GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks hit 2009 highs, U.S. dollar skids

Asian shares swept to their highest levels for 2009 on Wednesday after upbeat U.S. economic news boosted riskier assets leveraged to global growth, while the U.S. dollar slipped to a one-year low.
Commodities also benefited from the wave of optimism, with gold spiking to an 18-month high above $1,016 an ounce and crude oil briefly climbing above $71 a barrel.
Most major Asian stock indexes posted gains of 1 percent or more in the wake of Tuesday's strong reading on U.S. retail sales, with exporting countries leading the way.
South Korea's KOSPI climbed 1.8 percent to a 15-month closing peak, while Australia's resource-packed S&P/ASX 200 index jumped 2.4 percent to an 11-month high.
'The sentiment is phenomenal. Right across the board it's green as a vegetable garden in spring,' said Michael Heffernan, senior client adviser and strategist, Austock Group in Sydney.
'It's chalk and cheese compared to a year ago when there was no confidence. Now people are gradually getting confidence back. The sentiment and the ambience of the market is decidedly upbeat,' he said.
While Heffernan was referring to the Australian market, his sentiment seemed to be shared across the region.
The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan rose 2.1 percent to its highest this year. The MSCI benchmark is now up about 53.5 percent for the year.
Investors even managed to look past a 1 percent decline in the volatile Shanghai market, virtually the only regional market to ease on Wednesday.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei added a more modest 0.5 percent, restrained in part by uncertainty over the economic policies of the new government.
Japan's new prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, takes office on Wednesday and is set to announce his cabinet line-up after a huge election win.

Forex 101 - Introduction to Foreign Exchange

Foreign Exchange is an international financial market place where money is sold and bought freely. It is a non-stop cash market where you speculate on changes in exchange rates of foreign currencies. Forex operates through a global network of banks, corporations and individuals trading one currency for another but has no physical location and no central exchange not just like other financial markets.
The Forex market spans from one zone to another in all major financial centers on a 24- hour basis since it has no physical exchange. Since there is no centralized exchange for currencies to be sold or bought, forex is considered to be an over- the counter market or what is called OTC. Banks and forex dealers are connected around the world via internet, fax and telephone to form the Forex market. Read through this article, introduction to forex, in order to know more about forex trading as well as its purpose and many more. Learning forex enables us to know some forex terms, codes, numbers and definitions. Forex trading 101 or the introduction to forex trading will enable us to know how forex works and how to make money with currency trading on forex.
The foreign exchange market began in the 1970's when free exchange rates and floating currencies were introduced. Before retail investors can access the foreign exchange market through banks that transacted large amounts of currencies for commercial and investment purposes. After exchange rates were allowed to float freely in 1971, trading volume has increased rapidly over period of time. Now the Foreign Exchange Market that we see made importers and exporters, international portfolio managers, multinational corporations, speculators, day traders, long-term holders and hedge funds all use the Forex market in order to pay for goods and services, transact in financial assets or to reduce the risk of currency movements by hedging their exposure in other markets.

Market participants

Unlike a stock market, where all participants have access to the same prices, the foreign exchange market is divided into levels of access. At the top is the inter-bank market, which is made up of the largest investment banking firms. Within the inter-bank market, spreads, which are the difference between the bid and ask prices, are razor sharp and usually unavailable, and not known to players outside the inner circle. The difference between the bid and ask prices widens (from 0-1 pip to 1-2 pips for some currencies such as the EUR). This is due to volume. If a trader can guarantee large numbers of transactions for large amounts, they can demand a smaller difference between the bid and ask price, which is referred to as a better spread. The levels of access that make up the foreign exchange market are determined by the size of the "line" (the amount of money with which they are trading). The top-tier inter-bank market accounts for 53% of all transactions. After that there are usually smaller investment banks, followed by large multi-national corporations (which need to hedge risk and pay employees in different countries), large hedge funds, and even some of the retail FX-metal market makers. According to Galati and Melvin, “Pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, and other institutional investors have played an increasingly important role in financial markets in general, and in FX markets in particular, since the early 2000s.” (2004) In addition, he notes, “Hedge funds have grown markedly over the 2001–2004 period in terms of both number and overall size” Central banks also participate in the foreign exchange market to align currencies to their economic needs.

WB to give Pakistan $350m for 3 projects

ISLAMABAD: World Bank will give USD 350 million loan to be spent on promoting higher education, social security projects and the improvement of water resources, Geo News reported Tuesday. Government of Pakistan and World Bank signed three agreements in this connection here at Economic Affairs Division. According to the agreements, $200 million would be spent on developing social security net, $100 million on promoting higher education and remaining $50 million on development of irrigation system in Sindh.

Asian stock markets narrowly mixed

HONG KONG: Asian markets were narrowly mixed Tuesday after Wall Street shrugged off trade tensions between the U.S. and China to end at its highest point in nearly a year. The dollar clawed back some losses against the yen, while oil prices hovered below $69 a barrel. The slight gains in some markets followed Wall Street, where major benchmarks bounced back after sliding early in the day as investors eyed a brewing trade dispute between the U.S. and China. But analysts said a full-out trade war was highly unlikely given how much is at stake for the two increasingly intertwined economies. Global markets have recovered much of their losses since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. a year ago froze the financial system and deepened the world downturn. With little in the way of economic data, company announcements and government policy changes to drive the markets, many investors were waiting for reasons to buy in the short term, said Andrew Orchard, Asian strategist for Royal Bank of Scotland in Hong Kong. "Liquidity is still strong, and until they remove the excess liquidity, theres a good chance of the markets will keep rising," Orchard said. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 stock average was up just 0.1 point at 10,202.16, and Shanghais benchmark was off 0.1 percent at 3,022.94. Australias index was fractionally lower. Hong Kongs stock market was closed in the morning following a typhoon. Most other markets were higher, with Koreas Kospi adding 1 percent to 1,651.58 and Indias Sensex rising 0.9 percent to 16,301.15. Taiwans benchmark added 1.1 percent. Overnight in the U.S., major benchmarks posted moderate gains, with Utility AES Corp. helping pull the market higher after The Wall Street Journal reported that Chinas investment arm is interested in buying a stake in the company. The Dow rose 21.39, or 0.2 percent, to 9,626.80. The broader Standard Poors 500 index rose 6.61, or 0.6 percent, to 1,049.34, an 11-month high. The Nasdaq composite index rose 10.88, or 0.5 percent, to 2,091.78. U.S. markets were headed for a muted open. Dow futures were flat at 9,611 and SP futures climbed 6.3, or 0.6 percent, to 1,047.90. Oil prices were down modestly in Asia as investors weighed concerns about weak crude demand against optimism of a global economic recovery. Benchmark crude for October delivery fell 14 cents at $68.72. On Monday, the contract fell 43 cents to settle at $68.86. The dollar gained to 91.05 yen from 90.89 yen. The euro fell to $1.4615 from $1.4627.

Tucson Latest Testbed for Nissan’s Electric Cars

The Japanese automaker is working with Ecotality, a battery-charging technology company, to deploy an EV charging network in the Tucson metropolitan area. The announcement comes as a growing number of automakers develop plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles and join EV advocates and energy companies in creating the infrastructure to keep them going. Nissan and its parent company, Renault, are especially bullish on electric cars and have launched EV initiatives in several states and countries.
"This partnership represents a major step toward making zero emissions a reality in the Tucson metro area," Dominique Thormann, a senior VP for Nissan North America, said in a statement. "We are looking forward to working with our partners in fostering the development and acceptance of electric vehicles as the smart, environmentally sound choice."

As hybrid cars gobble rare metals, shortage looms

Honda Motor Co's chief executive Takanobu Ito walks past a CR-Z car at a showroom in Tokyo July 13, 2009. Honda Motor Co plans to launch its CR-Z hybrid sports car in February next year, as it aims to bring more hybrid models to market quickly to tap growing demand.