| Midday Market Roundup 24/04/08
MIDDAY REPORT - Thursday 24th April 2008 Market down 77 on profit taking ahead of long weekend and perhaps in reaction to a market that went up 88 yesterday on a 104 point fall in Wall St. Option expiry may have something to do with it. Financials down 1.7% after strong rise yesterday post the ANZ results. Resources down with Woodside and Newcrest both struggling. Light volumes today. Dow up 43or 0.34%. NASDAQ outperformed up 1.19%. Volume traded was 15% below average. There were 113 sets of results. Some good results especially from Tech stocks. Some poor after hours announcements from Apple, Amazon and Starbucks give us a pretty shabby lead into the Wall St session tonight. Bond insurers smashed on Ambac results. A $6bn takeover adds some hope that credit markets are improving and ambition returning..."Getting back to normal".
Japanese government bonds close lower as credit crisis worries ease
TOKYO (Thomson Financial) - Japanese government bond prices closed lower on Monday after recent earnings reports by U.S. financial companies eased investor worries about a protracted credit crisis. Investor interest shifted back to stocks, attracted by gains on Wall Street on Friday after Citigroup Inc., the biggest bank in the United States, reported a much smaller loss of $5.1 billion in the first quarter, compared with a fourth-quarter loss of $10 billion. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed up 220.10 points or 1.6 percent at 13,696.55. "Unwinding of flight-to-quality trade has continued since last week. Sentiment for stocks, especially, is recovering and the view is that the worst period may be over, at least, for the financial markets," said Naomi Hasegawa, senior strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.
Art sales soar despite credit crunch
Sales of arts and antiques are booming as the wealthy seek more reliable investments during the credit crunch, a survey suggests today. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyor's first Art and Antiques Survey reports a "buoyant" market, with 20 per cent more surveyors reporting a rise in lot prices than those reporting a fall. The effect was most noticeable towards the top end of the market. When asked about lots worth more than £5,000, 50 per cent more surveyors reported a price rise than a fall. In the picture sector, 44 per cent more surveyors reported a price rise. .
Opening bell: Credit crunch bites into corporate profits
U.S. stock futures headed lower Wednesday after a series of worse-than-expected earnings results.
Ambac Financial Group swung to a loss for the first quarter on a further US$1.73 billion in collateralized-debt-obligation losses and US$1.04 billion in loss provisions, as the second-biggest bond insurer in the U.S. continued to be weighed down by the credit crunch.
Moody�s reported a 31% drop in first-quarter net income, as the credit ratings and research agency posted revenue declines in many of its segments, reflecting credit-market turmoil.
Delta Air Lines reported losses of US$6.4 billion during its first quarter, as the company took a noncash charge of US$6.1 billion, reflecting a decline in its market value as sustained record fuel prices take their toll.
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