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Friday, May 21, 2010

AP Mobile News story - Thai PM offers olive branch to Red Shirts

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I was just opening an email and my eyes were up for this :

this Are you running from God today? Stop, turn around, come back home. He is waiting to welcome you. He says, 'Turn to me again.' (Revelation 3:3 NLT)
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Thursday, May 20, 2010

Euro debt crisis sends dollar plummeting |

I am so sad to hear this news. SAD...

 The Australian
THE Australian dollar closed more than two US cents lower after touching a fresh eight-month low, as the European debt-crisis continues to rattle investors.

At 5pm (AEST), the Australian dollar was trading at 83.15 US cents, down from yesterday's close of 85.88 cents.

Since 7am (AEST) yesterday, the local unit traded in a wide range between 84.72 US cents and 82.60 cents.

The latter was the lowest the Australian dollar has been against the US dollar since September 2, 2009, when it touched 82.41 US cents.

TD Securities FX strategist Roland Randall said the unit had been caught in the grip of investor insecurity about the on-going European debt crisis.

"The big picture is the world is selling risk assets in concerns out of Europe," he said.

"We've seen the Aussie plummet."

Global and local stock markets slid during the domestic session.

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The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed 1.61 per cent lower to 4316.5 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index fell 1.63 per cent to 4,342.4 points.

Japan's Nikkei 225 ended 1.54 per cent lower, while the Korean KOSPI closed 1.83 per cent in the red.

The risk averse mood in Asia matched earlier losses on European markets.

Mr Randall said there was no single issue coming out of Europe that can be blamed for sparking the risk averse sentiment.

On Tuesday, Germany's financial regulator moved to ban naked short selling of certain debt assets such as government securities.

Short selling occurs when traders bet on a stock or investment that they do not own or have borrowed.

Naked short selling - when a trader has yet to find another party - was cited as a factor in the turbulence on world markets during the 2008 financial crisis.

Investor sentiment has also been shaken by ongoing concerns about whether debt swamped nations like Greece can be saved by a recent euro 750 billion ($1.1 trillion) bailout package agreed to by EU finance ministers last week.

Mr Randall said he expected the slump in the local dollar to be temporary, with Australia's interest rate of 4.5 per cent, high compared to other Western nations, expected to support it in the coming weeks.

"We maintain our forecast that we will see a mid year Australian dollar at $US0.9200," he said.

At 5pm (AEST), the Australian dollar was at 75.93 yen, down from yesterday's close of 79.02 yen, and at 66.97 euro cents, down from 70.80 euro cents.

The euro finished at 1.2419 US dollars, up from yesterday's close of 1.2215 US dollars, and at 113.39 yen, up from 112.43 yen.

The US dollar was at 91.31 Japanese yen, down from its previous close of 92.03.

Meanwhile, the Australian bond market closed firmer as investors moved into safe-haven assets in the wake of Germany's decision ban naked-short selling.

At 4.30pm (AEST), the yield on the Commonwealth Government April 2020 bond was 5.403 per cent, down from yesterday's close of 5.434 per cent, while the May 2013 bond was at 4.790 per cent, down from 4.824 per cent.

On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the June 10-year bond futures contract was at 94.600, up from yesterday's close of 94.565, while the June three-year bond futures contract was 95.160, up from 95.120.

At 4.30pm (AEST), the 90-day bank bill rate was at 4.730 per cent, down from 4.800 on yesterday's close, while the 180-day bank bill rate was at 4.860 per cent, down from 4.910 previously.

At 4pm (AEST), the RBA's trade weighted index (TWI) closed at 66.2, down from 68.1 on Wednesday.


AUD dollar

Australian equities "risky", sentiment pulls on dollar | The Australian
The Australian dollar was in freefall as international investors became risk-adverse on fears that the European sovereign-debt crisis would worsen and dampen the global economic recovery.

At 1617 AEST, the Australian dollar was trading at US82.85 cents, down US3c from yesterday's close of US85.85c.

The majority of the selling pressure emerged after mid-day, once the major Asian trading centres came online. However, it was exacerbated after 2.30pm, when it plunged from US84.42c to US82.72c.

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Related Coverage

* CHART: S&P/ASX 200

* Aussie drops to lowest in three months Herald Sun, 3 days ago
* Shares dive, dollar caught in selloff The Australian, 3 days ago
* Dollar opens lower on Eurozone woes The Australian, 3 days ago
* Bargain overseas travel beckons Aussies Perth Now, 6 days ago
* Sterling gains as UK coalition emerges The Australian, 8 days ago

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The local currency was at US85.31 cents in the New York session overnight.

The Australian dollar is down nearly 10c in one month, and the drop is seen as steep enough to possibly prompt the Reserve Bank to become a buyer of the Australian to stabilise the currency.

The Australian dollar closed on April 30 at US93.04c - its high for 2010 was US93.31c.

The sudden bout of risk-aversion on world markets has been blamed for the dramatic falls, but analysts have also linked it to the current selling on the Australian equities markets.

Nomura chief economist Stephen Roberts said international investment funds were currently rebalancing portfolios and moving out of “risky markets”, such as Australia.

The government's contentious Resource Super-Profit Tax (RSPT) is thought to have prompted some funds to judge that Australia's sovereign risk had now increased, because of the uncertainty caused by the proposed legislation.

CBA's chief currency strategist, Richard Grace, said the local dollar’s volatility was also attributable to fears that the global recovery could be affected by the likelihood of Greece defaulting on its debt.

“It's difficult to get bullish on the Australian dollar in the current environment,” Mr Grace said.

“This is because there are growing concerns over euro-zone GDP growth and the outlook for global growth.”

Asian shares were mostly lower today, with the Seoul market pulling back after investigators said North Korea was responsible for sinking a South Korean warship in March.

Sentiment remained fragile across many markets amid ongoing worries over euro-zone debt.

“Sentiment is just so bearish,” said Southern Cross Equities director Angus Aitken in Sydney. “That's why it could be worth buying some selected large-cap stocks.

“If we get a little bit of settling in Europe and Wall Street, the bottom-up focused buyers will come in. It's been such macro, big-picture stuff driving share prices globally,” he said.

Among the major Australian miners, BHP Billiton was down 22c (0.6 per cent) at $36.75 and rival Rio Tinto fell 63c (1 per cent) to $62.25.

In the gold sector, Lihir lost 11c (2.42 per cent) to $3.93 and Newcrest Mining shed 92c (2.82 per cent) to $31.68.

At 1627 AEST, the spot price of gold in Sydney was $US1184.70 per fine ounce, down $US29.07 on yesterday's close.

In the banking sector, National Australia Bank was off 55c (2.31 per cent) at $23.25 and Westpac lost 90c (3.96 per cent) at $21.80.

ANZ finished down 62c (2.92 per cent) at $20.63 after Fitch Ratings affirmed its rating for ANZ's senior unsecured debt at AA-, while the outlook on the long-term issuer default rating was revised from stable to positive.

Commonwealth Bank fell $1.31 (2.55 per cent) to $50.07.

In the energy sector, Woodside Petroleum dropped 66c (1.56 per cent) to $41.59 and rival Oil Search lost 6c to $5.25. Gas giant Santos fell 63c (5.07 per cent) to $11.80.


Euro debt crisis sends dollar plummeting |

I am so sad to hear this news. SAD...

 The Australian
THE Australian dollar closed more than two US cents lower after touching a fresh eight-month low, as the European debt-crisis continues to rattle investors.

At 5pm (AEST), the Australian dollar was trading at 83.15 US cents, down from yesterday's close of 85.88 cents.

Since 7am (AEST) yesterday, the local unit traded in a wide range between 84.72 US cents and 82.60 cents.

The latter was the lowest the Australian dollar has been against the US dollar since September 2, 2009, when it touched 82.41 US cents.

TD Securities FX strategist Roland Randall said the unit had been caught in the grip of investor insecurity about the on-going European debt crisis.

"The big picture is the world is selling risk assets in concerns out of Europe," he said.

"We've seen the Aussie plummet."

Global and local stock markets slid during the domestic session.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed 1.61 per cent lower to 4316.5 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index fell 1.63 per cent to 4,342.4 points.

Japan's Nikkei 225 ended 1.54 per cent lower, while the Korean KOSPI closed 1.83 per cent in the red.

The risk averse mood in Asia matched earlier losses on European markets.

Mr Randall said there was no single issue coming out of Europe that can be blamed for sparking the risk averse sentiment.

On Tuesday, Germany's financial regulator moved to ban naked short selling of certain debt assets such as government securities.

Short selling occurs when traders bet on a stock or investment that they do not own or have borrowed.

Naked short selling - when a trader has yet to find another party - was cited as a factor in the turbulence on world markets during the 2008 financial crisis.

Investor sentiment has also been shaken by ongoing concerns about whether debt swamped nations like Greece can be saved by a recent euro 750 billion ($1.1 trillion) bailout package agreed to by EU finance ministers last week.

Mr Randall said he expected the slump in the local dollar to be temporary, with Australia's interest rate of 4.5 per cent, high compared to other Western nations, expected to support it in the coming weeks.

"We maintain our forecast that we will see a mid year Australian dollar at $US0.9200," he said.

At 5pm (AEST), the Australian dollar was at 75.93 yen, down from yesterday's close of 79.02 yen, and at 66.97 euro cents, down from 70.80 euro cents.

The euro finished at 1.2419 US dollars, up from yesterday's close of 1.2215 US dollars, and at 113.39 yen, up from 112.43 yen.

The US dollar was at 91.31 Japanese yen, down from its previous close of 92.03.

Meanwhile, the Australian bond market closed firmer as investors moved into safe-haven assets in the wake of Germany's decision ban naked-short selling.

At 4.30pm (AEST), the yield on the Commonwealth Government April 2020 bond was 5.403 per cent, down from yesterday's close of 5.434 per cent, while the May 2013 bond was at 4.790 per cent, down from 4.824 per cent.

On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the June 10-year bond futures contract was at 94.600, up from yesterday's close of 94.565, while the June three-year bond futures contract was 95.160, up from 95.120.

At 4.30pm (AEST), the 90-day bank bill rate was at 4.730 per cent, down from 4.800 on yesterday's close, while the 180-day bank bill rate was at 4.860 per cent, down from 4.910 previously.

At 4pm (AEST), the RBA's trade weighted index (TWI) closed at 66.2, down from 68.1 on Wednesday.