Global economy facing hesitant and uneven recovery, says OECD
November 27, 2012--The global economy is expected to make a hesitant and uneven recovery over the coming two years.
Decisive policy action is needed to ensure that stalemate over fiscal policy in the United States and continuing euroarea instability do not plunge the world back into recession, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook.
“The world economy is far from being out of the woods,” OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría said during the Economic Outlook launch in Paris. “The US ‘fiscal cliff’, if it materialises, could tip an already weak economy into recession, while failure to solve the euro area crisis could lead to a major financial shock and global downturn. Governments must act decisively, using all the tools at their disposal to turn confidence around and boost growth and jobs, in the United States, in Europe, and elsewhere,” Mr Gurría said.
view the OECD economic outlook
Source: OECD
BATS to borrow $300m for dividend payouts
November 27, 2012--BATS Global Markets is looking to raise $300m of "junk"-rated debt to fund a payout to shareholders in its first attempt to tap investors since the exchange operator bungled its own public float in March.
The company, which runs the third-largest US stock-exchange by volume, is seeking to issue a $300m, six-year senior secured loan and open a $50m three-year revolving credit facility.
Source: FT.com
STOXX Changes Composition Of Benchmark Indices-Results Of The Fourth Regular Quarterly Review
To Be Effective On December 24, 2012Q4/2012
November 27, 2012--STOXX Limited, the market-moving provider of innovative, tradable and global index concepts, today announced the new composition of the STOXX Benchmark and their sub-and sector indices, among them the STOXX Europe 600 Index, STOXX North America 600 Index and STOXX Asia/Pacific 600 Index.
Effective as of the open of European markets on December 24, 2012, the following stocks will be added to and deleted from the STOXX Europe 600 Index and its respective size and sector indices:
Source: STOXX
ETF Securities-ETFS Precious Metals Weekly-Silver Industrial Demand Set to Rebound while Gold ETP Holdings Hit Fresh Record as Investors Focus on Near-Term Risks
November 26, 2012--November 26, 2012--Silver industrial demand to rise by 7% in 2013 to record, but investment remains key in 2012. According to the Silver Institute's latest report, industrial demand for silver is expected to rebound in 2013 after losing ground in 2012.
The electronics industry is expected to be the mainstay of industrial demand over the next two years, with growth in emerging Asia the predominant force. China is expected to play catch-up with the US in terms of industrial demand, with the two nations combining to provide over 40% of industrial demand. The forecast gain of around 7% in 2013 is expected to be driven by solid growth in silver oxide catalyst production, while the photovoltaic industry is expected to see growth rebound in 2014. While industrial demand accounts for around 55% of overall silver demand, investment demand has been the main driver of price strength in 2012 thus far. Silver has been the best performing precious metal in 2012, with prices have rising by 20% ytd. At the same time, stocks in COMEX warehouses have risen by 21%, an indication that industrial demand remains soft in 2012. The weakness in industrial demand has been borne out by the Silver Institute's estimated 6% downturn in industrial demand this year.
Central banks accumulate over 40 tonnes of gold bullion as investors push global gold ETP holdings to fresh record. Emerging market central banks are at the vanguard of foreign exchange reserve diversification, accounting for the vast majority of the gold buying in October. Brazil and Kazakhstan were some of the largest contributors to the 9% yoy growth in October, buying 17.2 and 7.5 tonnes, respectively. Investors also continued to buy gold, pushing global ETP holdings to over 83 million ounces last week, a fresh record high. Uncertainty over the outlook for the Eurozone and the precarious position of the US economy approaching the 'fiscal cliff' remain the main risks to the global economic recovery. While the market remains optimistic that Eurozone ministers will come to an agreement to clear the way for the next disbursement of Greek bailout funds when they meet today, further delays are likely to be supportive of defensive assets like gold.
Visit www.etfsecurities.com for more info.
Source: ETF Securities
Power struggle as regulators turn heat on energy trading
November 26, 2012--Energy markets on both sides of the Atlantic have in the past two months been at the centre of a storm over allegations that participants had manipulated prices in the gas and electricity markets, leading to losses for other counterparties and the publication of inaccurate prices.
In the US, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission made public allegations on October 31 that Barclays had manipulated prices in the US West Coast electricity market to benefit derivatives positions.
Source: Financial News
Credit Suisse and the great restructuring that wasn't
November 26, 2012--November 20, 2012--All of a sudden UBS is being seen as a visionary organisation that is adapting to the future of investment banking after having waited far too long to bite the bullet and effectively pull out of fixed income.
Its rivals could be forgiven for feeling a little resentful.
Not least Credit Suisse, which last week announced a restructuring that amounted to little more than a management reshuffle.
Source: Financial News
Market for locked hedge funds opens
November 25, 2012--Brokers such as Tullett Prebon are launching platforms to let investors trade hedge fund investments in order to circumvent often lengthy lock-up periods.
The schemes allow investors either to sell hedge funds stakes directly, or to sell the returns from their hedge fund investments through derivative contracts.
Source: FT.com
Record number of ETFs shut down
November 22, 2012--A record number of exchange-traded funds closed down in the 10 months to October, according to a survey by ETFGI, coinciding with a drop in the number of new ETF listings.
In a survey by the independent analysis firm run by Deborah Fuhr, 157 ETFs were delisted by 26 providers from 15 different exchanges worldwide.
This compares to 28 delistings over the 10 months in 2011 and 55 during the 10 months in 2010. The largest number of products delisted in the course of a full year was 101 in 2009.
Source: Financial News
Central Bank, ETF and gold coin buying buoy gold price
Central bank gold purchases, ETP holding increases and coin sales all point to a stronger gold price, although a stronger greenback is mitigating rises in US dollar terms.
November 22, 2012--The latest data from the IMF shows that Central Banks are continuing to accumulate gold with some 40 tonnes purchased in October keeping purchases on track to match last year's 456 tonnes of net purchases.
Key buyers were Brazil, which took on 17.2 tonnes, pushing its gold reserves to their highest in 11 years, Kazakhstan with 7.5 tonnes and Turkey with 17.5 tonnes (although this is slightly anomalous in that Turkey is now accepting gold in its reserve requirements from commercial banks – a change in status implemented earlier this year). Russia too continued to gradually grow its reserves (by 0.4 tonnes in October).
Source: MineWeb
Basel III FAQs on counterparty credit risk rules
November 21, 2012--The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision today issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) on Basel III's counterparty credit risk rules.
To promote consistent global implementation of Basel III, the Committee has agreed to periodically review frequently asked questions and publish answers along with any technical elaboration of the rules text and interpretative guidance that may be necessary.
<view the Basel III counterparty credit risk-Frequently asked questions document
Source: BIS