Asian shares higher after Bernanke speech

HONG KONG: Asian stock markets mostly rose on Monday after Wall Street strengthened on a much-anticipated speech by Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke at the end of last week.

Oil prices dipped meanwhile as energy demand was hit by the closure of refineries and airports as Hurricane Irene struck the US east coast.

While Bernanke offered no new stimulus proposals in his speech at a central bankers’ conference Friday, traders were pleased that he left the door open for measures further down the line.

Tokyo gained 0.54 percent by the morning break, Hong Kong rose 1.08 percent and Sydney added 1.49 percent. Seoul climbed 2.32 percent and Taipei was 1.68 percent higher.

However, Shanghai fell 2.05 percent on concerns that inflation in China is still stubbornly high.

In his speech at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Bernanke said the Fed had a range of tools that could help the US economy, which it will review in an expanded meeting of the policy-making Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) in September.

The speech went down well on Wall Street, with the Dow rising 1.21 percent, the S&P 500 up 1.51 percent and the Nasdaq jumping 2.49 percent.

Bernanke also said that he expected second-half growth in the United States to improve after a virtually stagnant first six months.

“I’m pleased to see a sensible reaction in the market,” Christopher Macdonald, principal investment adviser at RBS Morgans in Sydney, told Dow Jones Newswires.

“Bernanke seems to have put a floor under the market by implying that if we get any bad news or further dislocation in the markets, they will put something together in their next (FOMC) meeting,” he said.

The dollar was weighed by the prospect of future monetary easing by the Fed, with the currency falling to 76.65 yen on Friday from 77.45 yen the day before.

However, it was holding firm in early Tokyo trade Monday, buying 76.73 yen.

The euro was worth $1.4480, slightly down from $1.4490 in New York late Friday. It was virtually flat at 111.10 yen.

The dollar rose to 0.8101 Swiss francs from 0.8063 francs. Along with the yen, the Swiss franc is considered another safe-haven currency and has soared during the recent market tumult, to the consternation of Swiss authorities.

On the oil market, New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in October, fell 13 cents to $85.24 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for October delivery sank 28 cents to $111.08.

Gold opened at $1,823.00-$1,824.00 an ounce in Hong Kong, up from Friday’s close of $1,789.00-$1,790.00. AGENCIES

US crude falls below $74 on economy fears

SINGAPORE: U.S. crude futures fell below $74 on Tuesday, extending losses for a second day, as expectations of higher crude inventories fed fears that a slowdown in global economic growth was hitting demand.

Investors took profit on oil after equities slid on skepticism that governments can boost growth, while the yen clung near a 15-year high against the dollar.

U.S. President Barack Obama”s Monday remarks on additional steps to generate jobs growth and a rise in U.S. consumer spending in July failed to lift oil and equities markets.

U.S. crude prices are meeting considerable resistance above $75 due to concerns about the economy and high oil inventories, Stefan Graber, Credit Suisse”s commodities analyst, said in a note. “For now, we expect further consolidation around $75.”

U.S. crude for October delivery fell 84 cents, or 1.12 percent, to $73.86 a barrel by 0439 GMT, after halting three days of gains on Monday.

ICE Brent for October fell 68 cents to $75.92 a barrel.

Oil fundamentals in the United States, the world”s largest consumer, remained weak as stockpiles rose for the second time in a row last week on higher imports, a British news agency preliminary poll of analysts ahead of weekly inventory reports showed.

Oil turns lower in Asia; stays above $75

SINGAPORE: Oil prices turned lower in Asian trade Monday on profit-taking and as investors realised that the US economic recovery remained weak despite the Federal Reserve chief”s reassurances, analysts said.

New York”s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in October, was down seven cents to 75.10 dollars a barrel, and Brent North Sea crude for delivery in October dipped nine cents to 76.56 dollars.

Both contracts had posted gains in morning trade, extending gains from Friday following reassurances by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke on the US economy, but failed to gain traction.

“There was some profit-taking because Ben Bernanke”s reassurances are just simply words,” said Victor Shum, senior principal for energy consultants Purvin and Gertz in Singapore.

“The reality is that the US economic outlook hasn”t changed… What Bernanke managed to do with his words was to momentarily stop a lot of the bearish sentiment in the market,” he told media.

Shum said recent economic data coming out of the United States points to a weak economic recovery in the world”s biggest economy.

In a highly anticipated speech, Bernanke said prospects for a US growth pick-up appeared to “remain in place” despite a sharp cutback in the pace of second-quarter economic expansion.

Bernanke added that the Fed would take more “unconventional” steps to boost growth if the economic outlook “deteriorated significantly”.

Shum said a rally in Asian stocks helped minimise the dip in oil prices.

“In the absence of significant news events, the oil market looks to equities for guidance,” he said.

“This has added more volatility to oil because equities are influenced by daily economic data.”

Asia stocks rise, euro steady on China data

SINGAPORE: Asian stocks rose on Thursday on better-than-expected Chinese exports and assurances from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the U.

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Asia stocks rise, euro steady on China data

Asian shares higher after Fed chief remarks

TOKYO: Asian stock markets managed modest gains Tuesday after comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke offset some fears about Europe’s economic problems.

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Asian shares higher after Fed chief remarks

SC resumes 18th Amendment hearing

ISLAMABAD: A 17-member larger bench of the Supreme Court Tuesday resumed hearing of the petitions challenging various clauses of the 18th constitutional amendment.

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SC resumes 18th Amendment hearing

Oil rises to near $72

SINGAPORE: Oil prices rose to near $72 a barrel Tuesday in Asia after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he’s hopeful the world’s No.

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Oil rises to near $72

Maxine waters

TrendPK.com Maxine waters:Maybe the idea of more Congressional oversight of the central bank isn’t such a good idea after all. In the question and answer session with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke before the House Financial Services Committee a short time ago, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) asked the following questions:
Starting with your [...]

Peace Deal Possible in 6 Months: Mahmoud Abbas

RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he has told Israel’s defense minister a peace deal could be reached in six months if Israel freezes settlement construction during that time.

Abbas says he made the proposal when he spoke on the phone with Ehud Barak three weeks ago. Abbas told Israel’s Haaretz daily in an interview published Wednesday that he has not received an Israeli response.

Israel has rejected Palestinian and U.S. demands that it freeze settlement building in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, war-won lands the Palestinians want for a future state.

Israel has announced restrictions on new housing construction in the West Bank, but Abbas says he won’t resume peace talks without a freeze that also covers east Jerusalem.

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Peace Deal Possible in 6 Months: Mahmoud Abbas was first posted on December 16, 2009 at 4:15 pm.

Time Person of the year 2009

Time Person of the year 2009 latest news updates :- Bernanke is TIME’s 2009 Person of the Year. Federal Reserve chair beat out Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Usain Bolt.

“The winner is Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the most powerful, least understood government force shaping our lives,” Stengel said.

Stengel described the cover as a “throwback cover, like a Person of the Year cover from the ’40s or ’50s.”

“He was the great scholar of the Depression, and basically he saw what looked like another Depression coming and he decided he would do whatever it takes to forestall that,” Stengel said. “And basically he did.

Stengel admitted that Bernanke has made mistakes, but said that “in terms of influencing the economy this year, he’s the guy.”

* TIME’s No. 2 runner-up after Bernanke was Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Stengel told TODAY’s Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira that McChrystal came “very close” to usurping Bernanke’s Person of the Year cover: “He really was the prime mover behind the change in Afghanistan strategy.”

* No. 3: The Chinese worker — an acknowledgement of an increasingly influential group of people in one of the world’s most powerful economies.

* No. 4: Nancy Pelosi, U.S. Speaker of the House.

* No. 5: Usain Bolt, Jamaican sprinter and Olympic gold medalist.

* Other contenders included Steve Jobs, co-founder and chief executive of Apple Inc., and President Barack Obama, who was named Person of the Year in 2008. “Obama could be Person of the Year every year, but not this year,” Stengel commented.

In the end, it was Bernanke’s sway over a global financial crisis that touched millions — if not billions — of lives led to TIME’s decision. “He is influencing how the economy operates,” Stengel explained.

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Time Person of the year 2009 was first posted on December 16, 2009 at 7:35 pm.