USA

Wall St Closing Bell, Stocks Close Flat

Wall Street managed to post modest gains on Tuesday.Investors were cautious as Wall Street marked the anniversary of the stock market’s 12-year low set on March 9, 2009, amid the financial crisis stemming from a home mortgage meltdown.

Since then, the blue-chip Dow index has rallied more than 62 per cent.

With little in the way of economic reports or earnings to help drive shares higher, investors are taking a breather after major indices rose the past few weeks.

Dow 10,564.38 +11.86 (0.11%)
S&P 500 1,140.44 +1.94 (0.17%)
Nasdaq 2,340.68 +8.47 (0.36%)

European …

Wall St, 1 Year After Crisis

One year ago today, Wall Street skid to a 12-year low in the wake of the financial crisis. The Dow has rallied almost 62 percent since then.

“This past year was …

FDIC’s Bair sees low interest rates + more lending

US banking regulator Sheila Bair said Monday that a low interest rate policy is “clearly appropriate” to get credit flowing, while also saying regulators should stop short of ordering banks …

ASIA

ASEAN, India, China to Fall, Shayne Heffernan

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed at 122.54 in Tokyo, with about two stocks declining for every one that advanced. Materials companies dropped the most among the gauge’s 10 industry groups.

The index has risen 74 per cent since March 9 last year, when it sank to its lowest level since the September 2008 bankruptcy filing of Lehman Brothers Holdings.

After slight gains in the USA overnight, India, China and ASEAN markets should improve today, however, strong gains over the last few days will pressure markets as …

Ebeling Heffernan Issue Strong Buy on Thailand Stocks

The Thai stock market has finished lower again today making it three straight sessionsof declines. The Stock Exchange of Thailand SET is testing support at the 720 point level and …

Toyota Takes on Critics

Toyota Motor Corp said that it had found no flaw with its throttle controls in response to an auto engineering expert’s criticism, according to media reports today.

Toyota called a …

EUROPE

L’Occitane to list in Hong Kong

L’Occitane, Upmarket French cosmetics group, is getting ready for a landmark initial public offering in Hong Kong next month in a move that highlights rising consumer demand in Asia for luxury goods.
The company, whose natural Skincare products sell in 85 countries, could raise up to US$700B to bankroll its Asian expansion plans, people familiar with the transaction said privately. The party went on to say L’Occitane products are viewed in Asia as affordable luxury, and a Hong Kong listing makes sense in the context of its China …

Noways Oil Fund Prospers

Commonly known as the oil fund, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, Europe’s biggest equity investor, swung to its best ever return in 2009, generating more than $100 billion in gains to …

EADS Saves A400M

Customer Nations and EADS have come to a principle agreement regarding the A400M military transport aircraft with the intention to amend the original contract accordingly in the coming weeks. In …

BRIC

China Love’s USA Debt

China’s investments in US Treasury Bonds continues daily and should not be a political matter, according to the head of China’s foreign exchange administration, which manages the country’s US$2,400B in foreign exchange reserves.

Chinese investments in US Treasuries were “market investment behavior”, said Yi Gang, director of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, on Tuesday. “We do not want to politicize these investments. We are a responsible investor and in the process of these investments we can definitely achieve a mutually beneficial result.”

Senior Beijing officials have voiced fears …

Buffett’s BYD Booms 1211.hk BYDDF

BYD (OTC:BYDDF) The battery maker turned Automaker is booming in their markets.

The History

•In 1995, BYD established.
•In July 1996, BYD passed ISO9002 authentication.
•In 1998, BYD EU Branch …

L’Oreal says sales up 17.7% in China

L’Oreal, the world’s Number 1 cosmetics maker, announced that its sales on the Chinese mainland grew 17.65% last year to US$1.2B, a double-digit increase for the 9th straight year in …