BUSINESS

Treasurer Swan not so keen of ASX-SGX merger

Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX) has been informed that there is a big possibility that its proposal to $8.4-billion take over the local Australian bourse will be rejected by Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan.

RBA Becoming A Parrot

By Greg Peel“The recent disaster in Japan will have a noticeable effect on Japanese production in the near term, although the impact on the broader Asian region is expected to be limited”.That was it – that was the RBA's entire summation of the world events occurring between the release of the previous monetary policy statement on March 1 and today's release, and their impact on ...
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Uranium Fears Overblown?

By Greg PeelAs at the end of March, industry consultant TradeTech's spot uranium price indicator sat at US$58.50/lb, down US$1.50 from the previous week and down US$11.00 from end-February. The big drop reflects the panic surrounding the disaster at Fukushima and its potential longer term impact on uranium demand.In the thinly traded spot market, panic selling has been driven by speculators caught...

Australian Dollar Outlook 4/5/2011

Stock markets were fairly quiet overnight despite more M&A activity. The AUD/USD remains just under the 1.0400 level this morning as the market awaits comments from the RBA’s meeting this afternoon.

The Overnight Report: Oil Cracks 120

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed up 23 points or 0.2% while the S&P was steady at 1332 and the Nasdaq was also steady.Volume on Wall Street was very light last night but it is noteworthy the Dow's close at 12,400 means the first close above the February high of 12,391. The S&P 500 is meeting technical resistance at 1333, being the 100% move up from the March 2009 bottom, and is still short of its Februa...

Management: Woolies Changes CEOs

Coles Group's fierce price cutting counter attack in the past year seems to have resulted in Woolworths' CEO Michael Luscombe retiring.The news, which didn't come as a surprise to the market with the change tipped in two media reports yesterday, was conveyed in a statement to the ASX.Mr Lucombe will retire at the end of September after five years as CEO and will be replaced by Grant...

The Economy: Job Ads Solid, Especially On The Net

Another strong month for job ads according to the ANZ's survey for March, but the reality is that it was a solid month for jobs advertised on the net.Newspaper ads were soft, rising 0.2% and continuing the less than solid trend seen for most of the past couple of years.Internet job ads rose 1.4% in March and were the main driver behind the 1.3% overall rise in job ads to 195,913.That was up f...

Updates: Wesfarmers Win Big Coal Price Rise

Wesfarmers' resources division has won a 53% price rise for its coking coal exports for the June quarter.The company told the ASX yesterday that the price for the June quarter will be $US328 a tonne, compared to the $US221 a tonne for the previous quarter.Wesfarmers said that "weighted average US$FOB for new contract prices of Curragh metallurgical coal (hard coking, semi-hard coking and PCI)...

Japan fails to stop radioactive leak

Japanese officials said they failed on Sunday in repeated attempts to seal a crack they had identified as one source of radioactive water leak into the Pacific.

QIAGEN to acquire Australian diagnostics company Cellestis

QIAGEN N.V. (NASDAQ: QGEN; Frankfurt, Prime Standard: QIA) has reached an agreement to acquire Cellestis Ltd (CST: AU) for approximately A$341 million (US$355 million) in cash, providing QIAGEN with access to a novel"pre-molecular" technology that offers a new dimension in disease detection not currently possible with other diagnostic methods.

The New Global LNG Dynamic

(This story was originally published on March 25, 2011. It has now been re-published to make it in full available to non-paying members at FNArena and to readers elsewhere).- Japan has an immediate need for LNG- Japan, and the world, may now turn away from nuclear and toward LNG- Australian producers will not benefit in the short term, but should in the long term- US shale gas looms as a possible ...

Australian Dollar Outlook 4/4/2011

The Australian Dollar touched another post-float high this morning above 1.0400 after a stronger than anticipated jobs number from the US on Friday evening.

NAB Offers Value, Says DJ Carmichael

- NAB's retail banking operations are improving, notes DJ Carmichael- NAB is gaining retail market share and the stockbroker believes NAB is attractive relative to peers- NAB and WBC outperformed CBA and ANZ, which throws up a question mark about relative valuationsBy Chris Shaw and Rudi Filapek-VandyckThe FNArena database shows a Sentiment Indicator reading for National Australia Bank ((NAB)) of ...

Daily Forex Forecast 04/04/2011

The Australian Dollar hit fresh 29-year highs on Friday night after US employers added more jobs than forecast last month fuelling another session of risk appetite.

Commodities: US Dollar Weakness To Hit

Commodities finished the week in a fairly convincing fashion, except for gold and copper, and look like having another reasonable week with the US dollar expected to be weak ahead of the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday that is seen as putting up rates for the first time in several years.That meeting is considered highly likely to boost the ECB's main rate of 0.25% to 1.25% in a sign...

Brambles takes control of IFCO

Australian logistics firm Brambles Ltd (ASX: BXB) took majority control of IFCO Systems N.V. through completion of its sale and purchase agreements with Apax Partners and another IFCO shareholder on 31 March 2011, Central European Time.

Drug maker Biota secures US$231 million contract from US govt

Biota Holdings Ltd (ASX:BTA) says the US government has awarded an estimated US$231 million contract to its wholly owned US subsidiary for the advanced development of Laninamivir, an influenza antiviral, known as a long acting neuraminidase inhibitor (LANI) and a unique treatment for influenza.

15 Queen Anne Court real estate ad goes viral

After receiving thousands of hits on their sexy advertisement for a Gold Coast property in February, NEO Property has done it again with its latest promo video. The short film for 15 Queen Anne Court still features Australian real estate agents Ian Adams and Adrian Jenkins and once again stars the scantily clad Elle Polson.

Strong Aussie dollar crimps manufacturing growth in March

The strong Australian dollar along with weak domestic demand, rising overseas competition and increasing cost of raw materials dragged the manufacturing sector back into the red in March according to the latest Australian Performance of Manufacturing Index.

Forex Market Insight Report 01/04/2011

What's moving the currency market? Here's the top headline from ForexCT's Market Insight Report 01/04/2011 delivered to you by the International Business Times AU.

Silver At Key Technical Levels

FNArena has added another video to its Investors Education section on the website. Analysis by ATW's Jerry Simmons suggests silver is at key technical price levels. Simmons identifies key technical levels that will either limit silver's upside, or provide confirmation that new highs should be expected.Some of the key items in this video broadcast are:- Comprehensive analysis of the Silver market r...

Australian Investors Concerned About An Uncertain Market

- A Joint Survey by FNArena and AIA shows investors in Australia remain cautious short term- Average portfolios hold 19% in cash- Elevated house prices in Australia are also cited as a key area for concern Investors in Australia remain cautious about the outlook for the Australian share market. The inaugural Australian Investor Sentiment Survey for March, conducted via two separate surveys in the ...

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