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Due to a technical problem on Wednesday Jan
16, we are upgrading the news management system which will be
completed in coming days.
 Business
News Headlines to Jan 16 2008
Latest
News Links
Jan 17 2008 News Links
Markets News Afternoon: US and European stocks slide; Dublin market rises
Annual Irish Consumer Inflation falls to 4.7% in December 2007
Euribor 3-Month Inter-Bank Rate falls to the lowest level since the onset of the Credit Crunch in August 2007
European Central Bank warns again that it may raise interest rates
Slashing Energy Waste in China - Energy efficiency would do 'the most, the quickest,' to reduce CO2 emissions - World Bank
Study links corporate performance to employee enablement - Economist Intelligence Unit
Markets News Thursday: Asia-Pacific and European stocks rise
Thursday Newspaper Review - Irish Business News and International Stories
Big drugs companies raided by European competition regulators
Markets News Thursday:
Asia-Pacific and European stocks rise
 On Wednesday in New York, a rise in sell orders pushed the markets down again
amidst continuing economic worries.
The Energy Information Administration of the US Energy
Department, earlier Wednesday reported a rise in crude inventories that was seen as
reflecting a slowing in economic activity.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 34.95 points, or
0.3%, at 12466.16, off 6% on the year.
Among Dow components, chipmaker Intel fell 12.4%
after
reporting a cautious outlook for 2008, reported after the market closing on Tuesday.
Banking group
J.P. Morgan Chase rose 5.8% after it announced a big fall in fourth-quarter
profits but assured investors that it has no hidden surprises on the subprime
related front. Oil giant
Exxon Mobil fell 2.8% in response to the fall in crude prices.
The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 0.6%, or 7.75 points, at 1373.20.
Software giant
Oracle's $8.5 billion acquisition of
BEA Systems, resulted in BEA surging 18.5% and Oracle rose 2.9%. The
tech-dominant Nasdaq Composite Index lost 1%, or 23.00 points, to end at
2394.59.
The Wall Street Journal
reports today that US developer Ian Bruce Eichner's default on a $760 million
loan for a Las Vegas casino-resort project highlights how the credit crunch,
which undermined residential borrowers' bids to refinance loans, is extending to
real-estate projects in the commercial sector.
Asia-Pacific stocks
rose Thursday after Merrill Lynch raised its rating on Korean
electronics giant Samsung Electronics Co. and
Swiss bank UBS AG said a fall in Japanese property
companies, was overdone.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index,
which tracks more than 1,050 regional companies,
rose 1.2% and Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average
gained 2.1%. However, China's CSI 300 Index fell 2.5%,
led
by China Construction Bank Corp., after the People's
Bank of China again raised the amount of funds banks
have to set aside in
reserves.
Asia-Pacific -
Key Benchmarks
European stocks have risen strongly in early trading Thursday. In
Dublin, the ISEQ has risen more than 1.60%.
National benchmarks - Europe
Irish Share Prices
Euribor Rates
AIB Daily Report
Bank of Ireland Daily Report
Currencies
The euro is trading at
$1.4616 and at £0.7446.
The Financial Times reports that the euro slid sharply on Wednesday after
investors bet comments by a European
Central Bank council member meant
eurozone rate cuts were more likely.
|
Stocks (Million Barrels) |
 |
|
Stocks |
Change From Last |
|
01/11/08 |
Week |
Year |
|
Crude Oil |
287.1 |
 4.3 |
 -34.4 |
|
Gasoline |
215.3 |
2.2 |
-1.5 |
|
Distillate |
129.8 |
1.1 |
-12.1 |
|
Propane |
48.668 |
-2.555 |
-8.860 |
Yves Mersch, Luxembourg’s central bank
governor, said the ECB should “be
cautious” amid the widespread economic
uncertainty and hinted that eurozone
growth forecasts might soon have to be
revised downwards.
Mr Mersch represents one of the
eurozone’s smallest states, but he is
regarded as one of the more hawkish
members of the 21-strong ECB council.
His comments in a Bloomberg interview
suggest at least some bank members are
moderating their tone as the US Federal
Reserve prepares to cut interest rates.
Earlier, Axel Weber, president of the
Bundesbank, also appeared to be hedging
his usually hawkish stance. He
acknowledged that German inflation could
have eased significantly by 2009.
For live
currency updates, check the right-hand
column of the
Finfacts home page.
Commodities
Crude oil for February
delivery is trading on the
New York
Mercantile Exchange (Nymex)
at $91.45 per barrel - up 61 cents overnight. In London, Brent is
trading on the
International Commodities Exchange at $90.24 down 74 cents.
Paul
J. Harris, Head of Natural Resources Risk Management, Bank of
Ireland Global Markets, commented today:
Bearish factors prevailed yesterday with the release of
better-than-expected EIA data. The numbers showed a large build in
crude stocks - up 4.3mio barrels versus a consensus forecast of
600,000. Distillates also rose. In addition IEA forecasts suggested
that global demand growth would be 1.98mio bpd, some 130k bpd less
than the last estimate. Positive noises from the Saudis about
prospects for a boost to supply in the wake of President Bushs visit
to the region also added a positive tone to the markets. Brent crude
sank to $89.75 with WTI at $90.84 after a volatile session.
The fall in oil prices is set to peter out towards the end of the
week with a modicum of recovery anticipated on foot of
short-covering. Whilst the dip in oil prices in Q12008 has been
well-flagged, the magnitude of the fall is difficult to assess given
the supportive geopolitical risks that currently weigh on the
market. The price action is likely to remain within the $85-95 band
until clarity regarding oil supply is delivered at the Feb 1 OPEC
meeting.
On
the Brent market today $89.40 represents support on the downside
with perceived difficulty in advancing much beyond $91.80
Gold spot
price
The spot price of gold
is at $888 per ounce, down 90 cents overnight.
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