Thursday, June 19th, 2008
China’s biggest gas and oil company led the 6.4% drop of the Shanghai Composite Index, losing 5.7%. Chinese stock indexes rose on Wednesday after a nearly two week fall. Apparently investors wanted to make up for losses incurred, and started selling. The selling caused panic and resulted in the 6.4 percent fall. The benchmark Chinese index has had almost 2 weeks of losses, with concerns about oil prices being the main cause.
Chinese stocks have fallen, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropping 6.4 percent, as profit-taking following a rally the day before prompted a sell-off by jittery investors.
The Shanghai Composite Index’s dip on Thursday came a day after it rose 5.2 percent.
The Shanghai Composite Index’s dip on Thursday came a day after it rose 5.2 percent.
The Shanghai index lost 192.24 points Thursday, falling to 2,748.87.
Market heavyweight PetroChina, the listed unit of China’s biggest oil and gas company, led the decline, falling 5.7 percent to 15.17 yuan.
Read more.
Posted in News | Comments Off
Thursday, June 12th, 2008
Wall Street took a beating on Wednesday after oil prices rebounded, and fears among investors about possible rate hikes by central bankers got bigger due to inflation worries. US consumers are now paying 4 USD per gallon, a record high for that country. Compared to Europeans they are still getting a good deal, however. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 1 percent to end at 12,165.84. European stocks did not fare better, with major stock exchanges closing on average 1.4% lower. The dollar dropped again in value, while gold prices rose.
Wall Street fell sharply Wednesday as oil prices rebounded, aggravating concerns that inflation may lead the world’s central banks to raise interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 160 points.
Investors have been uneasy about oil prices, which at times surged above $136 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after dropping a day earlier. Having breached $139 a barrel last week, record-high crude has increasingly posed both an inflationary risk and a threat to growth.
Read more.
Posted in News | Comments Off
Tuesday, June 10th, 2008
Chinese stocks reacted negatively to a Chinese Central Bank’s credit-tightening move. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 7.7% or 257.34 points. Financial markets in the country were closed yesterday due to a national holiday. The measure by the central bank leaves less funds available for lending and investments. The Chinese economy has been growing at an annual rate of about 10% over the last few years. The government has introduced several measures to prevent the economy from overheating.
Chinese stocks plunged Tuesday following the central bank’s latest credit-tightening move.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 257.34 points, or 7.7 percent to 3,072.33. The Shenzhen Composite Index of China’s second, smaller market lost 8 percent to 928.20.
Chinese financial markets were closed Monday for a national holiday, so Tuesday was the earliest chance for investors to react to a weekend decision by the central bank ordering banks to keep more deposits on hand.
“It’s the second time in a month that the reserve-requirement ratio was raised and this deeply worries investors. The market is too weak to resist any bad news,” said Wei Daoke, an analyst with Shenyin Wanguo Securities in Shanghai.
The move, which leaves less money available for lending and investment, signaled authorities’ intentions to keep credit tight to fight inflation, likely hurting prospects for financial and real estate companies, among others.
Read more.
Posted in News | Comments Off
Monday, June 9th, 2008
Declines in stock-index futures in the US and Asia triggered losses in Europe. Crude oil prices are also affecting futures, with new records being broken frequently. There are serious concerns that economic growth and corporate profits will fall futher this year. Air France-KLM and Daimler will be among the affected parties, with the record oil price having a noticeable effect on their financial performance.
European stock-index futures dropped, following declines in the U.S. and Asia, as crude oil traded near a record, deepening concern that economic and profit growth will slow.
Air France-KLM Group, Europe’s largest airline, and Daimler AG, the world’s second-largest luxury carmaker, may fall after oil climbed above $139 a barrel last week. Volvo AB and MAN AG will probably retreat as UBS AG recommended selling shares in the truckmakers. Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc may move after shareholders agreed to buy 95.1 percent of the stock for sale in its 12 billion-pound ($23.6 billion) rights offer.
Read more.
Posted in News | Comments Off