Bernanke boosts dollar, commodities down

By Dominic LauLONDON (Reuters) - The dollar rose on Friday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke indicated U.S. monetary policy could be tightened as a recovery takes hold, sending crude and metal prices lower.World stocks <.MIWD00000PUS> were steady as retreating commodity prices hurt heavyweight miners, offsetting gains in Asia <.MIASJ0000PUS> and emerging markets.Shares in emerging markets <.MSCIEF> advanced 0.4 percent, hitting a more than 13-month high for the fourth straight day, after better-than-expected U.S. corporate earnings and economic data soothed fears about the strength of the economic recovery.In Europe,...

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A Neutral Net Means Battles

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski launched a new proceeding designed to fetter Internet service providers' ability to restrict content. And they would apply equally to wired and wireless connections. FCC chairman Julius Genachowski made his pitch this morning for network neutrality, and he did it in the most business-friendly language he could muster. But that didn't stop him from arguing that an open Internet must be the rule no matter how one gets on it—wired and wireless connections should both be nondiscriminatory towards content and applications.Genachowski delivered a major address this morning at the Brookings Institution in Washington,...

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Gold slips, taking breather as dollar rebounds

By Frank Tang and Jan HarveyNEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Friday as the market took a breather on the dollar's rebound the day after this week's sharp rally pushed gold to a record high above $1,060 an ounce.On Thursday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the U.S. central bank must keep propping up the economy but cannot do so indefinitely for fear of triggering inflation. His comments dampened gold's appeal as an inflation hedge.Peter Buchanan, commodities analyst at CIBC, said policy makers would not allow the dollar to keep falling."We believe that the dollar has overshot to the downside, with a relief rally expected...

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Gold Hits Record High: Time to Sell or Time to Buy?

I'm standing at my office bookshelf rummaging in a small box of junk... I mean, treasures. There's a transistor radio I carried on my paper route at 14, a broken watch, some old photos...Ah, here's what I'm looking for -- my high school ring, class of '69. I don't remember what I paid for it - around $100, I think. But this clunky heirloom that I wore for only a few months is worth its weight in gold. At half an ounce, according to the kitchen scale, that's around $500.Gold tends to do well in troubled times, and economic worries and the falling dollar have pushed gold over $1,050 an ounce this week, the latest in a string of recent records. Gold's advocates point out it's been in demand throughout history - since before written history, in fact. Unlike currency, it doesn't rely on the full...

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Gold price hits new record high

THE price of gold has charged to a new high of nearly US$1,055 (S$1,466) an ounce amid speculation that it could hit US$2,000 in the next decade.Local investors are joining a global gold rush by pouring cash into the precious metal owing to inflation fears and concern that major currencies such as the US dollar will keep falling in value.They worry that spending sprees by the United States and other governments to tackle the global recession will undermine currency values and fuel inflation. Gold is regarded as a safe-haven investment, and a hedge against inflation or rising prices.Mr Wong Weiyi, a research analyst at unit trust distributor Fundsupermart,...

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Gold slips, dollar rises

GOLD, silver and other precious metals, which have been riding high lately, slid back in price on Friday.This was partly due to a stronger United States dollar. Also, some investors sold metals to lock in gains racked up in the recent surge.The US dollar got a lift from comments by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, who said the central bank was ready to raise interest rates.'When the economic outlook has improved sufficiently, we will be prepared to tighten,' he said in Washington on Thursday.Gold fell below US$1,050 an ounce yesterday, snapping a rally of three straight days of record highs. Gold is up about 19per cent so far this year.Silver...

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The Week of the Record Gold Price

As investors in the gold market we have waited patiently for gold prices to break through the old record gold price of $1033.00/oz and set a new record gold price which it did when it briefly touched on $1060.00/oz this week. This record has been along time coming after the previous failed attempts this year to establish a new record gold price.For the most part the gold producing stocks also took part in this rally as evidenced by the Gold Bugs Index, the HUI, which is currently sitting at 446. The HUI is important to us because it largely represents those precious metals producers that have not hedged their production and therefore offer an...

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No Change: Bank Keeps Interest Rate On Hold

The Bank of England has once again opted to keep the interest rate unchanged at 0.5%.had predicted the rate would stay at its current level amid fears a rise would kill hopes of a recovery.The interest rate has now stayed unchanged since March.The Bank also decided to leave its quantitative easing (QE) programme to boost the money supply unchanged at £175bn, despite calls from some business leaders to raise it to £200m.The news comes as the economy continues to be boosted by positive surveys and reports.GDP is expected to have returned to positive growth for the third quarter when data is released later this month.But there are concerns over...

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PM sets optimistic forecast for Britain

LONDON — Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the British economy would emerge from recession with stronger growth than expected as he drew the battle lines for the general election, in an interview out on Saturday.Brown told The Daily Telegraph newspaper that Britain would return to growth next year, as he spelt out the differences between his governing Labour Party and the main opposition Conservatives, who are 14 percent ahead in the opinion polls with an election due by June.Brown tried to portray himself as an optimist on the coming years in Britain, saying the Conservatives had painted a pessimistic view of tough times ahead that were "simply...

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Blair and Brown listen as Archbishop of Canterbury condemns Iraq war decisions

Solemnity and ritual, ancient words and a mother whose grief at the loss of her son was “the worst pain ever”. As St Paul’s Cathedral filled with the sound of the choir as it sang the anthem — Bible verses honouring the dead; another age, another war — Tracey Hazel stepped forward to light the candle of remembrance, the candle that stood for her son, Ben Leaning, and all the other servicemen and women who lost their lives in the conflict in Iraq.It was a symbolic moment, but in more ways than the organisers of the service of commemoration ever intended. The congregation may have been led by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, the front rows of the...

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Citigroup sidesteps pay row with Phibro sale

Citigroup has sold its Phibro oil trading business to Occidental Petroleum in a $250m deal that takes the heat out of controversial $100m bonus for trader Andrew HallSchloss Dernberg a 1,000 year old castle near hamburg owned by oil trader Andrew Hall. Photograph: Public DomainA British-born star trader at Citigroup who caused a political furore by earning a bonus of almost $100m (£63m) is to leave the struggling bank as part of a sale of its oil and gas trading division, Phibro, to a Los Angeles-based energy firm, Occidental Petroleum.Phibro is headed by Andrew Hall, an Oxford-educated modern art enthusiast whose stratospheric earnings have...

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Wall Street ends week on high

The Nasdaq Composite was up 15.35 points or 0.72% at 2,139.28.U.S. stocks closed the week higher Friday with strong gainn across the board.It was the best weekly performce for the American markets in three weeks, and the first week in three to finish the week in positive territory.The Dow Jones Industrials index gained 78.07 points or 0.80% to 9,864.94, its highest level of the year.The Nasdaq Composite was up 15.35 points or 0.72% at 2,139.28.The Standard and Poor's 500 added 6.01 points or 0.56% to 1,071.49.At its closing level the Dow was up 4% over the week, with the Nasdaq and Standard and Poor's 500 each adding 4.5...

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Gold at fresh record, equities buoyant

LONDON -- Gold hit a fresh record high on Thursday as the dollar struggled, while emerging market stocks climbed to their highest level this year.European shares opened more than 1% higher ahead of interest rate decisions from the Bank of England and European Central Bank.Neither was expected to change rates.Market sentiment was also given a boost after aluminum giant Alcoa posted a surprise profit on Wednesday after three consecutive quarterly losses.The company is the first major report in the U.S. third-quarter earnings season.Spot gold topped US$1,058 per ounce to mark a record high for the third session in a row. It has primarily been driven...

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Citigroup dumps Phibro, avoids showdown with US

NEW YORK—Citigroup Inc. is removing one of the irritants in its relationship with the government, its Phibro commodities trading division that is paying one trader an estimated $100 million this year.The deal announced Friday carries a tradeoff for Citigroup: While the $250 million sale to Occidental Petroleum Corp. means a bit less government scrutiny, it also means the bank is losing hundreds of millions of dollars in annual income that could help repay $49 billion in bailout money.Phibro, which makes most of its money through oil and natural gas trades, earned an average $371 million annually during the past five years. Citigroup sold it for...

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Success of Treasury's Foreclosure Prevention Program Questioned

A day after the Obama administration announced it had met the goal of modifying 500,000 mortgage loans three weeks before its self-imposed goal of Nov. 1, a congressional watchdog has raised numerous questions about the program's ultimate success. The Congressional Oversight Panel found "there is reason to doubt" whether the $50 billion Treasury Department program aimed at modifying mortgages for three to four million homeowners in the next three years "will be possible due to problems with the program's scope, scale and permanence.""The program is limited to certain mortgage configurations," the panel noted, saying that many adjustable-rate...

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Citigroup Dumps Phibro, Avoids Showdown With US

Citigroup Inc. is removing one of the irritants in its relationship with the government, its Phibro commodities trading division that is paying one trader an estimated $100 million this year.The deal announced Friday carries a tradeoff for Citigroup: While the $250 million sale to Occidental Petroleum Corp. means a bit less government scrutiny, it also means the bank is losing hundreds of millions of dollars in annual income that could help repay $49 billion in bailout money.Phibro, which makes most of its money through oil and natural gas trades, earned an average $371 million annually during the past five years. Citigroup sold it for about...

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Wall St. rises on profit optimism

Stock markets in the United States rose yesterday amid signs the global economy was recovering and optimism that corporate earnings reports will beat expectations.Expectations of a rebound in revenue and earnings for the recently ended third quarter fed the optimism. Quarterly earnings are due to kick off late today, with results from aluminum company Alcoa Inc.The Dow Jones industrial average was up 131.50 points, or 1.4%, at 9731.25. The S&P 500 was up 14.26 points, or 1.4%, at 1054.72. The Nasdaq was up 35.42 points, or 1.7%, at 2103.57.It was the market's second day of gains, after marking its second week of losses on Friday. The S&P...

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What Does a Nobel Do for U.S. Leaders?

The Nobel committee said it awarded the Peace Prize to President Obama for his “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation.” The surprising news drew mixed reactions around the world, with many applauding the choice and others saying the award seemed premature and based on intentions, not accomplishments.What does the award mean for Mr. Obama? Will it help or hurt him in domestic politics and in international relations? What impact did the Peace Prize have on the standing of other American leaders who received it, starting with Theodore Roosevelt?...

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Taking the shape of Vietnam

Recent history is haunting America as it tries to find success in Afghanistan, writes Anne Davies.Eight US soldiers dead and 30 Afghan police captured. The Taliban raid on an isolated US outpost in Nuristan a week ago seemed to represent all that is wrong with America's conduct of war in Afghanistan. It could not have come at a worse time for President Barack Obama.Here was an under-resourced US army effort, a wily and brazen Taliban and a local population willing to conceal 300 insurgents until they were ready to charge. The planned closure of the base was delayed because the US army could not provide the transport needed to shift it.All this...

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Twitter crashes after Barack Obama awarded Nobel Peace Prize

Social networking site Twitter crashed on Friday as millions of users around the world joined the debate over Barack Obama being awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. The site went into meltdown at lunchtime yesterday amid the sheer weight of people commenting on the news, which comes just ten months into his first term in power.The problem was quickly identified and repaired, but Twitter fans experienced issues throughout the afternoon. Obama was the most popular 'trending topic' - or subject of discussion - for much of yesterday.Traffic to Twitter also increased after NASA's LCROSS mission to the Moon ended with the rocket crashing into the surface...

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U.S. Economy: Trade Gap Unexpectedly Shrank in August

Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in August as exports climbed to the highest level of the year and oil imports plunged.The gap fell 3.6 percent to $30.7 billion from a revised $31.9 billion in July, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. The 0.2 percent increase in demand for American- made goods abroad would have been larger excluding a drop in aircraft shipments, which tend to be volatile.More than $2 trillion in government stimulus programs are reviving demand from Asia to Europe, ensuring American factories benefit from growing sales overseas as the dollar weakens. Gains in production and the...

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Why Is the Price of Gold So High?

Question: Why is the price of gold at a record high? And how does that affect the dollar?Paul Solman: Gold is denominated in dollars. So if gold goes up, it means the dollar has gone down, because it takes more dollars to buy the same amount of gold. Now why would ANYONE invest in gold, you might well ask? It doesn't pay interest. It's a pain to store and hold. I love this exchange, cut down some for clarity and space, with Oakland, CA gold dealer Charlie Mammoser, whom I interviewed a year ago:Charlie Mammoser: I've had people come in, and they say, "I want to buy 10, 20, 40 ounces of gold." And they go get the money out of the bank, and they...

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GM Agrees to Sell Hummer Brand to China’s Tengzhong

ct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co. agreed to sell its Hummer sport-utility vehicle brand to China’s Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. and another investor, nine days after an accord to unload the Saturn unit collapsed.Tengzhong intends to buy Hummer through an investment group in which it will hold 80 percent, and Suolang Duoji will hold the rest, the companies said in a statement on GM’s Web site. Duoji’s holdings include Hong Kong-based Lumena Resources Corp.Disposing of Hummer is a victory for GM in its post- bankruptcy restructuring after the sale of the Saturn unit to Penske Automotive Group Inc. fell through last week....

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