Jan 11
13
International report, 13th January
Australian Report
Asian markets are trading mostly higher this morning, as commodity prices rose, and after European debt crisis eased, following a strong bond auction by Portugal. In Japan, banks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Mizuho Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, paced increase, taking cues from their US peers. Mitsui & Co. rose, as crude oil and metal prices advanced. In Hong Kong, airline stocks, Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines climbed, after the Civil Aviation Administration of China stated that Chinese airlines have aimed for a 13% increase in passenger traffic to 300 million for 2011. China Overseas Land & Investment rose, after it revealed that its property sales rose in 2010. However, in South Korea, Kospi index suffered losses, after the Bank of Korea hiked its policy interest rate by quarter percentage points to 2.75%. Shares of Posco fell, ahead of its fourth-quarter earnings report. Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.6% higher, at 10,577.6. Hang Seng index is up 0.5%, at 24,247.2, while the Kospi index is trading 0.2% lower, at 2,090.7.
International Report
US markets closed higher yesterday, led by gains in banking, commodity and agriculture sectors. Banks, Citigroup and Bank of America, climbed 2.8% and 2.0%, respectively, after Wells Fargo upgraded the banking sector to “Overweight” from “Market weight”, while JPMorgan Chase added 2.6%, after its Chief Executive Officer, Jamie Dimon, stated that the bank would like to hike dividend after Federal Reserve’s approval. Energy stocks, Exxon Mobil and Chevron, edged up 1.2% and 0.7%, respectively, as crude oil prices rose. Monsanto, up 3.3%, led the agricultural stocks higher, as food prices advanced, after US government reported that stockpiles of corn and soybeans would fall to their lowest level since 1996. DJIA gained 0.7% to 11,755.4. NASDAQ climbed 0.8% to 2,737.3. S&P 500 index closed 0.9% higher, at 1,286.0. Other European markets finished higher yesterday, as German economy expanded 3.6% in 2010, and after worries of European debt crisis eased, following a successful bond auction by Portugal. Banks, UniCredit, Societe Generale and Deutsche Bank, climbed between 4.3% and 9.7%, amid optimism over successful debt sales by Portugal, Spain and Italy this week. Steelmakers, ThyssenKrupp and ArcelorMittal, added 3.3% and 2.8%, respectively, as base metal prices rose. EADS edged up 2.1%, after its Airbus unit bagged an order for 180 aircraft worth $15.6 billion from Indian budget carrier IndiGo. Sky Deutschland surged 30.8%, after inking an agreement with its parent company, Rupert Murdoch, to raise €400 million. FTSEurofirst 300 index added 1.5% to 1,163.9. German DAX Xetra 30 rose 1.8% to 7,068.8. French CAC-40 climbed 2.2% to settle at 3,945.1.
