FTSE 100	5200.97, +9.23	Dow	9882.17, +14.21
FTSE 250	9141.28, -44.82	Nasdaq	2116.09, -25.76
FTSE All Share	2663.79, +2.09	S&P 500	1063.41, -3.54
Nikkei	10075.05, -137.41	Hang Seng	21761.58, -408.01
Oil (Crude)	$79.55	Gold	$1035.40
Base Rate	0.5%	10 Yr Gilt	3.68%
£/$	1.632	£/€	1.1038
1 month LIBOR	0.514	3 month LIBOR	0.594

 

Markets

London - The FTSE 100 is currently 66.16 points to close at 5,134.81. Renewed selling hit London’s equity market on Wednesday after the unexpectedly-weak US consumer confidence data left Wall Street flat overnight. Prudential is among the financial sector losers in spite of beating market expectations with £2.02bn nine-month sales, as investors focused on the company’s outlook statement that said ”the economic environment will remain uncertain for a while”.

New York - US indices were mixed yesterday with the Dow finishing higher while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq marked a third straight day of losses. Economic data was mixed including a better than expected housing report, showing prices rose for the fourth month in a row. In contrast, The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence index fell to 47.7 in October from a revised 53.4 in September.

The Dow Jones gained 14.21 points to close at 9,882.17 while the S&P 500 added 3.54 points to end at 1,063.41. The Nasdaq dropped 25.76 points to finish at 2,116.09.

IBM topped the Dow, helping it to close in positive territory. The IT giant gained 0.6% after raising its share purchase plan to $9.2 billion. Exxon Mobil and Chevron Corp were also prominent, gaining 2.3% and 1.5% respectively, after BP’s better than expected earnings. Apple was the biggest loser on the Nasdaq, leading tech shares lower as investors sold recent winners.

After the bell, Visa posted stronger than expected quarterly profit, sending the world’s largest payment network 1.3% higher in after hours trading.

US light crude oil for December delivery added $0.87 to $79.55 a barrel. COMEX gold for December delivery lost $7.40 to $1,035.40 an ounce. Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the 10 year 3.47% from 3.55%.

Tokyo - The Nikkei lost 137.41 points to close at 10,075.05 this morning as companies from ship operators to electronics makers reported weaker earnings or cut forecasts. Most prominent were real estate company Leopalace21, who predicted a loss from a profit. Also, Canon Inc, which dropped 3.4% after reporting a seventh straight quarterly loss.

Hong Kong - The Hang Seng is currently 408.01 points lower at 21,761.58. Developers tumble as the city’s government seeks to curb property market speculation. HSBC Holdings is among the biggest fallers after saying US credit card defaults surged last month.

Economics

US Durable goods orders (Sep) 12:30 GMT/08:30 EDT
Although September’s ISM new orders series fell to 60.8 from 64.9, this level is still well above breakeven and consistent with broad-based increases. Analysts think durable goods orders excluding transportation could climb 1.5% in September, which would be the fourth rise in the past five months. In particular, analysts look for increases in the metals and machinery categories. Boeing orders slipped to 20 from 32 and point to another pullback in the aircraft category, so that total durable orders rise 1.0%.

US New home sales (Sep) 14:00 GMT/10:00 EDT

Analysts expect September new home sales to rise to 450,000. Pending sales of existing homes continue to show solid momentum, rising for sixth consecutive months through August. The latest NAHB homebuilder index is up 10pts since the beginning of the year, although it slipped by 1pt to 18 in October.

Corporate

British American Tobacco today reported strong revenue growth for the first nine months of the year, but said volume growth was slowing as consumers struggle during the tough economic environment and due to rising unemployment. Revenue for the nine months ended Sept. 30 rose strongly in constant currency terms, "driven by the continued good pricing momentum and volume growth" from the acquisitions made in the middle of last year in Denmark and Turkey, as well its recent acquisition in Indonesia, BAT said in a statement. "All regions contributed to this good result. Revenue benefited further from the favourable impact of significant exchange rate movements," the group added. No specific revenue figures were released.

BG Group today posted a 43.5% fall in net profit for the third quarter due mainly to weaker natural gas prices and lower than expected output following a gas project delay. Total oil and gas production was 615,000 barrels a day, a rise of 4.8% on the year, but below analyst’s expectations of an output increase of 8.2%. This was predominantly due to a delay in the start-up of the Hasdrubal facility in Tunisia, BG said in a
statement. Nevertheless, Chief Executive Frank Chapman gave a confident outlook for the company, saying output in the fourth quarter so far is up 12% year-on-year to around 700,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. "We are now entering a period where we can look forward to these projects driving exceptional growth to the end of the next decade," he said. The U.K.-based energy company said net profit for the three months ended Sept. 30 totalled GBP484 million, compared with GBP857million for the third quarter of 2008.  

Prudential, the U.K.’s biggest insurer by market capitalization, today posted a 9% fall in new business sales for the first nine months of the year as better results from the U.S. were overshadowed by lower sales in the U.K. and Asia. The insurer also said "the economic environment will remain uncertain for a while," but it is "well positioned to benefit from the next stage of the economic cycle." The company said that total new business sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30 were GBP2.02 billion, down from GBP2.21 billion a year earlier on an annual premium equivalent, or APE, basis.  The results from the U.K. were weighed down by the absence of huge bulk annuity deals. In September last year, for example, Prudential agreed on a GBP1 billion deal to provide a bulk annuity policy to Cable & Wireless. For the first nine months of the year, sales from U.K. retail operations fell 13% to GBP531 million and at its Asian business fell 9% to GBP846 million, but the U.S. business rose 51% to GBP640 million. Wholesale insurance sales were GBP3 million, down from GBP251 million in the same period last year. Prudential said its capital position remains strong, with a capital surplus at the end of September of GBP2.8 billion, up from GBP1.2 billion a year ago.

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Posted: October 28th, 2009 under Asset Management.
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