president struggles with is what every smoker struggles with, it”s a difficult habit to break. It”s understandable that he struggles with it,” Politico quoted her as saying.
She added: “Do I want him to stop completely? Absolutely. And I will push him to do so, but it”s a process.”
“I”ve never been a smoker so I can”t relate, but people who”ve smoked say like anything, you have dips and valleys, and to try to quit smoking in one of the most stressful times of the nation”s history is sort of like, you know, OK, he”s going to struggle a little bit.
“This may be the year he”ll struggle.”
Michelle recently visited Brinkley Middle School, where 99 percent of the students are African-American. (ANI)
Washington, Sep.2 (ANI): US President Barack Obama’s overall approval rating has only dipped a couple percentage points in August.
In the latest CBS News poll released Tuesday night, the president’s overall approval rating is 56 percent, which is down two points from the last poll taken at the end of July.
That rating for Obama is the lowest in a CBS News poll since he took office in January, but only by one point. The president’s approval rating in mid-July was at 57 percent, according to CBS News polling.
The president’s approval rating hit a high in late April at 68 percent just as Obama was completing his first 100 days in office. The rating remained in the 60s until dropping in that mid-July poll. (ANI)
Mumbai, July 9 (ANI): Inflation dipped to minus 1.55 per cent for the week ended June 27 from -1.30 per cent in the previous week.
The fall in inflation has been reported despite increase in the prices of food items like pulses, fish marine, fruit and vegetables.
During the week, prices of fish marine were dearer by 10 per cent, arhar, fruit and vegetables by two per cent each and urad and moong by one per cent each.
However, prices of cast iron casting, steel ingots and other metal products and some chemical items got cheaper. (ANI)
Tror De France Standing – Tour De France Enters Spain as 6th Stage begins – Tour De France stage 5 Results – Tour De France Stage 5 - Tour De France Stage 5 Video – Tour De France Stage 6 – Tour de France 2009Stage 5 – Tror De France Standing
GERONA, Spain (AP) — Tour de France riders have set off on the sixth stage as cycling’s premiere race dips into Spain for two days.
The 177 riders are heading southwest along the Mediterranean on a 112.8-mile course along plains, the coast and a few small hills from Gerona to Barcelona.
Thursday’s stage features a slight uphill finish that could have an impact on the overall standings. It’s likely to favor breakaway riders or sprinters seeking a stage victory.
Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland has been the only man to wear the yellow jersey this year. Seven-time winner Lance Armstrong is a split-second behind and 2007 Tour champion Alberto Contador is third, 19 seconds back.
-Associated Press.
Perth (Australia), May 21 (ANI): The current leader of the Australian pace attack, Mitchell Johnson, believes that he has England cricket captain Andrew Strauss’s number.ohnson, who understands the intricate principles of swings and roundabouts, reckons the Poms will experience difficulties in handling the Australian pace attack.
As far England predicting the demise of Australia’s left-handed batsmen at the hands of their swing bowlers, Johnson says they will have a similar problem.
The Australia quick, who has emerged as one of the most damaging fast bowlers in world cricket in the past 12 months, knows that what dips in to a right-hander dips away from a leftie and he thinks that could be equally troubling for Strauss.
“In South Africa I started to swing the ball, and him (Strauss) being a left-handed batsmen it will go away from him – and I like bowling to lefties,” Fox Sports quoted him, as saying.
“He has been scoring a few runs, but hopefully putting a bit of pressure on him then some other players will follow,” Johnson added.
Veteran Australia bowlers Stuart Clark and Brett Lee will join Johnson in the Ashes squad and will be battling to squeeze in past the incumbents Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus.
Clark said he thought only one pace man had an automatic right to a place in the Test line-up.
“The way I read it are the guys who bowled in South Africa are in the front position,” he said.
“Obviously Mitchell is going to play and the rest of us are competing for two or three spots.”
It will be difficult to remove Siddle from his position and Hilfenhaus will be a handful with his movement in English conditions. Johnson said he did not feel threatened having the veterans Clark and Lee back.
“I spent the last Ashes series in Australia around the guys, and now to be part of the squad and hopefully get a few games is a big deal and a big deal for Australian cricket,” Johnson said.
Johnson conceded the England bowlers were showing some good recent form – and the batting looked strong, too. (ANI)
Washington, May 14 (ANI): NASA’s Kepler spacecraft, which launched into orbit on March 6, has being hunting for other Earth-like planets.
The mission will spend the next three-and-a-half years staring at more than 100,000 stars for telltale signs of planets.
Kepler has the unique ability to find planets as small as Earth that orbit sun-like stars at distances where temperatures are right for possible lakes and oceans.
“Now the fun begins,” said William Borucki, Kepler science principal investigator at NASA’s Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California. “We are all really excited to start sorting through the data and discovering the planets,” he added.
Scientists and engineers have spent the last two months checking out and calibrating the Kepler spacecraft.
Data have been collected to characterize the imaging performance as well as the noise level in the measurement electronics.
The scientists have constructed the list of targets for the start of the planet search, and this information has been loaded onto the spacecraft.
“If Kepler got into a staring contest, it would win,” said James Fanson, Kepler project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.
“The spacecraft is ready to stare intently at the same stars for several years so that it can precisely measure the slightest changes in their brightness caused by planets,” he added.
Kepler will hunt for planets by looking for periodic dips in the brightness of stars – events that occur when orbiting planets cross in front of their stars and partially block the light.
The mission’s first finds are expected to be large, gas planets situated close to their stars. Such discoveries could be announced as early as next year. (ANI)
Srinagar, May 5 (ANI): Civil secretariat re-opened on Monday in the summer capital of Kashmir Srinagar after its annual ‘capital shift’ or ‘durbar move’ from Jammu.
Shifting of government offices in the state during summer is an annual practice from Jammu to Srinagar. The government offices closed in winter capital Jammu on April 25.
Over 5,000 employees have shifted as authorities hired service state transport corporation buses and trucks to move officials and government records.
A contingent of smartly dressed the Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police (JKAP) presented the guard of honour as Chief Minister of the state, Omar Abdullah reached the Civil Secretariat.
Omar Abdullah was received warmly by his cabinet, colleagues and senior officials.
While talking to the reporters, he said that due to model code of conduct, he would not be able to say anything about government policies.
“Due to the election code of conduct, I am not allowed to answer to any question of yours,” said Abdullah.
He promised to address a press conference after the completion of Lok Sabha polls.
“Once the model code of conduct is over, I would invite all you press people again for an open conference. During that time, there would be no code of conduct. I will answer all your queries,” he added. he practice of shifting the seat of government for six months to Jammu and for the remaining six months to Srinagar is known as “Durbar Move”. It has been inherited from the erstwhile Dogra rulers, dating back to the 19th century.
The Dogra rulers, who hailed from Jammu region, used to shift the royal court to Srinagar about 300 kilometers away for six months with the onset of summer. In winter, they would shift to Jammu, as the mercury in Srinagar dips as low as minus 10 degrees centigrade in winter months while Jammu, in the plains, remains relatively warm.
As the capital shifts, roads have to be re-done and government quarters and the residential area of several government officials are also given a facelift. (ANI)
Nirmal Bang has maintained its Buy rating on Ranbaxy Laboratories to achieve a target between Rs 225-240 within 1-5 days.
Interested traders can buy the stock on dips with a stop loss of Rs 210.
Shares of the company, on Wednesday (April 15), closed at Rs 199.85 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The share price has seen a 52-week high of Rs 613.70 and a low of Rs 133.15 on BSE.
Takashi Shoda, Daiichi Sankyo president and CEO, the Japanese pharmaceutical company, Daiichi Sankyo that purchased Ranbaxy Laboratories in 2008, will meet USFDA functionaries in May to solve regulatory problems plaguing Ranbaxy`s Paonta Sahib facility in India.
Following a survey that started in 2006, the USFDA, in 2008 banished 30 drugs manufactured by Ranbaxy at the Paonta Sahib and Dewas plants in United States as the regulator detected that Ranbaxy falsified test results of its drugs.
Moreover, the USFDA has also put a freeze on sanction of pending and new marketing applications from the plants.
Daiichi Sankyo Company and Ranbaxy Laboratories (on March 31) declared that Ranbaxy will launch Olvance (Olmesartan Medoxomil, antihypertensive) that was originally discovered by Daiichi Sankyo.
This follows a licensing contract between the companies authorizing Ranbaxy to endorse and sell the drug in the Indian market.
On March 30, Ranbaxy got USFDA nod for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA), to make and sell Topirimate tablets in different potencies including 25mg, 100mg and 200mg.
Nirmal Bang Research is bullish on HDFC and maintained Buy rating on the stock to achieve a target of Rs 1910 within 1-5 days.
Traders can buy the stock on dips with a stop loss of Rs 1825.
Shares of the company, on Wednesday (April 15), closed at Rs 1771.55 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Current EPS and P/E ratio stood at 81.46 and 21.23 respectively. The share price has seen a 52-week high of Rs 2950 and a low of Rs 1116.10 on BSE.
Huge volumes witnessed in last couple of days, and the structure looks very positive, so buy the stock and hold, it has strong support at Rs 1710.
Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd (HDFC) declared that a meeting of its directors will be held on May 04, 2009, inter alia, to consider the sanction of audited financial results of the Corporation for the year ended March 31, 2009.
The Board will also mull over approval of consolidated financial results for the year ended March 31, 2009 and recommend dividend for the financial year 2008-09, if any, and matters relating to the ensuing AGM.
Mr. Deepak Parekh, Chairman, HDFC, on April 10, said that there is scope for slashing rates of interest by around 0.50-1% points with immediate effect as cost of funds for financial institutions has plunged.
Parekhs remarks come on a day when industry heads met RBI governor D Subbarao urging him to impress upon banking institutions to slash lending rates.
There is also a need for lower interest rates in addition to deposit rates for higher financial growth, Parekh added.
During the last month, HDFC cut lending rates by 0.5%.
With this fall, HDFC’s Retail Prime Lending Rate (RPLR) stands at 14%. The lender has lowered its RPLR by 1% in Dec 2008.
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