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Asian stocks rise as Japan beats GDP estimates

Asian stocks rise as Japan beats GDP estimates

Japan’s economy contracted during 2Q11 at a slower than expected pace by an annualised rate of 0.3 percent in the three months to the end of June, the cabinet office said. Real GDP was down 1.3 percent and showed stronger signs of recovery thanks to consumer spending in the wake of the March earthquake and […]
EU imposes short selling ban

EU imposes short selling ban

Amid heightened international market volatility, ESMA, the EU’s regulator, announced late on Thursday that France, Belgium, Spain and Italy have banned short selling in an attempt to curb rumours and halt the precipitous fall in value of troubled EU banks. In Spain and France the ban will last 15 days and is only applicable to stocks […]
Shares drop on rumours of French credit downgrade

Shares drop on rumours of French credit downgrade

The Paris stock exchange lost over five percent of value and French financials were hammered late on Wednesday amid rumours that French banks were in serious difficulty. France’s second-largest bank, Société Générale, which holds significant amounts in Greek and Italian debt, saw its shares drop by 21 percent before closing down 14.7 percent late on Wednesday. The […]
Stock markets higher after US Fed pledge


Stock markets higher after US Fed pledge



Asian stocks have rallied in early trading on Wednesday from their downward trend earlier in the week after the US Federal Reserve promised to keep interest rates near the zero level “at least through to mid-2013.”
 Europe’s stock markets also opened higher after overnight increases on Wall Street and Asian markets, which saw the Hong […]
Global stocks plummet

Global stocks plummet

European stock markets plummeted further on Tuesday following a sharp rise in Chinese inflation, adding to woes over debt contagion across the eurozone and fears of another US recession. Market volatility reached its peak when Britain’s FTSE 100 index, which traded 20 percent below its February peak of 6091 points, plunged officially into bear territory […]
China inflation hits 6.5%

China inflation hits 6.5%

China’s PPI increased by 7.5 percent year-on-year while the inflation rate rose 6.5 percent to a 37-month high in July. Inflation was driven by a14.8 percent spike in food costs, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday. The data comes amid European sovereign debt concerns and worries of a ‘double-dip’ US recession, and […]
ECB to help Rome and Madrid with bond purchases

ECB to help Rome and Madrid with bond purchases

As European markets opened on Monday yields on Spanish and Italian bonds saw a sharp fall to 83 and 79 basis points respectively following an intervention by the European Central Bank. The ECB backed up its promise to expand its purchases of sovereign debt to support Madrid and Rome by entering into European bond markets […]
US to raise debt limit

US to raise debt limit

President Obama has announced that senior Republican and Democrat party members have agreed a proposal to limit US debt by $2.4bn in order to avoid deault or downgrading from the nation’s triple A rating. Making the announcement on Sunday, Obama said the agreement will cut spending by about $1trn over the next decade. Votes in […]