From manufacturers of chain saws to producers of stereo headphones, and makers of practically every product in between, exporters in China are running into trouble as demand slows in the United States and Western Europe.
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Thursday, 16 October 2008
Signs of a Deeper Downturn in U.S.
Even as the U.S. government and its counterparts around the world readied an ambitious financial bailout, more signs emerged on Wednesday that the economic downturn had taken a darker turn in the United States.
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Falling Crude Prices Slow to Show up at European Pumps
European motorists are seeing only slowly the benefits of the collapse in prices of crude oil since July, but oil companies deny that they have been taking advantage of the drop to increase profit margins.
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Despite Slowdown, Chinese Automakers Resist Consolidation
A squealing of brakes in the Chinese car market, the second largest in the world, should be sending automakers there scrambling for mergers and alliances, but vested interests are thwarting consolidation.PDF
Next Victim of Turmoil: Americans’ Salaries
It is possible, for the first time in weeks, to imagine that the credit crisis may be about to ease. But one of the big lessons of the last year has been not to underestimate the severity of the economy’s problems. Those problems are not just about housing or Wall Street.
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China’s Trump Dragon sees solid growth in 2009 despite softer economy
Trump Dragon Distillers, a maker of traditional Chinese alcoholic beverages, sees solid profit growth in 2009 despite signs of a less robust economy as any slowdown won’t keep tipplers away from their favourite drink.
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“Day Of Disbelief” In Dry Bulk Market – FIS
[Dow Jones] Baltic Dry Index fall has gathered pace with Capesize average spot rates falling 29% to 5-year lows at $13,070/day yesterday and freight rates falling across all vessel classes in all regions. Freight derivatives broker FIS describes it as “day of disbelief” as BDI drops 10.7% to 1,615; but notes that further out dates on forward curve were steadier despite weakness in spot. “Although the nearby took a big hit, Cape paper (Forward Freight Agreements or FFAs) seemed fairly resilient on the deferreds despite the devastating losses on the index. The talk of zero seems more possible if we carry on like this, leaving bottom picking a risky business.” BDI index has dropped 86.3% from peak in May. (JAC)
Year-End Redemption Requests Loom Over Industry
Fourth-quarter disruptions seen as managers sell positions to raise cash
"Funds of funds are taking a short-term approach – if they're worried about redemptions, they will try to get out ahead of it," he added. "But good luck, because everyone is trying to get out of the same door."
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"Funds of funds are taking a short-term approach – if they're worried about redemptions, they will try to get out ahead of it," he added. "But good luck, because everyone is trying to get out of the same door."
A $516 Trillion Derivatives ‘Time-Bomb’
The market is worth more than $516 trillion, (£303 trillion), roughly 10 times the value of the entire world’s output: it’s been called the “ticking time-bomb”.
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Most of Monday’s Gain in U.S. is Erased
U.S. stock markets plunged anew on Wednesday, nearly wiping out the record gains of Monday and sending another wave of wealth destruction washing over American households.
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Bernanke says U.S. Economy Facing Big Threat
Turmoil in credit markets poses a “significant threat” to the U.S. economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday, suggesting an openness to further interest-rate cuts.
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Shanghai, Hangzhou Ease Housing Loans
The city governments of Shanghai and Hangzhou are introducing measures to aid their slumping residential real estate markets, official media reported on Wednesday.
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No Outflow Seen from Local Banks Despite HK Guarantee
Depositors are staying put with local banks amid the turmoil in financial markets.
$100,000 Life Savings Gone
# Husband and wife run provision shop all their lives
# They put life savings in Lehman Minibonds in July
# Two months later, they get a call from the bank: ‘Your money is all gone.’
Beijing’s Crisis Response Risks Making Things Even Worse
Charles Dumas is one of the small group of economists who saw the current financial crisis coming. Back in 2006, he published a book called The Bill from the China Shop in which he warned that the rapid build-up in American household debt would prove unsustainable and would lead to a credit crunch and a hard landing for the United States economy when the property bubble burst.
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China’s Smaller Firms Hit Hard by Global Credit Crisis, Weaker Economy
China has rolled back on its tight money policies but the move may be too late for many of the nation’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), hit hard by a deepening credit crisis and weakening global markets, analysts said.
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Clients’ Credit Woes Behind Bio-Treat Losses
The current credit crunch has claimed its second casualty among Singapore-listed China companies.
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Cosco Shares Sink on Analyst Downgrade
Higher risk of order cancellations, slower shipbuilding demand
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Financial Crisis Haunts Milton Friedman’s Legacy
U.S. economist Milton Friedman, the champion of unfettered markets, is under siege for theories that some blame for unleashing the global financial crisis.
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Forgery Alleged in Jade’s Takeover Bid
A crucial funding document was a forgery, claims OCBC Bank
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Hedge Fund Managers Admit Errors
Many now adopt conservative stand to preserve capital, meet redemptions
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Roubini Sees Worst Recession in 40 Years, Stock Drop
Nouriel Roubini, the professor who predicted the financial crisis in 2006, said the U.S. will suffer its worst recession in 40 years, driving the stock market lower after it rallied the most in seven decades yesterday.
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Hedge Funds Target Corporate Lending as Banks Dry Up
An unprecedented cash crunch is choking the ability of banks to lend and creating an opportunity for hedge funds to launch, or ramp up corporate lending facilities.
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Is the Worst Over? Don’t Bank on it
Radical measures please investors, but recession or worse is still ahead
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China Property Owners Pin Hopes on New Policy Measures
Mainland property owners are pinning their hopes on a revival in prices on an expected new round of policy measures by the government to restore confidence among buyers who are now sitting on the sidelines because they fear there will be further declines in property values.
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Wednesday, 15 October 2008
Dry bulk trade will maintain growth: ICAP
Key drivers will be iron ore and coal for Asian power plants
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Still More Losses to Come, Says Volcker
Ex-Fed chief says slew of rescue measures distasteful but necessary
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Taking a Buddhist Pilgrimage in San Francisco
A block off Grant Avenue in San Francisco’s Chinatown - beyond the well-worn path tourists take past souvenir shops, restaurants and a dive saloon called the Buddha Bar - begins a historical tour of a more spiritual nature.
COSCO Shipshape Despite Industry Downturn
China’s shipping giant China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO) continues to expand its global business. Although slowing world output and falling commodities prices are affecting the shipping market, for Chinese shipping companies, times may be looking up.
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Jade Investors Still Waiting for the Answers
Just over six months ago, the botched take-over of Catalist-listed Jade Technologies was reported to the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) by OCBC, the financial adviser to the offeror.
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Spine Chillers
More than four in five people will experience back pain at some point in their lives. What can you do about it?
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S-Shares Face More Earnings Downgrades
But ratings unlikely to be hurt as their valuations are already at extremely low levels
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Financial Crisis May Give Rise to New Era of Regulation
For 30 years, the U.S. political system has been tilted in favour of business deregulation and against new rules. But that is about to change, now that the government has been forced to intervene in the once highflying financial industry to avert an economy-wide crash.
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Steel Prices Plunge to 2008 Lowest Levels on Panic Selling
Prices of key steel products yesterday plunged to their lowest levels in 2008 on panic selling, as steel mills are unsure when end-user demand will pick up. We see more downside risk to prices. Avoid the sector.
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Bull Market in Commodities at an End, for Now
The global financial panic and the economic slowdown have put at least a temporary end to the commodity bull market of the last seven years, sending prices tumbling for many of the raw ingredients of the world economy.
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Upgrading the Stress Levels
As if the shoes-off routine, charges for checked bags and missed flight connections were not enough, business travellers now have to cope with a global financial crisis that is diverting their attention as well as rattling their contacts here and abroad.
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Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Economic slump may push shipping lines into bankruptcy, Marc Faber
The global economic slowdown will push some shipping lines into bankruptcy as demand for commodities cools and trade slows investor, Marc Faber said.
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Whose Cash Flow Pipeline is Choked?
Tips for investors to spot companies facing possible money woes
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Singapore launches contempt case over kangaroo picture
Singapore’s attorney general has launched legal action against three people who allegedly scandalised the judiciary by wearing pictures of a kangaroo wearing a judge’s gown, the government said Tuesday.
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Corporate Scandals Risk Big Blow to China Stocks
Concerns raised over quality of foreign listings, especially those from China
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Perks Cut for Singapore’s Expats
Employers pare costs as financial crisis ushers in new austerity drive.
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OCBC says censured on Jade’s botched takeover
Singapore’s Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp said on Tuesday the country’s securities body has found it in breach of takeover law for its role as an adviser on the failed acquisition of Jade Technologies.
High-Flying Hedge Fund Falls Back to Earth
Only 10 months ago, Remy Trafelet was so flush that he treated about 100 employees at his hedge fund to a getaway in Venice. He and his crew spent a long, luxurious weekend at the five-star Hotel Bauer, which has Murano glass chandeliers, private gondoliers and a splendid view of a 17th-century basilica.
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Sovereign Funds Now Prefer Hoarding Cash to Rescuing U.S. Financial Firms
Don’t expect Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to jump on the bailout bandwagon.
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Margin Calls Prompt Sales, and Drive Shares Even Lower
One firm’s senior wealth management executive said it was seeing people with $30 million in their brokerage account being completely wiped out within days. Weekly margin call lists have started swelling, this executive added.
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Half of China’s Toy Exporters Out of Business
The rising yuan along with escalating production costs, drove half of China’s toy exporters out of the market in the first seven months of this year, the General Administration of Customs said in a report Monday.
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Table tennis – Singapore coach quits over “insulting” offer
The man who helped deliver Singapore’s first Olympic medal in 48 years is set to quit as table tennis coach after rejecting an “insulting and insincere” new deal from the city-state.
Chinese Exporters Feel Pinch, Despite Figures
The latest statistics suggest the gathering global economic slump and credit crisis have not thrown wrenches into China’s export machine yet, but try telling that to Xu Xupeng.
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Cramer: This Market Can’t Be Trusted
It’s easy to feel confident when the Dow soars 938 points, but be careful, Cramer said, “This market simply cannot be trusted.”
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Dr. Doom: US Bailout Plan Will Probably Fail
U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s sweeping measures to bailout the financial system will probably fail, Marc Faber, editor & publisher of the Gloom, Boom and Doom Report, tells CNBC’s Asia Squawk Box.
“U.S. government bonds should be rated as a junk bond,” quips Faber.
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“U.S. government bonds should be rated as a junk bond,” quips Faber.
Funeral Industry Bucks Economic Downturn
Business is holding steady for the U.S. funeral industry as consumers shrug off worries about the economy to give their loved ones a costly send-off.
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U.S. Prepares $250 billion Bank Bailout
The Treasury could pump $250 billion into U.S. banks in what Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke called on Tuesday a comprehensive attempt to end the credit crisis, restoring market confidence and sending Tokyo stocks up 14 percent.
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Lawmaker Quits Beauty Contest
A Chinese lawmaker has quit a beauty contest after critics accused her of debasing politics by participating in the pageant, state media said yesterday.
Trader's View of Market
“This is worse than a divorce. I’ve lost half my net worth and I still have a wife,” said one shell-shocked share trader at the end of the worst day on the stock market for twenty years.
Aussies May Curb Migrants
PM makes it clear the intake will be influenced by financial conditions
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China’s Grip on US Economy Grows
The US financial crisis may tighten China’s grip on the American economy, as Beijing is likely to purchase more US government securities using its ballooning foreign exchange reserves, experts say.
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Aussie dollars? No stock
Customers not selling; money changers say falling rate makes it unprofitable
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Wall Street Soars 11%
Wall Street stormed back from last week’s devastating losses on Monday, sending the Dow Jones industrials soaring a nearly inconceivable 936 points after major governments’ plans to support the global banking system reassured distraught investors.
More Gloom for Emerging Markets
Emerging markets will face more gloom after suffering their worst quarterly loss in history as the global financial crisis starts to bite into their high-growth economies, private bankers in Asia warned Monday.
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In the Thai heartland, anger over protests in Bangkok
“They think differently from the people here in Isaan,” he said, referring to the rural heartland of Thailand’s northeast. “In Bangkok it’s all work and pressure, work and pressure. Not like here, where life is slower. Fish in the river, rice in the field.”
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Singapore PM, Lee Kuan Yew win defamation damages
Singapore leaders have sued or won damages in the past from foreign media groups including the Economist, International Herald Tribune and Bloomberg.
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Monday, 13 October 2008
Commodity bull Goldman turns bearish, warns on $50 oil
* Cuts year-end US oil forecast to $70, warns $50 possible
* Slashes 2009 average price forecast to $86 from $123
* Halves three-month view on copper to $3,500/T vs $7,960
* Cuts three-mo view on corn to $5 vs $6.50; see $6.50 wheat
* Maintains $740/ounce gold target on 12-month horizon
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* Slashes 2009 average price forecast to $86 from $123
* Halves three-month view on copper to $3,500/T vs $7,960
* Cuts three-mo view on corn to $5 vs $6.50; see $6.50 wheat
* Maintains $740/ounce gold target on 12-month horizon
Beijing Banker Blames Turmoil on West
Central bank deputy tells IMF to increase surveillance of industrialised economies
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Beijing Braves Rough Seas to Save Market
Amid the equity rout, the mainland is launching a practice banned overseas but investors are wary
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Investors Harbour High Hopes for Private Equity Deals
Investors are confident the mainland’s private equity market will expand over the next 12 months even as volatility batters the financial system, according to a Deloitte survey.
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HK: Luxury Rents to Decline Further on Trimmed Housing Allowances
Luxury residential rents are likely to continue falling as employers, particularly in the finance sector, cut back on housing allowances for senior executives next year in response to the troubled outlook for global markets.
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Mainland Recovery Tied to Mess in US, Europe
For the first time, the mainland joined an international co-ordinated rate cut last week, albeit not announced jointly. This is the second rate cut since the cut made a day after Lehman Brothers Holdings announced its bankruptcy. Both cuts coincided with global market events, but the real reason is a domestic economic slowdown and the evaporation of inflationary pressure from domestic and international sources.
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Blackstone Scraps 1.1b Yuan Shanghai Property Deal as Markets Worsen
A 1.1 billion yuan (HK$1.25 billion) Shanghai property deal has been scrapped by United States private equity fund Blackstone Group, while a second remains under a cloud because of worsening conditions in global credit markets and arguments over pricing, according to sources.
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DJ MARKET TALK: HSI +10.1%; Rebounding From Oversold Level - DBS
0746 GMT [Dow Jones] HSI +10.1% at 16,288.77, on rebound as market was heavily oversold, says Peter Lai at DBS. "We are just trying to find a reason to buy stock," he says. Notes HSI's current level looks very attractive for long-term investors. Tips index to remain in 14000-19000 range near-term. Amid crude price weakening, Sinopec (0386.HK) +17.5% at HK$5.65, Cathay Pacific (0293.HK) +7.1% at HK$10.60. Volume modest at HK$55.85 billion. (SUT)
Ferrochina: A wake-up Call for Analysts
The failure of some to sound the warning bell has put their credibility on the line
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Finance Students Keep Their Job Hopes Alive
For students who set their sights on Wall Street during the boom years, the end has come just as they are getting ready to join the party.
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The Tipping Point
Soon after, customers began tipping in London coffeehouses and other commercial establishments. One frequented by Samuel Johnson had a bowl printed with the words “To Insure Promptitude,” and some speculate that “tip” is an acronym for this phrase.
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Stock Traders: It’s the Ugliest Market Ever Seen
“A lot of smashed telephones,” said Charlie Felten, a technician for the New York Stock Exchange – as many as three or four a day.
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Those Knowing History May Find It’s Time to Invest
The four most dangerous words for investors are: This time is different.
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Roubini Argues for Further Rate Cuts
Nouriel Roubini, the professor who predicted the financial crisis two years ago, believes world financial officials should orchestrate interest rate cuts of at least 1.5 percentage points to help avert a depression.
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Sunday, 12 October 2008
White House Overhauling Rescue Plan
As international leaders gathered here on Saturday to grapple with the global financial crisis, the Bush administration raced to overhaul its own strategy for rescuing the foundering financial system.
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Dow roller-coaster notches up biggest ever daily points swing in frenzy of trading
The Dow Jones Industrial Average went through its biggest ever points swing in a day on Friday as US stocks fell for an eighth straight day.
Tell-All Trial for a Real Estate Kingpin
Prosecutors say bribery was a source of cash and luxury apartments for ex-Shanghai official Kang Huijun and his wife.
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Financial Crisis: Darling Ready to Take Control of Banks
Banking shares across the G7 nations could be suspended tomorrow as governments mount a desperate effort to implement rescue packages designed to repair the battered global financial system.
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Safeguarding China in a U.S. Bailout
China should protect its investments and seek higher returns if T-bond purchases factor into a Wall Street rescue.
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Four in 10 Singaporeans Marry Foreigners
Globalisation creating more chances for locals to meet, tie the knot with non-citizens
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Switching to Cash May Feel Safe, but Risks Remain
It’s a question we’ve all asked in our darker moments of late: Why not just put all of our investments in cash, 100 percent, just for a little while, until things calm down?
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Markets to Fall 20% More at Most: IMF Economist
In a worst-case scenario, markets could fall at most another 20 percent but there is “practically zero” chance of another Great Depression, the International Monetary Fund’s chief economist Olivier Blanchard was quoted as saying on Saturday.
China Eastern Close to Gaining Control of Shanghai Airlines
It’s been rumored that the Shanghai city government has approved China Eastern Airline’s acquisition of Shanghai Airlines, expanding China Eastern’s already largest market share in the region.
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Paul Krugman: Moment of truth
They’d better do something soon - in fact, they’d better announce a coordinated rescue plan this weekend - or the world economy may experience its worst slump since the Great Depression.
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China Printing Seeks Trading Suspension
CEO, deputy CEO not contactable; parent company faces bankruptcy
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Trading in Ferrochina Stock Halted Indefinitely - ST
Steelmaker was made insolvent after being unable to repay loans
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Former VW Dealer Seeks Compensation
Peeved that a company that he once owned 49 per cent of, ‘and which we helped build’, was treating him this way, he paid up - in cash. All in $2 bills that filled two suitcases.
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