2010/09/13 17:46*DJ EU's Rehn:Ireland Needs To Maintain "Rigorous" Fiscal Stance
2010/09/13 17:44*DJ EU's Rehn:Ireland Has Convincing Plan To Fix Financial System
2010/09/13 17:42=DJ Japan Ozawa Might Carry Out FX Intervention Threat If Elected PM
2010/09/13 17:40=DJ Deutsche Bank Sees About EUR1B Postbank Consolidation Synergies
2010/09/13 17:13*DJ 3-Month Euribor Rises To 0.879% Vs 0.878% Friday
2010/09/13 17:11*DJ IMF Strauss-Kahn: Don't Expect Double-Dip In Advanced Economies
2010/09/13 17:07=DJ Forex Focus: Reassessing The Pound's Poor Outlook
2010/09/13 17:06*DJ EU: Sees EU Growth at 1.8%, Up From May Forecast Of 0.9%
2010/09/13 17:05*DJ IMF Strauss-Kahn: Concerned Economic Recovery Will Be Sluggish
2010/09/13 17:05*DJ EU Sees Spain 2010 Consumer Price Inflation At 1.6%
2010/09/13 17:05*DJ EU Sees Gradual French Recovery On Subdued Demand
2010/09/13 17:05*DJ EU Commission Raises German 2010 GDP Forecast To 3.4% From 1.2%
2010/09/13 17:05*DJ EU: 2010 Inflation Seen At 1.8% For EU, 1.4% For Euro Zone
2010/09/13 17:04*DJ EU Sees Spain 3Q 2010 GDP At -0.1% On Quarter
2010/09/13 17:04*DJ EU Sees Spain 4Q 2010 GDP At 0.1% On Quarter
2010/09/13 17:04*DJ EU Raises 2010 Economic Growth Forecasts For EU, Euro Zone
2010/09/13 17:04*DJ EU Raises French 2010 Inflation Forecast To 1.6% Vs +1.4%
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU's May Forecast For Italian 2010 GDP Growth Was 0.8%
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU Sees Spain's 2010 GDP Falling 0.3%
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU Sees French 3Q GDP +0.4%, 4Q GDP +0.3%
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU Sees UK Econ Growing By 0.5% In 3Q, 0.6% In 4Q 2010
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU Raises Italian 2010 GDP Growth Forecast To 1.1%
2010/09/13 17:03*DJ EU Raises French GDP 2010 Forecast To +1.6% Vs +1.3%
2010/09/13 17:02*DJ EU Raises UK 2010 Economic Growth Forecast To 1.7% From 1.2%
2010/09/13 16:59*DJ Moody's Withdraws Taishin's Ratings For Business Reasons
2010/09/13 16:13*DJ Fitch Places Nan Shan Life's Rating on Watch Negative
2010/09/13 16:07*DJ CIC To Buy US$50 Mln Of Boshiwa International Shares - Source
2010/09/13 15:58DJ Tokyo Shares End Higher As Oil Stocks, Banks Lead Market -2-
2010/09/13 15:46DJ France July Current Account Deficit Narrows To EUR2.2 Billion
PARIS -France's current account deficit narrowed to EUR2.2 billion in July from EUR2.7 billion in June as a rise in services and income surpluses offset a widening merchandise deficit, data from the Bank of France showed Monday.The services surplus in July rose to EUR1.9 billion from EUR1.3 billion and the income surplus rose to EUR2.5 billion from EUR2.3 billion. France' merchandise deficit rose to EUR4.4 billion from EUR4.1 billion.France's foreign direct investment deficit narrowed to EUR1.5 billion in July from EUR8.4 billion in June as French residents invested less abroad and non-residents invested more in France.Portfolio investment in July showed a large swing to a EUR9.4 billion net outflow, from a EUR38.2 billion inflow in June.
2010/09/13 15:43DJ JGBs Fall On Speculation Ozawa May Beat Kan In DPJ Election
TOKYO -Japanese government bonds fell Monday due to speculation that fiscal expansionist Ichiro Ozawa may beat Prime Minister Naoto Kan in the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's leadership race Tuesday, because such a result could lead to further deterioration in the country's woeful fiscal health. Japan's long-time king-maker Ozawa has a chance of winning, say local media. Yet analysts say an Ozawa win would be bad news for JGB investors because the DPJ's Lower House of Parliament majority means the party leadership winner will almost certainly become Japan's next prime minister. Ozawa has been making repeated promises that, as prime minister, he would fulfil costly pledges from last year's general election--pledges from which Kan had stepped back, and which would almost certainly entail more government borrowing, saturating the JGB market. Ozawa has also said he would not hesitate to increase JGB issuance if necessary to compile economic stimulus packages. Such prospects prompted some investors Monday to sell long-term bonds while most market participants decided to wait for the election result before making any moves, said RuiXue Xu, rates strategist at RBS Securities. Also important for the JGB market Tuesday is a Ministry of Finance auction of Y1.1 trillion worth of 20-year bonds with an expected coupon of 1.9%-.3 percentage point higher than the previous 20-year offering. Despite the higher coupon, analysts forecast a poor showing. One reason, said Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities strategist Katsutoshi Inadome, is that it is hard to bid aggressively ahead of the DPJ leadership race. The auction result will be released at 0345 GMT, while the DPJ election result is expected to become available after 0600 GMT. "It's very hard to forecast market conditions now because the DPJ race result could intensify our concern over political instability and fiscal worsening," Inadome said. As of 0600 GMT, the two-year yield was at 0.145%, up 0.5 basis point, whereas the five-year yield was at 0.380%, up 0.5 basis points. The 10-year yield was unchanged at 1.150%. The 20-year yield rose one basis point to 1.930% and the 30-year yield rose two basis points to 2.040%. Xu said strong Japanese share prices were another reason behind weak JGBs Monday. The Nikkei Stock Average--Japan's benchmark share index--ended at 9321.82, up 0.89%.
2010/09/13 15:16DJ EU Set To Back Pan-Europe Mobile Phone Market Plan - NYT
The European Commission was set this week to back a plan to divert part of television broadcast spectrum to mobile telephone operators by 2013, The New York Times reported Sunday on its website, citing a copy of a proposal. The plan is part of a bid to create an EU-wide market for wireless broadband services, the report said. It said the proposal was part of a package drafted by EU telecommunications commissioner Neelie Kroes and would require the bloc's 27 members to set aside the 800 megahertz frequency band for mobile broadband by Jan. 1, 2013. The commission was expected to take up the plan Wednesday and tentatively announce it Sept. 20, the report said. Full story: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/13/technology/13spectrum.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
2010/09/13 15:12DJ Tokyo Shares End Higher As Oil Stocks, Banks Lead Market
2010/09/13 15:02*DJ FTSE 100 Up 0.5% After The Open
2010/09/13 15:02*DJ Stoxx Europe 600 Index Up 0.5% After The Open
2010/09/13 14:56DJ ECB Ordonez: Banks Will Have Enough Time To Adapt To New Rules
BASEL, Switzerland -The governor of Spain's central bank, Miguel Angel Ordonez, welcomed the new capital standards unveiled Sunday by the Basel committee of international banking regulators and said banks had been given enough time to comply with the new rules.'It's not too long, but it's enough... more importantly, it ends uncertainty for financial markets,' said Ordonez, who is a member of the European Central Bank Governing Council.Banking regulators reached an agreement to impose tighter capital requirements on banks, but have given them several years to adapt from 2013.Key to the new rules is the requirement for banks to hold common equity -- the most loss-absorbing form of capital -- equal to at least 7% of their risk-weighted assets including a capital conservation buffer, much higher than the current 2% minimum standard.'The decision was unanimous,' Ordonez said.Ordonez also welcomed the introduction of a counter cyclical buffer, which banks will have to build up in times of economic expansion to limit excessive credit growth. Spanish banks have used such buffers for several years.Asked whether banks globally would have to raise fresh capital to meet the new rules, he said it was difficult to predict, as some banks were already in compliance with the new standards.
2010/09/13 14:41DJ Enbridge Completes Draining Of Oil From Leaking Pipeline
Enbridge Energy Partners LP said Sunday that it has completed draining oil in an isolated pipeline segment in a Chicago suburb following a leak. Enbridge said in a statement that 6,100 barrels of crude oil were released, and only a small portion escaped from the immediate area of the leak before Enbridge crews began vacuuming the oil. 'Virtually all of the oil, approximately 6,050 barrels, has already been recovered.' The oil spill is the second in less than two months from Enbridge's nearly 60-year old Lakehead System, which transports about 70% of the crude oil from Canada. The Romeoville, Ill. leak came from Line 6A, the largest of Enbridge's three main arteries that supply U.S. markets, including the key storage hub in Cushing, Okla. The leak followed a July incident at another Enbridge pipeline in Marshall, Mich., that spilled nearly 20,000 barrels of oil into the Kalamazoo River. At the time of the leak the pipeline was transporting about 459,000 barrels per day of heavy crude, Enbridge said. By Singapore Resources Desk; ; 65 6415 4127; resourcesslot@dowjones.com
2010/09/13 14:24*DJ Road King Likely To Price Dollar Bond Tuesday - Source
2010/09/13 14:19*DJ Magnitude 5.8 Quake Strikes Near Hokkaido In Japan -USGS
2010/09/13 14:14*DJ BOK Suspected Of Intervening In FX Market To Curb Won's Rise Late Mon-Traders
2010/09/13 14:07=DJ Thai Minister: No Speculation Seen From Capital Inflows
BANGKOK -Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said Monday that there's been no speculation seen from capital inflows into the Thai stock market, with most inflows heading to the bond market. Korn said he also agrees with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's opinion that the central bank is able to impose any measure to curb the baht's rise. The baht appreciated to THB30.75 against the greenback early Monday, compared with THB30.81 late Friday. Meanwhile, Bank of Thailand Assistant Governor Suchada Kirakul told reporters that the central bank will hold talks soon with small and medium enterprises and commercial banks to discuss the impact the stronger baht is having on their operations.
2010/09/13 14:06*DJ Nikkei Stock Average Closes Up 0.9% At 9321.82
2010/09/13 13:56DJ ECB Liikanen: Reforms Support Sustainable Growth, Won't Hamper Recovery
BASEL, Switzerland -European Central Bank Governing Council member Erkki Liikanen said Monday that new international capital standards agreed upon Sunday were "ambitious" and that they wouldn't hamper economic recovery.Speaking on the sidelines of meetings in Basel, Liikanen described the decisions reached Sunday as a "very important outcome," and said he was "very pleased" with them.After weeks of wrangling, top financial officials Sunday agreed to significantly increase the amount of capital banks have to set aside against potential losses, but gave them several years to adapt to the new rules."It makes our financial system more stable in the long-term, more solid, more robust," Liikanen said. "And it's phased in in a way that it doesn't hamper recovery and it supports sustainable growth in the future."
2010/09/13 13:38*DJ Thai Fin Min: Central Bank Able To Impose Measures To Stem Baht Rise
2010/09/13 13:37DJ Permira Acquires Majority Stake In Asia Broadcast Satellite
HONG KONG -Permira has acquired Asia Broadcast Satellite Ltd.'s holding company from Citigroup Inc.'s Citi Venture Capital International and private equity firm ADM Capital, the European private equity firm said Monday. Permira didn't disclose the amount it paid for the holding company or the size of its stake in ABS, but a person familiar with the deal said the transaction size exceeds US$200 million. Founded in 2006 by Chief Executive Thomas Choi, ABS supplies bandwidth connectivity to broadcasting and telecom customers, serving over 80 customers in around 30 countries. ABS hosts more than 175 TV channels in the Asia-Pacific region. Permira acquired the stake from CVCI and ADM Capital, which had bought the share in 2006. The investment in ABS marks Permira's fourth in satellites--it has made investments in Inmarsat PLC , Intelsat Ltd. and PanAmSat Holding Corp. -- all of which it has since exited. 'ABS is one of the world's fastest growing satellite operators, and, with the Permira funds' backing, the opportunity to continue growing in their target markets in Asia, Russia, Africa and the Middle East,' Richard Sanders, head of technology, media and telecommunications at Permira said. The ABS acquisition is Permira's third in Asia. Permira first invested in Asia in October 2007, when its funds bought a 20% equity stake in Macau-based gaming group Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. (0027.HK). In 2008, it acquired Arysta LifeScience, an agrochemicals business headquartered in Japan.
2010/09/13 13:37*DJ Dollar At MYR3.1000 Vs MYR3.1090 Late Thursday
2010/09/13 13:36*DJ Thai Finance Minister: No Speculation Seen From Capital Inflows
2010/09/13 13:35*DJ ECB Ordonez: Banks Will Have Enough Time To Adapt To New Rules
2010/09/13 13:35*DJ ECB Ordonez: New Rules Will End Market Uncertainty
2010/09/13 13:33*DJ Malaysia Central Bank Bought Dollars At MYR3.1000 - Traders
2010/09/13 13:32*DJ ECB Ordonez: Welcome New Capital Rules
2010/09/13 13:20DJ Forex Options: Dollar/Yen Options Up Ahead of DPJ Election
TOKYO -Dollar/yen options rose in Tokyo Monday, as demand for protection against sharp falls in the yen increased ahead of a ruling party election in Japan that could increase the risk of currency market intervention. An options dealer at a major Japanese bank said investors, particularly non-Japanese, bought short-term USD-call/JPY-put options on the view that Ichiro Ozawa may win the Democratic Party of Japan presidential election Tuesday. Ozawa has called for about Y2 trillion in fresh economic stimulus and has talked a tougher line than current Prime Minister Naoto Kan on the need for currency market intervention to curb the rising yen. The middle point of benchmark one-month at-the-money dollar/yen volatilities increased to 11.95% in Tokyo from 11.625% in New York Friday. The dealer said that volatilities are likely to rise another 20-30 basis points ahead of the DPJ election due to continued uncertainty over the direction of Japanese government policy on the yen. The dollar stood at Y84.08 as of 0320 GMT.
2010/09/13 12:45*DJ ECB Liikanen: Reforms Ambitious, Make Financial System More Robust
2010/09/13 12:43*DJ ECB Liikanen: Basle Reforms Support Sustainable Growth
2010/09/13 12:27DJ Basel Committee Announces Tighter New Capital Standards
2010/09/13 12:12DJ Basel Committee Announces Tighter New Capital Standards
BASEL, Switzerland -International financial officials Sunday reached agreement on much-awaited new rules, which aim to reduce the risk of future market turmoil by significantly increasing the amount of capital that banks have to hold.The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision announced that the total capital that banks need to set aside against potential losses will remain at at least 8% of their risk-weighted assets. But it will be strengthened by an additional capital buffer representing 2.5% of risk-weighted assets, taking it to 10.5%.Of that, common equity, which is the most loss-absorbing form of capital, must represent 4.5% of risk-weighted assets. Including the 2.5% conservation buffer, which will be of the same quality, banks will be required to hold a minimum common equity ratio of 7%.Tier 1 capital will rise to 6.0% from 4.0% currently.At present, banks must set aside capital worth 8% of their risk-weighted assets. Of that, at least 4% must be Tier 1 capital and a minimum of half of that must be core Tier 1. Tier 2 assets make up the remainder.Officials also announced a countercyclical capital buffer of 0% to 2.5% of common equity or other fully loss absorbing capital. The Basel Committee said it will be down to national regulators to determine the conditions under which this buffer will be implemented.Banks will have to build up the countercyclical buffer when growth is strong, to prevent excessive credit growth.Banks must implement the new common equity and Tier 1 capital requirements between January 2013 and January 2015.The capital conservation buffer will have to be implemented between January 2016 and January 2019.The so-called Basel III standards will be presented for approval at the summit of Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies in Seoul in November.
2010/09/13 12:09*DJ Fitch Ratings to Host Sovereign & Banking Conferences in Shanghai, Beijing
2010/09/13 11:55*DJ Hang Seng Index Up 2.0% At 21,681; Extends Gains
2010/09/13 11:44*DJ Japan Ozawa Might Carry Out FX Intervention Threat If Elected PM-Sources
2010/09/13 11:42DJ NZ Earthquake To Have Negative Impact On 3Q GDP Of Around 0.4% - Treasury
WELLINGTON -The New Zealand Treasury said Monday the 7.0-magnitude quake in the country's second-largest city of Christchurch will reduce gross domestic product by 0.4% in the September quarter, but growth is still expected to remain positive. 'Disruption to businesses and other services such as education will negatively impact economic activity in the September quarter,' the Treasury said in a statement Monday. However, 'despite the negative impact on GDP, we still expect GDP growth in the September quarter to remain positive,' it added. Government officials, both local and central, continue to assess the damage from the massive earthquake that has wreaked havoc on infrastructure, homes and office buildings but caused no loss of life. The Treasury reiterated it now estimates the earthquake caused a total of NZ$4 billion of damage, including damage to private dwellings, commercial property and public infrastructure.
2010/09/13 11:26DJ Japan Frees Crew Of Chinese Trawler - State Media
DJ Japan Frees Crew Of Chinese Trawler - State Media BEIJING --Japan on Monday released the crew of a Chinese fishing trawler involved in a collision with two Japanese coast guard vessels in disputed waters, China's state media reported. The Xinhua news agency said in a brief dispatch, without naming a source, that the 14 crew members had been freed. It didn't specifically mention the captain, who has been formally arrested by Japanese police. The incident has sparked a diplomatic row between the Asian powers, with China calling off planned talks over oil and gas fields in a contested area of the East China Sea and summoning Tokyo's ambassador four times to protest.
2010/09/13 11:24DJ World Bank President: No Risk Of Double-Dip Recession In US 2010 - Report
BEIJING -The U.S. economy doesn't face the risk of a double-dip recession this year even though it is likely to register slow growth and face relatively high unemployment rates, the China Daily reported Monday, citing World Bank President Robert Zoellick.Slow U.S. growth will add to sensitivities in trade with China, and China should work to stimulate domestic consumption and reduce its reliance on export growth to help ease tensions, the report cited Zoellick as saying.The World Bank plans to boost its efforts to provide loans to small Chinese businesses in some of the country's western provinces, Zoellick said. Newspaper website: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn
2010/09/13 11:14=DJ PBOC Adviser Calls For Small Deposit-Rate Hike -Report
BEIJING -China ought to raise deposit interest rates slightly, central bank adviser Li Daokui said, according to a state media report Sunday, after the country's inflation rose to a nearly two-year high, further eroding savings deposits parked at banks. Li's comment, which he stressed is his personal view, came as discussions intensify about the need for China to tackle some problems caused by the effective negative interest rates while economic growth momentum stays strong but uncertainties remain. August consumer inflation rose to 3.5%, the biggest gain since October 2008 and higher than July's 3.3% increase, widening the gap with the one-year benchmark deposit rate, which stands at 2.25%. China doesn't let banks offer deposit rates above benchmark deposit rates. Some economists believe it's still not urgent for China to raise interest rates, which might hurt China's economic growth momentum, as the inflation rise has been largely driven by temporary factors such as floods and adverse weather. But Li appears to be more concerned that keeping effective negative deposit rates might help fuel asset bubbles. Raising deposit rates slightly, or giving some room for the deposit rates to float, would help discourage people from rushing to withdraw their savings at banks to invest in the stock market or property market, Li said in an interview with the central television station, with a transcript of the discussion posted by the official Xinhua News Agency on Sunday. 'A slight adjustment would give the public, the depositors, an expectation, a hope,' he said. But he declined to say what magnitude of rate hike would be appropriate, saying it's 'not the core of the issue.' 'Maintaining an expectation that effective [deposit] rates are positive in the long run is very important to our economic stability,' Li said. Another People's Bank of China adviser, Xia Bin, has long called on China to let deposit interest rates float freely. But he told on Saturday that as an adviser he wasn't in a position to know about any rate hike decisions. In China, the State Council, which is the country's cabinet, usually has a final say on monetary or fiscal policies. Li said in the CCTV interview that the consumer price index likely will reach around 2.9% this year, and may stay between 2% and 3% over the next five to 10 years, according to the Xinhua report. He expects the CPI rise will likely peak at 3.7% or slightly higher by the end of the third quarter, but will then start to ease in the fourth, the report said. Li said China's robust economic growth momentum is unlikely to be hurt by any short-term policy adjustments, and money supply remains adequate to support economic operation. China's broadest measure of money supply, M2, jumped 19.2% at the end of August from a year earlier to around US$10 trillion, up from 17.6% at the end of July, the People's Bank of China said Saturday. The increase was well above forecasts that money supply growth would be flat from July. -Victoria Ruan contributed to this article, ; 8610 8400 7799; victoria.ruan@dowjones.com
2010/09/13 10:53*DJ Moody's Changes Outlook For Japan Real Estate Industry To Stable
2010/09/13 10:13*DJ Japan Frees Crew Of Chinese Trawler - State Media
2010/09/13 10:10*DJ World Bank President: No Risk Of Double-Dip Recession In US 2010 - Report
2010/09/13 09:37DJ Chinese Investors Looking At Prudential Bid - Newspaper
LONDON -A group of Chinese investors is considering a takeover of U.K. insurer Prudential PLC (PRU.LN), The Sunday Times said. The investors are more interested in Prudential's Asian business than its U.K. or U.S. operations and would likely break the company up, the newspaper said without citing sources. The consortium is led by Guo Guangchang, chairman of Fosun Group (0656.HK). Other investors named in the report are Fred Hu, chairman of Goldman Sachs' Chinese business and Shan Weijian, chairman of Pacific Alliance . Prudential, Fosun, Pacific Alliance and Goldman Sachs China were not available for comment. Newspaper Web site: http://www.timesonline.co.uk
2010/09/13 08:53*DJ Malaysia Ringgit Rises; Dollar At Fresh 13-Year Low Of MYR3.100
2010/09/13 08:26DJ PBOC Adviser Calls For Deposit-Rate Hike--Xinhua
BEIJING -China ought to raise deposit interest rates slightly as the country is likely to maintain a moderate inflation for years, a central-bank adviser said in a state television program, with a transcript of the discussion posted by the official Xinhua News Agency Sunday. Li Daokui, an adviser of the People's Bank of China, said in an interview with the central television station that the consumer price index likely will reach around 2.9% this year, and may stay between 2%-3% over the next 5-10 years, the report said. He made the comments after official data showed Saturday that CPI rose 3.5% in August, highest in nearly two years. He expects the CPI rise will likely peak at 3.7% or slightly higher by the end of the third quarter but will then start to ease in the fourth, the report said. Raising deposit rates would help guide public expectation that people's saving at banks would have stable return despite inflation, and therefore they wouldn't rush to withdraw savings to invest in the stock or property market, Li was cited as saying.
2010/09/13 08:06*DJ Lead December JGB Futures Open Down At 141.06 Vs 141.23 Friday
2010/09/13 08:04*DJ Nikkei Stock Average Opens Up 0.9% At 9325.64
2010/09/13 07:49*DJ Lead Nikkei Futures Open Up 130 Points At 9295 On SGX
2010/09/13 07:36*DJ New Zealand Dollar Hits Y61.49; Highest Since Aug 13
